A Masked Dance

[+Sorana]

The city was alive.

The thought crossed her mind while she walked through the streets, all around her laughing, celebrating people. The streets seemed to glow in the light of the lampions hanging everywhere, their shapes and sizes varying with the people that had hung them up. She knew there would be fires in the larger and smaller places, carefully watched by a few who had offered to keep an eye on the flames.

A tiny smile touched her lips as she allowed herself to be swept along by the crowd moving towards one of the larger places nearby. They all had spent the day inside, had considered the last year, had pondered over mistakes had decided on things they wanted to do in the future. But now, now the time for silence, for quiet thoughtfullness was over. Now it was time to celebrate, to forget about the past for a moment, about the wars and the destruction that had happened so regularly for the past years. She could feel it, could see it in the faces, in the eyes of those around her. Tonight was dedicated tp the present. Tonight they were alive.

She stopped in front of a stall and bought herself a drink that smelled like a mixture of lemon and kiwi and then continued, walked along the street, her face carefully hidden behind a green mask depicting a spren. Nearly everybody wore them, some faces easy to recognize despite their unusual adornment, others completely anonymus behind larger, more complicated ones. She saw the old figures of myth, the old gods of this world, new heros of the movies, creatures from all the worlds that came together in this place, some so weird she had no idea what or who they were supposed to represent.

Despite the pleasant, festivious mood she kept her eyes open, couldn't quite suppress her instinct to look for a threat, to make sure nobody was trying to use the situation for their benefit. She couldn't see anybody, saw no sign of anything that tipped her off, but she allowed herself her awareness, didn't try to stop her eyes from covertly roaming over the crowd now and then. It had saved her live more often than not and she saw no reason to stop.

When she stepped onto the place, she could see the fire burning in the middle, hear the music of some that had brought their instruments and played a quick dance. The city was alive, she was alive. And tonight, tonight she would celebrate, she would maybe meet new people, tonight her white hair would be part of a costume and not mark her as a freak. For once her red eyes, changed to crystals by years spend soulcasting, could be mistaken for a special set of contact lenses.

Althea took a sip of her drink and looked around, the tiny smile still touching her lips. Tonight was a good night. One she had looked forward to for months.

[Archer]

“Festive sticks! Get yer sticks for celebrating, free while supplies last!” Kingston Smedry was hawking swords, but no one wanted to buy swords at a street party. He pulled dozens of them one by one from his bag, a feat which caught the eye of more than a few passersby, given the pouch’s outwardly small dimensions. One toddler clapped excitedly when he drew a meter-long broadsword out, then squealed when delight when Kingston obligingly put it in his hands. “Go stab something for me, okay kid?”   

A few party-goers dropped coins at Kingston’s feet, despite his insisting it wasn’t necessary. He had donned a simple black mask for the occasion, under which he wore a pair of dark sunglasses. Others sported extravagant costumes for the occasion, but he preferred his simple black bomber jacket and loose blue jeans. Besides, they were the only clothes he owned.

“I’m in no rush! Plenty happy just to be here, handing out these fabulous kitchen utensils. We got one-pronged forks here, in case you don’t trust the food vendor’s cutlery!” Someone was roasting a pig nearby. He crouched to quickly scoop up the tips he’d received, checking to see if he had enough chrysts to buy dinner later. He didn’t. “This is a good haul, all things considered.”

[Emi]

Allence was searching for rich people, which she could rob. Tin improved her senses, so festival looked even more amazing. Her two-colored eyes were shinig, exitement level of every person was almoust, so it looked similar to minefield. This was ideal day for stealing, nobody will realize in this crowd that that she tooked a golden neckless or a bag. Although everywhere were people and Allence didn't like it, lights were amazing and she could rob almoust everybody. She needed only to wach out if the people aren't from TUBA, but they knew her and her unconventional look, so they could ask her for stuff, that she robbed from her alllies. 

She saw some great-dressed people and remembered them. Today she was specially fighting for allomantic and feruchemic metals. Whole TUBA will be glad if she bring it it and she couldn't fail. Not after they accepted her like anyone before. Suddenly she saw a person with glass full of metal. "Finally", she whispered to herself "You won't escape now".

[18th Shard]

Aredan stopped in the road. An old man with a short white beard stood on the street corner. He set a large glass bowl filled with water on a pedestal in front of him. Calling out, he began his story.

“It is said that in the beginning, there was a Void, and into this void came many cosmoses. Every possible cosmos existed separate and apart from the others. Nothing stretched in the space between except for the primordial Void from which they were born. It is impossible for the minds of mortals to understand this Void as it is, but perhaps an analogy may serve. The Void is like the city alleyway between the buildings of each universe, stretching and twisting among all that is.”

