[Nexus] CURATOR I: The Evil Has Landed

[The Alexandrian]

[Village of the Reptile-Folk]

The lizard-women communicate using an odd blend of body language and vibrations. Will's message is probably properly received by Liz.

She doesn't say anything along the lines of "You're welcome!", though. That is a word seldom used in Liz's culture. Instead, Liz tilts her muzzle downwards and grins at Aurea.

"Do you really care about what is or isn't polite? I don't."

Then, suddenly, Tiff emerges from a nearby hut. Judging by the way she is walking, she's a tad intoxicated already. That's not good.

"Hello down there! Can you hear me?"

>.<

Meanwhile, Liz is attempting to slide closer and closer to Rein before attempting to hesitantly rest a hand on Rein's right shoulder. She's never touched one of Reinholdt's breed before...

-----
[CURATOR HQ - Central Lodge]

"I'm not actually this small or harmless. Not usually, anyway."

The puppy, clearly embarrassed, yips adorably before she begins to pad down the stairs.

"I'm what you might call a monster when a certain part of me awakens. We don't want that. It results in people being hurt, and that's not good."

Not good at all.

The puppy is a monster...

[Reinholdt]

[Village of the Reptile-Folk]

"I don't think it matters either way." Reinholdt replies to Aurea, before taking another sip of his alcohol and glancing at Tiff.

"We hear you."

And then shoulder touches! Reinholdt flinches just a bit, before scooting over to the right to get the shoulder touching to stop. He's not that intoxicated yet.

[Lady Serpentine]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

Will puts himself in whatever the proper stance is for an apology, so that she'll see him that way when she gets close enough to.

[Devixer]

[HQ - Central Lodge]

"I get the feeling I should be more surprised than I am." Kenneth shrugs at the realization. A monster-puppy isn't as crazy when you're dead. "I suppose we should take care of that music."

[Lady Serpentine]

[Village of the Reptile-Folk]

"I don't think it matters either way." Reinholdt replies to Aurea, before taking another sip of his alcohol and glancing at Liz.

"We hear you."

And then shoulder touches! Reinholdt flinches just a bit, before scooting over to the right to get the shoulder touching to stop. He's not that intoxicated yet.

((Actually, it was Tiff that said that. She came out of another hut.

Which is why Will is in apology-stance right now; that's the one who threw him.))

[Reinholdt]

Typo. Edited.

[Zefir]

[CURATOR HQ - Driveway]

"I don't think that#s a good sign Boss. We should stop them ."

[FireFox]

[Village of the reptile-folk]

Aurea sets the radio and her drink down, starting to feel a little uncomfortable about the whole "everybody get hammered" plan. She leans towards Reinholdt and speaks to him in the common language. If it is your intention to become highly inebriated over the course of this evening, I would like to speak with you in private before your memory and higher cognitive functions become impaired.

[Reinholdt]

[Village of the reptile-folk]

"Hardly. I know when to stop drinking. But if we have something to discuss..."

Reinholdt turns to the lizardpeople. /"Excuse us for a moment."/ Reinholdt says in their language, before going to follow Aurea.

[FireFox]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

Aurea finds a secluded area and wrings her hands while she composes her phrasing. If we are to be colleagues collaborating in the field as members of CURATOR, it is my opinion, based on personal experience with dig sites as well as a multitude of scholarly articles on the subject of cooperation, that we should trust each other. My behavior towards you recently has been egregiously unprofessional as a result of certain irrational fears and preconceived notions of mine and for that I sincerely apologize. In the interests of facilitating a better working relationship between us, I am prepared to fully explain who I am and how I came to read a modestly comprehensive intelligence file on you. Her long-winded, highly nervous speech peters out and she looks down at the ground. Will you accept this conciliatory gesture?

[Reinholdt]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

Reinholdt blinks a bit, processing the sudden spew of words.
"I'm sorry would have sufficed. But yeah. I accept." It's odd... not being the one apologizing. He sighs a little.

