Personification Life - IC Part VIII [open]

[The BranRiech]

"Fair enough, and the green ones, you say?" Rachelle asked, picking a box of the stuff. "I don't suppose I can get some Japanese dollars? I don't think my money will work . . ."

The girl also picked out a box of her own choice, as a surprise or so.

She didn't notice the figure.

--

"Yeah, my town was up in the mountains, small one, around 20 buildings or so when I enlisted." Rylli shrugged. It was all old memories now, meant to be told to friends, Beer optional. But with who they knew, there was always a chance at going back. She smiled at the prospect.

[Primordial Luxa]

Primordial pulls out his watch and resting a hand on Arthurs shoulder opens it.

When he closes it they're standing in a different room of pure white. the bleanch surfaces seem empty and painfully cold in relation to where they are, the room lack any corners or edges and each of the walls ends by smoothly blending with the ones near it. In the center of the room floats a white ball of milk like liquid that ripples as they appear. Primordial puts the watch away while breifly checking something on his PCPU before turning back to his guest. "The whole things vocally automated with a high level AI so just ask it for whatever you want." He says before step back from the center of the room to give him some space.

"How about something that surreally alters my perception and emotions, tapping into my primal urges?" Arthur said...

Before they knew it they were standing in a suburban house as morning came and Arthur's form was fully human. Music began to fill the air.

"I don't know why but today seems like it's gonna be a great day!" Arthur sang and opened the window to the view of cartoon robins.
There's something in the air that makes me feel like things are gonna go my way
The birds are chirping tweedly-deet, the sun is shining bright!
There's a skip in my step, a pip in my pep" he paused to take a deep breath of the chemicals in the air. "and I know why!" he added before running outside.

"Hey there mailman friend, any letters from my crush or Fortu?" he asked still singing.
"No" the confused mailman replied.
"Fantastic news, HaHaHaHa!" he laughed and snapped the mailman's neck before running into the street.

"Wonderful day makes me feel so happy that my face is numb!
My heart is racing along barapa pampam!" he sang as he marched now joined by several passers-by of various professions.
"So many places and people to meet, now that I've lost my job!
They say "Young man, the world's your oyster"" He suddenly stopped as the back ground characters were about to lift him up.
"Hey! Hey get the fuck off me! No! Fuck no!" he yelled, making them back up.

"Just give me second." He said and took another deep breath.
"Idon'tknowwhybuttodayseemslikeit'sgonnabeagreatday!
Lalalablahblahblahblah I should spend more time with my friends!" He resumed singing more rapidly. As the scene changed from the suburbs to a Spainish town.
"It's carpe diem, gotta seize the day, I'm gonna move to Spain and run with the bulls
And my crush and boss and friends and NVE will say "We were wrong about you Arthur!"" he sang as the scene changed again to the city.

"Hey Arthur!" a friendly stranger said.
"That's my name!" Arthur replied.
"Are you really gonna run with the bulls?" the stranger asked.
"Why would I do that?" Arthur said confused.
"Cause you said you were gonna!" the stranger answered.
"Come on man, that was like three days ago..." Arthur claimed, suddenly becoming raptor again in a blink. "...or was it?" he said and ripped the stranger apart in seconds.

As quickly as it happened, Arthur was back in his blood-stained human form marching and singing.
"Something today makes me feel fine and fancy-free
Much of the ocean is still unexplored, how did I get up in this tree?" he sang as the scenes were now rapidly changing into various odd circumstances.
"Now I'm over here, now I'm over there
Now I'm under this dude, now I'm back in the tree
Now I'm hanging out on the Moon with my very best friends, Alec Baldwin and Tom Cruise!" he sang with now with the two celebrities he played poker with.

"Get the fuck out of here!" Alec Baldwin said as the music cut.
"What?" Arthur asked confused.
"Now." Tom Cruise added.
"Tom!" Arthur protested.

The scene changed to a dark opera stage with a spotlight on Arthur in a tuxedo.

"Why would they dissssssssssssssssssss me?
I thought they were my poker buddiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiies!" Arthur sang in a different tone and took another deep breath. Before the scene changed to a strange lab, marching through accompanied by random lab technicians. Arthur resumed the previous style.

"Any problem is solvable, we can feed the hungry and cure disease
But all of that would be a huge waste of tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiime! because we live in an online forum!" he finished as the whole universe was now seen in text.

"Okay, I've had enough. That is too much." Arthur said exhausted, not particularly fond of how the universe looked right now.

OOC: I literally just watched that video about 3 hours ago

Primordial enjoys watching Arthur delve deeper into his true self. He found people reverted to a more basic, less complicated version of them selves when they were entranced and he had not been proven wrong about Arthur. However this wasn't to say he learned anything new about the raptor, what had happened wasn't much different from what he had expected. He rapped his fingers against the wall to end the hallucinogenic fog and the ball in the middle of the room pulsed briefly absorbing the chemicals in the air. "Very uplifting" he said "come" walking through one of the walls as if it were made of some sort of gelatinous substance.

[Tiltjuice]

Luce seemed wrong-footed, despite having grown up in Rome. Having to match other societies' ideas of modesty and clothing as a traveling "diplomat" for the boss-couple, he'd gotten less and less used to nudity. Well, from non-Conservators.