The storyteller dropped a black ink into the water, swirling it slightly with a thin metal rod. The water became a murky black until the ink diffused to the bottom of the bowl.

“There was a solitary being who resided inside of the Void, Voidus, the Lonely God. I know no stories of his creation, if indeed he was created. Like the Void which he inhabited, his true form is unknowable, even among the other gods. A sage of another world, a reptilian king, once tried to describe him thus, ‘The Lonely God authors reality, pages upon pages of demigods springing from his words; his gaze is like a slow stabbing from behind, in an Alley without light. The ancients saw the Lonely God in the parasites of a forbidden world, preying on others, but that is too simplistic. The Lonely God is, to put it simply... the void that is in all of us.’”

The man dropped more ink into the still water, and it pooled in the bottom as if in a bubble. As Aredan watched the ink, he saw movement inside the cluster of ink. He burnt tin but couldn’t seem to make out what was going on inside.

"The Solitary One entered the worlds and sought allies among the other gods. Some he slew; from others, he stole their souls; and in still others, he found those who would uphold his work: The Stranger, the Mother of Monsters, the Counter of Time - the gods of Alleys and abominations and lives.”

Black sand fell onto the ink, piling on either side of it. The right side seemed to gleam with a metallic glow, like sparks. The left side started moving, and a tiny cremling poked its head out of the sand. Where did that come from? I don’t think he ever put one of those into the water. The cremling crawled into the mass of ink, vanishing.

“After many eons of time, the Lonely God took the Stranger to a disobedient world, doomed to destruction, and they fashioned from it a world anew.”

More black sand fell, piling onto the orb of ink this time, coating it like a miniature world. 

“They took Alleyways and folded them like steel into a Damascan blade; they took the light of other worlds and cast it into the darkness of this new creation. They took the very soul of a cosmos and stabbed it into the blood of the world, a spike cast up like a mountain from a cosmic forge.”

The storyteller dropped a thin metal spike into the water. As its point touched the little sand world, the black sand flashed brightly, a wave of energy rippling out, turning the sand white. The sand settled into a layer on the bottom of the bowl. The old man scattered glowing diamond chips onto the sand, illuminating the water.

“The Void parted for the Separate Being and the One-eyed God, and a sun beamed brilliant in the sky. This was the first birth of the world.”

"Coursing in the veins of this new world were the Alleys. The Alleys wove through reality like an endless plane of alleys cutting through a city of empty buildings. Truly infinite, they followed no logical order, shifting and moving themselves as the gods decreed. Within their depths lived demons and devils, eldritch abominations who feasted upon fear, the children of the Lady of Monsters.”

The white sand rippled, as if tiny creatures crept beneath it. 

“Upon these Alleys grew a city, a city of convergence and of power. Men and women sought the Solitary God within the Alleys, but in vain, for he dwelt not in them, and those who entered the Alleys rarely emerged unchanged. Their wrathful spirits haunted the city, possessed by the creatures whose homes they disturbed, searching for blood to spill. The monsters devoured the unworthy before disappearing back into the Alleys which birthed them.”

Ink tendrils peeked through the sand. As they brushed the chips, the diamonds went dun. The bowl dimmed.

"Some say those whose souls were taken live in the Alleys still, Denizens with dreadful eyes of spikes and twisting limbs warped by time and their pride. As the days grow shorter and the nights grow longer, sometimes you can see them, standing in the darkness of street endings, holding cursed pastries and fey desserts, cookies with spikes of death within them. One bite, and the Denizen condemns you, stealing your soul, never to be released. And so the ages passed in darkness and death, in chaos and disruption.”

As chip after chip dimmed in the bowl, the sand began to fade back to a dark black. The storyteller spun the contents of the bowl with his rod, stirring up a thin whirlpool of dark sand.

"The time finally came when the dwellers of the Alleycity could no longer live in fear, and one among them, Mac Thorstensen, the Spymaster, was chosen to seek out the gods.”

A thin glass monocle fell onto the whirlpool. The sand in the whirlpool fell to the base of the bowl, burying the monocle. 

“Delving deep within the Alleys at the heart of the world, tempted not by Denizens for he was of pure heart, he found the path which led to the gods. He could not be kept from entering within, for the gods had willed him there. He pleaded that the city might be spared from the desolation, that the gods would protect them from the horrors of the world below them. The Lonely God heard his plea, and gave to Mac a Coin, which would protect their city, sealing the Alleys away forever. On that day, the city was again reborn, darkness giving way to the light of the modern days.”

The thin metal rod stirred the bowl, sand bleeding back to white, and in the middle sat the monocle, no longer glass, but gold – a coin with a masked face. How did it…? The storyteller deftly spun the coin in the water, and as it spun, it began to glow.

