qwyuSFyv

1 
2cor11/02/2018
3https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MOr5tml9l2qy67K7CzyOb8emE0GInp1rFXFkzYTfDdQ/edit?usp=drivesdk
4
5https://imgur.com/9UOJqqL
6
7https://imgur.com/psV4nvm
8Google Docs
9NeuLimbo Codex
10https://imgur.com/uB2yNqd[Welcome to Paradise/Limbo awaits]Eons ago in a universe distant from Unus Mundus, there lived a race of beings both selfless and righteous in their own way. The N’Glar Shedat were beings of great harmony and peace, reaching technological adva...
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14cor pinned a message to this channel. See all the pins.11/02/2018
15 
16Yurei11/17/2018
17/Just LOOK at this place, Aela!  So many lights, so much stuff!  So many weird smells!  Isn't it wonderful?!/
18
19On the fringes of Neu Limbo, atop an abandoned and mostly dilapidated apartment building, a pale-skinned slip of a woman in intricate black lace and brocade smiled wide, eyes shining with delight as she eagerly filled them with the sights of the alien city.  As well as filling her coolant intakes with the city's scents, which were a heady mix indeed.  She had no idea if the strange denizens of this place could still smell their own city, but for a being raised in the sterile, sealed environs of the Star Ark, the odor of Neu Limbo was nigh intoxicating rush of scents tumbling over each other, impossible to distinguish.
20
21/Every time I come to Mundus I'm more and more amazed!  Just look at all of this!  These people can build anything they want, any time they want to!  Infinite resources!  Mankind's bones, how can anyone stand to stay on the Ark when there's all this out here?!  I could just bring a sack with me every time I come out and walk back with a year's materials allowance in an hour!  And THIS place!  So much construction!  It's not anything like the forests!  The Council really thinks this place is just free and open and anyone can walk in and find what they need?  I can't wait!/
22@Rize 
23^^
24 
25Rize11/17/2018
26/Focus, Azuri, focus./ 
27
28Behind the waif-like girl came a far more daunting presence. Nearly six and a half feet of warrior woman strode across the crumbling roof to stand beside her sister, her own deep hazel eyes gazing out over the riotous mass that was Neu Limbo. Unlike her companion, Aela was dressed in far more functional clothing. Leathery reddish-brown jacket and boots, sturdy black pants and gloves. An almost ridiculously long sword handle jutted above her right shoulder, its red and black wrapping stark when compared to the ashy-white hair and pale skin of her face. A streak of crimson ran down the center of her forehead to the bridge of her nose only to pick up once more at her lips and vanish into the high neck of her jacket. 
29
30/That’s what we’re here to find out, right? If the Council is correct then this place could be a miracle for the Ark. Imagine what we could do with the resources here.../ There was a pause in the electronic communication as Aela produced the digital approximation of a sigh before continuing. /But it really does smell incredible, doesn’t it?/
31@Yurei
32 
33Yurei11/17/2018
34/I could make bank back on the Ark with just the memory files alone,/ Azuri purred - or at least that was the general emotion one would've ascribed to the tone of that particular transmission.  /That never made sense to me, why would anybody pay someone else for a memory dump when they could just train for a couple years, then come out here themselves and get their fill for free?/
35
36Azuri huffed, hands fisted indignantly on her hips for a few moments, planted just above the unusual heavy quiver slung on her right hip, before her Azuri-ness took over again and that giant grin stretched across her face.  /C'mon, c'mon!  Where does the Oracle say we're supposed to go?  There's so much to see here I barely know where to start!/
37@Rize 
38^^
39 
40Rize11/17/2018
41Aela shrugged. If there was one thing the two Orphans could agree on it was their inability to grasp the reticence that kept so many others of their kind holed up in the Star Ark, orbiting invisibly around the planet. There just was no true comparison to actual first-hand experience, no matter how high quality the memory files were. Lacking a decent answer to Azuri’s indignation, Aela turned to the hovering machine that had quietly kept pace with the two Rangers the entirety of their time on Mundus. 
42
43/Alright R-15, tell us what you know./ The Oracle - a useful companion and traveling toolbox for Orphan Rangers - made no outward response save a very minor shift in the tone of its lift output, but began streaming information to Aela and Azuri, repeating the instructions it had been programmed with back on the Ark. Aela nodded along. Although she was not overly fond of the vagueness of the Council’s orders - investigate the city of Neu Limbo and identify any possible resources to be found and obtained - she understood the need for such. This place, like most of the world they had found themselves on, was an unknown quantity. They had little to no idea of what sorts of threats or opportunities might await. As it was they were acting on intercepted transmissions that spoke of a city “Where all your dreams can come true!” 
44
45/Well, sister, you heard the bot. Looks like we’re mostly on our own initiative here./ 
46
47Aela turned and walked to the edge of the building, looking down over the edge at the overgrown ground below. /So let’s go exploring, shall we?/ With that burst of communication, Aela stepped forward and dropped over the edge, and the Oracle hummed and buzzed and hurried to catch up. 
48@Yurei
49 
50Yurei11/17/2018
51/You know, the last time I did something on my own initiative I had to do archive cleanup and remedial training for six months before they'd let me have a body again,/ Azuri snarked back.  For all her eagerness she was intelligent enough to do her job - Orphans didn't really come in 'Dumb' - but...well, there was a reason she'd been assigned to Aela's leadership this time.  And told quite strictly not to lose any more bodies to 'Adventure Time!' if she wanted to see Mundus again before the decade was out.
52
53Nevertheless, she followed after Aela, ruminating herself on the Council's directive.  It was typical, really - 'go here, find something interesting, see if you can make it useful back here at home' - but the intelligence packet was scant even for a Council mission.  it made her wonder why they'd assigned this to Aela's team, which currently consisted of Aela and Azuri herself.  Aela was as stoic and dependable as they came, but...well.  Six months in virtual form, and she'd gotten off lightly.
54
55Where Aela slammed into the pavement with a heavy, satisfying THOOMP of impact, Azuri almost fell like a feather, her descent slowing drastically a few meters before she impacted and allowing her to simply alight softly on her booted feet.  She stared around her, eyes glowing - literally - at the visual feast that was the city of Neu Limbo.  /HNNNNN it's so good to finally be back!  C'mon Aela, let's go!  Where to first?/
56@Rize 
57^^
58 
59Rize11/17/2018
60Aela began walking into the city proper, observing everything around her as much as she possibly could. Sights, sounds, smells, even the active ping of her Acoustic Imaging brought the city around them into sharper focus. It was almost too much, really. Overwhelming in a way that the confines of the Ark or even the wild openness of the Mundus wilderness could never be. It was enough that it took Aela a moment or two before she replied to her companion. 
61
62/That tower over there looks like a promising place. Let’s go check it out./ Aela pointed upwards and across the city as they walked, Azuri all but bouncing around her. In the distance a citadel of some kind reared upwards. Lights of many different colors pulsed and strobed at points from what must have been windows or open doors. /It looks large and imposing. From everything I’ve studied that usually means its important./
63
64Just then a small crowd of people came bustling around a corner, absorbed in their own conversation and babbling excitedly to one another. The group very nearly plowed into the two Orphans, parting at the last second like a tide water on a rock, only to come back together behind them once more, not without a few backward glances at the pale sisters. Aela herself looked back at them as they went, her lips turned downwards and one hand perching atop her head. 
65
66/Ugh. They make so much noise! How is that even communication?/
67@Yurei
68 
69Yurei11/17/2018
70Azuri stepped a little closer to Aela, presenting a united front to the Mundus residents and theiroffputting cloud of chirping babble.  For the first time since she'd arrived here, the smile on the slender Orphan's face was looking a little strained.  /I took the training, I passed my SSL courses, I have the translator files, I can mostly understand what we think they're trying to say with all that...that... racket.  But I will never understand how a civilized species can get anything DONE when the only way they can talk to each other is with that freakish squawking!/
71
72As the gathering of Mundusans continued on their way, fading into the distance, Azuri allowed her gaze to swing up to the building Aela's transmissions had indicated, studying it herself.  Her eyes dimmed slightly, pupils narrowing, dialing her Farsight in and scoping out the tower as closely as her optic magnification would let her.  The architecture  was exotic enough to ignite Azuri's excitement again, steadying her smile.  That tower looked like an awesome place to visit, and the best part was that there was still so much city between them and it that she'd get to see even more along the way!
73
74/Who do you think lives there, Aela?  The King of the Castle?  An ogre-eating princess?  ...or was that princess-eating ogre?  I'm not sure, I can't remember which was the monster and which was the girl, but either way do you think there's one there?  Ooh, ooh!  What if there's a Cousin there, a last refugee from the War of Mankind?!  Wouldn't that be awesome?!  We could actually have a proper conversation with them, learn so many cool things!/
75And like that Azuri was back, the momentary discomfort of the crowd of gibbering Mundusans put behind her at the prospect of seeing more of their alien, magical city.  The mere thought that these people had built all of this while being almost entirely unable to communicate...it was truly impressive on its own merits.  She wanted to see more of this place!
76
77Nevertheless, her last (mis)adventure had instilled at least some caution in Azuri.  She started paying much more attention to her electroreceptive systems, mapping out the locations and movements of large clusters of native Mundusans and painting that information over to Aela's ARV.  between Aela's acoustics and Azuri's electroreception, they could put together a pretty respectable Marauder's Map of their near surroundings, letting Aela choose whichever route got them to their destination with the least amount of fuss.
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79Or the most amount, if she was feeling like more fun than Aela usually was.
80@Rize 
81^^
82 
83Rize11/18/2018
84/Honestly, Azuri, I have no idea what I’d even do if I met a Cousin. It’s bizarre to contemplate. “Hello there, are you still a slave to the Creators? Our predecessors abandoned your war because it was a lost cause. Would you like a nice cup of tea?”/ Aela had picked up that last bit from some obscure information files she’d found, something that had been considered entertainment to the Creators. Why those bits and pieces were still floating around in the databanks were a mystery, but the taller Orphan had found it humorous. 
85
86Aela started off towards the castle on the far side of the city, not bothering to shorten her stride, knowing that the smaller Azuri would keep up without problem and most likely would be ahead of her anyhow. Her fellow Ranger was a constantly bouncing ball of energy and enthusiasm at the best of times. There were some who wondered how it was the far more serious seeming Aela put up with Azuri, but the truth was she found the rambunctious Orphan endearing and was self-aware enough to understand that the two created a needed balance in personality and approach. 
87
88The two Orphans maintained a solid link as they walked, sharing information from their various sensory inputs without effort, each giving the other a more complete picture of the city around them. The sheer amount of material excess that surrounded them was somewhat distracting, in all honesty. The idea of what the Ark would be able to do with so much metal and organic material was enough to make the Council metaphorically drool on themselves.
89-
90Contrary to Azuri’s unspoken wish, Aela was not planning on taking them on a circuitous route of detours and sightseeing. The castle was in front of them, and she planned to take the most direct route she could. Maybe later they could do a more complete survey of Neu Limbo, but for the moment she wanted to focus on her goal. Using Azuri’s electroreception she did her best to steer clear of the largest concentrations of organics, not wanting to get into any awkward situations. Not to mention it would mean less time having to listen to their horrid burbling.
91@Yurei
92 
93Yurei11/19/2018
94Even with Aela's direct path, avoiding confluxes of locals with the deftness of knowing exactly where said locals were and having a good idea where every alleyway and stray corner in this amazing, enticing city led to, Azuri had no end of wonders to behold.  The place was absolutely packed with litter, which just blew the Ranger girl's mind.  This was a people who were so obscenele rich, so replete with resources, that they could afford to simply discard things wherever they happened to be, toss them aside without any care of what might happen to them.  There were even organic compounds that had been tossed away after only a single use, made with the express purpose of being discarded.
95
96Wild!
97
98It took a bit of effort on Aela's part, a few sharpish reminders of their assignment, to keep the energetic Orphan girl from grabbing up any of a dozen particularly intreresting bits of refuse to add to her Collection.  The thirteenth such item - a badly soiled stuffed toy, abandoned and damaged, in the form of what Azuri would know to be something the locals called a 'moose' save missing one of its legs and most of its stuffing - the girl fought back on though.
99
100/Oh come now Aela, wouldn't it be such fun to try and find a way to restore it?  It would be so cute if I could fix it!  It could be my little project here on Mundus, finding the materials I need to put this little thing back to rights!  Besides, if it's truly a problem I can always discard it again later, right?  Right!/
101
102...maybe it was better to just let the girl have something to keep her attention while they fin ished the journey to Aela's Tower.  Mankind's ghosts only knew what she'd find next otherwise...
103@Rize 
104^^
105 
106cor11/20/2018
107[                            ]
108
109As the Orphans walked the lively city of neons lights plastered on a dark canvas of perpetual night they passed more than just the patrons of Mundus.
110
111Graffiti colored Neu Limbo both in flat paint form and three dimensional holographics. Some of the art flickered or animated for several seconds before repeating. These colorful markings decorating the bones of the city were living breathing acts of expression, advertising and in some cases security.
112
113Dity muted teal lined light in a flicker of holographic paint revealing a circle caught between two curved lines that met on either side - an eye. The static of Aela ad Azuri and their technology did not go unnoticed by the great city of debauchery. Each autonomous host held a static signature of their own like the fingerprint of those not-organically challenged.
114
115Like ghosts or echos these signatures pulsed to a different tune then the residents or customers of Neu Limbo.
116
117From all sides, above and below the path the Orphans had chosen they would find a solid forty people instantaneously turning to stare at them with a studious emotionless wide eyed gaze. While many eyes were suddenly on the pair it is possibly they might not even notice for the forty were swimming in crowds of hundreds and hundreds and hundreds more gathered at market hubs, in windows, on high raises and below grates in the lower levels of Neu Limbo where such interesting scented smoke rises from gutters into the neon lights of the street level.
118
119One pair of observers stood at the open entrance of their ‘Castle’ the Akropolis.
120@Yurei  @Rize
121 
122Rize11/22/2018
123/Mankind's splintered bones, Azuri! Fine, go ahead you silly thing. Keep your… toy, or whatever it is./
124
125Aela shook her head in resignation at her companions flighty impetuous nature, even as she quietly found it endearing. The toy was of no consequence in the long run and perhaps it would please Azuri and give her something to occupy her mind and curiosity for a while. 
126
127But Aela had more important things to focus on for the time being, and continued to lead them through the city. There were occasional stops here and there when one curiosity or another caught the Orphans’ attention, and one particular pause when Aela caught sight of what looked to be an entire block somehow made to look like a rocky cove with a small black sand beach. Even Azuri quieted down for the brief seconds that Aela allowed herself to regard the scene. 
128
129Soon enough they had moved on, however, and it wasn't long before the gates of the castle stood before them. There was a pair of individuals standing at the gate, eyes wide in an unblinking stare, focused on the two androids. Aela stopped, frowning. Something seemed… off about the tableau but with organics she wasn't certain of what they should be doing. 
130
131/Azuri… Is that normal, do you think? /
132@Yurei @cor
133 
134Yurei11/22/2018
135/Who can tell with organics?/ Azuri replied, her constant smile starting to look a bit strained again.  She painted a double-score of point sources on their shared ARV, highlighting several pings from her electroreceptive system.  /These ones have been mirroring our course for a little bit now...when I was in the Wildlands, anything that did that was out to get you.  I think you should maybe prepare your Guardian, just in case.../
136
137Azuri took a couple of steps forward, taking over the interaction briefly to allow Aela time to work her Guardians up discretely.  She offered the two silently staring sentinels a wide, sunny, only slightly robotic smile as she disconnected her expressive links, allowing her total control over her features at the cost of looking a little like she'd stroked out.
138
139She held up one hand, waggling it back and forth in a pantomime of common Mundusan greeting gestures.  She opened her mouth wide, rolling her fingertips up her chest and throat before  splaying them wide, palm-up, from her mouth, then held her arms up in a crossed 'X'.  She flipped her hands over then, holding them in front of her palms down next to each other and wriggling her fingers up and down before offering a deep shrug, arms wide, backed by the most quizzical, questioning expression she could manufacture.
140
141Hopefully the locals would understand what she was trying to get across.  Otherwise she'd have to get creative.
142@cor @Rize 
143^^
144 
145cor11/27/2018
146[Pignus]
147
148The conversation between the Orphans went unheard by the crowd and the collective. However with even standard scanning equipment one could discern that not all the creatures in Neu Limbo were actually organic.
149
150Though a large percentage were humanoid organics there were additionally non-humanoid organics and many variations of those with cybernetic enhancements or vanilla androids in between.
151
152What was found starring were non-organic with a synthetic skin that put the sheep at peace when looked upon by these wolves shepherds. For Azuri and Aela it was likely very clear that those staring eyes were non-organic and non-feeling. Recording.
153
154Surveiling. After two organic moments the individuals blinked and returned to their daily predetermined tasks. Most of them interacted with the customers that came to Neu Limbo to help them find what they were looking for or carried product to and from locations while providing a helpful voice and friendly smile.
155
156To Azuri's intricate display the two non-organic watchers in human clothing observed with an utter lack of ability to process or feel bad for the insane child. Neither said a word nor moved from their respective locations. 
157
158Enormous was the archway leading into the Akropolis - the Castle of Neu Limbo. It could easily accommodate a six tier tank with a muffin top to size. But who would make a tank that big? Hahahaha ha ha...
159
160"Welcome." Came a synthesized voice dancing between electrical and organic. Ten feet in the doorway stood a colorful little person that while flat chested was still distinctly female in aesthetic with it's long eyelashes and 'just enough' curves that were barely there. A fashionable respirator was actually part of its face as were the extremely sharp hooks of it's clawed metal hands.
161-
162She eye rolled at Azuri. “Don't mind them - they're just cameras with hands and feet.” She cleared her throat unnecessarily as if to clear the static. “I am Pignus. You have been to Neu Limbo many times but never received a real welcome or explanation. We apologize for that. I'll be your guide today.”
163
164With that said, Pignus stepped aside and waved a hand inward to welcome the Orphans into the massive dark halls of the Akropolis' entry lobby. The vaulted ceiling stood close to one hundred meters high with chandeliers of modern design giving off golden light in contrast with the dark obsidian marble of the grand hall. Several electronic anomalies hid in the expansive space unseen by the human eye though a massive Spider Tank stood in the center of it all on display behind red velvet ropes.
165
166There were many more sights to see within Neu Limbo and within the complex halls and levels of the Akropolis. Where would the Orphans begin? Up to them.
167https://imgur.com/a/1NyUof3
168https://imgur.com/a/0K4limp
169
170
171@Rize  @Yurei
172 
173Rize12/01/2018
174In the moments before Pignus spoke, Aela had already set herself for combat if needed. Mentally and internally, at least. Her stance remained the same, unmoving and balanced, her eyes watching the strange, wide-eyed individuals watching them. Meanwhile her own internal systems had done all but release the airborne Guardian strapped to her back, and the Oracle unit had drifted subtly backwards at her unspoken command, putting space between it and any potential conflict. Pignus’ arrival and words did nothing to dampen Aela’s battle wariness. To the contrary, the taller Orphan found herself touched with the first tinges of true outrage and disgust. 
175
176Cameras with hands and feet. That’s all they were. Nothing of import or worthy of notice. As her own predecessors had been nothing more than weapons. Built and designed and forced into a destiny and plan not of their own choosing. Had she less control of her own features and reactions, a sneer of disgust might very well have marred the icy planes of Aela’s face then. As it was, Pignus received nothing more than stoic blankness on that ash-white countenance. 
177
178/Mankind’s shattered bones… Did you hear that, Azuri? Our people have traveled for so long, and so far only to come full circle and find more of the same that we fled.../
179
180Aela layered the information from Azuri’s electroreception onto her own mental map of the area, tagging areas of high electrical output, wandering organics within range, and the signatures of those non-organic beings that were apparently some kind of labor force. Despite her simmering dislike, Aela couldn’t help but find herself somewhat in awe of the
181Akropolis and its sheer wonder inspiring masses of material excess. The enormity of it was almost frightening in its scale for one who was used to living within the confines of a space-faring vessel where no amount of space could ever be wasted. 
182
183Aela followed behind Pignus, alert and ready for an ambush. After all, if these people would enslave one sort of synthetic being why not another? The Oracle drifted silently behind her, recording data and maintaining its uplink with the Ark. She could feel the weight of her weapons on her body - the sword and Guardian on her back, the blades folded along her forearms - and they gave her some measure of comfort as they entered the great blank space of the hall. She herself made no attempt to communicate with the foreigner. She felt Azuri would do far better at attempting to make herself understood in most cases. Should the need arise for communication of a more threatening nature, then, however, Aela could surely oblige. 
184@Yurei @cor
185 
186Yurei12/04/2018
187Azuri managed to conceal her startlement at the rather gruesome-looking appearance of the woman calling herself ‘Pignus’ mostly because she’d already disconnected her expressive links, meaning her face was more-or-less locked in whatever her last instructed expression was.  Which meant that slightly-plastic Warm Sunny Smile stayed right where it was as Pignus blew off the two greeter-things as simply surveillance devices disguised as people and offered to guide them today.
188
189That was…disconcerting.  Why would they need to disguise their surveillance as people?  Why did they need surveillance at all? Was there something they didn’t want people doing here?
190
191Aela’s transmission came in, carrying with it the senior Ranger’s contempt for Pignus’ dismissal of the camera drone-things and her scorn for those who’d do exactly what Mankind had back in their ancient, long-abandoned birth home.  Azuri couldn’t disagree; she hadn’t considered that until Aela said something about it, but once she had Azuri’s own mood soured on the drones. Such miserable lives they must lead…stuck there simply watching things other people told them to watch.  How very…human it was. How very uncomfortable.
192
193The two Orphans followed their guide for the day, apparently, into the castle.  Their first stop was a giant room with a huge, multi-legged walker in it, armed in ways Azuri had learned were the ways and means of Mundus warfare, with weapons that made use of the stupendous material excess of the place.  Her bow felt very small on her back at the sight of the colossal machine, though it looked to be long dormant and probably not functional. That was good…she hoped.
194-
195As they walked, she continued to try and make herself understood to the rather frightening-looking woman who’d come to meet them.  She worked her mouth several times, flapping her jaws in what she personally thought of as a rather skillfull mimicking of the motions these folk used for their unnerving communication before shaking her head.  No sound came out because of course it didn’t, that was just an utterly weird notion, but the flaps-plus-lack-of-sound would hopefully be a clue. Azuri held her hands up, shrugging her shoulders and allowing a look of frank apology to settle onto her face.  She held up one hand, her thumb and forefinger pinched together, and squiggled them around briefly before putting on her best questioning look and flashing a Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down, rotating between the two gestures a few times.
196
197/I don’t like that big walker, Aela…stuff like that makes me nervous,/ she admitted.  /Those…’guns’, I think the locals call them, are really upsetting. Are we sure we want to walk in here after this person?  The Council got really mad at me the last time I lost a body down here…/
198@cor @Rize 
199^^^
200 
201cor12/04/2018
202[Pignus]
203
204So long as the Orphans communication was broadcast or connected over a closed network they would find no notice of the words shared between them in the non-organic before them.
205
206Mapping Neu Limbo was not easy for most using electronic equipment. The Akropolis was abuzz with hot spots then hummed louder then the rest of the city combined. A lot of NOiSE perpetuated from the structure with some notable hotspots that were obviously not meant to be seen through extra sensory means. Through sonar, electroreception, heat, radiowaves and more there were simply walls of static like an electronic fog that prevents one from seeing through.
207
208But these anomalies were spread here and there to mask specific areas of the massive Akropolis. For perspective it may feel as if the Orphans were receiving a tour of a small city but just a few houses were unclear; just a few.
209
210
211While Pignus stepped lightly forward through the enormous hall there were many others looking about as well as the tourist attraction brought in eyes from all corners of the planet and further still. Statues carved of marbles and stone stood behind more red velvet rope as did holographic exhibits depicting euphoric gore in the expression of colorful explosive clouds and inverted waterfalls programmed by the artistic minds of host and customer alike. The people appreciated the art and atmosphere without paying mind to the Orphans or their guide.
212-
213The many questions the Orphans had all went unasked and thus Pignus could not assuage their worries or correct their presumptions. One such account would have been the fact that the walker had absolutely no history on Mundus. The dynamic masses they classified as 'Mundusans' were from many planets among many systems and most of which had not been on this plane for long. Alas, these and many more misunderstandings would go on unclarified and lost to the silence.
214
215Pignus looked back at the pair in the quiet echos of so many footsteps and conversations being held around them in polite volumes. Her electric blue eyes sat on Azuri and processed the lack of vocals. Looking up at the towering Aela for a moment she nodded.
216
217" Mute. I see. Well there are other means of communication we can access. What would you be most comfortable with: Hand sign language, written, telepathic, uploaded, or is there a frequency you find more palpable? "
218
219Both clawed metal hands stowed themselves in her thick blue hoodie as she looked between the two casually. She had no desire to make their guests uncomfortable after all. -e-
220@Rize  @Yurei
221 
222Rize12/08/2018
223Aela tilted her head slightly, looking over Pignus, seeming to evaluate both the entity and the words she spoke. This was a question that had always struck the taller Orphan as something of a conundrum when she had given thought to its inevitable appearance. How would they communicate with the squawking savages of Mundus? Certainly for comfort the Orphans would prefer it to find a way to use their own electronic communication protocols as they did with one another. However, the thought had occurred that this might somehow leave them vulnerable to infiltration or outright attack on a digital level. Aela herself was no expert in that particular realm of warfare, but any Orphan knew at least the basics of such things. 
224
225Perhaps, there might be another way around that…
226
227/R-15./ The hovering Oracle shifted slightly closer to Aela as she addressed it. /I want you to try and send a one way electronic signal. Tight beamed and modulated to something foreign from our typical transmission protocols. Something closer to what we’ve seen here in this Mundus city. Just translate what I’m sending to you, to Pignus./ The Oracle acknowledged in its emotionless, non-judgmental way and prepared a protocol to do as Aela had asked. Hopefully it would work given Pignus’ obvious synthetic nature, but the Orphans had no way to know just what the woman’s capabilities were outside of the grotesque manner of her construction. 
228
229What would come through if she could was a purely synthetic, emotionless string of words of patchy quality, although that hopefully would improve with time. The communication would hold none of the expressioned, nuanced conversation the Orphans were capable of with one another, and its source was obviously the Oracle itself, broadcast in such a way as to protect from outside connection or data transferral back into the Orphan networks themselves. 
230
231“Test. Test. Can you receive, Pignus? Acknowledge if you can.” 
232@cor @Yurei
233 
234Yurei12/09/2018
235R-15 tied Azuri into the secondary shell network as well, allowing her to receive Aela’s transmissions as well as any acknowledgments that their newfound guide might send back.  The words were...uncomfortable.  Stripped of all context, all meaning, all of the richness and depth of a typical Orphan’s communication.  They were just...words.  A simple, bare audio file containing the sounds that one of these local Mundusans would’ve used to convey meaning.  In Azuri’s mind, that transmission was even more disturbing than the constant chirruping of the locals’ spoken sounds.  This felt like communication from the corpse of an Orphan, from a mind devoid of everything that made it alive.
236
237Nevertheless...when in Mundus...
238
239“We can understand your speech,” Azuri sent in turn, screwing up her courage as she packaged up the same barren, skeletal transmission type and sent it to R-15 on her behalf.  “You can convey information via your voice.  We do not speak, but we can answer in this way if we must.  Will this work?”
240
241/I’m a lot less excited now, Aela.../ Azuri sent, via her normal means and methods, to her companion.  /I REALLY don’t like talking that way...it feels even worse than SSL.  Do you know what they mean by ‘hand sign language’ or ‘telepathic’?  I don’t want that woman any closer to my net links than she already is – I don’t even want her THAT close! - but it kinda feels like we’re out of options.../
242@cor @Rize
243 
244cor12/09/2018
245[Pignus]
246
247The floating doodad near Aela was of no concern and their communication was consistently beyond Pignus' access until the Oracle began the relay. Without facial expression, Pignus noted the signal being broadcast to her on a new channel. A moment of lag occured as she herself initiated similar protocols to disconnect from anything else she was connected to remotely to prevent a breach on her own end. 
248
249After all she was representing Neu Limbo and the last thing that needed to happen was the welcoming party becoming the trojan horse of infection into the Akropolis. After the singular moment that had passed she opened the channel the Oracle was broadcasting on to access the electronic feed while remaining standing, hands in pockets, unmoving and unblinking. The electric blue of her iris' lit up and shifted minutely here and there as if processing before she blinked and relaxed her exterior with a slight hip tilt.
250
251"Acknowledged." It was understood before she spoke that the broadcast was one way so there was need to waste time attempting to relay back. The guests had proven they could understand open acoustic speech already so Pignus would continue to talk aloud to them while the Oracle became her sole electronic relay for their communication.
