Fantasy Starborne - Open

[gaY jail]

She noticed the atmosphere first. As she entered the city, the lively streets brought back memories of scampers in the fields and home. Her home, or at least that which used to be her home.
Her head spinned as the sun embraced her again, and noticing, much to her dismay, she was beginning to feel quite weak she put the sedge on her head and tied it under her chin. It had been a long journey, and while she did not need food or water to live, she certainly couldn’t say the same thing for her companion, a large beast with black wiry fur and only a Lapis Lazuli gemstone loosely tied around its neck, whose sole presence next to her seemed to put a respectful distance between her and other.

The gaze of the figure laid on the area swarming of people, captivated. She had not seen something loosely similar to a festival from so long ago. Hearing the sound of someone singing in the distance, a woman, perhaps, and that made her chest ache a little. But she wasn't supposed to stop and enjoy it. With that in mind she moved on quickly and resumed walking. The redhead dressed from head to toe and swathed in bandages she figured she may very well have difficulties blending in completely, and the best to do find a place to rest shortly and then leave again.


It was the faint smell of drinks that caught her attention. Swallowing the mild nausea alredy washing over her, she stopped in front of the pub. Had that inn always been there? She stared up, perplexed. However, soon enough she gave up the search among some of her oldest memories once she realized that to stand still before the door was a good way to receive many side eyes glances
the redhead looked behind her. Even if pets like hers were allowed inside, she didn't want to risk making the other customers feel uneasy, and after a brief hesitation she told the hound to stay.

“..Wait here for a moment. I promise I'll be quick.”
She whispered petting the canine behind the ears almost as a form of excuse through affection, shortly after she turned and walked into the pub. She was hardly surprised to see so many people inside, and casting a few glances around the place she headed silently to the counter.
“Good morning, uhm… Could I have simple water and some bread?”
She was tense, partly due to the eyes of the other customers on her, despite speaking fluently without any hint of anxiety and keeping her steady gaze on owner of the pub. Still, once she spoke her expression changed subtly as she realized how soft her voice was, hoping-- praying, that the owner did hear her words.

 

[Saturn_moon]

Considering the reputation it had, The Refinery was having an exceptionally busy day. In the time it took for the bartender to serve Rhea her drink, a handful of new faces had passed through the doors of the establishment, each bearing a unique story on their sleeves waiting to be unraveled. Rhea studied each and every one of them with wide-eyed wonderment, so much so she almost forgot to behave “human”. Her gaze unblinking for far too long. Her posture so stiff she looked statuesque.

First was the humanoid teapot who stepped nervously through the door. Rhea’s database immediately pinged in recognition; A Cam-O-Mill. The factory next to where she herself had been put together was dedicated to producing a similar unit. It was odd for one to be found alone in this area of the city though. Perhaps the owner of The Refinery had recently decided to expand on their beverage selection! A smart decision as the beverages usually served had resulted in his furniture getting destroyed more than once.

The next was a bioman, or rather woman, although more intricate than any of the ones Rhea had previously come across. She had a fox’s face and a pair of large bird-like wings attached to her back. On her shoulder, sat a raven with feathers matching the color of her own. When the woman took the empty seat next to Rhea, she couldn’t help but stare.

That was until Rhea’s attention was pulled back to the door by the ostentatious arrival of an immaculately dressed young man who looked like he could command the entire room with a finger. He swept through the room without so much as a word before settling into the lumpy couch at the back, looking as if the cushion springs weren’t poking into his thighs through the grimy velvet. There was a reason hardly anyone used that couch. The man ordered a drink before drawing a deck of cards from his pocket.

Quietly, she stepped away from the bar, drink completely forgotten, and made her way through the crowd towards the man. She watched intently from a corner as the green humanoid figure that had been sitting but two seats away from her approached and requested for this "fortune telling". The idea of it was new to her but appeared to draw the ire of several patrons. If Rhea wasn't captivated before, she certainly was now. So focused she was on the spectacle in front of her that she barely even registered the chaos caused by the entrance of the large, multi-legged alien.

SilverFlight Lioness075 TheSpeck Hazmat44 skittyTail

 

[SilverFlight]

Shen smiled at the off-worlder. It was a polite and friendly smile.
"No young man, not half so crude as gambling, you've nothing to lose but a dose of ignorance. It's more like, a reflection of things you may not have considered, or...a glance at what might come."
He nodded to the young woman who had also shown interest. happy that he had drawn some other eyes as well. Any who glanced his way was met with friendliness.

Shen made a show of staring at the trader intensely, shuffling the deck as he did so. He drew one card face down and placed it upon the table between them.
Without breaking eye contact he turned it over.
"Ah," He began with a sagely nod. "I thought so. The wings card. You have traveled far, but your journey is not yet done. I think perhaps a change is coming for you, a big change."
He looked Charlie up and down. "You're good with machines? I may have a job for you, if you care to sit with me to find out what it is."
Then his gaze turned upon Maeve, the next to speak to him. He reshuffled the deck and fanned it out, turning it to her. "You should choose your own card, I think. Pick one and show it to me."

TheSpeck deer

At his side, the silk bag he had carried in fell open just a little. In it sat a bright bronze orb, the design of which was unlike any gadget of the empire. It seemed both old and advanced at the same time, and as one looked at it, the surface began to reflect something...but the reflection was from nothing within the pub.

Lekiel Lioness075 andujarprime skittyTail Saturn_moon gaY jail

*~*~*

Zark was attempting (in vain) to help the giant bug to her many feet. Anna had seen them both ousted from the establishment.
"Zark!" She cried. "I thought I left you at home!"
The chimera stopped pulling at Killerie's massive leg and dove for her. "Zaaaaaar!" Anna hit the floor as her pet nuzzled her, clinging to her waist with sticky paw-pads.
"Okay okay! Now, what sort of trouble have you gotten into without me?"
She looked at Killerie with wonder. "Wow, we don't get many Shedlings on Imperialis. Oh! Sorry, that was rude of me. What I mean to say is, welcome, and thank you, for finding Zark."
To the boggleman she offered another coin. "And thank you for getting me here, but we're not done yet. I have to find Charlie."
Her gaze trailed back to the large centipede creature. "I think...I might be able to use your help to, if you'd like to stay with Zark and I for the day. Would you like to? I can pay you as well!"