"Today is the Day of Rebirth, a day to celebrate, to commemorate that glorious illumination. We wear masks - of the gods who formed the world, of the creatures that once hunted us, and of the man who saved us - as a reminder that we will never again live in the fear of the Dark Alleys. We have these festivities of chaos, to remind ourselves of the chaos that once was our daily life. May the Lonely God send that it never be so again!"

Brightly colored smoke began to billow from the top of the bowl. Aredan coughed, rubbing his eyes to get rid of the smoke’s tickle. As the smoke cleared, he could see that the street corner was empty save for the golden coin. Aredan bent and picked it up. Coming to this city had been a fantastic decision. The wonders of storytelling alone made it far more worth it than living in Elendel. I’ll have to tell Llantess about this – Llantess! Rusts, I’m going to be late! Aredan spun and ran down the street. Llantess would skin him alive if he was late for the Day of Rebirth festivities – there was no way the old man could staff the whole inn by himself.

Edited May 15, 2020 by 18th Shard
Formatting

[Emi]

Suddenly Allence heard a man telling a story. It was entertaining, about the universe. She swore with frustration when it came out, that her aim dissapeared. "Sometimes happens, maybe there will be another chanse". Because the old man disturbed her, there were no point, that she shouldn't listen to his story.

[The_Archivist]

John looked around at the mass of people around him, and a slow smile crept into over his face. So many masks, so many secrets, and he was going to discover them all. His grin spread wider. He didn't wear a mask, of course, he had no secrets that he cared to keep, and didn't mind people knowing who he was. Besides, a person without a mask during the festival of masks drew attention, made people wonder. Let them wonder, and find no answer, for the reason he was without a mask was to make them them wonder.

John threw his head back in a short, mirthful laugh, this was his element, the crowd, full of secrets, full of strangers. Not strangers for very long, he resolved. With some satisfaction, he noticed there were a decent number of people he recognised despite their face concealing masks, through a combination of height, build, voice, and bone structure.

As he walked through the crowd, chatting with people, a part of him noticed he was more disarmed than usual, and on an occasion like this, the number of Soothers and Rioters on the street skyrockets. The rest of him dismissed the thought as paranoia, a product of life on the streets which he should abandon now that he better set up. This made him much more suspicious, and he immediately started to burn the reserve of copper he always kept in his stomach, his heart thundering in his chest. Rusts, that Rioter is good, possibly the best I've ever met. He cut off his conversation with a person wearing a mask fashioned after a clock, and made his way towards an area with a smaller amount of people, waiting for whoever it was to make their move.

Alert as he was, he noticed the slight tug as someone tried to pick his pocket. He grabbed the wrist of the thief, tight enough to cause them to give a small yelp of pain. He spun around to face them, and found a nine year old girl. His expression softened, and he reached inside his pocket. The girl panicked, thinking he was reaching for a weapon, but while he did loosen his grip, it wasn't enough for her to get away. She calmed down considerably when she saw what he was actually taking from his pocket, one of his spare copper earrings and a twenty clip note. A hint of pride entered her eyes when he pressed them into her hand, but that quickly disappeared when he spoke. "Right now you're probably feeling good for Rioting me enough to make me give you something, but I'm burning copper right now. You know what that means, I'm not letting you go because you made me, but because I decided to do so, and if I was a meaner person, right now you would be bleeding out on the street. I'm not saying this as a threat, but as a warning, stop stealing, it will get you killed one day, especially in a city like this." He let her go and she scrambled away.

John continued his way through the the crowd, more troubled than before. Wasn't TUBA supposed to stop these kind of things? Help people? The disinterested looks he got when he dealt with the child made it clear this wasn't a rare occurrence. Why wasn't anyone doing anything to stop this? Taking the people off the streets and into homes, give them a way to care for themselves that didn't involve crime. He sighed, perhaps it was inevitable, and there was no way to stop it. He tried to raise his own spirits, mingle some more, but it was no use, his mind was on other matters.

Quote

Does anyone want to interact with John?

 

[Emi]

4 minutes ago, The_Archivist said:

Does anyone want to interact with John?

Quote

I would like, but now I have music classes with new teacher, so I don't have time to write that much

 

Edited May 15, 2020 by Emi

[Emi]

Quote

Ok, now I finished

Allence continued to searching for metal. She didn’t like stealing, but it was the only way to survive for her. The worst thing about it was, that she enjoyed it, while she shouldn’t. This adrenaline when somebody was chasing her... and the satisfaction when she escaped him. In addition she was good at it, especially with her powers. Because of that, she continued robbing, although, she knew that she is straining patient of TUBA. One man caught her attention. He didn’t wear mask, showing his face to everyone. 
 

Allence noticed that she knew him from TUBA. Yes, he was real, honorable part of the organization, not like her. She approached him and after taking more natural pose, asked the question, which everybody was scared to ask; “Why are you not wearing mask?”

