Gizmo
-
Posts
11,085 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Freedom City Guidebook
Freedom City PBP: A How-To Guide
Gallery
Events
Everything posted by Gizmo
-
"I've sometimes wondered about Sharl's brain period but-- ha, no, Eira," Kimber clarified with a short laugh, more than happy to change the subject even if the topic was still personal. "You could sort of argue liking girls is part of why I went to Jotunheim. And just between us the last couple of years were very good to Koshiro. Remind me to find the pictures." Carrying a phone around with her wasn't really practical most of the time, not when her relative corporeality charged from moment to moment. The phantom floated a little lower in the air and unfolded her legs, letting her feet hang just above the floor next to the uploaded Swede. "But no, I realized I can like boys and girls before the forging. And that I definitely have a type but we're not talking about that until your older, I think." She paused before tilting her head to one side slightly and studying Eira's expression. "Er. Unless you had... questions? About... that sort of... stuff?"
-
Winifred had quickly gathered the items Riley had described into the cheap, shapeless backpack the Academy had provided her with, taking ginger care with the slightly yellowed plastic baggy containing a few preserved photographs. She looked down at the discarded phone with pursed lips, exchanging a look with Merlin before picking it up. "Ah, glad you're on the mend as well, Smith. We'll be there presently." Hanging up the phone without the caller ever having gotten a chance to reply she hefted the bag over one shoulder. She shook her head once, willing herself to alertness before heading out of the dorm room.
-
"The-- yes. Yes, of course." Winifred's hand went across her eyes again as she took several long, steadying breaths, turning her chin away from the phone in the hopes of concealing the sound from Riley. She knew the box he was talking about and silently cursed herself for not having thought to get its contents to Robin without needing to be asked. It was a question of details; she was meant to be good at details. She could feel her heartbeat accelerating, cheeks colouring in a manner that wasn't entirely natural while blood pounded in her ears. It took a moment to realize that the young man on the other end of the line had asked something else. "Mmh. It would be extraordinarily ill advised for anyone to attempt to stop us." The alchemist unceremoniously upended her backpack and dumped her own belongings in a head onto the bed before extended the hand holding the receiver toward Raina, gesturing for the blonde to take it from her.
-
"Oh, for... It's open, Sanderson!" the exasperated call came from inside the room, Winifred's clipped accent muffled more by a haggard edge than it was by the heavy wood of the door. Inside Raina found the shorter girl looking as rumpled and weary as that tone had implied, holding the receiver of the room's landline with one hand and motioning for a moment of silence with the other. The pyromancer was pretty sure the alchemist was wearing the same outfit from the day before - it wasn't as if Winifred's wardrobe was particularly extensive to begin with so it could hard to tell - and she'd have been surprised to hear that she'd gotten any sleep at all the night before. The backpack sitting on the bed had been stuffed with the few possessions that would have normally occupied Winifred's half of the room; it looked as though she'd been planning to spend the night elsewhere. "It's Smith," she explained, covering the bottom half of the phone, "calling from the hospital. Yes, she's here." Removing her hand from the phone she rubbed at her tired eyes before squaring her slim shoulders and doing her best to smooth out her outfit now that she had an audience.
-
"Scenic," Erik observed dryly, a token effort at his usual banter while most of his attention was focused on the crumbling buildings around them. He wasn't sure how likely they were to run into more of the violence that had ruined this city but it certainly didn't look like anywhere he wanted to get caught out in the open. Adjusting his grip on his luminescent blade he loved almost as silently as Talya, picking his way across the uneven terrain while keeping an eye on sight lines from the more intact windows and rooftops. "Do we know anything about this place other than 'they have giant old timey robots'?"
-
"Can handle it," Trevor assured her, making a small gesture with his free hand while loosening some of his rice from the edges of the carton. "Just need to set clear parameters. Limit... shenanigans to Earth." He paused for a moment, brow furrowing slightly before he added, "This Earth. I'll ask Joe to 'help' plan, maybe. Worst case scenario, bring you back a Mars rock." He suspected that any situation inebriated reality warping got them into it could also solve since there was no way Mark would let anything get in the way of the wedding happening but their collective stress levels probably wouldn't benefit from giving him too much free reign to begin with. "Assume Alex has had your party planned since roughly ten minutes after meeting you?"
