The Valentian Dinner – The Second One! [IC / CLOSED]

by **Valentine Z** » Mon Mar 09, 2020 5:39 am

Adriana would be talking to the new machine construct that is heading her way. Valentijn and Clarissa have wrapped up their dance and were about to enjoy a bit of cake of their own. It would have been very, very funny to see Valentina sitting around her friends and was in despair at what to do about the current situation. She keeps whispering to the Valentians through the radio, all of who replied with humour in their tone that “Don’t worry, everything will be all right!” It was most certainly hilarious, even Valentina would admit it later, to see herself distraught and anxious at the sight of people below her having a verbal fight of their own. She is certainly not new to the idea of a verbal conflict, but she would rather that it doesn’t happen.

And that would be where it got a little worse.

Zastępca Strażnika Adriana Krystal Desiree “Cudowny Manipulacja Światłem” Venus Kowalski Faith Stanisława Engelse I. Cherise Krystyna Zaborowska Sztormowska Pamela Alina Re. T. Lillian: Hello there, Neutral Processor 5474! Ooooh, looking great out there, my friend! And yes, the Artificial Intelligence like me here get the same amount of respect and rights as the humans, and-

Valentina “De Sierlijke en Vrij High Valkyrie ov Valentine Z” Anastasia Freya Ada. Jolin Annelijn Caitlin Trijntje Crystal Clarice Constance Judy Voi. Nexitros Annile. Teresa Thida Myat Yadana Aye: [Valentian Radio] Err, guys? G-g-g-guys, look!

Valentijn “De Sierlijke en Vrij Valkyrie General ov Valentine Z” Samantha Maxwell Delta Weston Stijn Angelus Tracey Mitchell Tristian Marnix Basilisk Lewis Hyatt X. Constantine Sein Lin Zaw Naing: [Valentian Radio] Ahh don’t worry, it will be fine- What the... what in the holy hell is that?

Chief Aviator Gwen Tracer Hepburn “Fate of Existence and the Omniverse” Ellen Trixie Caitlin Foxworthy Avril Verlene Eveline Celinda Sammy Doris Wit. Oxton Arielle Lindall Leslie Vitesse Allison: Err, I was just about to tell you that, Val…

Gwen, Angeline, and Jolyn have predicted it all, even if the latter two were outside; Angeline was constantly scanning the place with her device and knew that something will be off; Jolyn stopped time to look at the situation and was nervous about the situation; Gwen simply had Fate’s intuition.

Chief Aviator Gwen Tracer Hepburn “Fate of Existence and the Omniverse” Ellen Trixie Caitlin Foxworthy Avril Verlene Eveline Celinda Sammy Doris Wit. Oxton Arielle Lindall Leslie Vitesse Allison: You best head over them and talk some sense into them. There is no point for Freya to be a dragon like this to intimidate the guests. On top of that, there are more and more people talking smack and it seems to be escalating in a bad way.

Valentijn “De Sierlijke en Vrij Valkyrie General ov Valentine Z” Samantha Maxwell Delta Weston Stijn Angelus Tracey Mitchell Tristian Marnix Basilisk Lewis Hyatt X. Constantine Sein Lin Zaw Naing: Thank the Fate that I banned weapons. And now they are going to fight in another way, and with this?! I am starting to wonder if hosting a dinner is a good idea. Do we have any AM generators left?

Foresittend Marcus Alan Ariel Maximillian “Infinity Hunter” Swifty Felix Maverick Prometheus Revlin Lynx Artyom Lichtenstein Baptiste C. Viot. Talon Haydn Lincoln Taal Reynolds Fang Wu Ying: We still have 30 Anti-Magic generators in our hands. If we place 4 of them around the place, this should nullify conflicts.

Valentijn “De Sierlijke en Vrij Valkyrie General ov Valentine Z” Samantha Maxwell Delta Weston Stijn Angelus Tracey Mitchell Tristian Marnix Basilisk Lewis Hyatt X. Constantine Sein Lin Zaw Naing: I am so tempted to do that, but… magic is a borderline territory – some of them are rather tame, and now I am worried that some dragon might start a fire. Perhaps even literally.

Exuberant Superintendent T-1000/2904 Surveillant Clarissa Alanis Star Breya « La Amoureux Chéri » Millie Taissa Butterfly Mélody Coraline Jolijn Trini Clementine Hollie Samantha Zeta Harumi: Ohhh Vallie, I am going to check on the Orange Tabby! Can I bring him in here, pleaseeee?

Valentijn “De Sierlijke en Vrij Valkyrie General ov Valentine Z” Samantha Maxwell Delta Weston Stijn Angelus Tracey Mitchell Tristian Marnix Basilisk Lewis Hyatt X. Constantine Sein Lin Zaw Naing: Haha, sure, dear! I just hope that he is not into biting or eating the guests. Sure, bring him along, but try to make sure that he is on a short leash from the guests. Valentina, you are with me, let’s try to resolve this.

With the radio chatter between the Valentians over, Gwen would watch from afar, slowly changing herself into a Fate form that towers 100 meters. Valentina would lean in front of the guests fighting in front of her, and Valentijn would slowly and firmly approach Freya and the other guests. They planned an entrance.

Valentijn “De Sierlijke en Vrij Valkyrie General ov Valentine Z” Samantha Maxwell Delta Weston Stijn Angelus Tracey Mitchell Tristian Marnix Basilisk Lewis Hyatt X. Constantine Sein Lin Zaw Naing: All right, all right. My friends, what on Earth is going on?

Valentina “De Sierlijke en Vrij High Valkyrie ov Valentine Z” Anastasia Freya Ada. Jolin Annelijn Caitlin Trijntje Crystal Clarice Constance Judy Voi. Nexitros Annile. Teresa Thida Myat Yadana Aye: Valentijn, thank goodness! They- … They have been fighting verbally and now it escalated!

Valentijn took one look at now-dragon-Freya, as well as the other guests that were in the part of the conflict or in the conversation group. No one knows how or what kind of expressions Valentijn is feeling behind that helmet, but he was certainly stern.

Valentijn “De Sierlijke en Vrij Valkyrie General ov Valentine Z” Samantha Maxwell Delta Weston Stijn Angelus Tracey Mitchell Tristian Marnix Basilisk Lewis Hyatt X. Constantine Sein Lin Zaw Naing: Okay, look, guys… I thank you all for coming here, I really do. I am already aware of the possible problems that might arise, and that is why I have already done the deed of removing all the weapons. Magic is something that I really don’t want to limit, because I know that you can have it in a creative way, not in a burn-each-other-to-death way. Now PLEASE, oh please enjoy something, or have some food, and stop going neck-to-neck on each other.

Valentina “De Sierlijke en Vrij High Valkyrie ov Valentine Z” Anastasia Freya Ada. Jolin Annelijn Caitlin Trijntje Crystal Clarice Constance Judy Voi. Nexitros Annile. Teresa Thida Myat Yadana Aye: And I think it will be really good if you set aside all the differences between you guys and enjoy it like Valentijn said! Today’s not a time to fight, we must remember that!

Gwen then approached the group as well and shared a few words herself. The idea of three giants, 117 m, 100 m, and 58 m, surrounding the group, was a bit humorous at best. If it were any other giants, it would have been rather intimidating. But for the Valentians, it kind of came across as rather funny. As Gwen was talking to the group, she noticed a small character running around the dinner table. Wasn’t that one of the people from Stanier? Wasn’t he the one that Gwen just talked to? She had no idea, but she got a bigger fish to fry.

Chief Aviator Gwen Tracer Hepburn “Fate of Existence and the Omniverse” Ellen Trixie Caitlin Foxworthy Avril Verlene Eveline Celinda Sammy Doris Wit. Oxton Arielle Lindall Leslie Vitesse Allison: And soooo, please stop fighting, your dear Fate says! Or we will have to start using Anti-Magic Generators that we have lying around.

by **The Cosmic Mainframe** » Mon Mar 09, 2020 10:06 am

5474 sent one last transmission to the Paramount, satisfied that she had initiated a positive relationship with Octavia.

My superiors have somewhat different programming,
but I am confident that the result of your negotiation will be
positive overall. If you have further inquiries, send another
transmission. Same band, same encryption.

Since the conversation between her and the Paramount was essentially over, and was now exclusively over radio anyway, 5474 walked away, when she noticed that one of the other guests had appeared to be replaced by a dragon. So she stopped for a moment and there was a flash of light as a drone scanned the room, confirming that Freya was a completely different being. Afterwards she continued walking away, while Valentina, Valentijn, and Fate Gwen warned the guest. She was intrigued by the mention of "anti-magic generators," as she knew that the Mainframe would want to study that technology, but said nothing.

5474 approached Adriana afterwards, and as she sat down, the drone that was previously there flied behind 5474. "Good morning, I'm 5474, that's just the drone I was using to communicate. What were you saying about the rights of artificial beings?"

by **Ignis States** » Mon Mar 09, 2020 11:18 am

As Zen tries to comfort Ambrosia, two things immediately catch his attention: Freya turning into a massive dragon..and the new arrival telling him off. Zkto, was it?
As he slowly turns to the man, briefly glancing over at the dragon and nodding to confirm the truce...he first begins to snicker...then outright laugh.
This guy managed to stand up to his own wit! This is unprecedented, something he’s almost never seen before!

“Well, well! I’ve hardly even met you, but you’ve already put me at a loss for words! I’d come up with a cutting response, but...well, I believe our hosts would hardly want that.”
The fox slowly turns to the four Valentinians, his smile giving way for a neutral frown. Time to be somewhat diplomatic.
”My gracious hosts, I believe I should call an end to this feud. I’ve said all that needs to be said and far more than that. I don’t want to upset Ambrosia any more than I already have. I also don’t wish to have my magic shut off, since relying on this body with technology alone...well, I’ve done it until a month ago, but that’s so boring, is it not? So you haven’t a worry from me.”

With that, he turns back to Freya once more, simply raising an eyebrow in response to the transformation.
“For the sake of all here, I agree to a truce. I won’t start any beef, so to speak...I doubt it’s what our Countess would want anyway.”
With that, he turns back to Ambrosia, the vulpine’s expression changing to a far more sympathetic, vulnerable one.
“Once again, I’m so sorry, Ambrosia. I didn’t mean for this to end up so...well, inflammatory. I’ll cease now, for your sake.”

This time, the Ignisian actually puts his hand on her shoulder, though he’s ready to move it off in case...Yknow, she wants him to kindly not.

by **Kafair** » Mon Mar 09, 2020 11:33 am

Bloodshade wrote:
"Please, no need to embarrass me with your protocol. Bowing is unnecessary. We're all equals here. In any case, do tell your sister that she has great taste. While I am distressed to know that you've lost your depth of perception, I must say that the eye patch compliments your handsome face rather well."

Ambrosia couldn't help but eye the Sultan up while he was bowing as a sign of courtesy. Those of royal blood were usually courteous, regardless of how they're received by others, but the Sultan was oddly direct in his tone. He didn't brush off her questions or attempt to gracefully evade her teasing. She was even caught off guard with his question about vampires. She'd be lying to herself if Ambrosia said that the Sultan wasn't proving himself to be a tolerable, honest individual.

"Oh, no need to worry yourself. Indeed, I am a vampire but we're a minority in our homeland, believe it or not. It's still a surprise that I was even elected in the first place but as time goes by, I realize that people prefer policy over identity. Our homeland is filled with humans, dwarfs, elves and, as you may already know, vampires such as myself. However, these races are citizens of our nation. There are other naturally destructive beings that I'd rather not go into detail about, unless I've already piqued your curiosity.

However, I shall address your last question. Hm, what's it like being a vampire? Well, I might look like a human but I certainly don't think like one. I'm 34 years old but I have a considerably larger biological lifespan. Who knows? I might live to speak to your great-great-great-great-great grandchildren someday. Also, I don't drink blood, believe it or not. I don't need to and I abhor that part of my nature. Yes, you may proceed to call me a disappointment. Many vampires have already done so. Before I continue, would you care to join me at the dinner tables? I'd rather have everyone close by so I conveniently address them. We can continue our conversation over there."

"She'll be happy to hear people agree. Shes spent the better part of the past few days trying to convince me to take it. I caved in to stop her from nagging me over it." He smiled lightly.

As he listened to her describe both vampires and what it was like to live as one, he couldn't stop his mind from spinning ideas and opinions. Shes rather nice. Doesnt seem to be big on protocol and overly formal greetings. Fair in judgement and skilled in storytelling. Not bad... "Of course, I do want to meet more people here, form relations as best I can." He spun the cane lightly, and started towards the table. Then, a question came to him. "Strange thing to imagine, isnt it? That many of those here will be reduced to bones by the time you even begin to feel the very first touch of old age. And, if you dont mind, how often do other vampires judge you over avoiding blood. I see nothing wrong with it; to each their own ideas and opinions, if you dont care for it, thats your choice to make, but I'd imagine most others are not as welcoming of that?"

