The Roost 2: Come for the coffee, stay for the cosplay

[FireFox]

In the Blue Zone of Inside is a cozy little place that, aesthetically speaking, combines a Persian Coffeehouse with something like the European Café. It does this by having a large central room for dining and social gathering--where customers can have breakfast or desserts while playing games, telling stories, and meeting new people--and a line of tables and chairs on the sidewalk outside the building--where people can drink their coffee and engage in the traditional Italian pastime of spending your entire lunch hour(s) people-watching--as well as the quaint wood stove behind the counter. One entire row of tables inside the main room have a different game on each wood surface: chess, mancala, cribbage, a deck of cards with chips, along with some more modern tabletop games. Some of the staff have built their own Magic the Gathering decks after that game proved popular and may play games on request. If you want to play this niche Earth card game but have better uses for your money (such as using it to tip your waitstaff), you can borrow a premade deck for a game. A short hallway off of the main room leads to the restrooms and kitchen, which in turn leads to the back office, locker room, and break room. A pair of French doors opens onto the adjacent "gift shop".

The owners and operators of the Roost (a paranoid thief, a battle weary vampire, and a dude who has been laboring in food service for way too long) have worked hard to make their Café a safe place, a refuge of casual fun in the dark insanity of the Nexus. Everyone is welcome and social activity is encouraged, while violence will not be tolerated. No, really, it would be a bad idea to start a fight here. Ally and Aiden are both 3rd Dan black belts in Hiding-behind-Naku-jitsu. And you know who loves coffee? Law Enforcement Officers love coffee. Would the management here go so far as to bribe LEOs with free coffee and doughnuts for faster response times? Let’s not find out.

This particular establishment has a quirk, in that the waitstaff dress up in different costumes. Which makes this a cosplay cafe. The typical maid outfit is the default, but Naku and Ally agree upon special theme days and then generally tend to do whatever they want. The guests and patrons are welcome to come wearing their own costumes, but the average Nexus PC's attire is practically a cosplay unto itself. Please do not sexually harass the maids, or Naku will make her next outfit with your skin. Especially if the patron happens to be Nargacuga.

The gift shop is a pawn shop. Ally is spreading the word that she'll buy anything. Dire rat pelts (20), arms and armor you upgraded from last level-up, precious gems, all the clothes and sundry items looted off of murder victims heroically slain monsters, the bottom line is: if you need some quick cash and have a bunch of stuff filling your inventory, come here! The stuff will then be reasonably marked up and sold to anyone interested, along with basic adventuring supplies like healing potions and the whatnot. Capitalism, ho!

Spoiler: Menu

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Coffee
Coffee is Aiden's specialty. The blend that he serves is a pure blend of Jamaican Blue Mountain arabica coffee, brewed in a french press. Because of the meticulous brewing method of choice, coffee is not served in varying sizes, though customers can add sugar and creams all they like. But they'd be doing a disservice to the flavor of the coffee itself if they did - rather than the stereotypical bitterness of coffee, the drink served here as a much more earthy, rustic taste.

Actual Food
Breakfast Food
If somebody orders a familiar breakfast item not found on the menu, chances are good that they'll get it.

(Note: These are not the actual descriptions of the foods on the menu. They're just what Aiden really wants them to be.)

Spoiler

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Eggs – “Yep, they're eggs. You can get them cooked however. Served with hashbrowns and sausage. You know the drill.”

Omelet – “Eggs, now with meats and cheeses inside. What a twist.”

Pancakes – “Oh come on. You know what pancakes are. You can get them with little berries, with syrup, maybe chocolate chips if you're stupid.”

Vanilla Crepes – “Pancakes for jerks. Filled with whipped cream and strawberry sauce.”

Quiche – “For those of you that can't stand eating your omelet like a normal person.”

French Toast – “It's just bread, eggs, and milk. What's so French about it?”

Cinnamon Rolls – “Naku told me to put a picture of some tiny anime character I don't care about here. If you see it, then they've killed me and you should be pressing charges right now.”

Omurice (that staple of cosplay cafes with the maids writing cutesy messages on top with ketchup) is listed on the menu as well, but Aiden charges extra for it because he hates the idea of someone writing cutesy messages on food he makes.
Naku has recently been purchasing fresh seafood from a spooky, feverish young woman in the harbor district of Inside who is a fishmonger like her father and mother before. These fish, along with whatever other ingredients Naku can get her hands on, are made into sushi and offered to customers looking for a weeaboo experience Oriental cuisine.

Desserts
In the evening, Ally offers a wide variety of sweets that she’s baked herself. They’re very inexpensive and made with love, but don’t taste any better than the store bought pastries previously offered. Hopefully cute girls in cute outfits will help satisfy your sweet tooth.

[Mee]

[Cold Morning]

Sweet breakfast, nice. Wallace takes his first bite and eplains to Naku. "As far as I know, hypnosis causes only normal sleep. Not some centuries-long magic sleep. So if you're already tired, hypnosis may cause you to sleep for many hours. But if you're well-rested, you'll only sleep for a few minutes, right?" He wondered if Naku even had to sleep, being a vampire and all. Or if she could grasp the concept of sleep in the first place.

Cold Morning

Aaaah, that fresh new thread smell.

"Oh, that makes sense. So that's what the swirly thing was trying to do?" Naku does actually have to sleep. Not terribly much, but she does. She was also a human before she was a vampire, so might actually almost be offended by if he were to ask if she even understood sleep. "I'm sorry it seemed to have affected you as hard as it did."

[Cola]

Cold Morning

Aaaah, that fresh new thread smell.

"Oh, that makes sense. So that's what the swirly thing was trying to do?" Naku does actually have to sleep. Not terribly much, but she does. She was also a human before she was a vampire, so might actually almost be offended by if he were to ask if she even understood sleep. "I'm sorry it seemed to have affected you as hard as it did."

[Cold Morning]

Wallace lifts an eyebrow. "Why would you be sorry for that, Miss? Was it your fault somehow?" He takes another bite and speaks while chewing. "I heard that those hypnodsics are pretty unreliable. Did it not affect you as well?
Also, care for a Magic rematch? Once I'm done eating, that is."

[Mee]

[Cold Morning]

Wallace lifts an eyebrow. "Why would you be sorry for that, Miss? Was it your fault somehow?" He takes another bite and speaks while chewing. "I heard that those hypnodsics are pretty unreliable. Did it not affect you as well?
Also, care for a Magic rematch? Once I'm done eating, that is."

Cold Morning

"What? No, of course it's not. I'm just sorry that it happened at all." Naku says, waving one hand slightly in a kind of apology for the misunderstanding. "It didn't. Most things like that don't. The vampires back home, from what I've seen, are much different from the ones here.
Back home, they are the" the emphasis she puts on the word is nearly palpable. "apex predator. As such, most sort of mind affecting things just . . . don't work. From what I gather, they -- we --," she has to correct herself. "just leave no psychic signature. So the mind affecting things just can't find a target to affect.