Spoiled Bread Hazmat44

 

[Naberius]

It was hopeless. Defeated and dejected, the young elvish scholar stood and hung his head. The panic had worn off and now all he felt was a creeping sense of dread and fear that he'd never get to see his home again. Aimlessly he wandered the streets and alleyways, walking until he somehow managed to find himself back in the market square where he'd been previously, not particularly paying attention to his surroundings anymore. Occasionally he would glance around, only to sigh and shake his head. The sights and sounds of the strange city no longer held the same kind of grandeur and splendor for him as they once had.

Unbeknownst to him, his luck was about to turn. Whether or not it was going from bad to good, or bad to worse, all time would tell. With a heavy heart and on the verge of tears, he slumped down onto the ground against the wall of a particular tavern, folding his arms under his chin and closing his eyes. He'd given up by then on finding a way back home, accepted that his future would be to stay here on a world he knew next to nothing about full of people who he'd never met with barely enough money left to buy dinner for one day let alone restart an entire life somewhere new. He didn't even notice the trio of strange individuals, one of whom he'd met before even if only briefly.

From a pocket, he produced a small ornate wooden box, a gift from his mother, opening it to reveal a set of intricate puzzle rings. Removing one, he set about solving them one at a time, each in ever increasing difficulty over the last one. A series of repetitive actions and something to focus his mind on to escape from the ever building fear of being left behind and stranded.

 

[Hazmat44]

Checking herself over, Killerie found no noticeable injuries, although her lovely carapace had been scuffed. She sent another glare at the bar. What sort of place turned down customers?! It was just rude!

The red-furred creature she'd met was trying to assist her to her feet. As she weighed over a quarter of a ton, it didn't help in the slightest, but the sentiment was greatly appreciated.

"Zark!"

Killerie looked up. A woman wearing aviator's goggles, followed by a large dog with a droopy face and two black horns, was hurrying towards them. "I thought I left you at home!"

The creature paused in its futile efforts to get Killerie up and ran for the human, happily nuzzling her.

As the human woman continued to talk to the creature - Zark, apparently, which made a lot of sense - Killerie flipped over and got back on her feet. With a good portion of her legs on the ground, her head ended up at around six feet in height.

"Wow, we don't get many shedlings on Imperialis."

Killerie glanced up to find the woman looking at her. Despite the fact she was human, and despite the fact that Killerie had forgotten to put her backpack back on, her gaze held no terror or worried curiosity, but instead looked... fascinated. A warm spot grew a few feet down from Killerie's head, deep inside her, unlike anything she'd felt before. It was a nice feeling, however faint it was.

"Oh! Sorry, that was rude of me. What I mean to say is welcome, and thank you, for finding Zark." The statement made, the woman turned to the dog and... handed it a coin? "And thank you for getting me here, but we're not done yet. I have to find Charlie."

She slowly turned back to face Killerie. "I think... I might be able to use your help too, if you'd like to stay with Zark and I for the day. Would you like to? I can pay you as well!"

Killerie gave the woman her very best smile, full of razor teeth and mandibles spread wide. It certainly wasn't a pleasant gesture back home (they called it baring their teeth) but humans smiled with their teeth all the time, and so Killerie had tried to adopt the expression. "Thank you! I'm looking for some work, and I'm really good at fixing things. Zark is nice, by the way."

She blinked, shuttered eyelids making a faint click. "Oh, and I'm Killerie. Who are you?" She looked down at the dog, somewhat hesitant. "And... who are you?"

Talking to dogs. Karyvan and Pahrdyn would never believe her...

SilverFlight Spoiled Bread

 

[Spoiled Bread]

Ricotta

"Coin nice. Rico accept." Blood hound Rico joyfully took the coin and put in on her money sack. Then she reverted back to her default form and her eyes darted between the giant centipede and the red creature who apparently knows Anna.

"Rico is Ricotta." She introduced herself to the centipede, she tilted her head left and right trying to look at Killerie from different angles. "Nice backpack. Rico wants one."

Rico shifted her attention back to the pub's door, then to Anna, then to the coins inside her sack.

"Charlie's scent ends here, he should be inside. Go ahead, Rico wants to buy megabeef sausage first." Rico merrily skipping towards a nearby stall selling a bunch of sausages. After a bit of talking, she handed over all her money and received a giant greenish sausage half of her size.

Raising the food over her, she walked back towards the tavern's entrance but her eyes caught a figure slumped against the tavern's wall. He was fiddling with some sort of puzzles, but she recognized the shaky looks on hid eyes mean. It was something she spotted a lot during her time working as an interplanetary courier. It's the looks of someone who got lost. Rico unintentionaly just stared at his face for several seconds before finally talked to him.

"Needs help, stranger? Rico helps." Rico wanted to circle around the boy but couldn't do that since he was leaning against the wall. So she just eagerly tilted her head looking at him.

SilverFlight Hazmat44 Naberius

 

[TheSpeck]

"No young man, not half so crude as gambling, you've nothing to lose but a dose of ignorance. It's more like, a reflection of things you may not have considered, or...a glance at what might come." The fancy man had said.

Charlie looked down at the cards, puzzled at how the game was played. He decided that this fancy person might tell him what to do. To his surprise there were no instructions for him.

He watched as the fancy man shuffled the cards and pulled one. "Ah, I thought so. The wings card. You have traveled far, but your journey is not yet done. I think perhaps a change is coming for you, a big change."

