With A Purposeful Grimace And A Terrible Sound
A rogue clone. Magtok had fought them before, back in the civil war. This was different from sitting in a chair, pressing a button, and waiting for a battleship’s targeting computer to handle the rest, however. This was significantly more personal, much more intimidating, so much more real. This time, he could actually see the bastard smirking at him from the opposite rooftop, idly pacing back and forth on the building’s edge, plotting out his next move. He could hear his double’s heart beating, see his fists clenching, study the lines in his own stressed face mirrored back at him. Despite outward attempts to project confidence, his adversary was just as nervous about this encounter as he was. Magtok tried to convince himself it was because the other guy knew he was outmatched, because our victory was guaranteed and we were obviously going to win this showdown, but it wasn’t a very persuasive argument. The tremors in his hand and the hollow feeling in the pit of his stomach usually weren’t the best debaters, but they had a much more receptive audience today. This was an even fight, a coin flip, and anyone with sense and Magtok’s kind of luck hated those.
"I don't suppose we could settle this some other way? A game of chess? Rock-paper-scissors? Two cups for us to drink from, with poison in one of them? Russian roulette? A dance-off?" he asked his other, raising both palms as he shrugs.
"I wish. It would be a nicer alternative to this if we could actually make it work, but you and I know we'd cheat and try to shoot, stab, or vaporize the other the moment they look like they're losing. Or winning. Or just too focused on the game and not enough on the other Magtok. Or too busy cheating," the rogue shakes his head, still pacing. The stupid jerk had a point, unfortunately. Our Magtok was already trying to come up with twelve different schemes to do exactly that. Honor is just a joke to these cyborgs, after all. The only time it's ever okay to fight honorably is when victory is already assured, and even then, it's just for the purpose of styling on the other guy, not for dignity or martial pride or any of the other foolish reasons the primitive monkeybrains usually do that.
"You're not wrong. Sniper duel, then? You go that way, I go this way, we try to shoot each other through the windows of those two buildings, and-"
"-you've conveniently picked out a pair of buildings where I'd have the sun in my eyes, and you'd have fewer windows to keep track of. I'd also need to turn around to enter that building, giving you a perfect opportunity to shoot me in the back. No thanks," the traitor scoffs, still pacing only a few meters away. Our Magtok could probably jump that gap, if he had a running start and was silly enough to waste his time jumping instead of just hovering across. It would be suicide, though. The rogue would surely take advantage of the distraction and vaporize us in an instant.
"Dammit. Wait, you can tell all of that without turning around to look?"
"No, I just scoped out this area ahead of time, prepared the field for our little showdown before you got here. Really, you didn't actually think I'd let you chase me all the way to Skyside like this if it wasn't a trap, did you?" the bastard smirks, tapping at a holoscreen projected from his palm, causing a pair of drones covered in buzzsaws to fly in from a nearby window...and then promptly spasm, catch fire, and then ram each other at high speed, causing a terrible explosion that wipes the smug smirk right off the rogue's face.
"And you didn't really think I wouldn't take countermeasures against precisely that sort of ambush? I'd hacked that little self-destruct command into your drones fifteen minutes ago. Shouldn't you have expected that sort of thing, though? Just how well do you really know yourself, Magtok?" our Magtok asks. Now it's his turn to be the one all smirky and smug. It would've been great if that explosion had happened right next to the other guy's head, or created a big enough boom to distract him and let us shoot him in the face, but alas. Maybe next time.
"It's Lord Menace now, actually. And you'll have to forgive me for not spending more time updating the cybersecurity on those drones. Embarrassing, I know, but you see, I'm really more of a bigger picture kind of guy these days," the self-declared Lord Menace proclaims, just as the ground begins to quake beneath Magtok's feet. An earthquake? They're in Skyside, it's a city in the clouds, how could there possibly be an earthquake here? Magtok is just about to hack a satellite to get a better picture of what's going on when suddenly, a massive mechanical fist punches a hole in roughly a third of the roof he was standing on. The rest of it quickly comes crumbling down as the mecha within swings its fists at the support pillars, taking the whole thing tumbling down and leaving Magtok hovering in the air where a roof used to be, baffled and disoriented by the sudden shift in the landscape.
"Magtok, I'd like you to meet the new and improved Shin Mechalomania. This is that bigger picture I was just telling you about a moment ago," Menace laughs in diabolical, self-satisfied glee. The massive Japanese-derivative robot suddenly lunges, an uppercut flying at Magtok at unexpectedly high speed. He assumed it would be slow, clumsy, plodding along like a man in a goofy rubber suit, but that fist connected in less than a heartbeat. As massive knuckles each bigger than his entire body launched him towards the heavens, he heard something akin to twigs snapping. All of his bones, presumably. Magtok shut his eyes, and-
-ended the VR simulation he'd been running in his head. His fifth loss in a row against a randomly generated rogue clone. The score was now fifteen wins, fourteen losses, and thirty-three ties. Testing was still incomplete, and he was technically in the lead, for now, but those numbers still boded terribly for our near future. I mean, if we can't even consistently win a duel against ourselves, what chance could we possibly have against Prime? This was stupid, extremely stupid. We’d be better off just hiding in our cave and waiting for this to all blow over. Taking action against Prime like this was just asking for trouble, even in a fashion as indirect as this. What’s Vigil even going to do, sword him to death? Take him on a date to a moonwell and hope the magical waters and overpowering aura of sensuality causes him to short-circuit? Bah! We might as well ask Intersection to arrest the King in Rags.
Even so, even with utmost certainty that this was a waste of time and that he was putting himself in needless danger by involving himself in this nonsense, Magtok decides to visit Vigil. He reluctantly balls his chrome hand into a fist, raises it up to his shoulder, and reluctantly knocks at the door of his step-daughter's cabin, or flat, or apartment, or whatever these tiny little things were called. She was the cat’s bastard, she had his eyes, that wretched thing, but she was also quite possibly Mag's only hope of accomplishing what he needs to achieve today. Unless Lord Menace suddenly becomes real and decides to lead an entire army of Shin Mechalomanias against Prime, we'll just have to put aside our stupid feelings and make peace with her continued existence. Just for today.
Vigil
Re: Vigil
New Arrivals
Vo can feel the blonde's steely eyes on her immediately, scanning across her and almost certainly assessing what she looks like and what it implies she can do. The brunette, meanwhile, is a perhaps less-intimidating presence - she simply regards Vo with a shy smile and a friendly nod. The second arrival is greeted by the two in the same way.
The blonde raises an eyebrow, regarding Vo and her demeanor. She was certainly a bit more nervous than she was used to dealing with. "Well, you are in luck, miss. VIGIL can always use capable hands to assist, and whatever your capabilities are, we will likely have a place for you - and plenty of people willing to help someone hone their skills, whether they're on the field or in a support capacity The same goes for you as well."
"Oh, yes - Blanche was just helping me figure out who to talk to for that, actually. You'd be surprised how much folks around here are willing to lend a hand!" The knifefighter smiles, being perhaps a little incorrect - after all, VIGIL was an organization around keeping the Nexus safe. It's an interest that would attract altruists.
► SHOW SPOILER
The blonde raises an eyebrow, regarding Vo and her demeanor. She was certainly a bit more nervous than she was used to dealing with. "Well, you are in luck, miss. VIGIL can always use capable hands to assist, and whatever your capabilities are, we will likely have a place for you - and plenty of people willing to help someone hone their skills, whether they're on the field or in a support capacity The same goes for you as well."
"Oh, yes - Blanche was just helping me figure out who to talk to for that, actually. You'd be surprised how much folks around here are willing to lend a hand!" The knifefighter smiles, being perhaps a little incorrect - after all, VIGIL was an organization around keeping the Nexus safe. It's an interest that would attract altruists.
"Are we living a life that is safe from harm? Of course not, we never are. But that's not the right question. The question is: are we living a life that is worth the harm?"
~Welcome to Night Vale
SliiArhem wrote:Arkh I may be slightly delirious but I don't think that would make sense even if I was coherent.