That said, sure. I'd love another game."

[Cola]

Cold Morning

"What? No, of course it's not. I'm just sorry that it happened at all." Naku says, waving one hand slightly in a kind of apology for the misunderstanding. "It didn't. Most things like that don't. The vampires back home, from what I've seen, are much different from the ones here.
Back home, they are the" the emphasis she puts on the word is nearly palpable. "apex predator. As such, most sort of mind affecting things just . . . don't work. From what I gather, they -- we --," she has to correct herself. "just leave no psychic signature. So the mind affecting things just can't find a target to affect.

That said, sure. I'd love another game."

[Cold Morning]

Wallace picks shuffles the zombie deck that's still sitting on his table. Some cards seem to have changed. Probably because his player can't find the deck on tappedout.net anymore and has to think up random zombie cards now. ((I'd rather not play out this game card by card. Playing only by text and meory gets confusing after a while.))

"Maybe that's the reason those vampires are the apex predator. One weakness less to exploit. One way less to counter them, to say it in game terms." A burning question forms inside his mind. "Saying the apex predator sounds like they are almost unbeatable. How did you manage to eliminate them down then?"

[Mee]

[Cold Morning]

Wallace picks shuffles the zombie deck that's still sitting on his table. Some cards seem to have changed. Probably because his player can't find the deck on tappedout.net anymore and has to think up random zombie cards now. ((I'd rather not play out this game card by card. Playing only by text and meory gets confusing after a while.))

"Maybe that's the reason those vampires are the apex predator. One weakness less to exploit. One way less to counter them, to say it in game terms." A burning question forms inside his mind. "Saying the apex predator sounds like they are almost unbeatable. How did you manage to eliminate them down then?"

Cold Morning

((No worries! That was rough, and did take a lot of posts.))
Naku begins shuffling her own deck.

"For sure." Then she falls silent for a few moments, focusing on shuffling her cards. "They are nearly unbeatable. Usually, the best thing to do is run. They're rare, and you can sometimes get away. Usually it's more effective than simply standing and dying.
Otherwise a few options. The first few fights we ended up winning were sheer numbers. Looots of people died that way though.
The other times came down to much smaller numbers, but also weapons. Our weapons are . . . special, and were designed specifically to kill vampires. Then you just train. And you train. And you train. And if you get caught and have to fight, you just do your best, while praying your friends have your back.
Sometimes you can win that way. Especially because they're all loners, and we, as the surviving humans, never went out if we weren't in groups. Teamwork and specific weapons was really what it came down to.

I also feel I should clarify: when you say 'how did we manage to elimiate them down', we didn't. They won."

[Cola]

Cold Morning

((No worries! That was rough, and did take a lot of posts.))
Naku begins shuffling her own deck.

"For sure." Then she falls silent for a few moments, focusing on shuffling her cards. "They are nearly unbeatable. Usually, the best thing to do is run. They're rare, and you can sometimes get away. Usually it's more effective than simply standing and dying.
Otherwise a few options. The first few fights we ended up winning were sheer numbers. Looots of people died that way though.
The other times came down to much smaller numbers, but also weapons. Our weapons are . . . special, and were designed specifically to kill vampires. Then you just train. And you train. And you train. And if you get caught and have to fight, you just do your best, while praying your friends have your back.
Sometimes you can win that way. Especially because they're all loners, and we, as the surviving humans, never went out if we weren't in groups. Teamwork and specific weapons was really what it came down to.

I also feel I should clarify: when you say 'how did we manage to eliminate them down', we didn't. They won."

[Cold Morning]

This game, Wallace always keeps one or two destruction instants and sorceries in hand along with a few untapped swamp, so he could counter Naku's powerful legendaries and flyers. Although the rate at which he throws down new zombies is slower than last game, he attacks far more relentless with them. His zombies could more or less reliably come back from the graveyard. Naku's blockers... well, hopefully not so much.

"Whoops, forgot to delete that 'down' after editing my lines. I know that the vampires won. But you said you used to be a vampire hunter. That kind of implies that you managed to kill at least a few of them. That's what I meant.

Also, did more of these vampires other than you find their way to the Nexus?" That question was more out of curiosity than worry. He had no doubts that there were weapons out there that could easily dispatch them, even if their wielder had a comparatively low power rating.

[Mee]

[Cold Morning]

This game, Wallace always keeps one or two destruction instants and sorceries in hand along with a few untapped swamp, so he could counter Naku's powerful legendaries and flyers. Although the rate at which he throws down new zombies is slower than last game, he attacks far more relentless with them. His zombies could more or less reliably come back from the graveyard. Naku's blockers... well, hopefully not so much.

"Whoops, forgot to delete that 'down' after editing my lines. I know that the vampires won. But you said you used to be a vampire hunter. That kind of implies that you managed to kill at least a few of them. That's what I meant.

Also, did more of these vampires other than you find their way to the Nexus?" That question was more out of curiosity than worry. He had no doubts that there were weapons out there that could easily dispatch them, even if their wielder had a comparatively low power rating.

Cold Morning

Oh nooooooo. Wallace found her deck's main weakness! It's slow to get rolling, and its creatures are expensive. She does what she can, but in the face of the kill spells, early game attacks, and apparently just starting with a fairly bad hand, Wallace likely takes the prize this game.

"Oh that's all good. Though if I did say specifically vampire hunter, I do apologize, that is incorrect. I was a Hunter. Capital H. Werewolves of various flavors, vampires, zombies, orcs, gargoyles, giant spider . . . The whole gambit. I have killed more than a few vampires though, yes. For me, it comes down to that I'm one of them now, so their strengths are mine. Combine that with I still have my anti-vampire weapon, and I spent a lot of time hunting them down, even after I was," she pauses here, and sighs slightly. "you know. Bitten."

"Just me. There was one more who showed up briefly, but I believe he returned there."

[Cola]

Cold Morning

Oh nooooooo. Wallace found her deck's main weakness! It's slow to get rolling, and its creatures are expensive. She does what she can, but in the face of the kill spells, early game attacks, and apparently just starting with a fairly bad hand, Wallace likely takes the prize this game.

"Oh that's all good. Though if I did say specifically vampire hunter, I do apologize, that is incorrect. I was a Hunter. Capital H. Werewolves of various flavors, vampires, zombies, orcs, gargoyles, giant spider . . . The whole gambit. I have killed more than a few vampires though, yes. For me, it comes down to that I'm one of them now, so their strengths are mine. Combine that with I still have my anti-vampire weapon, and I spent a lot of time hunting them down, even after I was," she pauses here, and sighs slightly. "you know. Bitten."