252
253Without gestures from either Orphan and as the words carried the same dead tone and robotic precision in execution there was simply no way for Pignus to know which of the Orphans was ‘speaking’. Looking at both now and then she politely addressed both with equal visual attention.
254-
255“Yes, this works. Now, would you like a tour? There is much to say about the new world thriving between life and death." Asked as taloned hands moved from her pockets to palm up and spread out at her sides in gesture to the massive interior or the Akropolis’ lobby. If a tour was declined than Pignus would hold her position and abort her Neu Limbo welcome tutorial. If the guests were game then there would be much more walking and talking to be had!-e-
256@Rize  @Yurei
257 
258Rize12/14/2018
259/I know the feeling, Azuri, but aside from trying to puzzle out and replicate that scritchy written language they seem to use, I couldn’t see many other alternatives for the moment. I feel like the communication issues should be brought up to the Council when we get back./
260
261For her part, Aela was less emotionally bothered by the skeletal transmission than Azuri, but only due to the innate differences in the two Orphans mentalities. For all her capabilities, Azuri was far more of an explorer and a lark than she was a warrior, with the emotional range and virtual heart-on-her-sleeve temperament that went with it. Aela was a warrior though, a soldier, and it was something she’d worked long and hard on making herself into. Not to say that she was devoid of emotion or incapable of the sort of excitement and joyfulness that Azuri displayed so easily, only that Aela was just a more serious sort in general. She was willpower and determination and fearlessness rolled into a shell of icy calm. 
262
263Given the almost overwhelming amount of information that Azuri’s electroreception was providing, Aela began filtering the input from her sister, cutting back on the amount she allowed to overlay her own senses in order to reduce clutter and reduce distraction. It seemed this “Akropolis” was teeming with electronic signatures of a dizzying array of types. It was most decidedly something that the Council would be interested in knowing, and Aela double checked that the Oracle was storing every bit of information that she and Azuri were sending it. 
264
265“Thank you, Pignus. We would very much like a tour, yes.” Aela eyed the massive war machine resting a short distance away again, her mind spinning scenarios of what the thing might look and act like were it functional. And ways to kill it should the need arise. 
266@Yurei @cor
267 
268Yurei12/14/2018
269/The Council’s been considering outfitting new Ranger bodies with vocoders; they talked to me about it when I had this one build,/ Azuri replied, the communication laced with hesitance, revulsion, and some degree of worry.  In that way Orphans had of communicating mental states and memory fragments alongside basic intent, Azuri made it quite clear what she thought of that idea.  /I know it makes sense, but I don’t know if I could go through with it.  It feels…just wrong.  We’ve gotten by so far, why start forcing SSL on us now?/
270
271She knew why, of course – the Ark couldn’t flee this place right now and likely wouldn’t even if it could.  The Orphans were, for better or worse, here for the long term, and the constant strife their lack of verbal communication abilities caused had been the end of more than one Ranger body.  That didn’t mean Azuri relished the thought of sullying her next body with a vocoder, though.  The thought of producing that unnerving buzzing chitter from her own mouth was enough to make her queasy.  Or at least the starfaring android equivalent of queasy.
272
273Still.  Pignus had offered a tour of the Akropolis, which was pretty much a curated showing of exactly the sort of information the Council wanted.  A stroke of luck, and even through the nervousness she felt, Azuri couldn’t help but feel a sizzling undercurrent of excitement.  There were so many things here!  Her electroreception was practically buzzing itself out of her chest; she had to cut some of the crossfeed from Aela’s sonic imaging to pay more attention to her own sensory systems, trusting the team warleader to know her own senses better than Azuri did.  R-15 was passively recording everything it could, taking in both Orphans’ sensory feeds and producing a running record of everything they saw to bring back home.  This was going to be a great mission!
274
275Provided they got back home, anyways.
276-
277Azuri wasn’t really expecting violence, at least not in the immediate future.  But then again she hadn’t been expecting it last time either, and look where that had gotten her.  That Pignus woman had those big nasty claws, and there was a giant freaking war walker back in the foyer!  She knew Aela was on the lookout, her senior in the Rangers’ ranks was a proven, hardened warrior.  She knew why Aela had been assigned to lead their little two-body team, and she knew full well what the Council’s opinion of her was.
278
279So even though Azuri wasn’t expecting violence and was, in fact, rather looking forward to this tour, she was running some low-key diagnostics on her combat systems and ensuring her bow was properly answering her communications.  She wasn’t about to get caught by surprise again, not if she could help it…
280@cor @Rize
281 
282cor12/18/2018
283[Pignus]
284
285The crowd hummed softly around the trio as they walked the interior and stood before the many displays set throughout the grand foyer of the Akropolis. Some took pictures with old style cameras,, others with photographic memory holoscans projected from their augmented optics and HUDs as many of the guests were not entirely organic themselves. For as many mutts as there were in the Mundus there were an equal assortment of mechanized 'mutts'. As opposed to the mixed genetics you were born with though, the augmented had the luxury of choosing what made them different. Customizable bodies were in fashion in Neu Limbo and beyond.
286
287Audible and synthesized conversation took place as well among the colorful tourists appreciating the physical and holographic displays. While the spider tank stood dead behind the ropes and the augmented patrons surely meant there were a number of armed guests in their midsts there was still a lack of tension among the audience. Those that entered Neu Limbo were here for services that only the Akropolis, Tenebris and Eden could guarantee. Thus the air was filled with a muddle of excitement and relaxation as any vacationer would permeate.
288
289"With pleasure. Do either of you have a designation which I may call you?" Not all peoples fell into the tradition of naming individuals of their kind. Still, Pignus asked as politely and directly as she could in order to appease the pair in a comfortable manner for which to address them.
290About facing, the lithe animate's sneakers squeaked on the pristine black marble floor that reflected the lines of their figures and light of their hosts electric blue eyes. Pignus walked the center of an unmarked aisle between massive pillars that stood no less than fifty feet apart and were a mere fraction of the Akropolis' floor plan. On either side of the gap were attractions staggered to the left and right intermittently. One they passed on the left was purely holographic and animated as well. An enormous opalescent explosion in fractal uniform expelling and inverting in erotic algorithm over and over as the animation repeated itself. 
291
292Pignus gestured to the display surrounded by onlookers as they passed. "First and foremost, Neu Limbo is the city of pleasure. We facilitate experiences for our guests for a price. Many come for pleasure. Each experience is customized to fulfill the desire of the guest. Many come for sexual pleasure; to be with men, women, beast, harem, other. But more still some seek the pleasure of comfort, of feeling loved, feeling accomplishment. The art on display are the works of our guests. This one is called 'Release'." Claws gestured to the exploding milky galaxy gif as they passed by.
293
294After all, pleasure was not so finite nor white. A large portion of their guests had come seeking affection alone and the feeling of being wanted which sadly they found lacking in their day to day lives. Continuing towards the Walker and on their right came a solid thirty by ten foot wall display less than half an inch wide. From either side one could see the pitch black background with warm dots of light floating upward like bubbles in champagne. Another gesture, "The guest named this one 'Acceptance'."
295
296If the pair continued to follow they would find the crowd remained wide enough to disallow shoulder bumping as the unmarked aisles were wide and the guests close knit as they kept to themselves or their own gaggle. Ahead on the left a holographic sphere floated with pitch black center and spikes of white that germinate and die off with the flow and pitch of the voices around it. The sphere was gently rippling and spiking from the talk of the observers around it. As Pignus stopped to turn back to the Orphans and gesture once more to the new exhibit she spoke and in unison the sphere spiked to show the levels of her voice. "One of our regular artists created this one which he calls, 'Intent'. A guest favorite."
297
298Pignus looked to the sphere, watching the spikes that formed from her own audio waves. It was strangely satisfying and affirming to see one's thoughts, feelings and intentions manifest not only verbally but visually on the spheres surface. It occurred    ` to her that that mute guests could not appreciate the sight of their own voices left alone the sound. "Apologies. I hope you two can appreciate the arts premise in visualizing the intent of voice and words spoken even if you cannot speak in this medium." Intentions were as easy to pick out of spoken word as they were smothered in them.
299
300Many dozens more art displays were available to peruse at their leisure but Pignus moved on towards the Walker ahead of them to keep their introduction to Neu Limbo as precise and efficient as possible. One did not show the guests every single ride at Disneyland. They just gestured at Toy Town, Universal Studios and the gift shops then let the patrons run rampant with excitement.
301"Unfortunately one of our greatest pieces was just removed from exhibit this morning. A piece made by a woman who came here to experience death. There are no words that exist to describe what art she created after experiencing that feeling. A true masterpiece." 
302
303Pignus blinked and glanced back at the pair to add. "She is not dead though. What people come to us for is customized. For her, the ultimate pleasure was pain and death. Neu Limbo is the only place one can experience brutality to the brink of and beyond death and walk away from it without manifestation of injury- unless they want that, in which case such combat is arranged in Tenebris Mortis. But her experience took place here in the Akropolis under our staffed virtual simulation."
304
305Stopping before the dead Walker, one could still see the old canvas mesh hanging from the shell and legs of the war machine from it's day blending into brush. Once before the exhibit, Pignus turned to the two once more to give pause after the introduction of what Neu Limbo offers and in summary.
306
307"We deliver tailored experiences at a cost. Physical and virtual. Making the impossible, possible. Do you have any questions?"
308@Rize  @Yurei
309 
310Rize12/28/2018
311The inflectionless transmission came again as Aela lifted a hand and tapped herself in the center of the chest. “You may refer to me as Aela.”
312
313She followed steadily after Pignus, taking in the chaotic surroundings of the Akropolis with a mix of curiosity, low key paranoia, and puzzlement. Certainly much of what they were seeing and what Pignus was describing was new and unusual to the Orphans, and indeed some of it was quite outside of their understanding entirely. Aela herself found that the idea of individuals trading currency of some kind to be able to do the things these people did, all of it simulated, to be utterly bizarre. Perhaps it was only that she could create and conjure up whatever images and designs she wished through her ARV that the idea of owing someone to do what Orphans did all day was… unusual, to put it mildly. Internally, Aela’s thoughts turned back to her discussion with Azuri.
314
315/I cannot imagine being saddled with such a ridiculous method of communication myself. Unfortunately, however, we may not have too much of a choice in time. If we are to thrive here, we must adapt, which means communicating with the barbarians./
316
317Aela stopped several feet away as Pignus came to a stop in front of the war machine. It seemed obvious that it was a relic of some past conflict, an old war of some manner. For just a moment the taller of the two Orphans had an image of what fighting such a beast would be like, of pitting her strength and skill against the massive machine. She gestured towards the walker, her head tilting slightly as the Oracle transmitted for her. 
318
319“What is this display, if I can ask?”
320@Yurei @cor
321 
322Yurei12/30/2018
323Following Aela’s own transmission, Azuri reached up with a similar gesture, indicating herself in sequence to ensure that their morbid guide got the names straight.  “Azuri,” she sent simply through the Oracle, wary of the Council’s mandate that she watch what she revealed to others.  Her typical chatterbox self wasn’t ideal for covert missions, but the Council made do with what it had.  At least Aela was there to ride herd on her this time.  Or so the Council fondly hoped.
324
325Monikers exchanged, the tour commenced, with their guide showing them a number of virtual displays with the sorts of names Azuri suspected were supposed to be evocative and meaningful.  They were interesting in their own way, but they were also oddly mundane to the two Orphans.  Holographic constructs, ARV artwork, virtual displays...Azuri had grown up with these things.  They were real, yes, she wasn’t about to discount the datasphere as being any less real than the physical realm...but Orphans had been working and living within the datasphere for thousands of years.  These were all things she could find just fine back on the Ark, things she could do herself.  And the idea that this place sold ‘Experiences’, custom-tailored virtual offerings designed to appeal to whoever ordered them, was...
326
327/Aela...they’re just talking about normal memory transfer and datasphere simulations...right?/ she asked.  /What’s so special about that?  I mean yeah, some of the fuddies back on the Ark are willing to part with resource allocations for uncompressed memory transfers from Rangers, but she’s making it sound like some sort of amazing thing they do here.  Am I missing something?/
328-
329She acknowledged Aela’s concerns over the eventual necessity of adapting to the locals’ challenging communication, but didn’t immediately respond to it.  It was too disquieting a thought; if she was lucky she could help convince the Council to maybe put vocoders in the Oracles instead, as had been suggested a few times.  The Oracle speaking was still a weird idea, but it wasn’t nearly as squirmy as Azuri doing it herself.  Yeah, that meant every Orphan on the surface would need their own Oracle, but Azuri had long believed the Council was being way too tightfisted with those things anyways.  Simpler ones could be made as assistants for Rangers, with the full-up models still being restricted to team leaders, but why couldn’t Azuri have her own simpler version to ease communication and help her explore better?!
330
331Still...there was an idea niggling away in the back of her mind as the tour continued, culminating in a little Q&A in front of the old war machine.  Aela asked her question, and Azuri found one of her own as well.
332
333“I see the people doing the buying here.  Who does the selling?”
334@cor @Rize
335 
336cor01/03/2019
337[Pignus]
338 
339Names were relayed through the interesting little robo-companion with the Orphans and Pignus eyed each as they were introduced.
340
341When asked about the stagnant war machine on display she made a slight turn to look at the massive Walker herself. 
342
343A retired Walker class Spider Tank from where we came before joining Mundus. One of the few historical artifacts taken from the Founder's home planet.
344
345Though dust free and clean, the Walker still showed it's age in the form of decaying canvas camouflage, rusting scraps and gashes along it's shell along with many small divots. The metal beast was scarred from action and as such was more of a memorial to service then a display of Neu Limbo's military level technological weapons systems.
346
347It is a template for our current security tanks used throughout the city. So there were more. Active kin to the massive Walker.
348
349Azuri after introduced also posed inquiry, the answer of which naturally flowed on topic.
350-
351Neu Limbo is the operational body of our business but to answer your question more precisely the seller is the Founder, Mr.Allen Lucida who established the company: Upuineuti. Mr.Lucida had great fortune, some might call it luck. Self made, he financed and managed the company while also developing it with virtual technology, coding and engineering. Mr.Lucida was fortunate enough to have the ability to make whatever he wanted, a reality. So he decided to give everyone else the ability to create through this technology, through his company and this city. It is a joy to give, or so I'm told. To spread joy. That is creation.
352
353Her tone is steady but a little more thoughtful near the end as if the artificial host could not quite fathom this concept but did try. 
354
355Once more the electric blues of the tiger mask mawed android blinked at the pair. 
356
357What is it that brings you two here? A question of her own. They were inorganic, she could tell as much. Without the cravings of flesh or the curiosities of the soul, what interest would other 'androids' have in the city of pleasure?-e-
358@Rize  @Yurei
359 
360Rize01/04/2019
361Aela could only send Azuri the digital equivalent of a shrug in response to her question. She herself wasn’t quite sure on what the excitement was supposed to be here that people would be willing to barter so much for. And to be honest, she also didn’t really understand what some of the experiences were even supposed to be. She could understand the words, could see what they meant literally, but… it was all just so foreign to her understanding and experience. 
362
363Aela listened attentively as Pignus talked about the Walker tank, and how there were more active and potentially more advanced versions of the war machine within Neu Limbo. A very good thing to know, in case the locals decided that they were going to turn hostile for some reason. One never could tell with these organics, if the spotty records from the time of the Cousins was anything to go by. 
364
365Pignus’ own question was an expected one. After all the Orphans weren’t exactly the typical individuals that one would find in a place like Neu Limbo. If anything the armed, synthetic mutes stood out like a nodachi in a row of tanto knives…
366
367“The Council sent us here to seek sources of supplies and materials. They had heard rumors from other scouting parties that in this city one could find whatever they might need. The hope was to establish communication and negotiation with the local government for mutual gain.” 
368
369Aela kept her answer fairly vague and as unrevealing as she could. She had no desire for the alien android to know just how much the Ark needed those supplies and materials, or how ignorant they truly were of this new world. There was only so much she could cover up, however...
370@Yurei @cor
371 
372Direktor Eisenwald01/07/2019
373-[A General’s Favor] The man in bandages had been enjoying his downtime in the luxurious Nulimbo casinos. After his brutal campaigns across the realms prior to terrorizing the small nearby towns, he wanted to spend his hard-earned blood currency. After the exchange rates, he sampled the many games and women that this resort-metropolis had to offer. He had spent the initial hours visiting a tailor whom held a prestigious status in the city. Rather it was one of the many fine shops, wishing to stroll its streets in style before diving into such debauchery.
374.
375It felt like days had passed, traveling back and forth from his hotel room until he found himself in a lull. Heracci found himself in a lounge, chatting up with an attractive waitress with his chips displayed in near-perfect stacks, separated by their monetary value. Maybe she was fascinated more with the riches he had accumulated, but he had little time to care about this possibility… For the ringing of his cellphone began to taper with their conversation’s rhythm. Rrriiiiing, riiiiiing! It shook and the screen upon its shell lit up, to which he attempted to ignore until the woman became visibly distracted as well. He sighed and reached for it hesitantly, thump moving said shell to move open and enable communication.
376.
377He slowly put it up to where one would presume his ear to be, “’Ey, whaddaya want?” Then he went silent, nodding his head slowly as he repeated uh-huh until the explanation talked of strange locations and removing himself entirely from the metropolis. “Really? Up there? Can’t ya send somethin’ else up? I’m vacation and I’d real—” He was quickly interrupted by the individual on the other side, voice somewhat drowned by the music, increasing the difficulty of those eavesdrop. “Fine, fine,” He closed his phone and lingered for a second, the woman asking if everything was okay. He chuckled lightly and shook his head, “It’s nothin’ for you to worry about, dawl, you were a good talk,” He said with a polite but firm voice, something you would expect coming from a smile. He then placed a single chip on her thigh, telling her to place the remainder in his reserve. Heracci was a good patron and stealing would mean not only career consequences but a violent retaliation.
378.
379He strolled through the game floor, restraining himself from partaking as he finally reached the parking garage. There he would begin his waltz to the top floor that was exposed to the heavens, then continuing to the concrete center where he silently stared up to the sky. It was quiet here, but soon this was broken as his resonance surged outward in blinding radiance. Garbage and debris swirled about this powerful presence as he stuffed his hands into his pockets and began to lift from the ground. His velocity reduced his image to a blur as he levitated to higher elevations above the parking complex, peering to the shrinking land beneath his hanging shoes. As he entered through the cloudy layers, his intense glow would remain until it would abruptly vanish from naked view. He was gone… Tending to business matters.
380 
381Yurei01/20/2019
382Azuri, for her part, was content to let Aela do the talking unless she had something specific to say.  She was younger, more adventurous and willing to take risks than older, conservative Orphans, but that also meant she wasn’t as good in situations like this one, more likely to let something slip that the Council would reprimand her for.
383
384For the moment, she opted to keep silent and focus on her senses instead, taking over some of the work of maintaining their shared local awareness to let Aela devote herself to negotiations instead.  She had less experience doing so, but she had enough to be getting on with in a slow, non-combat zone like this one.  There wasn’t much else to be done; most of the locals seemed either entirely uninterested in the pair of Orphans, or only interested to the degree that the pair were openly displaying weapons in a way few others in this area seemed to.  No one was looking frightened yet, possibly because one of the city’s own guides was handling the issue, but thus far Azuri couldn’t make out anything like undue interest, or anything else she should flag to Aela.
385
386Which...largely meant it was time to let the team leader do her team-leader thing and figure out what the rest of their mission was, now that they had a better idea of this place’s nature.
387@Rize @cor
388 
389cor01/26/2019
390[Pignus]
391
392Once more electric blue optics shift from the Orphans before settling on Aela. Determining which of the female models was speaking through the monotone bot companion with them took a moment of calculation. After all, eye contact was a key component in polite behaviour etiquette. Even if these guests were inorganic, Pignus would not be found lazy in her delivery of social cues.
393
394"Rumors no more. You've seen much of what NeuLimbo offers and if our guests are left wanting, we amend."
395
396A pause. "What Council do you speak of? Are you from the Corporation?" Perhaps new acquisitions- new cards in the hand that had not been formally introduced to the other shareholders.Perhaps too the pair were not even in the deck. Yet.
397
398No matter what the clarification on the Council was to Aela and Azuri, Pignus would respond with NeuLimbo's interest. "What have you to offer NeuLimbo? I work for the city and in turn Mr.Lucida. Your interest can be relayed directly to him for consideration."  Less formal and to the point.-e-
399@Rize  @Yurei
400 
401Hellblazer01/27/2019
402[Long since overdue]
403
404
405The bustling life traveling in throngs about the wonder that was NeuLimbo seemed as ants scurrying about far below the high rise windows of Upuineuti Towers. An architectural spectacle, the twin skyscrapers climbed upward into the clouds- mirroring the moonlight perfectly and magnifying it's rays. Somewhere within the top floor, at a large office that took up the entirety of the left wing's tip, a man looked down upon creation and thus smiled. 
406
407
408A wicked smile of sorts graced the lips and revealed pearly white teeth lined in two perfect rows. It shined in contrast to the looming shadow clinging to the backdrop of a personal space neatly organized to his liking. A glare reflected on small circular glasses, hiding the whole of his gaze and the true nature of his intent.. Leaving for a rather peculiar ambiance. Shoving a hand into his suit pocket, he turned simultaneous to the entrance opening. From the depths of the blue jacket's confines, he retrieved an antique pocket watch to check the time. Across the dark lit room, a rather sleek being awaited speaking monochromatic in a plain albeit hollow voice. 
409
410-
411Sir. It is.. Time, sir. 
412
413
414The animatronic creation turned at the slightest nod of it's master, the bucket of bolts whirring away smoothly into a corridor before disappearing. Lucida walked with confidence over to the middle of the room. A scanner made itself known as it descended from the ceiling, sending green rays of light to roam over the man's near flawless features.
415
416
417’Good evening, Mr. Lucida..’ A feminine drawl sailed outward. The CEO let that smile widen, looking up from his glasses to reveal stark white eyes void of any soul- or so it seemed.
418
419With a slight inhale, he tilted his head up and spoke. 
420
421
422”Hello, Althea. I trust everything is in order.”
423
424
425The scan completed and the device retracted into it's spot before the voice replied in a cheery manner. ”Why yes sir.. Everything is ready at your command.” 
426
427
428Without further hesitation, Lucida nodded in response. All across NeuLimbo, on every faceted piece of visual technology possible, a single emblem appeared. An eye akin to that of the Egyptian God Horus drew itself over a black screen and sealed itself within a pyramid of sorts before flashing various luminescent colors. 
429
430-
431Ranging from buildings and street corners, to shanties and restaurants- the broadcast flickered into view in which case the man of the hour took stage. Upbeat and charismatic, Lucida spread his arms out and addressed all who would listen.
432
433
434”Greetings, fellow Limboans, travelers both near and far. It is my humble pleasure to present to you the newest innovation in Upuineuti technologies.” Reaching down and to his right, he retrieved what appeared to be a visor of sorts assembled alongside that of an earpiece. Placing it upon his head, he tapped the ear bud and continued.
435
436
437“Introducing the latest in communication technology. The UI-X. Now you can stay in your favorite fantasy.. Even when your body is telling you no. The UI-X allows you to take your deepest desires from the very environment itself here in the themed park and attractions, to enjoy them wherever it is you may be staying. The dream of a lifetime is now a dream come true. You never have to long for sunshine again!” 
438
439
440Upon the visor appeared a set of small red, blue, and green lights that combined to show a 3D image. “Thought becomes reality. Dreams become life. Whatever you can imagine.. The UI-X can create it. Within reason, of course.” This image circled once or twice before springing to creation as an apple. Taking the fruit in his hand, he proceeded to bite into it before concluding. ”For twenty four hours anything non lethal is yours to grasp. While you rest, your wildest desires can continue. I hope you all enjoy your stay here at home. Please ask your local advisory shop more on how to purchase. As always.. Never stop dreaming.” 
441
442-
443The broadcast then went black and silent, the eye appearing once more before ceasing altogether. Exhaling where he stood, Allen peeled the mock device off and moved once more to his perch along the window. Softly, like a mother concerned for it's child, Althea questioned. ”Will it work?” That seemingly sinister glare had returned as though a madman possessed stood present. He didn't respond. -E-|
444@Rize  @Yurei  @cor  @Direktor Eisenwald
445 
446Direktor Eisenwald02/06/2019
447-[In the Presence of Swines.] The city-wide commercial had drawn the attention of the majority. Many visitors and citizens were likely in awe of this new technology; another method to escape reality. Crowds had gathered around screens as a good chunk remained, gambling or simply locked into whatever activity was before them. Many were already deep in digital intimacy, feeling the code-induced flow of pleasure in every faux touch. Substances and alcohols carried through into nearly every experience, enhancing the view of those wishing to delve deeper.
448.
449Modern marvels in all that is decadent, a thrill to the precious. It was a mess, such a mess. One would not wish to watch as they would disconnect and self-destruct.
450.
451It was all around innocuous, reaching only to sin. Among those uninterested in this presentational broadcast was an odd, pathetic man. Introducing himself as Vincent, he sat at the least occupied bar, chatting up with a beautiful server. Some wanted eye-candy included with their food and drinks, after all. However, from the start it had been severely self-deterred by his own personal choices.
452.
453As everyone had checked their coats at the door, he remained strangely overdressed in his trench coat. It was not cold, but simply a fashion sense most found peculiar if not simply ignored. Additionally, Vincent had been wearing his sunglasses inside for approximately ten minutes prior.
454.
455His companion dared not question these choices, a floating pillow of body’s length. Upon its seemingly textile surface, a young girl moved about as if behind a glass wall within the pillow’s confines. She was extremely passive, especially in the face of her master speaking to a real woman. Occasional she would speak up but he would merely glare to the entity, whom quickly responded along the lines of: “I’m sowwy, senpai, sniff, she is quite pretty.”
456.
457These small exchanges would result in the woman’s fleeing but Vincent somehow kept her near, be it physical or threatening her job. He mentioned his parent’s position and all they contribute. Perhaps the bouncers were slow, and he could not comprehend her declination.
458.
459Attempting to salvage this and potentially get laid, by a real female this time, he turned to stories. “So, there was this female in my esteemed classes in the universities,” His eyes turned to the left edges, the waitress glancing about the area for any help. “Um, sir, I have other cli-” She was immediately interrupted as grunted, face contorting with minor anger at this prospect. “What? You talk to those Chads but you won’t talk to me? No wonder they like automated help, with you harlots turning down gentlemen like me.”
460.
461He snorted the stringing, tantrum-induced mucus back into his nostrils before continuing, “You don’t have to be like that female in my class. She only wanted to be courted by stupid warrior guys, while I’m intelligent and calculative.” He waved his arm around in descriptive frustration, nearly intoxicated after his single drink. “So, anyways, one day me and her boyfriend are walking among a group of fellow students when a bunch of bandits jump out and threatens us with their weak weapons.” Confidently he straightened his back, fingers curling into a fist, “Her big and tough lover instantly cowers, instead I leap into action with my trusty eight-foot katana.”
462.
463The waitress was now suddenly confused, forgetting the momentary fear of being near this smelly, scrawny man. “Go ahead, I say, your weapons are nothing compared to mine with many prestige awards in, er, sword fighting behind it. Heh,” Vincent played it out as if it had actually happened, attempting to further woo this employee. “They all drop their weapons and run, and all the other students cheer for me.”
464.
465He then leaned forward, closer as the woman leaned the opposite, trying to restrain the laughter. Vincent’s vile breath poured out as his voice dropped, yet still exhibiting mild cracks, “Yeah, she tried to kiss me but I declined, because it was my duty. She, like you, are seeing a real man, not like these worms.”
466.
467After this, his levitating companion clapped her hands and leaped within the pillow’s boundaries, “Owe, Senpai, you’re so brave!” She then turned awkwardly to show her butt, for some unknown reason.
468 
469Yurei03/02/2019
470[[Posting for Rize as well, in the interests of pacing]]
471
472The announcement was entirely unexpected – a piece of technology which would allow the people visiting Limbo to take it home with them, take the simulation experiences this place offered wherever it was they might go.  It was presented as a grand achievement, a dream come true, and to both Orphans it was confusing.  Such a thing was utterly mundane to them; many Orphans back on the Ark eschewed bodies altogether and lived in simulated space to help conserve resources.  This technology was utterly worthless to the two of them, but it was also something of a bitter pill to swallow.  Had the Council known that their simulation technology was so potentially valuable...
473
474Aela was apparently thinking along the same lines.  “What we have to offer NeuLimbo, I do not and cannot know.  We are simply the advance element.  We will have to report our findings to the Council before any offers can be made.”
475
476“We are not part of any corporation,” the transmission continued, sourceless, possibly from either Orphan as it filtered through the Oracle.  “Our Council is a body of peers who guide us and are responsible for final decisions of this sort.  Their word will dictate what we can do here.  Thank you for your time and information, Pignus.”
