[Nexus] Inside 39

[Gullara]

[Cursed Street]

"Um..." Genevieve takes a few steps backward. Where's her tank? D= "Stupefy!" She fired the stunning spell at the crow thing. This is bad. Very very bad.

[MagMart]

Sakura bites her lip. A toy gun? "She wouldn't be able to play with it for a while, but I don't see why not." She replies.

[Rebonack]

[Cursed Street]

Hmmm...

*Rebo rolls 1d6!*

*gets a 6*

In another poof of feathers Amil is suddenly back to normal again!

Or in this particular case in her mostly human shape and sitting on her hind-end there on the dank, cold cobblestone street. To say that she looks confused is quite an understatement.

"Ummm..." she blinks blurrily, shaking her head. "Caw...?"

She still has several feathers sticking out of her here and there...

The daze spell works!

The crow monster suddenly looks rather dizzy. It responds to this by exploding into a vast swarm of crows.

"CAWCAWCAWCAWCAWCAWCAWCAW!"

[Gullara]

[Cursed Street]

"Amil! I don't know how to stop this thing!" Genevieve is relieved to see her meat shie- *cough* new friend is okay. She fires off a couple balls of light into the crows. They didn't like light before.

[Rebonack]

[Cursed Street]

So glad Amil has been upgraded from meat shield to friend =P

*ahem*

The crows stay well away from the light source, circling the pair and 'CAW!'ing in frustration. Amil finally manages to gather her wits about her and morphs one of her hands into a bio-flamer! "Use the light! That's keeping them away! Caw!"

With a FWOOOOSH! a line of blazing enzyme gel sprays into the swarm of birds, lighting them up pretty darn well!

Several of them tumble to the ground, fizzling away into little more than black soot.

"Caw caw! The fire is working too! Try that!"

[Gullara]

[Cursed Street]

Amil should be honored.

"Right." Genevieve complies, casting another fire spell in the midst of the crows. Hopefully that'll do something. She follows that up with another ball of light. A shame she isn't able to focus enough to make those hang in place rather than just shoot by.

[Chaotic Bob]

Loch and Key

"Good." Jezebel says with a slight smile that could only be called somewhat arrogant. "I'll definitely be willing to answer nearly any question."



Alley with Clarissa

Don Yuann, daemonhost of Slaanesh, is a bit shocked by the response, but is able to guess what she wants. After a moment, he gives a chuckle and smirks. He'll allow the curtains to happen, but if she tries to dissolve or suffocate him during or after it, she'll find that he's quite immune to either attempt on his life, being partly made of Warp-stuff, and not needing to breathe.

[Loch and Key]

"'Nearly'. Don't quite feel up to giving every little detail to a stranger?"
Feia's fairly quick on the sarcastic trigger, but this seems to be a character attribute more than anything else.
"Starting with your name will likely suffice, I think, 'Lady'."

[Alley with Clarissa and Juan]

There is still a little girl on the rooftop.
Watching.
A slight scowl is crossing her features.

[UncleWolf]

Loch and Key

"The Lady, or Lady will suffice for now. The mask is there for a reason after all. Tell you who I am, and it loses meaning." She says with a slight smile. "Though, I can tell a few things about you." Jezebel says before taking a slight breath. "Spellcaster...you like to meddle with your own shape, and you love to dominate and manipulate." She says before leaning forward slightly, a teasing smile on her lips. "So, lets play a little game, shall we?"

[Chaotic Bob]

[Loch and Key]

Feia raises one eyebrow at the little analysis and idly gives her win a little swirl, quelling mild irritation at the lack of name-giving.
"I would say this information has not been hidden particularly stringently. Congratulations."

The sorceress is rather acutely aware of her desire to be in the leading position in most situations. It's what drives her on.
Also makes it rather peculiar that she's playing passive here, but as she said, she is curious.
"Name the game."

[Rebonack]

[Cursed Street]

The swirling mass of crows flocks away, swarming tighter and tighter until once again the crow-monster resolves into view. The creature screams more gibberish at the pair before leaping off the lamp post it had materialized on and rushes towards them with claws held at the ready!

Amil fires her flamethrower at the thing!

...and it splits apart into crows again.

Only to quickly reform behind Gene!

And reaches out to grab her with one of its horrible clawed hands!

...should it catch hold of her she stands a very real risk of being temporarily transformed into a crow.

