A story to show some side effects of a plot which normally wouldn't come to light. Also a try at writing in the present tense (though I doubt I will keep that up).
It details some of the actions taken for a simple kidnap case: realisation, investigation and rescue... and mixing them with other duties.
When I asked some friends if I should keep to the usual style and gloss over fights or try and flesh them out more. They wanted a fleshed out fight scene, so blame FFM and Zortel if it's too long
Comments are welcome!
Posted here rather then in RP, as I intend to follow up on it later.
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Grav Mistress - The Job at hand.
<< June 27, Hotel Geneva, Talos Island >>
Jessica Stoneberg, the customer relations manager for Hotel Geneva, walks up to one of the bellboys. Paul, have you seen Julia?
Paul looks a little startled before composing himself and answering. No, I havent, I heard Linda say she saw her getting grabbed by some of those robed mages.. Both the subject and that he has his top button undone due to the warm weather making him a little nervous.
Jessica nods I assume someone has been informed? choosing to not mention the button.
Paul shrugs lightly. I dont know, I assume so, but you know how it is in this city
Jessica nods again. I know. Thanks Paul.
With a final nod she heads back to the offices.
<87 minutes of client relations and paperwork later, several floors up>
Jessica slips past a service trolley into a room.
Hello Linda. She greets the plump, middle-aged woman in the chamber maid uniform.
Linda finishes tucking in the bed as she replied Hello Mrs. Stoneberg
what can I do for you?
I heard from Paul that you saw Julia was taken by Circle of Thorns this morning?
Linda moves her hand to her mouth, seeing the happenings in her memory clearly again.
Yes Mrs. Stoneberg, it was terrible. You see something like that every now and then and its bad enough when that happens, but when its someone you know
Jessica places a hand on Lindas shoulder, but showed little emotion. In the back of her mind there was a nagging sensation that she should be worried for the lack of compassion shes feeling, but she has no inclination to listen to such minor doubts.
Its alright Linda. Tell me what you saw.
I, I saw Julia walking half a block ahead of me.. I was about to call out to her when
when
when several brown robed men jumped out of an alley and grabbed her!
Jessica nods coolly. Circle of Thorn by the sound of it
what did you do then, Linda?
Linda, with her eyes full of tears, takes a moment before answering. I.. I walked away
took an other route... I should have tried to help, but I was scared!
Theres nothing you could have done to those mystics, Linda. Did you call the police?
Linda looks down in shame and shakes her head I didnt.. *sniff* didnt think of that
Im so sorry.
Jessica holds a cup of tea to Linda. Thats alright, Linda. Here, have a cup of tea, take a moment to relax. Ill deal with this.
As Linda sits down with her cup of tea, Jessica walks out before Linda questions where the cup comes from and Jessica doesnt have to cover up the conjuration.
<14 minutes later>
Jessica walks back into her office with a steaming mug of tea which she places on her desk as the door swings shut with a soft click. She takes a ring bound phone ledger and browses through the list of contacts, occasionally sipping her tea. Finding the number shes looking for, Jessica picks up her phone with one hand, the other waving to the door to create a sound barrier before punching the number in.
Hello Frank? Grav Mistress here
Yes, I am semi retired, so you wouldnt have seen me on the news much
. Yes, I am calling in a favour, if you would. Can you pinpoint the location of a mobile phone through its number?
No, no, its a missing person, Circle of Thorns so it wouldnt surprise me if the signal is blocked.
Indeed, we have to try, the number is <Jessica gives Julias mobile number>.
Of course, Ill hold.
Jessica sips her tea and reads her company mail while she waits.
Yes Frank, Im here.
Oh, yes thanks, I understand.
Yes, it narrows it down
Of course, Frank. Shall I tell them the kicking is courtesy of Frank?
Jessica chuckles at the response and is about to speak when she sees someone approaching her office. Alright Frank, I have to go, you helped a lot
Will do, goodbye Frank, you helped a lot.
Jessica puts the phone down before motioning her visitor in, and with the same gesture lifting her spell.
Miss Thorne, what brings you to my office? she asked the fairly regular green skinned guest.
Rosalin smiles Well, I didnt want to possibly embarrass the hotel at the front desk, so
Jessica nods in appreciation, also inviting her to continue
I came back just now, but it seems my room hasnt been cleaned yet. The sheets need to be replaced, really.
