An invitation to a formal party ((OPEN ROLEPLAY))
By
DJ_Shecky,
Posted on: 2005-09-18 10:32 in Roleplaying
Beatrice felt the temperature drop (OK, get a grip, it's not freak weather, someone's doing this) which helped to dull the pain somewhat, but it also stole energy from her, slowing her down. A slight breeze kicked up, and she caught a scent... was that pine? It was crisp, and clean, and it was so unlike the city smells of Paragon that she inhaled deeply.
She checked her side. The bleeding had slowed to a trickle, and the wound, although raw, didn't look as bad as she thought. Must have been the shock... though the knockback of it had her thinking she'd had a rib broken.
She turned to her charge. The dress, though ornate in a very old-world kind of way, looked a bit threadbare in places. The girl also looked to be trying desperately to not get it dirty. Well, it would if she stayed out here. The runner would probably return, and with friends.
She walked back to the street, checking to see if any other gang members were around. Seeing none, she beckoned to the girl, and held a hand out. "Let's go dear. I'm getting cold, and it's not a good place to be."
The girl looked confused. Beatrice beckoned again. "You don't speak English, I don't speak Russian... what now?" She tried to make herself as non threatening as possible, giving the girl a smile and an outstretched hand.
"City of Heroes. April 27, 2004 - August 31, 2012. Obliterated not with a weapon of mass destruction, not by an all-powerful supervillain... but by a cold-hearted and cowardly corporate suck-up."
Something very strange was going on. Red-Eye had been a liar, and a damned good one, for long enough to recognize when someone else wasn't being entirely truthful. And Alex Ivonavich was definately not being honest about the sudden diversion of "broomball."
Oh, he had hidden it well no question. But when he first saw the colored cloth, his chilled expression could quite hide the relief. That meant that the broomball tournament WASN'T planned, which in turn meant that he was distracting people away from something.
"Comrade Sasha." He said softly into his mike, "I was you to look in this area for a young girl. Approximately teenage to early adulthood in age, white, Russian. Wearing a very old and formal gown...possibly responsible for the sudden snow. Call me if you find her."
Soviet Shadow would find the girl, if she was to be found. Meanwhile, Aleksei would enjoy the good graces of his host. Rank hath some priveledges, after all. For one thing, broom ball offered more then one occasion for an 'accidental' full body contact.
With that in mind, he overrode his immediate impulse to go for Soviet red and picked up yellow. After all, he was almost certain HEROID would pick red to match his armor, and if there was anyone he would like to send sliding across the ice, it was the infernal machine. Or former machine. Whatever the heck he was now.
Aleksei felt a smile touch his lips. This would be fun.
(A little more bastardy then Red usually is, but its late 
)
Herr was still sitting in front of the array of screens, watching the news footage from the Council and 5th war. "Bvahahaha! Look at that, he just got hit in the head vith a rocket! OHH!! AND NOW HE'S BEINK RIDDLED!" he said rather nastily. However, he decided at the last moment to switch to the camera feed from the reprogrammed Valkyries he had positioned around the party, and took direct control of one of them, having it fly around the ice at a very fast rate, occasionally dipping and going between heroes. He laughed at their shocked reactions.
WOLVES AND BEES 2012
Alex took off his jacket and tie and handed them to Brianna with a smile and a kiss for luck. Than he picked up a sash from the red pile and tied it around his waist, tucking the ends in to prevent anyone from "accidentally" grabbing an easy handhold.
One of his hired security team approached him as he was walking over to the pile of taped brooms that had just been brought out, "The girl is off the grounds."
"The statue..." Alex corrected him," It is a statue, animated by a spell," he locked eyes with the security agent until the man nodded.
" It will be found." Satisfied, Alex nodded and looked away, just as a Valkrie robot descended from the sky and began making fast circles around the ice, weaving in and out of the people. Alex glared at his security, and the man spoke into his com.
Shae Firewarder
((This party took place before current in-game events involving Roy...))
Well, he'd tried. He really had. If he had it to do over, he wouldn't have come to the party. Julia would have had a better time if he'd not been here.
Roy sat on the bench behind the hedge and watched the snow fall. Julia was either looking for him, or she had left. Or maybe she was joining in whatever game the host was getting together.