[Silva]

Two minutes in, Eiran felt completely and utterly lost. The masses of people were overwhelming. Suffocating. He was grateful for his mask now; everyone wore them and those that didn't stood out. His only regret was that it was so plain. Dark charcoal grey. And that he had to wear his glasses over it. It was quite the look. However, judging from the otherse around, anything could go. Some might even consider it an intentional statement. Of what, he had no clue.

He passed a vendor selling swords on his right. Eiran regarded them and their seller warily. Why sell swords at a festival? Then a kid caught his eye. A toddler. Wielding a broadsword. And a vision came to mind. The toddler whacking it at him.

"Nope, nope, nope, not happening," Eiran muttered.

He carefully approached the kid. "Hello," he said.

The kid glared at him, like he knew what he was going to do. Unlike Eiran, though, he actually didn't. Eiran set his hands over the toddler's and pried the sword away. It was heavier than he'd anticipated, but he manuevered it around before the kid could grab it again.

A loud wail arose from the toddler. Great. He patted his pockets, searching for something to give the kid as compensation. Nothing.

"I'll be back," he told him. The kid kept crying.

Eiran, dragging the sword behind him, walked over to the seller.

"I believe this is yours?" he said as he lay it on the ground. Putting it in one of the bags would have required strength he didn't have. As an afterthought, he tossed two coins at the man's feet. He looked like he needed it.

@Archer

He turned away and navigated between people until he found a stand selling cotton candy. Eiran purchased a stick, forcing himself to ignore how ridiculously over-priced it was. He then returned the way he had come, pushing through, gasping for air, looking for a glimpse of the crying kid he'd left. There was no sign of him.

And so, Eiran Sullivan returned to the state he'd been in at the start: lost. But, this time, he had pink cotton candy in his hand.

Quote

Sorry, Archer. 

 

[+Sorana]

Althea's eyes moved over the crowd, noticed a man selling swords, even handing one to a child, barely able to walk. Her brows furrowed when the sight of it alone was enough to make her skin crawl. If someone handed her children at that age a sword - she would have told where to put it. And soulcast it to wood. Or probably the other way round. She was about to walk over, get the sword out of the hands of the little boy, when someone else did it.

Finishing her drink she allowed the crowd to carry her closer, watched as the young man turned away again, headed over to a stall selling cotton candy and buying himself some. He appeared to be a little lost, alone in the crowd and she looked him over, saw no weapons and decided to approach. He reminded her of Reval, the way he held himself, how he moved, they might be around the same age.

"Good call." she greeting him, allowed her smile to widen in an attempt to appear unthreatening. "Handing weapons to children this small isn't healthy." For a moment she watched the pink cotton candy in his hand and then pushed a few chrysts over to the man behind the counter. "I'll take a portion of the chocolate covered strawberries." Here she was, instead of getting some real dinner first, she started with chocolate covered strawberries. Max would tease her endlessly, if he learned of it, but she shrugged the nagging though off that told her, that she should care for her figure and her teeth and chocolate was a lot of things, but not healthy. It was good for the soul, and sometimes, that weighed more than everything else.

"There is a good spot, at the left corner of this place set a little higher. You have an awesome overview over the festivities here. I could show it to you?"

@Silva

[mathiau]

NullBlade wandered through the street of the Alleycity, dressed in a SteelHeart cosplay -the Invocation one, not the tyrant- complete with a mask that had never been part of SteelHeart's actual clothes. He had managed to put his back scabbard under the disguise's cape while still being able to access it, although he would probably cut the cape by doing it.

NullBlade wandered through the street of the Alleycity, still trying to answer the question he had been asking himself all day: What now? He had been in the TUBA for three months and he had come to a conclusion: they were nothing but a very ineffective NGO with a good PR, and he wanted to be actually usefull. This asked the question: What now? Should he try to change TUBA from the inside? If yes, how? If no then what would he do? Leave TUBA and try to do good on his own, or maybe with other people? He missed being part of a team, well, he mostly being part of her team, but he missed just being part of team too.

As NullBlade wandered through the street of the Alleycity, he noticed a man without a mask, coming closer he recognized him as a fellow TUBA member, saw him talking to another, and decided to go salute them.

"Hello you two, I hope you had a good day"

@Emi@The_Archivist

[The_Archivist]

1 hour ago, Emi said:

Allence continued to searching for metal. She didn’t like stealing, but it was the only way to survive for her. The worst thing about it was, that she enjoyed it, while she shouldn’t. This adrenaline when somebody was chasing her... and the satisfaction when she escaped him. In addition she was good at it, especially with her powers. Because of that, she continued robbing, although, she knew that she is straining patient of TUBA. One man caught her attention. He didn’t wear mask, showing his face to everyone. 
 