"I am fearful and curious about this intelligence file. Mostly curious. So then, you mostly know who I am, I think. Who are you?"

[FireFox]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

She frowns, still unwilling to make eye contact. My name is Aurea Chrysos. I am a Golden Dragon whose egg was stolen by an evil cleric who was going to experiment on it--on me. I was rescued, raised, and adopted by a man you know as Tobias.

[Reinholdt]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

Reinholdt works very hard to not facepalm.
VERY HARD.
Wondering just how many daughters Tobias had anyways.

"I see." He says, expecting that she would likely continue on.

[FireFox]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

More than you know. But Aurea was the first one to be played onscreen and my third HALO character after Tobias and Sam, so don't get mad at her.

I am a member of a... think tank composed of various individuals Tobias respects and trusts. Analysts from his intelligence agency, military special operators, civilian intellectuals such as myself from various scientific disciplines. We work on a project that assesses... the closest people Tobias has to friends. And we come up with plans to neutralize them if they turn into a threat. I suspect it is because he is highly paranoid and has been betrayed by someone he trusted in the past. You are one of the people the project was asked to look at.

[Reinholdt]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

"How flattering..." Reinholdt says in a deadpan voice.

He can't be too mad at Tobias though. It's not like he actually let's Tobias too close to him for the same reason.

Still...

"And how did you go about assessing me, might I ask?"

[FireFox]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

Aurea finally looks Reinholdt in the eye. Judging by the steely stare, he's not going to get any classified information out of her. The same way we assessed my father when he told us to develop a plan to incapacitate him if he were to turn Evil.

Toby, the quintessential boy scout, likes to be prepared for anything. His paranoia is probably close to the level KR or Remnant are at.

[Reinholdt]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

Reinholdt starts pacing.
"Oh yes. The 'he's so noble, he'd sacrifice himself!' trip. Don't push that BS on me. Not right now. He hasn't earned the right."

Reinholdt pauses to stare at Aurea. "Was your assessment correct? Am I everything you thought I was? You ready to take me down in a moment's notice?"

[FireFox]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

No, it is not like that at all. For one, I am not a combatant. But you... we did not assess you as a likely threat to Vulpania. Nothing in your file indicated that you would harm an innocent civilian. Although your file was smaller than others and almost completely filled with Tobias' personal experiences with you... He said you are far from the monster you are made out to be. Aurea looks at him worriedly. The think tank could not come up with a psychological profile, so she has no idea how he is going to react. But she is starting to wonder if he's going to attack her.

[Reinholdt]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

"Well I have one thing to add to your file then."
Reinholdt pauses for a moment, before hissing out, "He's wrong."

Reinholdt turns to head back to the group proper, stalling only long enough to glance back over his shoulder. "I appreciate your honesty."

Regardless of her response, if any, he heads back to the lizard people, giving no further words to her. He doesn't even pick back up his alcohol.
"Please show me to where I will be spending the night. And NO the answer is NOT in your tent." He says, giving Liz a pre-emptive glare.

[The Alexandrian]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

Tiff does indeed note Will's apologetic stance, but she merely casts him a curious look. Her mind has not registered Will as her assailant. Not yet, anyway. So long as Will keeps his tail away from her inebriated hands, she shouldn't catch on to her previous encounter with Will.

"What's that look for? Did I offend you or something?"

Meanwhile, Liz is stunned by Reinholdt's tonal qualities! She's also standing in the exact same spot where Rein and Aurea left her. She blinks several times as the dinner preparations conclude. She begins to rapidly wave her hands in front of her in an attempt to mitigate Rein's obvious rage.

"Woah there! You all will be staying in my lodgings. I don't sleep at night. I patrol the perimeter. If you don't like those accommodations, you could make use of one of the other tents we have available, but they're not of the same caliber as my own."

-----
[CURATOR - Main Room to Driveway]

The puppy monster (dubbed "Madame" by Kenneth) will lead Kenneth into this area where Kenneth will probably catch sight of the oncoming convoy (described by TE and Mind) and Percilia-prime and Mister C sitting in a nearby jeep!