"Well, er, yes. Don't let me bother you."

MB sniffed in disdain. Glasses man is less fun than purple hair. Or even golden hairs. He hopped down off the table and loped toward Hans.

"Right, ready!" said Chrys, suddenly materializing alongside Hans. MB's ears shot straight up and he glommed onto Hans' ankle.

"Son of a mammal!" (Hans had spent too much time spying on the raptors.)

He lifted his afflicted ankle and began to hop around on one leg. "Get it off! AAAGHHH! What I do to you, verruckte Hasen?!"

This thoroughly entertained MB, who held on tighter. Chrys tried to go over and help Hans, but as soon as she was touching him, the rabbit flash-jumped.

The trio reappeared in a bright flash at the Wilting Succubus.

FUN! the rabbit signed, letting go and running off under a table.

[Tasarinan]

Finduin still felt weak, but now it was from relief instead of fear. The kindness of the man touched her deeply. She supposed he was a man, although his appearance was markedly different than that of Sigtrygg. Whereas Sigtrygg was fair-skinned, this man was darker than anyone Finduin had ever seen before. She immediately felt relaxed in his presence, and she no longer felt the need to try to keep up appearances. She made a cradle out of her arms which rested on a table and laid her head down upon it, and she spoke to the man in a grateful murmur. "Thank you, thank you, oh, thank you. Yes, yes, this is not my home, I do not even think it is my world. Oh, thank you so much, kind sir, for your kindness and your kind words." She wasn't sure how much sense she was making, but she felt that the man would understand her meaning, and she was content for now just to rest her head, eyes closed, and to enjoy the sounds and smells of cooking which, while not quite familiar to her, nonetheless seemed reassuring and very attractive to her gnawing appetite.

The eggs were soon resting on a plate. Ogoti added two pieces of toast and brought it plus a glass of orange juice to Finduin. He set this in front of her and placed silverware beside her.

"Eggs and toast. The eggs come from a chicken. The toasted bread most likely comes from a market nearby." He poured orange juice for himself and sat across from her.


"I'm Ogoti, a healer of sorts. I don't believe I caught your name."

Finduin's mouth watered as she inhaled the aroma of the food, but she hesitated at the mention of eggs. She didn't want to be rude, but the idea of eating the eggs of an animal was repulsive to her. She decided to begin by eating the toasted bread, while she thought of something polite to say to explain why she wouldn't eat eggs. Before she ate, however, she closed her eyes and, with her face uplifted, said a prayer in Quenya. Then she looked at Ogoti and said, "Thank you," once more before digging into the bread. She found that, like the water, the bread had a strange, bitter aspect to its flavor, but she eagerly devoured it, glad to feel her stomach filling up. Next she took a tentative sip of the thick, orange liquid in her glass. Her eyes widened at the intensity of the flavor. Her lips puckered slightly, and she quickly put the glass in front of her mouth to hide it. She drank a little more and while she noticed, to her frustration, that this drink, too, had a bitter element to it, she began to appreciate the bold combination of sweetness and tartness.

She continued to take small sips, avoiding looking at her plate of untouched eggs, and hoping Ogoti wouldn't say anything about it. Suddenly, to her embarrassment, she realized that she had been so distracted by food that she had forgotten to reply when the Ogoti asked her name. "Oh, I am so sorry," she said to Ogoti. "You asked me my name, and I forgot. I am Finduin." She smiled and sighed with satisfaction. Her stomach was filling with warmth and fullness. She felt she could eat a good deal more, but she felt it would be impolite to ask for more food, especially when she had not eaten everything set before her. She sensed that Ogoti would most likely be understanding if she were to voice her feelings to him, but her shyness held her back. To distract herself, she resumed sipping the orange juice.

[The New Velociraptor Empire]

"How about something that surreally alters my perception and emotions, tapping into my primal urges?" Arthur said...

Before they knew it they were standing in a suburban house as morning came and Arthur's form was fully human. Music began to fill the air.

"I don't know why but today seems like it's gonna be a great day!" Arthur sang and opened the window to the view of cartoon robins.
There's something in the air that makes me feel like things are gonna go my way
The birds are chirping tweedly-deet, the sun is shining bright!
There's a skip in my step, a pip in my pep" he paused to take a deep breath of the chemicals in the air. "and I know why!" he added before running outside.

"Hey there mailman friend, any letters from my crush or Fortu?" he asked still singing.
"No" the confused mailman replied.
"Fantastic news, HaHaHaHa!" he laughed and snapped the mailman's neck before running into the street.

"Wonderful day makes me feel so happy that my face is numb!
My heart is racing along barapa pampam!" he sang as he marched now joined by several passers-by of various professions.
"So many places and people to meet, now that I've lost my job!
They say "Young man, the world's your oyster"" He suddenly stopped as the back ground characters were about to lift him up.
"Hey! Hey get the fuck off me! No! Fuck no!" he yelled, making them back up.

"Just give me second." He said and took another deep breath.
"Idon'tknowwhybuttodayseemslikeit'sgonnabeagreatday!
Lalalablahblahblahblah I should spend more time with my friends!" He resumed singing more rapidly. As the scene changed from the suburbs to a Spainish town.
"It's carpe diem, gotta seize the day, I'm gonna move to Spain and run with the bulls
And my crush and boss and friends and NVE will say "We were wrong about you Arthur!"" he sang as the scene changed again to the city.