He stumbled for a second, before regaining his balance and continuing on. "Damn eye of mine. You asked about it, didn't you? Lost it during my time as Chairman for a large organization. The Speaking Hall was attacked, and a group of three men broke into my chamber. I killed them with my sword, which I forgoed bringing here over the rules, but one of them shot out my eye before I could reach him. I was saved by a close ally's troops, but the damage to my eye was irreparable." As he spoke, she'd notice he would clench and un-clench his fist on the cane, and that his other eye twitched slightly. I must say, shes rather growing on me, even with such a early meeting. I'd do good to form a formal relation with her nation.

by **Wolflandil** » Mon Mar 09, 2020 11:47 am

[Zitravgrad]
Tadeusz taps the table three times, and three pink spheres come floating down to the table to reveal three traditional Wolfic sweets to go along with the tea. (Knedle, Breskvice and Zefir prepared on the Tsar's personal dreadnought)
Rosaline looks at Tadeusz in awe, and thinks to herself
These Miroslavsky's must have really sparked off with Tadeusz, he rarely ever shares his favorite sweets with anyone.
Tadeusz chuckles quickly and says to Feodora, "Zavira Miroslavskaya, Thank you for the tea." He takes a sip of tea before he remembers that the Miroslavsky's have never heard Wolfic titles.
"Zavira is the Wolfic equivalent of Miss, the masculine being Zavire, used with those who are highly respected.
With that explanation out of the way, this tea is splendid. Where is the tea-" Tadeusz is cut off when he notices the commotion involving a large dragon. Rosaline jumps up out of her chair, with a magic sword in hand, ready to fight, however Tadeusz grabs her wrist and says Rosaline, sit down please. We aren't here to fight the other leaders. The Valentians can be very large, large enough to flatten you like a Blin. They have security down." Rosaline nods, and sits back down. Sorry about that Zavire Miroslavsky, Zavira Miroslavskaya. Please help yourself to the treats the Tsar brought for the tea."

by **Fallen Albali** » Mon Mar 09, 2020 2:22 pm

Amaki was thankful for any distraction so long as she was able to drown out Zen and Vampire #2's cock-measuring contest. She could feel her nerves snapping one by one for each word either of them spoke. Besides, she was certain that Amara would be eager to hear more about these demigryphs. Amaki remembered meeting them once before, when they destroyed the food that Ambie and her sisters had lovingly made; she had so far neglected to inform Amara of that occurrence.
"Muuuuuummy..." Amara looked up at Amara with those eyes she will probably become so well-known for. Amara's silent plea to see one day see the demigryphs was successful if Amaki's smile and nod was anything to go by. Amaki had no idea if Ambie was even serious about the idea, but there was no way she could resist the little puppy's eyes. "Your demi... demigryphs look coooooot! Can I ride one? Pleeeeeeease?"
Now that was an idea Amaki wasn't sure about - she didn't doubt Ambie's ability to control them, but Amara? That was a different story.
"Maybe." Amaki scratched playfully at one of her daughter's ears. "You'll have to prove that you're a big, strong and brave girl!"
"I am brave, mummy!"
Amaki giggled. "I know, sweetpea. I know."

by **The Albali Republic** » Mon Mar 09, 2020 3:04 pm

Seren simply accepted that Strein's hand was now petting her between the ears. Sure, she worked hard on her hair, but Strein always got a free pass. She cuddled up to her wife for a few moments while she spoke, but if she had to be honest with herself, she would very much prefer being away from the brewing argument. It was almost like Strein could read her thoughts - she just happened to suggest moving elsewhere at the same time. She really did strike it lucky, didn't she?
"A mansion this massive has to have a pretty back garden, no?" Seren's ears perked up and her tail began to wag just thinking about what wonders this mansion could hold. So much to explore! Strein could see Seren's excitement (and honestly, who couldn't?). The canicien practically skipped towards the back doors.

The view in front stunned her for a second. Not only was the outside absolutely gorgeous and well-kept... it had a playground. A set of swings and a slide, and everything else! Seren felt like a little puppy again, giddily hopping on the spot. "C'mon, swings! I've not played on the swings in years!"

by **Stanier** » Mon Mar 09, 2020 3:58 pm

Uvoan wrote:
Zkto' nodded in agreement with Sandro at a few points- Smiling at the 'relax-... Or not' bit, chuckling lightly. "Indeed- I'm a polylingual. I found it very useful in my diplomatic endeavours... Even if it was decades ago." He simply said in response to that- And then came the all important question, at which Zkto' paused. Taking a long drag on his Cigar, as he thought in silence- "I take no offense to your question- Indeed, it's one I've asked many times myself... Alongside my would be assassins, as their attempts to kill me fail in spectacular fashion." Zkto' paused, now exhaling smoke, musing over his answer in detail- It really was a hard question to answer... "I, personally? Have come to believe that an outside factor favors me- Besides my stubbornness- Whether that is a God, or multiple Gods- Or other things, is a factor for debate..." Then came the second aspect- A question he had asked himself many times- Why? "Why? Well, why is also another difficult question to answer- Ask the people of Uvoan, and you will get a few different answers- Some will say it is punishment- That I have to endure the pain of being dragged to the edge of death, time and time again. Others will say it is because I am a God- That it is simply the efforts of some demon to remove me from the equation. Yet still others will simply say I have not yet been called to die by the Pantheon- I myself don't know what to really believe- From that side of the coin anyway." Zkto' then glances at his watch, idly noting the time. "But what I do know? Being stubborn has aided me in surviving this far. I refuse to die, until I say so." He smiles, darkly, and then snuffs his cigar, tossing it deftly into a nearby trashcan. "But, if you'll excuse me for a moment- I have a package arriving out-front." Zkto' then turns, walking towards the doors, and out-front towards the lot where he parked- Soon arriving, and waiting a few minutes... Before a Uvoan Governmental Transport pulls up, engine idling as Zkto nods to the driver in thanks- Who simply smiles back, before the door opens. A rather large wolf bounding out, playfully leaping up to greet Zkto'- Who pet him a few times, before snapping his fingers. "Heel, Rakko." And the large wolf, easily standing 4 feet tall at the shoulder alone, did so quickly. The van quickly drove off to other duties, even as Zkto' turned around, walking back into the dinner now with Rakko following him- Perhaps it might be a tad more bearable, with a companion at his side, Zkto' mused, reaching down to pet Rakko again, as he walked back in...

"Bueno, supongo que that's one way of looking at things. On one hand, you've probably got some otherworldly deity keeping you alive and saying 'Vos no te morís aún, boludo', and on the other you're yourself too much of a stubborn guy to let go of this place despite everything you've gone through" Sandro chuckled at his own comment, realizing what he just had said "Esto quiere decir una cosa though, your memoirs are going to sell like hotcakes if you ever publish them, HA!" Zkto' then commented about picking up a package at the entrance so Sandro shrugged it off "Go for it quick then, che. You don't want to be spending more than usual on tips, no es verdad?"

While Zkto' went out to pick up his 'package' Sandro took a little moment to freshen himself. Normally wearing two layers of clothing wasn't an issue, especially given the inner layer was a football kit supposed to keep him fresh, but given the casual suit wasn't doing him any favors added to his anxiety of being surrounded by people who might as well kill him with one glance, not even a hit. He still wasn't used to being surrounded by all these people from alternate timelines, but he just had to suck it up and keep appearing calm.

That was until Zkto' revealed that he was coming with Rekko the THICC Wolf, which was the so-called 'package' he had gotten. Not many people know this, just that crazy mina Akira, but Sandro's scared to death of dogs, and wolves? Well, to say he ran like a bat out of hell from where he was standing would be an understatement.

Bloodshade wrote:
Ambrosia still wasn't content with Angie's state of mind. The hapless lass just couldn't get a break and watching the Stanierisi officer try to collect herself. The vampire slid her own hand on top of Angie's on the hopes that her tender touch could send Angie's mind into cloud nine, hopefully causing her to forget about their demoralizing family.

"Well are you interested in just how much I hate the majority of my family? Yes,I can't stand the insignificant members. They all simply jump on the bandwagon and...are you interested? I don't want to worry your pretty little head about my life."

The Countess patiently listened to her sweetheart as she rambled on about how she managed to arrive to the party. Ambrosia was honestly rather surprised that Angie managed to crash at this party in such a ridiculous fashion. Ambrosia couldn't help but try to stifle a giggle from escaping her mouth but it was a bit too obvious that was she laughing in response to Angie's story.

"You're such a delight. Remember sweetheart, if you ever feel lonely, crash at my place or chiamami dopo. I might have to carry an entire nation on my shoulders but I'll make time for you."

Hearing Angie call her 'Rosia' caused the vampire's cheeks to turn ruby red as she couldn't help but shrug off that fuzzy feeling lurking in her heart. Hopefully, it wasn't an indication of a heart disease and just a figure of speech. Ambrosia returned the hug tightly, resting her head on Angie's shoulder while enveloping her body with her own arms. She felt so comfortable in her embrace. The moment felt rather wholesome until Angie decided to tease the vampire by butchering her name.

"Brosia! How did you get that name? Oh by the heavens, you are going to forget that nickname and call me 'Rosia' or else. Don't you dare follow up by 'or else what' unless you want to regret being next to me!"

Ambrosia watched as Angie equipped a pair of white sunglasses and subsequently, her fashion sense was offended and she couldn't help but retch a bit to see her dress being complemented by that cheap eye wear. She held Angie's chin firmly in place with one hand while the other reached over to swipe away Angie's glasses.

"No offense, dear. Only fiche wear sunglasses indoors and by the heavens, I'm never going to stand idle while someone insults fashion! Also, come on, you think your family won't recognize you because you're wearing sunglasses? Mine can detect me from my scent alone..."

"As much as I am interested, it's just going to make me remember altre cose brutte sulla mia famiglia. So, how about we just stick to casual conversation? io so che tu adora small talk...! Well, just a little less than a deep conversation, qualunque..." Then came the comment about how Ambie would always be available should she need a ear for her ramblings or a chance to unwind, a thing which she always appreciated "Grazie amore. I've got your number and you will always be in la mia mente. io no so how the call gets through, but I won't question it since it lets me hear la tua bella voce"

Then came her teasing of Ambie, and so occurred Ambie's lighthearted threat. Angie threw some finger guns at the vampire before replying.

"HAHAHA! La reazione tua è d'oro! I love it! I oughta say it more often...! Oh, sì? Oppure cosa? Are you going to pin me against a wall? Rosia, at least get a room if you want to do that"

As Ambie sweetly and rather discreetly complained at Angie's choice of wearing sunglasses indoors, Angie saw this as a chance of making a parody of one of her favorite TV shows, though it would prove difficult with Ambie trying to swat the sunglasses away from her face. It's ironic that she does this now while when they first met, she made sure of wearing her sunglasses at all times. But well, after that happened and Ambrosia gave her some advice in fashion (and said some sweet things about her blue-green eyes), her white-framed sunglasses were more often hung inside of her jackets than on her face. But now, it was time to take a step backward and wear these again. She lowered her glasses to speak to Ambie once more.

"Rosia, tu sai che pappa e io haven't seen each other for a while. He only calls and I doubt he would remember il mio viso unless I was right up on il suo viso, besides, I am not murdering fashion..." She then swiftly put them on again so she could say a witty one-liner "It has been dead for a while already"

At this rate, one could imagine the theme of The Science of Crime playing as the intro popped up on the screen, but this isn't TV. The only thing that could be heard is Angie stifling her laughter as much as she could, to no avail.

Valentine Z (Too many posts to quote them all):
The young, vaguely Asian man walked out of the soundproof room with Gwen, speaking to her as he did.

"Ah verga. Por fin te daís cuenta de lo importante. Don't you worry, this mouth will be closed shut about el buen NationStates, self-aware characters are bitches... ¡Menos vos por supuesto! Imma go get myself una buena hamburguesa. No thanks to you, Gwen. And do me a favor and do try to lure Ennio here at some point. Er muy mardito stole my car and I had to borrow my uncle's Lancer to get over 'ere, and then Angie mistakes me for some malandro! ¡Qué mariquera! Either way, I'll see you later, loca er' coño"

The man split up from Gwen and then made his way to the buffet table... Only to find there weren't any burgers no more.

"¡¿QUE?! ¡¿CÓMO VERGA?! ¡PERO SI NADIE ESTÁ COMIENDO UN COÑO! ¡AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH MARDITA MI SUERTE!" The man was about to complain about this to the hosts, that being Val and Clarissa, just to ashame them a little, but they were so placidly and sweetly dancing. The young man was an ass, but not enough to break out such a sweet moment "Bueno, a la verga. It's time to buy ourselves la hamburguesa doing some... Marañas"

He then snapped his fingers and a cart appeared out of thin air, full to the brim with various snacks, fireworks of all kinds, and some traditional Venezuelan light foods such as Empanadas, Pastelitos, and Tequeños. Along the cart also appeared a red baseball cap reading Make Venezuela de Pinga Again, the young, vaguely Asian man then wore the cap with pride and began to push the cart around the White House while chanting stuff along the lines of:

"LLEVENSELOS! FIREWORKS! SNACKS! BREAKFASTS THOUGH IT'S ALREADY DINNER TIME! PAY THREE! GET TWO! YOU WON'T GET A DEAL AS ARRECHO AS THIS ONE! LLEVENSELOS MIENTRAS ESTÉN CALIENTES!"

"BUY ME A FIREWORK AND I'LL THROW IN A FREE EMPANADA! NO QUESTIONS ASKED!"

"WE'VE GOT FIREWORKS FOR EVERYONE! FOR THE KIDS, FOR THE LADIES, FOR THE GENTLEMEN! AND FOR THOSE IN-BETWEEN! LLEVENSELOS!"

"WE ACCEPT PESOS, DOLLARS, BOLIVARES IN CASH, VALENTIAN CREDITS, AND ALSO YOUR SOUL...! Ya va, lo último no compra hamburguesa-FORGET ABOUT THE LAST PAYMENT METHOD! WE ACCEPT PESOS, DOLLARS, VC, AND ALSO BOLÍVARES IN CASH!"