"Just me. There was one more who showed up briefly, but I believe he returned there."

[Cold Morning]

They totally just played an entire game of Magic in the time it takes to speak 15 sentences. Or the other way around.

The start of game 3 doesn't go by far as well as game 2. Wallace had a number of swamps on hand, a lot of powerful cards, but nothing that costs less than 4 mana. If a zombie deck doesn't get rolling early, it most likely won't be able to get rolling later either.

"Humans getting attacked by pretty much everything. That sounds a little like Innistrad." As an ardent Magic fan, Wallace's brain just couldn't help itself but make that comparison. "Except that in Innistrad, the humans aren't extinct. And the vampires there are all undead. And there are no orcs in Innistrad. Ok, maybe that comparison was just too hasty. Kind of reminds me of my own world, too. Living surrounded by wilderness, having to deal with wendigos, amaroks, thunderbirds, mothmen and chupacabras. We held them in check quite well, though.

You always sound so bitter when you mention that, Miss. Did you lose something by being bitten?"

[Mee]

[Cold Morning]

They totally just played an entire game of Magic in the time it takes to speak 15 sentences. Or the other way around.

The start of game 3 doesn't go by far as well as game 2. Wallace had a number of swamps on hand, a lot of powerful cards, but nothing that costs less than 4 mana. If a zombie deck doesn't get rolling early, it most likely won't be able to get rolling later either.

"Humans getting attacked by pretty much everything. That sounds a little like Innistrad." As an ardent Magic fan, Wallace's brain just couldn't help itself but make that comparison. "Except that in Innistrad, the humans aren't extinct. And the vampires there are all undead. And there are no orcs in Innistrad. Ok, maybe that comparison was just too hasty. Kind of reminds me of my own world, too. Living surrounded by wilderness, having to deal with wendigos, amaroks, thunderbirds, mothmen and chupacabras. We held them in check quite well, though.

You always sound so bitter when you mention that, Miss. Did you lose something by being bitten?"

Cold Morning

Well, Naku's deck was very slow, and Wallace was aggressive early. So it's actually feasible that they did that.

This time though, Naku actually gets a hand with enough land, and two of her cheaper creatures, and has a much better time of things.

"Innistrad, at least, has angels though. And ones that, if I recall correctly, at least try to help out. Until they go crazy, but that's not the point." Then Naku chooses to just address his second point, mostly by blinking at him a few times.

Was it not obvious? Maybe it wasn't. What had she lost? What hadn't she lost?
"I . . . I mean. I lost my friends. I lost my family. I lost my home. I lost the trust of everyone around me. I lost the person I . . . really really cared for. Me turning also caused a fairly large group of us Hunters to get entirely wiped out, nearly halving our defenses, and letting anything that wanted to roll in right over our walls.
The only things I had left were my weapons -- this sword, and the gun I keep under the counter --, my armor, and a burning desire for any sort of vengeance I could get."

[Cola]

Cold Morning

Well, Naku's deck was very slow, and Wallace was aggressive early. So it's actually feasible that they did that.

This time though, Naku actually gets a hand with enough land, and two of her cheaper creatures, and has a much better time of things.

"Innistrad, at least, has angels though. And ones that, if I recall correctly, at least try to help out. Until they go crazy, but that's not the point." Then Naku chooses to just address his second point, mostly by blinking at him a few times.

Was it not obvious? Maybe it wasn't. What had she lost? What hadn't she lost?
"I . . . I mean. I lost my friends. I lost my family. I lost my home. I lost the trust of everyone around me. I lost the person I . . . really really cared for. Me turning also caused a fairly large group of us Hunters to get entirely wiped out, nearly halving our defenses, and letting anything that wanted to roll in right over our walls.
The only things I had left were my weapons -- this sword, and the gun I keep under the counter --, my armor, and a burning desire for any sort of vengeance I could get."

[Cold Morning]

With the starting hands in Naku's favor, the third game becomes an epic battle, lasting many turns and piling both graveyards high.

No, to Wallace it was not obvious. Naku had mentioned being bitten in that regretful tone two (or three?) times before. So Wallace had assumed the bite itself had been the dramatic event, not what had happened while Naku had been distracted by someone digging their teeth in her neck. Or maybe a bite from that kind of vampire caused people to hulk out and destroy everything they care about, that is also a scenario Wallace could imagine.
He definitely understands that this must be a touchy subject for Naku, though. "I see. Sorry for asking.", he apologizes, unconsciously avoiding eye contact.

He finally draws a really good card and immediately brings it into play.

[Mee]

[Cold Morning]

With the starting hands in Naku's favor, the third game becomes an epic battle, lasting many turns and piling both graveyards high.

No, to Wallace it was not obvious. Naku had mentioned being bitten in that regretful tone two (or three?) times before. So Wallace had assumed the bite itself had been the dramatic event, not what had happened while Naku had been distracted by someone digging their teeth in her neck. Or maybe a bite from that kind of vampire caused people to hulk out and destroy everything they care about, that is also a scenario Wallace could imagine.
He definitely understands that this must be a touchy subject for Naku, though. "I see. Sorry for asking.", he apologizes, unconsciously avoiding eye contact.

He finally draws a really good card and immediately brings it into play.

Cold Morning

It also becomes fair apparent to Wallace, being the well-versed Magic player he is, that Naku's definitely playing more for the company, social interaction, and just to have fun, far more than she is playing to win. She's definitely not just throwing games away, but she really doesn't mind losing.

Naku would likely never talk about it, but that was exactly what had happened. Naku got bitten, and over the following few minutes killed her friends through a red haze that she still doesn't fully remember.
"Oh, that's all right." She replies with a bit of a sad smile. "But enough about me. I'm sure you have more stories of your own?"

[Cola]

Cold Morning

It also becomes fair apparent to Wallace, being the well-versed Magic player he is, that Naku's definitely playing more for the company, social interaction, and just to have fun, far more than she is playing to win. She's definitely not just throwing games away, but she really doesn't mind losing.

Naku would likely never talk about it, but that was exactly what had happened. Naku got bitten, and over the following few minutes killed her friends through a red haze that she still doesn't fully remember.
"Oh, that's all right." She replies with a bit of a sad smile. "But enough about me. I'm sure you have more stories of your own?"

[Cold Morning]

For Wallace, it's the other way around: he plays because playing (and winning) is fun, the talking is mainly done so the game doesn't turn silent and awkward.