Allence noticed that she knew him from TUBA. Yes, he was real, honorable part of the organization, not like her. She approached him and after taking more natural pose, asked the question, which everybody was scared to ask; “Why are you not wearing mask?”

John glanced up from his brooding, noticing a woman from TUBA, her name was Allence. "Why aren't I wearing a mask? Because it makes people wonder. When people wonder, they react, when they react, you can learn something about them." His lips rose in a faint smile, earlier, it may have been a full on grin, but now, a faint smile would do. "And it's working."

10 minutes ago, mathiau said:

NullBlade wandered through the street of the Alleycity, dressed in a SteelHeart cosplay -the Invocation one, not the tyrant- complete with a mask that had never been part of SteelHeart's actual clothes. He had managed to put his back scabbard under the disguise's cape while still being able to access it, although he would probably cut the cape by doing it.

NullBlade wandered through the street of the Alleycity, still trying to answer the question he had been asking himself all day: What now? He had been in the TUBA for three months and he had come to a conclusion: they were nothing but a very ineffective NGO with a good PR, and he wanted to be actually usefull. This asked the question: What now? Should he try to change TUBA from the inside? If yes, how? If no then what would he do? Leave TUBA and try to do good on his own, or maybe with other people? He missed being part of a team, well, he mostly being part of her team, but he missed just being part of team too.

As NullBlade wandered through the street of the Alleycity, he noticed a man without a mask, coming closer he recognized him as a fellow TUBA member, saw him talking to another, and decided to go salute them.

"Hello you two, I hope you had a good day"

@Emi@The_Archivist

As he spoke to Allence, another person from TUBA approached them, he believed he called himself NullBlade. John's smile disappeared as he thought again about his encounter with the young girl. "I suppose so, though I do have a question that's been nagging at me. You've been in TUBA a while now, right? Our purpose is to help people, but I walk around, and nothing seems different from a dozen other planets with an underclass. There's still criminal activity, children living on the street, people without a job. Why aren't we helping them? Isn't that what we're all about?"

[Silva]

27 minutes ago, Sorana said:

"There is a good spot, at the left corner of this place set a little higher. You have an awesome overview over the festivities here. I could show it to you?"

"Yes. Please," he said, hoping he didn't sound as desperate as he felt.

Eiran picked some fluff from the cotton candy. It compacted and hardened under the pressure of his fingers. The bright artificial color didn't look all that appealing, but he put the piece in his mouth. Pure, sticky sugar. He turned the stick in his hand. There was no way he'd be able to eat the whole thing. 

The woman seemed self-assured, like she knew what she was doing there and confident approaching anyone. The opposite of him, about three seconds from breaking down and regretting every decision from the past few days. Danger was everywhere. Every other person he passed had triggered a vision of some kind of harm. Why did so many people need to go around armed? It was taking all his self-training to brush the things he saw away before they overwhelmed him. 

"If it's not too much of a bother, that is," Eiran added. "Should you have matters to attend to, that's perfectly all right."

[Emi]

Allence got scared by the man, walked into them. Than she fought, that she should noticed that he is coming. The role absorbed her too much, but after more careful consideration, that was good, because it helped her blend in whith the surrodings. "Oh, good evening, the lights are awesome, aren't they?" She w tried to looked loose, so nobody would see, what she is really doing. She wasn't great at a dialogue, but she saw a lot of people, who were visiting her father, before she run away. They started a conservation in quite similar way, so it seemed to be a good idea. 

Before the man replied she tried to remind his name; it was hard and she never was good at remembering names. Why did people had names? Allence never thought that they are needed. Almoust anybody knew her name and they lived without it. Maybe they are just things for people to feel special? But it also hadn't much sense. Everybody has a name, even dogs walking on the streets with their masters. Yes names were really interesting thing. Names and people.

Finally she got it; NullBlade, he also was in TUBA for a time similar to her. Three months or someting like that, enough time to get quite used to rules that are there, but not enough to start following them. He looked too confident and happy, though under the mask she couldn't really read his face. Even though Allence didn't really trust him. But actually... She didn't even trust herself, so who she was to judge poor NullBlade.

@mathiau @The_Archivist

[+Sorana]

17 minutes ago, Silva said:

"If it's not too much of a bother, that is," Eiran added. "Should you have matters to attend to, that's perfectly all right."

"It's not." Althea lifted her stick full with strawberries to her mouth and bit a first one of, delighted at the way the slightly bitter dark chocolate blended with the sweetness of the strawberry. Sometimes your got them with strawberries that tasted only like water, and they were a waste of money. But this one, this one was good.