Re: Vigil
Tear The Splitting High-Tension Wires Down
It isn't long before the door swings open, and Magtok finds himself face-to-face with the awkward new member of his family that he feels so ambivalent about - a feeling he surely knows is mutual by now, although for somewhat different reasons. Connection wasn't easy or fast with Blanche, and she'd been the daughter of a single parent almost all her life. Even Reinholdt being her biological father and genuinely friendly hasn't been enough to overcome the awkwardness she feels over being suddenly thrust into what she's told should be a trusting familial relationship with a man absent her whole life - is it any surprise she would find it hard with a man who finds her very ancestry a source of discomfort?
"...Oh, er- hey... dad," Blanche awkwardly greets, relaxing somewhat when she sees that he's the one visiting instead of one of her bosses or a colleague asking if she wants to join them for another mission. It means she doesn't have to put her professional work face on, at least. And speaking of, Magtok will probably note Blanche is dressed rather casually today, clad in jeans and a black tee. It's been a while since they last saw each other - certainly the first time since he and Caelynn got married - and he might realize she's picked up a new scar from a sword slash on her left forearm, along with some manner of claw mark just barely visible under the collar on her right shoulder. She's clearly been busy.
It isn't long before the door swings open, and Magtok finds himself face-to-face with the awkward new member of his family that he feels so ambivalent about - a feeling he surely knows is mutual by now, although for somewhat different reasons. Connection wasn't easy or fast with Blanche, and she'd been the daughter of a single parent almost all her life. Even Reinholdt being her biological father and genuinely friendly hasn't been enough to overcome the awkwardness she feels over being suddenly thrust into what she's told should be a trusting familial relationship with a man absent her whole life - is it any surprise she would find it hard with a man who finds her very ancestry a source of discomfort?
"...Oh, er- hey... dad," Blanche awkwardly greets, relaxing somewhat when she sees that he's the one visiting instead of one of her bosses or a colleague asking if she wants to join them for another mission. It means she doesn't have to put her professional work face on, at least. And speaking of, Magtok will probably note Blanche is dressed rather casually today, clad in jeans and a black tee. It's been a while since they last saw each other - certainly the first time since he and Caelynn got married - and he might realize she's picked up a new scar from a sword slash on her left forearm, along with some manner of claw mark just barely visible under the collar on her right shoulder. She's clearly been busy.
"Are we living a life that is safe from harm? Of course not, we never are. But that's not the right question. The question is: are we living a life that is worth the harm?"
~Welcome to Night Vale
SliiArhem wrote:Arkh I may be slightly delirious but I don't think that would make sense even if I was coherent.
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Beans
- Less-Fresh Toddler Poster
- Posts: 140
- Joined: May 16, 2022 11:20 pm
- Location: 🚮
- Pronouns: he/him
Re: Vigil
[New Arrivals]
Vo glances between the two. The blonde is the more intimidating, but that makes her approval even more impactful! She nods eagerly to the both of them, eyes landing on Blanche again. "Y---uh, yes please, I mean thank you ma'am. Uh." She swallows, a nervous smile flitting about her face. "I... help figuring out what to do with myself is gonna be really good."
She gives the brunette a smile as well. Maybe she can be friends with this person? She seems nice. Vo glances back at the four-armed gal briefly before turning once again to the blonde and brunette. "Um, I know I'm... pretty strong, and I'm tough, and I think I don't need to eat or sleep as much as most regular people. Uh, and I know a little about alchemy. But I think I've got---like, I have a lot to learn here."
► SHOW SPOILER
She gives the brunette a smile as well. Maybe she can be friends with this person? She seems nice. Vo glances back at the four-armed gal briefly before turning once again to the blonde and brunette. "Um, I know I'm... pretty strong, and I'm tough, and I think I don't need to eat or sleep as much as most regular people. Uh, and I know a little about alchemy. But I think I've got---like, I have a lot to learn here."
Re: Vigil
A Fox Can't be CutMorty wrote: ↑Aug 09, 2022 9:39 pm [A Fox Can't be Cut]
Wenomir regards Anastasia during her speech.
"I understand the desire for revenge. The demons took much from me as well. It's good that you can control it." He rests his sword on his shoulder and suddenly it blurs and shifts. Where there was a longsword before is now a greatsword, of the same length and weight as Anastasia's - but with a different hilt and retaining its original color. There are also three runes on the blade, same as before. "The way of the warrior is chosen, not inherited. Your parents might have known it, if they didn't try to mold you in their image. Do you understand it? It needs to be your choice, not a choice you think they'd have made." Which is something Anastasia said already. But maybe Wenomir is trying to make her think about it and repeat it.
Anastasia's eyes briefly widen a little as she witnesses the Answer's transformation. So it really was a magic sword, and those runes weren't just an aesthetic choice like on her own zweihänder. That's really cool.
"I-I believe I so, yes," the girl answers, a bit nervous to be questioned further but quick to be honest and forthright. "I'm not making this choice because I think my parents would have wanted me to, and I think they would've already started teaching me if they did. I'm doing this on my own to remember them, not because I feel, like, some sort of pressure to follow them. I'm my own woman, and I've fought a lot to be that." That last statement seems to be a curiously strong matter of conviction for her.
"I... will admit, I'm not sure I'm much of a violent person - I don't know if have a drive to go out and fight for an ideal, and I've heard others say that's what a warrior is - but I worry I will be forced to fight one day, and I want to be able to protect myself and everyone that I keep close. I know I have the strength for it inside me for it, I've had the strength to endure a lot of things too - I just, need a guiding hand. There's a slight hesitation here, as if Ana is worried she may be betraying something Wenomir would not have otherwise known to reject her over.
"Are we living a life that is safe from harm? Of course not, we never are. But that's not the right question. The question is: are we living a life that is worth the harm?"
~Welcome to Night Vale
SliiArhem wrote:Arkh I may be slightly delirious but I don't think that would make sense even if I was coherent.
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Lady Serpentine
- Fresh Baby Poster
- Posts: 6
- Joined: May 16, 2022 4:38 am
Re: Vigil
[New Arrivals]
The four-armed girl's stance shifts slightly when she finds herself the subject of attention from three people all at once, a small, quick motion of her feet that leaves her much more stable. At the same time, one of her upper hands strays towards her hip in an attempt to reach for a weapon that's simply not there. It's hard to say exactly what she'd have been going for, but the way her feet are braced indicates it's probably a melee weapon of some kind, and it can't be too large to wear on her hip.
For all that she's clearly put in an effort to make herself presentable, it seems she's rather jumpy.
She deliberately moves her hand forward again after a moment, away from where the nonexistent weapon she was reaching for would be. Superficially, she also drops back into a more relaxed stance, but the blonde might be able to tell that underneath that appearance, she's actually only gone from "ready to fight" to "ready to run".
"I am," she agrees, her response not delayed by more than a few seconds despite the complicated show she just put on. All of that only really took a few heartbeats, after all. Her voice is quiet and not particularly aggressive, but it nevertheless has a nervous edge to it. She goes quiet again after that, seemingly content to let the blonde decide if she wants to wrap things up with Vo or handle them both at once.
The friendly nod and shy smile she gets from the brown-haired girl with the apparent fondness for knives are met with a smile that manages to be simultaneously polite, professional, and devoid of any real warmth. The same goes for her own nod, which is a pale imitation of the genuine friendliness she was offered that conveys neither more nor less than acknowledgement.
The four-armed girl's stance shifts slightly when she finds herself the subject of attention from three people all at once, a small, quick motion of her feet that leaves her much more stable. At the same time, one of her upper hands strays towards her hip in an attempt to reach for a weapon that's simply not there. It's hard to say exactly what she'd have been going for, but the way her feet are braced indicates it's probably a melee weapon of some kind, and it can't be too large to wear on her hip.
For all that she's clearly put in an effort to make herself presentable, it seems she's rather jumpy.
She deliberately moves her hand forward again after a moment, away from where the nonexistent weapon she was reaching for would be. Superficially, she also drops back into a more relaxed stance, but the blonde might be able to tell that underneath that appearance, she's actually only gone from "ready to fight" to "ready to run".
"I am," she agrees, her response not delayed by more than a few seconds despite the complicated show she just put on. All of that only really took a few heartbeats, after all. Her voice is quiet and not particularly aggressive, but it nevertheless has a nervous edge to it. She goes quiet again after that, seemingly content to let the blonde decide if she wants to wrap things up with Vo or handle them both at once.