"LLEVENSELOOOOOS! THROW ME A BURGER AND I'LL JUGGLE SOME ESTRELLITAS! SI ME QUEMO NO ES TU PEO!"

by **Lutvikkia** » Mon Mar 09, 2020 11:43 pm

Drudge Hillann made his way over to Valentijn, And attempted to get his attention.

Drudge Hillann: " Valentijn, I must say, I did not expect dragons. Ok, the huge rolling drunk threw me off at first, but we must encounter all sorts of people." Hillann straightened his cloak. "The fact that you can grow tall, I can accept that as well. But my limits of acceptance are being tested, to say the least." Hillann looked around the room for his Gadge. "Look at my companion, he has just taken in too much of the universe. But that fault lies with me, as I chose poorly my Gadge. He had just graduated, and received his status, and I wanted to expose him to other cultures, and ideas." Hillann looks at Valentijn with a wry smile. "I must tell you that you have been the consummate host and hostess. I assure you we have had a most exuberant, and pleasant time here." He chuckles. "I will cut to the chase. What is an anti magic devise? How does it work? and is it technology that you can share?" He leans in closer. "Lutvikkia has the fortune of never encountering magic, or magical nations, and we would like to be prepared for such an encounter. We currently have no defense for such a contingency."

by **HIreland** » Tue Mar 10, 2020 4:38 pm

Gary’s implanted magic device heard the words “anti magic generator” and panicked. It had been the Drunken-most’s sole source of alcohol for some time now, and it did not want Gary to fall from his position of the most inebriated in HIreland, lest it lose its job. Thinking ahead, it drew on all the power available to it and summoned a beer keg the size of a small continent into Gary’s left pocket. A small but noticeable bulge appeared on the side of his jacket and he staggered slightly to the left and then righted himself before going into another roll. Saved by the space-bending properties of his gargantuanness. His implanted IV shared a similar opinion of the anti magic generator as Lutvikkia, much out of annoyance towards the magic device, which it was currently losing a game of “bet he wouldn’t do that”. (guess which side it had unwisely taken) The drunken-most finished wobbling and staggered back over to the bar to continue whatever one might call sleep-drinking for comatose/brain-dead people. (coma-drinking? The drinking dead?) A small corner of his mind which surprisingly still functioned noted that a representative from earth-orbit was here, a country which they had beaten in an international war-games event recently but had contested the victory mostly out of ignorance of the velocities at which prograde-retrograde collisions occur. This was promptly deleted to make room for a very-poorly compressed selector of alcoholic beverages which was supposed to be random but somehow always ended up on beer. (The magic device had rigged this so Gary wouldn’t notice that beer was all it had) The last time he had drank so much of a single beverage, at the national whiskey drinking competition (which he had won), he had ended up trying to ride his horse down the stairs (sideways, of course, and by that I don't mean sidesaddle, he was sitting on the horse backwards, the horse was sideways, and you don't even want to know what was going on with the stairs). (After that he gave it scotch instead, which is the most that can be said for his learning ability) (His horse took second place in that competition, and also third since it took up two spots on the podium (The first place podium had been widely expanded long ago to accommodate Gary's bulk)) Gary shifted to the side, creating a tidal wave in the beer ocean and nearly wiping out a certain Germanic tribe. The noise of sloshing and muffled screaming with proto-Germanic cursing could be heard in the bend and rather disgruntled space around Gary the Drunken-most.

by **Blodrike** » Tue Mar 10, 2020 6:12 pm

Sheesh, what's gotten into everybody here? Freya thought. What had started out as a pleasant date with her vampire girlfriend, had quickly turned sour thanks to Zen's trash talk. Now, that in and of itself wasn't a big deal—frankly, she'd been called much worse things in the past. And she'd been confident, without a doubt, that this little fox wouldn't leave so much as a scratch on her. But still, vampires of her kind weren't exactly known for restraint or self-control. In fact, Freya was an exception in that she embraced some human traits, and Ambrosia even more so. So it was in her nature to lash out, in response to anything that aggravated her. And in her eyes, Zen had clearly deserved to be put in his place.

Too bad for the poor creature, everybody around her seemed to think otherwise. Freya could feel the mounting pressure of disapproval in the room, as all eyes were drawn to her. Even her girlfriend had refused to side with her, as if she'd completely forgotten everything Freya had just told her about herself. Naturally, Freya was feeling quite hurt and upset by this. And though she couldn't bring herself to snap back at Ambrosia, neither was she going to be bossed around. So she'd done the only thing she could to make everybody back off: transforming herself into a massive fire-breathing dragon.

Unfortunately, opposite of what she intended, this had just drawn more hostile attention to the enraged Freya, including a threat to restrain her powers with an Anti-Magic Generator, whatever that was. That was the last straw. All thanks to being the target of an insult that was entirely uncalled for, Freya felt that she was now being ostracized by the whole assemblage of guests, for simply having the backbone to stand up for herself. Very well then! If this was how they wanted to play their game, they'd have to play it without her. Because Freya, having had enough already, had decided that she wasn't going to stick around any longer.

The dragon made one last statement to the room: "When I first came through this door today, I had but a single wish: to enjoy an evening with a few of my friends, undisturbed and in peace. It was my first time giving social occasions a chance, and I had high hopes for it. Unfortunately, it's also going to be my last time. Not even halfway through this event, I was met with all sorts of insults and name-calling out of the blue. And all of a sudden I'm the bad guy, just because I stood up for myself. Is this any way to welcome a guest? Fine then, have it your way. If y'all don't want me here, and can't accept me for who I am, then there's no point in me staying. I'm out of here."

With that, Freya began to glow once again. The dragon was swallowed in a huge ball of light, which shrank until it was human-sized. When the light disappeared, the vampire had returned to her regular self. She went back to the table to bid farewell to her friends: Ambrosia, her black cat, Kazimir and Feodora, and their three-headed puppy. There was also Fredrik the snake, but Freya couldn't have care less about it.

After Freya and Zen's little squabble had drawn everybody's attention to the pair, and Freya had done her magical thing, Zen finally agreed that he'd play nice, if only for Ambrosia's sake. But it was a tad too late to make Freya change her mind about leaving—that ship had already sailed. Now in her regular form again, she walked over to Zen. "I appreciate it, pal," she said. "But I've got to go, 'cause everybody here's out to get me now."

Finally, she made her way over to her girlfriend and the Miroslavskys. "I wish I could stay with you guys longer," she said with sadness in her voice. "It's a terrible shame that I've got to go. But I don't think I could stand these people any longer. So I guess it's goodbye for now, my friends. I hope we'll all meet again some other day. But until then, farewell."

A glowing white portal appeared out of the air. Bjørn and Olav, the two guards, marched in and vanished from the room. They were followed by Astrid the Chief Computer, and her pet owl Googol. Freya was the last one. But just as she was about to step into the portal, she paused and turned around, heading back over to Ambrosia. "I'll miss you, honey," she said, wrapping the other vampire in a hug.

(OOC: I'll let Ambrosia have a chance to say goodbye before Freya leaves.)

by **Ignis States** » Tue Mar 10, 2020 7:26 pm

The Albali Republic wrote:
Ignis States wrote:The bored expression on the wolf's face immediately gives way to enthusiasm, her hand travelling upwards to rest on top of Seren's head, fingers resting just between her ears. Her tail is practically a blur at this point, complimented by the warm smile on her face.
"Oh, don't worry, Serry! I only got here...I think 5 minutes ago. I haven't actually brought a watch, so it's a bit hard to tell. But I'm doing nicely. Definitely better than before. Not only are you here now, but I don't have to pay attention to...well, Zen being Zen."
Strein promptly glances over at Zen, who's already preparing and calculating his next batch of insults. At this point, it's up to Ambrosia to stop this from escalating even further.

Strein, however, chooses not to pay attention to this. It ain't her job to clean up after Zen's screwups. At least not diplomatically. She'll just try calming down Ms. Freya and Ms. Ambrosia later.
"Let's...not pay attention to them, though. I've seen Zen make a mess of diplomacy purely so he could insult the other party so many times that I'm surprised we haven't gone to war more often, and I really don't want to see it again. Maybe there's some other area here so we don't have to be around...that."
...There's likely a garden around here. Lord knows Strein doesn't know. She just got to the dinner!

(I'll do Zen's part after Bloodshade replies. Hope y'all understand!)

Seren simply accepted that Strein's hand was now petting her between the ears. Sure, she worked hard on her hair, but Strein always got a free pass. She cuddled up to her wife for a few moments while she spoke, but if she had to be honest with herself, she would very much prefer being away from the brewing argument. It was almost like Strein could read her thoughts - she just happened to suggest moving elsewhere at the same time. She really did strike it lucky, didn't she?
"A mansion this massive has to have a pretty back garden, no?" Seren's ears perked up and her tail began to wag just thinking about what wonders this mansion could hold. So much to explore! Strein could see Seren's excitement (and honestly, who couldn't?). The canicien practically skipped towards the back doors.

The view in front stunned her for a second. Not only was the outside absolutely gorgeous and well-kept... it had a playground. A set of swings and a slide, and everything else! Seren felt like a little puppy again, giddily hopping on the spot. "C'mon, swings! I've not played on the swings in years!"

Strein was already unsure of what quite to expect as she followed her Canicien companion to the garden, but a playground? Not quite what she was expecting. She's especially astounded by the presence of these...swings?
If Serry's happy, it's good enough for her. With a swish of her tail, the wolf walks over to the swingset, pacing around it somewhat as she tries to figure out...what this even is.
It looks like a seat with chains attaching it to something. Weird...

"Serry, how do these swings work? I've never been on one before. Do you just sit down and...?" The lupine cautiously sits down in the closest swing, feeling it sway back and forth as she moves her legs.
"...Do you just kick the ground to move? I think that's how you do it." Strein does just that, putting one paw on the ground before pushing it forward. The swing goes forward and upwards, just about launching the wolf off before she manages to grab onto the chains...or ropes, whatever this uses!
The lupine can't help but elatedly shout, having spent a whole 5 seconds swinging and already loving it!

As the swing comes back to its previous position, Strein comes to a halt, eagerly looking to her wife with an excited gleam in her eyes.
"....This IS fun. Serry, you should join me!" She glances at the swing directly next to her, naturally.

by **Lutvikkia** » Thu Mar 12, 2020 11:01 pm

TO GARY OF HIRELAND

Drudge Hillann made his way over to Gary, and made a unique face.
Drudge Hillann: "My dear Mr. Gary, my Germanic is not up to par, but I do not think they are very fond of you." He paused with a smile. "At this particular moment, however situations change rapidly these days, my good fellow." He offered his hand in a gesture of friendship, while pointing to his aircraft. "I happen to have a small but potent, perhaps not as strong as you have had before, but it does leave the connoisseur with a small buzz, You are welcome to it, but it is only a mere two thousand liters. Call it a gift from Lutvikkia, with the intent to visit one day to the unique nation of Hireland some day, yes?"

by **HIreland** » Fri Mar 13, 2020 6:34 pm

The Drunken-most immediately upon hearing of a source of alcohol, stumbled off in the direction of the aircraft, ran into a wall, adjusted his path to account for obstacles, tried to walk up the wall, remembered gravity, and finally made it to the craft. Gary took the drink and gulped it down almost instantly (despite it being 2000 litres), not thinking for a second as to whether it was safe. Of course, this is in a roleplay where violence was banned so he is in no danger of being poisoned, but to know that he would have to be a genius to figure out that his reality only makes sense when viewed under the metaphysics of a composite fictional work, and to deduce the guidelines of said composite fiction. He was so stupid that he had almost looped all the way around to being smart again. Almost. Of course, since it was a gift, it counted as income. Not forgetting to do his taxes, Gary took out his minting kit, encapsulated the standard 9% of the beverage in freshly minted beer coins, and then promptly broke them open and drank them because he was the government. One might expect inflation to be a problem when everyone can mint their own money, but considering the rate at which HIrelanders consume their own currency, it really isn't. It was at this moment that the Drunken-most's car, sensing that he was finished in that location (more accurately it didn't have any breaks and perpetually drives forward, but lacking steering tends to stay in more or less the same area and had eventually wandered over to his location), hooked Gary onto it's front bumper along with other assorted garbage, puttered back through the white house gate, dropped him off by the bar, and fell down a valentijnian-scale drain into the sewers. Not at all fazed by this occurrence, both out of its regularity and being too drunk to notice, Gary took up where he left off and thanked Hillann in the typical HIrelandian manner by belching loudly and incoherently mumbling something that could have been a word of thanks, the ingredients of rat poison, or perhaps even the address of the local dump.

by **Zitravgrad** » Sat Mar 14, 2020 1:17 pm

"Not quite... we just need to feed it with sufficient nutrients, as well as blood, via tubes and keep the temperature, humidity and air pressure at a suitable level, since the baby would be in what looks like... a ziplocked bag. A little fragile, very expensive... but good for mothers who are not very healthy or... cannot be bothered with pregnancy." said Feodore. She was.. a mixture of both cases. She was so small a woman, with a fragile body that was known for its beauty rather than its strength. If she had tried to conceive her children naturally, she wouldn't have four children. "You see, this is merely a substitution for a mother's womb. You would still need... components from its father and mother to procreate a fetus." She would explain things only superficially, not because she was underestimating anyone's understanding, but rather because she did not want to describe it too deeply. It was not exactly safe for work. But then, Freya would be distracted from the issue by Zen of Ignis States' and later her 'discussion' with the Countess of Ambrosia.