A big change? Was that a good thing? He quite liked his life as it was. But an adventure is always fun! "This game is cool." Charlie says happily despite the fact he didn't really know what had happened.

"You're good with machines? I may have a job for you, if you care to sit with me to find out what it is." They said.

"Oh- I would love to help out with whatever job you have for me." Charlie smiled enthusiastically. First he wasn't sure if he could trust the future telling guy, but he sure was fancy looking and fancy people are always trust worthy.
SilverFlight

He then looked over at the girl who had answered his question and expressed an interest in this future telling game (Maeve). He had never seen someone who looked like her. He realized he might have been staring a bit, like he usually did to any other stranger he met, so he smiled and looked back at the fancy guy. Everyone looked so interesting in the bar. It was nice to see so many new faces.
deer

 

[andujarprime]

Alaric finished his glass, he held up a few more coins and signaled for two more. 'The fortune teller has another mark'. He thought to himself with a smirk as his peripheral picked up movement from off to his side. Followed soon after by the suggestion "You should choose your own card, I think. Pick one and show it to me." He also picked up on the mans offer of a job, and all work intrigued him. He turned now, full attention on fortunetelling. Two of his hands absently picked up the new glasses that were set on the counter. A shift and a glimmer in their direction caught his eyes. The bag the man had sat beside him shifted, an opening revealing something new. Something unlike anything Alaric had ever seen before. He began to stand, to get a better look, one arm nudged Larassa. He figured if it caught his eye, it would certainly catch hers. Hell, she would be better able to tell what it is from this distance. "Never seen that before.Any idea what it could..." He whispered, his voice trailed as he stood there a few moments. Curiosity got the better of him, much quicker than he would have liked. He found himself drawn to the shifting reflections in the orb. He didn't wait for her response, instead he moved closer. Eyes were focused on the orb, he bumped into a few of the bars patrons. Alaric's body moved with the comfort and familiarity of navigating through cramped ships and crowded docks. While he may have bumped into a few people, it never shifted them too much as he would just adjust his trajectory. Weaving through most of the crowd, he didn't spill a drop. He ended up directly at the table with the fortune teller. His eyes were locked onto the orb, watching the shifting images. His body had been trained to expect danger. Ready at all times, and yet at this moment he had found himself totally transfixed. His surroundings no longer held any bearing to where his mind was. He no longer registered the bar, his surroundings, or the two "marks" the fortuneteller had sitting before him.

SilverFlight Lioness075 TheSpeck deer

 

[Lekiel]

"Hey, watch it!" Amiecia exclaimed indignantly. She felt the woosh of the bar doors narrowly colliding with her back as the strange long-haired man that she had found gawking outside the establishment just moments prior made his dramatic entrance. The woman stood akimbo, staring daggers at his nonchalant back but he barely seemed to acknowledge the fact that he nearly smacked her with the doors.

"The nerve-"

"Lady Amiecia, maybe it isn't a good idea to keep standing here. Let me find you-" The guardsman by her side began. She whirled around to face him, causing the guard to take an involuntary step back, worried that he had somehow offended the woman. But instead of an annoyed look, her facade had changed to one of barely contained excitement and glee.

"That won't be necessary Caleb. Tell you what, take the day off," Amiecia made a gesture, encouraging him to shoo off. She'd never been in a bar before, and all those tales from Noxvander had excited her so. She'd finally have the chance to explore and she felt the presence of the guardsman put a damper on the whole 'commoner' experience, "go do what guardsmen usually do on their day off, or whatever." Caleb's face reddened with embarrassment at her last few words but he resolutely shook his head.

"No Lady Amiecia," but he was a perceptive man and knew what his mistress wanted, "I do not wish for a day off," he could see the corners of her lips beginning a frown, "but I'll just be in a corner somewhere, if you need me, just call," the frown halted, then a thoughtful look crossed Amiecia's face.

"Alright then!"

The platinum-haired woman watched as the guard crossed his arm in salute and made his way to a far corner of the bar, somehow managing to blend in quite nicely in the raucous crowds. Satisfied that she was now relatively on her own, the Arrlesian made her way over to the far end of the bar.

Ewww..

She nearly voiced her disgust out loud as she saw the state of the grimy stool and counter. Streaks of dried up liquid and gunk painted the surfaces and the thought that she'd have to place her delicate derriere on it and stain her bespoke travelling dress made her stomach flip. Nonetheless, she huffed irritably and fished around in her side pouch, extricating a clear glass vial with translucent blue liquid swirling within. Tapping on the cap lightly, Amiecia whispered a word and the vial began to glimmer. Immediately, a fine blue mist gently puffed out from the vial with which she used to clean her stool and portion of the counter with an Arubian Silk handkerchief; one which she casually left stained on the counter beside her. No way she was going to touch that.

She'd been so obsessed with cleaning out her place that she missed on the commotion that transpired from the appearance of the giant Shedling and its companion. Which was just as well as our dear Arrlesian noble's fragile eyeballs had probably seen enough disgusting things to last a year.

Finally getting the barkeep's attention, she requested for the house's signature meal and ale, to which the barkeeper begrudgingly accepted but not before giving the outlandish noble a dirty look.

Sipping carefully on her Signature Pisswater, Amiecia took a moment to survey the watering hole, noting with special interest the slowly growing assembly of patrons around the long-haired man. Something about a card reading was declared, but her attention was diverted to a surreptitious figure making her way over to the counter. The person was swathed in bandages and wore a large sedge hat. It wasn't until it spoke out in a quiet voice that Amiecia realised that the figure was indeed that of a young woman, at least from the feminine voice.

“Good morning, uhm… Could I have simple water and some bread?”