"Hey Arthur!" a friendly stranger said.
"That's my name!" Arthur replied.
"Are you really gonna run with the bulls?" the stranger asked.
"Why would I do that?" Arthur said confused.
"Cause you said you were gonna!" the stranger answered.
"Come on man, that was like three days ago..." Arthur claimed, suddenly becoming raptor again in a blink. "...or was it?" he said and ripped the stranger apart in seconds.

As quickly as it happened, Arthur was back in his blood-stained human form marching and singing.
"Something today makes me feel fine and fancy-free
Much of the ocean is still unexplored, how did I get up in this tree?" he sang as the scenes were now rapidly changing into various odd circumstances.
"Now I'm over here, now I'm over there
Now I'm under this dude, now I'm back in the tree
Now I'm hanging out on the Moon with my very best friends, Alec Baldwin and Tom Cruise!" he sang with now with the two celebrities he played poker with.

"Get the fuck out of here!" Alec Baldwin said as the music cut.
"What?" Arthur asked confused.
"Now." Tom Cruise added.
"Tom!" Arthur protested.

The scene changed to a dark opera stage with a spotlight on Arthur in a tuxedo.

"Why would they dissssssssssssssssssss me?
I thought they were my poker buddiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiies!" Arthur sang in a different tone and took another deep breath. Before the scene changed to a strange lab, marching through accompanied by random lab technicians. Arthur resumed the previous style.

"Any problem is solvable, we can feed the hungry and cure disease
But all of that would be a huge waste of tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiime! because we live in an online forum!" he finished as the whole universe was now seen in text.

"Okay, I've had enough. That is too much." Arthur said exhausted, not particularly fond of how the universe looked right now.

OOC: I literally just watched that video about 3 hours ago

Primordial enjoys watching Arthur delve deeper into his true self. He found people reverted to a more basic, less complicated version of them selves when they were entranced and he had not been proven wrong about Arthur. However this wasn't to say he learned anything new about the raptor, what had happened wasn't much different from what he had expected. He rapped his fingers against the wall to end the hallucinogenic fog and the ball in the middle of the room pulsed briefly absorbing the chemicals in the air. "Very uplifting" he said "come" walking through one of the walls as if it were made of some sort of gelatinous substance.

OOC: I keep hitting replay

"Well of all the things I can do, singing is one I don't get to do often, but it's fun." Arthur said as he lit another cigarette and followed Primordial through the wall. He was happy to indulge in one of his talents that he usually reserved for the shower.

[Primordial Luxa]

OOC: I literally just watched that video about 3 hours ago

Primordial enjoys watching Arthur delve deeper into his true self. He found people reverted to a more basic, less complicated version of them selves when they were entranced and he had not been proven wrong about Arthur. However this wasn't to say he learned anything new about the raptor, what had happened wasn't much different from what he had expected. He rapped his fingers against the wall to end the hallucinogenic fog and the ball in the middle of the room pulsed briefly absorbing the chemicals in the air. "Very uplifting" he said "come" walking through one of the walls as if it were made of some sort of gelatinous substance.

OOC: I keep hitting replay

"Well of all the things I can do, singing is one I don't get to do often, but it's fun." Arthur said as he lit another cigarette and followed Primordial through the wall. He was happy to indulge in one of his talents that he usually reserved for the shower.

"You should do it more often it works for you" he replied guiding them down a hall way made of green rock. The passage smelled strongly of seawater and the stones were slick with ocean slime as the crack between each brick oozed a slow stream. The passage was very irregular and its ceiling, floor and walls were'nt exactly straight and the angles they were at made it look as though the hallway would end any second. "Speaking of what works for you...what have you been doing since we last met?"

[Cerillium]

This thoroughly entertained MB, who held on tighter. Chrys tried to go over and help Hans, but as soon as she was touching him, the rabbit flash-jumped.

The trio reappeared in a bright flash at the Wilting Succubus.

FUN! the rabbit signed, letting go and running off under a table.

"Hey, Emprah, vere Kleidung?"

"Check out the full moon, lads!"

There wasn't any shame earlier but now Hans felt humiliated. He was with his fellow cultists and completely out of uniform. He wouldn't live this down for a while.

"Excuse me," he stammered quietly to Chrys. He walk through the door and up to his room and found his uniform. He also found his civilian outfit from earlier (Cardigan! Sweet cardigan!) The latter was carefully hung up in his closet; it was precious to him.

Klaus' Second came back down the stairs and hesitated at the door. The magic was most likely over and Chrys would see him as just one more evil thing perhaps. He drew a deep breath and stepped into the pub.

"Much better, ja?" he said to the Conservators once he'd rejoined them. "All back to how it always is."

