Personification Life - IC Part VIII [open]

[Urran]

"Ah, well there's always that risk in any military. I was almost killed inumerable times. One time, they needed a replacement gunner on a bombing raid, so they stuffed me in the gunner seat. One time, a plane blew up on the runway and almost killed me as well. He'll be fine." Bran said, mainly because he didn't want to think about Yoshi dying again.

--

"Ale would be awesome, I favor Elf's Blood, but I'm always up for trying something different." Kei said as she stood up and approached the door.

Her eyes went black as they always did when she used her powers, and her hands glowed as the door flew back up and reattached itself to the frame, then all the fragments flew into place as well.

"Might want to sand it down some day, there might be splinters."

"I hope so" she said softly.

[Erucia]

"Ale would be awesome, I favor Elf's Blood, but I'm always up for trying something different." Kei said as she stood up and approached the door.

Her eyes went black as they always did when she used her powers, and her hands glowed as the door flew back up and reattached itself to the frame, then all the fragments flew into place as well.

"Might want to sand it down some day, there might be splinters."

Ray had gone back into the kitchen to see what was being kept in the wine cabinet, seeing if he could find something that sounded remotely similar to the drink he had just heard. He didn't pay attention to Kei as she repaired the door using her powers, searching through the cabinet to meet no success. Finally he grabbed a bottle of Albert's favorite wine and settled for that.

"I couldn't find any ale, although I do have...this...Huh," Ray walked back towards Kei with a bottle of Aksarben wine. "That was...really quick."

[The BranRiech]

"We'll be hoping for him, I could give him some pointers as well to help survive." Bran said thoughtfully. "Hopefully the war ends soon too."

--

"Wine is always good, thanks, Ray." Kei said and smiled. "So, tell me about yourself, what makes you . . . You?"

[Urran]

"We'll be hoping for him, I could give him some pointers as well to help survive." Bran said thoughtfully. "Hopefully the war ends soon too."

--

"Wine is always good, thanks, Ray." Kei said and smiled. "So, tell me about yourself, what makes you . . . You?"

"Maybe...I have go, it's way past sunrise. Excuse me" she said sweetly and transformed herself into a bat that squeezed through the airvent and went back into Jacob's apartment to her room where she promptly fell to sleep.

[The New Velociraptor Empire]

"So you sacrificed sight for, regeneration. We understand, although we had little choice, high intelligence comes at the cost of insanity. But we do work around it." Gretta said seeing the problem. "So you like a hunt Mr.....umm you never said your names. Anyway, would you like to see the game I have designed?" Neil asked as Scarface refilled Volturius' drink.

"Sanity's overrated. Especially in my line of work. All I care is that you don't have the bipolar disorder of the Eldar. And my name's just Volturius- my father had no last name to pass onto me. Tipper's just addressed Tipper. Preferably mortals would address me with 'Lord' as a prefix, but I doubt your placement would be low as the mortal men on the streets. Especially such a young, weak mankind that lacks psyker mutations." Volturius commented with obvious disgust before he took another chug of the whiskey, thankfully refilled.

"A game?" Volturius inquired as he shifted in his seat, staring at Neil with unblinking orbs of glowing red light.

"Not game, as in trivial challenges for bragging rights. Game, as in beings to be hunted." Neil corrected Volturius. "We may be mortal, but we are the most superior mortals in history. Death is just a temporary problem, plenty of ways to get around it." He added with a grin as he opened the door to the hall. "Shall we begin the tour?" Gretta asked the visitors.

[Urran]

Tieria knocked on the door to the Raptors house. he want to ask them a few question.

[The New Velociraptor Empire]

Tieria knocked on the door to the Raptors house. he want to ask them a few question.

Scarface answered the door as usual, the giant abomination of a "man" towered over Tieria. It had a tuxedo for it's usual attire indicating that one of its roles was a butler for it's creators, the raptors. "You rang?" it asked in a very deep voice.

[Urran]

Tieria knocked on the door to the Raptors house. he want to ask them a few question.

Scarface answered the door as usual, the giant abomination of a "man" towered over Tieria. It had a tuxedo for it's usual attire indicating that one of its roles was a butler for it's creators, the raptors. "You rang?" it asked in a very deep voice.

Tieria looked up at Scarface with his crimson eyes. "I would like to ask you a few questions about your inventions if you do not mind"

[Swith Witherward]

Natiya sat politely and nodded in aknowledgement of the SS officer. She waited for Aleki to answer him though. All in all, she was somewhat happy to see these men having a good time, soldiers always deserved a good time, usually.

"Eh, Gestapo are never friendly, Otto" the officer's companion laughed. To a discerning ear, his German was Baravian in dialect. "Why is it that only the Gestapo have women?"

"Karl, come now. Lust has women. The city has women," said Otto as he turned away from Natiya.

