Subject: Cipher-7 thought about it as she walked.
Author:
Posted on: 2015-04-20 03:49:00 UTC
"Alright. First what planet are we on." She figured that was as good a place to start on questions.
"And you said Internal Affairs?" She scoffed. "Did the Senate actually authorize something? Impressive. I thought they were still trying to get the Gree to help repair their infrastructure." She still thought this had to be on Coruscant.
((... that I've been a rather impolite and irritating roleplayer. With that knowledge, I think I'm going to step away from this RP. You can just say that Gabby and Chakkik left or something; I don't want to do something if I just get on people's nerves.
I'm out. Peace!))
Said Solvig as she entered the courtyard, looking up, her eyes closed and arms outstretched. She was followed by a woman with short blonde hair and green eyes.
The woman sniffed the air and uncomfortably looked at The Notary and Rina. "Yes it is," she said with a Swedish accent, not really paying attention to Solvig, then focusedher gaze on Rina, "Hmm... Interesting..." she muttered. Turning to Solvig said, "Solvig, youn think you will be fine a..." Her voice trailed off whe she realized that Solvig, still standing with her arms outstretched under the sunlight, didn't hear or care what she said.
Darkotas leapt off his bench, still holding his clipboard and flipping to a new piece of paper. He approached the two women with a smile on his face.
"I'm Darkotas, Mage of Azeroth and prospective journalist here for the Multiverse Monitor. I thought I'd come here for some inspiration - would you mind if I asked a few questions about being in the PPC?" he asked with his free hand running through his blondish brown hair. "I understand if either of you are busy or wouldn't feel comfortable... don't worry, this won't be published."
So, the blonde chimed in. "Sorry, do not mind the girl. She has not felt sunlight for over ten years, she will probably be like that for a while. But I am free, I can answer your questions." She sighed and uncomfortably looked around. "It is a shame that it will not get published though, I was quite eager to know how that jävla tabloid would have twisted my words." She made a sheepish-looking smile.
((Sorry I took so long, I was quite sleepy.))
((Hey, no problem! Not in any hurry here. :) ))
The young man beamed when he heard the positive answer, and he flipped to a new page in his notepad. "Alright, so let's get started with...uh..."
His smile faltered, and he suddenly looked quite sheepish. "Actually, I've never gotten this far in the interview process." he admitted in a quiet voice. After a moment, he spoke once more. "Okay. I suppose I should start with the basics. So, what is your name, and what division do you work in?"
"A pleasure to meet you, Ms. Chan." He smiled before continuing on. "So, you work with children? Sounds like quite a noble endeavor, especially with all the chaos that seems to be everywhere nowadays. Do you have any inspiring stories or favorite moments within your work that you would like to share?" Darkotas' curious nature was difficult to hide at this point - he never ceased to be fascinated by the types of people he would meet.
"'Inspiring', heh? Are you new here?" She chuckled darkly. " As söt it is to see a child smile when patting a Pikachu, or watching this girl,"--points at Solvig--"coming to grips that she can not go back home again, all goes to skit when you see or remember scenes like this." She gestures to the unfolding scene in the other part of the courtyard. "You see, the kids idolize this 'Agents', specially the 'Assassins' from The Department of Mary Sues, they want to emulate them and become like them when they grow up, is just..." She sighed again. "It... it... just breaks my hearts that those children are in the path to become insane psychopaths, like... like..." She closed her eyes and refused to complete that sentence, wading deep inside her memories.
Darkotas took a moment to write down a few words; they were more for his benefit than anything else, as he made a note to follow up on this angle when he had the chance.
"Perhaps... some different questions would be in order." He looked up from his notepad and smiled a bit, though this one was slightly less enthusiastic. "Okay, in the spirit of openness, would you have any questions for me as well? I apologize if I've hit a raw topic; that was not my intent."
Her nostrils flared when Wobbkes and the Notary entered the courtyard, and her face whitened. There was no mistaking that scent.
A moment later, her gaze fell on the other Time Lord.
She wanted desperately to run and hide, but if she did that, she'd look weak. She gritted her teeth and refused to let her gaze fall, furiously trying to suppress a wave of fear.
The Notary dragged herself to her feet to fetch some more Generic Party Food and share out the contents of Wobbles's ghastly hamper. The thing was huge and stuffed to the gunwales with actual party food, all of it so utterly anathema to the Time Lord's sensibilities that she was hesitant to even touch the container, in case she got dirty. In any event, she thought about the other thing her partner had said involving her computer setup and a clog dance when the scent of fear filled her lungs - and Time Lord fear at that.
