Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
This thread is for the more Serious Plots in Nexus that people don't think really pertain to a particular location.
Rules
- Use [Location Tags] or [Plot Tags] in your posts.
- Each location or plot is under the control of its creator.
- Play nice and keep the drama low. Serious Plots is just a name.
Archive
This thread is managed by Gulaghar. He will create the new thread when this one reached 50 pages. Please contact him for updates to the OP.
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Shadowcaller
[The Fabulous Croupelt's Falling Circus]
Astrana applauds every act in the show, but attempts to come off as more restrained in her expressions as she sees the crowd around her. She wasn't going to fall into mob-mentality here, but she certainly didn't want to come off as too stiff either, it was a impressive show after all, even to an old carny like her. They certainly didn't have any of these effects, despite her attempting to help them with some pacts.
As she considers what they must have done for all this to work, she is suddenly interrupted by Val. "...oh, tempting but I'm still recovering from flight here." She says with a smile. "I'm afraid I'm going to have a heart attack just watching anyway."
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Murkus
[The Fabulous Croupelt's Falling Circus]
"Ah! Here we are," the lights come to a stop, warm and blinding, directly upon Astrana and Valente. "Would one of my brave and lovely assistants please join me on stage...?"
One of the beak-masked acrobats, still swinging about with idle grace on red ropes and tangled ribbons moored somewhere up in the dark, sways out toward Astrana and Valente. Something up above seems to move the rope with her, and she flips herself upside down, wrapping her legs and thighs around the rope and extending a hand to Astrana and Valente. She is smiling, pale and lovely, beneath the frame of her mask. "Trust me," she murmurs. "And grab on tight."
Thankfully she ceases swinging for the most part - she simply hangs from the newly repositioned rope, slim and lithe, dressed in tattered frilly finery.
[The Fabulous Croupelt's Falling Circus]
Oh! Val blinks in surprise when they're singled out. Oh geez, now he's uncomfortable with all this attention. "Ah..." He looks uncertainly at his girlfriend. "Astrana?" She's much more comfortable with this sort of attention.
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
[Queen’s Parlor]
”I would offer support, but I know these things are final.”
She pauses.
”For the record, if my sister has been spending Time to make this happen does it count as murder? Consideration for the court.” she says, though the spiders don’t really have those, do they?
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
[The Queen’s Parlor]
”Just wanted to know if I ought to be leaving any remains if my sister attempts to stop me.” she says with a shrug. She had not been sure if the Queen’s comments about CLO’s Time had been saying that he had been using it to prepare, or hasten the Queen’s demise.
”Well, I think that’ll be it. Thank you for everything, Your Highness.” Sarina says, with sincerity.
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Gulaghar
[The Fabulous Croupelt's Falling Circus]
Oh! Val blinks in surprise when they're singled out. Oh geez, now he's uncomfortable with all this attention. "Ah..." He looks uncertainly at his girlfriend. "Astrana?" She's much more comfortable with this sort of attention.
[The Fabulous Croupelt's Falling Circus]
Astrana smiles as she comes into the spotlight, even if she feels like frowning. Were they really the best-looking people around here? Since she couldn't think of many other reasons to why they had been selected otherwise. Prettiness was very important on stage, regardless if they were actually a part of the troupe or not. Indeed, her troupe always had a actor in the crowd just in case there weren't any pretty people in it or they were performing a special magic trick.
"Grab on, Val. It'll be fine." She assures, even if she very much preferred cursing right about now. "Just listen to what they say." She urges Val to grab on, before she does as well, intending to cling on for her dear life.
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
[Cloud Palace]
Luvon raises an eyebrow at Steve's answer, more of in disappointment than surprise. "My alignment is now officially considered Neutral Good. Everyone else still thinks I'm lawful. Alignment is considered a very big thing where I'm from."
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
[The Wode]
Sarina...actually smiles at that. For the first time in basically ever, the Queen saw fit to compliment her. Without delay, with newborn confidence, she scurries away to the Queen's great web. She sprints in the most old-fashioned of ways, out of fear that trying to bend the time it takes to travel would attract the notice of CLO. She waves to the soldier on the way out.
"Guess I wasn't needed." she bluffs as she goes.
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
[The Wode]
Sarina will try to pull on the threads of fate to bring Rose to her, but there isn’t time if they want to get the jump on CLO, which is why she doesn’t go visit her in person. If Rose doesn’t get there quickly Sarina will have to do it herself. But she’s hoping Rose can step up.