"There aren't any matters I have to take care of, nor do I have anybody waiting for me." she had decided to head out alone first, to be able to get a feeling for the city, for the people. To understand and know again why she had fought for them. Maybe she would meet with Max later, join some of their old friends and celebrate the evening. But sometimes, sometimes she needed her distance, a few moments for herself, where nobody expected anything.

"I wanted to see them, you know?" she added while she started to lead him through the crowd, over to the left corner. A group of TUBA members had gathered, talking, and when she lifted her hand to brush a strand of hair out of her face, she knew Brashen would understand and keep an eye on them. See if they ended up a larger group, one that maybe wasn't too peaceful towards other guilds. She didn't consider them a huge threat, not those belonging to TUBA, but she lacked information to really judge them, so she decided to be safe.

"Those living in this city, those that survived the fight against Plasmacore." It had been a while, over half a year now, but the memories of the day, or maybe days they had spent fighting, of the buildings burning down, her fear for her family. It had settled nicely next to the day she had followed Sephtis into a burning city to test out a theory about his weakness. A shadow crossed her eyes at her thoughts, barely visible in the dim, flickering light of this night. So she would keep her eyes open. Try to find those that looked for trouble and attempt stop them before they became trouble.

[Archer]

As he gathered undeserved tips for busking, Kingston had been listening to the hum of the crowd, tuning out the music to tap into the swirl of conversations going on around him. “No refunds,” he replied instinctively to a gentleman who placed a sword at his feet, causing him to almost miss a half-audible sentence from a few meters away. “You've been in TUBA… now, right?” He looked and saw a trio of individuals in polite conversation.

“Remedies for sale! Medicines to heal the stomach-ache those food vendors’ll give you! You sir, you look like you could use a pick-me-up.” The Smedry bounded through the throng to boisterously shake the hand of a perfectly healthy-looking senior who happened to be standing close enough to the discussion he wanted to eavesdrop on. He drew a sword from his bag. “Swallow one of these twice a day and you’ll be feeling right as rain.”

“Oh, that’s, that’s not really the kind of thing I need right now, I mean…”

“Ahh, I see.” Kingston pulled a thinner blade, more of a rapier from his pouch. “You need something a little smaller than those nasty horse-pills. Take this one, it’s a free sample from the company.”

His confused victim did take the weapon, but he hurried off with it without putting it in his mouth. His young grandson had recently had his broadsword stolen from him, this would make a good replacement to stop him crying.

[mathiau]

13 minutes ago, The_Archivist said:

As he spoke to Allence, another person from TUBA approached them, he believed he called himself NullBlade. John's smile disappeared as he thought again about his encounter with the young girl. "I suppose so, though I do have a question that's been nagging at me. You've been in TUBA a while now, right? Our purpose is to help people, but I walk around, and nothing seems different from a dozen other planets with an underclass. There's still criminal activity, children living on the street, people without a job. Why aren't we helping them? Isn't that what we're all about?"

NullBlade tried to keep his anger out of his voice and eyes, it was anger against TUBA not against John.

'I've been here for three months indeed, and yes, our purpose is supposed to be helping people but we have become a bureaucratic nightmare, unable to actually do anything. And worst of all: I have no idea how to change anything"

Well, he did have a few ideas, but lone vigilantism was a dangerous endeavour, you easily a man you would have hated -or worst, hate now.

1 minute ago, Emi said:

Allence got scared by the man, walked into them. Than she fought, that she should noticed that he is coming. The role absorbed her too much, but after more careful consideration, that was good, because it helped her blend in whith the surrodings. "Oh, good evening, the lights are awesome, aren't they?" She w tried to looked loose, so nobody would see, what she is really doing. She wasn't great at a dialogue, but she saw a lot of people, who were visiting her father, before she run away. They started a conservation in quite similar way, so it seemed to be a good idea.

@mathiau @The_Archivist

"I'm sorry I didn't want to scare you" I should have thought about that BEFORE butting in the conversation

"And yes, the lights are beautiful"

[The_Archivist]

13 minutes ago, mathiau said:

NullBlade tried to keep his anger out of his voice and eyes, it was anger against TUBA not against John.

'I've been here for three months indeed, and yes, our purpose is supposed to be helping people but we have become a bureaucratic nightmare, unable to actually do anything. And worst of all: I have no idea how to change anything"

Well, he did have a few ideas, but lone vigilantism was a dangerous endeavour, you easily a man you would have hated -or worst, hate now.