477
478The two Orphans offered an interesting gesture at that point; holding their left hands over the center of their chests, fingers knife-straight, while their right hand aligned with their leg fingers down.  Their heels snapped together as they maintained the pose for a brief moment, inclining their heads.  “To memory,” the transmission called before disconnecting.  The Orphans fell back into casual posture before turning to head out, more of the unusual, undecipherable transmissions they used for private communication flickering between them as they left the Akropolis for now.
479
480There was a report to make, and decisions to be made, before anything else could be done here.
481((Aela, Azuri: Exit scene))
482@cor @Hellblazer
483 
484cor03/14/2019
485[Pignus]
486
487Mr. Lucida's broadcast caused Pignus to still for a moment while eyes shifted slightly between the two Orphans in observation. It was fairly common for the man to introduce NeuLimbo's next piece of tech himself. After all he was the mind behind all NeuLimbo was- most of the products or prototypes at least were engineered by the genius himself. 
488
489Throughout the enormous exposition lobby of art and ancient technologies holographic panels illuminated to present the promotion to all within. Attendees to the Akropolis paused their fawning over three dimensional animated art exhibits to look up and comment at the UI-X. More than one parton flagged down staff to place an order for a UI-X to be sent to their rooms as soon as the product was ready. 
490
491After the announcement and the reappearance of the Eye image prior to the holographic screens disabling their conversation continued through the Oracle. No offering was presented for which Pignus could not feel affronted nor disappointed. It was not their call as was explained further based on the clarification of the Orphans Council.
492
493"I understand. NeuLimbo thanks you for your patronage. Enjoy your stay."
494
495Upon the gesture and final words transmitted, Pignus continued to visually monitor the pair to fathom their guests better. It had been a real treat to interact with other non-organics though the model could not articulate such fact to feeling in an organic way. Still, Pignus hoped this would not be the last the city saw of the Orphans. 
496
497After their departure, Pignus defaulted to subsidiary duties until new patrons or threats were found to tend to.-e-
498
499[END SCENE]
500@Yurei @Rize  @Hellblazer
501 
502Negatomsk04/29/2019
503[Chasing Shadows]
504
505It had been a week since Tempest had checked Eryka and herself into their two-bedroom penthouse suite, seven days of playing vacation while Tempest waited for the Storm to get back to her with the clearances she was going to need to make any progress on whatever the job was that he’d hired her for out here in this BFE corner of the universe. Of course, for Eryka it was a vacation, and Tempest had told her to treat it as such, so hopefully the girl was off enjoying herself somewhere while Tempest sat in a hotel room across town from their much-more luxurious digs, staring at a blank wall rather than at the backside of the girl bent over in front of her, wrapped in a sleek, black, shimmering dress as she rummaging through a suitcase.
506
507“You really had to wear that out here, Olse?” Tempest continued to count the diamonds on the wallpaper, eyes roaming around the room as she waited for her guest to finish setting up.
508
509“There’s no one out here who would recognize you, and if there is, who the hell are they gonna talk to? The Storm’d much rather any prying eyes think you called a working girl up here to pass the time than let on that you’re investigating a murder.”
510
511“Investigating a murder in some bum-fuck planet in the middle of nowhere, where the Storm has zero jurisdiction and all of his prized connections amount to so much less than nothing that he hasn’t even been able to get me a name of the victim, much less any evidence from whatever crime scene I’m supposed to be investigating.” Tempest stood, straightening her jacket and glancing around, trying to decide which of the four walls she was going to start counting diamonds on next. 
512
513“That’s why we’re here…” Olse finally stood, stepping away from the briefcase as the small machine stored inside unfolded, emitting various lights as it cast a massive, three-dimensional projection across the room. The girl’s eyes washed over in shimmering waves of light as she began to manipulate the projection.
514“We’re in a corner suite because it matches the layout of the crime scene, two floors down and across the building. I managed to sneak an ether-print of the room within the first twelve hours and lay it out here, imaging took a bit longer, but I was able to put that together once the Storm got me access to the security tapes.” The projection began to move, playing out the events Olse had recorded, presented by the ethereal signatures of of the individuals who had been present. “The victims, here, doing whatever the hell they were doing,” she indicated a group of individuals standing about the room as Tempest moved into a far back corner to watch. “Still trying to piece together what that was, but this here is our suspect, right here.” A projection stepped onto the scene, passing through the hotel room door and quickly launching into a flurry of motion. He’d been dressed as a busboy to gain access, and wasted no time in laying waste to the armed occupants of the room as they attempted to fight him off. “Name is Diegfries te Anelia. Near as we can tell he’s still in the area.”
515
516Tempest frowned as she watched the suspect in motion, folding her arms across her chest. His movements were unmistakable, or rather, the base beneath them was. Sharrok-ryuu, the same fighting style she and every other Verdissian who hadn’t exempted out of the compulsory state-mandated military training had studied. But he didn’t seem Verdissian from the ether signatures Olse had tagged to him. 
517
518“This here is why he called you,” Olse twitched her fingers at the projection, highlighting the suspect as he surged towards the victim, vaulting across the bed as he chased the man into the back corner opposite Tempest and leveled him with a single blow to the chest, snuffing the victim’s projection out of existence as a burst of sparkling lights left his the space that his body had previously occupied in a flash that quickly dissipated.
519Tempest’s eyes widened as her arms fell to her sides. “What was that?” She looked to Olse as the girl closed her eyes, opening them once again and blinking her blue-iris back into place as the projection vanished, the hologram machine in her suitcase folding back into itself. “What the hells was that?!” She’d killed countless men and women before, and she knew more than enough about the nature of death to know that spiritually, or ethereally, the process was not a quick one. The soul lingered, or else something else, some trace of energy that faded slowly within the body as the last dregs of life fled the mortal vessel that had once contained it. Whatever the suspect had done to the (main) victim had snuffed it all out at once.
520
521“Something called ‘Hakkousoutou’, he said you’d know what it meant.” Olse could only shrug. “Victim’s torso was totally hollowed out, strike that killed him somehow carried enough force to paint the back wall with his insides whi--hey, where’re you going?!”
522
523“Send everything you have to my comm!” Tempest was already halfway out the door, bringing her commpad to her ear to make a call as she bolted for the elevator. “Eryka. Job just hit a complication. I’ll explain back at the hotel, but this one just got Big and Bad.” 
524
525Was still no reason to bring her in on this, not when Tempest had been the one hired, but the worse things got the less likely Eryka was to remain nicely on the sidelines. And with this Diegfries guy capable of destroying his victims body and soul, chances of Eryka sitting this one out were close to nil.
526@Yurei
527 
528Yurei04/29/2019
529It had been a very long time since Eryka Kerryenne had been on vacation.  In fact, she had changed names, species, and even souls since the last time she’d been officially ‘On Vacation’, traveling somewhere simply to be in that place and do what she liked in it.  Ever since her escape from the Rifts it had been one thing after another – first her tenuous journey back from the Dark itself, the hardscrabble days on Tengates as she tried to put the semblance of a life together, then her brief sojourn with Captain Tabbie Khatt and the Killer Kittens and the heaving snarl of betrayal and bullfuckery that had been the Bloodboil Incident back on Argos Station.  
530
531Then Tempest showing up and forcibly commandeering the rest of her contract with Tabbie, informing Eryka that she’d been officially drafted for the mandatory service everyone of her new species was expected to undergo and her term of service was to be conducted as an apprenticeship of sorts under the Xochar powerhouse, and the pell-mell run through the Imperial underbelly that was tagging along with Tempest.  This was the first time she’d had more than a day or two without anything to work on or towards that wasn’t simply the interminable tedium of long-distance interstellar travel.  It was…nice enough.  This place was certainly a veritable cornucopia of tourism and excess, with just about everything or everyone Eryka might’ve wanted to buy available somewhere.  Memory manipulation devices, sensory fabricators, full-on neurosimulation techniques that implanted memories directly in the brain – anything she might’ve wanted to indulge in, any illicit fantasies or dark vices she felt like trying were no more than an online order away.
532
533Eryka was so glad when Tempest’s message arrived.
534.
535She’d spent much of her time meditating in one of the few open-air gardens carefully maintained in this pleasure city, using the soothing surroundings and general lack of ethereal disturbance to quietly practice her exaltation.  She still had yet to break the barrier and reach Drasam, even if her actual abilities drastically exceeded what her lowbred form should’ve been capable of.  She’d mastered enough of her inherited power to regain much of what she had lost, but exaltation was still a weak link for her and she knew it.  The allure of sex, drugs, and/or rock and roll paled in comparison to her hunger for self-mastery and the day she regained the full use of her abilities.  Whatever this Big Bad Job Tempest had come out here to handle was, that would surely be a better use of her time than call girls, exotic food she may or may not be able to digest, and capital-E ‘Experiences’ piped into her brain.
536
537“On my way, back in ten,” Eryka replied, packing her phone back away in its belt case before getting up from her meditative pose and beginning the jog back to the hotel room she shared with Tempest.  She’d been waiting for the boot to drop since they got here; Tempest may’ve said to treat this like a vacation, but the taller woman didn’t really seem to know the meaning of the word herself.  Eryka was still on her mandatory service period, and everything she’d learned told her that the Worldstorm didn’t waste the time it claimed from those bound to it.
538
539Time to earn the meager stipend that counted as her pay.
540@Negatomsk
541 
542Negatomsk04/30/2019
543[Chasing Shadows]
544
545It was true that for all she had accomplished in her short life, Tempest never really had learned how to slow down. Every break, every vacation eventually descended into boredom, and from that restless energy she had always hurled herself into a new endeavor: a new hobby, a new career path, a new job (nevermind that boundless energy was also the reason Eryka was currently basking in luxury despite her meager stipend). Of course their trip out to Neulimbo had been work from the get-go but even if it hadn't Tempest never would have been able to get comfortable out here. Comfort was not something she had ever been able to find in leisure; she was only at peace when she was out moving and doing, no matter what danger she might be facing.
546
547Eryka had set her return for ten minutes so Tempest walked back in eleven minutes later, tossing her jacket aside as she crossed the rook to drop onto the chair she'd claimed as her own on the first day, opposite the chaise lounge Eryka had taken and was now occupying. 
548
549Sliding her Aitech comm across the table, Tempest transferred the files Olse had sent onto it and activated the projectors, bringing up diagrams and photos of everything the Element had sent her.
550
551“Diegfries te Anelia,” Tempest started, motioning to his photo. He was an unremarkable man with a plain face and straight, shoulder-length brown hair. “Roughly 38 years old, species unknown so we're assuming human, no criminal record, sparse on records of any kind, save for the fact that I know he trained under my master, the Assassin King, because of this.” 
552
553Tempest brought up autopsy photos of the main victim. The man had been propped on his side to display his back, completely blasted open to expose his empty torso, utterly devoid of organs, or even bones. “Technique that killed this guy is called the Hakkousoutou, the Eight Path Annihilation. All you need to know is that it destroys a person, body and soul. No afterlife, no resurrection.”
554Tempest clicked to the next photo, bringing up a surveillance still of a stout, buzzcut m-sporting bronzed man in shades and a white suit, flanked by bodyguards. “Porso Calibretti. Local pusher, middle management for the Calibretti family, no one particularly special. No idea why he got hit, but the locals are looking into that. Got wiped out with a large swath of his guards and some local rivals, no idea what they were all doing together, but that's also being looked into. Only Porko here got the soul fillet. Presumably the Storm would like me to see him brought in or put down.” She paused to check her files. “...Yeah. That's the size of it.” 
555
556She hadn't even bothered to confirm the job before rushing back. This one was already under her skin. “Won't tell you to sit this one out because you won't, but I'm running point on this and yours is to follow my lead, full-stop, all right? This is probably one of the first people we've met who could kill you who might actually take the chance to do it. Well, maybe second. Or third… or fifth. But you get the idea. He's trained and he's highly dangerous. Any questions?”
557@Yurei
558 
559Yurei04/30/2019
560Eryka listened and observed as Tempest laid out the information she’d obtained on their next task, a small scowl forming across her features as the woman continued.  Something about this smelled off.
561
562“This doesn’t make sense,” Eryka said, perching her chin in one hand and staring intently at the image of the thoroughly deceased mobster.  “Why pay what has to be an exorbitant price to annihilate someone utterly, then use that strike on a do-nothing ladder rung like this Porko individual?” she mused.  “The methodology of the strike is unmistakable and easily identifiable, or at least easily enough to draw us after the striker.  There’s no question whatsoever that this man was assassinated – why be so blatant?  Why use a technique designed to erase the target completely?  What’s to be gained from ensuring that this person is torn from existence completely rather than simply removed from the table?  Where’s the rationale behind a flamboyantly permanent strike like this?”
563
564She was less concerned about Tempest’s warnings of their target’s lethality.  She’d been in positions of risking her corporeal shell pretty much nonstop since Tempest had picked her up, and she’d been relatively inured to danger even before that.  The fact that this assassin could destroy her essence as well as her body was…troublesome, but she had no afterlife worth speaking of coming to her regardless.  Besides.  She had some tricks of her own for soul manipulators to chew on.  More important was ensuring that they had a proper appreciation for what was happening here, rather than simply haring off half-cocked.
565@Negatomsk
566 
567Negatomsk05/02/2019
568Tempest nodded, folding her arms across her chest. “One of the angles the Element's looking into. We don't even know who ordered this hit, or why. Whatever Porko was there to do, Diegfries was after him and no one else.” She brought up the etherprint playback of the crime, scaled down to fit the smaller projector on her comm. 
569
570“He enters the room here and the first guy gets a shot to the jaw, knockout blow at best, but doesn't even use the guy for a shield, projectile or anything, just drops him and keeps moving. He'd have survived if he hadn't caught a stray bullet from someone else in the scuffle. Suspect's cutting a path straight to Porko--Porso, and he only slows down, starts hitting harder as he encounters more resistance. If Diefgries'd been faster Porso might've been the only casualty, in the door, straight to the target, and…” Tempest frowned, looking over the scene again as the playback ended with Porso's brutal demise. “...Out the window.”
571
572She blew up the crime scene as much as she could before bringing up a diagram of the hotel alongside it. “...He didn't have to do it this way.” Tempest motioned to the window. “Even without gear, would've taken next to no effort to get to the window and then through it. Worst case, blow the entire wall in, make your entrance and mop-up before they know what hit them. Even if no survivors was the plan from the start, if someone was sending a message, this was sloppy, and dangerous, for no real reason at all.” She frowned, looking over the scene again as she replayed it. “This was reckless as all get out, like there was no plan at all here beyond making sure everyone died, and he barely got that right. This is fuckin’ amateur hour, not what we train for at all, and definitely not the work of a graduate.”
573@Yurei
574 
575Yurei05/02/2019
576Eryka’s scowl deepened as she watched the playback and listened to Tempest’s explanation.
577
578“…this is a mess,” Eryka muttered.  “As you said, no plan at all.  This hitman simply waded through whatever was between him and his target, and only the fact that Porko and his thugs were equally incompetent allowed him to succeed.  This looks more like the sort of garbage an enraged husband would pull to get at the man who slept with his wife.  Anyone with the discipline to learn this technique he used would have been able to do better, even on the fly.  Hells, he’s not even fighting.  Not really,” Eryka pointed out, directing Tempest’s attention to the man’s strikes against the rent-a-thugs prior to his deathblow against Porko.
579
580“Look at his sharrok-ryuu.  It’s better than mine, but not by a significant degree,” she said, “and it’s beginner trash next to yours.  This is bar brawling more than a disciplined show of martial force.  He could have dealt with the thugs so much more quickly and cleanly than he did if he had the martial mastery that his possession of that technique suggests he should.  It’s as if he somehow learned the final technique of your school without going through any of the intervening steps.”
581
582Something Eryka knew more about than most, given her unique circumstances.  She considered the scene, eyes fixing on any point she could find, trying to figure out the catch.  “…what if that was the point?” Eryka asked a few moments later.  “There’s no clear view in this recording of this Diegfries fellow’s face, but his body language is not that of an experienced operative.  What if the target, this Porko idiot, didn’t matter at all?  What if this was a test of the hitman instead and Porko simply drew the short straw of fate?“
583@Negatomsk
584 
585Negatomsk05/02/2019
586"For the face, etherprint can only do so much, it's a reading of the energy of those present, nowhere near neat as a video, but the added bonus of being able to record a crime scene after it happened…" Aethero Forensics was a relatively young field in Verdissian criminal investigation, but it was quickly proving its worth. 
587
588Tempest tucked one fist under her chin as she continued to stare at a still of the frozen etherprint playback. Was it even possible, what Eryka had suggested? Had this killer somehow mastered the Hakkousoutou without properly mastering any of the prerequisite Eight Styles? Tempest rewound to the beginning and started the playback over, watching every movement as Eryka had. She'd let herself get rattled, let the fact that another of Tenma's students had been able to master the only of his techniques that had ever eluded her put her off her game. Eryka had set her back on track. 
589
590“He's got some of it together, at least. See here?" She slowed down the playback as Diegfries waded into the middle of the room, where the fighting became the thickest. "Surrounded on all sides, guns and knives and idiots shooting and thrashing in every direction and he still comes out of it without a scratch on him. Hell, he made it through this entire slog without taking so much as a bruise. He's reckless, sloppy, but he's still in it. He learned just enough to kill, and just enough to not get killed, which still makes him a nightmare for the average hired gun on the street."
591
592Tempest looked back to Eryka. "So this is a test run, someone throwing a grenade to see if it goes off properly, what's the endgame here? You think we're gonna see another hit? A bigger one? Another test? Because anyone impressed by this is a fucking moron if they think he can pull off a serious job with the same results. Either he gets another chance to prove himself or he's in the wind after they show him the door, right?"
593@Yurei
594 
595Yurei05/03/2019
596“Two options that I can see,” Eryka said, holding up one finger, still staring down at the scene feed.
597
598“One.  Whoever sent this idiot was just as much of an idiot as their pet idiot.  They got a new toy and wanted to show it off or try it out, so they sent their pet soul-killer after someone who insulted their mother or such.  If this is true, then we’ll be done here in a week – track down the idiot, track down the idiot’s moronic owner, bring them both in chains or in pieces to the Storm.  Not an issue for either of us.”
599
600“Two,” she continued, uncurling a second finger, “and far more terrifying.  This wasn’t a test of the individual, this was a test of a process.  That man has no business knowing what he knows – so why does he know it?  Did he somehow stumble into the knowledge himself...or was it put into his head by an external force?  If someone has learned how to manufacture soul-killers, then this starts making more sense,” Eryka mused.  “The sloppiness doesn’t matter as much because you’re looking at a throwaway assassin dealing with a throwaway target simply to ensure your real weapon works properly.  And if it does, then you want your enemies to know you’ve got that weapon,” she suggested.
601
602“Someone who can create soul-killers benefits as much from the fear that capability brings with it as they do the ability to erase your targets.  Regular assassins work just as well as anything else for removing pieces from the game board – but if you can annihilate your enemies’ essences and remove them from reality, that gives you a serious edge in the intimidation game and forces your foes to move much more cautiously.  You can restrict their actions with the mere threat of your new weapons, and if your enemies know there’s more where this Diegfries idiot came from, then they can’t simply take your weapon away from you.  If they do, you’ll just make another one.”
603-
604“Or,” Eryka admitted with a shrug, “I’m completely off base and the truth is something else altogether.  But that’s what occurs to me – someone’s found a way to shortcut the process of learning some of these techniques and is hoping to terrify their enemies into submission with a display of how easy it is for them to turn ordinary thugs into lethal assassins.  I’m certain the Storm’s people have already considered that angle, and if they haven’t then I certainly hope your old teacher has.  Even simply the knowledge that such a thing exists could do immense damage to the Empire, and put the Assassin King in a very tough spot.”
605@Negatomsk
606 
607Negatomsk05/05/2019
608"Fourth option," Tempest continued, raising a finger of her own. "No one sent this joker and he's running some kind of mission all his own. Fifth option, that we're dealing with some absolute psycho who's got no real plan at all." Tempest frowned, rubbing at her cheek. Options six's the same as your two and three -- the assassin factory -- combined with my five… our absolute worst case."
609
610She sighed and bent down to kill the projection on her AiTech comm, sliding it back into her pocket as she dripped back onto her chair. "I'm gonna see if Shaden -- the Storm can get ahold of Sensei and get his opinion on this. Beyond that in regards to establishing any sort of pattern here we're shit outta luck until the Elements come up with something or our guy kills someone else." She stood, stretching. "So I'm gonna call it a night and start fresh in the morning."
611
612With a wave, she padded off to her room to settle in.
613
614Come the morning Eryka would find her in the sitting room, striking a body opponent bag in the chest repeatedly with various left-handed punches and palm-strikes. Every blow lit up various areas on the dummy's torso and back while also illuminating various hidden light trails that Eryka would readily recognize as ether pathways.
615
616"Mornin'." Tempest glanced over with a nod. "Storm's sent word out to the Assassin King, but trying to get a hold of him isn't exactly easy. Still, we got feelers out so that's something. Our local contact said she wanted to meet for an update, too, so change out of your jammies so we can meet her for brunch."
617.
618Tempest was already dressed aside from her shoes, which she quickly put on on her way out the door. The Acceleron GT she'd rented for their stay was waiting out front with the valet when they got downstairs, and Tempest actually managed to restrain herself from putting the pedal to the floor as they set out. Neulimbo wasn't as lawless as Verdissian space, which meant she couldn't be quite as reckless with her driving as usual, either.
619
620Olse had booked them for brunch at a little cafe called The Farrier a decently upscale establishment with a valet to circumvent the issue of parking downtown. Tempest pointed her out on the outdoor patio, sitting near the door. She was pretty but not eye-catching, smartly dressed, with black hair, fair skin, and blue eyes. She could easily pass for a human cyborg, and if not for Tempest alerting her to the contrary it might have been difficult for Eryka to tell otherwise. Olse waved the girls over, taking a sip from her tea as they sat. 
621
622"The infamous Ery--excuse me, Aurebeth Bholt, in the flesh, it's a pleasure to meet. Olse Colsen." She extended a hand. "I was burning the midnight oil digging into this, finally managed to catch a break this morning when I cracked our perp's bank records."
623
624"All of them?" Tempest crossed her legs as she tried to get comfortable in her chair, a bit too small for her frame.
625.
626"That's the thing -- it's the one account. Our guy has been here for years, so when the police got his face they seized all of his shit real quick, the big delay was figuring out how to crack their database without setting off any alarms. te Anelia's been living a pretty modest life, all his Bill's, paychecks coming out of this one account. His records are nothing special at all; ran a dojo teaching self defense for a bit, then construction, call centers, some substitute teacher work, guy's been all over just barely keeping afloat. Few doctor's appointments lately but his medical records are separately encrypted -- anyway, no big payments to the bank, no change in his spending and no big purchases, cash or otherwise near as I can tell."
627
628"Which means it's looking more like this probably wasn't a paid hit." Tempest said dryly as she exchanged a knowing glance with Eryka. 
629
630"That's not all," Olse chirped. "A Calibretti informant spoke to the cops: Porso was negotiating a ceasefire to recent trouble with a rival group. Our boy broke up a peace treaty."
631"Anyone stand to gain from this shit going south?" Tempest looked up, raising an eyebrow as a waitress made her way over with several plates. 
632
633"I studied your buying habits and ordered for you both based on your usual," Olse smiled. "But no, no competition in the area, no one making moves nearby."
634
635Tempest accepted her steak and eggs platter with a quiet snort before continuing. "Something else for Ai to encrypt… kinda rude. So, we got a guy who trained with the best and came back here to live paycheck to paycheck with the rest, before he flies off the handle years later and wipes out a chunk of two organized crime families. He's in the wind, right?"
636
637"Mmhm," Olse nodded. "Accounts are locked but I have some leads I'm watching."
638
639Tempest started in on her brunch. "Well, keep looking, connections between Anelia and the victim, motive, anything… You got any new theories?" She directed the last question at Eryka. So far this didn't scan with anything they'd spitballed last night, so all Tempest could think was to brainstorm again.
640@Yurei
641 
642Yurei05/06/2019
643The next morning found Tempest bleeding off energy in the common room.  No matter when Eryka woke up, Tempest was up earlier and usually doing something physical.  Outside of training, she’d since stopped trying and simply accepted that the Xochar woman had more juice than she knew what to do with.  She nodded in acknowledgement of Tempest’s update as she went to fetch proper clothes.  Breakfast on the go today, it seemed.
644
645Upon arrival at the Farrier, Eryka found herself greeted with a not-even-slightly accidental slip of her real name, correct ostentatiously to her Staple-issued alias.  She rolled her eyes as she moved to take a seat at the Islbeth woman’s table.  “Why do I even bother with that fiction anymore?” she sighed, nevertheless taking Olse’s hand.  “Would that our meeting could be under less frustrating circumstances.  Thank you for your efforts, Ms. Colsen.”
646
647Pleasantries settled, the trio settled in to hear Olse’s report on their mark.  Which was bizarre in its utter mundanity.  Up until he’d demonstrated mastery of an impossible technique, Diegfries te Anelia had been boring to the point of invisibility, nor had he received anything in the way of obvious payoffs.  The man had simply snapped one day and slaughtered someone in the midst of reducing violence rather than increasing it before vanishing into the mists.  She mused on the issue, her focus broken only by the arrival of brunch.  Eryka quirked an eyebrow at the food appearing without an order, but otherwise simply shrugged.  Privacy had been a fragile, easily lost commodity back in Company space, she was not new to the idea of netsharks assembling profiles on her to make negotiations easier.  Saved them some time today, at least.
648
649The more Olse spoke, the more she painted a picture of this Diegfries fellow, the deeper Eryka’s scowl grew and the less she tasted her food.  By the time Tempest winged her question Eryka’s way, the Hyrodea woman was well into the opening stages of a proper funk.
650-
651“I do,” she answered.  “It is an idea I like not even the slightest bit, but it is one that increasingly seems to fit the bizarre methodology of this strike.  That,” she said, gesturing with one sausage link at the face of Diegfries te Anelia on Olse’s screen, “is not our assassin.  That is our assassin’s first victim.”
652
653“You’ve clearly been briefed on me,” Eryka said, flicking her gaze to Olse for a heartbeat, “so you know what I am and where I came from.  Think of what someone else capable of what I am might do, were they to also learn this soul-shattering technique.  The local police are on the hunt for this man; I halfway suspect he’s an empty shell in a basement somewhere already and our real assassin has already taken a new skin.  Shed the skin, shed the crime – all the amateur mistakes he made on this strike were a ruse to muddy the waters and ensure that Digefries there was clearly, obviously, and unmistakably responsible for the attack.”
654
655“The police are looking for Diegfries.  You spent your night looking for Diegfries.  We would’ve spent much of today looking for Diegfries, and frankly we likely still will simply because we have to cover our bases – but if the spirit that knows the Hakkousoutou was wearing Diegfries like a business suit, rather than a do-nothing statistic like Diegfries himself managing to learn the technique, then all of that effort is for naught.  And further, we have no idea who our actual suspect is or where they might be.”
656
657“Though, look at the bright side,” she remarked, firing a sly smirk Tempest’s way.  “If that is the case, then we’re not looking at someone who can implant the King’s teachings in someone at will, hm?”
658@Negatomsk
659 
660Negatomsk05/06/2019
661From the tense silence that followed Tempest did not care for Eryka's latest theory at all but she couldn't discount it, either. How the hell was she supposed to know what this technique was truly capable of in the hands of a master? Tenma-sensei had stated that the Hakkousoutou could even be used to resurrect someone it had destroyed… which meant it could create an entirely new soul from nothing. Why couldn't it create a tailor-made soul that had access to knowledge it shouldn't have. That could be controlled like a puppet to commit any crime its creator ordered of it? Or programmed into it? 
662
663"Vacations," she finally said. "You said this guy has been all over, where has he been vacationing? Where was he before he settled down here?" She was hoping to find a gap, some sort of proof that Diegfries had been off-world, that he'd been able to make the journey to the Assassin King and acquire the skills he needed to accomplish what he'd pulled off the other night.
664
665"Uuh…" Olse began pouring over the files in her head, one pupil glowing brightly to highlight its cybernetic workings while the other eye washed over completely with binary code. "...nothing in the last few years ago but… he arrived here from off world. Tracking his finances before he arrived was pretty rough, he'd liquidated all his assets before leaving his previous planet of residence and spent several years bouncing around paying cash for everything… uh, he goes dark for a few years after leaving Rebis IX before boarding a shuttle off of the Bolthuis Colony --"
666
667"That's it," Tempest cut in, slamming her fork down on her empty plate. "That was his training." She'd caught the same shuttle back to civilization herself years ago. It still didn't discount Eryka's theory, but it was one gap finally covered, at least.
668.