"Dives," she said, her tone shooting for gracious and ending up in the familiar waters of condescension.
She tried to hold the Notary's stare, but after barely a second, she looked away, knuckles whitening. It was a small mercy Wobbles was there as well, but she didn't know how much the clown would be able to help.
"I was misinformed. I assumed, wrongly, that you had been in your Time Lord form considerably longer than you had. I treated you in a manner unbecoming, and I am... I am ashamed to have done so. Any and all paperwork you require for the Duty, you may consider filled in. They trust me to do so, and perhaps one day I shall find out why."
She gave a curt nod Zeb's way. "Electrical furry thing."
"A manner unbecoming?" Zeb said angrily, brushing off Rina's pinching fingers when she tried to get him to stop talking. "You abandoned her in a stairwell! She still has nightmares about that, do you realize—?!"
"Zeb, shut up!" Rina moaned, grabbing at his arm. "Please just shut up!"
((Also, the Notary makes it a point of principle to know who as many people are, just so she doesn't screw up future plans by holding a grudge against the wrong overgrown ape/lizard/whatever))
---
"It is by no means the worst thing I have done in my life, but it was needless. I know that I cannot do much to help, but what I can do, I will."
Rina didn't know what the Notary was up to, but she was getting nervous. Well, more nervous. "You didn't seem all that fussed before."
The shudder didn't escape either agent's notice.
"You can leave now," Zeb said cooly. "Rina and I were having a lovely time until you came along."
((Yerp. He's pissed.))
"And yet, here I am, like a bad penny. The clown brought a hamper full of things I believe must technically be considered food. Dives, have some if you want, but you'll be able to taste every single artificial ingredient so I wouldn't recommend it. Zap beast... fill your boots."
Rina shot a dark look at the basket. "Knowing you, you probably poisoned it."
The Notary turned away from the irritatingly chirpy midget and began to glide off. Before she did, though, she spoke. "Whether I would do it is completely irrelevant anyway. My partner would not."
She shuddered when the Nitary finally started to move away. "Zeb," she whispered, "please, if we're ever unlucky enough to run into her again, don't provoke her."
Zeb looked like he was about to argue, but he reluctantly nodded. "I'll just have to think if something else, then," he muttered.
As the mini-Notary dived into Zeb's backpack and tried to refile all the pages in his copy of Eragon by number of vowels.
"This is actually the first time Chak and I have been out of the RC since we started working here. Anyway, I didn't catch your name. You probably caught mine, though! I'm in the DMS. Just got back from torching a replacement of Smaug."
((I know that pansexual≠AnThMv. I actually have in mind that if she sees Legolas on a mission, she'll decide that he's not her type. That may happen for other canon characters as well, we'll see when we get there.))
The Notary's voice was about as sincere as a vow of fidelity from Casanova. "If you want to find Luxury, just listen for the creak of bedsprings. I suggest you seek her out. Via leaving. Presently."
((If I were ever to do a cowrite with you, it seems that Gabby and Chakkik would get along with the Notary and Wobbles much, much better than Valon and Kala would. Gabby just completely ignores insults, and Chakkik is very good at remaining calm.
Considering that Kala tried to kill the Notary the last time they met, this is presumably for the best.))
The Notary called over her shoulder, slightly smug. "Look it up."
((Hey, Voyd, if you want to meet everyone in Writing this afternoon at 4, we could wrap up the tournament today.))
((Do I win anything?))
((But AHHH this is exciting! School, y u no end faster?))
Rina smiled sympathetically at the young woman. "You probably fell through a plothole. Um, you might want to sit down, it's a pretty long story about this pl—"
Zeb swallowed and grinned. "You're in the Protectors of the Plot Continuum Headquarters and we kill bad fanfiction," he said. "Since you asked, I guess you're new?"
...pulling up beside the woman. "Technically, you're literally in the middle of nowhere. The Courtyard is this weird dimensional bubble that doesn't belong to any Word World per se. It's not quite a Reality Room either so that makes classification a bit wonky."
"But yeah. This is the PPC," added Buck from beside Meryem. "You're new here, right? Ask us anything-- we can help."
"What planet are we on?" This was clearly not Coruscant.
Chakkik addressed the newcomer. "MY WORLD WAS TECHNICALLY DESTROYED BY A CATASTROPHIC GLITCH ON A SECRET OF MANA GAME CARTRIDGE. ONLY A HIGHLY FORTUITOUS PLOTHOLE FACILITATED MY SURVIVAL."
Buck flattened his ears on his head. "Go easy on the Hyper Voice. You're gonna make our eardrums bleed..."