The Miroslavsky were indeed familiar with the treats, but even then it had been a while since they had the peachy-looking treat known as breskvice. "You are indeed welcome, your Majesty. Also, here are some sugar and lemon slices, courtesy of our hosts." said Kazimir, offering the Tsar the sugar bowl and a plate of lemon slices.

Then, he listened to his wife explaining to Freya about using artificial womb. He was not exactly pleased with that concept but if his little darling wife needed it, he had to accept. However, that conversation did not last long. Also, he had to watch his dog from getting too close to a smug talking cat and a sketchy talking snake. If his dog could talk, it must have been very talkative with three heads on its shoulders...

He was not exactly paying attention when he saw the dragon arose from where Freya had been and Rosaline jumping out of her seat in a defensive stance. Even as a man as calm as he was, Miroslavsky frowned. It was a commotion in a social setting, not an open battlefield. Nonetheless, he decided to trust that Freya was at least conscious and the Valentians were prepared to keep the peace, which they soon did. Despite their occasional mutual animosity, he did not join in the patronizing, but neither did he completely side with her. Miroslavsky was a mere human, but nonetheless one with a million masks. He had lived a life of climbing the ladders to status, a life of war and conflicts and a life of facing an ever-changing world. He felt that someone with such amount of life experiences like her could have come up with a better reaction than that, with her grace and all. Still, he also understood that restraint had a limit.

"Well... It has been a fair meeting, your Majesty." said Miroslavsky. "Farewell."

Feodora would make her goodbye as well, especially to Astrid, with whom she wished she could discuss more things. She walked over the the Chief Computer and gave her a piece of paper with her name and (work) address: Room Number 2241, 56th Floor, Northwestern Wing, Faculty of Technology, University of Providenska.. "If you do not mind, we can keep in touch, in case there is something I can assist you." Then, she backed away as the Blodriker entourage were leaving via the portal.

by **Kihodova Hopi** » Sun Mar 15, 2020 9:40 pm

Valentine Z wrote:
This time, a horse-carriage, the Valentians thought to themselves. It was a relief to see someone that is not all for the technology, and especially for Jolyn whose car got scratched recently. Jenny commented on the rather odd and peculiar behaviour of the man; he did not seem to be violent or malevolent in any way. If anything, he seems… intrigued by just about everything. The man was constantly looking around the front yard, all the way into when he walked in and past the security checkpoint. Augustine and Jacob would have a little bit of a problem – not because the man was non-compliant, but it was simply because he was… different.

Field Marshal Jacob Dalston Sullivan Kelvin “Az Alvilág Örök Fenyegetése” Jamilian Svi Donald Zobor Tres. Taylor Xavier Ryman Axel Simon Váradi Szőke Mészáros Barnabás András Krisztián: [Softly to Augustine via the radio] Err, dude… we have to be a bit patient with him.

Fleet Admiral Augustine Lorenzo Terry Vinto Chevy “L'inarrestabile E Di Forte Impatto” Silas Walton Wesley Stuart Dalton Burton Miles N. Dv. S. Walter Stefano Coronato Ermes Faletti Imparato: [Mouthing words] This guy doesn’t know about tech?

Field Marshal Jacob Dalston Sullivan Kelvin “Az Alvilág Örök Fenyegetése” Jamilian Svi Donald Zobor Tres. Taylor Xavier Ryman Axel Simon Váradi Szőke Mészáros Barnabás András Krisztián: [Softly to Augustine via the radio] I’m afraid so. I will turn off the beeping from the metal detector. I checked on him, no weapons. He’s clear.

Inside, there would be a little bit more shenanigans with the man, though not in a rather bad way. Enter Tiffany, who had her database recently updated by Jamie.

“Mr. Pivane Orayvi. Try to be gentle on him. He’s a little… y’know.” – Jamie

Tiffany got the cue, though she was unsure as on why she was chosen to help out a man who does not really know much about technology. She was around 30 meters away from the man, blended in with the rest of the crowd. She sheepishly and amusingly watch the man struggling with a lamp and his pipe.

Trying her best to be as human as possible, she approached Orayvi and started talking to him.

Head Engineer Tiffany Violet Sunshine Charlotte Zelina “Duō Gōngnéng Jī” Alessandra Jennesa Cassandra Haley Hanneke Karlijn Gerrieke Roosmarijn Pnt Mollen Audrey Mariel Jeanette Smiley: Ahh, hello there! My name is Tiffany! It would seem like you are trying to light your pipe with fire! Would you like to borrow my lighter?

Out from her pocket, she produced a simple gas-operated lighter. One of those metal lighters that you simply need to open the lid and it will light up. Tiffany thought about using her built-in flamethrower to help him out, but given the technological gap, she realised how much of a problem that could potentially be.

Pivane looked to his side as he saw Tiffany approach him. He looked up and down, and his brow raised. He knew Valentiners are tall but he was confused at her metal encasing. She mentally shrugged it off. It was probably just a get-up that was foreign to him, and he did not want to be rude. “Lolma. You must be Tiffany. It is good to meet you.” He said in his best English with a calm tone. He looked at the lighter and jumped back a bit. It took him a second to realize that it was not coming out of an extended finger, but rather a small metallic ‘torch’. He quickly regained his composure and slowly grabbed the lighter. “Askwali-” He quickly recorrected himself “Thank you.” He used the lighter to light his small pipe, trying his best not to burn himself. As the tobacco caught fire, he quickly closed the lid and dropped it in Tiffany’s hands. “Thank you, again.”

He took one big puff from his pipe, causing him to cough a bit. He took the pipe out of his mouth and looked at Tiffany. He was curious at the metal machine, unaware that there was not a person behind it but rather electronics and more metal. He asked, “Please forgive the rudeness, but is your metallic suit for cultural reasons or are you a guard?”

by **Mithridatium** » Sat Mar 28, 2020 11:21 pm

Lord Terebinth was hunched over, indulging in narcotic pleasures when the Mainframe drone suddenly appeared and greeted him. The machine's unexpended visit startled the Checlite, who was seemingly spooked by its presence. A peculiar sound was emitted from the helm of the creature, a clamor of bubbling and loud wheezing, as Terebinth began coughing, choked by whatever drug he had been inhaling. The lights of the eye slits of Triterinth grew bright as he ran over to his master to see if he was alright. Amidst his coughing fit, Terebinth raised his arm, signifying to his friend to not approach him. The Sorophian guards flanking the two dignitaries began positioning near the drone, with plasma weapons and energy scythes in hand. Lord Terebinth ejected the substance emitter that he had been using, and used one of his spindly armored fingers to press a series of buttons on the side of his bulky helmet. He had stopped hacking by now, and he straightened himself up, and faced the drone hovering beside him. Another racket of noises were made by the alien, as he cleared his throat. The guards surrounding the machine halted and stared balefully at the foreigner. The Treasurer crossed him arms, and joined in staring at the drone. He spoke first, in an almost monotone sound of artificially translated English.

"You have entered into the presence of Terebinth, First Lord of Mithridatium." Terebinth, his once ebullient attitude gone, interjected in a similarly sounding droning voice, offering an emotionless greeting.

"It is a pleasure to meet your acquaintance, Neural Processor. As my friend stated, I am Terebinth, Lord of Mithridatium. My realm is located in a galaxy known as the Vade. I assume that you are a representative of a foreign nation, so may I ask where is it that you hail from? I do not recall of ever seeing your model of android before."

After Terebinth had stopped speaking, of the Sorophian bodyguards encircling the group then broke the silence by placing the stock of his weapon upon the ground, which made an audible thud. Triterinth exchanged a glance at the guard, then looked back at the machine, in a seemingly scornful look that was hidden by his helmet. Lord Terebinth then rearranged the series of substance emitters hanging upon his belt, untangling and straightening them out as he awaited a response.

by **The Cosmic Mainframe** » Sun Mar 29, 2020 10:14 am

Mithridatium wrote:
Lord Terebinth was hunched over, indulging in narcotic pleasures when the Mainframe drone suddenly appeared and greeted him. The machine's unexpended visit startled the Checlite, who was seemingly spooked by its presence. A peculiar sound was emitted from the helm of the creature, a clamor of bubbling and loud wheezing, as Terebinth began coughing, choked by whatever drug he had been inhaling. The lights of the eye slits of Triterinth grew bright as he ran over to his master to see if he was alright. Amidst his coughing fit, Terebinth raised his arm, signifying to his friend to not approach him. The Sorophian guards flanking the two dignitaries began positioning near the drone, with plasma weapons and energy scythes in hand. Lord Terebinth ejected the substance emitter that he had been using, and used one of his spindly armored fingers to press a series of buttons on the side of his bulky helmet. He had stopped hacking by now, and he straightened himself up, and faced the drone hovering beside him. Another racket of noises were made by the alien, as he cleared his throat. The guards surrounding the machine halted and stared balefully at the foreigner. The Treasurer crossed him arms, and joined in staring at the drone. He spoke first, in an almost monotone sound of artificially translated English.

"You have entered into the presence of Terebinth, First Lord of Mithridatium." Terebinth, his once ebullient attitude gone, interjected in a similarly sounding droning voice, offering an emotionless greeting.

"It is a pleasure to meet your acquaintance, Neural Processor. As my friend stated, I am Terebinth, Lord of Mithridatium. My realm is located in a galaxy known as the Vade. I assume that you are a representative of a foreign nation, so may I ask where is it that you hail from? I do not recall of ever seeing your model of android before."

After Terebinth had stopped speaking, of the Sorophian bodyguards encircling the group then broke the silence by placing the stock of his weapon upon the ground, which made an audible thud. Triterinth exchanged a glance at the guard, then looked back at the machine, in a seemingly scornful look that was hidden by his helmet. Lord Terebinth then rearranged the series of substance emitters hanging upon his belt, untangling and straightening them out as he awaited a response.

Two bright flashes of light emanated from the drone during the introduction. 5474's voice came through once again afterwards.

"I come from the galaxy known as Milky Way to humans, or Astael to Altaians. Our nation is a cloud computing project acting as a sovereign entity. I am unique to that nation, and developed specifically for the purpose of developing relations with humanoids. Your electromagnetic signature indicates that your species diverges from most humanoids, but I am confident that my experience will still apply."

My AO3 profile · by **New Spiedska** » Fri Apr 10, 2020 1:12 am

| Amanda Miller: Strange new world |

Work was boring, life was boring. But I knew I had to do this, I knew I had to do - and offer - my best for New Spiedska. Is why the people elected me, after all. My free time was practically snapped away from this Earth the second I took the Oath of Office, but i'd rather not have free time if it strictly mean doing things like passing legislation and all-around looking out for New Spiedska. After all, I didn't wanna end up like Armstrong, that fraud of a President. Either way, I was in a meeting with the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense and the Chairwoman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. It was boring, but we were there because we had to gauge how New Spiedska would act after World War IV. At the end of the day, we decided to calm down and avoid the coing Cold War if possible. I'm sure the population would agree with the fact that, while squashing putrid ideologies like fascism are a priority, New Spiedska must focus on herself first.

At the end of the day, we all said goodbye to each other as we went to our separate residences. Three separate limousines picked the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of State and the Chairwoman of the Joint Chiefs of staff up and delivered them to wherever they wanted to go. I was fortunate; the meeting was in my White Palace, so I just headed back to my bedroom and... something happened.

I, quite literally, appeared in another world.

I looked around, desperate for answers. Desperate for knowledge as to what the f*** just happened. I looked down, and saw myself in casual clothes. My skinny black jeans, my Doc Martens boots and my red flannel, I was wearing them, even when I was wearing my pink business suit just seconds ago. I grew increasingly desperate; It would dumb of me to not be desperate. I almost started running around, to ask someone why I was here, until I turned on my back.

I saw a portal-esque formation just beneath me; presumably the opening of which I was thrown out of. I was amazed, somehow, a portal magically consumed me and threw me to this strange new world.

by **Area 6-Z** » Sat Apr 11, 2020 9:29 pm

Stanier wrote:Snip

Victoria raised an eyebrow when Mario mentioned that he didn't want to be around let alone talk to Brigadiere Montemaggiore. She was now curious if there was anything going on between the two, however since this was a party she didn't want ask what was going on to avoid any type of drama. After Mario offered her the choice to either talk to the people she mentioned or talk to some strangers that he knew, Victoria began thinking to herself on what to do.

Hmm... It will be best if I didn't go talk to Mr. Montemaggiore just in case and Zen is most likely busy talking with other leaders. Victoria thought to herself before finally making a decision.