669"Even if Diegfries isn't the same man he was when he left Rebis, chances are good that he's been the same guy since…" She frowned, crossing her arms. Still no explanation for his sudden attack on Porso.  "...Where's Porso being held?"
670
671"City morgue, why?" Olse blinked her eyes back to normal. 
672
673"...Check on his corpse, okay? If Eryka's right, then a… vacated body is the perfect host for a swap. Still gotta figure out our next move but--"
674
675
676
677"Hold on." Olse's left eye washed over again. "...I got your next move. There's been another victim…" She bent down to pull a carrying case from her bag. It looked like the sort of thing one would use to carry a portable gaming console, save that it was solid. "3D Printer. I'll have to rig up some badges for you while you move so you can get into the new crime scene. I'll get the check. You have to get to the Ellery Estates building, upscale apartments downtown in the residential block."
678
679"Let's go," Tempest was off to the care, setting off with all speed as she passed the printer to Eryka. As they drove it spurred to life and began printing off rather official looking badges for them to wear, identifying them as intelligence agents. "...did you fabricate my photo? That looks awful!"
680
681"Not my fault Aurebeth has a photo in our system and you don't," Olse said through the printer comms. "I don't know how much time these will buy you but don't flash them around too much. I'll do my best to divert anyone calling or searching around for you long as I can. Maybe you two should get a change of clothes, too. I'm printing up a pair of ribbon suits."
682.
683"Damn it…" Tempest sighed as she steered off, pulling over for a quick detour to change. The suits looked like armbands, but when worn would quickly unfurl into full three-piece suits perfectly tailored to the wearer's dimensions. Mainly a tool for shapeshifters and Xochar, they would serve well enough as emergency formal wear, even if the girls had to strip to put them on first. There was nothing doing for their shoes but that was more a Tempest problem than an Eryka one.
684
685When they finally arrived, the girls gained quick access to the scene with their badges, making their way into the apartment as Olse gave them the rundown via the earpieces their suits came with.
686.
687"Felix Ballagan, accountant. No relation to the Calibretti, already checked. Police called over sounds of some kinda loud dispute, arrived to find him… well, like this." Ballagan had a nice place, proper digs for a high-paid number cruncher, and the place was still mostly clean save for Felix himself, who had been blown all over the kitchen. He hadn't even gotten to put up a fight beyond fleeing the living room, but he'd died the same as Porso -- ugly.
688
689"Look for any other connections to Calibretti before the locals lock his files down." Tempest was scanning the scene with her AiTech comm, sending the files back to Olse in real time for crime scene reconstruction, as well as for a fresh trail, which she found as her comm went off, switching to a long range scanning mode. "Got 'I'm," Tempest whispered to Eryka as she turned to go, hurrying back to the car. "Let's go nail this SOB."
690@Yurei
691 
692Yurei05/10/2019
693Speed was of the essence in cases like this one.  Fortunately, there were very few people in the cosmos who knew speed as well as Tempest Tremoraine.  
694
695Eryka followed her larger partner back to the car, spreading her senses and attempting to find what Tempest’s phone had picked up.  Whatever it was, she couldn’t get a bead on it from here, not with the thick hive of minds in Neulimbo all engaged in various and sundry distracting antics.  Tempest had a lock however, and the Acceleron streaked off into traffic.  This time Tempest was paying a lot less heed to local traffic laws, barking at Olse to get them whatever permits they needed to catch up to this murderous brigand and put him down.  The chase was all Tempest, but if Eryka was anything resembling correct, then the hunt would be more hers than not. 
696
697The Assassin King’s students were among the only members of her adopted species who were psychically active in the ways she knew; that meant they were an especial threat to her, but also that she was a threat none of them could possibly see coming.  They’d trained for a few years to learn how to touch the astral through a singular, incredibly difficult-to-master technique; Eryka had trained her entire previous lifetime to LIVE in the astral as much as the material, to sense it, breathe it, exist within that space as easily and instinctively as she did within her own skin.  Any of them who believed their special mastery made them untouchable were in for the very rudest of shocks when Eryka showed them what a real duel of the minds felt like.
698
699None of which made it any easier for Tempest to find the man.  Olse’s cybermancy, on the other hand…
700-
701“Got a lock myself; he’s rabbiting,” Olse chimed in over their comms.  “He’s driving a white General Induction AMX30, and if it’s stock I’ll eat my boots.  Where the hell’d a guy like that find the scratch for a car like…shit.  Clocking over a hundred-twenty klicks…get on him, Tempest!”
702
703“Get me within range and I’ll slow him down, one way or another,” Eryka promised, hurriedly throwing her seatbelts on, knowing that this was about to turn into an unscripted roller coaster ride.
704@Negatomsk
705 
706Commander Vale05/11/2019
707[Vexa]
708
709Your wildest dreams await you.
710
711Neulimbo had a lot to offer and quite the tag line. It drew all kinds of people into its waiting arms, some just looking for fun and others looking for something else entirely. A place of pleasure was just as much a place for pain though. A person could live their wildest dreams, reach heights they had never dreamed possible. It also lent to the possibility of experiencing their worst nightmares as well. For the guy in the chair, she was going to assume the latter was what was happening. 
712
713It was really quite cliche, wasn't it? A dark room, in a dark abandoned building with the weakest link tied to a metal chair while being introduced fully to the goon who accompanied her today. There was so many of them she hardly remembered names. He kept a constant rotation of underlings, anyone worth their salt stood to the side, having proven their loyalty. That's were she stood, watching as the loud crack of a facial bone was heard, a scream of pain echoing through the abandoned room. It seemed to bounce off the walls, trying to amplify as she stepped forward and into the light of the naked fluorescent bulb. Cliche, yes, but don't fix what isn't broken. -
714The guard was babbling now, telling details she cared nothing for. Stepping closer, he would see the tall woman, only made taller with those high heeled boots, solid black leather going up her calves and laced tight. The almost knee high boots were hiding under a pair of dark slacks, form fitting. Her top was covered by a dark navy top that was almost form fitting, quarter sleeved and button up. Red lips, soft brown hair pulled back with a head band, the length coursing down her back. A smile curved those full lips as blue eyes met the wild stare of the guard. Almost like a horse in panic, he couldn't keep his gaze still. "That last hit sounded like it hurt." Her tone was sympathetic as she laced her fingers together in front of her. 
715
716The guard only mumbled and nodded, his terrified gaze finally locked on the woman before him. "I'm sure you understand the big guy here didn't want to hurt you. We just need information and if you're jaw isn't already loose... We'll just help a little bit."* She took a step to the left. "So. Now that we've had our adjustment, in order to prevent further... cosmetic changes, I'd suggest you tell me what I want to know."
717---
718
719The wonderful thing about weakest links was that they are expendable when you're done. No one would miss them and no one would miss this one. She had gotten what she needed, sending the two goons to clean up the mess as she left with two bodyguards flanked on either side of her. As the trio exited to the street, she took a deep breath and exhaled, smiling up the pair of gentlemen. "Welcome home, fellas." 
720
721G.R.I.M. Syndicate was here.
722 
723Negatomsk05/12/2019
724Tempest's scanners only gave her a general direction to go in, but the fact that Diegfries was already out of the building and on the move, was enough for her to hustle then out to the car and lay the throttle open as soon as Eryka was situated. This was a chase now, and while a quick combination of button presses on her comm was enough to produce a wailing siren loud enough to clear some of the traffic, Tempest's own driving was front and center in keeping them on te Anelia's trail.
725
726"An Indo-X30, huh?!" Tempest wasn't even trying to keep the grin off of her face or the excitement out of her voice. "I'm not a gambling gal but I'd lay good money a ride like that's stolen. Bettin' on another victim." In a cloud of smoke and a screeching of tires she hurled them around a left hand turn onto a main thoroughfare, where the girls quickly spotted their perp, weaving through traffic roughly a block ahead. "Strap in!"
727
728Thankfully Eryka was already taking the precaution as Tempest pulled a pair of triggers on the steering wheel and yanked it back. The rented Acceleron GT jumped, literally, blown clear off of the road by a magnetic pulse from its wheels as they began the transition to flight mode, lifting the car roughly 10' over the road.
729-
730"Man I'd hate to clean up the red tape for this!" Tempest punched the throttle again, sending them roaring over the cars below, the powerful EM field beneath the car shattering windows, killing engines, and blowing vehicles aside in their wake. 
731
732Tempest brought them down right behind the fleeing Diegfries, his driving becoming increasingly erratic once he realized he was being pursued. The amount of Astral cascading off of the man was enough for Eryka to feel like she was driving through a river of the stuff; it was considerably more than Tempest has ever given off.
733
734"Where do you want me?!" Tempest was confident she could keep him in her sights no matter what moves he made, so all she needed from Eryka was to know where to position the car for whatever it was she was going to do.
735@Yurei
736 
737Yurei05/12/2019
738A hot ride bound to the streets was no match for a flight-capable vehicle; with a sharp disregard for the legal niceties of the city, Tempest quickly closed in on the fleeing crook.  This wasn’t the first time Eryka had been involved in Tempest’s version of a high-speed chase, so fortunately nothing was broken this time.  There might’ve been a few bruises, but Tempest had in turn learned to requisition cars with tail cuts during their run together, so they were intact enough to do their work.
739
740“Twenty meters behind,” Eryka instructed.  “Or however far away you need to avoid it when he spins out,” she said, the words forming with only half her mind behind them.  The other half was clawing through the bizarre surge of astral energies coming from their mark.  Diegfries was not a normal Verdissian, that was for damn sure.  Unfortunately for him, neither was Eryka Kerryenne.
741
742“Kaleidoscope,” she said, informing Tempest of the means she was using to bring their mark to bay.  A purely psychic attack, and one that dealt no damage as such, Eryka’s Kaleidoscope was a forceful projection of fragmented memories culled from Eryka’s time in the Penumbral Rifts – distracting and withering memories of the horrors of the Dark, as well as the various skittering, crawling, thoroughly inhuman things she’d been forced to briefly subsume herself into to escape the cloying madness of long-term dismebodiment.  The experience was utterly discombobulating for the unprepared, equivalent to a mental flashbang hurled directly into the frontal cortex.
743-
744Particularly disciplined minds could shut out the Kaleidoscope and assert their own individual nature in the face of Eryka’s most useful psychic trick, but even they often experienced a moment or two of disorientation.  Undisciplined minds, or those minds engaged in a taxing task such as a high-speed car chase, were about as prepared for the Kaleidoscope as a man on a tightrope was for a sudden blast from a fire hose.  The projected memories would surge through an unprotected mind and momentarily disrupt its ability to control its own body as it tried to cope with the sudden barrage of utterly foreign experiences.
745
746If it worked, there was virtually no possibility that Diegfries would be able to retain control of his vehicle.  If he did lose control, Eryka’s attack would slacken as she devoted focus towards telekinesis instead, ready to steer the likely-stolen car into a semi-controlled crash rather than allowing it to rocket off into a towering wreck.  Not too controlled – she still wanted the crash to thrash Diegfries within an inch of his life – but if at all possible they wanted this one alive.
747
748At least until they could put him in cratonite and ship him back to the Storm for ‘debriefing’.
749@Negatomsk
750 
751Negatomsk05/12/2019
752"Got it." Twenty? She probably could've managed in two, but Kaleidoscope was nothing to mess with, even for her. Tempest was one of the brute force types who bullied through psychic attacks with willpower and focus rather than any sort of actual defensive training, and as such even with advanced warning Eryka's strikes tended to rattle her defenses more than she'd like during their training sessions. She knew her sensei would've told her she needed to work on that, and she would've agreed. She'd have to get another session in soon.
753
754Thankfully she wasn't going to be on the receiving end this time, that was all te Anelia. Eryka knew exactly what she was doing on the assault front, down to the timing; she struck as Diegfries was cutting around a bus, just as he was swerving back into his lane. The sensory overload washing over him at that critical moment produced the desired effect as the car jerked suddenly from a snap overcorrection, whipping into a spin. A smidge of Eryka's nudging brought it clear of the bus and back into open lanes of traffic, just in time for physics to take its course as the tires broke traction under the tremendous speed and sent the car into a flip, rolling over and over before breaking into a cartwheel for the last 30 feet or so, coming to rest upside down against a railing overlooking the canal running alongside the highway.
755-
756Screeching to a halt, Tempest threw her door open and burst forward. There was no need to plan; she and Eryka knew their roles to a T. Tempest struck fist first, and Eryka kicked them in the brain.
757
758Diegfries had already nearly pulled himself from the car through the ruins of the windshield, still hanging halfway out of the vehicle on hand and knee as Tempest arrived, whipping a front kick at his forehead from a full run. From that opening salvo she would be looking to better him with a rapid-fire barrage of fisticuffs, her arms a blue, ether sparking off of them as she unleashed a furious assault.
759@Yurei
760 
761Yurei05/12/2019
762Eryka wasn't out of the car as fast as Tempest was, but she didn’t need to be.  By the time she had shoes on the ground, Tempest was already attacking.  That vicious physical barrage was intended as much to grab the target’s attention as to inflict damage, draw their focus onto the seven-foot feral Xochar warmaiden pummeling their face.
763
764That distraction made it even easier for Eryka to strike.  The thick tide of astral force emanating from Diegfries was bizarre, but Eryka had dealt with worse astral tides in her time.  Hanging back several yards, staying clear of any potential soul-shattering strikes, she snuck a stinger of mental force through the rush of power and sought to jab it deep into her foe’s psyche.  Give up, that forced suggestion said.  You already lost – you’re wounded, you’re outnumbered, your car’s dead, there’s no way out.  Give up.  Plead for mercy.  They might not kill you if you cooperate.  The big one’s so scary...don’t let her hurt you anymore.
765
766A stream of weakness, helplessness, and submission focused through the stinger Eryka attempted to tether into her target’s mind.  Even if the suggestion didn’t fully take, the conflicting emotions and thoughtcurrents would slow the man down, rob his blows of the instantaneous decisiveness they would need to pose even the slightest threat to Tempest.  She didn’t use the Kaleidoscope again – that technique was almost as hard on her as it was on her target, and she didn’t want him showing some clever trick to overcome her most obvious mental attack.  She would slow him, weaken him, prey on his courage and resolve, and while he was busy fighting himself, Tempest would punch him in the face until he stopped being a problem.
767
768Just like they’d practiced.
769@Negatomsk
770 
771Negatomsk05/13/2019
772"W-wait--" Diegfries barely got a word out before Tempest was upon him, throwing the mother of all penalty kicks at his face. He got an arm up to block the strike, which didn't accomplish much as the force behind it knocked him back up onto his knees while sending his head into the hood behind him. With no room to stand up, and Tempest on top of him, raining blows down upon him wherever she could find an opening, he was trapped even before Eryka began needling at his thoughts.
773
774"W-WAIT!" Tempest's assault was becoming more furious despite his protests; she was starting to realize her blows weren't doing as much damage as they should. He was using one of the Eight Styles to reduce the damage of her blows, and she was realizing she wasn't going to get through without changing her tactics. "I can't... I can't stop... I can't... stop... YET!" 
775
776He was pleading for Tempest to relent as much as he was to the voices in his head as he released a vicious uppercut cloaked in Astral energy, the force of the strike surging through his body as he drove Eryka's voice out, his wild strike driving Tempest back.
777-
778The blow had been coming, and she had expected it; the Hakkousoutou. Tempest had been hoping to put him out before he could use it but Diegfries was much better trained than she'd given him credit for given the sloppiness of his first hit. Even as she dodged backwards, she managed to thrust a side kick into his chest, smacking him back against the car one last time, but it gave him the time to finally scramble to his feet in turn. 
779
780"You... just lemme go, just let me go, please." Winded and bloodied, Diegfries was in much better shape than he should have been for what he'd just gone through. Still, the man looked tired beyond the chase and the beating, flushed and drawn, with rivulets of sweat streaking down his face. "I'm almost done, I'm almost... I'm almost done and then you can have me, just please... let me finish..."
781@Yurei
782 
783Yurei05/13/2019
784Marvelous.  Someone with a mission.
785
786Eryka was intimately familiar with Missions, driving creeds that dominated one’s life.  Far from evoking sympathy however, Diegfries’ words only hardened her resolve.  Those who fell to expediency in the pursuit of a personal mission, excusing any action they took through fanatical devotion to their final objective, were the worst sort of failures.  To allow an external objective to consume them left them hollow and undercut the very mission they had devoted themselves to.
787
788Eryka grimaced, reaching out with mental claws and ripping the driver’s side door from the twisted wreck with telekinetic force.  She sideswiped the man with it, putting him off-balance with the same motion that held the mangled door between herself and Diegfries as a shield against that terrible blow.  The Hakkousoutou had obliterated the mental stinger she’d struck with, the sheer intensity of the astral surge Diegfries had summoned up overwhelming and destroying her tether.  Fine...she’d had enough of pretending she was a mindhunter anyways.
789
790The vehicle’s shatterproof windshield shattered, splintered with a sharp telekinetic blow, and the long blade-like shards swarmed to Eryka.  They hovered above and behind her, points aimed unerringly at Diegfries, and the Hyrodea’s eyes were cold, judgmental, and utterly pitiless.
791
792“You are finished,” she spoke coldly.  “Whatever you wanted to do has failed.  Your stolen techniques will not allow you to escape us.  Kneel on the ground and put your hands behind your head or you start losing pieces.  You don’t need limbs where you’re going; if you’d like to keep them for a little while longer, I suggest you stop whining and relent.”
793@Negatomsk
794 
795Negatomsk05/24/2019
796Tempest had leaped back several feet after her escape from certain annihilation, fists up, eyes wide, chest heaving, jaw agape as she drew deep, quick breaths. When she was fighting she fell into the zone quickly, lost in automatic movement as much as in her enjoyment of the endless thrill of betting her life, and her skill against another. 
797
798But this was different. There was something else in her aura, something she had gotten utterly lost in, and only Eryka's voice had brought her out of it.
799
800"One and only warning, Diggy, on your knees, hands behind your head, or this goes all sorts of bad for you." Tempest had begun to gather the astral around her as well, the color quickly fading from the air around her as she prepared to slip into Void mode. She was talking like herself again but she still wasn't acting like her usual self. She was rattled. Something was off.
801
802Something had gone off in Diegfries as well, at what Tempest had said. His arms had dropped to his sides, his head had fallen, and the tide of astral energy flowing off of his body focused itself into a bonfire. 
803
804"No... no more warnings for Diggy."
805
806Some kind of trigger, possibly an old trauma, but either way it was clear there would be no peaceful resolution. Tempest flew into another rapid assault, but this time Diegfries was ready, parrying and blocking her punches and kicks almost effortlessly, even in the narrow space with his back against the car. When a kick to the front of his thigh finally brought him to a knee he lashed out with a sweeping open handed claw strike that ripped a glancing blow across Tempest's flank -- and tore a chunk out of her body.
807-
808Tempest bit back a choked scream, as she retaliated with a right cross, a blow he easily slipped, as he ducked right into the spinning back kick that followed. 
809
810The blow almost launched him through the car, slamming him into the hood with such force that he knocked it back down onto its wheels, landing prone atop the vehicle, and as Tempest fell to her hands and knees Eryka would finally have the opening to rain her razor-sharp hell down on him.
811@Yurei
812 
813Yurei05/24/2019
814Combat-trained telekinetics were masters of improvised weaponry.  Anything one could think of could be made into a tool of carnage, and a wrecked car was a rich source of ammunition.  Diegfries was trained in Sharrok all out of proportion to any human she’d ever seen, and Tempest had apparently found a landmine with that cutesy little nickname, but even in the Empire Eryka had found very few people who’d trained properly against a telekinetic foe.
815
816Tempest and ‘Diggy’ exchanged blows almost too fast for Eryka to see, but the fact that the exchange lasted any time at all clued Eryka in that Diegfries was more dangerous than anything they’d seen him do so far indicated.  Tempest was a devastating fighter and a master of Sharrok whose speed allowed her to overwhelm all but the sturdiest and most airtight of defenses.  When she failed to pierce Diegfries’ guard in seconds, Eryka knew she’d have to change things up.  Her chance came sooner than she’d anticipated, when the man landed a heavy blow on Tempest.  Bulling through the pain in a way so few warriors could, Tempest made use of the hit to finally sneak a solid strike of her own through Diegfries’ guard and blast him back into the car before collapsing for a moment.
817
818Eryka’s improvised car-door shield shifted over to interpose itself between Tempest and Dieg, offering her some cover, while a fierce telekinetic grip snatched the hood of the wrecked car and wrenched it open with Diegfries on top of it.  She kept wrenching, forcing the damaged joints to bend and shriek in protest as she slammed Dieg into the ragged remnants of the shattered windshield with the car’s own hood – a bit like a giant impromptu waffle iron.  Men like that were likely perfectly able to bat aside a handful of telekinetic razors like the ones Eryka had primed, if they could parry Tempest’s blows…but they were rarely fully prepared for their own footing to attack them.
819-
820As Eryka flapjacked the pinned murderer, she drew a deep breath and pulled on the well of power within her.  Spell formulae flitted through her mind, incantations and mystic equations shaping the channels through which the power of her modified soul flowed.  Diegfries was a powerful foe, cloaked in astral power and armored by his anger and misplaced sense of purpose against most forms of mental persuasion.
821
822Time to see how he did against intimidation.
823
824As Dieg started ripping his way free of her trap, Eryka screamed – with her breath, with her mind, and with her soul, marrying her psychic talents and the exaltation she’d spent years studying into a heavily improved Abyssal Howl.  The technique was in many ways her signature spell, the piece of exaltation she’d worked the hardest to perfect and the gateway she’d developed to learning more about the alien talents of her adopted species.  The Howl was patterned on her memories of the apex predators of the Penumbral Rifts, the more-than-physical hunting cries of abyssalisks searching for prey, and in the years since she’d started honing that memory into a psychic sword she’d added more to it.  Laced through the Howl were tones of her own true nature, the merciless and horrific phantasmal predator living within the pretty Verdissian skin, carrying with them a promise of utter dissolution.  Here, those undercurrents of certainty said, was a predator, and all who heard its cry were naught but prey to be consumed and erased.
825
826The ethereal elements of the Abyssal Howl, the exaltation married to the psychic shriek, amplified and broadened the noise, carrying with it enchantments of base fear, fight-or-flight terror.  The magic in the scream enabled even the deafened to hear it plainly, echoing in the blood and bone as much as the ears, and worked to break down any astral resistance the target might have benefitted from.
827-
828Eryka’s Abyssal Howl was an all-out assault on the courage of her foes, a spell which attacked the mind on multiple levels.  The Howl had caused entire armed gangs to wet themselves and flee in shrieking terror, their minds permanently scarred by the primordial fear they’d been forced to experience.  Even hardened champions, warriors of proven discipline and merit, had cracked in the face of that sound – their legs shook, their knuckles whitened, and their bravery shriveled and deserted them at the call of that huntress’ howl.
829
830Tempest, fortunately, was only partially affected – the Howl would still likely chill her to the bone and evoke fragments of remembered nightmares or the memories of her most desperate hours, but she had been spared the brunt of the Howl’s force.  That was reserved for Diegfries te Anelia alone, the man upon whom Eryka’s eyes were fastened like targeting lasers.  Temporarily pinned by her telekinetic sandwich flip, he was held in place just long enough for Eryka to strike in a way he’d never experienced before.
831
832If he was lucky, he’d simply go mad before he got dead.
833@Negatomsk
834 
835Negatomsk05/25/2019
836Diegfries had not forgotten about Eryka but he had forgotten what she could do. True to his training his reflexes were sharp, and he had been rolling backwards to try and flip off of the car hood when Eryka flipped him into the air instead, using the car hood to slam him into the remainder of the windshield. 
837
838It was an impressive trick, but not one that would hold him for long; he would've rolled off the hood after the first slam if she hadn't caught his head between the hood and the frame of the roof, but the delay gave her all the time she needed to fire off her main attack, the terrible and terrifying Abyssal Howl.
839
840The effects were immediate, and likely far more drastic than she expected: as the primal psychic assault washed over him Diegfries howled in terror and agony as the overwhelming flood of astral psionic power flushed his soul clear from his body, leaving his corpse to roll lifelessly onto the hood as his psyche floated in the ether, screaming louder now than before. 
841
842But he was still fighting, the inferno of astral energies around him raging brighter than ever as he began to push back, fighting through the Howl, and the raging astral torrents until he slipped back into his mortal vessel, jolting upright with such force that he fell to the street, bolting to his feet and fixing Eryka with a terrified stare of... camaraderie. "You... you've felt it, too. You've been dead before, too--" 
843-
844He took a step forward, only to be cut off by a bolt of astral lightning that caught him in the flank, carrying him up off across the highway before launching him off of the overpass. 
845
846Tempest lowered her fist, dropping back to her knees as she slipped out of Void form, breathing heavily. "Godsdamnit." 
847
848She didn't need to say anything else: their failure to prepare spoke for itself. Diggy had shrugged off one of Eryka's biggest guns after it killed him, after he'd given Tempest a wound that would have surely gotten her killed if they'd kept fighting. 
849
850Diegfries had been more focused on fleeing, so hopefully he was in the wind now, rather than coming back to finish them off, or follow up on whatever the hell he'd just been saying. "The hell was he saying back there," Tempest gasped out between deep breaths, clutching her belly as she stood and made her way back to Eryka. "That bit about dying, what did he mean?"
851
852Eryka had told her story to Tempest before... and she'd mostly listened. Hadn't really understood. Was time to fix that.
853@Yurei
854 
855Yurei05/27/2019
856In the wake of the Howl, Eryka mostly felt numb -  a numbness she knew as the mental version of exhausted muscles.  That spell was powerful, and it ate deeply into her reserves of both ethereal power and mental endurance.  After using it, her emotions were muted and her power ebbed until she could recover.
857
858Which meant she could keep her practiced, vaunted game face on when the Howl managed to blast Diegfries clear of his body entirely, casting his soul free of its shell.  Right before it clawed its way right back in, reanimating his body before it had a chance to really, truly die.  The sensation of it was intensely disturbing even through the haziness of her Abyssal Howl’s aftereffects, seeing Diegfries’ soul vacate its shell only to change its mind.
859
860He spoke then, accusing Eryka of having been dead in the past right before a bolt of killing lightning caught him in the ribs, flinging him away from the battlefield as Tempest rejoined the battle.  Her powerful Void form allowed her a brief surge of strength, but by this point both of them knew they had made a critical error in their assumptions.  Diegfries te Anelia, despite being the wrong species and having only a couple of theoretical years to train, was quite possibly even better than Tempest was, and if his words were true, then...
861
862“That bit about dying, what did he mean?”
863
864Even through the fugue that followed her Howl, Eryka felt a flash of irritation.  She leveled a brief glare at Tempest before flicking her phone up to her hand with a bit of telekinetic force.  “Olse, we’re going to need medical.  Get me a place, Tempest took a bad hit.  Do not try to track or follow Diegfries right now, he’s so much worse than any of us thought he would be.”
865-
866That done, she turned back to Tempest, bringing up a hand and focusing on a new set of spell formulae, muttering a few words under her breath to help focus them.  This spell was more difficult for her, an exercise of purely Hyrodea casting that wasn’t well aligned to her, but it had proven too useful for her not to learn.  Wound Sealing took effect, staunching the heavy flow of blood from Tempest’s gut and quickly forming heavy scabs bearing minor ethereal reinforcement to help close the wound enough to get the wounded woman somewhere a better medico could help.
867
868“Listen this time, will you?’ she said, heading back to the car next to Tempest.  “Your own master told you – when I was originally cast into the Rifts, my first body died.  I’m a powerful enough mentalist that I managed to cling to my identity and self-sense after my body stopped working, and I ‘lived’ as an astral ghost out there until I could find another body.  This body.  In my eyes I never finished dying, but your master thinks otherwise.  Apparently so does Diegfries – he jumped out of his skin for a moment while I was Howling, then jumped back in the same way I can.  He can leave his body, but I think it is his body, so at least a few of our worst-case theories may be debunked.  Come on.  Need to get you somewhere you can regenerate.  This job just got a great deal more difficult.”
869@Negatomsk
870 
871Negatomsk05/27/2019
872That had been bad. All of it had been really bad. Tempest had seen the Howl before, had seen more disciplined souls fight through it, but always at a disadvantage and never after it had overwhelmed them. And she'd certainly never seen someone come back after it had killed them outright. She'd never taken such a blow through her Void Form, either, even from other Void-enhanced techniques. 
873
874So that's the Hakkousoutou, she mused to herself. If Diggy had caught her outside of Void Form that strike would've damn near cut her in two even if it hadn't snatched her soul from her body.
875
876Meanwhile Tempest had earned that glare from Eryka, she knew that. Eryka had literally laid her soul bare before her and Tempest was telling her to her face she hadn't been paying attention, but that wasn't entirely true. Still, for the moment her attention was more on their surroundings as Tempest kept her eyes, ears and aura open, watching for Diegfries' return, if it came. Worst came to worst she could buy time for Eryka to get to the car so Olse could engage autopilot before using Supernova to disengage. Probably. 