Her voice was quiet, but there was a hint of terseness that Amiecia found puzzling. Coupled with the way she dressed, it almost seemed like the person, whatever they were, wanted to keep as low a profile as she could. And so, in typical Amiecia de'Valiiere fashion, the Arrlesian was intrigued. Who was this person? Is she running from someone? What was her story? Why does she obscure herself so?
gaY jail

"Another of your House Special Stew for this one," the noblewoman waved at the barkeeper and requested on behalf of the newcomer who was beside her. She offered her a friendly smile saying, "Figured you'd appreciate having a little more to eat. Personally, I do not know nor do I want to know what meat is in here, but it does taste quite decent." Amiecia let out a tinkling chuckle at her own words.

"Travelled far?" A casual inquisitiveness, not prying too deep. As she spoke, Amiecia caught a glimmer of something out of the corner of her azure eyes. Down the bar, the long-haired man's bag had slipped open revealing a bronze coloured orb.

 

[Lioness075]

Name: Larassa Sovna	Nickname: The Raven
Race: Khoelian	Home Planet: Khoeli
Occupation: Bounty Huntress	Equipment: Knapsack, Bow, Quiver of Arrows (20/20 Normal, 1/1 Grappling), Twin Daggers

Accepting Alaric's petting, Luness tilted her head to give him a better angle to scratch under her chin. She made an odd chirping noise that almost sounded like a purr if one listened closely. Then the petting was over and she was thoroughly distracted by the mix of nuts brought to her. She began pecking away and soon was lost in her own little world.

Larassa rolled her eyes at Alaric's smart-aleck comment regarding his mechanical arm. Still, she smirked and replied with a toothy grin, "You and me both, ey?"
Her mechanical eye seemed to bore into Alaric, though this kind of stare would not unnerve anyone who knew Larassa well enough.

Chuckling quietly at the bet made with Alaric, Larassa settled back to nibble on her meal while some mild chaos ensued in their usually quiet bar.
Alaric's response to her comment about the subtle alienism made her feel uncomfortable again and she shook her wings a bit, as if shaking out the slight anxiety she felt now. She did not face much alienism herself these days, especially in bigger cities such as this one, but it was not entirely uncommon either. After all, Larassa easily stood out in a crowd of humans as well. She had long suspected her reputation as a respectable bounty huntress was her saving grace with this kind of problem. For the most part anyways.

Larassa drained her mug and put it down just as the fancy man began giving someone their fortune. With her ears still shifted in his direction, she almost missed what Alaric said next.
Blinking and returning her ears to their normal direction, Larassa looked sideways at Alaric and tilted her head inquisitively, but she felt bad for not listening to her mate in lieu of the fortune-teller, so she tried to act as if she had heard whatever he said previously. She moved on to respond to his inquiry, but suddenly Alaric was up from his seat and walking away in a trance-like state.
Both Luness and Larassa swiveled their heads and tilted them to the right in unison, watching Alaric amble away and then pause near the fortune-teller. Larassa followed Alaric's gaze to the shining orb slightly revealed from within the man's satchel.

Sighing, Larassa gave Luness a look that clearly meant, 'Stay here.' She then stood up from the bar stool and made her way over to Alaric's side.
"Oi, snap out of it, knucklehead," she muttered while playfully elbowing him in the side. She did her best to keep her wings tight against her back, more than aware that she had been guilty of knocking into people with them or knocking things off of tables accidentally.

Glancing down at the man in the middle of giving another fortune, Larassa wondered if they might make him uneasy with the growing crowd around him. She was fully aware of how dangerous many in these kinds of places would act when they felt cornered. She was not in the mood for a bar fight to break out over a misunderstanding today.

Back at the bar itself, Luness finished gobbling up the last of her nut mix and hopped around to face where Larassa and Alaric had gone. Having been commanded to stay put, Luness fluffed up her feathers and was about to squawk to show her annoyance when a newcomer sat at the bar. Curiosity distracted Luness, as she turned to tilt her head at the young woman concealed under bandages.

Before Luness could approach the bandaged woman, a far fancier one sat beside her. Seeing the many shiny trinkets on this woman, Luness quickly hopped over to stand right in front of the woman, and right where she had just cleaned some bar space for herself.
Blissfully unaware of any issues that may arise from such behavior, Luness squawked at the noblewoman and then turned her gaze to the shiny items she was wearing. Luness knew Larassa loved it when she gifted her such things, but Luness knew she could not blatantly take any of them while the woman was aware of her.

andujarprime SilverFlight TheSpeck deer gaY jail Saturn_moon Lekiel

 

[gaY jail]

Lauren

In the middle of that chatter, she replied with a “thank you” to the barkeeper when the food was left in front of her. After that she was ready to get up and return outside with it, but froze at the words of the noblewoman and turned to look in her direction.

How could she say to a stranger who went out of her way to do her a favor, that the food she ordered was not for her? And just like that, the ginger’s defense seemed to crumble a bit, flustered at the casual approach of Amiecia and knowing that having bandages was not enough to hide her expression, since anyone who knew where to look could guess how she felt at that moment by focusing on her large eyes.

“Are you sure about this..? I mean, I’m used to eating whatever I can without questioning it too much, but I feel more worried about caring to repay your kindness today.

As timid as the youth did, she tried to reason with her and spoke more clearly just enough for her to be clearly heard by Amiecia. Despite sounding youthful, her voice was not what one would expect from a young girl.
With the edges of her clothes dirty and her braid slightly messy, she wasn’t at all the perfect picture of a noble person one may think of. Still, there was a gentle aura around her that was enough to light a few doubts regarding the opposite possibilities.
Lauren knew about the first impression she made among others, and was curious how the young woman would react to a stranger reflecting the image of a lesser noble class who just made it clear how they would feel in debt for such a meal she had not tasted in a long time.


Once she was about to answer her second question Luness hopped in front of her, causing a brief silence from Lauren, who instinctively gave Amiecia a curious look. chances were the redhead thought the raven was her pet.