Finduin's mouth watered as she inhaled the aroma of the food, but she hesitated at the mention of eggs. She didn't want to be rude, but the idea of eating the eggs of an animal was repulsive to her. She decided to begin by eating the toasted bread, while she thought of something polite to say to explain why she wouldn't eat eggs. Before she ate, however, she closed her eyes and, with her face uplifted, said a prayer in Quenya. Then she looked at Ogoti and said, "Thank you," once more before didding into the bread. She found that, like the water, the bread had a strange, bitter aspect to its flavor, but she eagerly devoured it, glad to feel her stomach filling up. Next she took a tentative sip of the thick, orange liquid in her glass. Her eyes widened at the intensity of the flavor. Her lips puckered slightly, and she quickly put the glass in front of her mouth to hide it. She drank a little more and while she noticed, to her frustration, that this drink, too, had a bitter element to it, she began to appreciate the bold combination of sweetness and tartness.

She continued to take small sips, avoiding looking at her plate of untouched eggs, and hoping Ogoti wouldn't say anything about it. Suddenly, to her embarrassment, she realized that she had been so distracted by food that she had forgotten to reply when the Ogoti asked her name. "Oh, I am so sorry," she said to Ogoti. "You asked me my name, and I forgot. I am Finduin." She smiled and sighed with satisfaction. Her stomach was filling with warmth and fullness. She felt she could eat a good deal more, but she felt it would be impolite to ask for more food, especially when she had not eaten everything set before her. She sensed that Ogoti would most likely be understanding if she were to voice her feelings to him, but her shyness held her back. To distract herself, she resumed sipping the orange juice.

Ogoti noticed her rejection of the eggs. He pursed his lips and sighed. "Don't worry about the eggs. Many people don't like them. My own brother won't eat them. Finduin, is it? Beautiful name. What language is it?"

---

The remaining three Noise Marines realized that they were standing out in the crowd. A funny little man in an SS uniform approached them shortly after Ogoti walked off. He whispered something to them; their faces broadcast a strong sense of relief.

"Right, then, up the stairs, down the hall, fifth, sixth and seventh doors on the left."

They departed, pleased by the offer.

The cultist looked at Volturius and Tipper. "Get a room." He walked off.

[The New Velociraptor Empire]

OOC: I keep hitting replay

"Well of all the things I can do, singing is one I don't get to do often, but it's fun." Arthur said as he lit another cigarette and followed Primordial through the wall. He was happy to indulge in one of his talents that he usually reserved for the shower.

"You should do it more often it works for you" he replied guiding them down a hall way made of green rock. The passage smelled strongly of seawater and the stones were slick with ocean slime as the crack between each brick oozed a slow stream. The passage was very irregular and its ceiling, floor and walls were'nt exactly straight and the angles they were at made it look as though the hallway would end any second. "Speaking of what works for you...what have you been doing since we last met?"

Well my psychiatry practice is failing since I can't show up like this..." Arthur said referring to his arm, leg, and face. "...The interchanger is not lasting as long anymore. I can either go full raptor or full human for half an hour before the corruption make me like this again. I've been working on a solution, but it still needs work." he elaborated.

The strangeness of the corridor didn't bother him as much as seeing the universe made completely out of text on the internet. So this was very welcoming to him.

"Things have been quite now that Fortu is gone. Things didn't work out with Nevvie, since we are both aspects of the same person, but she took it better than expected." he continued.

[Tasarinan]

Finduin's mouth watered as she inhaled the aroma of the food, but she hesitated at the mention of eggs. She didn't want to be rude, but the idea of eating the eggs of an animal was repulsive to her. She decided to begin by eating the toasted bread, while she thought of something polite to say to explain why she wouldn't eat eggs. Before she ate, however, she closed her eyes and, with her face uplifted, said a prayer in Quenya. Then she looked at Ogoti and said, "Thank you," once more before didding into the bread. She found that, like the water, the bread had a strange, bitter aspect to its flavor, but she eagerly devoured it, glad to feel her stomach filling up. Next she took a tentative sip of the thick, orange liquid in her glass. Her eyes widened at the intensity of the flavor. Her lips puckered slightly, and she quickly put the glass in front of her mouth to hide it. She drank a little more and while she noticed, to her frustration, that this drink, too, had a bitter element to it, she began to appreciate the bold combination of sweetness and tartness.

She continued to take small sips, avoiding looking at her plate of untouched eggs, and hoping Ogoti wouldn't say anything about it. Suddenly, to her embarrassment, she realized that she had been so distracted by food that she had forgotten to reply when the Ogoti asked her name. "Oh, I am so sorry," she said to Ogoti. "You asked me my name, and I forgot. I am Finduin." She smiled and sighed with satisfaction. Her stomach was filling with warmth and fullness. She felt she could eat a good deal more, but she felt it would be impolite to ask for more food, especially when she had not eaten everything set before her. She sensed that Ogoti would most likely be understanding if she were to voice her feelings to him, but her shyness held her back. To distract herself, she resumed sipping the orange juice.

Ogoti noticed her rejection of the eggs. He pursed his lips and sighed. "Don't worry about the eggs. Many people don't like them. My own brother won't eat them. Finduin, is it? Beautiful name. What language is it?"