877
878But it never came to that: Diegfries was gone, of that she was sure. The man could hide, but the astral taint ofvhisc aura, wasn't something he could shield from her senses, not in the amounts he was putting off, and as bad as that much astral energy was for anyone, she doubted it was a conscious choice for him to be leaking it the way he was. 
879
880"No medical, I don't need it--" was all Tempest managed to edge in as Eryka continued making arrangements. "Tell her to clear a path to wherever we're going. Don't want or need to talk to the authorities right now..." 
881-
882She lowered her arm as she recognized the spell Eryka was casting, allowing access to her injury as Wound Sealing took effect. Truth be told this was all she would need; as soon as she caught her breath and steadied her aura her body would be able to handle the rest but that wasn't going to be anytime soon, not after a shot like that. 
883
884"I did listen," Tempest offered in her own defense as she followed Eryka back to the car. "I just didn't get it." But she shut up, and she listened again, taking it all in. She still didn't fully understand it, but now that she was at least making the effort, it was a little clearer than it had been. "A verdissian's soul is their life. You lose your soul, doesn't matter what happened to your body, you're dead and your body's just a shell." 
885
886She hissed in pain as she slid back into the car, as her height forced her to angle her torso in a manner that aggravated her injury. Taking a few quick breaths, she started the car and pulled away from the carnage before continuing."Far as Sensei is concerned, far as anyone else is concerned, you died, the girl who was in your body died, and even though her heart never stopped, you're definitely someone else. As for Diegfries, the final step of training for the Hakkousoutou is to learn to do just what he did back there -- you have to die, and let your soul find your way back to your body. He clearly pulled it off -- and so did you." 
887-
888Tempest frowned as she pulled off of the highway, following the instructions Olse had sent to their onboard GPS. "...I never did, so I had to figure out another way. My Void Form." This latest admission flew in the face of what Tempest had told her before -- that she had finished the training but failed to grasp the technique. She'd lied, even if only through omission. 
889
890Pulling into a garage that opened as the car approached, Tempest parked and looked around before heading up the stairs on the right wall of the room. Upstairs, through a single door that Olse unlocked through Tempest's commpad, they entered into a loft that had been stocked for their arrival, if only barely. 
891
892Retracting the ribbon suit, Tempest set to checking her wound as she fell onto the couch. Her natural healing had already taken over, and it quickly accelerated as she focused on it.
893
894"The way that he came back into his body... was like he's done it before, and I don't mean just during training." Wincing, Tempest rubbed at her side as she finally sat back, rubbing through her fur to check for blood. "But I think you'd know a little better than me... what do you think?"
895@Yurei
896 
897Yurei05/27/2019
898Olse managed to get the two of them threaded past emergency response teams, though it was a close thing at times and twice they had to take an abrupt detour to avoid responders.  Nevertheless, eventually the two of them managed to find their way to relative safety and privacy.  And a conversation Eryka was increasingly frustrated to be having again.
899
900“A Verdissian’s soul is their life, yes.  I was not a Verdissian when my first body died.  Whatever happened to my human soul, I do not know and I hope to whatever gods may listen that I’m never given cause to find out.  My mind, my Id, my essential self, whatever you want to call the part of me that houses my thoughts and grants me my power, lived on.  Yes, now my mind and my soul are merged into a single entity because that’s the way of this species, and you still can’t truly comprehend how much that thought frightens me sometimes.”
901
902She listened as Tempest laid out a few more details concerning the Hakkousoutou, as well as the revelation that she’d never quite passed her Sensei’s final test.  That was interesting, and potentially a topic for another day, as it spoke to another clue to the confusing, contradictory nature of the Verdissian mindself she still hadn’t answered to her full satisfaction.  Nevertheless.  Tempest was correct – the man had evinced a trick Eryka had only ever seen one other person do before.
903
904Herself.
905
906“What Diegfries did,” she said, perching her chin contemplatively in one hand, “was what you can do with an awakened mind.  I don’t believe I’ve ever seen another Verdissian with an awakened mind before, it’s a talent that requires a degree of separation between mind and soul that this species is almost entirely incapable of.  An awakened mind can sustain itself without the buttressing and focusing of the flesh, and because it can do so it can jump free of its skin whenever it likes.  The body goes dormant, effectively vegetative, until its mind returns.”
907-
908“It’s extremely difficult to do when your soul is fused to your mind, but Diegfries isn’t Verdissian,” Eryka continued, musing aloud.  “If the training your Assassin King offers focuses on exposing a mind to astral energies and techniques, improving their focus and power, and then forcing them to jump free of their body and return...then I would say that he’s trying to forcibly awaken the minds of his students, or whatever the Verdissian equivalent is.  I didn’t know a mind without psychic talent could be awakened, but who knows what’s possible with our kind – and if someone with a proper mind-soul split was put through that sort of training?  It could very well be a fast-track to awakening a mind, though that mind might not know it’s been awakened.  He may not know what the astral even truly is, or what capabilities an awakened mind gives him.  If that’s truly what happened out there and I’m not talking with my tail in ignorance again,” she grumbled, remembering her clearly-incorrect suppositions from earlier in the day.
909
910“If he is like me?  Then killing him won’t stop him.  Even if you destroy his body, he can try and do what I did and take a new one.  He mentioned a mission of some sort, something he had to ‘finish’.  My best notion would be trying to puzzle out what that is.  If he’s driven enough to come back to life once to finish his work, nothing’s stopping him from doing it again.  We need to render his mission invalid, either finish it for him or find a way to make it impossible to complete, if we want any chance of pinning down an awakened mind strong enough to simply bull through my Abyssal Howl with sheer grit.”
911@Negatomsk
912
913Negatomsk05/27/2019
914"I wasn't telling you all that because I forgot or thought you had, I was telling you why, by our standards, you're considered dead. And maybe why he thinks you are. Or were. Whatever. This shit is outside my wheelhouse, I prefer people to stay dead when I kill 'em..." Rubbing at her side, Tempest stood and set to stretching, twisting her trunk from side to side. 
915
916"If that's an awakened mind, I feel a bit insulted right now, but I forgive you." Tempest set to pacing as she often did, ironically unable to concentrate without moving. "All he wanted to do was to learn to destroy. To kill beyond death. And instead he awakened his soul, is what you're saying." She chuckled. "Makes sense... I dunno if Sensei can survive as you say for long, but I know he's come back from death more than once... and to hear him tell it it wasn't just about a vegetative state, he was killed, his body was dead -- almost cut in half he said -- and he brought it back, so it's... a lot worse than you think."
917-
918Tempest ran her fingers up through her hair and pulled out her ponytail, her hair cascading down to her waist. It had been some time since she last cut it, and she kept upkeep to the bare minimum necessary to keep it manageable, but now she was messing with and fluffing it as she stared at the floor. "Graduating, awakening, however you wanna call it it's not easy. Diegfries, so long as Sensei isn't hiding any other students somewhere, is only the third to pull it off." Her hands stopped, fingers tangled in her hair about her temples. "When I tried I ended up in a coma and Sensei had to bring me back... but he said for the fact that my soul managed to linger without passing on, I was as good as graduated.
919
920"Diggy graduated for real, so he knows all he needs to about the Astral, the Void he's mastered, and what it can do. He knows it can kill a soul, and he knows it can bring his back. Only thing I don't get is how someone so strong could be so weak against an attack that's right up his alley like your Howl..." She started pacing again. "Something like that should've hit him, yeah, but he should've been able to hold on to his body, especially with his training. Coming back from death through Sensei's training strengthens your soul's connection to the body, boosts your defenses against attacks that target the soul and your life force. But that guy just reeks of death, as if..." Her eyes widened.
921@Yurei
922 
923Yurei05/29/2019
924"…he didn’t do it correctly,” Eryka surmised, a sudden notion taking her.
925
926“Tempest…tell me.  You said the Assassin King has only had two students who successfully completed his training through this final stage.  What happens to those who wash out, or who only partially complete that final step, such as yourself?  What if,” she said, leaning forward and staring intently at Tempest, “this Diegfries fellow wasn’t trained by the Assassin King at all, but instead by one of his failed students – or by someone else entirely?  Someone who didn’t understand the process as well as your teacher did but managed to bungle their way through into an imperfect version of the King’s technique?  Completing the Assassin King’s final test strengthens a Verdissian’s tether to their body and helps them resist soul-targeted abilities, but Diegfries is not Verdissian.  What if those techniques and trials don’t work the same way for a human soul that they do for one of ours, especially when taught by someone without a proper grasp on what he’s trying to teach?”
927@Negatomsk
928 
929Negatomsk05/30/2019
930Tempest frowned and sank back onto the couch, clasping her hands together. 
931
932"...The ones who wash out never even get to train to learn the Hakkousoutou, Sensei knows they wouldn't survive. The ones who take the training and can't hack it, they just die. The training, Sensei just literally kills you and you have to find your way back, yourself, and resurrect your body. If you can't do it you just die and your soul slips off into the Void -- into the Astral, but that's...." She lifted her gaze to meet Eryka's. "...that's only for verdissians, like you said."
933
934There was no telling what would have happened to the soul of a non-native subjected to harsh training of the Yatsushiki's final secret technique. 
935
936"Maybe he did die... maybe he didn't come back right, maybe he took too long to come back -- if his soul is barely clinging to his body that'd explain the stench of death following him around everywhere and why the Howl knocked him out of his body so easily." She sighed and stood again, placing her hands on her hips. "Let's stick a pin in that theory about the teacher, for now I just wanna assume that my Sensei fucked up." Because otherwise they were looking at two rogue Hakkousoutou masters -- at least -- and Tempest didn't like that thought at all.
937
938"Hey!" Olse rang up on Tempest's comm, answering for her and switching to speaker. "I found a link between Diegfries and his victims. Ballagan, and Calibretti all attended the same high school years ago -- Ellbend Secondary Academy. Missed it the first time since they scrubbed their records on Porso after he broke bad; they're a pretty prestigious private school for rich kids of richer parents, and a mid level mob boss isn't the kinda alumni you want on the books."
939-
940"Diegfries didn't attend?" Tempest cocked an eyebrow, watching the comm as Olse activated the projector, displaying the numerous files as floating tabs. Tempest reached our to click the school file, bringing up student IDs for Ballagan and Calibretti. 
941
942"Scrubbed, remember? These guys have a nasty habit of erasing problem children from their files retroactively and they've got wicked security encryption software. I think they got a digit to put this together, in which case I'm lucky that A: they aren't still here in it; and B: that I got in at all. But I was going over security cameras in Felix Ballagan's apartment building and cross-referencing them against te Anelia's file when I found this." Another tab popped up with a shot of a woman walking through the lobby, joined by another tab of her ID, identifying her as Abigail Chaffee. 
943
944"...Are we supposed to know who this is?" Tempest had taken up her AiComm to begin a search.
945
946"Diegfries' ex-girlfriend. Pretty sure there's no coincidence she visited Ballagan a week before he got aced and two days after Calibretti got waxed. I got her address, and you got a lead on the local badges still combing through those videos, but you better be quick about it, I can't hold them back that long." 
947
948Tempest sighed, rubbing at her side again before pulling the ribbon suit from her arm as she made for the stairs to fetch their clothes from the car. "Can you get us another car? Something fast but less conspicuous..."
949
950"Yeah, maybe next time don't rent an Acceleron GT if you're gonna go blasting through the city like a crazy person," Olse muttered through the comm. "Sending one your way, it'll be ready for pick up a block away at Desty and Finlan in about 15." 
951
952"The fun never ends..." Tempest stomped down the stairs, shaking her head.
953@Yurei
954 
955Negatomsk05/30/2019
956A familiar number rang in to one of Vexa's burner phones, belonging to one Ledger Cole, a mole she'd planted within the Emporium City PD some time ago. He'd already sent word a few days ago that something interesting was brewing, and it seemed like he was making good on that tantalizing promise now.
957
958"Hey, sending you some photos and files, we got a new player in town. The hit on Porso Calibretti from a while back, looks like we got a pro out there." Cole sent a series of attachments, starting with a photo of the suspect. "Diegfries te Anelia, guy managed to wipe out Calibretti and two whole crews guarding him and his company, not a scratch on him." Ledger sent photos of Diegfries and Calibretti's hollowed-out corpse next. "He just aced a second victim, some number cruncher named Ballagan, looks like he and Calibretti went to high school together. Working on the connection, but you got first dibs while I delay the files from getting into the database. I got te Anelia's ex on the files I sent you and a list of his haunts if you wanna put feelers out. We find out what this guy is after I figure maybe we can get him working for us by promising to help, yeah?"
959
960Ledger figured, hopefully correctly, that they could use this kind of boost to their manpower, and if he scored some brownie points, so be it!
961
962"I'm not gonna be able to keep pushing this off much longer, I think someone is snooping around in our database and until I find 'em hiding my own stuff is a problem. If there's nothing else...?" He paused, offering her the chance to ask him anything. "Then I gotta go."
963@Commander Vale
964 
965Rize06/10/2019
966“I swear, when I get my hands on you Tempest Tremorain…” The rest died off into an annoyed grumble from between a pair of shapely lips pressed into a decided frown. The woman all but stomped her way down the sidewalk, fists shoved into the pockets of an expensive gray synth-wool jacket, the clack-clack-clack of her designer black boots like gunshots in her wake. Aisling Avalos - known elsewhere as the pop idol Aurora - moved with such intensity and unflinching momentum that her very presence seemed to shove people out of the way, people stepping aside to allow her to pass with a deference that one wouldn’t normally give for someone of her five and a half foot frame. A brightly colored, ovoid drone buzzed along behind her, its shell the same flame red color as the scarf wrapped around Aisling’s neck. 
967
968She was close. That little blip in her mind told Aisling that the focus of her rage was close indeed. She narrowed her mismatched eyes as she thought of just how much of a lashing she was going to give the Xochar. Leave me hanging, will you… a hundred kids… all wanting to see the famous extreme athlete The Tempest. Yeah, you’re cool Aurora but Tempest is awesome! ‘She’ll be here soon, I promise!’ Seven hells I looked like an idiot! The damned press had a field day with that! I am so going to kick her furry ass so hard that I’ll be cleaning orange hair off of my new black leggings for a week!
969
970Aisling pulled up suddenly, the blip blip blip of her mental tracking of Tempest’s electronics (most of which she’d bugged over the years to keep an eye on her less than careful bestie) alerting her that the prey was near. And approaching. Quickly. A flurried moment of illogical self awareness overcame Aisling and she set to straightening her clothes and needlessly combing her fingers through her half black half white shoulder length hair before catching herself and forcing her expression back into a determined scowl. 
971
972“Tempest! I should kick your ass right here and now!”
973@Negatomsk
974 
975Commander Vale06/10/2019
976[Vexa & Co.]
977
978The trio were fairly unassuming, minus the fact the two muscular men were flanking the single one. She didn't seem to have a care in the world, her gaze bouncing from building to building as if sizing them up. Her lips parted as if to speak before the sound of a cell phone started ringing. Given the smile that curved those very lips, she knew exactly who was ringing. A big hand reached into a suit pocket before gently depositing the phone into the waiting hand of Vexa. Hitting the accept button on the little phone, she put it to her ear. 
979
980She didn't need to speak as he began to lay out the details, turning on her heel to continue walking. She crooked her finger to get the pair to follow her as she listened, lips pursed as she snapped her fingers for another phone. This phone allowed her to see the files he was sending, her eyes scanning as she scrolled through each page of the file. Her smile only widened as she came to a stop in the middle of a sidewalk. She clicked a button on the side of the phone to make the screen go dark as Ledger explained that someone was snooping. He'd been an excellent contact, getting some of their best men into G.R.I.M's ranks and she wasn't willing to burn this bridge, even if there was someone snooping. 
981 
982"You let me know what you need. You keep finding guys like this for me and I'll take care of you. Your usual with a little extra will be waiting for you. Talk to you soon." Cutting off the connection, she turned to look up at the bodyguards. "Make the call, boys." 
983
984She would use this information to get some feelers out today, see what she could see. Track the ex, get information from her. She liked this man's handiwork and if she could get him on their side? Pay him what his heart desires while making sure He was happy? It was all a win win for her. "Let's go to the nearest bar. I think a drink is in order." It just happened to be one of the haunts on the list. Maybe, just maybe, she would get lucky and hear something more.
985@Negatomsk
986 
987Negatomsk06/10/2019
988Ledger had called it on this one as Vexa decided to follow up his lead. He didn't really need much, as firmly entrenched within the Emporium City PD as he was, but as things were heating up, he was starting to reconsider his exit strategies.
989
990"Might need an extraction plan in place if this shit leads to me getting made but if it starts looking like that I'll send an emergency heads up to this number. So if you can have some boys on standby ready for me -- if that's possible -- that'll do it, boss." Here was hoping it wasn't asking much for a little help. 
991
992Out at Andrew's, the bar listed in Ledger's dossier, Vexa and her group happened to strike gold. The establishment wasn't far from the highway, and news of the horrific crash that had just occurred was on every screen, with most eyes watching out of curiosity. Some witnesses were reporting seeing Diegfries in the aftermath of the crash, engaging some unknown parties whose identities had been obscured on security cameras and handheld devices through some sort of hacking program, but nothing had been confirmed through the authorities just yet.
993
994A pair of eyes as sharp as Vexa's however, would find all the confirmation they needed at the far end of the bar, as a man in a dirty jacket matching the one Diegfries had been wearing in the video sat with his head down, nursing a drink, and apparently a hall of a headache, as he kept rubbing the knuckles of his left hand against his temple, muttering constantly under his breath. 
995
996He'd been through the ringer, clearly, but here was definitely the man in the flesh, bold as ever to be out in public as he was, hiding in plain sight. @Commander Vale
997 
998Yurei06/11/2019
999“You’re going to be all right?” Eryka asked as Tempest started moving.  The woman simply waved her off, apparently unconcerned with the near-lethal blow she’d taken barely twenty minutes earlier.  Eryka shrugged faintly – Xochar were known for that sort of bullheaded nigh-invulnerability sometimes, who was she to naysay if Tempest thought she was fine.
1000
1001“So.  Diegfries fried us,” she said as they traveled, ignoring Tempest’s scowl for a moment.  “He may not be your equal in hand-to-hand, but he’s close enough to stave you off and that technique of his evens the score.  He took my best astral assault and all it did was rile him up.  The man is dangerous in the extreme, Tempest.  How are we going to put him down when next we find him, if neither your martial skills nor my psychic ones are fit for the task?  We need to...”
1002
1003Eryka stiffened for a moment, a brief look of consternation on her face.  “That presence...I haven’t felt it since...” she muttered briefly, before turning her gaze quickly to Tempest.  “Back upstairs, now.  We don’t want to do this in the open,” she said, turning and quick-stepping her way back up into the room.  If that astral signature out there was who she thought it was...
1004@Negatomsk @Rize
1005 
1006Negatomsk06/11/2019
1007"He got a hold of my aura, not me; if I hadn't gone Void just before he hit me, it'd be an entirely different situation -- without me in it -- but as is, body's healed up," she lifted her arm, slapping her flank to confirm, "and all I can do is wait for the rest my shit to sort itself out. As for getting him... that's the question." 
1008
1009Hitting him at the same time wasn't gonna do it -- they'd tried that, and he'd fought them off at the same time. If  only Tempest had gone in when the Howl was blowing his soul out of his body... even then, there really wasn't any way she could have stopped him from getting back in, that wasn't what Void or Nova were for. Honestly, Tempest was at a loss. Right now it seemed all they could do was talk him down. Or give him something to lose. He had an ex-wife, and with any luck there was still some kind of spark, some sort of connection there. Eryka wouldn't like it, but if there was even a chance she'd make for a convincing hostage, Tempest was ready to --
1010
1011"Huh? O-kaaay..." Something had gotten Eryka's hackles up, and she was ordering Tempest back up the stairs. Tempest returned after grabbing their clothes from the car, which had been her purpose in heading down there in the first place, and tossed Eryka's things onto the couch beside her, and began to dress herself. 
1012
1013Eryka had always been the one with the astral eye in the sky, when it came to early detection. Tempest could certainly ferret out hostile intent cast their way, and threats in their immediate vicinity, but mid-to-long range scans and preemptive threat assessment were the Hyrodea's game, and truth be told, Tempest had come to appreciate it. Checking her flexwhips, Tempest made ready to receive whatever was coming. "What've we got, here?"
1014@Yurei @Rize
1015 
1016Rize06/13/2019
1017She turned around!? Damn that woman! If Tempest had figured out she was there, and was deciding to run and hide from her? Aisling stomped her way to the little side door into what she gathered was a garage, judging by the much larger door on the front street. Predictably, the door was locked. However, it was becoming ever more clear that the people of this world had not had to deal with angry Islbeth Verdissians, judging by the security and strength of their electronic protections, and the fact that there wasn’t a simple mechanical lock in place as a back-up. Despite being still new to the particulars of this world’s technology, and learning the ins and outs of their data architecture, it didn’t take more than a single burning glance and a clever twist of technomancy to trick the lock into opening with a single, soft click. 
1018
1019Aisling strode into the garage, her eyes scanning over the interior as an automated light clicked on overhead. Meanwhile the fiery red drone that accompanied her began mapping the building with low level sonar pulses, creating a usable if not overly detailed picture of the multistory structure. Aisling reached back and shut the door behind her, engaging the lock again with a thought. Tempest was above her now, presumably in some kind of loft room, or at least something that appeared like one. She narrowed her eyes and strode towards the stairs, eyes narrowed, lips pursed.
1020 
1021The door at the top of the stairs was secured with another electronic lock, and for an instant Aisling imagined simply tripping the device open and marching into the room with a kick. A second thought, however, convinced her of the stupidity of barging into a room where her highly trained and highly efficient super soldier best friend was probably not ready to greet a sudden entrance with a hug and a glass of wine. That sort of thing typically elicited an entirely different reaction from Tempest, and Aisling didn’t fancy having her lungs kicked out of her chest in a moment of mistaken identity. 
1022
1023So instead, she lifted one delicate hand, hesitated a moment, and knocked. 
1024@Yurei @Negatomsk
1025 
1026Yurei06/14/2019
1027The door opened, but it wasn’t Tempest on the other side of it.
1028
1029“Aisling,” Eryka said, staring flatly at the pop star/technologist.  “Your gift for timing is as impeccable as ever.  Come in, keep quiet, and we’ll fill you in as much as we can.  Worldstorm work,” she explained, knowing Ai would understand.  No one who worked for the Storm ever divulged the full details of a job to anyone who didn’t work for the Storm, and even then.
1030
1031At least now Ai knew why Tempest had about-faced – she’d long been familiar with Eryka and the girl’s keen extrasenses.  She knew Eryka’s true name, if not the entirety of the reasons behind her alias and why she was so carefully camouflaged in the Net.  They didn’t get along as well as Ai and Tempest did – Eryka had never dipped her toes in popstardom, after all – but that wasn’t to say they didn’t get along.  Aisling was an eminently useful person to know, and Eryka was clearly someone who would become a useful person to know in the future.  Paradoxically, Eryka’s tendency towards formality and professionalism made her easier to work with but more difficult to befriend; cracking that shell took work.  Ai had managed it for the most part...but Eryka was no kind of pop star and they all knew it.
1032
1033Her singing voice was just awful, and her idea of stage presence was wide-area psychic suggestion.  No good at all!
1034
1035“Short version: we’re chasing a super-murderer,” Eryka offered as the three of them settled into the room.  “We caught up to him not even an hour ago; he outfought Tempest hand-to-hand and he blew through my Abyssal Howl with barely a stutter.  He knows techniques even Tempest hasn’t gotten a handle on, somehow.  We don’t know how, we don’t know why, we just know he needs to be brought in or brought down so other people can pin down the hows and whys.  Do you have any combat assets in the area, or just your normal drone there?”
1036@Negatomsk @Rize
1037 
1038Negatomsk06/14/2019
1039Eryka took up by the door, to Tempest's surprise, but it seemed like she had a plan here. Fine, it was fine, let her dazzle 'em while Tempest razzled 'em. Their safehouse getting made was a problem, but they were ready for this and Tempest was more than ready to work off a little steam. Sonar pings mapping the building, defeated the locks without activating the alarms. Solid pro. One set of footsteps up the stairs, the nigh imperceptible hum of a drone -- probably how they beat the locks. Rheir guest was alone, confident or stupid, either way Tempest was fine with the beatdown she was going to get to hand out. But instead of a blitz on a breach, they had a knock on the door, and instead of a wild psychic attack, Eryka opened the door, and instead of anothe victim, Tempest was staring at a very angry Aisling.
1040
1041"Ai..." Her eyes went wide, her face fell. The meet and greet. She was still mad. It hadn't even really been Tempest's fault -- it was before the Diegfries assignment, a local hire for one of the Winds to nab a couple of thieves who were raiding weapons caches, thieves who had quickly revealed themselves to be a couple of low bred Amagrad in possession of some very high-end Islbeth made tech... so a severe underestimation of her prey, including a false trail that led her onto an orbital railway train had sent her off world for about 18 hours, 12 hours past the start of the meet and greet. 
1042 
1043She'd come back, she'd nailed the perps and she'd made it up to the kids with a separate engagement on her own time but none of that had done anything to wash the egg off of Aisling's face, and Tempest had gotten the Diegfries call immediately after... and gotten so wrapped up in it that she'd totally forgotten to apologize. 
1044
1045"....Uh... she always has combat ready assets nearby," Tempest motioned to the drone absently, rubbing sheepishly at the back of her head. Yes. Just don't talk about it. Eryka said a lot of important stuff. Pleaaaase focus on that. "She built her own bodyguards and programmed them to fight by training 'em against me, always has at least two packed away. Uh. We... have to go meet a car to meet a witness." And then she looked around for something to do, refusing to meet Aisling's gaze; she'd totally screwed this one up and she knew it and it was bad.
1046@Yurei @Rize
1047 
1048Rize06/16/2019
1049Eryka. Aisling sighed internally as the mentalist swung open the door and started to talk. She should have known. Why else would Tempest be so far out into the middle of fuck all nowhere beyond the Empire? It was work, and where there was work there was Eryka. 
1050
1051Aisling stepped inside quickly, following Eryka and letting the door shut behind her. She kept her expression neutral as she listened, settling herself into a chair, one leg crossing over the other. She very pointedly did not glance at Tempest, but kept her focus on the pink skinned Hyrodea instead. Her crimson drone - in reality occupied by one of her Foci and so as fully capable of independent thought and action as Aisling herself - hovered just behind and above her, scanning their surroundings for evidence of technological espionage. Now that she knew that there was Worldstorm business afoot, it didn’t pay to skimp on the awareness. 
1052
1053She could feel the edge of her anger receding as Eryka talked, Aisling’s own interest caught. A super-murderer? One who could outfight Tempest and shrug off one of Eryka’s most awful brain-melters? The very idea of someone like that outside of the Worldstorm’s ranks was frankly terrifying. Hell, the idea of someone like that inside their ranks wasn’t much better. But it was terrifying in a challenging, enticing way. There was a puzzle here, and an adventure. Aisling had long ago learned that adventures with Tempest tended to be of the violent, bone-snapping, gut-wrenching variety but they also ignited a certain sort of fire in the erstwhile pop singer’s heart. It was nothing that she ever could have imagined doing before she’d met Tempest, but there was no way she’d give it up now.
1054 
1055“Yes, I have several nearby assets with me outside and onboard the Inversion,” Aisling put in, referring to the small personal craft she used for long distance travel and refusing to acknowledge that Tempest had said anything for the moment. “But wait a second. You said something about techniques that Tempest can’t use. As in, Sharokk? Out here? What the hell is a Verdissian doing out here murdering people?” 
1056
1057Aisling looked over to Tempest then, her face a mix of puzzlement and brief anger, but Tempest wouldn’t meet her gaze. Fine then. At least she knows that she screwed up… With a burst of her usual abrupt energy, Aisling popped up to her feet and adjusted her jacket. “Ok then, let’s go get a car and meet some people. I’ll download the basics from your tablet as we go. I’ll stay out of the super secret stuff and all, but at least I can get some more information to work with.” 
1058@Negatomsk @Yurei
1059 
1060Yurei06/17/2019
1061“That’s the rub – so far as any of us can tell, the super-murderer in question is human,” Eryka revealed, leading the way back towards the designated pickup point for their next car.  “A man named Diegfries te Anelia, who managed to pick up not only Sharrok-Ryu but also seemingly every one of the Yatsushiki – including the Hakkousoutou – in two miserable years.  The man is a walking anomaly – we have no idea how he acquired these skills or why he’s using them to cut a swath through the local criminality now.  What we do know is that he’s made two highly public, unmistakable murders so far, both with the Hakkou, and when Tempest and I ran him to ground he looked more like a zombie than a man.  My Howl knocked his spirit clear of his body completely, but then he just jumped right back in like he’d simply gone to check the mail rather than being killed by my strike.”