Lekiel Lioness075

 

[SilverFlight]

((Ok, now things really get started. XD))

As Shen read the fortune of the woman who had asked him, the orb continued to reflect it's different room. It was a large room, ornately decorated with splendor that couldn't possibly be anywhere but the richest quarter. The view was from a red, plush, carpeted floor, and it was nearly trodden on by two pairs of armoured boots tromping past it.

"We will proceed as planned." The voice of a woman, stern and commanding. "My daughter's disappearance will only delay the final spectacle, but hear me Ceranius, I want every available soldier looking for her. Tear this city apart if you have to."
"M-my empress?" The voice was uneasy at the first speaker's ferocity. "The princess has snuck out of the castle before, we always find her...is there something the matter?"

Shen's ears pricked and he turned to the orb. It had been quiet for days, but the man who had employed him, the reason why he was here in the capital, had said that it would be invaluable to his job. Now he knew why. So the princess was missing? That would make his job either a lot easier, or a lot more difficult. Shen was a man of opportunity, and here was a good one. If the guards were taken off their less-important duties, there would not be many to protect that lovely ship he saw moored in the sky docks.

The empress' voice seemed more composed this time, as if the owner had come to a decision. "No, soldier, of course not. Do your best. Let us just hope we find her before she misses her role in the closing ceremonies."
Once the soldier took his leave from the shining room reflected in the orb, the empress went to a cabinet and unlocked it with a key she had kept around her neck. She had her back to them and it was hard to see what she had until she turned around: A tiny vial of black liquid. She broke it and the contents spilled forth as a black mist, vanishing before it hit the ground.

A moment past, and then another. Shen had finished the fortune and was now looking at the orb with his full attention, he didn't seem too fussed with who else might be watching.
Just then, as if out of nowhere, a shadowy figure leapt through the window. It was tall and spindly, and dressed all in black, with a black cape that glittered like the depths of space. When turned the right way, the material bent the light to make its wearer look completely invisible.
"My lady..." The voice was cold and raspy, and it gave Shen goosebumps even through the tinny recreation of the spying orb.
"My daughter has gone missing again...if the guards find her then do nothing, but, if by the end of the evening she has not been found...you have my order to end her."

Shen nearly dropped the orb in surprise.
"Dear me, now that is cold." He murmured in surprise. Well, there was no way about it, that new little development did make his job harder. Because now, there was a time crunch. He recognized the garb, most pirates and bounty-hunters would. The shadowy figure was an Obsidian Quill, an assassin from one of the most notorious guilds. The empress had just hired an assassin to kill her own daughter if she wasn't found before sunset. Even if she was found, Shen didn't fancy the girl's chances afterwards.

"All right then, time to cut the formalities." Shen got up, swept his cards back into the satchel before swinging it over his shoulder. He got up onto his table as casually as if he was paying his tab.
"Excuse me everyone!" He addressed the room. "Now, I have a job I need to do, some of you," he eyed the ones near enough to see the scene in the spying orb, "probably know a bit about it. It is handsomely paid, and comes with a ride off this rock! Any takers should come on and meet me outside."

He got up with no more ceremony than that, and made for the door.

Lioness075 andujarprime Lekiel TheSpeck gaY jail Saturn_moon

*~*~*

It took Anna a moment to realize the Shedling was trying to smile. Anna stifled thoughts of the alien bug wanting to eat her.
"I'm Anna, pleased to meet you. This is Zark. He's my Chimera."
"Zark." Zark added proudly.
"He's very smart, and very loyal, he's also my best friend."
"Zaaaaark," Zark pulled at his ear bashfully.

"Well, I suppose we should go in..." She trailed off when she saw Rico had walked away. She found the Boggelman not far away, speaking to a boy who seemed to be in a spot of trouble.
"Who did you find Rico? Does he need help?"
Hazmat44 Naberius Spoiled Bread

Just then Shen appeared out of the doors of the pub. He didn't notice the little gathering, though he may have noticed the shedling, still hanging around the front. He stretched and breathed deep, appreciating an air not drenched in the smell of stale beer. The docks were in view of the pub, the blue sails of his beautiful ship tied into place but still glittering a vibrant azure above a crowd of red sails. Beyond that the Imperial palace stood, white and imposing behind a set of golden gates.
To those who had followed first he asked. "So, assuming you saw what was broadcast in my little bauble, we have a limited time to find a princess who is no longer in the confines of the palace...I am open to suggestions."

Lioness075 andujarprime Lekiel TheSpeck gaY jail Saturn_moon Hazmat44 Naberius Spoiled Bread

 

[Hazmat44]

"I'm Anna, pleased to meet you."

Pleased to meet you. How Killerie had wanted to hear those words spoken genuinely. She'd certainly never heard them said to herself. The dog suddenly turned into a sheep-looking thing, examining Killerie. "Rico is Ricotta." Its - his - her?! - eyes landed on Killerie's backpack. "Nice backpack. Rico wants one."

Before Killerie could thank Rico for the compliment, she (Killerie was fairly confident it was female by now) turned to Anna and said her goodbyes, turning to leave. Killerie watched her go, a little uncertain.

Indicating the red furry animal, Anna said, "This is Zark. He's my Chimera."

"Zark." Zark said, preening.

"He's very smart and very loyal, and he's also my best friend." Zark bashfully pulled an ear, and Killerie desperately wanted to give him a hug at that moment. She just wasn't sure her legs were quite suited for the task.

Rubbing the back of her head, Anna said, "Well, I suppose we should go in..." Her sentence ended quicker than Killerie had been expecting as her gaze shifted across the street. Killerie tried to follow her vision, scanning the road for whatever she might've been looking for. Anna's brow furrowed. "Who did you find, Rico? Does he need help?"

Killerie saw them at that point. Rico was standing in front of a... what was that?!

Rico was holding something. A giant tube made out of MEAT, almost half her own size. It was green and a little strangely sized but it was FOOOOOOD.