The friendly nod and shy smile she gets from the brown-haired girl with the apparent fondness for knives are met with a smile that manages to be simultaneously polite, professional, and devoid of any real warmth. The same goes for her own nod, which is a pale imitation of the genuine friendliness she was offered that conveys neither more nor less than acknowledgement.
Re: Vigil
Veteran of the Psychic Wars
"Anyway, get your shoes on, we're going outside. Doing a little walk-and-talk," he commands, thrusting a dusty old purple grimoire into her arms. If Blanche dares crack it open, she'll find most of the chapters of the massive tome are held together with some sickly yellow magical barrier, a soft yet impenetrable material akin to a thin plastic film. There's one page wedged between the magical barriers that she can actually look at, with a silly little bookmark shaped like a happy frog warding off the barriers. There, beneath the bookmark, is a massive glowing rune that hurts to look at and takes up the entire two pages it's printed upon. There's something weirdly hypnotic about that rune, though. There's a compulsion to stare, to touch, to get lost in it despite the pain, to just keep looking and touching and looking and touching and-
"Now, as you might already know, when I'm not trying to kill you with the worst jokes known to mankind, I do a lot of scheming. Plotting, planning, conniving...most of it is usually focused on stupid science bullshit, like trying to genetically engineer a tyrannosaurus with wings and fire breath, or finding a creative way to murder your birth father without causing an international incident, but lately I've been trying to find a way to safely and efficiently terminate Magtok Prime instead," he explains, starting what is almost certainly about to be a long-winded monologue, but pausing at the appropriate moment for Blanche to interrupt and ask 'wait, who's Prime?' Caelynn said her daughter got a big important promotion and it'd stand to reason she'd know about a major threat to the safety of the Nexus, but you also have to keep in mind that she's still Reinholdt's daughter, and I don't think Reinholdt has ever read anything in his entire life (besides the drink menus at Trog's and the Black Dragon's Den, of course). With that kind of lineage it's very possible the poor girl doesn't have any idea what's going on with anything.
"Your mom's not here with me, Blanche, you don't have to twist yourself in a knot like that. Just call me...whatever doesn't make you nauseous, I guess. Magtok? Stepdad? Stepmag?" Oh wow that last one was terrible. I mean it was absolutely fucking atrocious. It was so bad even Magtok himself has to completely stop what he's doing and cringe at his own stupid joke for a moment, and let out a weak, self-deprecating chuckle at his own expense. Hah...
"Anyway, get your shoes on, we're going outside. Doing a little walk-and-talk," he commands, thrusting a dusty old purple grimoire into her arms. If Blanche dares crack it open, she'll find most of the chapters of the massive tome are held together with some sickly yellow magical barrier, a soft yet impenetrable material akin to a thin plastic film. There's one page wedged between the magical barriers that she can actually look at, with a silly little bookmark shaped like a happy frog warding off the barriers. There, beneath the bookmark, is a massive glowing rune that hurts to look at and takes up the entire two pages it's printed upon. There's something weirdly hypnotic about that rune, though. There's a compulsion to stare, to touch, to get lost in it despite the pain, to just keep looking and touching and looking and touching and-
"Now, as you might already know, when I'm not trying to kill you with the worst jokes known to mankind, I do a lot of scheming. Plotting, planning, conniving...most of it is usually focused on stupid science bullshit, like trying to genetically engineer a tyrannosaurus with wings and fire breath, or finding a creative way to murder your birth father without causing an international incident, but lately I've been trying to find a way to safely and efficiently terminate Magtok Prime instead," he explains, starting what is almost certainly about to be a long-winded monologue, but pausing at the appropriate moment for Blanche to interrupt and ask 'wait, who's Prime?' Caelynn said her daughter got a big important promotion and it'd stand to reason she'd know about a major threat to the safety of the Nexus, but you also have to keep in mind that she's still Reinholdt's daughter, and I don't think Reinholdt has ever read anything in his entire life (besides the drink menus at Trog's and the Black Dragon's Den, of course). With that kind of lineage it's very possible the poor girl doesn't have any idea what's going on with anything.
"You probably found 'How to Survive a Robot Uprising' in the humor section. Let's just hope that is where it belongs."
-Daniel H. Wilson
Re: Vigil
Not All of Those Scars are on the Inside
"No, Magtok, it's fine - I have an actual dad now, so, I just... have to get used to it. Even if it does feel really weird." Blanche waves off her stepfather's concerns, silently trying to also immediately forget the entire concept of a "stepmag" and all that might entail. A replacement Magtok if she killed him, probably? I mean he's a bit difficult to handle sometimes, especially with the mild elf racism, but hardly worth fracturing what little she has of an actual family over.
The catgirl blinks as a large spooky book is thrust upon her, and she glances down at the ancient cover before sneezing from the cloud of dust billowing up into her face. She does not, however, read anything beyond a glance for a title. Perhaps this means she is smarter and more aware of the dangers of curiosity than the usual catgirl, or perhaps it simply backs up Magtok's theory that his stepdaughter is, in fact, as illiterate as her father-
"Oh, right, Prime. That's the fucking evil clone of yours with mind control powers or something, isn't he?" Hm, maybe there is actually a bit of grey matter somewhere inside that head of hers. "Sorry, you might have to give me a refresher, the briefing on him was a couple months ago," Blanche explains, pulling on her boots and probably rolling her eyes about trying to murder Reinholdt.
"No, Magtok, it's fine - I have an actual dad now, so, I just... have to get used to it. Even if it does feel really weird." Blanche waves off her stepfather's concerns, silently trying to also immediately forget the entire concept of a "stepmag" and all that might entail. A replacement Magtok if she killed him, probably? I mean he's a bit difficult to handle sometimes, especially with the mild elf racism, but hardly worth fracturing what little she has of an actual family over.
The catgirl blinks as a large spooky book is thrust upon her, and she glances down at the ancient cover before sneezing from the cloud of dust billowing up into her face. She does not, however, read anything beyond a glance for a title. Perhaps this means she is smarter and more aware of the dangers of curiosity than the usual catgirl, or perhaps it simply backs up Magtok's theory that his stepdaughter is, in fact, as illiterate as her father-
"Oh, right, Prime. That's the fucking evil clone of yours with mind control powers or something, isn't he?" Hm, maybe there is actually a bit of grey matter somewhere inside that head of hers. "Sorry, you might have to give me a refresher, the briefing on him was a couple months ago," Blanche explains, pulling on her boots and probably rolling her eyes about trying to murder Reinholdt.
"Are we living a life that is safe from harm? Of course not, we never are. But that's not the right question. The question is: are we living a life that is worth the harm?"
~Welcome to Night Vale
SliiArhem wrote:Arkh I may be slightly delirious but I don't think that would make sense even if I was coherent.
Re: Vigil
[Dragon Storm - An Aside]
"Yeah, it was." Thariza decides not to go into the entire mess with the merger for now. "The demons are a marauding army of monsters that tries to corrupt worlds to their liking. Vigil had fought them before and then they infiltrated it from the inside and dropped its defences. Before we knew it, we were being swarmed with their cannon fodder."Gullara wrote: ↑Aug 07, 2022 10:14 pm Utayo looks up as the first rain drop hits her. The power of a dragon is not unexpected, but still awe inspiring to experience in person.
"So this place was once where Vigil resided. And these demons, they were some foe of yours?" She asks. She's getting thrust into some of the history of this plane quite rapidly.
Re: Vigil
New Arrivals
Seeing Tirya having this combat reaction seems to trigger a certain... recognition in Blanche's eyes, as if she know the reaction very, very well. She stifles the instinct to react to someone going for a weapon in the same way she knows that would only escalates things if it were her on the other end, staying the hand by her holster.
"I think I've got this Fidelia - if you want to take a look, you can probably find Kal over by the training grounds," Blanche advises, only semi-subtly trying to narrow down the amount of people crowding the space to ease Tirya's discomfort. Fidelia, for her part, looks a little confusedly between the two recruits and Blanche before nodding. "Uh, okay, later then." She steps back, slides a hand in her pocket, gives the two women a wave and turns to head off.
"Now, usually VIGIL tends to do an interview, fill out a form or two, and have some kind of assessment so we can better understand just what you can do. That way we better know who you are, how you can be of use and what we can do best to support you." Blanche gestures for both women to follow her as she starts to head into the Academy.