[VampireRot]

[Temple of Bast]

One montage later...

Reinholdt looks around. Well it definitely looked better with all those cages gone, certainly. It's hard to imagine this used to be a stinky animal shelter. There's even a deluxe scratching post of worship no doubt. Reinholdt eyes it. Mmmm... scratching things to pieces...

[Temple of Bast]

"Excellent. Now we can get to the worshiping!"

Chione stretches, turns in place, and lies down on the sunlit altar.

Fukayna rolls her eyes and slinks off to places unknown. Akila goes to give instructions to some of the humans. Spreading the word about the temple and such. It's less cult-like if its public!

Anatolij leans and then staggers backwards, the sword leaving a deep dent in his helmet. The cleric uses the opportunity to try and whack Rot's head with his flaming hammer.

[Gray Zone]

Rot is hit in the head! He shrieks in pain as half his face is smashed and burnt away, and the impact slams him into the alley wall.

"Screw this."

Suddenly, the pale vampire shrinks down, and a large and evil looking gray rat cowers in his place. The burnt face is even uglier and terrible in rat form. Rot squeaks obscenely and then attempts to quickly scurry away into the shadows. Though he can't actually leave the alley, since reverting to a small form gets rid of the clothes that protected him from the sunlight.

[Reinholdt]

[Temple of Bast]

"Riiight." Reinholdt says, peering at Chione.

"I think I'll hang my hat up for the day and go to Trog's to get something to celebrate." It's not every day you become high priestess.
...
She also intends to swing by that park and find that shapeshifting guy.

[Gullara]

[Cursed Street]

Genevieve whirls around. "Incen-" Oh now! She's grabbed and promptly turned into a crow. "Caw caw!" She flies toward Amil.

A very confused vampire bat flies over from a tree to flutter around the crow. Jenkins doesn't know what happened. He squeaks questioningly.

[UncleWolf]

Loch and Key

Jezebel leans back, appearing slightly bored at having to explain it all, and sets her legs(rather long and nice ones too) up on the corner of the table away from Feia, crossing them. "See, we're not too far apart, you and I." She starts, tracing a finger along the edge of her glass, making a soft humming sound. "Both manipulators, dominants...alphas if you will, and we're both very good at what we do." The Lady says before smiling just slightly and looking Feia over from the corner of her eyes. "Because of that, I can read you like an open book."

[Chaotic Bob]

[Loch and Key]

Feia proceeds to perform the amazing feat of completely ignoring Jezebel's legs.
She's refusing to indulge the woman's vanity more than strictly necessary.

The woman appears full of herself as it is, with nothing in particular to back it up, something Feia is less than respectful of.

"Yes, I'm sure you think you know me quite well. What does this have to do with a game?"

[Rebonack]

[Cursed Street]

Wonderful.

Now Gene is a bird.

Hopefully she'll be able to shake it off as quickly as Amil did! *rolls d6*

...is one.

Nope. Sorry Gene. You're still a bird. And since she's still a bird she'll have this strange nagging desire to join the rest of the murder of crows that Amil is presently torching with her bio-flamer. The fact that Amil is presently torching them with her bio-flamer might help her to resist the siren's call.

No doubt getting lost in the flock would be very very VERY bad.

Fight it Gene!

"Oh great. Caw! Not you too..."

[Gullara]

[Cursed Street]

"Caw caw!" Genevieve does not resist the urge! She starts flying right at the flaming crows. Oh no! Thankfully Jenkins is there to put a stop to her nonsense. He keeps flying in front of her, stopping her from moving forward.

[UncleWolf]

Loch and Key

"The game, is that occasionally, I'll give you little things to do, and that you'll do them." She says in all seriousness. "And I know you're thinking that there's no way in hell that you'll do it now, but, I also know that you're going to want to listen to my explanation as to why you will, and that once you hear, there's a very strong possibility that you'll do it. No, it's nothing as simple as having that toy drow of yours killed. I don't operate that way, so there won't be any reason to get uncivil about this."

[Chaotic Bob]

[Loch and Key]

Oh that's right.
Kirk's been moving out and about, doing work.
Such a pleasant change of events.

She should check in on him eventually, drab up his day a little.
Especially since he had that awful falling out with Tina...