"Meeting with strangers sounds good, it will give me a chance to see faces and hopefully make my social skills better." Victoria said.

by **Ideal Britain** » Thu Apr 16, 2020 7:42 am

The British representatives including: Sir Alexander Khan (Prime Minister), Roseena Ali Khan (Minister of Health) and Clive Lewis (Minister of Defence) and their king and queen: King Charles III and Queen Camilla arrive at the dinner followed by 4 Scots Guards.
"Greetings from Britain!" they say to any guests they see.

by **HIreland** » Wed May 06, 2020 9:27 am

Spatial anomalies seemed to be occurring at an increasing rate, which probably should have worried the Drunken-most, if he had the mental capacity to think about it. Instead he was thinking about who to leech free beer off of next. He was perfectly capable of producing his own beer almost effortlessly using his various devices, but that wouldn't be as fun as talking someone else into paying for it. The AI running his blood filtration device groaned in anticipation of the alcohol surge to come and hoped the spatial anomalies would hurry up in tearing apart the universe. The helper spirit understood that no such thing would happen, since they were clearly in a story as exhibited by A: The Drunken-most somehow surviving for as long as he had, B: VictorNet was playing on a Nintendo Switch, which most likely came equipped with Splatoon, while on the other side of the room an Inkling from that very game was chatting with one of the guests, C: for added recursion VictorNet himself was from the setting the video game Bioshock, a game that would be familiar to many of the guests from MT nations, and D: It knew magic wasn't real so its very existence was evidence that it was in a story. Deciding to take advantage of narrative causality to mess with Gary it thought "I hope Gary doesn't trip and fall on his face", which of course happened immediately because any possibility mentioned in a story is bound to occur. Joining the game the AI-equipped blood monitor thought "I hope a grand piano doesn't fall on Gary." For the next several minutes Gary and the surrounding objects were subject to events that would not be out of place in a Bugs Bunny cartoon, until the spirit and AI realized that Gary was too drunk to notice any of it, which took all the fun out of it. As spirit cleared away the pieces of piano, assorted hammers, glue, feathers, and the various other items they had summoned, Gary, oblivious to it all, wandered over towards the newest arrivals to see if he could get any free drinks from them.

by **Valentine Z** » Fri May 08, 2020 11:26 pm

The tension was mounting up more and more in the living room. Valentina, Valentijn, Clarissa, and Gwen were cornering particular groups of people, not to harass and bully them into submission, but was simply due to how the situation was turning sour. It would seem as if things were starting to… dogpile.

Interaction with The Cosmic Mainframe

Adriana, in the meantime, would be still talking to 5474, who approached her and introduced herself, “Good morning, I'm 5474, that's just the drone I was using to communicate. What were you saying about the rights of artificial beings?"

“Ahh, hello there! I am Adriana! Well, to be specific… Zastępca Strażnika Adriana Krystal Desiree “Cudowny Manipulacja Światłem” Venus Kowalski Faith Stanisława Engelse I. Cherise Krystyna Zaborowska Sztormowska Pamela Alina Re. T. Lillian! Also known as “Adriana the Polish Robot”, if you prefer!” she waved sheepishly at 5474, “Ahh, I see… pretty interesting technology you have going on there, I will say! Ohh right, about the rights of the artificial intelligence, beings like me! I am simply saying that we have the same rights as the rest of the Valentians humans around us, you see? I think it will be appropriate and suited for our ideology, no? The fact that everyone and everything deserves the same amount of respect. You have the normal Valentian people, and then Clarissa, me, and a few other AIs, and there’s even someone named Holly. I think you might have heard of her, I don’t know. She’s a very, very nice sweetheart, a little shy for her own good, though. I could tell you a bit more about her if you are interested.”

Interaction with Ignis States, Bloodshade, Blodrike, Stanier

The situation turned sour, and the Valentians would be to blame. That was in short, of course.

Long version? Ignis’ Zen was already being diplomatic, all things considered. ”My gracious hosts, I believe I should call an end to this feud. I’ve said all that needs to be said and far more than that. I don’t want to upset Ambrosia any more than I already have. I also don’t wish to have my magic shut off, since relying on this body with technology alone...well, I’ve done it until a month ago, but that’s so boring, is it not? So you haven’t a worry from me.”

“You should call an end?” Valentijn thought in his head, “I should not have let it happen in the first place!” he wanted to exclaim it out loud, but knowing the idea of lashing out having problematic outcomes, he figured that he would let it slide, since it was more or less over. At least, he hopes so.

Valentijn nodded, and was about to mouth off a few words, but it was too late. They have escalated too far. It would seem as if the four of them were only cornering the group due to Freya transforming into a dragon, whilst ignoring the others. The Valentians, however, were not the one to be biased towards anyone else. Even before any of the four Valentians trying to quell the situation could add a word of their own, Freya expressed her disbelief and the hostility that she felt from all of this. They tried to talk her out of it, but to no avail. She was simply leaving, and perhaps only leaving her pet snake to enjoy the party. To say that there was a mix of emotions would be an understatement – first there was anger from the confrontation and dogpiling, then the feeling of being overwhelmed and threatened (from the Valentians, out of all the possible folks), and then sorrow and heartfelt farewells towards a select number of guests that attended the party, specifically Ambrosia.

The Valentians watched as they walked into the white portal, gone from the party. Freya was unwelcomed, and it’s all thanks to the Valentians, it would seem.

“Valentina, Gwen, Marcus, Jolyn, … group meeting,” Valentijn announced, with a pause in-between, “Clarissa… please stay with these folks. You know, with Ambrosia and they all.”

“Sure thing, Vallie!” Clarissa replied back with still happiness in her voice, though interspersed with some remorse inside. The five of them slowly walked up to the second floor, with Marcus, Jolyn, and Gwen on Valentijn and Valentina’s palms. They eventually reached a room where they could have their private discussion.

“Oh dear, guys… What the hell,” Valentijn started off with a visible remorse and worry in his voice, “Why in the world did we threaten Freya and the rest with an Anti-AM Generator?”

Gwen chuckled sheepishly, tugging at her collar, “Yeah, that was a rather rash decision from me… but you see how things are going though, right?”

“I know, but… damn, we could have de-escalate it slowly. I don’t think the weaponry was needed, in all honesty.”

“I’m sorry, Val… I thought we could use those now and then in case things turn… ugly. You know how things went last time?”

“Yeah, that is also the thing I was worried about.”

“To be fair?” Marcus gave a remark at Gwen, “You were totally not aiming at Freya squarely. I mean, I think they know that most of them have a degree of magical abilities. We warned them that we will shut down all of them if they don’t stop; we only stepped in because Freya started turning to a dragon.”

“I concur,” Jolyn added, though she had a bit more irritation in her voice, “And I certainly would lay the blame on others. I mean, what is wrong with people, so much so that they can’t set aside their banter for a night. I certainly don’t mind them as my friends, but I have the right to think that they have messed up themselves.”

“That is indeed correct…” Valentijn concluded, “It’s not just one thing; it’s a whole bunch of dominoes that happened to fall into place. I’m sure this analogy has been old by now. They bantered needlessly on Freya, Freya got irritated, magic happened, and we came in. I err… one thing after another, basically. And I thought the no weapons rule was enough.”

“Do you think you want to step things up a bit?” Jolyn asked Valentijn curiously, having no malicious intentions herself, “I mean, this is a party, not a prison camp, so… we can’t dictate every single one of their actions, but it will help if we can, like, stop this from happening again.”

“Yeah, I am gonna chalk this one up as a loss, and explain to the others about it.”

As the five of them came back down, Valentijn made a quick announcement on the PA system about Freya’s departure, and how he was apologetic and responsible for it. He then passed the PA system to Clarissa, who in turn offered Ambrosia a chance of a lifetime, or at least a chance in this dinner.

“Helloooo there, my friend!” Clarissa eagerly greeted, handing Ambrosia a microphone that is connected to the PA system in the living room, “What do you say? Would you like to go crazy on the sound system? Hm hm!”

Valentijn, in the meantime, slumped in his chair, letting out a huge sigh and looking at the curious faces around him. A fight was bound to happen, he thought to himself, no matter the amount of safety measures. He then took a look at Gwen, who was talking to that aforementioned Asian-looking man with a penchant for a burger, or something to that effect. They seemed to be having a friendly banter, which is definitely unlike the previous incident.

Interactions with Lutvikkia

Drudge Hillann made his way over to Valentijn, And attempted to get his attention.

Drudge Hillann: " Valentijn, I must say, I did not expect dragons. Ok, the huge rolling drunk threw me off at first, but we must encounter all sorts of people." Hillann straightened his cloak. "The fact that you can grow tall, I can accept that as well. But my limits of acceptance are being tested, to say the least." Hillann looked around the room for his Gadge. "Look at my companion, he has just taken in too much of the universe. But that fault lies with me, as I chose poorly my Gadge. He had just graduated, and received his status, and I wanted to expose him to other cultures, and ideas." Hillann looks at Valentijn with a wry smile. "I must tell you that you have been the consummate host and hostess. I assure you we have had a most exuberant, and pleasant time here." He chuckles. "I will cut to the chase. What is an anti magic devise? How does it work? and is it technology that you can share?" He leans in closer. "Lutvikkia has the fortune of never encountering magic, or magical nations, and we would like to be prepared for such an encounter. We currently have no defense for such a contingency."

One of Valentijn’s new-found friends, walked towards Valentijn sitting on his couch, and started talking to him. Deciding to have a little pep talk, Valentijn gently carried the man over to the handle of the couth, with his head leaning towards the man.

“Well, there are certainly limits myself! Self-imposed ones, if you know what I mean. I can grow beyond 117 meters, but… once I grew, there is no shrinking back. Not at least permanently. Valentina’s magic could work, but it’s not permanent.”

Valentijn listened in on what the man wants. He is certainly not an offensive being, one who would conquer worlds. However, for someone who he has simply met, could Valentijn really trust him? Perhaps.

“Well…” he trailed off, clearing his throat, “The AM Generator as you heard just now, is an anti-magic generator. At least, that is what it stands for. We realise that magic has mana, and stuff like that, right? You know, from the role-playing games. Some form of ethereal energy, if you will. An unusual form of energy that can manifest into many, many things. We have a very limited understanding of magic ourselves, given the technology-focused nature of us, but with the help of Valentina, and perhaps a few others, we have managed to create a device that nullifies or slows down magic in an area. It does not just affect a target. It affects a small and limited area, by neutralising the mana and ethereal energy in order to disrupt and stop the usage of magic. It’s… it’s recently out of the testing phase, and it seems to deliver promising results. But it is very unpredictable – it works perfectly well on some of the test subjects. For some… nope, not at all.”

Valentijn stopped for a while to catch his breath and recollect his thoughts, before learning towards the handle and continued talking to the man, “So err… yeah, there is that. It is not because of trust, or anything like that, I can assure you. It is simply… unpredictable. Between you and me, I certainly don’t know what will happen if we use it on Freya, other than the word-of-mouth that it just might neutralise her dragon form.”

Interactions with Hlreland

The drunk was still an entertaining sight for Germaine, who was still tending as a bartender for the night. The supply of beer and liquor was not running out, not by a long shot. However, with that Gary around, she reckoned that the man might either drink himself to death, or at least become the very embodiment of beer, having 100% alcohol content.

“A medical curiosity,” she commented to herself softly, “Too bad the man is 24/7 drunk. And foul. And unpredictable. I would love to study on what makes a man… so alcoholic, in a literal sense.”

Interactions with Kihodova Hopi

Tiffany did not seem to understand some of the words that the man himself said to her. “Askwali-” He quickly recorrected himself “Thank you.” This was then followed by another “Thank you, again.”

“Ohh, you are welcome!” Tiffany bowed a little and smiled sheepishly, “Always happy to help! I hope that you will have a great time here, despite err…. You know, what happened just now.”

He asked, “Please forgive the rudeness, but is your metallic suit for cultural reasons or are you a guard?”

That question, Tiffany thought. He was asking about the nature of her, which is more or less an indication that he does not know about robots, let alone the artificial intelligence. In what way she should try to explain this, she thought to herself.

“Ahh… well, you see, I am a little different from a normal person. Instead of flesh and skin, I am… I have metal. Instead of the usual brain and heart, I have the machine and metal variant,” Tiffany explained a little awkwardly, hoping that she will not come off as condescending that someone has never seen a piece of technology like her before.

Interactions with New Spiedska

Skinny black jeans, boots… red flannel. A strange person, or a being, fell out of the portal in the mid-air and landed a few meters away from the White House. Jolyn, Jamie, and Jenny went out again to check it out, with Angeline reading on her scanner.

“Huh, what an entrance,” Jenny remarked. Jamie looked at the list, having quite a difficult time trying to determine who that was. She tried to run around, only to stop and look at the portal above her.

“Maybe she was not supposed to be here?” Jamie wondered, “It is not that I am unwelcoming of her; I certainly would not mind her being around for the party! What I mean is… she looks rather lost. It was almost as if she was not prepared for this party.”

“All the more reason to invite her in, of course!” Angeline replied gleefully. The rest of the Valentian women agreed and with that, Jolyn and Jamie decided to go out of the gate to greet this new person. At least she looks humanoid, they thought to themselves. Jamie would be the one to do all the talking.

“Hello there, fellow visitor! Hmm, I don’t believe that we have seen you around, or in this list. Maybe my list was just not updated yet! Anyway, welcome to Valentine Z, and this is our White House? Are you here for the party?”

Interactions with Ideal Britain

The British representatives including: Sir Alexander Khan (Prime Minister), Roseena Ali Khan (Minister of Health) and Clive Lewis (Minister of Defence) and their king and queen: King Charles III and Queen Camilla arrive at the dinner followed by 4 Scots Guards.
"Greetings from Britain!" they say to any guests they see.

“Gwen certainly would not mind these folks,” Jenny remarked, as she greeted and welcomed the British representatives, whilst Jamie and Jolyn were still busy with their lost visitor from New Spiedska.

“Ahh, right, hello there, my friends!” Jenny bowed, giving her Japanese hospitality to the visitors, “I am Jenny, and this is Angeline! Welcome to the party! We are happy to have you around! Now, please come on in, and go through the security checkpoint for… security reasons.”

“Nice one, Jenny!” Angeline would exclaim a little after the British visitors made their way in, “Normally, you would have a degree of snark towards them, haha!”