-
The sense of warm welcome Eve received from the Constable matched the handshake he gave her. She supposed a sufficiently empathic species would have had little use for deception; she wondered how much of Dorah't's reputation for forthrightness stemmed from that. A moment of consideration was followed by a strong wave of curiosity as the interstellar anthropologist quickly caught on to what sort of question the Frenchwoman might have in mind. He obviously had a number of questions himself about that piece of the local culture but politeness won out easily as he offered her a broad smile. "As you say, Miss Eve. That'd make me J'ou, then." The way he pronounced his own name was distinctly different than the way she'd heard it from humans, his peculiar accent becoming more obvious for a moment. "I know nobody's using our training room just now. Don't go spreading it around but its got a few bits of tech from back home worked in there so big gals like Elizabeth can cut loose. Simulate any environment of which you might conceive, to set the mood." Becky gave the extraterrestrial a quizzical look but Eve got the impression that this wouldn't have been the first time her girlfriend had found his train of thought difficult to follow. "I wasn't really thinking about that sort of work out just now but it is pretty cool," she told Eve with a shrug. Having seen the castle-topped-skyscraper the Martel heiress owned she was wary of setting expectations too high for the True North base but it might be nice to be the one showing off state of the art facilities for once.
-
"Cielo." Erik dusted off the knees of his much remarked upon pants as he stood up then held his right hand in the empty air above the idol. Immediately motes of light began to flicker into view over the artifact, a kaleidoscope of colours that intensified as they rose in a tight spiral toward his waiting fingers. Within moments the crumbs of magic had been coaxed into a roiling sheet of luminous power, coalescing into a broad scimitar that oscillated between the bleeding edges of ultraviolets and infrareds. The metamagi hefted the blade judiciously, impossibly thin at its edge and made up of the same energy that allowed the idol to bridge the space between realities. "The Force is strong with this one, remember?" Sauntering over to the old, disused door he gave a flourish with the colourful blade before bringing it down decisively though the rusted lock. The corroded metal offered no more resistance than water might have and with a second slash the bulk of the mechanism dropped to the floor. "I'm saying I'm a rakishly handsome amplifier, Frost," Erik added, glancing over to the Russian as he treated the wound on his hand. "Dunno how much blood you can lose but let's maybe call finding out Plan B, is all." With that he drew back a booted foot and gave the door a resounding kick.
-
"Rock." Rather noisily the stone behemoth made a second, more successful attempt to get back to his feet and moved to stand next to Eclipse with only a minimum of weaving. Addressing Frankan, he tilted his head quizzically to one side, an action that caused a pebble dislodged by Jessie's blow to fly off to the right with an audible pop. Raising his empty hands in front of himself he added, "Rock." The hard ending on the syllable sent a dribble of red hot magma dripping from his mouth where an mammalian lip light have split from being struck, the substance hissing against the bar floor where it landed and pooled. Wiping it away with the back of his wrist he enunciated carefully and clearly as he brought his point home. "Rock."
-
Is there anything stopping Erik from just cutting through the lock and/or door?
-
"Technically, given infinite-- Hn." Trevor thought better of discussing multiversal theory any further after taking in Erin's expression. "I know," he hastened to clarify, holding up his chopsticks defensively. "Terrible idea. Obviously. Only..." Glumly, he poked at the contents of his carton before looking up and giving his fiancé a vaguely sheepish look. "Was very excited. Even for Mark." He'd seen his friend soldier through trauma that would break a lesser man utterly but quashing one of his less manageable fancies still always felt a bit like kicking a puppy. In this case it was a little more complicated than just saying no. "Was going to ask him to be best man, seems like it would be disappointment now."
-
"That actually sounds a lot like something the old man's side of the family would do, honestly," the fencer admitted as he went back to feeling out of the loop over the oblique contents of the letter Ace had left. He nearly opened his mouth to object to following Dimitri's orders on general principle before grudgingly moving to deal with the door. Erik wasn't sure whether or not the old vampire was still trying to needle him or purpose as an ongoing test but campy affectation aside taking steps to avoid interruptions was a reasonable suggestion. The Russian wouldn't get a rise out of him either way. "Are you going to be alright for anoth-- Dios, man!" He started to check in with Talya before wincing reflexively at the self-inflicted wound. "That can't be the best way to do that."
-
A well timed mouthful of rice bought Trevor a moment of time before answering that question. He considered briefly postponing by defending Jessie and Aquaria's relationship before deciding that it probably wasn't the optimal time for that conversation. Considering the overall situations of the pair of Project Freedom alumni he generally considered their codependency to be surprisingly functional more than anything but he wasn't an expert on the relative 'weirdness' of interpersonal relationships to begin with. Swallowing, he resigned himself. "Mark... found out he could certify online to officiate weddings." Further clarification as to the inherent issue seemed unnecessary.