"Stories?" Wallace mumbles and thinks about what would be an interesting one to tell. The one with the thunderbird? Maybe a bit too heroic and braggy, but hopefully interesting. He prepares to dump a huge wall of text on Naku. "Back in my home world we have something called thunderbirds. Huge predatory birds, with black, white and read feathers. So large they can prey on small whales and effortlessly tear the roof off a house with their talons. During springtime, they would leave their wintering grounds in the warm south and migrate north, creating thunderstorms as they fly. Now, those beasts usually prey on large water creatures, like whales or horned serpents. But when there's no water around, they will also eat buffalo and cattle and the like.
Unfortunately, one of those thunderbirds settled only a few kilometers away from the little town my family and me was living in. Whenever someone tried to drive their sheep or cattle to the pastures, and that thunderbird was soaring through the sky, it would kill them by firing lightning bolts at them. Then it would come down to devour them. Going near that electrically charged beast while holding weapons made from metal was suicide, and our guns weren't powerful enough to harm it from long range.
That's when the townsfolk decided to send me to deal with the thunderbird. So I made some zombies from every animal carcass I could find, left every piece of metal I had at home and walked out into the open with the zombies. To use them as bait. The bird came and immediately started bombarding us with lightning. You see, the zombies don't have a heartbeat to stop or a brain to fry, so they were mostly immune to lightning. I wasn't. I just dropped down to the ground and played dead, told my zombies to do the same and hoped for my life it would fool the beast. It did. When it landed right next to us, I cast my kill spell. The bird was way too big and healthy to just roll over and die from a single one, but at least it was so confused and panicked that it didn't attack me right away. I cast another kill spell and the beast finally drops dead. Then I cast another kill spell, just to be sure.
After that, I told my zombies to behead it. Even a dead thunderbird is still charged, so nobody could touch it with a saw or axe. The zombies had to slowly claw and chew away at its neck for a few hours until the head finally came off. I drove a long, hooked wooden pole into its neck stump and attached a rope to that. Then I reanimated it as undead and cast some anti-rot on it so the zombie thunderbird would last a few weeks. before falling apart. With the rope I could safely lead it around and made a trip to the next big town with it. Even an undead thunderbird can still produce electricity, so I sold it to some science guys as an infinite generator. I think they also wanted to remove and study its dirac organ to see how they could make their own infinite energy source. Don't know if they succeeded with that."


((Thunderbird taken from native American mythology))

[Mee]

[Cold Morning]

For Wallace, it's the other way around: he plays because playing (and winning) is fun, the talking is mainly done so the game doesn't turn silent and awkward.

"Stories?" Wallace mumbles and thinks about what would be an interesting one to tell. The one with the thunderbird? Maybe a bit too heroic and braggy, but hopefully interesting. He prepares to dump a huge wall of text on Naku. "Back in my home world we have something called thunderbirds. Huge predatory birds, with black, white and read feathers. So large they can prey on small whales and effortlessly tear the roof off a house with their talons. During springtime, they would leave their wintering grounds in the warm south and migrate north, creating thunderstorms as they fly. Now, those beasts usually prey on large water creatures, like whales or horned serpents. But when there's no water around, they will also eat buffalo and cattle and the like.
Unfortunately, one of those thunderbirds settled only a few kilometers away from the little town my family and me was living in. Whenever someone tried to drive their sheep or cattle to the pastures, and that thunderbird was soaring through the sky, it would kill them by firing lightning bolts at them. Then it would come down to devour them. Going near that electrically charged beast while holding weapons made from metal was suicide, and our guns weren't powerful enough to harm it from long range.
That's when the townsfolk decided to send me to deal with the thunderbird. So I made some zombies from every animal carcass I could find, left every piece of metal I had at home and walked out into the open with the zombies. To use them as bait. The bird came and immediately started bombarding us with lightning. You see, the zombies don't have a heartbeat to stop or a brain to fry, so they were mostly immune to lightning. I wasn't. I just dropped down to the ground and played dead, told my zombies to do the same and hoped for my life it would fool the beast. It did. When it landed right next to us, I cast my kill spell. The bird was way too big and healthy to just roll over and die from a single one, but at least it was so confused and panicked that it didn't attack me right away. I cast another kill spell and the beast finally drops dead. Then I cast another kill spell, just to be sure.
After that, I told my zombies to behead it. Even a dead thunderbird is still charged, so nobody could touch it with a saw or axe. The zombies had to slowly claw and chew away at its neck for a few hours until the head finally came off. I drove a long, hooked wooden pole into its neck stump and attached a rope to that. Then I reanimated it as undead and cast some anti-rot on it so the zombie thunderbird would last a few weeks. before falling apart. With the rope I could safely lead it around and made a trip to the next big town with it. Even an undead thunderbird can still produce electricity, so I sold it to some science guys as an infinite generator. I think they also wanted to remove and study its dirac organ to see how they could make their own infinite energy source. Don't know if they succeeded with that."


((Thunderbird taken from native American mythology))

Cold Morning

Well, she does still enjoy playing. She just also likes the company.

Naku listens, letting him get his story out fully before asking questions. She didn't seem to think it too braggy, nor heroic. She quite likes heroic stories. "Man. I dunno about giant birds. Birds can be scary. Good on you!" This is also said with absolutely no sarcasm, too.

"So it was just killing everyone? Did it have much a reason, did you ever find out? Just hungry?"

"Clever was of handling the situation, though." Naku nods approvingly. "Can't say I've ever had anything quite like that before. Is there anything really special about your zombies? Do they operate without heads, say? I know that would work back at my home, but you mentioned reviving the bird without a head?"

[Cola]

Cold Morning

Well, she does still enjoy playing. She just also likes the company.

Naku listens, letting him get his story out fully before asking questions. She didn't seem to think it too braggy, nor heroic. She quite likes heroic stories. "Man. I dunno about giant birds. Birds can be scary. Good on you!" This is also said with absolutely no sarcasm, too.

"So it was just killing everyone? Did it have much a reason, did you ever find out? Just hungry?"

"Clever was of handling the situation, though." Naku nods approvingly. "Can't say I've ever had anything quite like that before. Is there anything really special about your zombies? Do they operate without heads, say? I know that would work back at my home, but you mentioned reviving the bird without a head?"

[Cold Morning]

"Oh yes, that thing was scary as hell." Wallace admits, again without changing his facial expression in the slightest. "Before I went out to meet the bird, my hands were shaking so bad I could barealy hold a glass of whiskey.

I don't think thunderbirds have much of a reason to do anything. According to legend, they were created by some great spirit to fight the great, horned serpents that dwell in lakes and the sea. And that they do. Whenever a thunderbird sees something big moving on or below a water surface, they have to strike. But other than that, they're just animals. Although some native tribes accredit great intelligence to them. Like dragons in european-based worlds.

Nah, just normal magic zombies. Dead flesh moving, no head or heart needed. I just had the head removed so the undead bird couldn't start using its own brain again. Happens sometimes."