“Ahh, well…” Jenny shrugged, “Sometimes, you just don’t want to be smack-talking all the time.”

by **Bloodshade** » Sun May 10, 2020 5:47 pm

(OOC: These two replies are before the Zen-Zkto'-Freya incident so if you two don't mind, you can speed it up to the current affair through your own replies)

Khoronzon wrote:Iranon let go of Ambrosia's hair as she jumped back, amused by her startled gesture. Upon hearing her yelp, he let out a soft, chiming laugh, which seemed to echo and reverberate through the air around her. There was an eerie sort of beauty to it, almost melodious in tone - yet it remained mostly eerie, perhaps because of its unnatural resonance, or perhaps because it originated from a floating spectre wrapped in black fog and multicoloured light. As his features solidified through the haze, a gentle, yet slightly mischievous, smile became visible on his face.

"Awww. Not very nice of you to call me that," he intoned jokingly, drifting slightly closer towards her. "I forgive you, though. You just had your little scuffle, and now you need some time to calm down." He continued to laugh as he spoke - indeed, his laughter seemed to coincide with his words, echoing alongside his speech - as he floated around Ambrosia in a lazy circular pattern like a shark slowly circling its prey, drifting slightly closer to her as he went on. His long, flowing hair, suspended in the air above him, billowed as he moved, and gradually shifted from black to its natural brown tone.

"Oh, silly me, I forgot to introduce myself. How rude." He darted slightly backwards, giving himself some space to perform an elaborate bow in midair. "I'm Iranon Syorin, Khoronzon's Minister of Truth and Supreme Acolyte of the Oneiros Circle. I take it you're already familiar with Narshka over there? Oh, pardon me. Narcissus." He chuckled at himself after catching his mishap, pointing towards the bar where Narcissus was seated, glass in hand, reading from Iranon's notebook, while the latter's physical body was still soundly sleeping beside him. A veil of mist surrounded the "real" Iranon, particularly around his now-invisible face and hands - which just so happened to coincide with the features that had solidified the most on the spectre next to Ambrosia. Narcissus managed to take his eyes off the pages for a moment to swat at Chimaira when the latter started crawling down his arm to drink from his glass, to Iranon's apparent surprise. He turned back towards Ambrosia, circling around her and petting her hair yet again. "It seems you two don't like each other very much. What gives? I think both of you are perfectly delightful."

A dark red aura burnt around the vampire's figure as she felt wary and vexed by Iranon's toying of her. Ambrosia kept circling along with Iranon, ensuring that he wouldn't escape her line of sight. Her mind and body were on edge. While she understood that the White House might as well be considered sacred grounds, she didn't exactly want the nebulous minister of truth to assume that she was incapable of biting back. She despised such a possibility and continued to maintain her cold, aloof demeanour and tone.

"So, what is this display supposed to achieve? Are you trying to warm up your body? Didn't meet your daily step count yet? Remember dear, one wrong move and I'm going to be feeding your innards to Rekko over there. You're not scaring anyone so why don't materialize and cut this cute special effects display of yours? Oh and no need to introduce yourself, I've heard of you but I'm not exactly an admirer."

After Iranon beckoned her towards his 'true' body, the vampire spotted Narcissus going about his merry business and she couldn't help but feel a burning sensation flood every piece of her insides. Just seeing his smug demeanour as he was enjoying a book while playing around with Chimaira. Placing Ambrosia, Narcissus and delightful in the same sentence made her tremble with a seething hatred but when she thought about it, why did she hate him?

"You know, Rainy? I have no idea. I could pin it on the thrall feed incident but if I'm being honest, your primadonna of a leader has much more despicable layers underneath the surface but of course, you'll never admit that. Can't bite the hand that feeds you and all that razzle-dazzle. Of course, I'd love to know what you like or dislike about big boy over there but you might end up provoking his ire if you say the wrong thing. Feel free to express your opinions...or not. This is a safe space after all."

Zitravgrad wrote:
Bloodshade wrote:
Salem looked rather perplexed. He had absolutely no idea who Kazimir was talking about but he knew that this mystic Orthodox was not someone the Premier had warm feelings for. The man was already ridiculing his beliefs due to his tone. Salem might've looked goofy but he knew how to pick on subtle clues such as this.

"Are you telling me that you know of a man that wishes to purchase my fur? Well then, he certainly has taste, my dear acquaintance and don't be so quick to laugh at his beliefs. Chances are that he's simply more...observant than you are when it comes to the realm of chaos. I don't mean this to offend you. Everyone's got their skills and weaknesses. If I may ask, are you friends with this Orthodox being?" - Salem

"No offense taken, Mr. Salem. I do acknowledge the notion that all men have different philosophies and ideologies -- but as you might be able to deduce from how I speak of him, my beliefs and his beliefs are fiercely at odd. He is a man of two worlds, the machine world and the spiritual world, while I prefer to stand my ground in the world where human ideas are. About your furs, I do not quite know. But I heard from some people that he has a liking for ravens and black cats, and knew very well that he is partially deafblind, which has a lot to do with his spiritual inclinations." Miroslavsky chuckled. "But one thing I could tell you is that he is no friend of mine, but rather an old acquaintance of my wife and her father."

Bloodshade wrote:
Once again, Salem couldn't help but assume an elegant, mighty posture (according to Salem's mind). Unfortunately for him, he wasn't able to subtly show off his confidence as a cat so instead, he believed he had to be as proud as peacock in order to gain respect from others such as the Premier and his wife.

"Of course you did! How could one such as myself make paltry mistakes? However, I forgive you for admitting that you were mistaken in your assumptions of the cursed warlord known as Salem."

Salem observed the Premier shift his gaze towards Ambrosia and a smile crept onto his face. Was the man mad? He would receive the blood kiss and challenge Salem for dominance. If that was the case, he would relish the opportunity to do battle with this Zitravgradian in the distant future. Ambrosia was certainly aware of herself being the temporary subject of the conversation between Salem and Mr. Mirovslavsky, prompting her to shift her attention to the Premier as he spoke his mind about the prospect of becoming immortal.

"Oh my dear Kazimir, did Salem suggest that I give you and your family the blood kiss? In any case, my heart can rest easy knowing that you are content with your own lifespan. If I might add, you've lived a rather fulfilling life! If I was a human, I'd be considered a failure! I've hardly done anything noteworthy and I'm 34 years of age!"

"Well, Ambrosia is correct. She's done nothing noteworthy but don't fall for her pleasantries. Ambrosia does love being a syco..."

Salem felt his breath being constrained and looking back at Ambrosia, he noticed that her hands were clenched and she was staring right at him with fury in her eyes. Salem doesn't seem to learn and Ambrosia just kept on having to teach him how to be decent. Ambrosia ceased her magical spell and allowed Salem to breathe properly once more.

"Anyways, you truly are a brave individual...to simply allow father time to have his way with you. Do not worry about me, life is struggle and every being has a purpose, whether it be big or small. All have a part to play, whether it be glorious or tragic. I know I was destined for greatness. I shall reach that goal or die trying. Who knows? Maybe you shall bear witness to my human form...once Ambrosia believes that I have a good heart that is..."

Salem simply snarled back at the the puppy, hoping he could fight back against his fears and scare it away.

"An excellent idea! Puppies don't belong on the table, especially one that looks like Cerberus! Have you ever met Cerberus? Did you know I once descended into Hades, you know? The otherworld of those accursed Greek Gods and lo, I met that slimy guard dog blocking my path....AGH! Back to the matter at hand, would you kindly place your puppy in an alternative suitable position?"

Amiably yet nonchalantly, Miroslavsky gave an apologetic smile at Salem's reaction to him mistakenly criticize his strategies, whether genuine or not. He found the way the black cat did a stretch amusing, but he knew he could not let his guard down entirely. Good, peaceful men didn't tend to get cursed, hurt or killed in brutal way -- this rule worked in almost every universe known.

When the Countess turned her attention towards him, Miroslavsky graciously turned to her and replied. "I do not want to start too deep a philosophical discussion, but thank you. I suppose that I have done much in forty-nine years of my life, and will continue for another half a decade." He reacted with a slight bit of surprise when Ambrosia told him her age. He knew, but it was still a little odd to imagine the concept of a young vampire. "Do not think of yourself as such, your Excellency. You still manage to be the light and comfort to many hearts and souls, as apparent here... with you being surrounded by friends... and lovers.

"But for you, Mr. Salem... I must again express my regrets that I might not be able to witness your dramatic comeback in my lifetime, and knowing the Countess, I think you will need a good while to convince her. I, too, took a considerable time ~~(OOC: and a huge retconning)~~ in convincing her I am... a little more sophisticated than she initially thought of me. Nonetheless, I have half a century left, if not a little more. My own grandparents are still alive in their late nineties and i am sure that I will do the same."

Then he stopped, realizing something; mortality, but not of his own. His smile even dropped slightly. However, he soon regained his composure when Salem was snarling at his dog. He knew the puppy was not very smart (yet) and it thought of every animal its size or slightly bigger as friendly. "You know, Mr. Salem, that I am none but a mere mortal. If I have met Hades and Cerberus even once, I might not be able to return. I assure you, though, that my puppy is not slimy."

Bloodshade wrote:
Ambrosia indeed was a bit perplexed by Feodora's talk about human engineering and she felt like it was rather rude of her to not understand the traditions and customs of Zitravgrad, considering how long she's known the power couple in front of her.

"My dear, I apologize but I don't follow. What do you mean by 'half-engineered'? I've heard of beings back home using genetic engineering to remove the chance of contracting a dangerous genetic illnesses. I have also heard of beings back in my homeland using magic to 'improve' themselves. I might be guilty of such a thing but in any case, I would never assume that I knew better than you when it comes to the future of your children! Do not worry, in the distant future, I will get to know your children when they've grown up!"

Feodora did not consider Ambrosia's question to be a nuisance, although this was so often asked of her. The concept of "Cerulean Konstruiermenschen" was an obscure topic even in her birth country. "Yes, exactly what you describe, but done to the extremes for several generations, back to some time in 1880s. I came from a proud by that I mean pretty snobbish, yes Auestriker family of thinkers and industrialists. You see, money and knowledge put together in the era of great eccentricity either made men enlightened or insane -- but in our case, I say both. At first, we were just thinking of preventing hereditary diseases but a few generations later we were creating 'the master race' -- not that all of us agree on what that means, mind you. But it my great-grandfather's meaning, it used to mean a beautiful, healthy and intelligent child of golden hair, pale skin and blue eyes, who will be raised in a loving home that will shape him or her into 'perfection'. But since I married an... uh..." She sneaked a quick look at her husband. "...~~specimen born naturally and not augmented or engineered in any manner~~ a normal person outside our given criteria, our children's genetics are only partially engineered. Some of us were born by artificial reproduction, including me."

Feeling that she had ventured too far in her family history, Feodora stopped. She did not want to sound like a weirdo, especially with so many people around (some of them even weirder than this, but still...)

Bloodshade wrote:
Ambrosia couldn't meet his gaze. Even though she occasionally prided herself on the fact that she'd outstrip the Zitravgradian in terms of age and hopefully wisdom due to her inherent immortality, she did wonder how she'd handle the loss of the Miroslavky's as well as her dear Providenskan sweetheart known as Zhen when the time comes. The fact that her lifespan would outmatch that of her Zitravgradian companions sent Ambrosia into a rather somber mood. Her facial muscles simply were not up to the task of masking her emotions anymore and a dark shadow was cast over her face as a result.

"You're certainly correct, my dear, when it comes to two things: That I should pay a visit to my dear Zhen and that a life of immortality is not necessarily an enviable one.

And of course, you're no A.I. I can't expect you to remember millions of names, right? I mean, even I can't do that...or maybe I can. I think I can if I involve a bit of magic in the mix. Well, I'm not going to prove that now! In any case, thank you, Mr. Kazimir! I apologize if I've been treating you like my personal psychiatrist. I trust you well enough to talk about such personal matters...you can say...I can mostly trust you to be honest."

With that last statement, Ambrosia sneaked a wink in Miroslavsky's direction, in the hopes of ensuring that the Premier would understand that she knew the kind of game they were playing, even if they were exchanging genuine emotions with one another. There was one thing she admired about Kazimir and it was propensity for excitement. One does not necessarily have to be bouncing around the room to be excitable but every time the Premier spoke, Ambrosia felt rather enchanted, particularly by his demeanor and tone. Still, she might've enjoyed the Zitravgradian authoritarian on the surface but who knows what that enigma had in store for her if she ever decided to delve deep into his mind.

"Well, well... dear Countess. I do not tend to have people telling their problems to me, for obvious reasons. This makes me feel... oddly importance." Miroslavsky replied to the Countess' downbeat statement with a still voice. "This seems to me like a development." For him, a harmless mind game between friends was a sign of healthy friendship. He had learned well since his teenage days that no matter how innocuous a person looked, one could not be sure what secrets he or she might be holding; and something might be better left unknown than exposed. This also applied to him. There might as well be some skeletons in his closet, but that needed not matter here or now. Ambrosia could trust him to be honest with her, since honesty did not immediately equal openness.

Bloodshade wrote:
In any case, Ambrosia's mind does not dwell for too long on one topic and she already had another topic to present to Miroslavksy and his dear wife, Feodora. However, Ambrosia's body was shivering unconsciously at the subject she was about to open up. She had always been insecure about her reproductive ability, let alone her ability to take responsibility for another person's life. A child might've been what the poor vampire needed to spark her soul but she wouldn't know without consulting the two experts.