"I can probably walk you through the forms in my office, but I've not quite got a handle on running assessments so we'll be seeing Cessie for that if she's in today. She's one of our co-commanders, really knows her stuff. Ran me through all this when I joined, actually." Man, what has it been? Four years now?
Seeing Tirya having this combat reaction seems to trigger a certain... recognition in Blanche's eyes, as if she know the reaction very, very well. She stifles the instinct to react to someone going for a weapon in the same way she knows that would only escalates things if it were her on the other end, staying the hand by her holster.
"I think I've got this Fidelia - if you want to take a look, you can probably find Kal over by the training grounds," Blanche advises, only semi-subtly trying to narrow down the amount of people crowding the space to ease Tirya's discomfort. Fidelia, for her part, looks a little confusedly between the two recruits and Blanche before nodding. "Uh, okay, later then." She steps back, slides a hand in her pocket, gives the two women a wave and turns to head off.
"Now, usually VIGIL tends to do an interview, fill out a form or two, and have some kind of assessment so we can better understand just what you can do. That way we better know who you are, how you can be of use and what we can do best to support you." Blanche gestures for both women to follow her as she starts to head into the Academy.
"I can probably walk you through the forms in my office, but I've not quite got a handle on running assessments so we'll be seeing Cessie for that if she's in today. She's one of our co-commanders, really knows her stuff. Ran me through all this when I joined, actually." Man, what has it been? Four years now?
"Are we living a life that is safe from harm? Of course not, we never are. But that's not the right question. The question is: are we living a life that is worth the harm?"
~Welcome to Night Vale
SliiArhem wrote:Arkh I may be slightly delirious but I don't think that would make sense even if I was coherent.
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Beans
- Less-Fresh Toddler Poster
- Posts: 140
- Joined: May 16, 2022 11:20 pm
- Location: 🚮
- Pronouns: he/him
Re: Vigil
[New Arrivals]
Vo flinches a little at Tirya's sudden movement; while not a seasoned fighter, she can at least get the sense of a combat stance. She's hit enough people very hard to get that much at least. She glances to Blanche, though, and tries her best to mirror the cat lady's calm. She turns back to Blanche when she starts to speak, listening closely and following as she walks along.
"O---okay, yeah," she nods. Okay, so they'll test her, but it doesn't sound like the kind of test you can fail... but given her luck, she could find a way to fail it anyhow. She tries to push down that thought.
Vo flinches a little at Tirya's sudden movement; while not a seasoned fighter, she can at least get the sense of a combat stance. She's hit enough people very hard to get that much at least. She glances to Blanche, though, and tries her best to mirror the cat lady's calm. She turns back to Blanche when she starts to speak, listening closely and following as she walks along.
"O---okay, yeah," she nods. Okay, so they'll test her, but it doesn't sound like the kind of test you can fail... but given her luck, she could find a way to fail it anyhow. She tries to push down that thought.
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Shadowcaller
- Poster from Beyond the Veil
- Posts: 2887
- Joined: Aug 02, 2022 6:29 am
- Location: Sweden
Re: Vigil
New Arrivals
Unsurprisingly they will find Cessie in her office. She will tell them to come in if Blanche knocks but she seems somewhat confounded. "Blanche, you know that I prefer if you make an appointment first. Especially today."
Why today? Well, there's someone else in the office with her and it isn't Jezebel.
Unsurprisingly they will find Cessie in her office. She will tell them to come in if Blanche knocks but she seems somewhat confounded. "Blanche, you know that I prefer if you make an appointment first. Especially today."
Why today? Well, there's someone else in the office with her and it isn't Jezebel.
Re: Vigil
[New Arrivals]
Today she's joined by none other than the Lady Jillian Mithar. She's sitting in her mom's chair behind the desk, looking quite small back there. They weren't made for a seven year old girl. The little girl looks like the image of her mom, but for the shock of red hair and pale yellow horns. She even dresses like her mom, wearing a long, sleeves dress in a lovely sea green with white ruffles around the hems. She leans forward to see the newcomers with curious eyes.
Today she's joined by none other than the Lady Jillian Mithar. She's sitting in her mom's chair behind the desk, looking quite small back there. They weren't made for a seven year old girl. The little girl looks like the image of her mom, but for the shock of red hair and pale yellow horns. She even dresses like her mom, wearing a long, sleeves dress in a lovely sea green with white ruffles around the hems. She leans forward to see the newcomers with curious eyes.
~Images by Soushiyo
Re: Vigil
[Dragon Storm - An Aside]Morty wrote: ↑Aug 12, 2022 3:59 pm [Dragon Storm - An Aside]
"Yeah, it was." Thariza decides not to go into the entire mess with the merger for now. "The demons are a marauding army of monsters that tries to corrupt worlds to their liking. Vigil had fought them before and then they infiltrated it from the inside and dropped its defences. Before we knew it, we were being swarmed with their cannon fodder."
Utayo nods. "I've heard of threats such as this before. Particularly concerning. Has this particular threat been vanquished, or are they still lurking to this day?"
~Images by Soushiyo
Re: Vigil
► SHOW SPOILER
Mia has no time to answer the Robot that she indeed tried to harm him. Thought killing is not her main attend, but from her perspective he wanted to do the same. So she just acts in selfdefence. As for teh sparks, they aren't of any danger as the sword itself seems to absorb the energy. It was made to use electricity in the first place.
As he jumps up Mia is lifted of the ground a bit as she was sitting on it just a moment ago and the jump comes as a suprise she can just let go of her weapon. At least she ends up on her knees instead of laying around. In the time the robot turns and gives his minion orders Mia looks around. Wenomir might notice she seems to fall in a panicked state, something she only showed after the destruction of the old base. There is one thing on the ground that seems to catch her attention. The blade the robot dropt, the Meowmere.
Mia picks up the sword from her enemy and attacsk the robot immediatly, aiming at his arm who tries to get the sword out of hiis chest. "Give it back!" she shouts.
Mia should be able to handle the sword well, she just doesn't know how to unleash the cat projectile ,
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Shadowcaller
- Poster from Beyond the Veil
- Posts: 2887
- Joined: Aug 02, 2022 6:29 am
- Location: Sweden
Re: Vigil
Submerged
One moment Ophidia is waist deep in the liquid of the well but the next she can feel her tail being tugged by something sharp she's pulled under in an instant. She won't even have time to close her mouth as she's suddenly deeper in the well than should ever be possible.
But as her mouth and lungs start to fill with water whatever was dragging her towards a watery grave suddenly let's go and she's free in what now seems to be a endless ocean of dark water. The only light source it seems is directly above her. A faint glow somewhere above the surface.
If she doesn't feel like drowning she will be able to make it to the surface in time though is rewarded by having to cough up more water than she thought possible. Assuming she needs to breath of course. Perhaps demons like her are built differently.
Yes, demon.
It's an accusing thought that suddenly invades her mind.
But if she looks around once she's reached the surface she will find that there was no sun or even lamp guiding her. No, she can't even make out what's giving away the light as all space above her is covered in a gigantic web. Leaving just enough room between it and the ocean for her to put her upper body above the dark waters but not much else. She can't actually see what the web is attached to as she does seem to be swimming around in an open ocean but surely no web could envelop the entire sky, right? It just seems to bizarre for the logical part of her brain to even consider. So perhaps she was just dreaming.
Yes, that must be it.
She's in a nightmare.
One moment Ophidia is waist deep in the liquid of the well but the next she can feel her tail being tugged by something sharp she's pulled under in an instant. She won't even have time to close her mouth as she's suddenly deeper in the well than should ever be possible.
But as her mouth and lungs start to fill with water whatever was dragging her towards a watery grave suddenly let's go and she's free in what now seems to be a endless ocean of dark water. The only light source it seems is directly above her. A faint glow somewhere above the surface.
If she doesn't feel like drowning she will be able to make it to the surface in time though is rewarded by having to cough up more water than she thought possible. Assuming she needs to breath of course. Perhaps demons like her are built differently.
Yes, demon.
It's an accusing thought that suddenly invades her mind.