"I'm not fraternizing with that whore's bitches. The women in the city are bland."

Otto chuckled. "Not all, my friend. Some of the ones in Wirrhaus aren't bad. Look at the communists. That fishman's sibling?" His hands drew an hourglass in midair and he offered a two-toned whistle in appreciation.

"Too severe."

"Och, what do you know about severe?" Otto grumbled. "You haven't plowed a trench in ages."

"Ja? Well that's one trench you're not plowing," Karl sneered. "Wirrhaus woman are off limits. Atosh's or-"

"Atosh!" Otto bitterly hissed. He clamped his mouth closed and looked away from his companion. His eyes settled on Klaus across the room. "Eh, and so we do what we're commanded and look where it gets us. Look at him. Fucked up as a reminder to obey. Fucked up despite loyalty."

"Shut up Otto. The Gestapo are-"

"Ja! The Gestapo are right behind me," Otto gestured to Aleki and Natiya with a thumb. He turned again in his chair. "And Gestapo, tell me this. What's the price of loyalty, huh? To serve. Thousands and thousands of years in service, unquestioning, loyal, good. Kill those ordered to be killed. Manipulate those in need of manipulation. Work hard for Chaos. Bear it all and do it again and bear it more and complete another turn. Ja, I'm loyal. Make no mistake, Gestapo, but what's the price of loyalty if the payment is that?" His head nodded towards the cultist leader across the bar.

Klaus still nursed from his stein. His black uniform was impeccable. He hair was better than regulation. His face looked as though he'd been struck by a tank which then reversed to grind over him again. Even his hands bore lacerations and bruises. His mind was closed off from the tether shared by all cultists (and thus closed to Natiya and Aleki). His eyes stared at a fixed point somewhere beyond the bar.

Otto lowered his voice to a murmur. "Loyalty, Frau Gestapo. Loyalty to War. You tell Plotter that when you report back, yes? You tell her he's loyal to War. But tell her also that Atosh is mad. Insane. We're all damned, Frau. All of us." His words were met with slightly perceivable nods from the soldiers nearest them.

Karl rose and shattered his glass on the table. "You're damned, Otto. You lack vision. I should report you." He raised his voice as his own madness took hold of him. "We should report anyone who doesn't support our god. Our god gives us power. Our god gives us strength. We are Chaos! We should rise again and punish the world for its stupidity. We should have crushed the Allies and not placated that ass, Preet. We should have won the war! We should crush this pathetic little town and shoot every last one of them! Atosh is right! They are inferior bastards in service to inferior gods!"

The room suddenly stilled as if someone had switched off all sound. The reaction wasn't to Karl's words. A man had walked in the door. A tall man in a black leather trench coat with matching black hat and gloves. The dim light reflected off the circular lenses of his glasses. Karl paled. This man, this Totenkopf or Death's Head, was one most feared by the assorted cultists. He was, incidentally, completely unrelated to Bone's brother. He was Obergruppenführer Friedrich Richter and his name matched his reputation as a powerful and merciless judge. He was a very high-ranking Gestapo officer.

His eyes settled on Karl and then drifted to the two Gestapo Oberleutnant in uniform (Aleki and Natiya) before roving back to the loud-mouthed cultist. Bone fragments exploded from the back of Karl's skull as the shot rang out. Richter holstered his pistol. He'd drawn too fast for even cultist eyes to glimpse. Karl dropped to the floor and was carried away by bar staff.

The Obergruppenführer crossed the room and sat down at Natiya and Aleki's table. The music started up again and Otto returned to his own drink. "Good evening," Richter amicably greeted his senior lieutenants. "It's good to know Tze had sent forces ahead of me."

Klaus had not so much as blinked during the entire exchange.

Mitzie signaled to the band to start up Bel Ami before she stepped backstage. She was fairly certain that the two uniformed Gestapo were Minerva's moles. What she totally didn't expect was Obergruppenfuhrer Richter to walk through the door and sit down with them. Now Mitzie was torn. Should she take measures to pull them out or should she let things play out? Richter was... well, he was what he was and she admired him for his attention to detail, but he was still one of the baddies and intolerant of a great many things. He might discover the pair's true identity and let it slide. Perhaps he'd play along. Any investigation would eventually lead back to Minerva and, being that he was an odd bird, he'd probably compliment her for her attempt before shooting her for being a Jew. It was for this unfounded fear alone that Mitzie... Miriam Blumberg, according to her papers... had always avoided him at all costs. Not that she had any proof he was anti-Semitic. She'd never heard of him harming anyone except spies and traitors to the Third Reich. And loud mouthed sons of bitches who incited revolt against his boss... Plotter. In a sense, he was the same as Minerva and Klaus. He was a cultist leader. Not for the avatar, Preet. He served the god Tze himself, to Mitzie's knowledge.