-
"No reason Murdock couldn't wear a suit, stand with you," Trevor pointed out, reluctantly stepping away and getting a seat of his own as he took the takeout carton. "Corsage the same colour as bridesmaid dresses?" The big, somber cyborg was someone Erin trusted implicitly and that was a very short list indeed, short enough to easily outweigh any concerns over tradition if it came down to it. "Was planning to ask Redbird to be a groomsman anyway." It was pretty close to the machine intelligence's job description, after all, albeit with hopefully less violence. "Don't think Jessie would enjoy standing in front of people," he frowned, warming a bit to the planning now that he'd begun to frame it less as a social event and more of a troop deployment. "Could... ask how she feels?" That seemed unlikely to happen but he felt the need to at least make the suggestion. Swallowing a mouthful of fried rice, he gave Erin a sidelong glance and coughed quietly. "Ah, Mark had a... thought. About the ceremony." There was a brief pause before he quickly clarified, "Didn't say yes."
-
"You'd really think but the pants aren't any more effective than Talya's voodoo doll curse thing," Jack snorted, immediately dropping his adopted persona once the matron began making excuses for Ace. "Save your chilly breath, Corncob, he's not here any more." He might have only had a quarter of the life experience of the veterans but the West Ender knew people and he knew body language. The Jungle Room's hostess was trying to cover for the loss of a star attraction. He didn't really want to think too hard about what that attraction must have entailed to garner Ace immediate name recognition with the local police but that was beside the point. "Look, sorry to be playing games with you but it sounds like you already know how flaky Danger can be, yeah? And you're probably at least a little annoyed with him on account of, y'know, having met him. Can you tell us how long ago he left or where he was headed? We'll get out of your hair."
-
Trevor accepted the breaded chicken with a thoughtful sound from the back of his throat, managing against the odds to avoid getting any sweet and sour sauce on his clean shirt. "Hnh. Was thinking reception for social obligations, smaller service for people we actually like?" He'd been weighing the possibilities since the florist had suggested it and he was increasingly confident that they could pull it off. His public persona had enough smattering of recluse to it to make it an easy explanation and after putting in a requisite appearance they'd be able to abscond. "Have bridesmaids picked out?" He wasn't sure how large a wedding party they'd been planning and with some chagrin he realized that he might have to start digging deep into his short list of close associates to come up with more than three or four groomsmen.
-
Between the kiss, promise of coffee and the way motor oil wasn't phrased as a complaint Trevor has given ample reminder of exactly why all of the wedding planning was ultimately more than worth it. "Mh. Need to ensure proper atmosphere," he agreed with a flat deadpan that broke into a small smile as he watched Erin walk away. After what would have been impressively close to exactly ten minutes had anyone been bothering to time it he came back down the main staircase with towel-dried hair and buttoning up a fresh, pale blue dress shirt. Finding Erin again he wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his chin on her shoulder, obviously glad to be home. "What do we have so far?" They'd already spent a fair amount of time with the binders of material Alex had provided but usually managed to either find sometime more pressing to deal with or else resolved to mull over the options and decide another day.
-
Jack of all Blades Erik has +24 Bluff and Skill Mastery, so!
-
Looking more ready to collapse into bed for an hour or two than make important decisions, Trevor gave his fiancé a faintly wounded look before working a knot out of his shoulder with a forceful roll and nodding resolutely. "Four minutes," he promised, allotting an extra minute over how long he could normally shower and change when in a rush; it had been a long day, after all. Pausing in the doorframe between the foyer and the living room and letting the duffel bag he was carrying drop to the wooden floor the dark haired engineer quirked an eyebrow almost imperceptibly over his sunglasses. "Unless you wanted to join me first." It probably would have been more flattering if Erin didn't know him well enough to suspect further postponing the wedding planning had factored into the genesis of that idea.
-
Erik gave Talya a reproachful look as he suffered nobly through Dimitri's exaggerated innuendos and mannerisms. After hearing it in that tone of voice he felt like he needed wash his codename to get the slime out of it. Still, if they were following Frost's lead he supposed he'd better help sell the bit. "Entertainment, Doctor? Confidentiality or not, I don't know how you can make jokes," he bristled with convincing moral outrage. As he turned to the matron he stepped closer to Talya and put an arm around her shoulders in a fraternal gesture while his other hand - by appearances unconsciously - moved protectively toward the blonde's midsection. "Please, it's very important that we speak with Mr. Danger as soon as possible." If the Russian was going to play the unscrupulous back alley physician, the fencer could pull off desperate and naive well enough.
-
"Hey, I defer to your greater experience at being disliked on sight," the younger man agreed with all due deference, placing his palms together and bowing slightly in Dimitri's direction while keeping pace with Talya. As he straightened he tucked his hands into the pockets of his greatcoat and took in the local scenery, noting how the city changed as they entered what was evidently 'the bad part of town'. What law enforcement in one neighbourhood said about another wasn't always accurate and rarely flattering in his experience but if they were going to be attacked by roving gangs of gladiator movie extras he wanted to see it coming. "So we're going to like a strip club or a brothel or something, yeah? 'Cause if the Jungle Room is actually a greenhouse I don't want to say the wrong thing to some poor gardener."