[Mee]

[Cold Morning]

"Oh yes, that thing was scary as hell." Wallace admits, again without changing his facial expression in the slightest. "Before I went out to meet the bird, my hands were shaking so bad I could barely hold a glass of whiskey.

I don't think thunderbirds have much of a reason to do anything. According to legend, they were created by some great spirit to fight the great, horned serpents that dwell in lakes and the sea. And that they do. Whenever a thunderbird sees something big moving on or below a water surface, they have to strike. But other than that, they're just animals. Although some native tribes accredit great intelligence to them. Like dragons in european-based worlds.

Nah, just normal magic zombies. Dead flesh moving, no head or heart needed. I just had the head removed so the undead bird couldn't start using its own brain again. Happens sometimes."

Cold Morning (also known as Naku's favorite time)

"I believe it. Lightning is a heck of a thing. We never got it much back where I'm from, but the few times it came through would always start fires and strike down anything flying too high." Naku says, nodding a few times as she remembers, and sipping at her tea that she just got from . . . somewhere. Who can tell. Maybe she already had it. The good news is the extra redness in her eyes is going away, leaving just the natural red coloring of her irises.

"Interesting. I haven't met any dragons yet, but that does sound right from what I've heard. But yes. Beasts just doing their things, right?" Naku might not have had giant birds back home, but she did have plenty of her own feral beasts to worry about. Werewolves, Alphas, Omegas, Damnwolves, the poorly named Steppen . . .

"That is interesting. The only zombies I've ever known, as I said, were just shambling corpses. Remove the head, or badly damage the brain, and they'd just stop."

[Cola]

Cold Morning (also known as Naku's favorite time)

"I believe it. Lightning is a heck of a thing. We never got it much back where I'm from, but the few times it came through would always start fires and strike down anything flying too high." Naku says, nodding a few times as she remembers, and sipping at her tea that she just got from . . . somewhere. Who can tell. Maybe she already had it. The good news is the extra redness in her eyes is going away, leaving just the natural red coloring of her irises.

"Interesting. I haven't met any dragons yet, but that does sound right from what I've heard. But yes. Beasts just doing their things, right?" Naku might not have had giant birds back home, but she did have plenty of her own feral beasts to worry about. Werewolves, Alphas, Omegas, Damnwolves, the poorly named Steppen . . .

"That is interesting. The only zombies I've ever known, as I said, were just shambling corpses. Remove the head, or badly damage the brain, and they'd just stop."

[Cold Morning]

Wallace shuffles his deck for another game. When he notices Naku suddenly having a cup of tea, he looks down at the table. Sadly, there was no second plate of pancakes just inexplicably sitting there, waiting to be consumed by him. Too bad.

Never met a dragon? Wallace had always assumed that every europe-based world had some sort of dragons roaming around. "Now it's your turn to tell a story. You talking about being a Hunter (with capital H) sounded like what I did once in my life you did every week."

"Yeah, that's the standard for zombies. Both for the magical and those new-fashined virus ones. During my first years of reanimating, that was also the only kind I could make. Later, my father showed me how to put a decentralized spell on the whole body. Takes a bit of effort though. Only really useful for dedicated fighting zombies." That's also the reason why Wallace had initially thought he would never need such an ability. Oh boy, he had been wrong.

[Mee]

[Cold Morning]

Wallace shuffles his deck for another game. When he notices Naku suddenly having a cup of tea, he looks down at the table. Sadly, there was no second plate of pancakes just inexplicably sitting there, waiting to be consumed by him. Too bad.

Never met a dragon? Wallace had always assumed that every europe-based world had some sort of dragons roaming around. "Now it's your turn to tell a story. You talking about being a Hunter (with capital H) sounded like what I did once in my life you did every week."

"Yeah, that's the standard for zombies. Both for the magical and those new-fashined virus ones. During my first years of reanimating, that was also the only kind I could make. Later, my father showed me how to put a decentralized spell on the whole body. Takes a bit of effort though. Only really useful for dedicated fighting zombies." That's also the reason why Wallace had initially thought he would never need such an ability. Oh boy, he had been wrong.

Cold Morning

Well, sadly, that's just the power of working here. Wallace would have to actually ask.

"Oh. Oooh. Um." Oh gosh he wants a story. How many did she even have that she wanted to remember, let alone tell? Any where she lost a good friend is right out. And he wanted one from her Hunter days, so that narrows it down further.
Uhhhhhh.
"Well. There was one particular werewolf attack that was interesting. It was the first time I ran into an Omega wolf. So our guns are different; we needed a gun that we could use that the vampires could not. So we ended up creating ammo that is specific to us. The guns aren't too special, but the magazines that we load into them basically have . . ." she struggles for just a minute, trying to remember the word she had just a second ago. "We crafted a power source in them that replenishes itself by being close to us, and harmlessly catching some of the . . ." Naku just gives up, and shakes her head with a bit of a smile. "It works by being close, and your own soul replenishes its battery. We chose to do this because vampires, by their nature, do not have souls, and therefore could never use the weapons against us. Our swords work much the same way. Our own soul is what makes them more than an average sword, so if a vampire were to use the weapon, it would be just a regular sword.

This is only important, and I'm only boring you with it because of the Omegas. They were apparently a sort of developmental weapon by the vampires, and an attempt to counter our guns. Because our guns don't fire traditional rounds, the vampires came up with a way to counter them. These Omegawolves were apparently . . . basically, regular werewolves are about the overall weight of a human. Alphas are close to two and a half, three meters tall, and way bulkier. They have to be, because they keep their packs in line via being the biggest and strongest.

The Omegas are nearly a full meter taller, and about three times the weight. They are huge, and they are deceptively fast. But what makes them worse, is that every one of them has had a full set of runes carved into their forearms by a very specific Vampire Lord, and those runes, as long as they're still bleeding, grant a shield around the Omega that deflects our bullets. This is, as I'm sure you can imagine, not a fun thing to deal with.

Anyway. First time I ran into one. I also learned they could jump. It was an attack on our base, few hundred wolves . . ." Naku trails off there a bit, lost in the memories. She shakes her head and continues though. "They were collectively gunned down fairly easily. And then the Omega showed up. He was out of range, and we were still mopping up the last few regular wolves, so no one really saw when he jumped. Next thing we knew, someone was shouting, we saw it soaring through the air at the wall, and a bit over a hundred various guns were aimed at it. Every single bullet we fired just . . . just bounced off. Pinging off, going up uselessly into the air, back down into the earth, destroying the nearby buildings . . . They just . . . didn't do anything." Naku drifts off a bit again, remembering the horror of that moment with a fairly faraway look in her eyes. "And then it landed. It landed up on the wall with us, breaking through the wooden supports we were standing on.