As soon as he sobered up, he'd leap out of the place.
A humming above his head got his attention away from his funk. Roy looked up. A valkyrie? Council? Here?
Then he noticed the writing. PROPERTY OF HERR AUTOMATON. DO NOT DESTROY OR I WILL KICK YOUR *****.
As Roy watched the hovering drone, it lowered until it was level with his face. He could swear he could hear it laughing at him.
"Well, Herr," Roy said, "Looks like yer gonna owe me..."
In a blink, flesh and blood Roy was replaced with augmented titanium HEROID. The converted valkyrie popped in his hand like an overfed mosquito.
Roy smiled. That was the most fun he'd had since he got there. He activated a scanning device. There were more valkyries at the party.
Things were starting to look up.
Second Sighted popped into reality right in front of the woman, alarm crossing his face as he saw the wounded (what he assumed to be) hero laying on the ground bleeding profusely. A quick scan around the area revealed thugs that had been quickly dispatched, but not quite quick enough. He knelt down next to the fallen hero and placed a hand on her temple as he waved the other over the sucking chest wound. Closing his eyes, he mouthed a few words in a language most in Paragon would not have been familiar with. A green light emanated from his hands and illuminated the dark forest, and he opened his eyes in time to watch the wound closing slowly. Muscle and fascia reknitted in front of his eyes, and the layers of skin followed suit. It took little time to mend the fallen one. After checking her pulse and being satisfied, he turned to the woman in red.
"Ma'am, are you alright?" he said, watching her expression as she seemed to already be in shock after the sights she'd just witnessed. She didn't seem to understand, or to even notice. He tried something else.
"Are you okay?" he spoke in poorly accented Russian, hoping she'd respond.
Herr grumbled. "...does he haff any idea how much those things cost? Oh vell, I'll haff to get another next time..."
WOLVES AND BEES 2012
Tasenka tried to figure out the words. They sounded more like the language she knew than anything else she had heard since she had found herself here...wherever here was. However the accent was very strange. She replied in Russian, "I am well, thank you."
She looked over the unconcious bandits to see if they were likely to stay down for a few more minutes, and then she picked up one of their bows. She drew the bow, testing it's strength. It was close to the draw of her brother's castoff bow that she had "borrowed" from time to time. She nodded to herself and then picked up the quiver of arrows. She did not know where she was, but she felt slightly better facing the unknown armed with a familiar weapon.
Tasenka began to wonder about the weather. The changes seemed to be terribly convenient. Either someone was looking out for her, or something else had happened to her that she did not as yet understand.
Shae Firewarder
Mistress Ohm felt her head clear even further at the new arrival's touch. It was ... she was tempted to compare it to something more carnal, but no, this was better. It was bliss, straight up, no chaser. She couldn't help but sigh. And when the glow throughout her being had passed, she felt no aches, or stings, or even the stiffness of muscles that have healed.
Her first thought was to the girl... but she saw that the new arrival seemed to have that in hand (more or less) and would probably be able to get her out of this area and to someplace safe.
And it was evident that the girl WAS the statue. Beatrice felt a little guilty of touching it, no HER, earlier. Had the girl been aware of it? Would she have objected? How long had she been in that state?
"Sir... thank you for your assistance. If you could, please... tell her I am OK, and let her know that she has a friend here. I would say so myself... but I do not know Russian."
She got to her feet, walked slowly over to the other two, and tentatively reached out a hand to stroke the same cheek that she'd touched on the statue. Such a pretty girl... the mystery surrounding her was almost tragic in its scope.
As the two figured out how well they could indeed communicate, she waved, rose into the air, and headed for her apartment. Serge... well, she'd deal with Serge. The party wasn't a total loss... at least she'd got an adventure out of it. The uniform... well it could be fixed.
(( thus endeth Mistress Ohm's involvement in THIS thread... but seeing as Tasenka and Ohm have friended each other in game, there may be more tales to tell! ))
"City of Heroes. April 27, 2004 - August 31, 2012. Obliterated not with a weapon of mass destruction, not by an all-powerful supervillain... but by a cold-hearted and cowardly corporate suck-up."
((Looks like events have moved to live. Tasenka is in game. I do have a few things to post...but they are still in my head rather than written. Hopefully I'll have a wrap up for you all in a couple days.))