When was the last time Killerie had eaten anything? The presence of her siblings was enough to hold her over for a long while, but none of them were in range and she suddenly had a very hard time thinking straight.

NO! She shook her head, trying to dispel that amazing, wonderful, incomparably juicy scent from her slitted nostrils as she went into the alley. While aware of the colossal amount of saliva dripping from her maw, she knew that being hungry was a perfectly normal reaction to being in close proximity to whatever in Zilian's name that piece of spiced heaven was. Trying to ignore it, she told the small human leaning on the wall, "Hello! I am Killerie. Who are you?"

She frowned inwardly, keeping her smile as wide and open as possible. Her mandibles were twitching from the effort of not taking a bite out of that... that thing. It wasn't hers, darn it all! She couldn't eat other people's property!

In the back of her mind, she wondered why her words had sounded so garbled and realized that she could barely talk through the saliva flooding her mouth and spattering on the alleyway. Even to her hungry mind, her own speech had sounded somewhat like a snarl.

Well, Anna hadn't been scared, and neither had Rico! What did this little human boy have to fear?

SilverFlight Spoiled Bread Naberius

(laughs maniacally)

 

[Naberius]

Elnaril had been too absorbed in his own self pity and the intensity of the increasingly difficult puzzles to notice the small being step up, at least at first. He noticed the movement, the tilting of the head out of the corner of his eye before registering the spoken words. He forced a smile, tired as it was as he put his things away.

"You don't have to bother yourself with me, I'll.. Probably be okay.."

Honestly he wasn't a very good liar. But it's what came to mind before he noticed the others nearby. A gentle and kind looking young woman that couldn't be any older than he was, and the rather scary looking creature from before that had his eyes widening in panic. And then, it got worse. A mighty beast from his worst nightmares, all gnashing teeth and razor sharp mandibles, a hundred feet tall and salivating at the prospect of devouring his every being glared down from on high, striking a primeval dread into his very soul. The kind of kind numbing, hone chilling terror that bypassed fight or flight responses. It froze the boy in place as he let out a single, shrill, war piercing note before his brain and body entirely shut down leaving him unconscious and slumped against the wall of the tavern as the procession exited the door nearby.

 

[Saturn_moon]

Rhea studied the man as he elegantly manipulated the deck of cards between his hands. From what she understood of the world, every moment was made up of a million possibilities with every possibility multiplied by yet another million resulting in an infinite number of possibilities for the future that could literally change in a second. Hence, logic and reason would deem it highly improbable for anyone to correctly predict the future, let alone based on the random draw of a card, and yet here was someone attempting just that. She’d heard of people going “crazy” but had never seen a real-life example. Symptoms were said to include extreme foolishness and the distortion of one’s perception and behavior. Was this what crazy looked like?

Still, she continued to watch, eyes fixed on the spectacle before her. That was until her auditory senses picked up the voices, hushed and distant, even though she could see where it was coming from.

The Empress. A missing daughter. And an order to kill.

The fortune-teller, with all his flamboyancy, suddenly stepped up to the table. "Now, I have a job I need to do, some of you probably know a bit about it. It is handsomely paid, and comes with a ride off this rock! Any takers should come on and meet me outside." He casually announced to the room as if he were calling out the winners of a raffle rather than recruiting people to prevent what she could only assume was an assassination attempt, before beelining straight for the exit.

Internally, Rhea began breaking down the task placed before her with as much precision as she could manage.

• Going against the orders of the Empress: Bad
• Saving the life of an innocent: Good
• Helping a stranger with a job they need to do: Good
• Running away from current employer without a word: Bad

Her brows immediately furrowed in confusion. Never had she been faced with a situation such as this before and found herself unsure of what to do. Or at least that’s what she told herself before her legs unconsciously started following the fortune teller out of the bar.

Outside was an even stranger crowd which consisted of a massive centipede-like creature carrying a backpack, a bright red chimera, a young, bright-eyed woman with a jetpack strapped to her back, a tiny horned, furry alien holding a sausage that looked far too big for it, and a young boy, presently lying unconscious next to the door. Any inhibitions Rhea had before were momentarily put aside as she knelt down next to the unconscious figure. “This person seems to have fainted.” She said to no one in particular, ignorant of the fact that the situation was self-evident. “Maybe we should try throwing water on him. I heard that it helps.” Then she looked up at the fortune teller, her eyes alight with curiosity. “I would like to know more about this princess you speak of.”

Direct mentions: SilverFlight Naberius Spoiled Bread Hazmat44

 

[TheSpeck]

Charlie -having listened to Shen's little speech- stood in the bar for a moment. A princess? He had heard about those before. They were extremely important in some places. He followed shen outside purely out of curiosity, not thinking about his own safety at all.

At first he didn't notice it, the ten foot tall bug near the entrance to the bar, but once he turned and saw it he stared for a good five minutes. He walked over to the group, the world around him not mattering. He didn't realize that this bug was in a conversation with other people. "You look AWESOME." He says out of the blue. He stared at the Shedling for another few minutes. He did think it looked amazing but it also terrified him, simply because anything big on his home planet tried to eat you.

Charlie finally noticed the others. A fancy ish woman-who is definitely not as fancy as fancy man-who was talking with the magnificent bug. There was also an odd looking thing with horns and an unconscious boy. Another girl had arrived to the scene, proposing the idea of splashing water on the unconscious boy. he leaned forward and poked the boy in the face to try and wake him. It left a bit of a wet mark. Giving up after the small attempt to wake the boy he turned back to the Shedling and stared again. He should be fine staying as long as he didn't interrupt their conversation.. right?