Finduin felt her face grow hot with embarrassment at having done anything to even slightly disappoint Ogoti, and she hid her face behind her glass of orange juice and took a several small sips. She smiled at what Ogoti had said about her name; that it was beautiful. She put down her glass. "My name is in my own language; the language of my people. It is Quenya. It means, in your language, "hair" and "long river"." She blushed slightly once again at having told something so personal to someone she had met not even an hour ago. Finduin sat quietly and slowly drank the rest of the orange juice. She decided not to risk seeming rude by asking for something more to eat. She decided she might as well pass the time by exploring more of the building. She rose from the table and, thanking Ogoti again for his kindness, she left the kitchen and entered a room she hadn't been in yet. The main thing in the room that attracted her attention was a very large object, curiously shaped, which appeared to be made out of wood. Curious, she approached it for a closer look. She saw that there was a low seat placed next to the massive structure. On the side of the thing which faced the seat, there was a low shelf which was covered with many small, close-fitting segments made of some smooth, glossy material, most of it white, with smaller black sections interspersed at regular intervals.

[Tiltjuice]

Char check segment of the post...

Dora was still on the rooftop with Yoshi and Katya.

Deader had drifted silently out of the dining room with its ice cream, had dumped it into the cauldron, and was busy doing things best left unsaid to it.

Luce was sitting back in the Conservators' apartment with what a teenager would call a "WTF" look on his face, after Hans, Chrys, and MB had left.

And now for actual replies...

This thoroughly entertained MB, who held on tighter. Chrys tried to go over and help Hans, but as soon as she was touching him, the rabbit flash-jumped.

The trio reappeared in a bright flash at the Wilting Succubus.

FUN! the rabbit signed, letting go and running off under a table.

"Hey, Emprah, vere Kleidung?"

"Check out the full moon, lads!"

There wasn't any shame earlier but now Hans felt humiliated. He was with his fellow cultists and completely out of uniform. He wouldn't live this down for a while.

"Excuse me," he stammered quietly to Chrys. He walk through the door and up to his room and found his uniform. He also found his civilian outfit from earlier (Cardigan! Sweet cardigan!) The latter was carefully hung up in his closet; it was precious to him.

Klaus' Second came back down the stairs and hesitated at the door. The magic was most likely over and Chrys would see him as just one more evil thing perhaps. He drew a deep breath and stepped into the pub.

"Much better, ja?" he said to the Conservators once he'd rejoined them. "All back to how it always is."

"Well, of course," Chrys smiled as Hans walked off. When he returned, she didn't blink, as her user wasn't quite sure if there was anything to cause her to blink. At the moment though, there was a handy excuse for this, as she was petting her sword in a rather eyebrow-raising manner, not knowing Hans had returned.

[The New Velociraptor Empire]

And now for a pet the dog moment...

NVE, the ambitious right-hand clone of Neil, Fortu's (attempted) killer, sociopathic mass murderer, evil genius, and a cheater at card games. He would not stand for mammals dominating this world and would soon correct it. There was only one problem, a shameful secret. When he met Neil, whom he was cloned from, he saw him as neutered, grown too soft from being here too long. However, deep down, he was not as entirely heartless as he proclaimed. He knew it but was determined to not be as toned down as Neil had become, but he had to get rid of the only evidence that those buttons were still there.

The entire house was busy, NVE looked around and sneakily grabbed a Vortex manipulator from storage. Retuning to his room he opened up the panel in the back of his closet, revealing his secret lab. In a cloning tank a small boy slept, the brain was in a much better body than he last had. NVE had taken pity on the fish-boy and saved his brain. Now he had an opportunity to live, with a body that actually functioned. NVE had wiped the kid's memory to prevent him from knowing that he had done it, which had the fortunate side-effect of wiping his memory of Itex.

With a bit of time travel, NVE arrived the previous early dawn at Bielefeld Orphanage. He laid the sleeping boy on the footsteps of the institution and quickly hid in the bushes. He watched and waited for the staff to find the sleeping amnesiac boy with a scar around the top of his head. NVE left as soon as he was sure nobody saw him. With some more time travel, he was at the point he left, with the empty cloning tank to his side.

With it over, NVE saw Neil's reasoning behind the new plan. He had opposed the MTI plan...but now felt more on board with it. However, he wouldn't hesitate to kill anyone who revealed that he had a soft side. He burned the logs that revealed what he cloned, not wanting even the other raptors to know.

[Torsiedelle]

"Well..."

She was trying to think of what to say. Katya was used to Yoshi's usual style, and this one seemed strange to her. What should she say?

"It's not so bad....I guess I'm just used to your...usual style. So, Swith has you keeping it like this?"

[Urran]

"Well..."

She was trying to think of what to say. Katya was used to Yoshi's usual style, and this one seemed strange to her. What should she say?

"It's not so bad....I guess I'm just used to your...usual style. So, Swith has you keeping it like this?"

"I-It's okay..I'm not crazy about it either, you can always tell me what you think...oh, she thinks that it makes it too easy for me to hide from the world; s-so I have to keep it like this for a whole week." He nodded to Dora and in a surprising twist of events, hugged her then went and wrapped his arms around Katya's waist. He leaned in and whispered in Katya's ear. "H-have you told her yet?"

[New Aksarben]

"Of course I am not okay!" Albert snarled, mostly out of the pain he was feeling. HE had been unlucky(or possibly lucky) enough to land directly on his back, not only completely winding him, but likely breaking a rib or two from the landing. He thought he had heard a rib break just when Jacob had kicked him, as well. Plus, landing on glass was not a very pleasant thing to do. He glared up to the window he had just busted through, glad he had not fallen from a few stories higher. As much damage as Jacob had done to him before knocking him out the window, he likely could have been seriously injured, and possibly stuck in a hospital for a while.