But if she looks around once she's reached the surface she will find that there was no sun or even lamp guiding her. No, she can't even make out what's giving away the light as all space above her is covered in a gigantic web. Leaving just enough room between it and the ocean for her to put her upper body above the dark waters but not much else. She can't actually see what the web is attached to as she does seem to be swimming around in an open ocean but surely no web could envelop the entire sky, right? It just seems to bizarre for the logical part of her brain to even consider. So perhaps she was just dreaming.
Yes, that must be it.
She's in a nightmare.
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Beans
- Less-Fresh Toddler Poster
- Posts: 140
- Joined: May 16, 2022 11:20 pm
- Location: 🚮
- Pronouns: he/him
Re: Vigil
[New Arrivals]
Oh no. She's inconveniencing someone official! Sure, it's not actually her fault, but it may as well be! Vo looks quite awkward behind Blanche, a chick tucked behind its mother hen. She peeks out and sees Jillian; her eyes flick between the mother and child before she gives an anxious smile. She barely knows what to do around adults, let alone kids...
Oh no. She's inconveniencing someone official! Sure, it's not actually her fault, but it may as well be! Vo looks quite awkward behind Blanche, a chick tucked behind its mother hen. She peeks out and sees Jillian; her eyes flick between the mother and child before she gives an anxious smile. She barely knows what to do around adults, let alone kids...
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Lady Serpentine
- Fresh Baby Poster
- Posts: 6
- Joined: May 16, 2022 4:38 am
Re: Vigil
[New Arrivals]
The four-armed girl - who, it turns out, is named Tirya Tsilndottir - keeps up the veneer of cool professionalism through the filling out of forms, answering and asking questions in as few words as possible. Fortunately, despite the awkwardness, she also is well-prepared. She even proves to be one of the few people in the Nexus with some record of who she is and where she's from, should the question come up, with an ID issued by Inside in her pocket and an assurance that they can, even more surprisingly, check her birth certificate.
She's prepared for Cessie to be in her office. She's even prepared for other people to be there too. What she isn't prepared for is to see someone who her mind immediately labels a demon. She very carefully does not go into a combat stance or reach for a weapon this time, at least, her readiness paying off to that extent. The way she stiffens when she sees Jillian certainly hints at the fact that she wants to, though.
She doesn't quite manage to relax, afterwards, though she seems to be making an effort to at least be marginally polite about her discomfort. The obvious tension and the fact that her eyes keep straying back towards Jillian whenever she's not forcibly directing them elsewhere rather undercuts that, of course, but she's trying, for whatever that's worth.
Good job, Tiri. Meet the person who's responsible for deciding if you get in or not and then make it seem like you have a problem with what's obviously her daughter. That's going to go over fine, right? Especially when it comes out that you're a paladin. It's not like there's any history with demons there that's going to muddy the waters. None at all. I'm sure it'll really sell that you're part of a legitimate religious organization and not some weird cult, too.
The four-armed girl - who, it turns out, is named Tirya Tsilndottir - keeps up the veneer of cool professionalism through the filling out of forms, answering and asking questions in as few words as possible. Fortunately, despite the awkwardness, she also is well-prepared. She even proves to be one of the few people in the Nexus with some record of who she is and where she's from, should the question come up, with an ID issued by Inside in her pocket and an assurance that they can, even more surprisingly, check her birth certificate.
She's prepared for Cessie to be in her office. She's even prepared for other people to be there too. What she isn't prepared for is to see someone who her mind immediately labels a demon. She very carefully does not go into a combat stance or reach for a weapon this time, at least, her readiness paying off to that extent. The way she stiffens when she sees Jillian certainly hints at the fact that she wants to, though.
She doesn't quite manage to relax, afterwards, though she seems to be making an effort to at least be marginally polite about her discomfort. The obvious tension and the fact that her eyes keep straying back towards Jillian whenever she's not forcibly directing them elsewhere rather undercuts that, of course, but she's trying, for whatever that's worth.
Good job, Tiri. Meet the person who's responsible for deciding if you get in or not and then make it seem like you have a problem with what's obviously her daughter. That's going to go over fine, right? Especially when it comes out that you're a paladin. It's not like there's any history with demons there that's going to muddy the waters. None at all. I'm sure it'll really sell that you're part of a legitimate religious organization and not some weird cult, too.
Re: Vigil
New Arrivals
"Oh, er, apologies - I wasn't entirely sure how to handle assessment for these two, and I didn't realize you had Jillian with you today. I can see if Wenomir's available if you want?" Blanche looks between Cessie and Jillian for input, not entirely sure how to gauge what's going on. Was it take your daughter to work day?
Tirya's body language does earn her a wary glance from Blanche, but she doesn't act or directly comment on it just yet. There was clearly some sort of baggage going on here, but they don't need to treat her as an innate threat unless she directly acts as one. Watch, wait, and try to understand what's going on here.
"Oh, er, apologies - I wasn't entirely sure how to handle assessment for these two, and I didn't realize you had Jillian with you today. I can see if Wenomir's available if you want?" Blanche looks between Cessie and Jillian for input, not entirely sure how to gauge what's going on. Was it take your daughter to work day?
Tirya's body language does earn her a wary glance from Blanche, but she doesn't act or directly comment on it just yet. There was clearly some sort of baggage going on here, but they don't need to treat her as an innate threat unless she directly acts as one. Watch, wait, and try to understand what's going on here.
"Are we living a life that is safe from harm? Of course not, we never are. But that's not the right question. The question is: are we living a life that is worth the harm?"
~Welcome to Night Vale
SliiArhem wrote:Arkh I may be slightly delirious but I don't think that would make sense even if I was coherent.
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Shadowcaller
- Poster from Beyond the Veil
- Posts: 2887
- Joined: Aug 02, 2022 6:29 am
- Location: Sweden
Re: Vigil
New Arrivals
"It's fine, Blanche. Jillian is curious about my work and won't get in the way." Cessie remarks but as she turns her attention towards the newcomers she isn't sure how to read Tirya's demeanor. Was she always like this? And why did she keep looking at her daughter with that expression?
"...unless there's a problem? I'm commander Cessie Mithar and this is my daughter, Jillian Mithar." She gestures to the girl in her chair.
"She's not usually here of course due to the nature of our work but as my other children have already seen VIGIL I figured it was her turn." She pauses and looks between the two candidates, hopefully that would serve as a prompt for them to introduce themselves.
"It's fine, Blanche. Jillian is curious about my work and won't get in the way." Cessie remarks but as she turns her attention towards the newcomers she isn't sure how to read Tirya's demeanor. Was she always like this? And why did she keep looking at her daughter with that expression?
"...unless there's a problem? I'm commander Cessie Mithar and this is my daughter, Jillian Mithar." She gestures to the girl in her chair.
"She's not usually here of course due to the nature of our work but as my other children have already seen VIGIL I figured it was her turn." She pauses and looks between the two candidates, hopefully that would serve as a prompt for them to introduce themselves.
Re: Vigil
The Symbol Remains
Magtok quirks an eyebrow at her response to the dad thing, but shrugs and continues along regardless. If she wants a cordial, functional relationship with her stepdad, well...there's not really any good reason to oppose her and be a frustrating jerk, is there? Plus, note how she said an actual dad now. That means she clearly doesn't count her pink-eyed birth parent. If we get this to a vaguely functional father-daughter relationship, if she can get to a point where she says dad without both her and our stomachs twisting in discomfort, that'll be another win in the Magtok column. One more petty, meaningless triumph over the cat. Spite alone is reason enough to try to get along with the cat's bastard, right? I mean, ideally we'd be trying to get along with Blanche for more virtuous reasons than that, like the importance of family and keeping the wife happy and happy little morals like that, but if Blanche ever does something really annoying, and that sort of thing isn't enough motivation to keep going, it's good to have a reserve of pettiness and contempt to get us across the finish line.
"You were close, just a little bit off on one key fact. See, Prime's the one Magtok who's not a clone. He's the original, the stupid evil psychic dead guy responsible for creating myself and every other Magtok the Nexus has ever known. I don't know if that makes him my father or my eldest brother or both. I'm sure he has his own opinion, but I'm not really interested in asking. He's a problem, since most people don't like being psychically compelled to do whatever a stupid ghost wants, and psychically compelling the entire world to do what he wants is his apparent end goal. We can't just shoot him, either, because even if you kill his body he can just go steal a new one, but like I was saying, I think I have something resembling a solution." Magtok explains, looking down to peer at his wrist, before checking a sign or two for directions. He could probably just ask Blanche, since she actually lives here, but you know how some guys are about asking for directions.