She picked up the phone and put in a call to Mei Garden Japanese Restaurant. She ordered Orange Grouper with Fried Rice and gave Minerva's apartment as the delivery address. And then she went back on stage to finish out the set.

[Urran]

Yoshi was in the Zen Garden. He had a lot on his mind at the moment.

[The BranRiech]

Natiya had listened to the exchange, not really replying, but nodding in aknowledgement at his statements and questions,not agreeing or disagreeing. She held in the urge to flinch as the man was shot in the head, she then composed herself rather quickly and watched as the shooter, someone quite more important looking than anyone else there. She listened and figured that an innocent reply wouldn't hurt, and might lead to some information. "We have some free time before assignment, decided to stop here for the night." She explained.

--

Bran and Rylli, as well as little Tolya (Rachelle was spending the night at a friend's place) were all sitting in the communal living room, watching TV.

[The New Velociraptor Empire]

Scarface answered the door as usual, the giant abomination of a "man" towered over Tieria. It had a tuxedo for it's usual attire indicating that one of its roles was a butler for it's creators, the raptors. "You rang?" it asked in a very deep voice.

Tieria looked up at Scarface with his crimson eyes. "I would like to ask you a few questions about your inventions if you do not mind"

Scarface didn't change his emotionless face, but was rather puzzled. "Masters...are busy...entertaining guests." was his confused response to being asked about his inventions. He made nothing but art and enemies dead, he was an invention of the raptors, an indestructible minion of great strength.

[Urran]

Tieria's face was also emotionless. "I need to know where they acquire their raw materials."

[The New Velociraptor Empire]

Tieria's face was also emotionless. "I need to know where they acquire their raw materials."

Scarface thought for a moment, not usually questioning how his masters did things. "Everywhere." a single worded response that was all it knew of where its masters acquired supplies. It didn't understand alternate realities, time travel, or scamming governments. Its expertise was limited punching, protecting children, painting portraits, and basic carpentry.

[Urran]

Tieria's face was also emotionless. "I need to know where they acquire their raw materials."

Scarface thought for a moment, not usually questioning how his masters did things. "Everywhere." a single worded response that was all it knew of where its masters acquired supplies. It didn't understand alternate realities, time travel, or scamming governments. Its expertise was limited punching, protecting children, painting portraits, and basic carpentry.

Tieria raised an eyebrow. "Thank you, I think" he said and turned to walk away. he was building a train.

[Swith Witherward]

Misaki took the shadows until she reached the wood line at the very edge of the building's back yard. She stepped through the trees, carefully pulling her kimono sleeve free from a gooseberry bush. Minerva's people were in the Dead Zone and there was little she could do for them at that point. She stood on the cool grass and stared back into the woods. She felt badly for them. They were both so young. She'd never seen the inside of the nightclub but her imagination ran wild and she shivered in horror. Surely there were skulls adorning the walls and the floor had to be thick with blood.

--

Minerva and Swith were having a godawful row. More accurately, Minerva was having her ass chewed out by a very irate Charumati over the decision to insert Natiya and Aleki. The god's voice was layered, many voices of different pitches all speaking in angered unison. To Minerva, it sounded like a wrathful reverb and if the words had physical form the air would have been a cloudy blue streak of pure vitriol.

"... and then if something happens to Aleki, I have to explain to Thriller why one of his favorite troops is dead. What were you thinking?"

Minerva blinked.

"And then there's Natiya. Natiya! You sent a FEMALE into War's Nazi den? Natiya!"

Minerva blinked.

"Whose idea was this? Yours? Kapatapurna's?

Truthfully, it had been Purna's idea. The Greater Daemon considered making a wild leap into the Void but she was faithful to the host who had borne her for so many centuries. She churned and writhed inside Minerva like a live eel slathered into a rice bowl filled with saki. Minerva blinked.

"This is the most... " and here Charumati began to curse in several languages, mostly middle eastern but with a bit of Chinese, Japanese and Latin thrown in for good measure.

Minerva blinked again and held her breath. She's already explained everything: the sudden appearance of Gestapo, Klaus being absent for a very long time, Klaus' men staying completely out of sight as if Swith's own troops had the plague, Natiya and Aleki being fluent in German, having Mitzie on the inside to look after them.

"... fucking pathetic excuse for covert operations and this is not the 1940s and you will not in the future use people from this building to take care of our business because we don't fucking air our fucking dirty laundry in fucking public." Charumati finally closed her mouth. Her arms were folded across her chest and she rocked on the balls of her feet. The dark sphere surrounding them popped and bright moonlight shone through Swith and Thriller's living room window, bathing the pair in silvery light. The twins were fast asleep in their bedrooms with the pups curled into little furry balls at the foot of their beds, one to each child. Chi was still napping on the couch. Thriller was still out on business with Levi.

"Now what, Minerva?" Swith's voice had returned to a normal human sound but was deathly cold. She didn't wait for a reply. "Go and bring them back."