Meryem rubbed her ears through her hijab and addressed the newcomer: "Oh, so you're a video game refugee? I can't say I've played Secret of Mana before but I'm always up for something new. You're in... DMS, right?" she asked, spotting the potted cactus flash patch. "How are you finding the PPC so far? Any troubles?"
"MAYBE... THIS CAn... that is perfect."
Chakkik addressed Meryem. "i have found little difficulty thus far. i flatter myself that i am rather intelligent, and my partner is far, far stronger than you would believe. i witnessed the glory of a dragon on my most recent mission."
"Was it an easy takedown or did it get messy? And--" Meryem froze. "And you don't really want to turn around right now because the lady behind you pulled a blaster on you. Looks like your partner is doing a good job distracting her, though... Buck, can you creep around and get ready to bite that thing out of her hand if this gets rough?"
"Sure can," said the Skiddo as he slowly moved into position.
"Albeit under... different circumstances." Rina offered a cookie to the newcomer. "Look, maybe we can help you understand what's happening if you tell us where you're from."
The creature seemed to be sentient at the least. There seemed to be even a degree of rationality to it. She was still not going to trust it. She turned down the food, she was not hungry at the time.
She thought about the woman's question carefully. For all she knew this was an elaborate Republic Trick. She slide into one of her covers. "I am a Corellian by birth, but I spend most of my time on Nar Shaddaa or aboard my ship." She began to relax her demeanor a bit.
Chakkik addressed the newcomer. "i have heard that name in passing somewhere. does your home universe feature an order of magical peacekeepers with swords made of light? as an added note, my name is chakkik and i am a mantis ant.
Bria, assumed the one called Chakkik meant the Jedi. She scoffed at the thought. "Peacekeepers? If you mean warriors using their abilities to wage a galaxy wide war, then yes." When she had left her home the Jedi were at the forefront of the Republic's War Effort. Then again the Sith were the drivers behind the Imperial War Effort. Which was shame when she thought about it. The Empire could be great, but for the arbitrary decisions of the Sith.
"your home universe is the subject of a very famous series of films. alas, my partner and i have yet to see them."
Chakkik looked... well, as thoughtful as a giant mantis could. "perhaps you could come by our response center and watch them with us?"
"You mean like a documentary?" She thought for a moment, it could provide a golden opportunity and invaluable for the war effort. "Perhaps I may take you up on that offer." She still would not trust the creature, she still had vivid memories of her crash on Vendaxa, she was not going to go anywhere near that thing without a good blaster by her side.
"but i should inform you, because i see something odd in your eyes. we are not permitted to change what happens in a story. in fact, our organization exists to stamp out poorly-thought-out changes to all of our home universes."
She said innocently. "You aren't accusing little old me of anything are you?" She offers a soft smile. "We've only just met and you're accusing me?" She said playfully, "I'm insulted." She said, before going into a laugh.
"after all, you pulled a weapon on me without provocation. i suspect you would mistrust someone who did the same."
"I imagine it could quite useful." She said, while running through possible applications It might make me obsolete she thought. "Now your friend," she says looking at Gabby. "What exactly is she? She looks kind of like the Zabrak. But not quite."
"She may look rather young, albeit with rather large mammary protrusions, but Gabby is very, very strong. I daresay she may be stronger than myself, even in my natural form."
"That strong you say?" She laughs a bit. "I once saw a man try to wrestle a Wookiee. It did not go well for him. So I'll keep that in mind."
"Owen! Hello!" He scooted over to give the Lucario a place to sit if he so desired. "Life's been, ah... Well, it's been interesting, as of late. But how about you?"
"Sorry, rude question. Um, I said something about agents needing to look out for each other and they got into an argument about affection? And then they started teasing each other. I think. That threat of Bulldozing is making me a bit nervous, even if I'm no longer Electric type."
Zeb watched with Tacitus as the two fighting Pokémon seemed to give it up. "You know, I'm probably not the best person to ask since I've, you know, only just met you. I suppose you must find something likeable about them."
"They found me wandering HQ and helped me get a job here. I owe them a favour. They seem to fight a lot. It is strange. They have a Trainer, I do not. Maybe that is why they are so odd."
Zeb said defensively. "Trainer-raised Pokémon are no stranger than wild Pokémon."
Zeb noticed the Notary and how still his partner had gone. If he'd been in his normal form, electricity would have been crackling in his mane. "I'm sorry, please excuse me for a moment..."
When he came back, he dragged a hand down his face. "She's just as much of a nightmare as Rina said."
Zeb stared at the Lucario, who seemed content to laugh at his partners' terror. "It's a good thing they're just regular bugs and not Bug types! They could have been severely hurt otherwise. Or they could have died. And you think their fear is amusing?"