Speaking of which...

-----
[CURATOR - Driveway]

"You can say that again!"

Blam, blam, blam!

Percilia-prime shoots her gun at the firetruck's front window with deadly accuracy, attempting to blast whatever might be driving it with bullets launched from her .45 Magnum as she speaks!

[Reinholdt]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

"No. That'll be fine. Lead the way." Reinholdt says to Liz.
Guess the answer WAS her tent.
She totally cheated on that answer though.

[Lady Serpentine]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

"No, though it is possible that I gave offense to you. We met earlier, in the forest, and I would like to apologize for my actions."

[Devixer]

[CURATOR HQ - Driveway]

Kenneth simply absorbs the scene, for now. He isn't aware of much that he can do without a long setup. Guy can't even run.

[Zefir]

[CURATOR - Driveway]

"You can say that again!"

Blam, blam, blam!

Percilia-prime shoots her gun at the firetruck's front window with deadly accuracy, attempting to blast whatever might be driving it with bullets launched from her .45 Magnum as she speaks!

[CURATOR - Driveway]

"Well I expected this."

After all Mr. C knows that his boss is a bit violent. Good thing he is no human, he would feel sad about this.

[FireFox]

[Village of the Reptile-folk]

After Liz leads Reinholdt off to her tent, Aurea rejoins Will and Tiff. She takes a large gulp of her drink, then stares morosely at the ground.

[The Alexandrian]

[Village of the Lizard-folk - Liz's Humble Abode]

Liz will attempt to lead Reinholdt to a gigantic, cone-shaped tent with a radius of twelve feet, give or take a few inches. It is a simple thing composed of brightly-colored, red animal pelts stretched tight around a frame of wooden rods. It is securely tethered to the ground by all manner of rope and sinew. It is a very primitive sort of lodging, but Rein will have to put up with it for one night. That doesn't sound so bad, right?

"Well, that is where you'll be staying for the night. Try not to destroy it."

"..."

"Don't you want to eat supper before you turn in?"

Liz inquires. It would be quite odd to her if Rein were to pass up a meal.

-----
[Village of the Lizard-folk - Commons]

Tiff stares hard at Will for a good minute or so, endeavoring to recall when exactly she first encountered him. It awhile to finally find an answer.

"Oh! You were the one with the tail! I just thought that one of the young males slipped into our territory without my knowledge of it."

Just then, Aurea returns. Tiff cues in on her mood immediately and attempts to comfort her.

"Your mate being an idiot, I take it."

Well done, Tiff. Aurea probably won't find that comforting at all.

[Lady Serpentine]

[Village of the Lizard-folk - Commons]


"I was indeed the one with the tail. My apologies if you felt as though I intended to threaten you. I was attempting to check for injuries."

[FireFox]

[Village of the Lizard-folk - Commons]

Aurea thinks about her father and both what she said to Reinholdt and his reaction. Then she nods to Tiff in agreement. He is being rather irrational.

[Reinholdt]

[Village of the Lizard-folk - Liz's Humble Abode]

"I'll survive, thank you."
He'll just eat from his storage in hammerspace. Nothing like a good cooked meal, but it suffices.

[The Alexandrian]

[Village of the Lizard-folk - Liz's Humble Abode]

"You seem upset."

Liz astutely observes in a very motherly tone.

"Is there any particular reason why you don't want to dine with your mate and your friend?"

Quite strange this action is, yes?

-----
[Village of the Lizard-folk - Commons]

Tiff lets out a sigh of relief in response to Will's statement.

"Good. We didn't need one of those savages running loose in our territory during the daytime."

In a similar fashion, Tiff replies to Aurea, resting a hand on her hip and taking a swig of alcohol before proceeding,

"Males can be such primitive fools. Lucky for us that our males are very sensitive to light. We only have to put up with their attitudes during breeding season, and so long as they only send envoys into the camp, everything is goes along just peachy-keen."

What a weird culture!