The apartment door slowly swung open to give Minerva the opportunity of leaving. The cultist leader seized upon it and hurried down the hall, taking the stairs two at a time until she hit the lobby.

[Torsiedelle]

"So, whadya wanna do now, Katya?", Torii asked. "Huh? Ya wanna play a game, or watch TV?"

"Not right now, Kiddo.", Katya said. She slipped on her blazer to keep from getting cold. They had left the pool some time ago, both retreating to the halls of the apartment to play. Despite her energy and friendly behavior, the older sister was still very worried. Torii, however, was still unaware.

"I got something to do, so why don't you go find some friends, m'kay?"

Torii looked up at her sister. "Um, okay. I'll see you later!"
"See you later, too. Just don't get into trouble."

Torii smiled and skipped off. She let the air toss the bottom of her dress around, which felt strange compared to when she wore shorts. She realized that Tsu and Gio probably were off on their own, and the Nikanors were probably busy with the baby. "How tiresome.", The girl sighed. "Ooh! Wait, I know!", She said. She decided to either look for Gio, or pay the raptors a visit.

Meanwhile, Katya searched for Yoshi.

[Urran]

Yoshi moved silently along in the garden, alone with his thoughts. The kimono clad figure heard someone in the bushes rather far off, but his cat-like hearing aloud him to sense it nonetheless

[Tiltjuice]

"So, whadya wanna do now, Katya?", Torii asked. "Huh? Ya wanna play a game, or watch TV?"

"Not right now, Kiddo.", Katya said. She slipped on her blazer to keep from getting cold. They had left the pool some time ago, both retreating to the halls of the apartment to play. Despite her energy and friendly behavior, the older sister was still very worried. Torii, however, was still unaware.

"I got something to do, so why don't you go find some friends, m'kay?"

Torii looked up at her sister. "Um, okay. I'll see you later!"
"See you later, too. Just don't get into trouble."

Torii smiled and skipped off. She let the air toss the bottom of her dress around, which felt strange compared to when she wore shorts. She realized that Tsu and Gio probably were off on their own, and the Nikanors were probably busy with the baby. "How tiresome.", The girl sighed. "Ooh! Wait, I know!", She said. She decided to either look for Gio, or pay the raptors a visit.

Meanwhile, Katya searched for Yoshi.

The echoes of what sounded like ceramic clinking loudly along the floor of the apartment building reverberated through the hallway, accompanied by a softer padding along. As they turned the corner, Chrys and Luce could be seen to be strolling along casually, hands flashing signs back and forth to each other. That paused, as they caught sight of Torii.

"Hey!" Chrys chimed.

"Miss Dimitrova," Luce greeted.

[Torsiedelle]

Yoshi moved silently along in the garden, alone with his thoughts. The kimono clad figure heard someone in the bushes rather far off, but his cat-like hearing aloud him to sense it nonetheless

Katya popped out of the bushes shyly. She looked around. "Um...hello."

[Urran]

Yoshi moved silently along in the garden, alone with his thoughts. The kimono clad figure heard someone in the bushes rather far off, but his cat-like hearing aloud him to sense it nonetheless

Katya popped out of the bushes shyly. She looked around. "Um...hello."

"Oh" said yoshi softly, turning to face Katya. "Hello Katya darling." he said. He was terrible at hiding his emotions. He didn't want Katya to know yet, but it was still obvious that something was upsetting him.

[Torsiedelle]

Katya popped out of the bushes shyly. She looked around. "Um...hello."

"Oh" said yoshi softly, turning to face Katya. "Hello Katya darling." he said. He was terrible at hiding his emotions. He didn't want Katya to know yet, but it was still obvious that something was upsetting him.

Katya forced a playful grin. "Um....so....you got your orders yet?"

......

"I got it!", Torii said, "I'll get Tsu! Oh....but she's sick....I'll get Gio! I hope she's home. I can ask her if she wants to see the Von Eldritch's, since I don't see them anymore!"

She approached the door to her peer's apartment and knocked.

[Urran]

Yoshi's face went blank as h realized that she knew. He tossed his hair to the side to get it out of his left eye. "No...I-I d-don't have to leave for another few weeks." he admitted.

[Torsiedelle]

Yoshi's face went blank as h realized that she knew. He tossed his hair to the side to get it out of his left eye. "No...I-I d-don't have to leave for another few weeks." he admitted.

Katya immediately sighed loudly in relief.

"Thank goooood! Oh.....I mean, it's still terrible, but....a few weeks is nice....if it can't be helped..."

[Urran]

Yoshi put his hands on Katya's waist and looked into her eyes. "Pl-please don't worry about me." he asked softly, planting a kiss on her lips with a red hot blush. Warrant Officer Tokai sounded bad to him. he knew he wasn't meant for the military, but this could not be helped.