"Sweethearts, I always wondered. I know this might be an idiotic question but I must ask, how significant have your children been in your life? I mean, how have they affected your mindset? Your personality? Did you feel like a void was filled by them? I'm just...curious. Oh, never-mind, I can never hoodwink both of you! I was just contemplating on having a child or even adopting a little sweetheart and giving her a chance at life but I'm just so indecisive. I must look rather desperate, coming to a dinner party and asking the guests for parental advice."

This was an interesting question, especially from someone like Ambrosia. Feodora let out a smile. Well, she did just explain to the Countess her family history, which one might consider controversial. Nonetheless, she was the first one of the couple to reply. "Speaking bluntly, giving birth and raising children are a great duty in the life of an engineered human. Not just for male or female, but rather all of us together. So I do, to an extent, consider my life fulfilled when our children were brought to the world. Some might say a girl becomes a woman when she comes of age or gets married, but I believe that I only became a woman when I became a mother... That might sound a little too dramatic for you. If so, I am sorry about that."

In his turn, Kazimir Ivanovich only replied: "A fair fraction of own answer would not be astray from hers. So I would rather not repeat things for you twice. But you may accuse me of insensitivity for considering children as something that fulfills social function, especially when I am a patriarch of a family that will eventually need an heir ~~preferably male one, too~~. In our mortal lives, humans like us need a successor of our material resources, of our ideals and of our fate. To procreate is a basic survival step as a race." Ending his rather cold 'rational' explanation, he gave Ambrosia a cryptic smile, as if asking if she ever felt the need for 'successor of the fate of her race'. Just some minutes ago, he protested against making deep philosophical discussions but here he was again.

Bloodshade wrote:
Now that the Nehekharan Goddess abandoned the temperamental Ausar due to the fact that she wasn't exactly a fun toy to play around with, she decided to find more stoic guests, the type that won't burst into tears or transform into a humanoid volcano when the goddess herself decides to play around. Luckily for Isis, she found two suitable test subjects. Mr. Kazimir Ivanovich Miroslavsky and his dear, demure wife, Feodora Alexandrovna Miroslavskaya. She had a feeling that those two eccentrics wouldn't escape her memory any time soon. While the endearing couple were equally enthralling, Isis's gaze tended to shift towards the Premier and she only wanted one thing from that man: To, one day, see him grovel and prostrate oneself in front of her. However, these thoughts were too premature. She was getting ahead of herself. Right now, she just had to charm the Premier and ensure that she'd linger in the deepest recesses of his mind.

Drifting towards the married couple, the deity made her presence known with a snap of her finger, as if she was commanding the attention of two innocent, lost puppies. Her demeanor was soft and simple but only a fool would believe such a description. Behind that mask, she was hiding a multitude of emotions: Desire and malevolence most notably.

"I do hope I've captured your attention. Should I introduce myself or have you already familiarized yourself? I mean, I did hurt my poor Ambrosia a while ago. I do hope you can forgive me. I just couldn't help myself from joining this grand event. In any case, as you can probably deduce, I am a goddess. You may call me Isis or Aset. You two do not have to introduce yourselves. I know plenty enough..."

"Thank Providence..." That was his first expression upon having Isis interacting with him -- thanking a deity he superfluously believed in. "I am grateful that we may get acquainted without having to do the arduous task of introduction. I have never introduced myself to an immortal before, and no school or class of etiquette would teach me how to do that." He raised his hand and nodded, implying a light bow. He had bowed lower for moral beings, or even statues or gravestones. It was a mere display of basic manners rather than respect. "About your... issue with the Countess, I cannot wholly put you at fault for something I do not know, even if I was indeed concerned about the Countess' condition."

Miroslavsky narrowed his eyes. She was guileful, and guile was the same whether attached to mortals or immortals. He did not trust her, she knew he did not trust her, he knew she knew he did not trust her, and she knew he knew she knew he did not trust her -- this little situation could be easily summed up as a loop of two people knowing or thinking they knew each other's intentions. He was not going to welcome her like he had welcomed several of his rivals whom he had taunted and tricked with politeness and social grace -- he knew she was too great a rival.

Bloodshade wrote:
The goddess's eyes couldn't help but betray a hint of hunger and for a few moments, she looked like a ravenous predator. However, she wasn't about to spoil the game so soon and decided to compose herself, returning back to her calm and collected self. Isis swiftly concluded that the Premier wouldn't allow his mind to be pervaded with her honeyed words but there was a simple solution right beside him: his wife. In an attempt to ingratiate herself with Feodora, the goddess's face softened and she sat herself right next to Premier's wife.

"Why the long face, dear? Is something bothering you? Oh dear, Ambrosia doesn't know when to keep her mouth shut, does she? She just had to speak about such a sensitive topic like family and marriage. Speaking of which, do you wish to guess how many children or consorts I have? Then again, using such terms are rather primitive. What a human might consider as taboo would be rather common in the realm of the divines but ignore my rambling dear, I simply want to remove the distress present in your heart. You think I can't read emotions? I'm sure my dear Ambrosia noticed but she's too sweet to confront you about such emotions. I am a stranger. You can certainly trust my judgement as a I have no biases and from what I can deduce, my dear, it seems like your...commitments...in life are taking its toll on your poor, innocent soul. You do know that petting this adorable version of Cerberus is not going to take all your troubles away?"

Ambrosia was watching Isis attempt to have Feodora pour her heart out but she couldn't take anymore of it. She wasn't about to have Feodora suffer at her hands.

"Ma'am, I think Feodora has had enough of your probing. If I had to define the term 'nosy' in a dictionary, I'd just put a picture of you!"

"Ambie, you can't put a picture in a dictionary. Imagine the printing costs!"

"Kazimir...Feodora...I apologize for this deity's actions...you can just ignore her...please."[/align]

Meanwhile, Feodora was completely disillusioned. She was at most an agnostic that read tarot cards to entertain her skepticism. Hence, a presence of someone like Isis would raise some questions in her mind -- not many of which she wanted an answer for. "You already spoke a lot of closed-end sentences and answered your own questions. I believe that I do not have much to speak to you." She replied emotionlessly, turning towards the goddess. She heeded Ambrosia's pleading to ignore her, and would try to do so. Even the AI Matriarch, Tsarina of All Zitravian Machines, was a more pleasant character than her. She sighed, and turned away.

If Salem had human eyebrows, he'd definitely be playing around with them right about now. That last sentence had a bit of spite involved in it, according to Salem's emotional intelligence. These two were not friends and it was rather obvious. Should he create some strife for the sake of his own enjoyment or would Ambrosia come back to chastise him? So what if she did? It was nothing out of the ordinary and besides, he needs to convince his apprentice, Frederik, that he was and still is a worthy master.

"Now, monsieur Mirov, are you sure about the 'old acquaintance' part? People don't exactly avoid one another so easily in this day and age. It's common sense. We have the technology! Come now, this must be more than just an acquaintanceship. I sense that there is more history but it seems you're either too worried to trust such information with a cat such as myself or perhaps you do not want to confide this information in a dinner setting? In both cases, it is understandable. I just wished to express my doubts. Prove me wrong if you must or confirm my suspicions." - Salem

Ambrosia couldn't help but blush in response to Miroslavsky's touching compliment. She didn't exactly pride herself on her charismatic nature but to hear that she's truly made a change? It eased the load on her heart. Her arms unconsciously wrapped itself around her body when the Premier mentioned her lover. On one hand, she didn't exactly mind that she had such significant relationships but on another hand, she knew it wasn't healthy.

"Mr. Kazimir, I..it means so much to me that you think I have been a calming presence in this party of our dear friend, Mr Valentijn! As for my lovers...Erm, I will be blunt. I understand how shameful it is to be carrying these many hearts in one hand. However, my eyes have been focusing on one person as of lately. Please keep the following a secret. It's not that I believe you'll use it for blackmail. To be honest, I have no shame but it's more so I do not break anyone's hearts. It's the Albalian dictator. She has grown close to my heart. Her strength reminds me of yours! I do wonder though, which one of you would win in an arm-wrestling competition? Hah! No worries, I jest but in any case, do not tell anyone that yet. I simply do not want to be disappointed. I worry needlessly. Have you ever had such worries? I sound like a hypocrite, jumping from one lover to another when all I want is to settle down. I've dug myself in a rather deep hole." - Ambrosia

Ambrosia overheard the Premier attempting to lend the thick-skulled cat some sound advice but she simply laughed and waved away any chance of Salem ever being free.

"My dear Premier, Salem has to be on his best behaviour for five hundred years. If he makes one mistake, I add a year to his sentence. I understand how cruel this might sound but remember, you're not speaking to a cat. You're speaking to a war criminal that has caused untold suffering to millions of people back when he was still a vampire similar to myself." - Ambrosia

Salem couldn't help but sport a malicious smirk that initially sent a shiver down Ambrosia's spine. In that split second, she had reminded the cat of his infamous past and he felt proud and haughty. However, it didn't take long for her to shoot him down with her dagger-like eyes, causing him to revert back to his original emotional state, fearing for his life due to the puppy that was still playing around with him.

"A quick question, Feodora. Blonde hair and blue eyes are most commonly seen as a sign of a perfect child but what happens when everyone is like that? What I am trying to say is, is beauty a uniform concept and a tried and tested method? In my opinion at the very least, a diversified people tend to be more beautiful than one wear we have an 'ideal' model of a man or woman. You know, funnily enough, I personally do not believe that I am beautiful. Conventionally attractive? Depends on who you ask but yes, I can fit that bill but beautiful? Maybe I'm self-deprecating myself but I doubt I fit the bill. Beauty is such a difficult thing to attain. Perhaps you can only attain it when you find your better half. Dear heavens, I sound like a hopeless romantic."

Ambrosia wasn't exactly able to connect on the same level as the Premier. When she wanted a child, she wanted one to fill the void in her soul. She simply couldn't care less about how it affects her family or country, as selfish as that sounds.

"I perfectly understand your situation but unfortunately, I simply do not share the same goals or aspirations. I understand that perhaps I am privileged to be able to say this but I simply want my child to grow and be whatever they want to be. I have no plans for them and perhaps that is for the best. Do I truly need a plan to be a good parent?"

Ambrosia's senses were overwhelmed by the scene that had just transpired. It seems that Zen and Freya were in a battle of egos. She truly didn't need such a headache as of right now. Here, she thought that Isis was the only one to give her one.

"My friends, I need to attend to this situation. Take care now and make sure that this witch over here does not get the better of you. She can and will try."

She points accusingly at Isis before dashing away, trying to see if she'll be able to defuse the situation at hand.

Finally, some peace and quiet. Isis was elated to finally have Ambrosia out of her hair and she gracefully drifted over to the couple, hovering right beside them. They were rather brave and they didn't seem to fully comprehend her power. While she never truly saw the need to boast about her own power, she thought it would be rather amusing to see their reactions.

"Oh, you're smart for a mortal, darling. You don't need to introduce yourself. I know about everyone, including Nedelykov but you don't want to hear about him, don't you? I'd just be revisiting old memories! Now then, how are Vyacheslav, Elizaveta, Vasily and Fyodor doing? Hm? You know, I could check up on them right now. Would you like to see how they are holding up? Now before you worry, I have no interest in bringing harm to your children. That would be rather distasteful. I love children. I have many of my own. Would you like me to go into detail? I am rather proud of them and I do hope you two are proud as well! They are adorable babies. Please treat them equally or else, in the future, they will cause problems."

by **Bloodshade** » Sun May 10, 2020 5:48 pm

Ambrosia felt rather dejected at the turn of events and if it weren't for Zkto's best friend, Rekko, Ambrosia might've unleashed an undesirable side of her. Besides, she couldn't help but embrace the canine for having such a considerate mindset. Her emotional state quickly recovered the moment she felt a warm presence attempt to comfort her. She most certainly didn't want to disappoint such an adorable being and in a matter of a few seconds, she realized just how frivolous this affair

"Hello? Hello! What do we have here? A cute lost puppy out to play! Come here, sweetie!"

Ambrosia couldn't help but resort to her most common move when it comes to comforting canines: The sweet chin ~~music~~ scratch. Not one of Rekko's sweet spots were left untouched, whether it be the back of his neck or his belly. Ambrosia assaulted the canine with her love and she couldn't help but treat him like the son she never had, asking him if he wanted a treat or even more cuddles, which she gladly granted. Soon enough, after a minute or so of returning the favour to Rekko, the vampire gave him a little peck on the nose before beckoning him back to his master.

"Back to master now! And...uh, if you can understand this, thank you. Thank you very much for your consideration but I wouldn't to keep you for too long. Run along now! I need to attend to the guests."

Ambrosia retracts her shoulder away from his hand, baring her fangs and growling in response to the fox's touch. However, for the sake of her public image, her facial expressions return to normal, sporting a blank, expressionless face aimed towards the culprits: Zen and Zkto'.

"Truce? What in the world are you going on about? Do you think you're fighting some sort of war? What shall we name each side? The confederation of egotistical dictators, starring Zen and Zkto', versus the league of lesbian vampires, starring Freya and Astrid? Oh hurrah! Peace has prevailed but you two just ruined an evening for a guest. I hope you're happy. I doubt you two even value me or my thoughts but frankly, I'm thoroughly disappointed. I thought you two were more mature than this but it seems that I was proven wrong once more. Oh, and as for the ceasing, you're a bit late but whatever, it won't hurt if you two keep your mouths shut."