Feia smirks a little, more at her own thoughts than Jezebel and leans back in her chair.
"Oh good, I was drowning in worry. But now that I know he's safe, everything will be just peachy.
Speak your reasons, since you're so confident."

[Rebonack]

[Cursed Street]

No Gene!

Nooooo!

Three hands will reach out to grab Gene and pull her back even as Amil tries to put some more distance between herself and the once more reformed crow-monster. The thing isn't in very good shape at this point. What with being on fire and all. The flame thrower seems to be burning away at the little crows at an astonishing rate and that nasty critter probably won't last that much longer!

"Burn you demon!" Amil snarls as she applies more fire. Hmm... seems she's finally manage to shake off the lingering bird-brained-ness.

More fire can solve all sorts of problems. The creature is burning pretty well, its flailing motions becoming steadily less violent. Probably isn't going to last much longer.

Aaaaaaand a 5. Sorry Gene.

You're still a bird.

[Gullara]

[Cursed Street]

Whoo! Still a bird! Awesome!

...

Not really. Genevieve is grabbed and Jenkins shrieks his gratitude. But her bird-ness prevents this post for accomplishing much. D=

"Caw!"

[UncleWolf]

Loch and Key

Jezebel sets her legs back down on the floor, and leans forward slightly, hands away from he glass and folded neatly in a steeple under her chin, holding it up as she looks into Feia's eyes, her own those of a cold, cruel, predator. "Because while I am content to leave you alone, you'll never be content doing the same. Now that you now know there's an unknown threat out there, possibly waiting for you to mess up somehow and appear weak, before swooping in for the kill." She states simply. "By now you'll have done your research and know that I have resources. Of what kind, you can't tell. Nor can you tell just how far those resources stretch. I'm a threat to you and you know it. A threat you can't judge accurately." She says as she leans back and takes her glass of wine, taking a sip as she keeps her eyes on Feia's.

"Because of that, you'll always be thinking about what I'm doing, About if I'm moving against you in some way or other that you don't know about. You don't even know who I am, "Alice"." She says, obviously assuming the name is a fake. "Sure, you could try to kill me, attack me now or later. But again, you don't know me very well. I could easily be masking my power like I mask my face, and could kill you in a confrontation. But you aren't the type to take that risk, are you?" She shakes her head. "No, you'd rather make sure I could be killed easily. Or worse, stripped of my powers and cast into the streets." She says with a slight smirk.

"The reason you'll do these little things for me, is because it keeps you close to me, and vice versa. It'll give you a wonderful position to keep an eye on me, and an even better one to exploit my mistakes from. I'm not so vain to believe that everything I do is flawless. Even if I strive to prove otherwise." She says with an amused look, finishing her glass of wine.

[PurityIcekiller]

((You know, you can sometimes go on without me for some things, as long as you don't need a reaction from my characters. I'm okay with it, and would definitely prefer it to leaving you stuck.))

[Red Zone]

The bogeys laugh.

"Moronsth!"

Demon Queen turns to face the bogeys. Her expression isn't very nice.

And what makes you say that?

"It seems they know more than they want to tell us. Maybe I should give them a little more motivation."

Kyinde drew her sword once again, "How about we release you two, but first, I make some adjustments to your faces, like these?" She rubbed the still-bleeding scratches on her own cheek with her free hand. "Or would you rather be cooperative, and depending on how things go, either go completely peacefully or get a quick and merciful death? Your choice."

[Chaotic Bob]

[Loch and Key]

About halfway through Jezebel's little speech, Feia begins idly tracing glyphs into the air with her free hand, lazily glancing at them periodically more than Jezebel's gaze.
Stab at that pride.

"This seems moderately well thought. A little heavy on the presumptions of paranoia, I suppose, but a reasonable enough guess for egomaniacal women like we seem to be."
Feia has cooled slightly, a very clear reaction to being spoken at so thoroughly it would seem.
Seems slightly less irritable.
"I could just assume this is an elaborate ruse to hide your own paranoid fear of me, projecting your own misgivings onto myself to convince us both that I am the one to be strung around by their own mind.

This meeting shows that we are both at least mildly curious of the other and that further check in's are entirely likely from one or the other in the future, just for need for continued updates on status, whether for paranoia or amusement.

Two alphas idly butting heads in vain attempts to feel better about ourselves.
Aren't we mature?

I've come to a realization, listening to you eagerly trying to string me along like a pet, as a challenge, while I try to listen to flaws in your logic.