"That book I handed you has a magical rune in the bookmarked chapter. I was told that if you put it on an object, any ghost that voluntarily enters it should be trapped, permanently sealed within. You can take a quick glances if you space them out, but try not to stare at the rune for more than a few seconds at a time, or it might suck out a tiny fragment of your soul or bleach your hair white. I think damaged souls grow back, but it's not really my area of expertise, so don't quote me on that. Nor is hair, for...obvious reasons," the cyborg admits, giving her a moment or two to snicker if she wishes. The bald jokes don't bother him, he chose to look like this. That's why people usually go with the goblin jokes instead; it's a lot easier to get under his skin with something so blatantly, transparently false.
"Prime grew his own clone in Skyside, but before he could ever possess this body, some stupidly lucky adventurers blew up his factory, stole the clone, and donated the captive to Vigil. Then they called me up, asking me to come have a look at him before punching me in the face and acting like huge assholes about it. Anyway, I learned from that examination that the clone also had a psychic power enhancing implant in his brain, which was removed for everyone's safety. Now, Prime has almost certainly found another body since that fight, but he's settling, Blanche. He could do better, and he knows it, because he built the better body already. His ego is chafing, his pride is bruised after that humiliation in Skyside. He's desperate to either build a new perfect body or steal the old one back from Vigil. That's our way in, Blanche. That's the bait," Mag explains, as it quickly becomes apparent that he's trying to lead the way to Vigil's cyborg prisoner...wherever the hell that guy is.
► SHOW SPOILER
"You were close, just a little bit off on one key fact. See, Prime's the one Magtok who's not a clone. He's the original, the stupid evil psychic dead guy responsible for creating myself and every other Magtok the Nexus has ever known. I don't know if that makes him my father or my eldest brother or both. I'm sure he has his own opinion, but I'm not really interested in asking. He's a problem, since most people don't like being psychically compelled to do whatever a stupid ghost wants, and psychically compelling the entire world to do what he wants is his apparent end goal. We can't just shoot him, either, because even if you kill his body he can just go steal a new one, but like I was saying, I think I have something resembling a solution." Magtok explains, looking down to peer at his wrist, before checking a sign or two for directions. He could probably just ask Blanche, since she actually lives here, but you know how some guys are about asking for directions.
"That book I handed you has a magical rune in the bookmarked chapter. I was told that if you put it on an object, any ghost that voluntarily enters it should be trapped, permanently sealed within. You can take a quick glances if you space them out, but try not to stare at the rune for more than a few seconds at a time, or it might suck out a tiny fragment of your soul or bleach your hair white. I think damaged souls grow back, but it's not really my area of expertise, so don't quote me on that. Nor is hair, for...obvious reasons," the cyborg admits, giving her a moment or two to snicker if she wishes. The bald jokes don't bother him, he chose to look like this. That's why people usually go with the goblin jokes instead; it's a lot easier to get under his skin with something so blatantly, transparently false.
"Prime grew his own clone in Skyside, but before he could ever possess this body, some stupidly lucky adventurers blew up his factory, stole the clone, and donated the captive to Vigil. Then they called me up, asking me to come have a look at him before punching me in the face and acting like huge assholes about it. Anyway, I learned from that examination that the clone also had a psychic power enhancing implant in his brain, which was removed for everyone's safety. Now, Prime has almost certainly found another body since that fight, but he's settling, Blanche. He could do better, and he knows it, because he built the better body already. His ego is chafing, his pride is bruised after that humiliation in Skyside. He's desperate to either build a new perfect body or steal the old one back from Vigil. That's our way in, Blanche. That's the bait," Mag explains, as it quickly becomes apparent that he's trying to lead the way to Vigil's cyborg prisoner...wherever the hell that guy is.
"You probably found 'How to Survive a Robot Uprising' in the humor section. Let's just hope that is where it belongs."
-Daniel H. Wilson
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Beans
- Less-Fresh Toddler Poster
- Posts: 140
- Joined: May 16, 2022 11:20 pm
- Location: 🚮
- Pronouns: he/him
Re: Vigil
Vo definitely notices Tirya's tension and the way she keeps looking at the child. Is Jillian making Tirya uncomfortable? She knows not everyone's fond of kids. Heck, she's feeling a bit awkward about the child herself, but Tirya looks like she's really on edge---Shadowcaller wrote: ↑Aug 14, 2022 7:02 am New Arrivals
"It's fine, Blanche. Jillian is curious about my work and won't get in the way." Cessie remarks but as she turns her attention towards the newcomers she isn't sure how to read Tirya's demeanor. Was she always like this? And why did she keep looking at her daughter with that expression?
"...unless there's a problem? I'm commander Cessie Mithar and this is my daughter, Jillian Mithar." She gestures to the girl in her chair.
"She's not usually here of course due to the nature of our work but as my other children have already seen VIGIL I figured it was her turn." She pauses and looks between the two candidates, hopefully that would serve as a prompt for them to introduce themselves.
Oh hell the commander lady is looking at them, and she's pretty sure there's an unspoken invitation to introduce themselves. People say a lot in conversation without actually vocalizing it and it's still something she has trouble with...
Vo decides to step up. Swallowing, she smiles very awkwardly. "Hi, uh... I'm Vo. N---uh, no last name. I... like I said to Miss Blanche, I want to learn to be more disciplined and focused here, so I can do more about st---about actually stopping bad stuff. I'm... like, I'm strong, and I'm tough, but I---I don't think that's enough. Um." The patchwork woman glances at Jillian again, then counts something on her fingers. "... I've... kind of only been like, around for---uh, like 6 months, does that make me a kid?"
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Lady Serpentine
- Fresh Baby Poster
- Posts: 6
- Joined: May 16, 2022 4:38 am
Re: Vigil
[New Arrivals]
"Tirya Tsilndottir. And no, there's no problem, Commander Mithar. Simply some unfortunate memories that have no bearing on you or your daughter," the four-armed girl replies, as calmly as she can manage. The wary edge from earlier lingers in her voice, but it's otherwise carefully professional, though there's no hint of friendliness to it, much less warmth. "If you would like an explanation, I can provide one whenever you feel it would be appropriate. Regardless, I assure you that they will not create an issue."
Her eyes remain fixed on Cessie's face through her reply, and afterwards, the excuse to distract herself from glancing at Jillian welcome. She knows, rationally speaking, that she's not in any danger here. And that if she was, it wouldn't be from Jillian, it would be from Cessie or Blanche deciding she's a threat. Which her current conduct is not remotely helping with. The problem is that that's not actually helping her relax.
It probably doesn't help that, with the exception of going out for groceries, this is the largest group of people she's been around for the past several years. And even those trips were either in the middle of the workday or so late that nobody else was going to be around.
"Tirya Tsilndottir. And no, there's no problem, Commander Mithar. Simply some unfortunate memories that have no bearing on you or your daughter," the four-armed girl replies, as calmly as she can manage. The wary edge from earlier lingers in her voice, but it's otherwise carefully professional, though there's no hint of friendliness to it, much less warmth. "If you would like an explanation, I can provide one whenever you feel it would be appropriate. Regardless, I assure you that they will not create an issue."
Her eyes remain fixed on Cessie's face through her reply, and afterwards, the excuse to distract herself from glancing at Jillian welcome. She knows, rationally speaking, that she's not in any danger here. And that if she was, it wouldn't be from Jillian, it would be from Cessie or Blanche deciding she's a threat. Which her current conduct is not remotely helping with. The problem is that that's not actually helping her relax.
It probably doesn't help that, with the exception of going out for groceries, this is the largest group of people she's been around for the past several years. And even those trips were either in the middle of the workday or so late that nobody else was going to be around.
Re: Vigil
[New Arrivals]
Jillian glances at the others in the room, sensing the tension, but not knowing how to interpret it. That said, she does know how to properly greet someone. She pushes off the chair and comes out from behind the desk. "It's nice to meet you all." She adds to her mom's own introduction, and accompanies the words with a bow.