-
Jack of all Blades / Jill O'Cure (13) Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting (1) Unpredictable Magic (1) The Taxman Cometh (3) Exes and Ohs (8) February Vignette - Walk Through My Garden Forever Midnight II (1) That's Rough, Buddy (1) February Vignette - Ready to Begin Ghost Girl (2) And He Built a Crooked House (1) Honestly a Barbarian (1) February Vignette - Love in the Dark Set / Sekhmet February Vignette - Let's All Go to the Lobby Rock / Nae-Dae (4) Our Space is Vast (4) Reagent / Alkahest (4) Bulls on Parade (4) GM / NPC (6*2 = 12) Time Out (1) Act of Union (5) Ref point and rollover can go to Reagent.
-
Jack's shoulder's stiffened under Frost's arm, partly from the cold and partly from vaguely defined revulsion. "Sometimes I remember that your job is literally being an ambassador and I just have... so many questions," the swordsman muttered out of the corner of his mouth before fixing the local constabulary with a dazzling smile. "Sorry, oversharing, I know! He's a talker, this one. Lucky he's got his looks to fall back on. Kidding, I'm kidding!" If they were going to look like a ridiculous collective of weirdly tiny people with assorted accents he figured they might as well lean into it and shoot for comically nonthreatening. Even if he was already doing some mental arithmetic to gauge how quickly someone with the officer's muscle tone could likely swing that axe he wasn't actually angling for a fight, not when Gina Espadas' favourite son could get by on charm. "We'll try not to be a nuisance, haha! Speaking of nuisances, though, really; Ace. Ace Danger. Familiar at all? He's usually tough to miss."
-
Becky opened her mouth to tell Eve to ask away but the clipped sound of hard-heeled boots coming around the corner of the hallway followed by a polite cough interrupted her. "Ah, pardon me Miss Rebecca, Madame Renarde." Taking his stately white hat from atop his head, J'ou Dorah't, the Cosmic Constable, looked very much in danger of turning an even brighter shade of red. He pronounced the vowels in Eve's codename with a flat, anglophone inflection but there was something in his accent that would have been difficult to place on Earth. His classically square jawline and crisp uniform gave him an air somewhere between military officer and storybook prince, somewhat undercut by the way he was focusing his eye just over the top of Becky's head in an effort to afford the embracing lovers some measure of privacy. "Coyote suggested someone ought to come greet you since Elizabeth was bound to be busy. Didn't intend to disturb the moment." "I'll have to remember to thank him," his junior teammate drawled, reluctantly letting her girlfriend back down onto the floor. "I don't think you two have met before?" "Haven't had the pleasure," the Constable confirmed, taking a smooth step forward and extending a hand to the Frenchwoman with a smile that extended to the glossy, ivory orbs of his eyes. To Eve's senses the chagrin that had been rolling off of him was quickly supplanted by a sense of calm confidence and earnest interest that she took to be his natural state. There was a something else as well that took her a moment to hit upon; while the extraterrestrial-Canadian wasn't a telepath as she would have defined the term he certainly had palpable empathic abilities she could feel passively probing for the best way to move past the faux pas and make her feel welcome.
-
With a sound like a minor avalanche the great hulking mass of stones Jessie had laid out stirred, groggily sitting up and bringing his hands to either side of his head. With a pair of loud, grating cracks he readjusted the interlocking boulders that made up his necks and blinked blearily between the Terran sitting in a pose of abject surrender and the one making a case for her friend. Glowing magma still dribbling down his chin and making a scorched mess of the barroom floor, he grated out with an odd lisp, "'Ooock." Skittering about to make way for her friend's movements, Nae-Dae gaped at him before scowling anew. "What're you even going on about?! You get a concussion, didja?" She circled about to perch atop his shoulders, careful to avoid his scaling lifeblood. "Izzat what happened? You gone stupid?" Reaching around with one hand Rock eventually located what was left of his crumbling lower jaw and shoved it back into his face. The stones stuck where he placed them, cracks flowing with magma as he worked it back and forth experimentally. "R-r-rock," he answered the diminutive mechanic before turning and giving Jessie a rather painful looking grin and a friendly wave. "Rrrock." "I don't care if 'she seems sorry', gravel brains!" Nae-Dae objected, emphatically waving her rocket launcher in the air with a flagrant disregard for firearm safety. "She bloody laid you out! Now you think we oughta help 'em run from the bloody Lor? Stupid!" "Rock," came the calm reply as the mineral mercenary attempted to get to his feet before swaying unsteadily and falling back to the floor with enough force to knock a few errant glasses off of tables in a wide radius. "Well it's a stupid suggestion, is what it is."