After a while, he finally said, "You're completely mad."
A short young woman with horns bounced in right next to Zeb.
"Hiya! I'm Gabby, DMS. Whatcha up to?"
"GABBY, DO NOT SURPRISE OUR FELLOW AGENTS." The synthetic voice came from a strange yellow mantis that stood a full two heads taller than Rina would. "I APOLOGIZE IF MY PARTNER STARTLED YOU. MY NAME IS CHAKKIK, OF THE DEPARTMENT OF MARY SUES."
Quickly draws a small holdout blaster and points it at the mantis thing. "A talking Acklay?" Her brow furrows. "It could be worse, at least its only one Acklay. I've been in worse situations." Like the time I had to go into that nest of Gundarks, she thought.
Gabby didn't look pleased when the newcomer pulled her weapon. "He might be a lousy cheating jerk who always wins video games, but he's still my friend!"
"I came face to face with something like that, it was trying to eat me." She said. She was not ready to put down the weapon just yet. A strange place and what she though was a talking Acklay was not conducive to relaxing. "And what do you mean video games? Do you mean Hologames like Dejarik." She looks even more confused now. "Are you telling me that thing plays Dejarik?"
"Nope, League of Legends! I can show you how it works if you're interested."
If the newcomer was good at reading expressions, Gabby seemed very sincere and friendly.
"No thank you." Bria Zend, the cover identity she was using nwo, did not have time for games. She looked over the woman. She seemed, naïve, almost. She looks to the device the woman was using. `"What is that device you are using?"
"I'm guessing you're from a very high-tech world."
"But it appears our technology is more advanced than yours." She looks around, "Have the people here even discovered space travel?"
Gabby looked somewhat sheepish. "Some agents are from worlds with a lot of space travel, Chak and me just aren't."
"There is nothing quite like it." She paused for a second, a bit of pride crept into her voice. "I even managed the Kessel Run in 15 parsecs." She shrugs, "Sure it isn't the best, I once ran it through an Astro Droid, it could theoretically be done in 12, but you would need to be suicidal to try it."
"Okay, I just have to point this out. How do you manage to make a run like that in any number of parsecs unless you took a shortcut? Parsecs measure distance, not time."
She says nonchalantly, "I skirted the Maw Cluster. As I said, and Astro Droid I had with me at the time suggested I could cut the cluster closer, but I did not want to push my luck." She shrugged, "After all a spacer only has so much."
Rina's eyes went huge. "As in, the cluster of black holes near Kessel? And you went right up to them?" She looked rather impressed. "That must have taken some serious piloting skills to not get trapped by the gravitational pull."
She smiled, this was definitely the right identity to use. "It wasn't easy, but when you have bounty hunters after you, you take some risks." She chuckles, "I really did not want to get brought before Nemro and his lackeys."
Here demeanor had shifted. A slight coldness had crept into her voice. "I am most definitely human."
((Blasted misreading my own handwriting. Its supposed to be Dromund Kaas. Not Dromand. Quick hide the mini-rancors))
"Are you a spy? That sounds awesome! Spies get to sleep with swimsuit models!"
Chakkik looked curiously at his partner. "I think that James Bond is not what Star Wars spies bear resemblance to."
Gabby jumped up. "I had no idea what all those funny words meant. Jedi, or Coruscant, or Kessel. I wanna learn things about the spy lady!"
Gabby leapt up to Rina, her irises turning into star shapes. "You've seen Star Wars!? Is it really that awesome? Also, you're really pretty!"
"Not anywhere well-versed enough to do missions there, so I guess you could say I'm a casual fan, but it is really good." Rina tugged nervously on her ponytail. "And, um, thanks."
"I didn't know what any of those words meant. Maybe if I saw Star Wars, I'd get it."
((She probably still wouldn't get it then. Full disclosure: Gabby's kinda dumb.))
"The Kessel Run is an important shipping lane. Problem is, it goes cluster of black holes. The minimum safe distance is generally 18 parsecs, but a few pioneering captain," she said pointing to herself, "Have managed to do it in fewer. The problem is it gets dangerously close to black holes. The droid may have said it could be done in 12, but no flesh and blood captain would be crazy enough to try it."
Darkotas blinked as his eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight of the courtyard. He scanned his surroundings for a quiet place to sit, then selected a nice stone bench. As he took out a clipboard and some paper, the Mage of Stormwind noticed a familiar-looking girl and a boy who seemed to be about the same age sitting nearby. They appeared to be having a picnic, and he briefly wondered if they were a couple. He looked back down, paused for a moment, and started to write.