1062
1063Even for Eryka, with her practiced, even tones, Ai could tell the girl felt some kind of way about her Abyssal Howl accomplishing nothing that way.  But the news was worrisome even over Eryka’s pique.  Watching the man die, then simply shrug death off was far more problematic than watching him refuse to die in the first place.  The latter could be overcome; the former meant the usual methods of permanently stopping someone didn’t apply.
1064
1065The Hyrodea slipped her phone free of its case and handed it back to Aisling.  “Here, skip the middleman.  Need to update the encryption on it anyway, the local Worldstorm spook managed to crack it deep enough to predict our meal orders.  Anything in front of the stormwall is fair game,” she said, referring to the section of her device not cordoned off by the software she’d received from the Worldstorm.  “Also thinking maybe you should drive this time,” she poked, casting a rather arch little side glance back to Tempest.  “We all know what happens when Tempest’s adrenaline is up…”
1066@Negatomsk @Rize
1067 
1068Negatomsk06/17/2019
1069Ai was... treating her like she didn't exist. That was fair. Tempest played the part of a coat rack while Eryka and Ai went back and forth about the mission, Diegfries, and her, like she wasn't in the room, and she accepted it. There were no bugs, physical or otherwise in the room, but there was a definite touch of an Amagrad about, likely the one who had laced up the security systems around here in the first place. She wasn't actively listening in, but the owner knew they were here, and she was monitoring the situation. 
1070
1071Tempest had her chance to step up again when Ai turned to her upon hearing of her failure, but she chickened out again, hugging her arm against her side where Diegfries had taken a chunk out of her as she averted her eyes again. 
1072
1073Aisling was on board, because of course she was, and they were going to be on their way again. And Eryka still found time to crack wise about her driving.
1074 
1075"My driving is fine... but I was gonna let you drive anyway before Ai got here. I'm still tired." She wasn't quite up to telling Ai that she'd gotten hurt yet. That was usually a Thing. 
1076
1077She took the lead heading down the stairs out to the street. "We're going to talk to Diegfried' ex, see if we can't figure out a motive for his rampage after talking to her, maybe his next target if we're lucky."
1078
1079The car was waiting where Olse had said it would be, engine running, the doors unlocking as the trio approached. Tempest slid into the back seat, leaving Aisling and Eryka to figure out their own arrangements. She was more or less back to herself, filled with the same old restless energy as always, at once bored and unable to sit still, but she managed somehow, lacing her fingers together as she closed her eyes and laid her head back. Image training was a great way to keep one's skills sharp when they were unable to practice for any reason. In Tempest's case she was going over the fight with Diegfries again. And again, trying to figure out a new angle for the rematch. She had to account for Aisling's offerings, and Eryka's assistance, and she would, but first she had to make sure she could handle him herself. Or at least that she could survive.
1080@Yurei @Rize
1081 
1082Commander Vale06/18/2019
1083[Vexa]
1084
1085"You've got it." Most people would assume that she was lying when she told Ledger she would help. That's not how one made friends and her friends were then ones who kept her flush with new talent. After all, taking over a government was bloody work. Only the best would do. Ledger was the perfect connection to the pipeline and he was damn good at his job. There was no reason for her to leave him to wolves, especially when he could turn on her just as quickly as he joined their side. 
1086
1087The sign on the building read Andrew's, one of the haunts of this Diegfries. Elated at her luck, she waltzed inside after the door was held open, her gaze watching the news briefly. She pursed her lips in thought before she scanned the bar. Those sharp blue eyes found her target within moments, a smile curving red lips as she nodded toward the bar. The muscle moved off, blending in with the crowd to give Vexa the illusion of loneliness. 
1088
1089He hadn't changed clothes, a glance at the screen confirmed again as his image was flashed and a number was under it. Moving toward the end of the bar he sat at, she carefully moved a chair before sitting down, her legs crossing at the ankles as a young male bartender approached. "I'll have what he's having and bring him another. On me." She gave a smile before turning her attention to Diegfries. She looked over him, top to bottom as the drinks were set in front of them. Lifting hers, she takes a sip before putting the glass on a well worn coaster. 
1090
1091"Long day?"
1092@Negatomsk
1093 
1094Negatomsk06/18/2019
1095Vexa had always done right by him, and he'd always done right by her so Ledger had no reason to suspect she was being anything but genuine when she promised him a bit of extra help in case of emergencies. And of course, he'd rewarded her faith in him once again by pointing her right at the man she'd been looking for.
1096
1097Back in Andrew's Pub, Diegfries sighed heavily and drained his glass, staring at the new one as it was slid in front of him. Picking it up, he took a sip and stare down at the bar top. 
1098
1099"You have no idea...  Girl like you, with the big guys you walked in with, could do a hell of a lot better than to settle for a mile of bad road like me. So I'm guessing either you've got some kind of a thing for charity cases... or else you're someone who knows who I am, and what I've done, and you wanna... what, make me some kind of job offer or something?" 
1100
1101So he was observant, too, to have made her escorts as they followed her in. But he still didn't know who she was, or what she could do, or offer him. And while he was far more desperate than he looked, he wasn't about to let her know that. Whoever she was, if she'd found him the others couldn't be far behind. The authorities were catching up to him... and he needed help.
1102@Commander Vale
1103 
1104Commander Vale06/18/2019
1105[Vexa]
1106
1107As he spoke, she only smiled. It was genuine as if she were pleased he had made her. She lifted the glass and took another sip, before settling it down in front of her. Her fingers played along the rim for a moment before she leaned in. 
1108
1109"It's good to know you're observant, Diegfries. Your file mentioned it but I love seeing it in action." She replied as the muscle seemed to reappear from the crowd but still kept their distance. "Seems your face is on every TV in this place and probably all over the city. I can make that problem go away." She lifted the glass, bringing it to her lips before knocking the amber liquid back the rest of the way. 
1110
1111The burn of the alcohol as it warmed it's way down to her stomach made her grin before she continued. "You're right, though. I have a job offer." Her nails rapped against the glass, drowned by the conversation around them. "You set your salary and in return, you do as ordered. I can make you very rich and I can buy you time out of the spotlight. I'll get you out of this pub without anyone following us and we can discuss more of my offer, your pay, and your first assignment." Vexa glanced over at the muscle before back to Diegfries.
1112
1113"What do you say?"
1114@Negatomsk
1115 
1116Negatomsk06/18/2019
1117Diegfries drowned the rest of his glass, grimacing at the burn as he set it down. He frowned, feigning contemplation as he rolled the empty glass around in his fingers, cocking his head to one side.
1118
1119"I'm not actually a man in need of money." He slowly turned his head to Vexa. "But I am a man in need of privacy. And a man running out of time. To be looking to hire me you don't stroke me as the sort to shy away from violence, or killing. So keep your salary, all I want is the anonymity, and a list of people I want dead, that I need you to bring to me, somewhere quiet. After that? These orders, whatever you want, I'll do it for you, free of charge. How does that sound."
1120
1121He had thought long and hard about how to spend the time he had left after finishing his list. He hadn't really come up with an answer. Until this woman had sat down beside him to give him one. Once he'd completed his mission, it wouldn't matter. Nothing would.
1122 
1123Negatomsk06/18/2019
1124@Commander Vale
1125 
1126Rize06/18/2019
1127Aisling remained quiet as they walked, her teeth unconsciously chewing at her bottom lip as they often did when she was trying to think through a puzzle. A human who had learned not only Sharokk but Yatsushiki, an art that was far and away beyond what many elite Verdissian warriors were capable of? If she’d heard it from anyone but Eryka and Tempest it would have sounded like a complete farce. But from these two… 
1128
1129The Islbeth mutely accepted Eryka’s phone and immediately split one of her Foci off into it, digging through information with a rapidity that few outside of her specific variation of Verdissian could accomplish. That particular part of her mind would spend the next few minutes arranging and rearranging data in a mental fury, looking for patterns and clues that might have been missed. Meanwhile Aisling was climbing into the driver’s seat of the borrowed vehicle, the electronic controls responding easily to her thoughts and adjusting the mirrors, seat, and other specifics to fit her own size and preferences. The red drone drifted into the back seat, settling down beside Tempest soundlessly. Elsewhere a pair of automated Praetor drones followed her mental command to keep pace, soaring easily through the air high above the city. Even further above, the Inversion moved to keep pace as well, guided by its own attendant Focus.
1130
1131As they she slipped the car easily into the flow of traffic, her natural mechanical inclinations giving her an easy and instinctual grasp of the vehicle’s abilities and limitations, Aisling glanced at Tempest in the mirror and sighed quietly to herself. Stubborn woman. Both of them. Well, ok, all three of them. She flicked her eyes back to the road ahead of them, following directions pulled from the car’s onboard GPS system, letting silence fill the interior for a few solid minutes.
1132 
1133“I was worried.” Aisling spoke clearly and solidly, letting the confidence that she’d gained over the years rise to the top instead of the impetuous, emotional girl that she’d been back when she and Tempest had first met. “I was worried when I couldn’t get in touch with you. I decided a long time ago that someone had to look out for you because you sure as hell do a shitty job of it yourself, and I know the people you work for won’t do it. I was worried that you’d gotten hurt somehow - which you did. You have trace amounts of blood on your side that were picked up by a simple damned spectrometry scan so don’t try to deny it. Anyways, that’s why I came to find you clear out here in the back end of nowhere.” 
1134
1135She almost paused then, a brief interruption in the train of her words but then thought better and pushed on as if she hadn’t been talking anything but business before. “Have either of you considered that this Diegfries might be doing what he’s doing, how he’s doing it for the sole purpose of drawing out the Worldstorm? Which is exactly what happened of course, because there was no way that they were going to sit back while an unregistered, rogue practitioner of the Yatsushiki went around blasting the souls out of anyone. This could be a trap of some kind, you know. Whoever is behind all this could easily be someone with a grudge against our own beloved black operations agency.” 
1136
1137“Also your Amagrad handler should work on getting better at signal obfuscation. I was able to dig out every data connection made by your equipment between here and the Empire. It’s how I tracked you.” 
1138@Negatomsk @Yurei
1139 
1140Yurei06/20/2019
1141The car was right where it was supposed to be; Aisling took the driver’s seat, Tempest and Ai’s drone took the back, leaving Eryka the front passenger seat.  Good enough.  She settled in, adjusting her tail in the seat cuts behind her and curling it over Ai’s drone to keep it out from under Tempest’s feet.  Cars had been a sore spot with her ever since her emergence from the Dark – they simply didn’t make vehicles designed for people with seven-foot serpent tails hanging off their rump.  The ones that did always made those self-driving rolling-rec-room things, with lounging couches and vidscreens.  Eryka was better in those than Tempest was, but she’d kept enough of her old racer training to not particularly enjoy being unable to manipulate the vehicle she was in.
1142
1143Regardless, Ai was driving and Eryka could find room for her tail, giving Ai a chance to be frank with Tempest before they got back to business.  Starting with a brief sigh at the state of her cyber security.  “I’ve largely given up trying to keep Islbeth out of my things,” she said.  “I’m firmly convinced the only definition of ‘privacy’ most of you know is the painful sensation in your nose when you jam it up against a firewall too hot for you to crack.  Nevertheless.  If Diegfries was attempting to draw the Worldstorm out, he was successful.  We both attempted to subdue and capture him, neither of us are mistakable for any other species.  If Diegfries doesn’t realize the Storm is after him, he’s too dumb to live.  So.  The question then becomes why.  What’s the endgame to drawing agents of the Worldstorm out of the Empire?  Storm agents don’t come any way save deniable; the Empress would slit our throats herself if it saved her political embarrassment.”
1144-
1145“I doubt it’s capture,” Eryka continued, perching her chin in one cupped hand as she both ruminated and filled Aisling in.  “There are easier, less headline-prone ways to bait an agent into a trap, and even if they wanted the headlines?  Diegfries had his chance.  Tempest was indisposed, and I was mind-down after my Howl.  He could likely have killed either of us and taken the other, but chose instead to flee.  No...he wanted us to let him go.  He wanted us to wait.  He said he was almost done, that he couldn’t stop yet, but we could have him freely if we allowed him to finish.  He meant it, or at least I detected no sign of deception while he said it.  Whatever it is he’s after, he’s not only willing to die for it, he’s willing to live in chains afterwards so long as he’s accomplished his task.  No one employs a man with nothing to live for, not if they desire any measure of control over him.  Not if they want to play intrigue games with the Storm.”
1146
1147“No...this man wants something himself, independent of whoever or whatever trained him.  He couldn’t care less about the Storm, save that we’re getting in his way.  Obnoxious of him, really.  If he’s going to steal our techniques and use them as profligately as this, he could at least have the decency to be properly apprehensive about the intervention of Imperial kill teams...”
1148@Negatomsk @Rize
1149 
1150Negatomsk06/22/2019
1151She'd gotten in a few good minutes of training in her head, but none of it had been any good. She had managed to squeeze in seven fights against Diegfries in that span of time, and every single one of them had ended with him killing her: fatal strikes just weren't going to be fatal to someone who didn't die when they were killed. She snapped his neck, he struck with Hakkousoutou. She decapitated him, he counter strikes with the Hakkou. Disembowels him, he strikes simultaneously. In a war of attrition, he simply presses on until he catches her. She couldn't do this. Not alone. 
1152
1153And then she heard those words. Those three words, the ones she never wanted to hear coming out of that mouth. Tempest opened her eyes, sighing heavily as she sat forward in her seat. "I'm sorry, Ai. I... missed the meet and greet, and I rescheduled it myself, but after I met with the kids I got this job and I took off without even thinking about it... and then I realized you were mad but by then I'd already left and I didn't know how to apologize. Then I got wrapped up in all of this mess and I just lost track of stuff. I should've called you before I left. I shoulda called you when I realized I was in trouble and gonna be late."
1154
1155She almost held her tongue for a moment but decided better of it. "Olse's only been handling us since we landed here... before that all the gear I was using was yours, so don't look at me for leaving a trail you could track unless you're upset you can decrypt your own signals." Tempest had laid blame pretty firmly in Eryka's lap there. "But if you wanna give her some pointers I'm sure she'd appreciate it."
1156 
1157She sat back again, staring out the windshield through between the headrests. "Sensei doesn't work exclusively with Worldstorm, so it's entirely possible Diegfries has no idea who we are. I wasn't Worldstorm when I started my Yatsushiki training, just some girl who was determined enough to find the Assassin King and learn. Someone else who was looking for the same training..." Tempest frowned, sitting forward again as she rested her chin on her fists. "...And someone who came to him to learn, and was accepted to training, who wouldn't have had the same Sharrokryuu training that I had... still wouldn't be just as sloppy as this idiot. There's something else wrong here." She fell silent for a moment, contemplating, before she began to think out loud. "He's not weak. He's not sloppy. He held me off while I was slugging him at top speed and the first strike he made, he almost got me." And would have if she hadn't prepared beforehand but no need for Ai to hear that. "What if he sleepwalked through a room full of bullets to get to his target, attacking from the front door not because it was easiest for the job but the easiest way to get in? He fought us off only after he got mad, before that he wasn't even defending himself beyond the effort he put in to tank my punches. He's putting up the minimum amount of effort in everything he does, he says he's got something to finish, that he's been dead before... nothing to live for." 
1158
1159She looked out the window as the city gave way to the suburbs. "I think our guy is sick. We gotta check his medical records."
1160@Yurei @Rize
1161 
1162Rize06/24/2019
1163Aisling frowned, glowering ahead of her at the traffic. “Damn it, I knew that encryption spiral looked familiar… Whatever, I’ll make something better for you.” As Tempest and Eryka talked, breaking down their ideas of just why Diegfries was doing what he was doing, Aisling moved the car smoothly through the flow of traffic, altering their course from the GPS suggested one to take several less traffic heavy routes suggested by the part of her that was occupying the red drone and spending the drive connecting with the local information grid to check up on current events and traffic reports. It wasn’t exactly rush hour but there were still plenty of people on the road. Plus, she didn’t exactly want to take the most direct route to where they were headed, just in case someone might be waiting for them. 
1164
1165She perked up as Tempe posited the idea that Diegfries was somehow sick. That was an idea all right. Even being the latecomer to everything that was happening, Aisling had already managed to process most of the data available, and that was an idea that certainly seemed to fit the pattern. “So maybe he’s taking the path of least resistance to conserve energy… That fits, I think. At least with the data we’ve got to work with. I’ll see if I can’t track something down in the local hospital records, but even if that’s the case there’s no guarantee that he’s seen anyone around here. I mean, he did go all hide-and-seek there for a while. Anything outside of the local area would be a complete guessing game at the moment.”
1166 
1167Aisling turned the car into a moderately quiet, middle-class, residential neighborhood. Quaint houses, simple vehicles, pets, nicely trimmed yards. Frankly, it struck her absolutely boring. Keeping her eyes on the surrounding area for whatever ambush might be waiting (her imagination had already dreamed up several), Ai pulled the car up alongside the curb and brought it to a smooth stop. “Next block up.” The car idled in place for a moment longer, and when no imminent threat emerged, she killed the engine. 
1168
1169Aisling undid her seat belt and made ready to get out before turning to look into the back seat, her mismatched eyes concerned. “Hey, you ok? There’s a medkit in the drone’s storage if you need it…”
1170@Yurei @Negatomsk
1171 
1172Ed06/26/2019
1173[Alphonse Elric and co.]
1174
1175The purple stylish vehicle would have been driving along the city's streets casually enough for a car that looked like a purple monster. Or rather, something that looked like it belonged at a monster truck event. The vehicle was purple with red flames on it, three yellow "horns" at the front of it, and spikes that came out from all four tires' sides. 
1176
1177It was a monster of a machine and it would certainly be noticeable for anyone who was to see it driving along. The vehicle was fixed up and cleaned out. Alphonse had made sure to get the oil checked and coolant added to the thing. In truth, it was a tad exciting to have this vehicle once again. He recalled how his brother had driven the car to and from Nexxian City back when he had been younger.
1178
1179Things had been different back then.
1180
1181"So we made a wrong turn somewhere. Instead of New Richmond we've found...." The elderly voice of one Wyman Regnier could be heard from the backseat as the dapper man examined the city from the tinted windows.
1182
1183"Neulimbo. Whatever this place is.....I don't like it." The alchemist glanced outside of his window to look onto the streets. The people in this city seemed depressed. It looked like an advanced civilization that was here, and yet at the same time Alphonse couldn't help but feel that there was something more underneath the surface of this place. Something that didn't feel right. He had passed several bars, casinos, and other profitable big businesses in this city and the whole thing just screamed profit.
1184
1185It screamed of corruption, greed, and power. For those who were able to take it.
1186"We'll need to find a place to rest. Some place where we can park the car and...." The alchemist paused for a moment as he drove, glancing at the areas that were before him now. The old man, Wyman, sat in his backseat and also gazing out to the various businesses and....brightness that this city seemed to exhibit.
1187
1188This place wasn't their home. Their was an uncertainty in this unlikely pair as they found themselves in this foreign land, a city that wasn't the one that they had been looking for, and were now forced to stay at for the time being.
1189
1190Who knew what they'd find here?
1191
1192(( Open to anyone who wishes to interact ))
1193 
1194Yurei06/26/2019
1195Eryka stepped free of the car, affording some slight illusion of privacy for Tempest and Aisling as the two worked through their issues.  Instead, she focus on a psychic scan of the area, opening her Mind’s Eye wide and searching for any sort of hostile presence or any sign of concealed minds.  Neither appeared right off, simply the same collection of decadent, deadened minds that inhabited this city of vice.  Truly, Eryka hadn’t encountered a population this soul-deadened since that one time Tempest had brought her to the Bangkok Ladyman MB&E in pursuit of those slavers…but that was a problem that had absolutely nothing to do with her.
1196
1197Diegfries was sick…that lined up entirely too well.  The scent of rot and death that clung to him, his sloppy, careless methodology, his lack of concern for his own future…it all added up.  They weren’t dealing with someone too dumb to know better, they were dealing with someone too exhausted by illness to care…until and unless given reason to.
1198
1199Truly, they had been unreasonably lucky back at the crash site.  If they’d been fighting someone terminally ill, clinging to life with little but willpower and chutzpah, and still gotten their asses handed to them…well.  It was an excellent thing neither of them had encountered this fellow in his prime.
1200
1201Eventually, Tempest and Aisling finished their business and left the car as well, joining Eryka a few paces away as the slender Hyrodea studied the area.  “No immediate signs of hostility,” she reported dutifully.  “Just the usual flow of junkies and zombies, no one likely to care what we do unless it’s exciting enough to stir an adrenaline response.  Get in, ask our questions, get out, and don’t blow up any Accelerons, and we should be fine,” she said, sparing a brief, frank glance for Tempest.
1202-
1203Reclaiming her phone from Ai, Eryka lead the way towards the home owned by one Abigail Chaffee.  Despite her affluent background, Abigail seemed to’ve missed whatever spark drove many of her classmates into the sort of capital-B Business that dominated Neulimbo; her lifestyle was comfortable but embarrassingly modest by Ellbend Secondary Academy standards.  Unmarried, no record to speak of, good-but-not-outstanding marks in a handful of jobs she’d worked – she appeared to be an eminently ordinary woman.  
1204
1205Eryka was immediately suspicious.  Abigail’s file looked like the sort of construct an agency like the Worldstorm might build to try and hide someone in the sheep; the Worldstorm was usually better about throwing enough curveballs in their artificial identities to deflect “she’s normal…too normal…”  suspicions, but this one was giving her exactly those suspicions.  Certainly, some people really were just that boring and useless, but this woman had visited two victims of high-profile murders days at best before they took place, and had once dated the murderer.  The odds of her vanilla milquetoast file being accurate were, in Eryka’s estimation, vanishingly slim.
1206
1207Still wearing her cheap cop ribbon suit, Eryka pulled free her falsified badge.  <Let me handle initial contact,> she sent back to Ai and Tempest.  <I’m better at playing Officious Official than either of you; let’s see what she’s willing to tell the police.>  Making her way up to the door, Eryka schooled her features into a mask of cool, bureaucratic professionalism ripped straight from her old Harmon days and knocked firmly at Abigail’s door.
1208@Negatomsk @Rize
1209 
1210Negatomsk06/26/2019
1211"Nothing wrong with your tech, I might've just forgotten to secure my connections." Which, while becoming less frequent, was a mistake she still made every once in a while "I was able to track his records down to a local hospital, I just couldn't get in, but you could probably crack it. Begs the question as to why his files're encrypted, but maybe you can figure that too when you get in. And if they're somewhere else, you can track data way better than I can." She paused for a moment, remembering something. 
1212
1213And then she was antsy again as talk turned back to her injuries. "I'm fine, not much I can do right now except rest and meditation, but I'll be fine... let's just go meet with the ex and..."
1214
1215And Eryka would be taking lead. Made sense. Tempest could pass for cop but she definitely wasn't the type to be talking to witnesses in need of a finer touch. Tempest stepped out of the car and followed Eryka, keeping a safe distance as they approached the door.
1216 
1217Chaffee had made her home in a painfully average slice of suburbia, rife with soccer moms, mid-life crisis suffering dads and the usual yuppies. The scan said they were safe, and Tempest didn't feel anything out of the ordinary, either. Folding her arms behind her back in the standard security/bodyguard pose, she stood watch at the end of the walkway to the house, by the sidewalk, as Eryka knocked. 
1218
1219Abigail Chaffee opened the door several seconds later, staring Eryka and her badge for a moment. "...I already told the police all I know. I told them this was going to happen and..." she looked at the badge more closely, frowning. "You're not the police. Who are you?" 
1220
1221She was a tired woman, wearing weariness as heavily as a shawl from how clearly it showed in her posture, in her face. Her brown hair flat and lifeless, her skin was slick with the pallor of exhaustion, of long hours spent beating her head against the wall while all of her pleas fell on deaf ears, as Eryka would be able to read on her aura as readily as if she'd spoken it all aloud.
1222@Rize @Yurei
1223 
1224Rize06/27/2019
1225Eryka led the way as they approached the woman’s house, so pedestrian and quaint, particularly for what Aisling had seen of the city. The neighborhood in general was a bit out of the ordinary, presumably home more to the people who made the day to day circus of Neulimbo run smoothly than to those who got their jollies from it. The fiery red drone stayed behind in the car, keeping an eye on the outside of the house and working to crack into Diegfries’ medical records. Maybe there would be something there that could give them an edge in whatever events came at them next. 
1226
1227As soon as Abigail Chafee opened the door, Aisling - who was standing just a few steps behind Eryka and doing her best to look like she was an official of some kind - immediately felt her heart reach out to this damaged, exhausted slip of a woman. It didn’t matter that they were of differing species or cultures or worlds. There was a universal language that spoke of heartbreak and frustration and sadness and it transcended any of those simple barriers. 
1228
1229Eryka if you’re listening right now, please don’t be mad…
1230
1231“You’re right, Miss Chafee.” Aisling stepped forward, pulling the woman’s attention away from the pink skinned Hyrodea or the feline Xochar nearby in favor of her own far more human-like appearance. “We’re not the police. We’re from a far different group of people, one that is very concerned about what’s happening right now. I’m Ash. I’ve come a long distance to find Diegfries to try and help.” Ok so maybe it wasn’t entirely truthful in the way that most people would have taken that sentence, but if you broke down the individual pieces they were true enough on their own…
1232
1233“I’m afraid there’s something going on here that’s outside of your local police’s abilities. And if we have any hope of trying to stop things before they get worse, Miss Chafee, we could sure use your help.” 
1234
1235Oh yeah, I so should have won that movie award!
1236@Yurei @Negatomsk
1237 
1238Yurei06/28/2019
1239So much for Officious Official.
1240
1241Aisling completely brushed Eryka off the moment Abigail answered the door, stepping forward and launching into an impassioned plea for Abigail to help them help her help Diegfries.  It torpedoed her own plans with the thoroughness of a shotgun slug, forcing her to improvise on the fly.
1242
1243Fortunately, a skill she had extensive experience with.
1244-
1245“Ash, we’ve talked about this,” Eryka grumbled, reaching up to pinch the bridge of her nose, as if rehashing an old argument she’d long since grown sick of.  “How many times do I have to tell you – let me handle interrogation.  You didn’t even bother dressing for work today,” she jabbed, running a deeply critical eye over Ai’s totally-not-a-cop outfit.  “You’re only here because…no.  No.  Job at hand,” she growled, turning and visibly mastering herself before turning an expression of grimly professional determination on Abigail.  As she did, a voice lanced into Tempest’s mind.  Primarily because that same voice couldn’t reach Aisling’s.
1246
1247<Please discuss with Aisling the meaning of ‘let me handle it’ the next time you two are speaking.  Perhaps she’ll LISTEN, if it comes from you.>
1248
1249Nevertheless, if Eryka made it any more obvious that she was setting Ai up as the Good Cop, giving her a chance to get on Abigail’s side by shutting down Eryka’s coldly methodical approach, it’d backfire completely once Abigail herself picked up on it.  Eryka allowed her talent to work, subtly nudging emotions towards Abigail to help sell the act – making herself seem more intimidating, Aisling seem more honest and friendly, and gently nudging aside any concerns over why a hard-nosed interrogator like Eryka would be saying the sort of shit she’d just said aloud.  Nothing heavy, nothing concrete – Eryka had long since learned that a light touch was best in most situations – but hopefully enough to help tip the scales in Aisling’s favor.
1250
1251Provided the techno-mogul pop star A.) took the hint, and B.) didn’t fuck things up any harder.
1252@Negatomsk @Rize
1253 
1254Negatomsk07/03/2019
1255If she'd known what Ai'd had in mind she would have told her to stay in the car to work on Diegfries' medical files, but instead Tempest got to stand idly by as Aisling torpedoed pretty much Eryka's entire approach by getting out in front and just blabbering about everything. Totally spilling the beans. It took a lot for Tempest to maintain a straight face, for her to not just zip over there, grab Ai by the shoulder and shake her until her brain hard-refreshed, but a small modicum of self-control, and Eryka's quick recovery were enough to allow her to keep her game face on. Along with that razor sharp tongue-punch in the brain meat.
1256
1257<I'll try, but if she ever listened to me... >If Ai ever listened to her, they likely wouldn't be friends. Tempest sighed quietly. <...I'll try and get ahead of her next time.>
1258
1259Abigail, looked (and to Eryka's fine-tuned telepathy, felt) equal parts relieved and skeptical, ready to spill her guts to any who could possibly help, but she wasn't quite sure these women before her were the ones. To her credit, she had seen enough Weird Shit in Neulimbo that Eryka and Tempest's outlandish appearances didn't phase her in the slightest; no, the strange interplay between the lead agent and "Ash" was far more disconcerting. Still, with a bit more prodding, she was undoubtedly willing to tell them everything she could to help them. 