We should be discussing this over coffee."

[Rebonack]

[Cursed Street]

Burninating the crow monster!

FWOOOOOSH!

The thing finally keels over, burning away into a fine layer of black soot. Yay for beaten monster! Take that you stupid crow swarm thing!

...

Gene is still a crow. She'll still be a crow for a while. Rebo's d6 doesn't like her apparently. Given how long she'll end up being a bird (several more minutes at least) and the fact that she failed her will-save to resist the call to join the flock there may be some... side effects from the curse...

Oh noes!

Eventually she'll poof back to her human shape in a cloud of black feathers. Several will probably still be stuck on her.

Amil eyes her cautiously. "...are you alright?"

[UncleWolf]

Loch and Key

"Perhaps, but then I wouldn't have had a chance to use an offer of eating here without cost. Not with anyone as new and interesting as you seem to be anyway." She admits slightly before Xifra brings out the first course and leaves to oversee the second. "And there's a flaw in your logic as well." Jezebel says as she takes the first bite of the salad, sighing happily as her extremely enhanced taste-buds analyze all of the ingredients. "You're assuming that I care if I win or lose. To me, there isn't a goal in the game except the game itself."

[Chaotic Bob]

[Loch and Key]

As the meal is placed before her, Feia gives it a quick glance before remembering she doesn't care if it is poisoned or not.
Not necessarily that Jezebel would try something so silly, but that perhaps a cook dislikes one of them.

Poison doesn't really bother Feia and she's assuming it won't bother "The Lady" either.

So she slowly begins eating away at it instead. The much more socially acceptable plan of action.
"That sounds like a goal to my ears. If there's a game at all, does that not count as a victory to you?"

[The Alexandrian]

[Alley with Clarissa]

Clarissa wouldn't try to dissolve Don! He has proven himself useful to her in a way other than exclusively providing her sustenance. Not many beings can do that. Given the laws of supply and demand, that makes Don a truly valuable resource in Clarissa's eyes. That concept in mind, it should come as no surprise that Clarissa herself has a direct stake in Don's safety and well-being from this point on in spite of her proclivity to ingest all organisms that come into contact with her.

Clarissa will attempt to fully active the pleasure sensors of Don's brain whilst he is curtaining with her. As if that is not enough, she will also attempt to engage Don on the metaphysical plane, attempting to curtain with him there as well. Hopefully, this whole experience won't be old hat for Don. He is affiliated with Slaanesh, after all, and Clarissa wouldn't want to disappoint him by not making the experience unique. That just wouldn't do for a partial embodiment of lust, so she does her best to avoid normalcy at all costs!

After the curtains rise, Clarissa attempts to unceremoniously spit Don onto the grimy ground at where her feet would be were she in a more human form with the force of a speeding bike slamming into an improperly parked reddish-brown convertible before metamorphosing back into the human mask she so often dons for the sake of the masquerade with a soft squelching sound.

-----
[[In the Muddy Street Outside of Lester's Saloon]

...

Percilia-prime attempts to swiftly remove the scroll from the range of Mister C's abnormally long tongue.

"DEADLY CHEMICALS! Do not lick!"

Yeah. The chemicals in which the markings on the scroll are written are extremely poisonous. Licking the scroll might not be such a good idea. It looks like Mister C is going to have to either find another way to prep the scroll for deciphering or convince Percilia-prime that he is resistant to poisons for some reason.

Dying Members = Bad

[UncleWolf]

Alley with Clarissa

It isn't Yuan's first time like this, except with an Ooze, so at least there's something new. However, it's hard to find people to do things so fully here, so it's obvious that he enjoys the experience. When he's spit back out, he lacks the flames of before, and lands on his long tail with a smirk. After a moment, he pulls out a pack of smokes and lights one up for himself, offering her another.

Not like it'd hurt her.

Loch and Key

"A goal..." Jezebel says before taking another careful bit, closing her eyes to savor it. "A goal implies there must be an end. This will likely last a long time, considering things. I am rather patient however."

[The Bushranger]

[Erin's Emporium]

Aeryn, meanwhile, plotcloned here, looks up, sensing customers afoot.

[Lady Serpentine]

[EE]

"Hello. I'm looking for something that would be good against a Remorhaz, a Barghest pack, or a pair of Fire Angels. Would you have anything that would be particularly useful?"