Jillian glances at the others in the room, sensing the tension, but not knowing how to interpret it. That said, she does know how to properly greet someone. She pushes off the chair and comes out from behind the desk. "It's nice to meet you all." She adds to her mom's own introduction, and accompanies the words with a bow.
~Images by Soushiyo
Re: Vigil
New Arrivals
Blanche moves aside somewhat to let Cessie better address the two applicants, watching the woman work. Cessie tended to be better at this diplomacy stuff than her, and she couldn't help but feel like it was important to understand how she did it herself. Not that the situation seems to mandate much of it, but the candidates here did seem to have some notable anxieties going on. And as understanding as she tried to be, Blanche was not the most skilled managing anxieties.
She did, however, have an inkling of what to do with ones she recognized, and what Tirya described was certainly familiar - enough for Blanche's ears to flick when she catches a few words of it before she turns to address her. "Whether you feel that we need one or not, let us know if there's anything we might do to accommodate you, miss Tsilndottir. Many members of VIGIL are survivors or veterans of one color or another, myself included."
Blanche moves aside somewhat to let Cessie better address the two applicants, watching the woman work. Cessie tended to be better at this diplomacy stuff than her, and she couldn't help but feel like it was important to understand how she did it herself. Not that the situation seems to mandate much of it, but the candidates here did seem to have some notable anxieties going on. And as understanding as she tried to be, Blanche was not the most skilled managing anxieties.
She did, however, have an inkling of what to do with ones she recognized, and what Tirya described was certainly familiar - enough for Blanche's ears to flick when she catches a few words of it before she turns to address her. "Whether you feel that we need one or not, let us know if there's anything we might do to accommodate you, miss Tsilndottir. Many members of VIGIL are survivors or veterans of one color or another, myself included."
"Are we living a life that is safe from harm? Of course not, we never are. But that's not the right question. The question is: are we living a life that is worth the harm?"
~Welcome to Night Vale
SliiArhem wrote:Arkh I may be slightly delirious but I don't think that would make sense even if I was coherent.
Re: Vigil
► SHOW SPOILER
It's probably no surprise that Blanche's internal thoughts on the dichotomy of having two dads are somewhat complex. Growing up without a father, she's never really associated anyone with that kind of role - but it's never been something she's felt a keen absence over either, so the two aren't precisely competing to fill some single void. Both are unique relationships; Magtok's her new stepdad and Reinholdt's her biological father, and she can't really understand what these mean to her without at least doing her best to accept them.
"...Huh. Well shit, I guess that does explain why you would care so deeply about this - it sounds like you're a prime target for one, considering who you are." Was that a pun, Blanche? Hm, probably not, she doesn't seem to be smiling. "Psychic hazards aren't my area of expertise, but if a Magtok is the preferred host for this entity... well, I can't imagine it would be pretty when he manages to reach you." She raises an eyebrow. "How can you be sure that removing that amplifier hasn't somehow tainted the original clone he grew in his eyes, though? Is there something specific about them that sets you apart from it? I mean, every version of you was grown in a vat like him, right?"
There's a beat as Blanche finally starts to realize what Magtok might have in mind for even bringing this up to her. "And have you spoken at all to Cessie or Wenomir about this?"
"Are we living a life that is safe from harm? Of course not, we never are. But that's not the right question. The question is: are we living a life that is worth the harm?"
~Welcome to Night Vale
SliiArhem wrote:Arkh I may be slightly delirious but I don't think that would make sense even if I was coherent.
Re: Vigil
Flaming Telepaths
"You're throwing a lot of questions at me at once," Magtok sighs, raising his hands up to ward off her suspicions, already fearing the worst after that last question. Blanche wasn't going to go along with this at all, was she? It's going to get caught in Vigil bureaucracy, discarded and forgotten simply because the idea has an element of risk attached. Dammit, the exact same story you get with all other radical, genius ideas that depend on the assistance of others. Maybe we should've just broken in without telling her anything, or lied and made up a story about a distress signal in the prison. Blegh, well we can at least try, right? At least explain the idea in full before she shoots it down and forces us to resort to something more creative.
"I can only claim to know so much about Prime, since I've only met him in person one time. Just to clarify, he died roughly fifteen, fourteen years ago, and then moments later, the first Magtok clone woke up in a lab with no idea who they were or what they were meant to be, and just had to figure it out for themselves from the research logs and computer terminals left lying around. He didn't possess the body, didn't tell us what he'd been up to, he just...never showed up. We all presumed we were an unfinished project, that he meant to create a memory bank to pour his entire life's history into and some intrepid hero killed the unlucky bastard dead before he could actually finish his immortality project. I still think that's true, but him coming back years later as a ghost...I have a few questions now, some uncertainties I don't think are ever going to get addressed.
What I do know is that none of us ever shown any psychic aptitude at all, and the one clone Vigil stole from him was a wrinkly old man, a withered mummy with gross liver spots who could barely walk on his own two legs. Looking at his psychic stuff was like trying to read elvish script with a knife in my eye and my auto-translator turned off, which is too bad because it'd be really cool if I could throw stuff around with my mind. Anyway, I think that means he never bothered advancing his cloning technology from where it was when he originally made us clones, that he went all in on this psychic stuff instead of working on a way to extend his telomeres and prevent the age acceleration process from starting each new generation of clones at roughly the age the last generation ended. So no, to answer your question, this clone without the amplifier isn't more precious to him than I would be. In fact, he's worthless in his current state," the cyborg explains, before abruptly halting in place, turning around, and giving Blanche his most devious smirk.
"In his current state," he repeats for emphasis, before looking intently at the book Blanche has been carrying. "That old geezer is desperate to get his implant back and reunite with Prime. He won't even notice if we add a spooky rune to the implant, won't even bother asking questions. If we can trick him into thinking he outsmarted Vigil, stole the implant back, and broke out on his own, then he gets out, he goes to Inside and makes some noise so Prime can find him, they unite, and Prime is trapped, permanently and forever locked inside this old geezer. Then everyone murders the hell out of Prime's new body in a climatic epic city fight, asses are kicked, and Vigil puts the implant with a soul trapped inside it in a pretty little glass display case in the center of their trophy room, the end," Magtok concludes, dusting off his hands together at the end of his little ideal battle scenario, as if the whole battle has already played out and the Nexus has won and he doesn't have to do anything else about it anymore. He doesn't address Blanche's final question, but why bother? She already knows the answer to that one, confirming or denying it won't help us here.
"You're throwing a lot of questions at me at once," Magtok sighs, raising his hands up to ward off her suspicions, already fearing the worst after that last question. Blanche wasn't going to go along with this at all, was she? It's going to get caught in Vigil bureaucracy, discarded and forgotten simply because the idea has an element of risk attached. Dammit, the exact same story you get with all other radical, genius ideas that depend on the assistance of others. Maybe we should've just broken in without telling her anything, or lied and made up a story about a distress signal in the prison. Blegh, well we can at least try, right? At least explain the idea in full before she shoots it down and forces us to resort to something more creative.
"I can only claim to know so much about Prime, since I've only met him in person one time. Just to clarify, he died roughly fifteen, fourteen years ago, and then moments later, the first Magtok clone woke up in a lab with no idea who they were or what they were meant to be, and just had to figure it out for themselves from the research logs and computer terminals left lying around. He didn't possess the body, didn't tell us what he'd been up to, he just...never showed up. We all presumed we were an unfinished project, that he meant to create a memory bank to pour his entire life's history into and some intrepid hero killed the unlucky bastard dead before he could actually finish his immortality project. I still think that's true, but him coming back years later as a ghost...I have a few questions now, some uncertainties I don't think are ever going to get addressed.
What I do know is that none of us ever shown any psychic aptitude at all, and the one clone Vigil stole from him was a wrinkly old man, a withered mummy with gross liver spots who could barely walk on his own two legs. Looking at his psychic stuff was like trying to read elvish script with a knife in my eye and my auto-translator turned off, which is too bad because it'd be really cool if I could throw stuff around with my mind. Anyway, I think that means he never bothered advancing his cloning technology from where it was when he originally made us clones, that he went all in on this psychic stuff instead of working on a way to extend his telomeres and prevent the age acceleration process from starting each new generation of clones at roughly the age the last generation ended. So no, to answer your question, this clone without the amplifier isn't more precious to him than I would be. In fact, he's worthless in his current state," the cyborg explains, before abruptly halting in place, turning around, and giving Blanche his most devious smirk.