"I'm not sure if I can stand.... And I think I landed on my tail...." Albert continued, his face occasionally twinging with the pain he was feeling. HE hadn't felt pain like this for a long time. And he really did not like it. Some blood was seeping out from under him, likely from either his obviously damaged tail( what could be seen was bent at a very nasty angle) or the shards of glass embedded in his back and legs. Also, there was chunk of his right ear missing, either from Jacob's attacks or the glass shards that were peppering the ground around him. But despite the obvious pain he was in, Albert continued glaring at the window, blaming it more than Jacob for the damages.

---

Jacob continued crying, oblivious to the rest of the universe. He simply could not believe that he let his emotions dictate his actions like that. He prided himself on being able to act rationally under the worst pressure. But he believed he had let his emotions, and likely all of strange things happening, get to him, and he had simply flown of the handle. He not only had thrown his brother through a second story window, but he believed that seeing him like that would make people afraid of him, or even hate him, for attacking someone with no clear provocation.

Jacob only faintly registered that Dora and the rude man were there, but he couldn't bring himself to do anything other than try to shuffle away from them without changing his sitting position and sobbing.

Swith continued onward, her handler on a quest to park characters for those handlers who were going out of town.

She tapped Jacob on the shoulder and he slumped. "Blossom," she called. The vampire materialized. "Please, be so kind as to take Jacob back to his apartment? He'll most likely sleep the next few hours... perhaps more... but having a friendly face there will cheer him, and he's used to seeing you."

Blossom (and two of Swith's cultists) carried the sleeping personification back to the Three Tails apartment. Swith reassured Ogoti and Dora that the young personification would be just fine after he slept off his distress and came to his senses, although he might need plenty of encouragement to get over his self-doubts.

Swith then stepped outside. "Katya, thanks for coming to Albert's aid. I'll get him cleaned up. I think Yoshi's had a revelation and he's gone back to his apartment, although he might decide to sleep until tomorrow evening, the poor fellow. She picked up Albert and carried him to the clinic, where she treated him, mended his wounds, healed his tail, and... sadly... couldn't do a thing about his upset disposition. She wasn't about to release him to only be cooped up in the Three Tails apartment with his brother, and since he and Ray were an item... she gave Albert some medicine to calm his nerves, and the had Misaki bring him to Ray's old place. The sweet-tempered musician of the court would remain with him until he awoke, and Swith dispatched a cultist (in the form of a TG link to this post) so Ray would know where to find his boyfriend.

That taken care of, Swith took off her the name badge ("Hello, my name is OP Tool"), stuffed it in her pocket, and vanished to where she was most needed. Thus, Yoshi and his cousin and little Blossom were in a good spot for their handler's return, Katya and Dora and Ray were freed up, Jacob was sedated, Albert was healed, and PL could advance. If any should be unhappy with these arrangements, they would find Swith's handler sitting behind a monitor somewhere in Pittsburgh, sipping a somewhat stale Coca-Cola and pecking at her now-cold supper.

"Where in the name of the Gods of Olympus am I?"

Finally, Albert had awoken from his sedated sleep. His face had an expression that conveyed both annoyance and confusion over how he had ended up in a strange bed. He had never actually been in Ray's original bedroom in the apartment, actually. Albert had insisted that Ray move in with him shortly after they had gotten together, so had never stayed in his boyfriends bed before. So, of course, when he woke up, he thought he had been abducted or something. Or at least shoved somewhere unfamiliar to be put out of the way. So naturally, the personification was more than a little pissed.

He shot up to a sitting position in the bed, and looked around. He hadn't been out for very long, honestly, and likely should have gotten more sleep before being active again, but Albert wanted to get active again. At least he thought he did. At the same time, the bed was very comfy, and he likely could use more time to recover fully. Which was obvious seeing as he feel back to his pillow at the same speed because of sudden whiplash sitting up so rapidly. "DAMMANT! Sat up too fast!" He shouted as a response to that.

But he only then noticed the strange woman in the same room,. "Oh, who are you?" While he meant to say it in a nicer tone, his terrible mood made him say it in an annoyed tone, which was actually common for Albert to use. He didn't mean anything by it, especially seeing as the last thing he remembered was being in intense pain. The personification rolled over onto his side(he had been sleeping with his tail between his legs, and thus on his back), to get a better look at the person who was in the same room, who had just been in his peripheral vision until that moment

---

Meanwhile, Jacob lie awake in his dark room. He had woken up a while ago, but was basically hiding in his room from the world. He hadn't heard much of the conversation going on around him following Albert's fall through the window. From that point on he had been too out of it to do anything but sob until Swith had shown up and put him out. Jacob had faintly recognized that someone had made him fall asleep, which he was grateful for. He wasn't sure if anyone still wanted to see him after he attacked his brother like that. Especially people who had been in the room like Ray, Dora, or Katya.

So Jacob simply continued laying down on his bed and closing out the entire world, while trying to figure out exactly why he had decided to attack his brother like that . He had not been in a fight like that for years. What would make him do that, and possibly destroy the friendships he had recently created? Whatever it was, Jacob had finally decided to just ask about those true self doubts. He wanted to know why Dora seemed to like him, honestly, and why he sometimes felt like people were ignoring him. Especially like during the recent insanity in the dining room.