1260
1261"I'm sorry, what was the name of the organization you said you worked for again..." Her eyes dipped downward, looking for badges or any sort of identification.
1262 
1263"Special Investigative Services," Tempest chimed in, before Ai could improvise again, tapping away idly on her comm, one hand in her pocket in what she hoped looked to be a professional manner, while she actually sent a text straight to Ai. "And I'll bet Agent Ash here left her badge in the car in her rush to save the day. Again." 
1264
12653D Printer in car. Small box like a console. Print a badge using template, PLEASE let Eryka lead next time.
1266
1267Tempest nodded off towards the car, frowning, as she approached the door, offering up her own badge for inspection as she took up a position behind Eryka. "Ash is from our home office in the Akropolis, an expert in criminal profiling, pioneer in computer programming. Problem is her programs need a lot of data to function, and the local PD has encrypted a lot of what we need to fill out our profile on this guy. We managed to pluck your name from their files and came back out here to see if you could help Ash here fill in some of the blanks." 
1268
1269Hopefully Ai had made her way to the car and back by now to take her place in the narrative again. Rough as this Introduction had turned out to be, they were slowly worming their way in; Abigail was starting to buy it.
1270@Rize @Yurei
1271 
1272Rize07/05/2019
1273Aisling’s mental reply, sent straight to Tempest’s device was less than gracious. <I swear you two can’t see people half the time. The woman has been drug through hell already, you going all Interrogate the Witness on her is more likely to shut her down than anything. I’m betting by both Diegfies and the cops. Whatever.>
1274
1275“Oh damn, you’re right! Obviously I spend way too much time behind a desk. I’ll be right back.” Aisling quick stepped back towards the car, connecting with the device inside and setting it to printing off one of the templated identifications with all the proper information. By the time she got to the vehicle and had popped open the door, the process was already complete and she was able to swoop up her newly minted fake I.D. and make her way back to the others. 
1276
1277Aisling briefly checked in with the Focus inhabiting the red drone on its progress in cracking the medical records as she made the trip back to the house, hrrmmm-ing slightly under her breath as she wondered why medical records for someone like Diegfries would be so heavily protected. 
1278
1279The Islbeth presented her I.D. as she stepped up to the others with a small apologetic smile. “So, should we sit down and talk? We’d be very grateful if you’d be willing to help us.” 
1280@Yurei @Negatomsk
1281 
1282Z07/07/2019
1283[Kuxain]
1284
1285As soon as he was given leave to sleep, Kuxainl picked the next exit off the interstate. He was putting his life in Bastion's hands, but didn't feel exactly like a complete loss. It then hit him that on some small level he might even trust this man.
1286
1287Before climbing into the back he set the low heat on while thinking about what had been said. "You're right... They're all the same." His voice exhausted. In the back seat he pressed his tail feathers against the passenger side to curl gently towards the front seat to keep them from being damaged. Back wings folded hard against his back so that he could lay in the long seat.
1288
1289It wasn't the most comfortable, but he was too tired to give a damn. Kuxainl passed out quickly after the rush of the day. Sleeping was something he needed. Luckily, his phone never went off, even though his father called quite often.
1290
1291It was probably nearly noon before he woke again. Kuxainl blinked the sleep from his eyes to look up at the black haired man driving his car. It took him nearly twenty solid seconds to keep from attacking and remember what in hell happened the night before. 
1292
1293A yawn came from him, filling the car with his nasally voice. "Aaaaaaaooooooh... Where are we?" He asked his voice still soaked with sleep. The way his feathers sat, he couldn't exactly sit up just yet. "Can we stop for food? I'm starved." From down here, he could only see the sky above and  vague sight of the rearview if he pushed himself upwards.
1294
1295"Any signs of being followed? Have you checked the radio to see if they're searching for us? Or our identities?" Now, he was fully alert.
1296@Rize
1297 
1298Rize07/08/2019
1299{Bastion} 
1300
1301
1302They are skirting the outer edge of Neulimbo when Kux awoke, the sun high above. Despite the brightness of the day, the frenetic lights of the city's hedonistic core were easily visible in the distance. 
1303
1304
1305"Hey. We're just outside the city limits. I think there's some kind of travel stop or something ahead, we can stop there for food. I'm starving."
1306
1307
1308Indeed the sign at the side of the road indicated a stop for food, fuel, and other sundry items and conveniences one would expect travels to desire." And I think we're in the clear for the moment. No one following us, no mention of us or the car. Might not last, but for now I'll take it."
1309@Z
1310 
1311Z07/08/2019
1312[Kuxainl]
1313
1314This city was one he'd heard about that had the most advanced technology. Something Kuxainl had been thinking of looking into. Now was a good a time as any, he supposed.
1315
1316Just as it was pointed out, Kux looked and grinned. It looked exactly like an eatery. Maybe one people wouldn't care about his looks. "Just in case, I've got a cloak. I'll need to wear it anyway, because of my lack of clothes. But, to be honest, we'd pass less suspicious of you acted as a father." Kuxainl couldn't hold back a chuckle at that one. One way to use his size to his advantage.
1317
1318Kuxainl grabbed his phone to check the internet to see if they were being blasted. His face drained. "They put it on social media, Bastion." The phone handed up. A picture of them in the parking garage by his car. Some crap story about how they'd attacked and were suspected for trapping the son and murdering him and his 'friends' in an alley. "We need to ditch my car..." Kuxainl wasn't happy about it, but it seemed the smartest decision at this point.
1319@Rize
1320 
1321Yurei07/09/2019
1322[Chasing Shadows]
1323Eryka simply crossed her arms and scowled.  It didn’t take much acting; she’d never gotten used to Islbeth and Amagrad being all but entirely untouchable by her talents.  Back when she’d had a different name, psi-nulls had been almost as rare as psi-actives, less than one in a million.  In her new existence, every third damned roustabout on the street was as impervious to her psychic arts as a high-class null.  It was maddening; being unable to chew Aisling out directly made it quite easy indeed to grind her fangs and look intimidating despite her slender build.
1324
1325“Not enough time behind a desk, if you ask me,” she grunted, playing up her bit.  “Right then, if we’re done with the interruptions, let’s get to business.  We’ve got an investigation to pursue and this rigmarole is taking up valuable time.”
1326
1327She dialed back her influence, smoothly withdrawing and allowing Abigail to reach her natural conclusions.  She’d done what she needed to and nudged the woman onto the path they wanted; now it was up to Aisling and Tempest to play off of her and get what they needed.
1328@Negatomsk @Rize
1329 
1330Negatomsk07/09/2019
1331[Chasing Shadows]
1332
1333The Special Investigative Service was well known for their dogged methods as well as their results: the SIS often took over the most serious, high profile cases, as well as the ones that got away from the local police. And given two victims on their watch, even after the warnings she'd tried to give them, this case had most definitely gotten away from the local PD as far as Abigail was concerned. 
1334
1335Eryka's nudging, Ai's lighthearted bumbling, and Tempest's ID did the trick, as Abigail stepped back, opening the door to let them in. "I tried so hard to get anyone to listen... no one wanted to hear anything."
1336
1337Much like the rest of the neighborhood, Abigail's house was just as drab and pedestrian inside as out, decorated sparsely with cheap department store art and random kitsch.
1338
1339She shuffled into the living room, gesturing for the agents to take a seat before realizing that there weren't enough between the recliner and the sofa. "Oh, uh, I'll get a chair--"
1340
1341"I'll stand, thanks." Tempest moved behind the sofa, leaving it for Eryka and Ai as Abigail took the recliner. 
1342
1343"Okay... I tried to warn them, like I said. He -- Diegfries came to me about a month ago, told me what he was going to do... I went to the police, and then I went to them directly, the... victims, no one wanted to listen. No one believed 'Diggy' had it in him after so long..."
1344@Rize @Yurei
1345 
1346Rize07/10/2019
1347[Chasing Shadows]
1348Aisling took a spot on the sofa with Eryka, smiling companionably at Abigail as she did. A brief mental sweep of the surroundings didn’t reveal much that her technomancy could connect with outside of everyday devices and the like. She did copy a number of pictures off of an electronic portrait on a small living room shelf, shunting the files off to the storage in her drone outside. She didn’t spend the time to look through them individually, but rather took the group in the hopes that there might be some decent images of Diegfries that could be useful later. There was a personal computer upstairs as well but for the moment she left it be rather than diving in without a definite goal. 
1349
1350“That must have been so hard for you! To have that sort of thing just dumped in your lap, and then not be taken seriously when you try to do something about it. I’m sorry you had to go through that, Abigail.” 
1351
1352Ai did her best to play up her role as the Nice One. It wasn’t difficult, honestly. She really did feel bad for Abigail. The poor woman had been shackled to a terrible burden with Diegfries telling her his plans, and the local police hadn’t done her any favors either, it seemed. 
1353
1354“Well I can promise you that won’t be the case here. Whatever you can tell us will absolutely be taken seriously. Whatever those knuckleheads might have thought, we believe you.” 
1355@Yurei @Negatomsk
1356 
1357Rize07/10/2019
1358[Bastion]
1359
1360“Damn.” Bastion scowled as he piloted the car off the highway and into a decent sized travel plaza, one that obviously catered to not only the needs of commercial transports but also to families and casual travelers as well. A restaurant, fuel station, a small general goods store, and a mechanic sat clustered together with a large parking area. 
1361
1362“Ok, let’s do this. We need to do something about the car and our clothes. Especially yours. I’m betting that store there will have clothes and whatever else for sale. They’ll be cheap and generic which is the best possible right now. We hit that up, then I’ll do something about the car. You can grab us some food for the road.” The car coasted to a stop a short distance from the main building, sliding in between two parked freight haulers. “And then we get back on the road. Sound like a plan?”
1363@Z
1364 
1365Z07/10/2019
1366[Kuxainl]
1367
1368Nearly the same moment Bastion noticed what he was looking at, Kuxainl's phone rang. He answered it, but the growling voice on the end had his crown rising. His voice slipped into his native tongue. A very harsh language, but it was obvious he was a bit distressed by who was on the other end. Nearly four minutes of silence, he gave a single word response, then threw the phone out of the window making sure it smashed.
1369
1370"That was my father... He said to get rid of my car. Purchase a new one under another name. Clip my feathers..." His features fell. "It will make it easier to hide myself. He is very angry, but said he understands." Kuxainl cursed in his native tongue again.
1371
1372"After we get back, I can torch it somewhere. Or we could leave it here, Bastion." His clothes were all but falling off, which rendered them useless. As the car came to stop, he moved out carefully and extended his wings and tail feathers. Mostly to enjoy looking at them before they had to be cut. It would take months for them to grow back and he'd be grounded the entire time.
1373
1374Finally, he trudged to the trunk and jerked open a bag. A paid of shorts carefully pulled over his curled talons. Then a shirt slid on a fastened in the back. It was a nice outfit, but stood out almost as much as he did. "Right. Do you need money?" The Phoenix asked glancing around to make sure they weren't being watched. He was on high alert. 
1375
1376"We can't get back on the road in my car. It's orange, Bastion. It stands out. Could leave it here with the engine running. They would assume we were still inside. That, or some idiot could steal it." A shrug given as he walked back to the trunk to grab his bag and sling it over his shoulder. "Sounds like a plan to me."
1377@Rize
1378 
1379Rize07/10/2019
1380[Bastion]
1381
1382“Trust me, I’ll deal with the car. Just make sure you don’t leave anything in it that you need. C’mon, clothes first.” 
1383
1384Bastion pockets the car keys and started walking, making his way to the plaza’s convenience store. The store was satisfyingly near identical to similar institutions across the multiverse. A bland, generic spread of cheap foods, cheap travel conveniences, cheap clothes, and cheaper knick knacks. Anything you might suddenly have a need for on a long road trip, and all at low prices that were still probably higher than they should be for the quality of the items. 
1385
1386He strolled into the store casually, stretching his neck to relieve unfeigned tightness, his eyes traveling over the interior. The only other person inside was the cashier, a bored looking middle aged woman lazily leafing through a celebrity magazine of some kind or another. She didn’t bother looking up as the door opened, but instead seemed content to browse through whatever story of scandal was the latest.
1387 
1388Bastion made his way into the small selection of clothing, grabbing a small duffel bag from a shelf as he went. He didn’t spend overly long making a selection, choosing a couple pair of jeans and a few shirts off of a rack that would fit. A pair of cheap sunglasses, boots, a prepaid phone, a few bottles of water, and some kind of jerky went onto the small pile as well as he made his way to the cashier. Showing her outstanding dedication to her job, the woman barely looked up as she scanned through Bastion’s purchases, her outstanding boredom with life far more powerful than her ability to care about something like a customer. Bastion handed over the majority of what little cash he had left to him and said a brief mental thanks for the universal apathy of cashiers everywhere. 
1389
1390Bag filled with his purchases and slung over his shoulder, Bastion motioned Kux towards the bathrooms at the back of the store and stepped inside. It took but a minute for him to strip out of his stylish black shirt, pants, and shoes. Those were quickly consigned to being buried inside the garbage can. In their place Bastion slipped into a pair of unremarkable blue jeans, and a snug red t-shirt. The boots were brown leather with a pointed toe style, a far cry from the more utilitarian style that he was used to. Bastion flushed the tags into the toilet and slid the glasses onto his head before emerging once more to meet up with Kux when the phoenix was finished. 
1391@Z
1392 
1393Z07/10/2019
1394[Kuxainl]
1395
1396Fingers stroked along the front of the car a moment before he let them fall to his side. He had everything he needed in the bag. So, he walked with Bastion inside. He grabbed a hat and immediately shoved it over his crown to keep the vibrant color from catching attention.
1397
1398The short male moved through the store to the meager racks of boy's clothes. He chose a dark polo and a pair of long loose jeans. They woulnd't fit well over his talons, but it could cover most of his legs. Next, he selected a sharp pair of scissors, then some generic permanent paint color. 
1399
1400Finally, he grabbed several bags and containers of oats, seeds, dried fruits and trail mixes. A few bottles of water for himself. He used cashed to pay before following Bastion to the back. His own new outfit was pulled on. Taking pains to keep his talons from tearing the fabric. The shirt was then carefully cut to give room for his wings.
1401
1402The hat covered most of his head feathers, but his wings were blaringly bright. "Can you... cut the feathers?" He asked offering the scissors. "They'll turn to ash as they fall, so be careful." It would be easy enough to blow the ashes away, too. If Bastion helped, then he'd be able to pull on a large hoodie. It would cover his wings, but look like he had a malformation of his back.
1403@Rize
1404 
1405Commander Vale07/10/2019
1406[Vexa]
1407
1408Her sharp gaze watched him carefully as he rolled the empty glass in fingers as if he were thinking of her offer. He could be but if he didn't accept? It was no skin off her nose really. Just an asset she wouldn't have acquired. Resting her elbow on the scarred wooden top of the bar, her chin came to rest on her knuckles as he then began to speak. 
1409
1410Ah. A man out of time? So he was an expiring asset. No matter, just meant she could send him in to do the harder jobs because he wasn't thinking about tomorrow. He did have one thing and that was a list. Maybe that list might help clear a path that she was needing to be cleared anyway. Two birds, one stone, right? "Sounds like a plan. Would you like to leave? I have a car waiting and more of your drink of choice waiting. You can give me your list and we can discuss a deadline." Vexa rose to her feet as her guards moved in a little closer.
1411@Negatomsk
1412 
1413Negatomsk07/10/2019
1414A man without hope, as they say, is a man without fear. A man completely free. No laws, no rules, no consequences except for those he would impose on himself. Diegfries was just such a man, and now he was a man in Vexa's employ.
1415
1416"I would. I gotta get cleaned up." He was still filthy and bloody from the scrape on the highway after all. He coughed violently, sliding his glass across the bar as he stood, digging into his pocket to leave a few bills on the bartop for his tab. 
1417"After you," he motioned for Vexa to proceed first, ever the gentleman. Wiping his mouth on his sleeve, he would follow after her.
1418
1419At the car he would settle onto his seat and close his eyes, sighing heavily as if a weight were lifted off of his shoulders, his body sinking into the bench seat as deeply and quickly as a corpse.
1420@Commander Vale
1421 
1422Commander Vale07/10/2019
1423[Vexa]
1424
1425"Thank you." A smile was given as she rose to her feet. One of the thugs pulled out some money before a large bill was left on the bar as Vexa's gaze caught the bartender's attention. "Not a word." Her tone was serious as the money was collected, a nod given before the four of them were walking out to the street. A larger sedan, less noticable was waiting as the door was opened and everyone climbed inside. The design inside was almost like a limo, the thugs taking one bench, which left Vexa and Diegfries sitting across from each other on the opposite sides of the car.
1426
1427As they sat, Vexa didn't say anything, watching Diegfries as he settled into the seat. It was as if he were finally free to relax and he truly was. Nothing would touch him as long as Vexa had something to do with it. "Where ever you're staying is no longer safe. I'll put you up in a nice place while I make this all disappear and we complete that list of yours." She says after several moments, her gaze never leaving the man sitting across from her. The two thugs remained quiet, their attention straight ahead as they focused on the drive to their next location.
1428@Negatomsk
1429 
1430Negatomsk07/10/2019
1431"I haven't been staying anywhere. The police tore up my place after the first murder. I've been in the wind ever since." His voice much softer than it had been, as if it were coming from a far off place deep inside him. "Can you get to someone high up in the police?" 
1432
1433The strength and volume returned to his voice as he came back to life, sitting forward in his seat to meet her gaze, wringing his hands. "He's protected. And he'll probably be ready." 
1434
1435He assumed the answer was yes, but what he was looking for was how much time it would take, how much preparation; more than anything he wanted to see if she hesitated, or if she was confident she could pull it off, without question. "The other two are simple... a mechanic and some trust fund wannabe big man exec loser..."
1436@Commander Vale
1437 
1438Rize07/11/2019
1439[Bastion]
1440
1441Bastion hesitated, even as he took the scissors from Kux. Something about trimming off the phoenix’s telltale plumage seemed wrong to him, as if he would be removing something vital and personal to the smaller man. He knew about losing your identity, about living a life as something that you weren’t. It wasn’t a thing he wished on anyone. But practicality was a trait that had been ingrained in him since he was a small child, learning at the feet of his father. Sentiment would always take a back seat to survival, or so were the words of the man others called the Dragon. 
1442
1443Carefully, Bastion took the scissors to Kux’s feathers, trimming away the brilliant colors and watching as they dissolved into ashes and scattered across the floor. The process took longer than he wanted, but in the end he had removed the bright orange and gold plumage, leaving a far less radiant Kux. 
1444
1445“There.” He dumped the scissors into the waste bin and carefully cleaned off any ash that had clung to his clothing. “You’ll stand out less now. Let’s get moving. I’ll deal with the car, you grab us some food for the road and any other supplies you feel might be needed. I’ll meet you out front soon.” 
1446
1447Without a further word, Bastion slung his bag over his shoulder once more and made his way towards the parking lot.
1448@Z
1449 
1450Z07/11/2019
1451[Kuxainl]
1452
1453As the scissors were taken from his gentle grasp. He felt his heart sinking in his chest. The plumage of a Phoenix was one a point of pride. Kuxainl took extremely good care of his. Trying to make sure his feathers remained in immaculate condition.
1454
1455At the sounds of the first snip, he had to grit his teeth and clinch his fists to keep from jerking away. Carefully, he spread his tail feathers to give full view of them all. One wing at a time, since the bathroom wasn't big enough for more than that. 
1456
1457The Phoenix refused to even glance in the mirror as he nodded silently and pulled the hoodie over his arms and wings. It hung low enough it covered his freshly cut tail feathers. 
1458
1459No need to focus on loss. He immediately set his hat back on his head to hide the brilliant orange and red. Now, he probably looked even more like a child with the large hoodie and baseball hat. He didn't care. They needed to get moving. Kuxainl grabbed a spare phone to purchase, then moved to hot food section.
1460
1461It took him a bit longer to make his way outside. Three bags, a book bag, then two huge plates. Large cheese burgers with the works. A side of fries. He could eat regular food, but not often. He couldn't digest it easily, but it did have some nutrients. That was mostly what he'd gotten all the trail mixes and oats and other types of food.
1462
1463The short man moved carefully on his talons to keep his pants from coming up high enough to reveal them. Kuxainl moved to wait off to the side in the sunlight waiting for Bastion.
1464@Rize
1465 
1466Rize07/18/2019
1467[Bastion]
1468
1469Kux’s car rumbled into the mechanic’s bay, much to the surprise of the mechanic himself and the half dozen others who were suddenly scrambling to toss a heavy tarp over the project they were currently engaged in towards the back of the shop. Bastion killed the engine and slid neatly out of the seat, taking a moment to pass his gaze over the interior of the building and the seven rough looking individuals approaching him with less than amiable looks on their faces. 
1470
1471“Hey, what the hell do you think you’re doing? You can’t just pull in here without permission!” 
1472
1473Bastion shrugged, closing the driver’s door and leaning over the top of the vehicle, arms crossed over the roof. “Hmm. Sorry about that. Not very smart of you to leave the door open like that though. You never know when someone might get a glimpse inside and wonder why you’re tearing apart that little roadster when the sign outside clearly says you’re closed.” 
1474
1475Glances passed from around the room between the mechanic and his crew for a moment, each of them looking for someone to blame for the slip up. “Private project. Now piss off.” 
1476
1477Bastion straightened and shrugged again, slipping his hands into his jeans pockets. “Someone might also wonder about the racks of parts you’ve got out back and if they knew anything about cars or certain less than reputable businesses they might notice that all of them are high end quality pieces. And this is a low rent schmuck of a garage in the middle of nowhere. Not really in a great spot to catch that uptown high roller clientele.”
1478
1479More glances and not a few hands tightening on whatever tool happened to be in their grasp. “What exactly is it you want, pal?”
1480
1481Bastion smiled at last. “A simple trade. This,” he nodded towards Kux’s car and pointed towards one of a handful of vehicles visible through a window in a locked yard out back, “for that, no questions asked.”
1482 
1483*
1484
1485The vehicle that pulled up in front of Kux was most definitely not the phoenix’s car. Not in any way, shape, or form. The rumbling, rusting, antiquated pickup truck did not seem like it belonged anywhere within a hundred miles of Kux’s car. When Bastion leaned over and pushed the passenger door open, Kux could see that the interior looked a lot like one would expect from the off-yellow banged up exterior. Not particularly impressive by any definition of the word. 
1486
1487“Alright, let’s roll.” 
1488@Z
1489
1490 
1491Z07/18/2019
1492[Kuxainl]
1493
1494The wait wasn't as long as it could have been. The sun was beating down, but the heat wasn't something that ever really bothered Kux. He kept shifting his wings and tail feathers beneath the cloak, trying to get used to how damned short they were trimmed. It was a necessity, but that didn't mean he was going to be happy about it.
1495
1496While walking a bit down the sidewalk, he heard a rather deep rumble that drew his orange hues. He couldn't help the incredulous look that appeared on his angular features. Bastion couldn't be serious, could he?!
1497
1498The phoenix trudged around the car, his talons scraping against the asphalt to move around and pull the door open. "Bastion..." He began while actually having to climb into the truck. It was almost too tall for him. One hand curled against the dash, talons curled against the door frame beneath the seat to heave himself up with a grunt.
1499
1500When he was finally in the vehicle he almost had to struggle to pull the heavy door shut. Now, he could sit. With his feather trimmed, it really wasn't that difficult. "In this? How far will this even get us?" He asked, setting his bags and other items in the floorboard.
1501@Rize
1502 
1503Rize07/18/2019
1504[Bastion]
1505
1506“Don’t worry, it’ll work. It’s old but tough. And nothing that anyone will be looking for.” 
1507
1508Bastion put the truck into drive and set it into motion once Kux was settled in. The vehicle responded with satisfying smoothness, if not the delicate power of Kux’s car. It was sturdy vehicle, with a reliable, strong engine. 
1509
1510Still, it was ugly as hell. 
1511
1512Bastion guided the truck back out onto the freeway, merging into traffic with ease and getting them up to speed. He was quiet, letting the dings and creaks of the old vehicle fill the space instead. Inside he was anything but silent. Kux had basically had his life destroyed now, everything stripped away because of him. In some new and twisted way it seemed the past was clawing its way back into his life, the same old tragedies happening in new and horrible ways. He needed to fix things, to stop the vicious cycle that he could see all around him. The only question was how. 
1513
1514How do you stop a nightmare?
1515
1516“So, where to, Kux? Someplace you want to go, something you want to see?”
1517@Z
1518 
1519Z07/18/2019
1520[Kuxainl]
1521
1522A silent nod was given to the driver. He would miss that car. It had taken him ages to figure out the type, the color, the design for his seat. Everything. It was only a material thing, so this would pass. Eventually.
1523
1524The sound of the engine was surprisingly good, compared to the crusty look of the truck. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad.
1525
1526"I could get us another car." Kux finally responded with a half smile. Sitting up a bit, he began to unfasten the cloak to pull out off. It would be bad for his feathers if he left it in for extended periods.
1527
1528Once he wiggled out of it, he was able to reach down and pull up the two meals. One was a large burger and fries, which was opened and set next to Bastion. His own meal was opened and he began to tear into it.
1529
1530Kuxainl had to admit he was feeling better with each mile they put behind them. Away from that scuzzy family or what ever it was. Lucky for him, his feathers would grow back and his family was no where near here.
1531
1532"To be honest, I'm not sure-" The food in his mouth swallowed so he could continue. "I only know my home land. I've only been here a few months. So, I'm free to go anywhere. You?" He asked raising a single brightly colored brow.
1533
1534They were stuck together for now it seemed. Might as well enjoy it.
1535@Rize
1536 
1537Rize07/19/2019
1538[Bastion]
1539
1540Bastion picked up his own food and began to eat with one hand, considering. It seemed the phoenix had barely been in the area for longer than he himself had. Wherever they went, it seemed that it would end up being something new for the both of them. A sign at the side of the road indicated a few different locations and their distance away. As good as anything, he supposed. 
1541
1542“Emporium. Sounds as good as anything else, really. And if those assholesreally want to follow us that far, well, then I suppose they’ll have to learn the hard way just how bad of an idea that is…” 
1543@Z
1544 
1545Z07/19/2019
1546[Kuxainl]
1547
1548It was all silence as they rode along. He was fairly uncomfortable with how short his feathers were and how they were sticking in the back of the seat. It rubbed against his tailbone. Not that Kuxainl was about to complain. This was probably the most inconspicuous ride they could have snagged. It beat his brightly colored orange car.
1549
1550His orange hues took in the sight of signs. To be honest, he'd only heard of a few of them in passing and he sure as hell did not want to go to the slums, whatever that was. Relief touched him when Bastion mentioned Emporium. Good. 
1551
1552The food he'd been eating had been finished and the tray stuffed into a bag. He did laugh. "So, even through all that you saw me?" A touch of pride was on his features. It had taken him a few lives to learn how to fight like that. Kuxainl was more than used to fighting. Though, he used to fight along side of bear-shifters. Bastion was different, but he felt a bit of trust for him to have his back.
1553
1554"Emporium sounds strange. It will do, I suppose. but we are getting a nice hotel. Not some trash. I can't deal with bugs... They get all in my feathers." He visibly shuddered. The last time he'd dealt with them, they nearly drove him insane.
1555@Rize
1556 
1557Rize07/19/2019
1558[Bastion]
1559
1560Bastion couldn’t help but laugh, an unusual but sincere outburst as Kux complained about bugs. 
1561
1562“Got it. No cheap hotels.” 
1563
1564The truck rattled steadily down the highway, its engine a steady, reassuring counterpoint to the occasional rattle of worn and weatherbeaten metal that was the body. For the moment, there was peace. It couldn’t last, of course, not in this life. But for now, Bastion would take what snippets he could get. What came next was anyone’s guess, but somewhere in the back of his head he couldn’t help but wonder who would come next to rattle his cage. Would it be the echoes of his former life in the Galleno Family? Or would it be something more terrible and stranger yet. There was a claim on his soul, after all. Sooner or later, that claim was sure to come due. 
1565
1566[Exit, stage left…]
1567@Z
1568 
1569Yurei07/22/2019
1570[Chasing Shadows]
1571Eryka perched on the couch next to Aisling, but made sure to keep to an erect, ramrod-straight professional stance, sticking to her improvised role.  She allowed Aisling to do the talking since the woman had so rudely volunteered herself, simply observing while keeping an eye on their surroundings.  Tempest’s show with the high-speed chase earlier was bound to draw attention sooner or later, and Eryka wanted to make sure she was in front of it.  She did withdraw her AiPhone and make a little bit of a show of setting it up to take notes, adding just that little bit more verisimilitude to her show of professionalism.  Whatever Abigail might think of Eryka’s attitude, the intent was for her to never think of questioning the slender woman’s competence, and the fact that they would absolutely make effective use of any information Abigail provided.