Hazmat44 Spoiled Bread Naberius Saturn_moon SilverFlight

 

[andujarprime]

Alaric had only just been able to snap to his senses. The jarring elbow and familiar voice dos the trick. He slipped a hand beneath his cloak as he looked around cautiously. Remembering where he stood he shrugged it off and turned to Larassa “Uh, thanks for that. Not sure what came over m-“ His words interrupted as the orb began its broadcast. He looked Larassa in the eye a bit longer then turned to face Shen. He finished his little speech and Alaric turned back to his old friend. “Well, not sure what you had planned but I think I know what I’m gettin into next.” He said to her with a knowing sly smirk that screamed trouble. He finished the drink in his hands before turning towards the bar “Imma go drop this then join the party before it gets gone. Interested in doin another job? Like old times?” He asked her his voice full of excitement and anticipation.

Lioness075 SilverFlight

 

[Spoiled Bread]

Ricotta

Rico was suprised when the boy suddenly. Ehh, why?? She looked around and didn't any reason to be that scared. There's only her, Anna, Zark, Killerie and a bunch of other people who were walking out of the tavern. One of the people coming out of the tavern came to check the boy and suggested throwing water on him. Good suggestion, and a slime person did try to wake him up by poking him with his wet hand, but unfortunately it wasn't enough. So she transformed back into a blood hound and started licking the boy's face.

"Wake up! Wake up!"

Naberius SilverFlight Hazmat44 Saturn_moon TheSpeck

 

[Lioness075]

Name: Larassa Sovna	Nickname: The Raven
Race: Khoelian	Home Planet: Khoeli
Occupation: Bounty Huntress	Equipment: Knapsack, Bow, Quiver of Arrows (20/20 Normal, 1/1 Grappling), Twin Daggers

Right as Alaric snapped out of his stupor, Larassa's eyes widened as the scene unfolding within the mysterious stranger's orb caught her attention. As the stranger suspected, Larassa did indeed recognize the notorious assassin garb. Anyone daring to challenge one of those people was bound to wind up dead, likely in some alley where nobody would find them for a long time. Larassa's eyes narrowed at the snap decision the empress made to sentence her daughter to death. It struck a cord in Larassa that sent her heart pounding with a growing anger at this so-called mother.

Suddenly, the stranger stood up on his table and made quite the dramatic announcement to the bar. Larassa raised an eyebrow at this and crossed her arms over her chest just as Alaric began speaking. Frowning, Larassa turned to face him once more and met his smirk with her signature I'm-already-tired-of-your-bs scowl. Still, the moment he mentioned for old time's sake, Larassa sighed and knew she was already in this mess, for better or worse. It would turn out far worse if she did not tag along and watch Alaric's back.
"And people say I'm compulsive," she muttered under her breath.

Once Alaric had put his empty glass down, Larassa whistled for Luness, who promptly abandoned her potential target with fancy jewelry and flew to land on Larassa's left shoulder. Luness cocked her head to the side and cawed at the two sitting at the bar, as if signaling for them to follow.

Not caring to look at who Luness had been interacting with, Larassa instead made a beeline for the front doors and found herself staring at an odd scene nearby. Not too far away, there was the mysterious orb man, but there was also this growing gaggle of folks surrounding someone passed out against a wall. Rolling her eyes at whom she assumed was a drunkard, Larassa strolled past the group and confidently approached the orb man with Alaric.

Listening to what the orb man had to say, Larassa crossed her arms over her chest once more and growled, "Ferst and foremost, what's in it fer us?"
Alaric might be all for a crazy adventure and the adrenaline rushes that would come with it, but Larassa was not going to go save a princess like some stupid hero in a fictional story would do just for the sake of being a hero. Larassa had made a name for herself intergalactically and she never took a job without some kind of incentive.

Still on Larassa's shoulder, Luness cocked her head at the orb man and cawed. She then ruffled her feathers, as if trying to make herself appear bigger than she actually is.

andujarprime SilverFlight Lekiel TheSpeck gaY jail Saturn_moon Hazmat44 Naberius Spoiled Bread

 

[SilverFlight]

Anna bit her lip, looking back at Killerie and Zark.
"Oh, he's a bit delicate isn't he?" She said, trying not to make the pair of odd-looking creatures feel too bad. Soon people began to gather, a young woman suggested dousing the boy in cold water.
"I think that might be a bit extreme."

Then another stranger bent down to poke him in the face. "Hmm, maybe that's not enough...oh! Are you Charlie? I've been looking all over for you."
Her attention was brought back to the boy when Rico began licking his face.
"Rico, you shouldn't, you don't know where he's been."

She shifted to lift the boy's head and torso off the ground at least, letting him lean against her as she sat in the dirt to support him.
"He must not get out much I suppose. Zark? Fetch me a cloth and some cold water. Killerie, perhaps you should take a few steps that way, out of his immediate sight, or he might faint again." Zark turned on his heel and bounded away on all fours.


"Charlie, I left my jet pack with your friends at the shop, they said you might be able to get the parts I need to fix it. I was also hoping you might help me with something else."

Just then Zark returned with a bucket between his jaws, splashing water every which way.

There was just enough left when he stopped to make a cold compress with the cloth. Anna dabbed the boy's forehead carefully.
"I don't think we should just leave him here. We should look after him, at least until he wakes up."
Anna didn't like the idea, she had snuck out of her home, it wasn't smart to stay in one place too long, lest she be caught again, but what could she do? It went against her nature to abandon someone in need.

Saturn_moon TheSpeck Spoiled Bread Naberius Hazmat44

~*~*~

Shen didn't seemed too concerned about how loud people should the word "princess", though the word did catch Anna's attention, and she kept an ear open to the conversation.
He answered Rhea casually. "There's really only one on this planet. She lives up there." He pointed to the palace. "Today's ceremonial program says she's to make an appearance at the end of the night, however, due to what we found out recently, that may not happen. She is somewhere out here, and, if we don't want her in pieces, we need to find her before the royal guard does. As to where she can be found, I haven't the foggiest. But we will also need to escape. So, here's what I need. I need a team to find this young Imperial, while avoiding the guard, and I need a second team to..."commandeer", that ship." Shen pointed to the blue-sailed galleon in the harbour. Clearly the most spectacular, though not the largest. She looked fast, and very, very new.