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
[The Wode]
Sarina lets out a breath of relief and skitters over to Rose.
”Rose, the Queen only has a few hours left and CLO is trying to grab her web for himself. She entrusted me to make sure proper succession happens. CLO will kill the rest of us to stay in power, Swords is genocidal, and I’m the young upstart. It has to be you, Rose. I didn’t, Well, I thought you’d like the idea.” she rattles off quickly.
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
[The Wode]
Sarina shakes her head.
”Rose, please. I already had to collapse a timeline over this. Maybe not you, but at least I know hat I was planned for removal. And besides, don’t gamble on it. And don’t you want to be Queen?” Sarina all but begs her. Things would go sour fast if Rose has as little ambition as Sarina.
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
[The Wode]
”Oh, but Rose! Think of what you could do with it all. All the gardens you could make! Oracle will keep things all dreary. I don’t know if it’s either of our times, but I know it’s not mine and the Web doesn’t have room for two. Oracle will probably live as long as we do at least. This is the only chance you get.
And I really don’t want to go into exile, Rose. I like being here, being your sister.” Sarina insists, trying to inspire Rose with the vision the Queen showed her. And possibly also causing it.
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Shadowcaller
[The Fabulous Croupelt's Falling Circus]
Astrana smiles as she comes into the spotlight, even if she feels like frowning. Were they really the best-looking people around here? Since she couldn't think of many other reasons to why they had been selected otherwise. Prettiness was very important on stage, regardless if they were actually a part of the troupe or not. Indeed, her troupe always had a actor in the crowd just in case there weren't any pretty people in it or they were performing a special magic trick.
"Grab on, Val. It'll be fine." She assures, even if she very much preferred cursing right about now. "Just listen to what they say." She urges Val to grab on, before she does as well, intending to cling on for her dear life.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Gulaghar
[The Fabulous Croupelt's Falling Circus]
Oh! Val blinks in surprise when they're singled out. Oh geez, now he's uncomfortable with all this attention. "Ah..." He looks uncertainly at his girlfriend. "Astrana?" She's much more comfortable with this sort of attention.
[The Fabulous Croupelt's Falling Circus]
The girl grabs them both at the wrist with an aberrant strength and lifts them from their seats. The rope above is shifted, swings, and their acrobat aims it with a twist of her body. Together the couple will be carried to the stage, and deposited near the fabulous Mr. Croupelt.
"My darling ladies," Croupelt bends at the waist, sticking out his butt, and attempts to give each of them a kiss on the back of the hand. Though they feel the touch of lips, his face is never seen. "I had so hoped I would see you both again before the night was through. What luck have I."
"And what luck must favor the pair of you, given your good fortune to personally take part in one of our crowd favorites. Ladies, please, the boxes!"
The acrobats return. They descend from above, riding on the sides of oddly rounded crates bound up in that same red string. As the girls step lightly off, the string uncoils like a living serpent, depositing all three of the wooden booths onto the stage. The girls all smile beneath their masks and take a bow, standing beside their chosen charge.
The boxes left by the acrobats are a dark rust colored wood, elaborately carved on their front sides with inviting scenes of feasts, orgies and open-armed lovers. Looking closer, one might be able to discern that some of the attendants and personages depicted have the bloody-mawed heads of giant insects. All the boxes appear to be identical, and are faintly circular in shape, the sheeny grain of their toughened frames standing out starkly. All have a door at the front.
"Look here! See the simple sawed sarcophagi. See the truth of them," says Croupelt, stepping forward, ripping open the door to the center box with a good deal more force than seemed to be necessary. Inside is a dark, cramped space with a single wooden stool. "This box, and one other, is empty. The third box holds treasure, of a sort. Preciously fragile treasure."
Something bangs on the inside of the rightmost box. Croupelt extends his hands to either side in a 'what can you do' gesture. "Noisy treasure, too," he says. Well bred, well fed, and darkly humoured laughter bubbles up from the audience. "But that won't spoil our trick."
The mysterious Croupelt extends his hand to Astrana, palm up. The rabbit's fur glove looks glossy in the gaslight. "If you would step forward, my dear, and choose a box. I'm partial to center stage myself, of course, but by all means take your pick."