((If your character was at the party, feel free to recognise Tasenka.))
Shae Firewarder
((Now I'm really bummed my board-time has been so limited lately. Very well-written, everyone.))
((A week or so ago, about the time a strange green light began switching out certain heroes for their counterparts in what has now been called the "bland dimension"....))
KGB Special Section 8 Message of the Day: Emergency condition Blue, extradimensional magic detected, Emergency condition Blue...
[Team]Blue Magus: Yes, the carpet is singed here also...
[Team]Blue Magus: Singed?
[Team]Tasenka: da
[Team]Blue Magus: The devilish bastards!
Tasenka laughs softly
[Team]Tasenka: some of these buildings are as confusing as the maze around the Katschei's palace.
[Team]Blue Magus: Up here too?
[Team]Blue Magus: Oh God!
[Team]Blue Magus: When will the madness end!?!
Tasenka blinks
Tasenka looks up...
[Team]Tasenka: There
[Team]Blue Magus: Well, damn.
[Team]Blue Magus: You know...
[Team]Blue Magus: Maybe we should go grab a burger or something first...
[Team]Blue Magus: Just kidding.
Tasenka looks at Blue magus.
[Team]Blue Magus: Fearlessness is the one requirement for being a Star Magi.
[Team]Blue Magus: HA!
[Team]Blue Magus: Take that, carpet burner!
[Team]Blue Magus: I have a clue...
Tasenka listens to the silence
[Team]Tasenka: Is that all here then?
[Team]Blue Magus: A piece of scorched carpet...
[Team]Blue Magus: Yes.
[Team]Blue Magus: I do believe so.
[Team]Blue Magus: Oh, and I found a broadcasting unit.
[Team]Tasenka: This piece of robot I found has something on it...
[Team]Blue Magus: Really?
Tasenka hands Blue magus a clockwork piece with the words"help me" written on it.
[Team]Blue Magus: Scorch marks?
Blue Magus reads, "Help me."
[Team]Tasenka: It looks like...um...writing.
[Team]Blue Magus: We'd better get this back to Jake.
[Team]Tasenka: Is that what it says?
[Team]Blue Magus: Yes, it says "Help me."
[Team]Blue Magus: Ah.
[Team]Blue Magus: You don't read English.
Tasenka shrugs
[Team]Blue Magus: Well, you'd be surprised how many people from other worlds don't read English either.
[Team]Blue Magus: Well, of course why would they?
[Team]Blue Magus: Unless of course they were coming to Earth...
[Team]Blue Magus: And then they would only need to know it if they were coming to America.
[Team]Blue Magus: Or England.
[Team]Blue Magus: Well, I guess Ireland too.
[Team]Blue Magus: And Scotland.
[Team]Blue Magus: And parts of Germany.
[Team]Blue Magus: Oh.
[Team]Blue Magus: And I can't forget Canada.
Tasenka is listening
[Team]Blue Magus: I guess it would be handy to speak anywhere on Earth.
[Team]Blue Magus: Oh, and on the Moon too.
[Team]Blue Magus: And the Mars colony.
[Team]Blue Magus: And the Titan colony too.
[Team]Blue Magus: Wait.
[Team]Blue Magus: The Titan colony is Japanese.
[Team]Blue Magus: Nevermind.
Tasenka looks tense and the temperature around her drops by several degrees
Blue Magus: Scary guy.
Hades Moon: Greetings.
Tasenka backs up till she bumps the wall
Blue Magus belt crystal adjusts air temp around him.
Blue Magus: Greetings.
Tasenka: Preevyet
Blue Magus: Nice er... skulls.
Hades Moon: If that is what you see.
Tasenka relaxes slightly when things get less dark and facey
Blue Magus: Well...
Blue Magus: Er...
Blue Magus: Shall we go?
Hades Moon: You are well?
Blue Magus: Me?
Blue Magus: Of course.
Blue Magus: A Star Magus is never sick.
Hades Moon: The cold one.
Tasenka: I am not cold?
Tasenka: Or, I do not feel cold.
Blue Magus: She seems all right to me.
Blue Magus: She does have alittle bit of mist rising from her though...
Hades Moon: I see...