Shen glanced back at the beastwoman who had asked the next question. He smiled brightly.
"Forgive me for being blunt, but are those large ears of yours simply for show? Gold, my dear bounty-hunter, and a ship, though, if you're asking how much gold, let's say ten thousand a piece, upon job completion of course. Does that sound like a deal?" It was a very large sum, but then, kidnapping a member of the Imperial family required that money. His employer had made sure he had more than enough to temp good help.
"I'll start with a five hundred up front to anyone who wants to try their hand."
Lioness075 Saturn_moon andujarprime Lekiel gaY jail

 

[Hazmat44]

Killerie's antennae drooped as Anna requested she move out of the way. Well, of course she hadnt expected everyone to just stop being scared of her as quickly as that, but...

It was a hope that died quickly.

Sidling out of the way, she attentively waited for Anna and Zark to revive the young human boy, trying to make herself seem as small as possible. She didn't want him to pass out from seeing her. Not again, at least.

"You look awesome."

The words came from the green-skinned humanoid she'd seen earlier, who was staring at her wide-eyed. Killerie had absolutely no idea how to react to that.

Fear? Move on and hope they didn't try to arrest her.

Anger? Try to calm them down.

She didn't have a reaction for awe.

Rubbing at her stomach with a few legs, she awkwardly replied, "Thank you. You look cool too!"

She felt that warm feeling again and resolved to figure out what it was.

SilverFlight TheSpeck Spoiled Bread Saturn_moon

 

[TheSpeck]

"thank you!" Charlie smiled at the shedling after she complimented him back. He stopped staring at her so he wouldn't make her uncomfortable. Charlie perked up at the sound of his name being spoken. He looked over at the slightly fancy young woman (Anna), taking a moment to realize she was the one who said his name. After a second he remembered what she had said.

"Oh! A jetpack. I might be able to get parts for that depending on what's broken... That'll be fun to poke at when I get back..." He mumbled the last part as if talking to himself. "And another thing? I'm getting lot of work today!" He said happily. "When you aren't busy you can explain what you need..."

For now Charlie turned back to Shen, still curious about the princess. He stayed near the Shedling. For some reason he found it comforting to have her near him.

"Can I come? It sounds like fun." He says. Now that he had time to think about it he was fully aware of how dangerous and not fun the mission could be, but he didn't mention it.

Direct mentions:
Hazmat44 SilverFlight

 

[andujarprime]

Alaric was nodding with Larassa’s question. Then his jaw dropped and his eyes lit up in excitement at the mention of commandeering the ship he had already been eyeing. “Her hearing’s well as mine. We just needed numbers is all. And THAT ship? Oho, I’m all for that one!” He exclaims nudging Larassa playfully while holding another hand out to Shen. “Deposit please! An anyone who fancies an early ride and a spectacular view stick with me!” He says to Shen then to anyone listening and looking to join the ship squad. “Where ya want’er brought round to? I’m reaper by the by, and anyone coming with please at least be able to handle yourself somewhat.” In his excitement he seems to be jumping all over the place with his conversation. This wouldn’t be anything new to Larassa, but may be slightly confusing to some.

Lioness075 SilverFlight

 

[Spoiled Bread]

Ricotta

Rico backstepped from the boy and watched silently as Anna did a quick fix for him by compressing his head with cold water. Her blood hound form sat on the ground and she couldn't suppress the urge to let her tongue out and started panting just like a regular dog. Then she started chewing into her oversized sausage while she listens to the sounds around her.

The crowd of people who walked out of the tavern seems to be discussing about a job and Rico's ears unconsciously perked up when she heard about the amount of gold offered. 10000000000?? How many bags she would need to carry that much?? Her tail was wagging excitedly as her mind wanders to the things she could do with that amount of money. Though she's currently works as Anna's assisstant and she couldn't just abandon that. Anna seemed to have finished compressing the boy and thought that they shouldn't just left him alone. Rico nodded at the suggestion.

"Your house near, Anna? Rico's house is in another planet." Rico asked. She thought they could drop the boy in her house if its near.

SilverFlight Hazmat44 Naberius

 

[Naberius]

Elnaril Arcadus
Male
Nevvathi

He wasn't sure how much time had passed. Elnaril, the poor elven boy, lay helpless and unconscious not knowing what horrors awaited him when he awoke, or indeed if he would even wake again. His entire system was rebooting, so to speak, due to the sheer amount of surprise, fear, and shock that lanced through his poor sheltered mind all at once and it had left him reeling. He heard voices after a time, when his brain finally started to come back to its own senses. Felt something much softer than the ground or the wall of the tavern, though there was something cold against his forehead. Slowly he began to come to again, the voices growing from unintelligible murmurs to steady, audible tones he still couldn't quite make out. The sounds of bustling foot traffic and of the market around them slid back into their places as the din of everyday life on this world and the excitement for the festival crashed into his ears like a wave.

Elnaril opened his eyes and blinked, his orientation greatly differed from what he last remembered. The moment he awoke, he thought he'd died and found himself in the arms of an angel but quickly dismissed the notion as his addled mind reconstituted itself. One of the people he'd remembered standing near the tavern had him propped up against her with a compress to his forehead. Realizing the rather foolish display he'd put on almost immediately, the position he was in, and the fact that he'd never so much as talked to a woman before let alone leaned against one had the poor boy's cheeks flush instantly.

"H-hello...sorry.."

His pointed ears drooped ever so slightly, being not quite done maturing for his species this was something he was self conscious about but a regular occurrence especially in awkward situations.

SilverFlight Hazmat44 Spoiled Bread TheSpeck Lioness075 Saturn_moon andujarprime Lekiel gaY jail