We all tumbled down the wall to the courtyard behind it, and we just . . ." Gosh. This story was not nearly as fun a story as she remembered. "Well. I killed it. Got a few new scars. But it died." She ends, kind of lamely.

[Cola]

Cold Morning

Well, sadly, that's just the power of working here. Wallace would have to actually ask.

"Oh. Oooh. Um." Oh gosh he wants a story. How many did she even have that she wanted to remember, let alone tell? Any where she lost a good friend is right out. And he wanted one from her Hunter days, so that narrows it down further.
Uhhhhhh.
"Well. There was one particular werewolf attack that was interesting. It was the first time I ran into an Omega wolf. So our guns are different; we needed a gun that we could use that the vampires could not. So we ended up creating ammo that is specific to us. The guns aren't too special, but the magazines that we load into them basically have . . ." she struggles for just a minute, trying to remember the word she had just a second ago. "We crafted a power source in them that replenishes itself by being close to us, and harmlessly catching some of the . . ." Naku just gives up, and shakes her head with a bit of a smile. "It works by being close, and your own soul replenishes its battery. We chose to do this because vampires, by their nature, do not have souls, and therefore could never use the weapons against us. Our swords work much the same way. Our own soul is what makes them more than an average sword, so if a vampire were to use the weapon, it would be just a regular sword.

This is only important, and I'm only boring you with it because of the Omegas. They were apparently a sort of developmental weapon by the vampires, and an attempt to counter our guns. Because our guns don't fire traditional rounds, the vampires came up with a way to counter them. These Omegawolves were apparently . . . basically, regular werewolves are about the overall weight of a human. Alphas are close to two and a half, three meters tall, and way bulkier. They have to be, because they keep their packs in line via being the biggest and strongest.

The Omegas are nearly a full meter taller, and about three times the weight. They are huge, and they are deceptively fast. But what makes them worse, is that every one of them has had a full set of runes carved into their forearms by a very specific Vampire Lord, and those runes, as long as they're still bleeding, grant a shield around the Omega that deflects our bullets. This is, as I'm sure you can imagine, not a fun thing to deal with.

Anyway. First time I ran into one. I also learned they could jump. It was an attack on our base, few hundred wolves . . ." Naku trails off there a bit, lost in the memories. She shakes her head and continues though. "They were collectively gunned down fairly easily. And then the Omega showed up. He was out of range, and we were still mopping up the last few regular wolves, so no one really saw when he jumped. Next thing we knew, someone was shouting, we saw it soaring through the air at the wall, and a bit over a hundred various guns were aimed at it. Every single bullet we fired just . . . just bounced off. Pinging off, going up uselessly into the air, back down into the earth, destroying the nearby buildings . . . They just . . . didn't do anything." Naku drifts off a bit again, remembering the horror of that moment with a fairly faraway look in her eyes. "And then it landed. It landed up on the wall with us, breaking through the wooden supports we were standing on.

We all tumbled down the wall to the courtyard behind it, and we just . . ." Gosh. This story was not nearly as fun a story as she remembered. "Well. I killed it. Got a few new scars. But it died." She ends, kind of lamely.

[Cold Morning]

For a second, Wallace breaks his usual emotionless expression to raise an eyebrow. He is reminded of those tv series that build a great setting and suspension, until they get cancelled and have to wrap up the plot in one episode. But he feels like it might be better to not ask for details. Something else caught his professional necromancer attention anyway.

"Hold up a second. What exactly are souls in your world, Miss? I always believed they are what grants you emotions, morals and desires and the like. You know, those things that zombies and robots are usually missing. Now, you don't seem very emotionless and unmotivated to me, Miss. And you mentioned that that hypnodisc earlier didn't affect you because you have no psychic signature. What is the point of having a soul?"

He must admit though, a ´beefy beast that can leap a hundred meters and is immune to magic attacks sounds like a great creature to have in a video game or MtG. And also pretty scary to face one, yes.

[Mee]

[Cold Morning]

For a second, Wallace breaks his usual emotionless expression to raise an eyebrow. He is reminded of those tv series that build a great setting and suspension, until they get cancelled and have to wrap up the plot in one episode. But he feels like it might be better to not ask for details. Something else caught his professional necromancer attention anyway.

"Hold up a second. What exactly are souls in your world, Miss? I always believed they are what grants you emotions, morals and desires and the like. You know, those things that zombies and robots are usually missing. Now, you don't seem very emotionless and unmotivated to me, Miss. And you mentioned that that hypnodisc earlier didn't affect you because you have no psychic signature. What is the point of having a soul?"

He must admit though, a ´beefy beast that can leap a hundred meters and is immune to magic attacks sounds like a great creature to have in a video game or MtG. And also pretty scary to face one, yes.

Cold Morning

"Oh. I mean. I'd imagine souls are souls. Your description of them seems fairly spot on. We just, back home, also use them as infinite sources of power, with strength varying from person to person, depending on their own strength of character.
Youuu are correct though. I am definitely not emotionless. Truthfully, back home we still don't know much about the vampires. We just know that they don't have souls. What I've learned since I got bitten is that being a vampire does not, by nature, mean you have no soul. Feeding in excess will kind of . . . burns away any remaining humanity, and takes your soul with it. So I've just . . . avoided partaking of blood. It's not strictly necessary, but, well," she pauses here again to sip at her tea, and figure out how to say this. "You know the saying 'you are what you eat'? Well, for them -- . . . us --, it's literal. Everyone whose blood you consume, you absorb some of their traits. Be that physical traits, an obscure fighting style, an entirely new type of magic, whatever. Whatever makes that person special, you absorb some of it. The more you drink, the more of it you incorporate into yourself. That particular trait is what makes the oldest of the vampires so absolutely terrifyingly powerful. They've been at it for thousands of years, and there is no real cap.

Anyway. Souls are . . . surprisingly resilient things. And if you don't burn it away entirely, if you give it time, and if you're strong enough, it will heal. It'll take its own sweet time about it, let me tell you though. I suppose the answer is that you're correct. I do still have my soul. Because I've been fighting instincts, and practically starving myself for quite some time now." She doesn't sound upset, or angry at all about it, instead choosing to finish her sentence with another sip of tea.

"As for the point of why having a soul? Well. I'd like to believe that when I eventually do die, it'll get to go somewhere nice. Can't do that if you don't have one. Also without it, I'd just become a bloodthirsty monster, living from kill to kill, and I'd like to avoid that.
Also I like my sword. I couldn't use it right if I didn't have a soul."