Jessica nods acknowledgingly regretfully one of our maids seems to have been abducted, witnessed by an other. This leaves us a little short staffed, but Ill see to it your room is cleaned as soon as possible.
Rosalin smiles Personally
?
< Some time later >
Jessica closes the door to Rosalins room and pushes the trolley to the store room on that floor where she changes out of the maid uniform into her normal business suit.
I need a drink
she mumbles as she walks out the store room.
< 8 minutes later >
Downstairs in her office, once again with a cup of tea, Jessica notices her time to clock out has nearly arrived.
Sipping tea and taking it easy, Jessica finishes up her work day efficiently.
After shutting down, Jessica walks out of her office and locks it. Her bag securely hanging from her shoulder, in it a distinctive flower decorated mug she retrieved from the kitchen earlier that day.
Nodding and wishing people a good day, Jessica heads out to the streets of Talos.
After rounding a corner, Jessica walks into an alley with a determined pace that unnerves the Tsoo that just happened to be hanging out there.
One minute later, Grav Mistress flies up out of the alley way and 6 Tsoo are teleported to the Zig.
Wasting no more time or thought on the Tsoo, Grav Mistress heads to Julias last known position. She looks around but sees no CoT to question.
Landing gently on a roof top, Grav takes out Julias mug out of her Bag of Holding.
Good thing I brought you. Grav speaks to the mug as she takes a flask of blue liquid. She pours a layer of the liquid into the mug, and drops a needle in it before she casts a spell. The mug lights up briefly, before the soft glow concentrates on the needle.
I wonder if this would have been better with tea leaves
she ponders as she sees the needle spin round for a few seconds before settling on roughly North West.
This works just fine regardless.
Grav flies off, following the lead of the needle.
Soon enough, the needle starts to twitch and spin before pointing the other way and Grav stops. She turns the cup to the side, the liquid staying at the bottom and the needle now pointing down.
Here we are
now to find a way inside
She mumbles as she lands on pavement between two buildings, the needle still pointing down.
Grav looks up from her search around as she hears a cry for help up on the roof.
Im in luck. She comments as she flies up and spots two CoT preparing a captive.
The mage stands over his victim with a slightly twitching crystal in hand.
Shes a struggler, great. I love it when they struggle. He comments to his attendant as much as the victim the attendant is holding down.
Thats a funny coincidence, so do I A strong female voice sounds behind the mage.
The mage and his attendant are startled, they turn and look up to a pink armoured figure with a cowboy hat. Her features impossible to make out against the glare of the sun behind her, but the silhouette is definitely female. The two men stare, but not because of her figure, they stare because of the emanations of power evident to them now.
The second it takes for the two CoT to make a decision seems to last a minute. The clear danger and overwhelming odds making that second seem bittersweet: more intense and tragic due to the approaching end.
The attendant moves first, taking out a spirit thorn as he gets up and rushes the ten feet to their threat. In an attempt to bolster his nerves and demoralize the hero he shouts: You mess with forces you cannot comprehend! Knowing full well his chances are slim, but greater when providing a distraction for his master to cast his spells.
The mage does not move, but decides on a spell as his attendant moves. He starts to mumble and concentrate, forming a devastating spell.
The Grav Mistress steps forward casually and answers the attendants claim with a dismissive flick of her hand, causing the attendant to yelp as one of his legs is jerked up into the air. Grav ignores the grunt of pain the attendant makes as his face slams onto the roof, she extends her hand at the chanting mage and spreads her fingers out just as a fireball is launched at her.
Knowing his fireball isnt enough, the mage gets up and runs with flapping robe towards the edge of the roof.
This isnt much of a struggle, is it? Grav Mistress asks, sounding somewhat bored just before the fireball exploded with roaring flames on her bubble shield.
The mage cant resist looking back as he hears the words and roaring impact of his blast.
The attendant flails wildly with his arms, but whether it is to try and hit something with his Thorn, or to try and get free from the bottom half of his robe that fell down over his head to reveal his teddy bear boxer shorts, matters little to Grav.
The victim comes too and looks up just in time to see the mage trip over a low pipe. Still too groggy to join Grav in a chuckle, the woman sits up and tries to shake the effects of her ordeal.
Grav walks to the civilian and offers her a hand Are you alright?