Blue Magus: I could do a bioscan on her.
Blue Magus: Send the information to the Big Giant Head.
Tasenka: ....what is "bioscan"?
Hades Moon listens quietly.
Blue Magus: My crystal will scan your physique...
Blue Magus: Gathering information about your physiology..
Blue Magus: Which will be digitally sent for analysis.
Tasenka is completely lost and doesn't know what word to ask about...
Blue Magus: It will tell me if you are normal compared to other humans or not.
Tasenka: Oh
Blue Magus: So, if you'll just stand still for a minute...
Hades Moon: Mmh. Good dreams.
Tasenka stands still, but nervously...the temperature around her drops again.
Blue Magus blue glow emanates from the crystal on his belt...
Blue Magus it fades.
Blue Magus: There.
Blue Magus: Done.
Blue Magus: Now... sending...
Blue Magus: ...transmitting...
Blue Magus: ...receiving...
Blue Magus: Ah! Results.
Blue Magus: The Big Giant Head says that you are...
Blue Magus: "An unknown deviation from human physiology...
Tasenka blinks
Tasenka: a ..a what?
Blue Magus: "An uknown deviation from human physiology."
Blue Magus: He also says your physiology does not match any known species of the Star Seed.
Blue Magus: In short, you're not quite human...
Blue Magus: And you're not an alien.
Tasenka: But....how can i not be human?
Blue Magus: Look, Tasenka..
Blue Magus: There are lots of explainations for this.
Blue Magus: Don't fret.
Blue Magus: Maybe you're magical.
Blue Magus: Magical races always throw off a bioscan.
Tasenka: relaxes a little.
Blue Magus: It will be all right.
Blue Magus: Maybe someone at MAGI can help you uncover the mysteries of your past.
Blue Magus: Or your present.
Tasenka: ah
Tasenka: I think...I need to go think about this
Blue Magus: All right.
Blue Magus: It has been a pleasure working with you, Tasenka.
Tasenka: Thank you for your help hunting monsters tonight
Blue Magus: Anytime.
Shae Firewarder
Alexandre Ivanovitch looked over the legal papers one more time. One set to be delivered to the headquarters, other sets to be delivered to the residence of the commanders, and neither was likely to be noticed by anyone important for a while, due to other circumstances. He smiled. An opportunity this good was not likely to happen again for a very long time.
He sent the papers off to be delivered.
Later, papers describing one Tasenka Sergeynova as a magical construct whose powers were allegedly out of control and summoning said construct to appear in court at noon on the 25th of October or be arrested as a danger to the populace were delivered to the headquarters of the KGB Special Section 8 and to the last known residences of the heros known as Comrade Smersh and Comrade Red-Eye...
Taseka opened the door of the headquarters when the process server knocked.
"Tasenka Sergeynova?" the process server asked.
"Da...I mean yes." she answered.
"May I see some ID?" he asked and looked at the hero license she pulled out for him to look at. "Sign here please,"he watched her make an "X" on the line indicated,"Thank you."
She watched him leave, then closed the door and set the papers on the table...the table that was filling with paperwork since all the folk who did the paperwork were missing elsewhere. She sighed and wondered if they were ever coming back.
Shae Firewarder
Lieutenant Violet Shotz, former aide of General Douglas Monroe, walks into the office of her new boss, General Erik "Dwarf Star" Monroe carrying a bin of letters.
"Sir, here's the mail today approved for delivery by Internal Central Security." Lt. Shotz said handing the mail bin to DS.
"Thank you Vi." Looking over the contents, DS pulls out the envelope containing an invitation from Alexandre Ivanovich.
"What the hell is this? September 23rd? This is today's mail?"
"It's today's approved mail from ICS sir." Lt. Shotz replied.
"Of course, everything must be screened first, don't want any bad apples in our midst. And people wonder why I don't get out much anymore..."
Dwarf Star sighs and continues reading through the mail wondering why he took the promotion in the first place.
-------------
Dwarf Star; Angel-Night, Adoniel, angel of the 12th hour of the night; among the many
Freedom Factor
and now from Warhammer Online, Gorlok, Greenskin shaman
-------------
Alexandre Ivanovitch clenched his teeth. The lawyer who had been speaking to him turned and looked in the direction he was looking. He looked over the girl in the archaic festival dress and the two men walking down the courthouse corridor with her and shook his head. "She brought a lawyer...that's the counsel that the foundation called 'Maggie's Rock' keeps on retainer. And who is that other fellow?" He looked at Alex and the security man he had brought along to see if they knew.