[Cola]

Cold Morning

"Oh. I mean. I'd imagine souls are souls. Your description of them seems fairly spot on. We just, back home, also use them as infinite sources of power, with strength varying from person to person, depending on their own strength of character.
Youuu are correct though. I am definitely not emotionless. Truthfully, back home we still don't know much about the vampires. We just know that they don't have souls. What I've learned since I got bitten is that being a vampire does not, by nature, mean you have no soul. Feeding in excess will kind of . . . burns away any remaining humanity, and takes your soul with it. So I've just . . . avoided partaking of blood. It's not strictly necessary, but, well," she pauses here again to sip at her tea, and figure out how to say this. "You know the saying 'you are what you eat'? Well, for them -- . . . us --, it's literal. Everyone whose blood you consume, you absorb some of their traits. Be that physical traits, an obscure fighting style, an entirely new type of magic, whatever. Whatever makes that person special, you absorb some of it. The more you drink, the more of it you incorporate into yourself. That particular trait is what makes the oldest of the vampires so absolutely terrifyingly powerful. They've been at it for thousands of years, and there is no real cap.

Anyway. Souls are . . . surprisingly resilient things. And if you don't burn it away entirely, if you give it time, and if you're strong enough, it will heal. It'll take its own sweet time about it, let me tell you though. I suppose the answer is that you're correct. I do still have my soul. Because I've been fighting instincts, and practically starving myself for quite some time now." She doesn't sound upset, or angry at all about it, instead choosing to finish her sentence with another sip of tea.

"As for the point of why having a soul? Well. I'd like to believe that when I eventually do die, it'll get to go somewhere nice. Can't do that if you don't have one. Also without it, I'd just become a bloodthirsty monster, living from kill to kill, and I'd like to avoid that.
Also I like my sword. I couldn't use it right if I didn't have a soul."

[Cold Morning]

Wallace's face goeas back to its usual emptiness. "That explains a lot, Miss." Then he slips into storytelling with his campfire voice again, as if it was a completely natural reaction. "I also once knew a woman who had lost her soul, down in Deadwood. Had no will on her own and always did what she was told. No questions, never objections. If she hadn't any orders, she would just spend the whole day in bed and sometimes gut up to shove some food down her throat. Would never hold a conversation. One day, her husband left her and their infant son for another woman. The soulless woman wasn't even sad, she just spend her days lying in bed as always. Until they had no more food left in the house and no more money to buy new. So she just strangled her son with her bare hand and ate him over the course of the next week, because he was the easiest food source available. When food ran out again, she reported herself to the Remnant. She knew that in prison, the would get a bed to waste away, disgusting food to live on and medicine if necessary. That's all she needed. Or wanted.

I've heard much about using souls as power sources. Or consumable fuel, to put it in better terms. Pretty much job knowledge as a necromancer. But using your own soul in combat?" Wallace pauses for a moment before he goes on. "Maybe that's why martial arts people can do such amazing things. Their body gets extra power form their soul, maybe. I've never heard about a martial arts master who was weak-willed or didn't believe in themselves."

[Mee]

[Cold Morning]

Wallace's face goeas back to its usual emptiness. "That explains a lot, Miss." Then he slips into storytelling with his campfire voice again, as if it was a completely natural reaction. "I also once knew a woman who had lost her soul, down in Deadwood. Had no will on her own and always did what she was told. No questions, never objections. If she hadn't any orders, she would just spend the whole day in bed and sometimes gut up to shove some food down her throat. Would never hold a conversation. One day, her husband left her and their infant son for another woman. The soulless woman wasn't even sad, she just spend her days lying in bed as always. Until they had no more food left in the house and no more money to buy new. So she just strangled her son with her bare hand and ate him over the course of the next week, because he was the easiest food source available. When food ran out again, she reported herself to the Remnant. She knew that in prison, the would get a bed to waste away, disgusting food to live on and medicine if necessary. That's all she needed. Or wanted.

I've heard much about using souls as power sources. Or consumable fuel, to put it in better terms. Pretty much job knowledge as a necromancer. But using your own soul in combat?" Wallace pauses for a moment before he goes on. "Maybe that's why martial arts people can do such amazing things. Their body gets extra power form their soul, maybe. I've never heard about a martial arts master who was weak-willed or didn't believe in themselves."

Cold Morning

"That . . . well that sounds pretty horrible, honestly. And like exactly what I'd be trying to avoid.

Hmmm. Yes, but it's different. This isn't consuming the power, this is like . . . like tapping into the energy that's already there. Like a fire. You sit next to a fire, and are warmed. You sitting there doesn't affect the fire, and it keeps producing heat. Our weapons work much the same way. Just instead of sitting by a fire to get warm, we keep the weapons nearby, and they recharge.

Could be, what you said, with the maryial artists and thier souls being extra power. I just know that mine is tied to my weapons. I don't think my soul is currently contributing to any sort of physical skill."

[Cola]

Cold Morning

"That . . . well that sounds pretty horrible, honestly. And like exactly what I'd be trying to avoid.

Hmmm. Yes, but it's different. This isn't consuming the power, this is like . . . like tapping into the energy that's already there. Like a fire. You sit next to a fire, and are warmed. You sitting there doesn't affect the fire, and it keeps producing heat. Our weapons work much the same way. Just instead of sitting by a fire to get warm, we keep the weapons nearby, and they recharge.

Could be, what you said, with the maryial artists and thier souls being extra power. I just know that mine is tied to my weapons. I don't think my soul is currently contributing to any sort of physical skill."

[Cold Morning]

"Using a nearby soul as a passive, infinite energy source sounds useful. Maybe I should also take a look into that." Maybe some Internet research, maybe some experimentation. Not having to actually use up animal souls to fuel your dark magic would sure create some interesting possibilities.

"And how does that soul energy make your weapons better? Just sharper, more durable? Or do they get some anti-dark or anti-evil powers? You mentioned bullets destroying buildings."
He takes his hat off for a second to scratch his balding head.

[Devixer]

The woman walking through the door should be more than familiar to anyone working in the Roost right now. Ashley, after all, is one of the more frequent regulars of the place (also girlfriend of one of the owners, but details.) She walks in and heads to one of the empty tables without even waiting for a greeting.

[Mee]

[Cold Morning]

"Using a nearby soul as a passive, infinite energy source sounds useful. Maybe I should also take a look into that." Maybe some Internet research, maybe some experimentation. Not having to actually use up animal souls to fuel your dark magic would sure create some interesting possibilities.

"And how does that soul energy make your weapons better? Just sharper, more durable? Or do they get some anti-dark or anti-evil powers? You mentioned bullets destroying buildings."
He takes his hat off for a second to scratch his balding head.

Cold Morning

"I wish you the best of luck in your efforts!"