The attendant just hangs in the air, tired from his flailing and accepting the uselessness of it.
The mage lets out a surprised gasp as hes pulled by a foot over the roof and up to hang beside his apprentice.
The civilian takes the hand and is helped up. Um, yes
yes, I think so
thanks to you. Oh thank you.
Grav smiles lightly Its quite alright, youd best get down from this roof, though. I saw a fire escape on that side she comments as she indicates the side of the building.
The mage tries to concentrate enough for a spell, but the blood rushing to his head thanks to gravity is making it hard. A gentle slap with an armoured hand causes him to open his eyes, his cheek stinging.
Now that I have your attention
I have some questions and you will give me the answers
< 14 minutes later >
Grav Mistress walks slightly hunched through the sewers, following the directions the two were happy to give as well as the needle in her cup.
Shaking her head lightly she looks to what her eyes are telling her is a normal unassuming sewer wall.
Not very subtle are they? Grav comments in a mumble as she walks with and extended arm through what her other senses tell her to be a mere illusion.
A sharp pain spreads across Gravs left breast and chest before she can emerge out the other side. With the pain comes the sensation of rushing air as she gets knocked back and to the floor. Gritting her teeth and cursing herself for her carelessness Grav lifts her head and hand, launching a fireball blindly through the illusion.
The hot air from the fireball along with its flight path causes the cowboy hat that is drifting down to rise up again, out of the path of an other crossbow quarrel that ricochets harmlessly off the sewer wall.
Scampering to the side as she gets to her feet, Grav wraps defensive shields around her even as the impacts two more crossbow bolts resound off the walls. At a different sound of an other impact Grav sees that Julias favourite mug she dropped lays scattered in fragments across the sewer tiles.
Enough with my subtlety, then.. Grav comments as she catches her hat and places it on her head.
Focusing her magic and senses, Grav ignores the odd crossbow bolt flying harmlessly through the illusion, not even spending any thought as to the why for that. The fireball erupting against the ceiling is more concerning, but not too distracting as Grav makes a push with her hand, causing the fake image to bend and buckle before it shatters and fades to nothingness.
Wrapping even denser shields around and bursting into the flames of her fireshield Grav steps in front of the opening, seeing the three guards and two mages, a fire and an energy mage judging from their robes.
With her hands on her hips Grav looks to the Thornies as they recover from the initial shock of the ripped illusion and the new appearance.
Who wants to play with Gravity? She asks with a loud voice.
The Thornies looked at each other before letting crossbow bolts and mystical energy fly at the stationary target.
Grav expected the response, and accepts it stoically. Not that its hard to accept bolts deflecting off her shield and flames and energy rolling harmlessly over the round surface.
As the flames die, Grav stands there, hands still on her hips.
My turn. She just tells the disheartened crooks.
Grav drops her shield and with a motion of her hand she sends a focused spell to the ceiling above the group.
Stepping out of the way of a poorly aimed bolt, Grav launches a fireball of her own at the Thornies. The Thornies that look a bit comical as they fall up and crash into the ceiling due to the increased gravity field there.
Walking unaffected by the mystical gravity field that keeps the robed and unconscious figures laying against the ceiling, Grav gives them the occasional glance but sees none stirring and walks on.
After walking 10 yards uncontested, Grav suddenly grunts as she feels a blast of energy in her back. The blast knocks her forward, but a step halts the motion, the force diminished by the shield she has active. Turning around, Grav spots the second blast in time to sidestep it. Behind the blast she spots the Energy Mage standing upright from the ceiling and already preparing his next spell.
Its raining men, hallelujah. Grav half sings half deadpans as she snaps her fingers, causing her gravity field to collapse and release the Thornies in its grasp.
The Energy Mages scream is followed by a loud grunt as he falls to the floor again. His friends make noises of their own even as the dazed Mage starts to get to his feet.
The Mage finds his bearings and counts himself lucky that he didnt fall in the shallow stream of sewage before spinning around to face the pink armoured heroine.
Grav smirks at the look of dread on the Mages face, inspired by the metal crate hurling through the air, just before he is bowled through the tunnel.
Walking deeper into the lair Grav encounters more resistance. She walks away from it with nothing more then a bruise under her armour that she heals moments later. Leaving behind her a trail of defeated enemies in the form of banished demons and ghosts, unconscious and injured mages. Just as somewhere in the back of her mind Grav begins to worry why shes not worried for the injured, her attention is drawn by the emanations of power coming from a room ahead.