But first, Jacob wished to know if Dora actually loved him or not. He knew he loved Dora, and would hopefully be able to explain it to her should she ask as well. Besides that, Jacob's mind was empty of most other thoughts. Jacob gave no indication he was even awake as he laid on the bed, staring at the far wall of his room and the door to his adjacent reading room.

[Swith Witherward]

"Fair enough, and the green ones, you say?" Rachelle asked, picking a box of the stuff. "I don't suppose I can get some Japanese dollars? I don't think my money will work . . ."

The girl also picked out a box of her own choice, as a surprise or so.

She didn't notice the figure.

--

"Yeah, my town was up in the mountains, small one, around 20 buildings or so when I enlisted." Rylli shrugged. It was all old memories now, meant to be told to friends, Beer optional. But with who they knew, there was always a chance at going back. She smiled at the prospect.

Siduer's eyes widened as he caught the figure's reflection on a shiny metal box. "FUUUUUUCK!" he hissed under his breath.

"Siduer!" his sister snorted. "That's a potty word. You know what Mama says about repeating what Uncle Levy says."

Her twin didn't give two figs. He smacked the candy out of the girls' hands and latched onto their wrists. "Run. Fucking run!"

With a harsh tug, he pulled them under the candy table and through the legs of Japanese adults browsing the salty section. He dragged them behind the counter and through a back door. His heart was racing a mile a minute. He knew what he saw, but he had not idea how the bastard had found them so quickly.

"Run to the foo dogs," he kicked open the back door and threw them forward into the street. His frantic mind didn't consider that Rachelle had no idea what he was talking about. He turned, looked back and snarled. "Fucking run, Sydney. To the foo dogs. NOW! I'll meet you there."

Sydney thought it was just a funny game until her brother turned and unleashed a glittering rainbow light from his soul to confuse the foe bearing down on them. Minor psyker attack, but it galvanized the girl.

"FUUUUUUCK!" She grasped Rachelle's wrist hard enough to leave a bruise, and then ran down the alley and into the street with her. "Don't stop! Don't stop! Run!"

--

Meanwhile, Swith continued to chat with Bran and Rylli. It wasn't that their conversation was unimportant. It was simply that her handler would much rather focus on Rachelle at the moment, considering the child had just come within inches of death if not for Siduer's quick thinking.

"Where in the name of the Gods of Olympus am I?"

Finally, Albert had awoken from his sedated sleep. His face had an expression that conveyed both annoyance and confusion over how he had ended up in a strange bed. He had never actually been in Ray's original bedroom in the apartment, actually. Albert had insisted that Ray move in with him shortly after they had gotten together, so had never stayed in his boyfriends bed before. So, of course, when he woke up, he thought he had been abducted or something. Or at least shoved somewhere unfamiliar to be put out of the way. So naturally, the personification was more than a little pissed.

He shot up to a sitting position in the bed, and looked around. He hadn't been out for very long, honestly, and likely should have gotten more sleep before being active again, but Albert wanted to get active again. At least he thought he did. At the same time, the bed was very comfy, and he likely could use more time to recover fully. Which was obvious seeing as he feel back to his pillow at the same speed because of sudden whiplash sitting up so rapidly. "DAMMANT! Sat up too fast!" He shouted as a response to that.

But he only then noticed the strange woman in the same room,. "Oh, who are you?" While he meant to say it in a nicer tone, his terrible mood made him say it in an annoyed tone, which was actually common for Albert to use. He didn't mean anything by it, especially seeing as the last thing he remembered was being in intense pain. The personification rolled over onto his side(he had been sleeping with his tail between his legs, and thus on his back), to get a better look at the person who was in the same room, who had just been in his peripheral vision until that moment

The girl remained motionless after Ray departed. It was partially because she had settled deeply into a meditative state but also to conserve energy. Her eyes fluttered open upon Albert's curse and her head tiled. The gentle expression on her porcelain face never wavered.

"Konnichiwa, Albert-san," she merrily chimed, "It is good to see you awake. Be at peace. You are safe here. This is Ray's previous apartment."

She unclasped her hands and pushed them from the sleeves of her kimono to pour tea. He would have questions, of course, and she was there to provide answers.

[The BranRiech]

The hell?!

Rachelle's whimsical little adventure suddenly turned into a tense, dramatic affair when some unseen foe was scaring the crap out of her friends, using words she'd never used out of respect for her parent's wishes not to. She winced though, it must have been a serious situation for them to use language like that.

She followed after, being dragged by Siduer. Foo Dogs? What was that!?

"Where?! tell me, dammit!"

She let a single word slip, her parents weren't there, it mattered not anymore.

[Swith Witherward]

The hell?!

Rachelle's whimsical little adventure suddenly turned into a tense, dramatic affair when some unseen foe was scaring the crap out of her friends, using words she'd never used out of respect for her parent's wishes not to. She winced though, it must have been a serious situation for them to use language like that.

She followed after, being dragged by Siduer. Foo Dogs? What was that!?

"Where?! tell me, dammit!"

She let a single word slip, her parents weren't there, it mattered not anymore.

"No time," Sydney panted. "No time to explain. Temple. Gotta get to temple!"