Then she just nods a few times, eyes closed for a moment. "Not as such. They're by no means anti-evil or dark or anything. They're a lot more durable -- I've never seen one break, and they've been through some stuff --, and quite a bit sharper. Let me tell you, trying to cut through werewolf hide and hair with a normal blade is excessively difficult. The amount of extra sharpness, again, directly proportional to the strength of the wielder's soul.
But the main thing things do, is that the cuts given by one of these blades cannot be healed by a vampire's regenerative ability. Normally, if they're cut up and badly hurt, they can just catch someone, drain their blood, and be back on their feet, fully healed, and ready to fight. Cuts by these swords . . . not so much.

The guns are a bit different. The guns themselves aren't special at all. Basically they're all just what we were able to find scattered around and rebuild to get working. What's special is the ammo. Much like the sword, the magazines have a sort of passive soul-recharging battery pack, and the gun fires from that, rather than expending actual physical projectiles. Which I think I might have said already.
Those, again, work directly proportional to the strength of the soul they're tied to. How fast the batteries recharge, how much of a capacity they have, but most importantly the bullets fired themselves. As you said, I did indeed mention destroying buildings. To be fair that was ricochet from 80 or so of us firing, but it's still pretty accurate.
The wielder's . . . some of their personality is reflected in the types of bullets fired. From what I've learned, traditional guns can fire things like Armor Piercing shots, Hollow Point, or just various types of bullets. Ours kind of do the same, but based more on a personality sort of level. A friend of mine had a rifle that would fire shots that left actually a very small hole, but would reliably punch through his target. And the building behind his target. And the building behind that one. Others did the opposite, and dumped all their force into a single hole in whatever they hit.
Mine, on the other hand, explode. They explode on contact, so just stand behind something and you're all right for a bit, but there ya go."

The woman walking through the door should be more than familiar to anyone working in the Roost right now. Ashley, after all, is one of the more frequent regulars of the place (also girlfriend of one of the owners, but details.) She walks in and heads to one of the empty tables without even waiting for a greeting.

Probably Later?

Assuming that it is later, then Naku's behind the counter, leaning over, her chin in her hands, and just staring out the window with a faraway look on her face.
It takes several moments for it to register that someone just entered, and with a murmured apology that likely no one but Naku herself can hear, she heads over to Ash's table. "Welcome back. The usual?"

[Cola]

Cold Morning

"I wish you the best of luck in your efforts!"

Then she just nods a few times, eyes closed for a moment. "Not as such. They're by no means anti-evil or dark or anything. They're a lot more durable -- I've never seen one break, and they've been through some stuff --, and quite a bit sharper. Let me tell you, trying to cut through werewolf hide and hair with a normal blade is excessively difficult. The amount of extra sharpness, again, directly proportional to the strength of the wielder's soul.
But the main thing things do, is that the cuts given by one of these blades cannot be healed by a vampire's regenerative ability. Normally, if they're cut up and badly hurt, they can just catch someone, drain their blood, and be back on their feet, fully healed, and ready to fight. Cuts by these swords . . . not so much.

The guns are a bit different. The guns themselves aren't special at all. Basically they're all just what we were able to find scattered around and rebuild to get working. What's special is the ammo. Much like the sword, the magazines have a sort of passive soul-recharging battery pack, and the gun fires from that, rather than expending actual physical projectiles. Which I think I might have said already.
Those, again, work directly proportional to the strength of the soul they're tied to. How fast the batteries recharge, how much of a capacity they have, but most importantly the bullets fired themselves. As you said, I did indeed mention destroying buildings. To be fair that was ricochet from 80 or so of us firing, but it's still pretty accurate.
The wielder's . . . some of their personality is reflected in the types of bullets fired. From what I've learned, traditional guns can fire things like Armor Piercing shots, Hollow Point, or just various types of bullets. Ours kind of do the same, but based more on a personality sort of level. A friend of mine had a rifle that would fire shots that left actually a very small hole, but would reliably punch through his target. And the building behind his target. And the building behind that one. Others did the opposite, and dumped all their force into a single hole in whatever they hit.
Mine, on the other hand, explode. They explode on contact, so just stand behind something and you're all right for a bit, but there ya go."

[Cold Morning]

"That really sounds interesting. I should head over to Mallside some time and try one of those magazines myself. Kinda curious what my soul will do with it."
Now Wallace is kind of at a loss on how to continue this conversation. He isn't really the person to randomly ask about unrelated things, and just turning the conversation back to him seems kind of rude.
The dreaded Awkward Silence looms on the horizon. Unless Ashley just walked in, of course.

[Devixer]

Later

Ashley peers at Naku staring off into nothing. Something about that look seemed very familiar. . .

"Yeah, always," she says. Ashley's usual was two pancakes, eggs, and a mug of coffee.

[Mee]

[Cold Morning]

"That really sounds interesting. I should head over to Mallside some time and try one of those magazines myself. Kinda curious what my soul will do with it."
Now Wallace is kind of at a loss on how to continue this conversation. He isn't really the person to randomly ask about unrelated things, and just turning the conversation back to him seems kind of rude.
The dreaded Awkward Silence looms on the horizon. Unless Ashley just walked in, of course.

Cold Morning

Well, the Awkward Silence would only take effect if Naku weren't to keep the conversation going!
"I highly doubt they would have anything. These are . . . fairly specific. The crafting of them is lengthy, difficult, expensive, and the only person I knew who could do it has, um, died." Well. Been killed. But shhh.

Later

Ashley peers at Naku staring off into nothing. Something about that look seemed very familiar. . .

"Yeah, always," she says. Ashley's usual was two pancakes, eggs, and a mug of coffee.

Later

"Yeah, of course!" Naku says, before taking off to go place her order. She comes back a few minutes later with the coffee, and the news that everything else was being cooked.

[Cola]

Cold Morning

Well, the Awkward Silence would only take effect if Naku weren't to keep the conversation going!
"I highly doubt they would have anything. These are . . . fairly specific. The crafting of them is lengthy, difficult, expensive, and the only person I knew who could do it has, um, died." Well. Been killed. But shhh.

[Cold Morning]

"Just like the construction process of an airplane. And yet about 90% of universes I have heard of have flying machines. Maybe those soul magazines and swords were developed in other universes as well. I once thought that making necromorphs was something unique to my world. Until I came to the Nexus and learned that there's an entire science fiction universe filled with trillions of these things. Or like the bow and arrow, the gun and the blaster, which seem to be invented in every universe once it reaches a certain technology level. And if these soul magazines really aren't a thing in the Nexus, why don't you sell or lend yours to be reverse engineered?" Wallace didn't really expect an answer to that last question. It was only to get his point across, really.

[Devixer]

Later

"Cool," Ashley says. She gives Naku a weird look. "Hey, you here right now? I saw you when I came in and you were looking at nothing."