Gliding silently through the air she makes her way to the room, hoping she did not underestimate the time shed have. The sounds of chanting from up ahead makes her think shes just in time.
As Grav floats around a corner, she clearly notices the guard in the doorway against the red light in the room ahead. She smirks to herself at the carelessness of the guard who has more attention for whats happening in the room then in his guard duties.
In the room stands an altar with a female form on it, motionless. To the sides of the altar two pairs of chanters are kneeled and face down on the floor. Between the guard and the altar stands the main ritualist, judging from his robes and motions. Slightly more worrying is the large portal on the other side with a rather large Behemoth style demon looking on and waiting for his sacrifice.
Taking the situation in, Grav makes a decision and reaches in her bag of holding. Reaching in to the corner that holds her ammunition, she searches for something suitably large and pulls out a flattened wrecked car. Suspending it in front of her, it spans nearly the width of the corridor.
Taking a moment to make sure she gets the path just right, she gives a light push with her hand and sends the car-shaped projectile speeding down the corridor.
Time seems to slow as the car spins down towards the guard. The Ritualist pulls out a dagger, the guard seems more alert all of a sudden.
The car makes an other turn, blocking the view for a moment before showing the spectacle again. The guard turns towards the corridor, sensing approaching danger as the Ritualist holds the dagger to the side, chanting. The Behemoths muzzle seems like its smirking, probably seeing the interference happening.
Continuing its lazy summersault, the car gets rather close to the guard. The guard knows this too, going rigid from dread. The Ritualist is too wrapped up in his ritual, bringing the dagger up high. The chanters seem completely oblivious to their environment. The Behemoth grins, presumably with the anticipation of chaos about to ensue. Grav flies forward, following her messenger into the chamber.
Time resumes its normal pace as the guard gets the full brunt of the message, knocking him into the Ritualist. The cars trajectory changes from the impact, sending it twirling up and towards the left, in path with the still oblivious chanters. The Ritualist looses his grip on the dagger as he falls forward over the figure on the altar. Grav pulls a ceramic sink from her bag, ready to hurl it at the first to get up. The demon, however, watches the twirling dagger as it flies up from the mages hand and spins on the way down, in perfect alignment with the altar.
The Ritualist, while dazed from the attack, pushes up from the altar. Though he is still bend over it as the dagger connects, slipping neatly in to the hilt and piercing his heart with the wicked irony of magic. Eyes and mouth wide open he stares at the portal with the demon, but no scream leaves his mouth. Oblivious, the chanters keep chanting, even as the car crashes on the backs of two of them, causing groans in agony instead of chanting.
The Guard moves to get up, but with a loud crack of breaking ceramic, he slumps to the floor: unconscious. The Behemoth roars with laughter as the life force of the mage flows into the portal.
Grav floats unconcerned on her side of the altar, watching the Behemoth come through the portal. With a lazy flick of her hand she sends the two remaining chanters flying backwards and crash into the wall.
Silly humans think they so smart! Silly humans think they control one such as I! Now Silly human dead and I free! Free to cause Chaos! the behemoth roars as it steps onto Earths ground. As the great burning wings pass through the portal it closes, denying access to the gathered other, lesser, behemoths.
Free! Free to destroy, to consume, to grow! None can stop me! It roars again, before looking to the flaming woman dressed in pink that floats inside the slight shimmering green bubble.
Are you done? Grav asks simply, in a somewhat bored voice. She had heard it all before, though usually with less words and boasting. And although this one seems powerful, not in the same league as the Envoy of Shadows so not really worth worrying over.
The Behemoth roars threateningly, its flames intensifying. Puny human will beg for death! With a leap and a flick of its wings the demon passes over the altar (with the unconscious woman and the empty shell of the Ritualist) and smashes its fists into the shield. Grav looks slightly surprised as she is knocked down to the floor, bubble and all, by the force of the blow. Maybe it is powerful enough to worry
Jumping back, out of the way of an other smash, Grav casts spell after spell, trying to get a solid hold on the Behemoth monster as it pursues her with brute force and spells of fire of its own. Snarling, the beast feels the effects of gravity grabbing at its limbs, but it refuses to give in. Fighting is in its fiery blood and that is what it does, landing a solid hit through the shield and hitting Grav in the chest with a fist as large as her torso.