"That's Mr. Kinsolving. He works at that foundation. Probably where the the girl found the lawyer, since she'd not have thought of that on her own." Alexandre looked at the trio as they found their way to the proper courtroom. She looked calm. She wasn't going to lose control here today. It really wasn't likely that he was going to get another chance as good as this one had seemed to be.
The security man looked at his boss, and couldn't help but say, "They're heroes boss. Saving the day when it looks bleakest is in the job description." He winced at the look from Alexandre as he crushed his paper coffee cup and tossed it in the bin. Then they entered the courtroom.
He had seen it this far, he'd see it to the end. Though what else could go wrong he couldn't guess...
Shae Firewarder
It had been a very long time since Nick had to wear a suit. He never did like the way they felt, although Maggie used to tell him how dashing he'd look in them - that was a lifetime ago, though.
As he walked alongside Tasenka and one of the Rock's many lawyers, he couldn't help but feel a little of something he thought was long dead inside of him.
He felt good.
He was actually helping someone.
Not retrieving a purse from a gang banger or saving a surgeon from Vahzilok: these were things he could solve at the point of a well-placed arrow. No...this felt...different. Tasenka had come to him for help because she felt she had nowhere else to turn. She felt alone and helpless. She'd been slapped with an avalanche of legal jargon by someone who'd hoped she'd become overwhelmed and confused by it. The timing of its delivery was no coincidence either, with more than half of the KGB team dimensionally displaced.
He'd almost declined when she'd asked, but, after seeing the frightened look in her eyes, he found that he couldn't. And seeing her now, walking beside him with an air of comfort and confidence, made it all the more worthwhile to him. He'd failed Melodie - he'd not fail Tasenka.
As they walked by the three men whispering together in the courthouse hallway, Nick took note of the expression of guarded fury on the face of the one holding the coffee cup. That one, he decided, must be Ivanovitch.
Although he didn't allow his face to betray any emotion, nor did he meet the man's gaze, Nick took silent pleasure in thwarting the man's plans...whatever they were. He wasn't going to get anything from Tasenka. Not this day.
Nor ever, if Nick had anything to say about it.
Alexandre Ivanovitch's small group entered the courtroom just as Tasenka gave a loud girlish squeel of happiness and ran over to a bald man in a red suit. She hugged him impulsively and then stepped back but kept hold of his arm and began speaking rapidly in Russian as if the rest of the world had just vanished.
Alex's security man looked over the man that Tasenka was still speaking to in rapid Russian and realised that he must be the real Yegeny Korsakov and not the double that had been here for the past week. The security then looked at Alexandre and noticed the back of his neck was turning red; He continued to scan the room for threats to his charge, but, took a step away from Alexandre as well. There was enough pressure building there that if anything actually broke Alex's control, it wasn't worth his paycheck to be the person standing closest to him.
Alex's security looked back at the girl and Korsakov. Kinsolving and the lawyer were watching Tasenka bemusedly and Korsakov had managed to get only one or two short sentences in and was patting her arm reassuringly as the judge strode in, and the bailiff called the room to order...
Shae Firewarder
The old man sighs as he slowly removes his "splendid waist coat, reaching inside to pull out a very ornate katana.
"Never a dull moment. Never a dull moment..."
He thinks back to his entire life. Well, not all of it, that would take a long time. All the battles, the heroics, the not so proud moments...and he can't seem to think of one where he really got to relax.
But then again, where would be the fun in that? The old boy has a point, it's much better than going into a party full of stuff shirts and stuck ups, even if it had been two hundred years.
He gives his sword a couple of tentative twirls, "I pick saddling up. You point, I slice." He gives a wide crap eating grin. "Just like old times."
He remembers all of the times these two have done things just like this, only they were far more dressed for the occasion. I mean really, how funny is it going to look seeing an old man in formal wear smack some people in their faces. You know, flip out and go ninja on them.
"Hey Maltese, I hear that those Ritki dropped a spoon."