They turned the corner just as an almighty explosion erupted from the alley. Sydney stopped so suddenly that Rachelle most likely careened into her back. She squeaked and turned around to stare. Candy began to rain down from the sky and a dark shadow formed under their feet and quickly grew larger. It was the shop's wooden roof, and it was falling back to earth above their heads.

[The BranRiech]

"Hey, rooooooof!!" Rachelle screamed, pointing upwards towards . . . What else? The roof!

Lost in Japan with her two friends, fending off death and destruction. She would certainly remember this day, and hopefully her parents wouldn't be the wiser as to where they were at all.

She forcefully grabbed their wrists and tossed them out of the way, before following them herself.

[New Aksarben]

Albert sat back up, much more gently this time. "Ugh.... 'This is Ray's old apartment?" He gave a sniff, and detected the PI's scent still lingering in certain areas. "Yeah. definitely was his room. I can still smell him in the bed and stuff...." Albert didn't think it was weird that he said that, seeing as his senses were comparable to that of a cat's. So it wasn't uncommon for people of his universe to use their senses to confirm things like the presence of other people. "So who might you be? I do not think I have seen you around the building before, Miss..."

[Swith Witherward]

"Hey, rooooooof!!" Rachelle screamed, pointing upwards towards . . . What else? The roof!

Lost in Japan with her two friends, fending off death and destruction. She would certainly remember this day, and hopefully her parents wouldn't be the wiser as to where they were at all.

She forcefully grabbed their wrists and tossed them out of the way, before following them herself.

OOC: Siduer's back at the shop holding off the shadow man.
IC:

The roof landing with a sickening crack. Parts of it shattered off, narrowly missing the two girls. Tile fragments littered the street and the crowd surrounding them scattered in frenzied screams. Sydney picked herself off the ground and helped Rachelle up.

"Thanks! That thing almost hit me," Sydney panted. "That was Thunderclap. My brother invented it. If he does Vortex of Doom, we know it's gotten bad. Come on. Siduer can fend for himself. We need to reach the temple."

--

"I am Misaki, Musician of the Court," the girl replied. "I brought you here after Swith healed you. You went right out the window earlier, and your tail was damaged. How do you feel now?"

She communed Albert's changed status to a cultist, and he set out to slip a piece of paper into Ray's hand.

[Urran]

There was a soft knock on Jacob's door. Blossom was worried about him, he needed to eat and get out of his room and get some fresh air. She was determined to get him up and about again.

[Erucia]

She communed Albert's changed status to a cultist, and he set out to slip a piece of paper into Ray's hand.

Having avoided going back home to give Jacob some well-deserved privacy, Ray instead decided to settle for lunch. With his wallet in-pocket, he set off and headed out of the building to Chaos. Ray felt that he was getting a liking to the establishment, and was quite enjoying his meals there. Not to mention that it was so handily close and offered reasonable rates for meals.

But after some time, he eventually noticed another strange individual walk nearby his table and slip him a piece of paper nonchalantly before sitting down at a booth. Coming to expect such behavior after seeing it earlier, Ray gobbled down a french fry before opening up the slip of paper. Even though it stated that Albert was alright, and despite his own joy that Albert had awakened, Ray decided to take his time with the meal. It might be best to let Misaki to handle Albert for a while, he thought.

And with time, his meal eventually was reduced to crumbs on a plate, and he gave payment for it to a waitress before setting out and heading back across the street to the apartment.

[The BranRiech]

"Hey, Swith. I'm going to take a walk, see if I can't find the kids anywhere, eh?"

With that, Bran left Swith and Rylli to the rousing conversation about Mountain Goats they were probably having offscreen. It was a rousing one, filled with hot debates, and funny anecdotes that no one would ever hear.

He walked out of the apartment and into the lobby to start looking.

--

"What temple?! And why is he staying back there?" Rachelle wheezed, feeling a sliver or two from the roof, or whatever else was on the ground. Her knee was scraped too, something that, a few years ago, would have warranted a cry and maybe a band-aid, but after going through the horrors of the Drones, and being 7 years old, she soldiered on with her friend.

[Swith Witherward]

"What temple?! And why is he staying back there?" Rachelle wheezed, feeling a sliver or two from the roof, or whatever else was on the ground. Her knee was scraped too, something that, a few years ago, would have warranted a cry and maybe a band-aid, but after going through the horrors of the Drones, and being 7 years old, she soldiered on with her friend.

"Omoikane's temple. He's a major kami... a major god," Sydney explained as they quickly pushed past people and headed north. "He's the gods' go-to guy for wisdom and intelligence. Mama's therapist. Oh I wish we were in Egypt. I'd set Anubis on the bad guys."

She skirted a fleeing gyoza vendor and chanced a glance behind them. Nothing, so far. "I can't risk a portal. Whoever it is might smack us into the wrong dimension. Omoikane can send us home."

[The BranRiech]

Not even chancing pronouncing the name of said god, Rachelle thanked herself quietly that she didn't need to remember all of them, but knew Anubis for sure, who hadn't heard? Well, popular knowledge was unimportant now though, as she was running for her life, one friend holding off shadows, and the other leading her to safety. She certainly felt like the weakest link in the chain at the moment, and promised herself to split her allowance with them when they were safe.