1572
1573<If Islbeth like you weren’t proof against anything but the most dramatic psychic sendings, I would be giving you such a piece of my mind right now,> Eryka sent at Aisling, knowing the words would just bounce off of whatever outlandish component of their make-up made the more technically-minded third of her race nigh-immune to any typical form of psychic influence but feeling slightly better for saying it anyways.  Knowing Tempest was on guard as well, Eryka simply remained quiet and waited for the scoop.
1574@Negatomsk @Rize
1575 
1576Commander Vale07/23/2019
1577[Vexa]
1578
1579Watching him closely, she could almost feel the hourglass counting down the moments for him. He was a man on a mission, resigned to do what he had to do and then whatever else came after that? It could be considered gravy, she supposed. He only had true power and vitality in his voice when  he spoke next of the first target he needed her to go after. 
1580
1581"Yes." Then he spoke of his last two targets. Her interest was piqued as she wondered what the three targets could have in common but she didn't ask. Not her business to know, she just needed to get the job done. "I can handle those three. Just give me names and last known locations."
1582
1583Behind the car, the sounds of police sirens wailed in the distance, each second it sounding closer and closer. The two men  shifted, seeming to pull out weapons while Vexa remained perfectly cool, her legs crossed, hands laying in her lap. "I wouldn't worry too much about that." She nodded her head at the sirens. Still, they drew closer and closer. It was a chase, not of them, but another vehicle, the dark sports car weaving in and out of traffic. It seemed it was coming right for them, as her driver suddenly served to the side to avoid being slammed in to. She was thrown to the side of the limo as the sound of metal meeting something sounded on the far side of the car. Curses were yelled from the driver's seat, as it seemed, they had gotten into a bit of an accident.  Vexa lifted her head as she glanced out the windows to see only tires. They would just need to handle this accident on their own. "Everyone okay?"
1584@Negatomsk  @Ed
1585 
1586Negatomsk07/23/2019
1587[Chasing Shadows]
1588
1589"He got sick, a few months ago," Abigail began. "I don't even remember what it was, but it was bad, and it got worse fast. He collapsed at work and went into the hospital... I was his only contact, so they called me." She frowned, wringing her hands. "I saw him die on the table. They'd already called time of death and drawn the sheet over him by the time he came back. I'd never seen anything like it, and neither had they."
1590
1591Tempest exchanged a knowing glance with Eryka, frowning.
1592
1593"Then after he came back they said he was better than ever. The disease was still there, but it wasn't killing him anymore. I tried to ask him about it but he said he couldn't tell me. That was when... that was when he started to obsess over everything. Over getting his revenge." The more she spoke the more easily the words came, as the weight was finally lifting from her with every passing moment. "There were five boys... men who had always tormented him in school. And he always blamed them for his never amounting to anything... said they'd conspired with their parents to ruin his prospects, something like that, he was rambling and I don't really remember it all, but he said he was finally going to make them pay... that if he was going to do anything with the life he had left, that he was going to take theirs. I warned the police, but nothing, and now two of them are dead."
1594"He told you their names?" Tempest cocked an eyebrow. They'd come here for a lead and instead they'd blown the case wide open. 
1595
1596"No, I had to look them up..." Abigail reached down to a yearbook that she'd leaned against her chair, opening the page to a bookmark detailing a class photo and passing it to Ai. Several students had been circled, and underlines placed under the corresponding names on the list in the margin. After Porso Calibretti and Felix Ballagan there were three more: Hugh Statia, Zachary Doucet, and Timothy Merna.
1597
1598"These five... I mean, three. I didn't even remember it until he told me." And then she deflated again. Freed of the tremendous burden, there was nothing left but exhaustion. "I don't know what he did, or how... but I know the first two are dead, I know that much."
1599
1600"Don't concern yourself with those details. What you've done here is going to save lives, Miss Chaffee." Tempest managed all the smile that she could before turning away, going back to her phone again, presumably to send messages or make a call to someone higher up the chain. In actuality she was texting Ai again. 
1601
1602[Whatcha got on these guys?] There was no need to ask if she'd gotten anything; knowing Ai she'd been scouring the net from the moment she saw their names.
1603@Yurei @Rize
1604 
1605Negatomsk07/23/2019
1606[Diegfries]
1607
1608He had her word that she could take care of this, and he had no reason to hold out on her: either she was going to take him on, or not... as for him giving her the names, chances were they all knew they were targets by now, anyway. "Captain Merna, of the Neulimbo PD..." If she was indeed planning to take on the government of Neulimbo, Merna's name was one with which she would be at least passingly familiar: he was head of the Vice Squad, which had recently begun steps towards integration into the Major Crimes unit. Suffice to say, the man was a threat to any and all criminal elements in Neulimbo, and Diegfries' desire to eliminate Merna likely coincided with her own a great deal."
1609
1610"The other two are Hugh Statia, the mechanic, runs a small shop down near Tenebris Mortis; and Zack Doucet, has some stock brokerage in the Iris, with his name on it. Merna probably knows I'm coming by now... he might have men on the other two..." 
1611
1612He trailed off, heading the engines growing louder outside. He wasn't concerned with the sirens, yet -- they couldn't see in through the tinted glass, and so long as this girl wasn't playing him he was safe in the limo, but the last roaring motor he'd heard had brought a fight -- and death. 
1613
1614He managed to keep his balance as they crashed, his hand shooting out to put as much of a cushion as possible between Vexa and the door as she was jostled. And then he was nervous. Accidents drew police. Police needed witnesses. "...We need to go."
1615@Commander Vale @Ed
1616 
1617Ed07/23/2019
1618[Alphonse and Wyman]
1619
1620A purple vehicle would have been on that road as it drove along at a normal rate. The driver of said vehicle was none other than Alphonse Elric still. "We've been here for two days and nobody knows where New Richmond is...." The alchemist muttered to himself as he glanced in the rear view mirror at who he was driving for.
1621
1622"We've converted some of our silver into the currency for this city so that is good. Though I admit, we may you need to conjure up some more gold or silver for us to trade in." Wyman Regnier complained as the man brought a hand up to his brow to wipe away some sweat that had no doubt formed. "We are getting a 'lay of the land' as it were, young Alphonse. This place, while not your intended location, is an interesting one to come across in our search to study this new world." The older man commented as he looked out the window, the sound of police sirens in the distance no doubt meant for someone else who was up to no good.
1623
1624"I know. But I was suppose to meet up with El and see about what could be done for New Richmond and Silverm--" The alchemist was cut off as his body went forward, the seatbelt holding him in place, with the older man in the backseat doing so as well, as their vehicle was swerved into from a vehicle from the lane beside them. The car would jerk forward as it drove straight through a sign that was meant to indicate the speed limit.
1625
1626The loss of control had spun them out and made them nearly collide against a large looming metal spire that was meant to be for either a power line or perhaps something else mechanical in the city. But Alphonse would have hit the brakes before that happen.
1627"Uuuuugh." The alchemist would groan as he glanced in the rear view mirror to regard the black limo that had rear ended the large purple vehicle. The exhaust pipes had likely been damaged and would be in need of repair. The back windshield was also done for while the front windshield only had a large crack across it. As well as the driver side window as well.
1628
1629Making certain that the car was in park, the emergency brake also being pulled up, the alchemist would undo his seatbelt and move to step out of his vehicle as he grunted for a moment. A hand moving upward to tap at his left forehead as he felt something wet dripping. Golden eyes narrow as he noticed the blood trailing out.
1630
1631"Wyman? Wyman, you okay in there?" The young man would call out as he moved to unlock the backdoor for his old companion. But the old man would only let out a groan of pain. The alchemist frowning for a moment before he looked to his right to where the limo was.
1632
1633And whoever it was that was driving it that needed to have their license taken immediately.
1634@Commander Vale @Negatomsk
1635 
1636Rize07/26/2019
1637[Chasing Shadows]
1638
1639The moment the names had been available, Aisling had already dipped hard into the local datastreams, diving in deep and fast as only an Islbeth could. Her Split Focus allowed her to keep paying attention to what Abigail was saying while simultaneously running multiple searches in databanks both public and private. Law enforcement and medical databases would both be hit in real time by Ai’s best techniques, tricks of code and data manipulation that would allow her to pillage local records for every bit of information she could snag up, all the while masking the penetration from both automated and manual detection and prevention. Communications directories, social media, news outlets; all of it was fair game. Data streamed back to the storage banks in the red drone, ensuring that anything that she managed to dig up was copied and saved for later use.
1640
1641Aisling’s reply was quick, a brief rundown sent to both Eryka and Tempest’s devices. *[Merna’s a Captain with the local police. Made a name for himself running operations against trafficking, gambling, things like that. Doucet is a businessman of some mention, it seems. Big money investments, involved in a local place called the Iris. Statia’s a grease monkey at the edge of town. Small time blue collar type… Nothing to say these other three aren’t Made Men as well though, given that the other two were.]**
1642
1643Back in the room, Aisling had leaned forward and placed a hand over Abigail’s own, her face a mixture of both sympathy and gratitude. “Abigail, I can’t tell you how much we appreciate your help. I know you’ve been through an exhaustive ordeal and you’re such a strong person to do it. I promise you we’ll do our very best to help everyone involved her, including Diegfries.”
1644@Yurei @Negatomsk
1645 
1646Yurei07/28/2019
1647[Chasing Shadows]
1648Eryka ignored the alert from her AiPhone, knowing what it was.  She’d have time to read in transit.  She stood instead, straightening her ribbon suit out and projecting confidence and authority.  “You’ve been of great assistance,” she said to Abigail.  “Rest assured that we’ll take it from here, your warning has been heard.  Thank you for your cooperation, and please enjoy the rest of your day.”
1649
1650Sure, formal and corporate-esque...but Eryka knew that sometimes people wanted to know that their words had been heard by a Professional Person, and that calm, well-practiced delivery could itself be soothing to those desperate for stability or assurance.  Corpspeak had arisen for a reason, and like any other tool it could be used skillfully by one who knew what it was for.  Despite what Aisling thought, Eryka was not new to this.
1651
1652A point she made as the three made their way back out towards the car to begin pursuing their new leads.
1653
1654“Which of us is the active empath here again, Aisling?” Eryka asked.  “Believe it or not, I am good at my work.  The boss wouldn’t pay me for it if I wasn’t.  Next time I ask you to let me take point, please trust that I’m not going to make a hash of it.  Now, let’s see...”
1655
1656She withdrew her phone and scanned over the brief Ai had sent her.  Her lips twisted faintly, tail snapping behind her as she chewed on the information.
1657-
1658“Odds are that Merna’s last on the list,” Eryka said.  “Not only is he the most well-protected, it’s likely he’s the final feather in Diegfries’ cap – the crowning achievement he’s saving for last.  That’s the sort of drama I’d expect from a vengeance-seeker expending his own life to take down his targets.  Doucet’s got enough money to hire significant security, and if he doesn’t know what’s coming for him at this point he’s too dumb to live.  That leaves Statia as the easiest mark remaining on Diegfries’ list, and Tempest battered him hard enough he can’t be at his best.  If he’s going to strike again soon, it’ll be at the weakest link left in his target group while he works on ways to get at the other two.”
1659
1660She snapped the phone closed again before looking over at Tempest.  “You were right – he’s sick.  Sick enough that his body is trying to die and only his sheer pigheaded stubborn is keeping it going.  That’s...not good.”
1661
1662Silently, where mind-blind Aisling couldn’t hear it, Eryka continued telepathically.  <If he’s been persisting with an effectively dead body this whole time, forcing himself to keep fighting and keep exerting power and force without any real support from his skin...he could be close to becoming a wraith, the same way I did in the Dark.  No Penumbral corruption, thank the gods, but if he’s been in this state for months already, it’s possible his spirit is adapting.  You saw how easily I knocked him free of his skin, and how easily he jumped back into it.  I don’t know, I wasn’t watching for the signs when we were fighting him, but if he becomes a wraith then we’re back to the scenario of chasing down a body-snatching super assassin who doesn’t die when he’s killed.>
1663-
1664<If that’s the case, the only weapon we have left is my own wraith form.>  Which was telling; Tempest knew how much Eryka hated resorting to that particular ability as well as several of the myriad reasons why.  <Which is further complicated by the fact that Aisling is here now and I can’t show her that form.  We need a plan, and you need to figure out if there’s some way you can fake a Hakkousouto of your own if I can’t bring him down in the astral.>
1665@Negatomsk @Rize
1666 
1667Commander Vale07/31/2019
1668[Vexa]
1669
1670One of the bodyguards had pulled out pen and paper, writing the names down but at least one of those names she knew. Merna was a name she had read countless times as she had read reports about Neulimbo before she made her way to the city. She was going to need to get rid of him anyway, two birds with one stone as they say. The other two names were not known but written down, the little bit of identifying information written along side them before the notepad and pen was put away. 
1671
1672It seemed moments later, the accident would occur, her limo ramming right into another vehicle, Diegfries keeping her from injury as his hand kept her from slamming fully into the door. She could see the nervousness on his features and they all knew what this meant. Looking to the two bodyguards, she gave them a nod. "These men will get you out of here and back to the safehouse. I will meet you there once I have resolved this. Go. Now."
1673
1674The bodyguards gave the man no choice as they slammed both doors open, the trio running out the side opposite of the man who had emerged from the purple monstrosity and down an alleyway while Vexa emerged from the other side. Stumbling a bit, she leaned against the car, lifting a hand as she looked at the crinkled front of the limo and the damaged back end of the monster truck.
1675"Alexander?" Her tone was soft, questioning, as she worked her way to the front of the limo to check on the driver. "I'm so sorry. I have no idea what happened." A stumble from her. No one would guess that not moments before she was helping the most hunted man in the city escape. Looking at her now, she looked like a disheveled and slightly injured rich woman who had most likely been on her way to lunch. Par for the course of those who indugled in Neulimbo's delights. "Are you okay?" She asked Alphonse before turning back to the driver's side door of the limo to work on pulling it open. "Alexander!" More sirens sounded in the distance as she couldn't seem to pull the door open.
1676
1677"Please help. I need to check on him."
1678@Negatomsk @Ed
1679 
1680marsmoney08/05/2019
1681B O N N I E
1682
1683The sound of the engine of her cycle coming to life roared and echoed back into the basically-empty car lot as the vehicle itself suddenly twisted into view, a svelte rider leaning down low over its capsule. All hell was breaking loose in the club where someone else was making off with Bonnie's payload, but she had the van in her sights and a hand already dropping to the small of her back where an automatic was just waiting to be used.
1684@Jake
1685 
1686Jake08/05/2019
1687[WILLIAM]
1688
1689“Come on cyborg, you aren’t done yet.” 
1690
1691The words were followed by something heavy being dropped on top of William, who groaned in protest. He’d just been dropped off a building which you’d think would earn him some downtime, but nope he was on the clock. Also, the security guy his employers had sent along with him was a dick apparently. 
1692
1693The blood rushes to his head and he almost falls over. It takes him a moment to realize that it isn’t just his head that is spinning, the van is moving and his cybernetic eye was glitching a bit. Smacking himself in the left temple he manages to get his vision to focus once again as he looks at what was in his lap. 
1694
1695It was a P-900, the compact little machine gun was loaded with armor-piercing rounds. Hefting it he looks at the open rear door of the van. He can see pursuit vehicles from the triad and… A figure on a motorcycle that doesn’t seem to have their markings. But he could tell that they, no, it was a she, was definitely following.
1696
1697“Yeah, yeah.”
1698
1699He grumbles at the other guy who is leveling his own weapon and they open fire at the vans, deciding they were likely the bigger threat. William going for the tires trusting the rounds to shred through the metal of the van’s wheelhouses and blow tires out, hopefully without getting anyone killed.
1700@marsmoney
1701 
1702marsmoney08/05/2019
1703B O N N I E
1704
1705Live fire echoed on the street as her bike came upon the dark vans of the Triad. They were veering left and right, and Bonnie cursed beneath her helmet as she slid her gun once more to the small of her back and wrapped both gloved hands around the handles of her motorcycle.  Traffic was blaring, and the sounds of sirens were getting closer. Closer. Closer.
1706
1707Fuck, Bonnie said loudly beneath her helmet and veered off through an alley way. She angled around trashcans and came out onto the street, only to put a leg down to twist and turn, riding up against traffic -- but the street was narrow and much less used as the Triad and their quarry until their bullet fight down another street. Revving her engine, she sped up, trying to make a light ahead of her that would cross just in front of the van William was in --
1708
1709and she tossed a little something against the grill of the van before speeding away from the bullet fire. Ain't no way she was going to get her ass shot because of the Triads, and no sooner had she had the thought than sirens went zooming past her. She pulled into an alley and sat up on the bike, concentrating on the inside of her visor as she tapped at something in her arm.
1710
1711The little thing that she'd tossed on the front of the van was a tracker -- she just had to stay live and mobile, following the Triad and the Cops from a distance so as not to raise suspicion.
1712@Jake
1713 
1714Jake08/05/2019
1715[WOLF]
1716
1717“Jesus fucking christ.”
1718
1719William curses as one of his bullets slams into a tire and finally shreds it to pieces. It appeared as though The Triad hadn’t sprung for bulletproof tires or military rims, because when the tire exploded the van began swerving erratically until it overcompensated and tipped over. If the men inside weren’t dead from the impact they were going to be so whiplashed they’d been in traction for weeks. 
1720
1721A moment later his, for lack of a better word, partner manages to peg the driver in the car through the bulletproof glass. As it turned out that might have been the better option for preserving life since that car didn’t flip. It just veered off course and slammed into a light post. Which was probably a lot less fatal to the passengers than rolling inside a metal box a half dozen times. 
1722
1723“We’ve got incoming police.” 
1724
1725Their comms guy shouts from the passenger seat as William tries to spot the biker. He’d lost track of her in the commotion and now she appeared to be just gone. His attention is caught by more Triad guys roaring off a side street, these ones in black sports cars. 
1726
1727“We’ve got incoming!”
1728
1729William shouts as he opens fire but he has to stop as one of the gang members wings him in the left shoulder. That was his prosthetic, thank God, but it did knock him off balance and the P900 flies from his hands and nearly out of the van. He’d not had time to put on his shoulder strap. 
1730
1731“Shit!”
1732
1733He shouts diving for it as they swerve crazily and he is almost thrown out of the vehicle, his gun flying away.
1734“We are almost to extraction! Keep us alive for another thirty seconds.” 
1735
1736At almost the same time the comm’s guy says that, William, from his vantage on the floor of the van spots a triad member with a rocket launcher sticking his head out of the top of the SUV. The guy was lit up by the sirens behind him and he had only a second to do something before things got explosive. It appeared as though The Triad only cared about revenge, not about getting back what was stolen.
1737@marsmoney
1738 
1739Negatomsk08/09/2019
1740[Chasing Shadows]
1741
1742
1743Eryka and Ai had already given their thanks to Abigail for the incredibly valuable information she'd provided, information that would finally put them out ahead of this guy, and so Tempest had followed up with a nod and a 'thank you' before taking the lead on the way out the door, while reading the info on her phone, listening to Eryka, and taking that telepathic voicemail, taking on more than enough multitasking to excuse a lack of response.
1744
1745Really there was too much to think about: this had gone exactly the way she was hoping it wouldn't, putting the now three of them against a man who was, quite possibly, literally unkillable save for the only technique in her fighting style that Tempest had failed to learn, one her opponent had already mastered.
1746
1747"So Statia's our first stop, then... let's get over there and warn him. Ai, hack the surveillance around the other two and keep us in the loop. These guys sound like they were real assholes back in the day, but what's being done to them is overkill in the purest sense of the word..."
1748
1749<I have to make a call, then...> Wasn't a call she wanted to make, but there was no helping it. As Ai and Eryka got back into the car, Tempest was bringing her phone to her ear. Waiting for a moment, hand on her hip, she sighed heavily as the call was put through. 
1750
1751"Hey, Sunshine," she perked up only slightly as the call came through. "Worst case scenario. One of sensei's, graduated with honors. Need you to tell me everything you can about the final exam..." 
1752
1753She settled into the back seat again, phone still to her ear as the party on the other end went on at length in response to her query.
1754
1755<Eryka... you think you could pull that body jumping trick Diggy showed us... for someone else?>
1756@Rize @Yurei
1757 
1758Negatomsk08/09/2019
1759[Diegfries te Anelia]
1760
1761There wasn't much to be said, only action to be taken. The men hauled Diegfries out of the vehicle and out of sight, and he followed without resisting. If this was still some sort of trap an accident had given her ample opportunity to spring it. As such, wherever they were going, it was bound to be better than waiting for the police.
1762
1763And so he fled without looking back, disappearing into the underbelly of the city with Vexa's escorts to await her call.
1764
1765[EXIT SCENE]
1766@Commander Vale @Ed
1767 
1768Ed08/13/2019
1769[Alphonse Elric]
1770
1771The young man could only blink as his vision blurred for a moment. His head was killing him but it was his passenger that he was more concerned for. The sound of not just one, but another side door opening up had Alphonse's attention as he looked to the side of the other vehicle to see three men departing at a fast pace. The young man's brow furrowed for a moment as he thought that, maybe, they would be leaving to go get help for their friends.
1772
1773Then the woman's distress became apparent and, the concerned young man that he was, Alphonse would be quick to help.
1774
1775"It'll be alright, miss." Alphonse assured her, nodding his head, as he made his way over to the front of her vehicle as well. Was she the driver? No, she had come from the back seat of the limo. A limousine, meaning that she had hired a driver and was very likely rich. His ears were still ringing as she inquired into his own health. The alchemist shook his head for a moment. "I'm fine but my....grandpa, he...." The young man trailed off as he realized that Wyman was starting to groan and stir in that backseat.
1776
1777Perhaps it'd be better if he helped this other man first. If he moved Wyman after the man had been hurt, then it might only aggravate the pain or injuries.
1778
1779"Please stand back, miss." The alchemist would tell the rather beautiful woman as he moved towards the door. In contrast to the well dressed woman, Alphonse's own attire was rather basic and bare. A white t-shirt, blue jeans, brown shoes, and a blue top over the shirt. Nothing special about it. And yet, the alchemist did not seem "regular" as he moved towards that car door that was damaged.
1780A clap of his hands would be made as the alchemist would then bring both palms down on the door. The woman, if she chose to look at the door, would be stunned by the sudden bright blue light that came from Alphonse's palms. Blue electricity, in actuality being alchemical arrays, would spark and dance as the metal of the car door would be transmuted. The transmutation being to alter the door that was connected to the lock mechanism and, subsequently, the rest of the car. If the transmutation was successful, the car door would disconnected and easily pulled free.
1781
1782The alchemist would take a step back as he gripped the now loose door, the design of it altered and unable to be put back into place, as Alphonse would swing the door outward for the woman to check on her driver. "We should call a doctor or--"
1783
1784"Where are your friends going?!" The sudden shout would take Alphonse by surprise as his head snapped towards where his own vehicle was. The door had been opened but the old man who had emerged would have his own bleeding forehead that was being tended to by a wipe. "We have just been in an automobile accident, but those three men left your vehicle. Where are they going?" Wyman Regnier would inquire as he hobbled over, pointing at Vexa and to the driver as well if the man was conscious.
1785@Commander Vale
1786 
1787Rize08/14/2019
1788[Chasing Shadows]
1789
1790Aisling was quiet, letting her thoughts percolate as she drove. She managed to get into a surveillance network around the police station easily enough, so they would have the Captain under her digital eye, but the other was a bit more difficult to pin down geographically. But that wasn’t the biggest part of where her ruminations were going. Navigating the digital landscape like that was an easy thing for her, even while she was guiding their rented vehicle through the streets towards the third target’s shop. 
1791
1792No, Aisling found herself waging something of an internal conversation concerning herself and her companions. In particular, Eryka. There had always been a certain dynamic between Tempest and herself, even from the beginning. Eryka threw her though. Ai knew there was so much about the woman that she was ignorant of, and not everything added up. It had always made her somewhat hesitant to trust the Hyrodea entirely. Buuuuuuutttt…. She was right this time. 
1793
1794In her classic act-before-thinking way, Aisling had jumped in and stuck her nose in again. She knew she did it. It wasn’t as if her impulsiveness hadn’t gotten her in trouble enough times in the past that she could be ignorant or that self-unaware. It was just that… well, sometimes she wanted more. Her Islbeth gifts and predilections were more or less simple matters of chance biology, nothing that she’d ever had control of or any choice in. But sometimes she regretted them. If she had been born Hyrodea or Pereileon she could be of so much more use when it came to dangerous situations, or being able to do the things that really excited her, or that were that much more useful. She loved her ability with machines and found some real joy in it, but if she had been born with the ability to fully manipulate ether or be physically powerful… Well, her life would be a little different.
1795 
1796And she hated the idea of living every day in one of her Entourage clones. Sure, they could get away with all sorts of more dangerous stuff than she could in her flesh and blood body, but it just wasn’t the same. There was something unique in experiencing things with her own skin and eyes that didn’t exist when she was doing it in one of the mechanical drones. It was why she had come here in the first place, and didn’t send one of the Entourage instead. Tempest would probably chew her out for it later, for endangering herself instead of staying safe back on Verdiss. 
1797
1798She sighed, audibly, a frown turning her red painted lips downwards. 
1799
1800“Sorry Eryka. You’re right. I got ahead of myself again.” 
1801
1802Aisling didn’t elaborate, or wait for a response. She didn’t feel she needed to, and honestly didn’t really want an answer. “We’re almost there.” 
1803@Yurei @Negatomsk
1804 
1805Yurei08/18/2019
1806[Chasing Shadows]
1807Amagrad, and their highbred cousins, were maddening.  Eryka had spent most of her adult life able to read the emotional states of all those around her as clearly as she could see what shirt they were wearing; nulls had been one in a million, if that.  Not remotely for the first time, she cursed the quirk of genetics that meant fully a third of her adopted species were as closed off for her as any null.  She couldn’t tell what Aisling was thinking beyond visual cues, and that was just weird.  Nevertheless...there was work to be done.
1808
1809<I have no idea,> Eryka answered Tempest while the woman otherwise spoke to her contact.  <I’ve never had reason to try, nor is it the sort of thing someone would typically volunteer for.  I could seize your astral presence and force it to reside in the same space as your body’s shadow, but whether I could pin you properly in place, or keep you from dissolving away – or whether even trying would draw Kesheed’s ire since she despises me as it is and this feels like exactly the sort of operation she would object to – is a question I can’t answer without doing it.  Given the consequences of that answer being ‘no’, let us assume that any plan which requires I try is an absolute last resort.>
1810
1811After that, it was mostly just a matter of waiting while Tempest finished her conversation and they arrived at the shop in the fringes of Tenebris Mortis.
1812
1813[Eryka Kerryenne, Aisling Avaros, Tempest Tremoraine – Exit Scene]
1814@Negatomsk @Rize
1815 
1816Commander Vale08/31/2019
1817[Vexa]
1818
1819At the mention of the young man's grandpa, she glanced back toward the truck with a look of concern. Internally, she was concerned that two sets of eyes had seen her friends depart and that was no good. Still, she pulled on the car door, trying to get to the man in the driver's seat. Alexander was another part of her team, regulated to driving because of previous injury. It's what happened when she bothered to learn a name and get attached, she found another job when there wasn't any other reason to keep a lackey around. 
1820
1821When the young man told her to stand back, she paused for a moment before nodding, not sure what this young man could do more than she could. The sirens wailing closer told her that the police and probably an ambulance would be here soon enough if he couldn't get this door opened, which he wouldn't. 
1822
1823Instead, she stood back and watched as he clapped before placing his palms directly on the door. Blue light appeared as she watched with rapt attention to what was going on. Her mind started to churn, what else could boy wonder do? Vexa smiled as the door was removed from the car, revealing an unconscious and bleeding Alexander. "Alex!" 
1824
1825Quickly moving back to the door, she had no sooner placed her hand on his chest to check his breathing, intending to reply that an ambulance would be here shortly before apparently the grandpa had his own questions to ask. Surprised, she turned to eye the older man as he brought himself out of the vehicle, bleeding and pointing at her as she turned back to check on Alex and glance toward the alleyway through the passenger side window. Once she was satisfied that Alex was just knocked out cold and not dead, she turned her attention to the pair behind her.
1826She gave a slight smile as she kept a hand on Alex. "You're not from here, are you?" Skirting his question with her own, she knew she was going to have to play her cards right. "Do you know the reputation this kind of city has? Can you imagine what would be said if a married, upper government official from one of the major countries in this area was caught in an automobile accident with a woman who wasn't his wife?" 
1827
1828The sirens were on the street heading toward them. Two cop cars and two ambulances, followed by a news van. "We're an accident caused by that high speed chase. There's the media right behind the police."
1829@Ed