Once Astrana has chosen, provided she's still willing to go along with the show, she'll be directed to step inside. The door will close behind her with a booming clap of oaky finality. It's a little claustrophobic, but not necessarily uncomfortable... and it is almost completely silent. The murmur of the crowd is completely gone, and Croupelt's booming voice is a muffled mumble. Valente is left alone outside with the magician and the many dozens of staring eyes.
"Now see here! Our strongman, who a good number of you street-folk have already met this night--" Croupelt extends his hand to the back of the stage, where the towering, raggedy flea-person from earlier appears with a trumpet's call and the sound of shattering glass. "Belfidius!"
"Belfidius is not only our porter and strongman, the taciturn backbone of our little production... he is also a talented juggler!"
The giant squats down on his haunches, scooping up one of the wooden spheres and using the frame as a handle. In the same motion he passes it to his other hand and seizes the next, and the next, and suddenly they're hurtling between his outstretched arms, leaping high over his head, passed from hand to hand again and again.
"See here, folks! See him well!" Croupelt sounds like he's about to ask for some applause, but a good number of the folk in attendance are already clapping uproariously, if not at least politely.
Inside the tiny, silent wooden prison, Astrana will be none the wiser. She's not moving, she's not being given instructions... it is simply stuffy and boring.
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
[The Fabulous Croupelt's Falling Circus]
Val is somewhat stunned standing on stage, the very picture of someone who's not that keen on having so many eyes upon him. At least he's not the center of attention. Speaking of which, Astrana getting in the box is all in line with what he'd expect, but when the strongman comes out and starts to juggle the boxes, his jaw drops open in shock. The logical part of his mind realizes there's some trick or spell here, but still.
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
[The Wode]
”You have to do it here, at the Queen’s web. He’s not here yet. Which means you can start first, and I can put trap runes all over it.” Sarina says with a smile.
”Nothing lethal, obviously. I don’t want to kill him. Not if we can help it.”
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
The Wode
”I’ve never met Kypriot. I have goodwill with Grandmother we can probably pull. I’ve heard nothing from Swords. Roth is on my side. I haven’t heard from Riades in ages. If we’re lucky the Queen will have told them to not interfere. But probably she didn’t.” the Queen has been in a strangely helpful mood today...
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
[The Fabulous Croupelt's Falling Circus]
Guess Astrana has to wait around then. She had been in similar tricks before and knew the general trick to them, hopefully she wouldn't be in danger...
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
[The Wode]
Sarina lays little hidden trap runes all over, Keyed not to go off for her and Rose and shock everyone else. She also channels lines of power to enhance her own casting should she cast any magic in person.
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
[The Wode]
Sarina frowns. Rose isn’t back yet. She’s kind of important to the plan.
She doesn’t want to set CLO off just yet though. So she just raises an eyebrow at the little puppet and waits for Rose or it’s master to show up. But she also makes sure she doesn’t do any more magic with it watching.
Re: Serious Plots 7: Why so srs?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Shadowcaller
[The Fabulous Croupelt's Falling Circus]
Guess Astrana has to wait around then. She had been in similar tricks before and knew the general trick to them, hopefully she wouldn't be in danger...
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Gulaghar
[The Fabulous Croupelt's Falling Circus]
Val is somewhat stunned standing on stage, the very picture of someone who's not that keen on having so many eyes upon him. At least he's not the center of attention. Speaking of which, Astrana getting in the box is all in line with what he'd expect, but when the strongman comes out and starts to juggle the boxes, his jaw drops open in shock. The logical part of his mind realizes there's some trick or spell here, but still.
The boxes whirl and jump, faster and faster, swapping in their order every so often as they go. Then Belfidius finally sets them down, one at a time, clunk-clunk-clunk. Two of the crow-masked women step forward at Croupelt's gesture and offer two items to Valente. A large paintbrush dipped in heavy red grease-paint and an actual sword, gleaming with deadly promise. They look large and strange in the tiny performer's hands.
"Now for the game," breathes Croupelt. Louder, he tells Valente and the crowd, "Choose, my dear. Time to choose. Into one box thrust the blade. On the next, paint your mark. This marked box belongs to you, and you may keep whatever is captured within. The final box is ours, and its contents will remain here. With us."
The crowd is suddenly silenced, held in breathless anticipation. There are a few mutterings amongst the people who boarded from the street, but the strange people who came by air are utterly, eerily hushed.