John rubbed the copper earring in his right ear, deep in thought. "We can fill out the forms, but that probably won't work, considering it took me almost two weeks just to get an interview." He was now fully engaged by the problem, and his awareness of his surroundings lessened. "A full and thorough reform will have to take place, which means we have to talk directly to the people in charge. Since that's a problem of it's own, we'll probably want to start by bringing some of the more reasonable members on our side to gain validity." He started humming lightly to a staccato rythem, as he often did when facing a particularly challenging problem. "Another option is to open another guild, one that actually does what TUBA promises. I'd rather not do that though, since it might take longer to gather support than we can afford." He suddenly snapped back into the here and now, almost surprised to see other people there. Had he really just suggested opening a new guild? That wasn't what he was here for, he was here to gather knowledge! But it was no use, he was too aware now of the problems in Alleycity to ignore them.

[Silva]

1 hour ago, Sorana said:

"Those living in this city, those that survived the fight against Plasmacore." It had been a while, over half a year now, but the memories of the day, or maybe days they had spent fighting, of the buildings burning down, her fear for her family. It had settled nicely next to the day she had followed Sephtis into a burning city to test out a theory about his weakness. A shadow crossed her eyes at her thoughts, barely visible in the dim, flickering light of this night. So she would keep her eyes open. Try to find those that looked for trouble and attempt stop them before they became trouble.

Oh, yes. She really did know what she was talking about. And, well, so did he when it came to this. Not firsthand, obviously, but Eiran had read about Plasmacore when it happened. He'd followed it very closely without even understanding why. Something about it had drawn him in. To these people, though, it was a matter of real life, not an obscure event occuring somewhere far away, like it was for him.

He caught a snippet of conversation from some people nearby. They appeared to be TUBAists. Unhappy ones, but the sound of it. Eiran didn't want to get involved. He hadn't even had one day of work yet. Guild politics were a mess for later. Not then.

Pushing his glasses farther up his nose, Eiran shrugged. "It's amazing this city is still standing. What with all the different types of people with different opinions. Cool they get along sometimes," he said. A moment later, he realized his mistake. They. Not we. He was a part of it now, even if he still wasn't sure why.

"Like now. We're all together and so far no one's killed anyone." He meant it as a joke, but knew it was very possible to misinterpret it. 

[Archer]

“Quill sharpeners, perfect for the frustrated bureaucrat! Less portable than a porcupine, but twice as likely to poke out your- excuse me fellas, I couldn’t help but notice that you seem to be my target demographic.” Kingston Smedry bumbled into the TUBArian group grumbling session. Beneath his mask and sunglasses, a cheerful grin was plastered on his face, making him seem happier than he felt.

He held out an array of swords, hilts proffered, resting their tips on the Kevlar vest he wore beneath his jacket. He didn’t know much about making friends, but offering practical, high quality, only-slightly-stolen gifts seemed like a good way to anyone’s heart. “I couldn’t help but overhear some of your remarks, so maybe you guys can help me out. I submitted an application to join TUBA yesterday, how long do you reckon it will take to hear back from them? Should be only a few business days, right?”

There was a subtle urgency in his voice, the desperation of man who needed allies, fast. But he tried not to show it. “My friend’s call me King, by the way.”

[little wheel]

Quote

anyone want to help break an insane man out of a moving transfer van?

 

[+Sorana]

22 minutes ago, Silva said:

"Like now. We're all together and so far no one's killed anyone." He meant it as a joke, but knew it was very possible to misinterpret it. 

"So far." Althea agreed, not noticing he was joking and walked up a few steps to a podest leading into an adjacent building. There was enough room for the two of them to lean comfortably on a balustrade and look out over the place. The TUBAist were grumbling nearby and she wondered who they were and if they're boss knew how they felt. She hadn't seen them before, so they were either desk jockeys, rarely leaving their headquarters, new members, or so high ranking that they didn't need to go outside. But no, high ranking members wouldn't act like that.

"The city itself is amazing. That it's still standing but also the people who live here. Without them, it would be nothing but a soulless hole."

Pensively she rested her forearms on the balustrade and looked out over the heads of those mingling below.

"Sometimes I wonder why people still live here. Just look at them," she gestured over the crowd. "Some wear weapons, but most of them are simply citizens, regularly caught in a conflict they didn't even know it was coming." At least she had seen them coming. At least she wasn't helpless when something happened. Her bracelet rested warm and comfortable against her skin, her bag filled with some spheres. You never knew, better to have a backup source of power.

"May I ask why are here?" She inquired. "If you don't want to reply it's perfectly fine. I don't want to pry."

[mathiau]

1 hour ago, The_Archivist said:

John rubbed the copper earring in his right ear, deep in thought. "We can fill out the forms, but that probably won't work, considering it took me almost two weeks just to get an interview." He was now fully engaged by the problem, and his awareness of his surroundings lessened. "A full and thorough reform will have to take place, which means we have to talk directly to the people in charge. Since that's a problem of it's own, we'll probably want to start by bringing some of the more reasonable members on our side to gain validity." He started humming lightly to a staccato rythem, as he often did when facing a particularly challenging problem. "Another option is to open another guild, one that actually does what TUBA promises. I'd rather not do that though, since it might take longer to gather support than we can afford." He suddenly snapped back into the here and now, almost surprised to see other people there. Had he really just suggested opening a new guild? That wasn't what he was here for, he was here to gather knowledge! But it was no use, he was too aware now of the problems in Alleycity to ignore them.