The force of the blow sends Grav flying back and crashing into a wall. With a groan, Grav off from the dent in the wall she made. Taking a step forward, staggering slightly -much to the delight of the demon- before standing firm.
This is enough. Grav mumbles before she casts a spell, sending the charging demon crashing into the ceiling before falling down again, the old stone crumbling and falling on the enraged demons body.
As the Behemoth sends a fireball hurling towards Grav, Grav sends it some of the larger stones from the wall that got destabilized from her impact earlier. The explosion of the fireball on Gravs shield engulfs her in flames, blocking both their sights, but it also burns her as she smells burned hair. The Behemoth just smashes the incoming stones away, taking the minor hit to its arm as it hurls an other fireball into the flames.
Whether it is the sound of implosion or the delay in a fireballs explosion that alerted the Behemoth to Gravs departure from the field of fire, but it slows its charge. Still, the Behemoth crashes hard into the wall with a roar of pain. Pain caused by a fork of a forklift clipping its shoulder as it slams hard into its back. Already, Grav pulls a safe from her bag and aligns it for an other launch.
The demon pulls itself from the wall and roars as it turns to its opponent.
Raaagh! Annoying human! I ki-
But its taunt gets interrupted by the heavy safe breaking the doglike jaw on impact.
Grav lands as her flames die out, her bubble collapses. The Behemoth -with its lulling jaw- pulls itself from the wall again, with both hope and fear in its murderous eyes as it notices the unusual behaviour of its opponent. Gravs eyes flare with a blue white energy as a blue bubble form around her instead of the previous green, even her pink armour and hat turn blue and with a different pattern. She wastes no time and fires a concentrated blast of Kheldian energy into the demon, slamming it once again into the hole in the wall. Grav lifts up again and floats forward, alternating which hand shes hurling balls of energy from.
The hurt beast groans in pain from the continued assault, but steps forward to take up the fight once more. The Behemoth lashes out with a clawed hand, but Grav ducks under it and slams an energy powered first into its abdomen, slipping lower and between its legs as the beast doubles over. The Kheldian mage rises up, energy flaring in her eyes as well as her hands. The Behemoth starts to rise up again, though dread fill its eyes as a new source of light casts a Behemoth-shaped shadow despite even the demons flames. As the Grav Mistress slams both fists into the demon, it roars briefly in agony as it collapses to the floor, its flames diminishing.
Grav pants as she stands over the motionless form of the demon.
Back to hell with you. She states simply as she stands straight again. Her armour scratched and scorched, her hair singed and her hat severely damaged, Grav walks past her defeated foe back to the altar room. As she walks, the demon fades as it returns to the hell it came from.
Grav Mistress steps into the room, back in her pink armour and with magic at the ready.
She walks up to the altar and pulls the dead Ritualist off the altar and sighs.
What trouble have you gotten yourself into, Julia? she asks the unconscious woman.
With a conjured cloth Grav cleans the blood from her friend and undoes the bonds.
Probably a good thing youre unconscious.. she comments as she wraps Julia in a bathrobe from her bag of holding. Youd be blushing something fiercely, no doubt
Grav takes the woman in her arms and with some concentration creates a portal to the surface, taking to the skies once there.
< 4 minutes later >
Julia stirs in Gravs arms. The wind of the flight or the sleep effect wearing off, what ever the cause, the woman is waking half way across Kings Row.
Huh.. wha? Julia asks groggily.
Grav doesnt even look at her, just looking ahead and maintaining her course as she responds. Youre safe now, well soon be at the hospital.
As she becomes more awake and aware of her situation, Julia gasps and clutches on to Grav. Where are we?
Flying over Kings Row.
What happened
I remember Circle of Thorns
but.. its all very groggy.
Grav nods You were taken to be sacrificed, but I saved you. She states evenly, with a nagging sensation in the back of her mind, saying it was rather insensitive, but quickly ignored as the hospital comes in view.
Grav lands deftly on the steps and carries Julia in through the doors. She explains to the doctor what has happened as Julia is moved to an examination room. Also, she brushes away offers of being examined herself. The Grav Mistress just walks out the hospital and flies off into the sunset.
)
Also, I believe it's getting off-topic, this is about server merging not about how much Britan sucks. 