Ambrosia looked around to see that she was leaving a few people on hold due to the drama that had ensued and decided that she'd go back to entertaining the guests that she had chatted up. Reverting back to her cheerful, approachable demeanour, she was just about to leave to attend the others but she just to leave one message for the duo.

"If you two care enough to bother me again, I'm more than willing to accept a heartfelt apology. In the meantime, I'm going to be engaging in normal, respectful conversations."

The Sultan's blunt statement about age stung her. It was a painful concept to ponder over and she wondered about how many people she'd have to watch die from old age. Such thoughts suddenly took hold of her emotions and she couldn't help but feel sour as a result.

"I don't exactly like to think about such things, generous one. It's not your fault but best avoid that topic in future conversations. I might be a vampire but I still have a heart. Moving onwards, vampires have judged me and continue to judge me for my abstinence. In fact, it's the reason why the majority of my family forget about my existence. I'm a joke to them. I do wonder, have you ever done something that has caused you to be ostracized? I'm curious but of course, no need to divulge if it's personal information."

The Countess was just about to lunge for the Sultan as he was about to fall but the nimble figure seemed to have regained his balance on his own, avoiding embarrassment and injury. He was rather quick to gloss over the fact that he was just about to fall thanks to his lack of depth perception but Ambrosia wasn't about to poke and prod. She continued to respectfully listen to the Sultan as he went into detail about how he lost his eye.

"Swords? My apologies if I sound like an elitist or gatekeeper of some sorts but what use do swords have in a modern setting such as Kafair? I'm not trying to say that one should not be prepared for close-quarters combat but why not adopt something such as a simple combat knife which would be much less unwieldy and cumbersome? That's just my two cents though. Don't take my words as an attack on your tradition! In any case, might I just add that you've been rather pleasant company? Not to say that I'd like to conclude my conversation with you. In fact, why don't you come and sit along with my other friends so I don't have to walk around? Follow me, sir."

Ambrosia beckoned the Sultan to follow her and a few moments later, she'd find him a seat alongside other notable presidents, premiers, monarchs and dictators.

"Come on over and rest your legs. You seem to need it. No offence intended of course."

After the entire commotion had subsided and everything was hopefully back to normal, Ambrosia was rather worried about how the Ausar was going to tell off the vampire for the distress that she'd caused and consequentially, Ambrosia couldn't help but feel downhearted at the prospect of being told off by Amaki. She tried to muster up some courage as she approached the Ausar, already noticing that her nerves were frayed by the incident.

"Amaki, dear, I know an apology won't exactly cut it but I do hope that you and Amara weren't too bothered by the situation at hand. It's all done and dusted with, however, and considering just how excited Amara is about my pet demigryphs, I swear on my soul that she'll see them soon enough! How does that sound, Amara?"

Seeing the 'mother and daughter' duo play around with one another made the vampire's heart flutter once more. Did she envy the Ausar mummy? Perhaps but definitely not in a malicious way. It was simply relaxing to see a functional familial relationship for once in her life. Considering Ambrosia's own flesh and blood and how they treat her, tenderness wasn't something that she'd expect from a family member so it made all the more sense that she adored the two every time they interacted in a way that was remotely sweet.

"Hey, I was wondering, there's a set of swings outside! Not to bother you but I just thought it'd be a way for me to make it up to you and Amara. Of course, don't mind me. I'm not forcing you or anything! I just..Gah...nevermind. In any case, the offer still stands if you're interested! You know, you must be parched! Should I go get you and your little tyke a drink? Any preferences? Non-alcoholic of course!"

Blodrike wrote:Sheesh, what's gotten into everybody here? Freya thought. What had started out as a pleasant date with her vampire girlfriend, had quickly turned sour thanks to Zen's trash talk. Now, that in and of itself wasn't a big deal—frankly, she'd been called much worse things in the past. And she'd been confident, without a doubt, that this little fox wouldn't leave so much as a scratch on her. But still, vampires of her kind weren't exactly known for restraint or self-control. In fact, Freya was an exception in that she embraced some human traits, and Ambrosia even more so. So it was in her nature to lash out, in response to anything that aggravated her. And in her eyes, Zen had clearly deserved to be put in his place.

Too bad for the poor creature, everybody around her seemed to think otherwise. Freya could feel the mounting pressure of disapproval in the room, as all eyes were drawn to her. Even her girlfriend had refused to side with her, as if she'd completely forgotten everything Freya had just told her about herself. Naturally, Freya was feeling quite hurt and upset by this. And though she couldn't bring herself to snap back at Ambrosia, neither was she going to be bossed around. So she'd done the only thing she could to make everybody back off: transforming herself into a massive fire-breathing dragon.

Unfortunately, opposite of what she intended, this had just drawn more hostile attention to the enraged Freya, including a threat to restrain her powers with an Anti-Magic Generator, whatever that was. That was the last straw. All thanks to being the target of an insult that was entirely uncalled for, Freya felt that she was now being ostracized by the whole assemblage of guests, for simply having the backbone to stand up for herself. Very well then! If this was how they wanted to play their game, they'd have to play it without her. Because Freya, having had enough already, had decided that she wasn't going to stick around any longer.

The dragon made one last statement to the room: "When I first came through this door today, I had but a single wish: to enjoy an evening with a few of my friends, undisturbed and in peace. It was my first time giving social occasions a chance, and I had high hopes for it. Unfortunately, it's also going to be my last time. Not even halfway through this event, I was met with all sorts of insults and name-calling out of the blue. And all of a sudden I'm the bad guy, just because I stood up for myself. Is this any way to welcome a guest? Fine then, have it your way. If y'all don't want me here, and can't accept me for who I am, then there's no point in me staying. I'm out of here."

With that, Freya began to glow once again. The dragon was swallowed in a huge ball of light, which shrank until it was human-sized. When the light disappeared, the vampire had returned to her regular self. She went back to the table to bid farewell to her friends: Ambrosia, her black cat, Kazimir and Feodora, and their three-headed puppy. There was also Fredrik the snake, but Freya couldn't have care less about it.

Ignis States wrote:As Zen tries to comfort Ambrosia, two things immediately catch his attention: Freya turning into a massive dragon..and the new arrival telling him off. Zkto, was it?
As he slowly turns to the man, briefly glancing over at the dragon and nodding to confirm the truce...he first begins to snicker...then outright laugh.
This guy managed to stand up to his own wit! This is unprecedented, something he’s almost never seen before!

“Well, well! I’ve hardly even met you, but you’ve already put me at a loss for words! I’d come up with a cutting response, but...well, I believe our hosts would hardly want that.”
The fox slowly turns to the four Valentinians, his smile giving way for a neutral frown. Time to be somewhat diplomatic.
”My gracious hosts, I believe I should call an end to this feud. I’ve said all that needs to be said and far more than that. I don’t want to upset Ambrosia any more than I already have. I also don’t wish to have my magic shut off, since relying on this body with technology alone...well, I’ve done it until a month ago, but that’s so boring, is it not? So you haven’t a worry from me.”

With that, he turns back to Freya once more, simply raising an eyebrow in response to the transformation.
“For the sake of all here, I agree to a truce. I won’t start any beef, so to speak...I doubt it’s what our Countess would want anyway.”
With that, he turns back to Ambrosia, the vulpine’s expression changing to a far more sympathetic, vulnerable one.
“Once again, I’m so sorry, Ambrosia. I didn’t mean for this to end up so...well, inflammatory. I’ll cease now, for your sake.”

This time, the Ignisian actually puts his hand on her shoulder, though he’s ready to move it off in case...Yknow, she wants him to kindly not.

After Freya and Zen's little squabble had drawn everybody's attention to the pair, and Freya had done her magical thing, Zen finally agreed that he'd play nice, if only for Ambrosia's sake. But it was a tad too late to make Freya change her mind about leaving—that ship had already sailed. Now in her regular form again, she walked over to Zen. "I appreciate it, pal," she said. "But I've got to go, 'cause everybody here's out to get me now."

Finally, she made her way over to her girlfriend and the Miroslavskys. "I wish I could stay with you guys longer," she said with sadness in her voice. "It's a terrible shame that I've got to go. But I don't think I could stand these people any longer. So I guess it's goodbye for now, my friends. I hope we'll all meet again some other day. But until then, farewell."

A glowing white portal appeared out of the air. Bjørn and Olav, the two guards, marched in and vanished from the room. They were followed by Astrid the Chief Computer, and her pet owl Googol. Freya was the last one. But just as she was about to step into the portal, she paused and turned around, heading back over to Ambrosia. "I'll miss you, honey," she said, wrapping the other vampire in a hug.

(OOC: I'll let Ambrosia have a chance to say goodbye before Freya leaves.)

Ambrosia felt rather respondent due to the fact that nothing she could say would keep the vampire present in the party. It seems that the damage had been done. Ambrosia's heart sank, trying to think of how she could've approached the situation differently but there no point in crying over spilt milk. What's done is done and if Freya and Astrid's pride were hurt by the other guests, they had every right to leave. It was rather logical to Ambrosia. If there's a leech on your skin, it's best to remove it rather than endure suffering for the sake of another. Would Ambrosia have done the same thing in such a situation? Probably not but she wouldn't blame anyone else. Perhaps the vampire had over-estimated her own worth in this situation. Such thoughts raced around her mind and she couldn't help but feel like a meritless being in such a situation. It was best not to think about it any further, lest she burden the guests with her worries. She simply mustered up a positive yet sombre demeanour as Freya bid her farewell, returning the embrace that her dear friend offered her way.

"And I shall miss you as well. You don't have to stay for me if you're feeling uncomfortable...but you've already decided anyway so that statement is rather redundant. In any case, take care now and I wish you and Astrid a pleasant rest of the evening!"

Blodrike wrote:"That's quite an epic list of achievements you've got there, Captain Salem," said Fredrik. "A shame that it all came crashing down. Don't you just hate it, when you've spent hours or days making that perfect plan, only for it to be thwarted by some goody-two-shoes? Well, I can relate to that too. I was one of Queen Freya's bodyguards, her favorite in fact. I was her star player, her big gun. You couldn't count the number of times I put myself in harm's way to save her butt. But after all that I've done for her, that witch wouldn't give me a single kiss, not even on the cheek! So one day, I decided that if she wasn't going to come to me, I'd go to her. I waited behind a tree at the lake where she'd go swimming every day. When she got into the water, I stepped out and asked her if she'd kiss me. But as soon as she saw me, that wretched woman turned me into a snake! And that's how I ended up like this."

Now, this wasn't the complete truth—in reality, Fredrik had been cursed because he'd jumped in the lake with Freya and tried to rape her. But he feared that Salem would see that as a horrible thing to do, even for a mastermind war criminal, so he kept that part out of his narrative. After all, Fredrik needed to get Salem on his side, and had to convince him that the curse wasn't deserved.

"I'd cry too if I could, but snakes like me don't have any tear ducts. This life is such a miserable one, always eating nothing but rats day in and day out, and having to avoid being eaten by birds. I know for a fact that Freya won't have any pity for me, but what about Ambrosia? Do you think she could release me, I mean us, from our curses? What about other powerful wizards and witches? I'm sure there are quite a few around. We just need to know where to find them."

***

With his acute reptilian sense of smell, the talking snake could sense that both Ambrosia and Freya were in an agitated state, even though he couldn't hear them clearly from where he was. Then he saw the blinding flash of light, and before he knew it, Freya had turned into a dragon! "Oh dear," Fredrik said. "It looks like that witch is getting mad. We'd better find a place to hide!"

Fredrik quickly slithered from his spot and ducked behind Zen the fox, where hopefully Freya wouldn't notice him.

Fredrik's stinging comments hurt the feline criminal to the core. Crashing down! Of course, his glory days are over! He's a cat now and he now has to serve a pathetic master that still outclasses him in every aspect of strength. There was no way to free himself from captivity. He was nothing but a mere house cat and he'll be staying like this for another five centuries or so, depending on his behaviour.

Salem couldn't help but stifle a feline giggle after hearing about how the snake was cursed eternally. Was that queen that irritable or was Fredrik just receive the short end of the stick? Regardless, it wasn't his place to judge the former bodyguard. That's not how you earn allies.

"Oh my dear...my dear Frederik...look, I won't blame you. All winners lose due to unfortunate events or...not so well-thought-out actions but that's alright. We can perhaps remedy this. Mages are not gods. They make mistakes. Your witch does not frighten me. If I was in my prime, she'd be mincemeat I tell you...Frederik! Come back here! Mistake number one! You have displayed your fear in front of your mast...I mean partner in crime! She's a dragon, so what? If she was going to hurt us, I wouldn't even be here. I'd have run out the front door and taken a cab! Get away from that furry degenerate! Frederik, this is not how we should behave! Come back here!"

Salem couldn't believe his eyes. Is he going to be working with someone like that from here on out? The feline couldn't help but quietly sob as he cursed himself for the situation that he was in. He didn't deserve this. He just wanted to rule the world, create his own ideal image of what society should be like. What would that be? He has no idea because he never had the chance to rule.

Just as Salem was about to flop onto his back and ponder about his life choices, he overhears that Freya was about to depart the party and his soul burnt with new vigour.

"Frederik! Get back here and rejoice! The witch is leaving! Now search for your courage! We have work to do...or you know, we can enjoy ourselves. We are guests after all."

The Valentian Dinner – The Second One! [IC / CLOSED]

Post 9 – Stop the lights!

Post 10 - Unforeseen Consequences.

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