"Yes, trying talking to the heads would be best thing to do, but who would count as a reasonable member? The hierarchy system is a mess so don't know anyone who's near the top except Prime Confectioner Storm and even ignoring the rumours about his mental health, just reaching him would be a long endeavour for only a slim chance to change anything. About opening another guild, it should indeed be a last resort, not only would we have trouble finding support, but we would also need to build our logistics from scratch, even if TUBA's one is inefficient it at least  exists."

34 minutes ago, Archer said:

“Quill sharpeners, perfect for the frustrated bureaucrat! Less portable than a porcupine, but twice as likely to poke out your- excuse me fellas, I couldn’t help but notice that you seem to be my target demographic.” Kingston Smedry bumbled into the TUBArian group grumbling session. Beneath his mask and sunglasses, a cheerful grin was plastered on his face, making him seem happier than he felt.

He held out an array of swords, hilts proffered, resting their tips on the Kevlar vest he wore beneath his jacket. He didn’t know much about making friends, but offering practical, high quality, only-slightly-stolen gifts seemed like a good way to anyone’s heart. “I couldn’t help but overhear some of your remarks, so maybe you guys can help me out. I submitted an application to join TUBA yesterday, how long do you reckon it will take to hear back from them? Should be only a few business days, right?”

There was a subtle urgency in his voice, the desperation of man who needed allies, fast. But he tried not to show it. “My friend’s call me King, by the way.”

Er... two teenagers and a 35 years old guy was his target demographic? Ok.

"I think the average time between filling the application and the answer is somewhere around one week, but if you gave the name "King" you might have been put in the non-priority "jokers" pile. By the way, my name is NullBlade"

 

Spoiler

@Silva if you wanna see flying clothes

 

Edited May 15, 2020 by mathiau

[Rushu42]

Aln stood nervously at the edge of the crowd. Countless words danced and twirled in the air, tangling together into an incomprehensible thicket. She had forgotten to buy a mask, and could feel passerbys glancing at her. She was about to give up and return to the guild - parties are pointless anyway - when she spotted a familiar figure navigating through the crowd in a wheelchair. Her brother grinned at her from beneath a bright green mask, and Aln couldn't help but smile back, twisting her fingers into a greeting. 

"No mask?" he replied, hands tracing the familiar patterns of the sign language they had invented. 

"I forgot. Is it really necessary?"

His response was to toss a spare at her, a simple depiction of a bird with wings of fire. 

"A phoenix?" She asked, curious. He shrugged.

"I just got what the vendor had left. What's a phoenix?"

"A mythical firebird from the Earths. Supposedly it's reborn from its own ashes when it dies."

"Fitting for this festival, then."

Aln slipped the mask over her head. It obscured her peripheral vision, and she felt a touch claustrophobic as Torenat began to lead her through the crowd. Finally, he stopped in a square where a bonfire burned. She could see musicians playing in a corner, beneath a string of bright lanterns. 

"So what now?" she asked her brother. He looked slightly amused. 

"Go have fun. Talk to some new people. I passed a storyteller on the way to find you; they might still be performing. I'm going to go find us some food." 

He started to leave, then turned back. "And no sneaking off. You promised to stay for at least 2 hours." 

He vanished into the crowd, and Aln sighed, stepping into a corner. I don't know what I was thinking, she told her spren. 2 hours of this? I should be finishing my research.  She glanced out at the crowd again, and her hand drifted to the book in her pocket.

Quote

If someone wants to talk to Aln, you're welcome to. Otherwise, this is just a post to show a bit of her relationship with her brother.

 

[Emi]

17 minutes ago, mathiau said:

"Yes, trying talking to the heads would be best thing to do, but who would count as a reasonable member? The hierarchy system is a mess so don't know anyone who's near the top except Prime Confectioner Storm and even ignoring the rumours about his mental health, just reaching him would be a long endeavour for only a slim chance to change anything. About opening another guild, it should indeed be a last resort, not only would we have trouble finding support, but we would also need to build our logistics from scratch, even if TUBA's one is inefficient it at least  exists."

 

  Reveal hidden contents

@Silva if you wanna see flying clothes

 

"How can you say that?!" Allence almoust shouted from rush of emotions. She wa wright, that she shouldn't trust him! "TUBA did so much for you and you consider making a new guild?! You think, that it will be better, than our current? They just try to make a better place to leave and it often goes along with paper work, that's all.