"In his current state," he repeats for emphasis, before looking intently at the book Blanche has been carrying. "That old geezer is desperate to get his implant back and reunite with Prime. He won't even notice if we add a spooky rune to the implant, won't even bother asking questions. If we can trick him into thinking he outsmarted Vigil, stole the implant back, and broke out on his own, then he gets out, he goes to Inside and makes some noise so Prime can find him, they unite, and Prime is trapped, permanently and forever locked inside this old geezer. Then everyone murders the hell out of Prime's new body in a climatic epic city fight, asses are kicked, and Vigil puts the implant with a soul trapped inside it in a pretty little glass display case in the center of their trophy room, the end," Magtok concludes, dusting off his hands together at the end of his little ideal battle scenario, as if the whole battle has already played out and the Nexus has won and he doesn't have to do anything else about it anymore. He doesn't address Blanche's final question, but why bother? She already knows the answer to that one, confirming or denying it won't help us here.
"You probably found 'How to Survive a Robot Uprising' in the humor section. Let's just hope that is where it belongs."
-Daniel H. Wilson
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Shadowcaller
- Poster from Beyond the Veil
- Posts: 2887
- Joined: Aug 02, 2022 6:29 am
- Location: Sweden
Re: Vigil
New Arrivals
Cessie smiles widely as her daughter bows before their guests and she has to restrain herself not to start gushing about how excellent she was in every possible way. The mere idea that anyone could be conflicted about her presence there leaves her mind as quickly as it came. No, it just couldn't be.
But she hadn't that let her be too distracted from the others introductions however so as she turns back to them she first clears her voice. She had to leave mom-mode and get back into commander-mode.
First, she looks to Vo and gestures to her to make it clear who she's addressing. "...well, now that we've all introduced ourselves I should say that I've found that child, or 'kid' as you say, is a relative term in the nexus so don't stress yourself out thinking about it. Since you're here expressing interest in joining you've have at least judged yourself worthy miss Vo. Simply that will alone can do some wonders so just consider how you believe that you best can apply these gifts of yours. Since while VIGIL is foremost a military organization dedicated to protect people it's also focused on helping its members becoming better at their duties. Both I and the other commander, Wenomir, both have students under our metaphorical wings." In the nexus it felt like she should make sure to add that 'metaphorical' part. "-and there are many more senior members that act as teachers and guides to new members. So in that way I hope we can help you out achieving your goal."
Then the commander turns to Tirya. "If you feel comfortable explaining that it with a child in the room, miss Tsildottir." She remarks while nodding in Jillian's direction. "But as Blanche said, I think everyone in VIGIL have their own story to share regarding the violence most of us have to partake in. I would even claim that the members that don't at least have some trauma in their past are either not working out in the field or don't have a typical psychology. Not that it makes them any less of a person but what I'm saying is that trauma is common here and we don't judge our members for it."
"So getting into the details of it is entirely your choice to make if you don't believe it will effect your performance here. But I would like to know a bit more about what you could do for us. Miss Vo said she was strong and tough, are those the skills you want us help you utilize in the field then?"
Cessie smiles widely as her daughter bows before their guests and she has to restrain herself not to start gushing about how excellent she was in every possible way. The mere idea that anyone could be conflicted about her presence there leaves her mind as quickly as it came. No, it just couldn't be.
But she hadn't that let her be too distracted from the others introductions however so as she turns back to them she first clears her voice. She had to leave mom-mode and get back into commander-mode.
First, she looks to Vo and gestures to her to make it clear who she's addressing. "...well, now that we've all introduced ourselves I should say that I've found that child, or 'kid' as you say, is a relative term in the nexus so don't stress yourself out thinking about it. Since you're here expressing interest in joining you've have at least judged yourself worthy miss Vo. Simply that will alone can do some wonders so just consider how you believe that you best can apply these gifts of yours. Since while VIGIL is foremost a military organization dedicated to protect people it's also focused on helping its members becoming better at their duties. Both I and the other commander, Wenomir, both have students under our metaphorical wings." In the nexus it felt like she should make sure to add that 'metaphorical' part. "-and there are many more senior members that act as teachers and guides to new members. So in that way I hope we can help you out achieving your goal."
Then the commander turns to Tirya. "If you feel comfortable explaining that it with a child in the room, miss Tsildottir." She remarks while nodding in Jillian's direction. "But as Blanche said, I think everyone in VIGIL have their own story to share regarding the violence most of us have to partake in. I would even claim that the members that don't at least have some trauma in their past are either not working out in the field or don't have a typical psychology. Not that it makes them any less of a person but what I'm saying is that trauma is common here and we don't judge our members for it."
"So getting into the details of it is entirely your choice to make if you don't believe it will effect your performance here. But I would like to know a bit more about what you could do for us. Miss Vo said she was strong and tough, are those the skills you want us help you utilize in the field then?"
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bc56
- Poster from Beyond the Veil
- Posts: 2775
- Joined: Jul 25, 2022 3:09 pm
- Location: Sector ZZ9 Plural Z Alpha
Re: Vigil
"No!" Ophidia protests. "I've fought against them my entire life! How dare you accuse me of that!"Shadowcaller wrote: ↑Aug 13, 2022 1:23 pm Submerged
One moment Ophidia is waist deep in the liquid of the well but the next she can feel her tail being tugged by something sharp she's pulled under in an instant. She won't even have time to close her mouth as she's suddenly deeper in the well than should ever be possible.
But as her mouth and lungs start to fill with water whatever was dragging her towards a watery grave suddenly let's go and she's free in what now seems to be a endless ocean of dark water. The only light source it seems is directly above her. A faint glow somewhere above the surface.
If she doesn't feel like drowning she will be able to make it to the surface in time though is rewarded by having to cough up more water than she thought possible. Assuming she needs to breath of course. Perhaps demons like her are built differently.
Yes, demon.
It's an accusing thought that suddenly invades her mind.
But if she looks around once she's reached the surface she will find that there was no sun or even lamp guiding her. No, she can't even make out what's giving away the light as all space above her is covered in a gigantic web. Leaving just enough room between it and the ocean for her to put her upper body above the dark waters but not much else. She can't actually see what the web is attached to as she does seem to be swimming around in an open ocean but surely no web could envelop the entire sky, right? It just seems to bizarre for the logical part of her brain to even consider. So perhaps she was just dreaming.
Yes, that must be it.
She's in a nightmare.
True, but she who fights monsters should take care lest she become a monster herself. Ophelia was not careful.
She reaches up and strains against the web. She doesn't know why exactly, but she instinctively wants to get out of here, to tear a hole in this prison and climb to safety, or at least a different danger.
Last edited by bc56 on Aug 18, 2022 9:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Avatar by me! No more outsourcing!
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Beans
- Less-Fresh Toddler Poster
- Posts: 140
- Joined: May 16, 2022 11:20 pm
- Location: 🚮
- Pronouns: he/him
Re: Vigil
[New Arrivals]
Vo listens as Cessie speaks, and some of her anxiety leaves her expression. She feels a little less like a shambling mess, a little more like a real person. Nodding eagerly, her face is lit up with a more hopeful smile than she's worn in a long while. "Y-yes, thank you, I---thanks. I... have a lot to work on, but I can at least give myself credit for making it this far..."
She glances over at Tirya. Oh man, she'd better ask how to spell her last name. Well, if she ever has cause to write it down, that is. It seems like she's shouldering some serious weight, but Cessie and Blanche are both offering support.
Vo listens as Cessie speaks, and some of her anxiety leaves her expression. She feels a little less like a shambling mess, a little more like a real person. Nodding eagerly, her face is lit up with a more hopeful smile than she's worn in a long while. "Y-yes, thank you, I---thanks. I... have a lot to work on, but I can at least give myself credit for making it this far..."
She glances over at Tirya. Oh man, she'd better ask how to spell her last name. Well, if she ever has cause to write it down, that is. It seems like she's shouldering some serious weight, but Cessie and Blanche are both offering support.