[i][h1]Arianna[/h1][/i] [hr][hr] [b][code]Somewhere in Baybridge[/code][/b] Throughout your life, one will grow up and live under a certain set of moral rules. A code, per say. Something that you can allow yourself to operate under. Elliot Turiel or Lawrence Kohlberg defined moral reasoning as being the process in which an individual tries to determine the difference between what is right and what is wrong in a personal situation by using logic. At least, that's what the library books said. Some philosophers claim that humans will naturally fall under one alignment. Thomas Hobbes claimed that humans were poor, nasty, and brutish. In contrast, Jacques Rousseau claimed that humans were born free, and noble. Arianna related more of Rousseau, but saw a lot of value in Hobbes' ideology as well. From an experimental theology standpoint, she has concluded that humans were... noble savages. When she was younger she remembered the feeling in her stomach that she got when she did something that she knew was wrong. She would get it when she went into an area that she [i]knew[/i] she wasn't supposed to be in, or took something that wasn't hers to take. The feeling made her uneasy and nervous at first, but she kept bringing it upon herself. And she kept bringing it upon herself because that feeling became thrilling. The planning, the acting, the escape, it all made her heart race. She loved every moment of it. It was like a high, and boy did she chase it. Especially when the high began to go away. One of her largest crime sprees occurred when she felt her heart and it was no longer beating out of her chest. She was young, and inexperienced. She was caught and she escaped. Mother dearest always seemed to enjoy herself. She always had [i]fun[/i] getting caught up in the strings that were other people' lives. Some morbid part of her had always enjoyed playing with people. That's where they diverged in ideals. She had always had difficulty forming meaningful relationships and all things considered, she didn't have many friends. Her mother on the other hand was a social butterfly that could likely befriend a brick wall, even if the whole relationship would be founded on manipulation. She preferred to fake it, and to avoid getting attached to people. She couldn't find it in herself to manipulate one's emotions. There were better ways to get what she wanted. She liked to accredit it to a greater adaptability. As she thought of it- Youth and treachery will always beat old age and exuberance. She was smarter than her mother before her, that much was undebatable. Because of it she considered herself stronger as well. Her power [i]was[/i] limited most by her ability to think. But she did love her mother, even if they hadn't seen one another in a while. Even if they had Her mother had helped her create a code to live by. Don't hurt anyone, unless absolutely necessary. Think your way into and out of situations. And most importantly... [i]Don't get caught.[/i] [hr][hr] [hider=Paramore - Ain't It Fun][youtube]https://youtu.be/Izx9ADLjgbM[/youtube][/hider] [hr][hr] Compared to most people, Ari lived a fairly good life. Unorthodox, but she couldn't see herself settling down for any reason. So she was happy with her lifestyle. She held no regrets. She spent most of her time in motels these days. It was easier, and less risky than changing cars every week and sleeping in parking lots. Police officers could and have arrested her for loitering before. Usually they end up taking her in to a station thinking she was under the influence. It was easy to escape though. Usually she just allowed herself to become gaseous and escape though the AC units of the cars or hide under the seat. But then it meant a long walk back to... Wherever. And it often wasn't worth the trouble of buying a new car when one had to walk to the dealership. So she started renting motel rooms to act as her base of operations. It wasn't difficult. She often disguised herself as some businessman- and no one questioned it. She had learned that when she had to speak, short, terse sentences work best. They might seem rude, but are often perfectly acceptable. Plus, it turns out that, with a few notable exceptions, most people just didn't care what she had to say anyway. This aspect of human nature made it easier to remain anonymous. Especially if no one gave her a second glance. Her best performances however, have been complex. Once, a few years ago, she spent several days teaching herself basic Spanish to acquire an entry level job at a jewelry store. She spent two weeks making friends at her newfound job- and waited until she was invited to a get together. She had learned the hard way that all of her appearances belonged to people- so she knew that she needed to be careful, as to not ruin a person's life. She divided her mass, and stole half a million dollars in jewelry disguised as a large man in a ski mask, while having beers at a bar at the same time miles away. When interviewed, her disguise had the perfect alibi, and with all the drama it was understandable that her disguise quit her job. The authorities were left scratching their heads and none the wiser. The best part, though? No one was hurt. Currently she was sitting at the coffee table in her room, with a large piece of drafting paper rolled out across it. She had done a good deal of research on the building that her target was hosting the party in. She wanted to know the Strong Gold's floor plan, inside and out. She was efficient, and she wanted to get the job done as smoothly as possible. Jiao-Long Liu, one of the richer folk in the city, was going to be hosting a party that was open to the public. Normally she'd turn a blind eye to such a high class event- as the spotlight shined a bit too bright on them. There was often too much suspicion. While she had hit them before, oftentimes there wasn't a whole lot of bang for the buck when it came to preparation time versus profit. But, this party was open to the public, and there would be [i]just[/i] enough confusion to make it worth it. Because Jiao-Long Liu was a higher class individual, planning the heist was key for success. She took a look out the window next to her and checked the time on her watch, which was quite possibly the only article of clothing that wasn't part of her. The party would be soon. She reached into her pocket and ejected one of the seventeen flip phones she had on her at all times. The most important rule she had was never get caught. And she intended to follow that commandment to the letter. She had long since memorized the numbers that she used frequently. The first belonged to an eccentric and strange man that went by the name of Archie Davis. Back in the days when NEST was still a functioning organization, she had done some research on people that were in her area at the time while disguised and acting (very convincingly too) as a NEST agent. She was looking for people that she could use. Archie's specific power-set would be perfect get-away vehicle, and when she read that he had been getting into trouble for missing meetings and saw notes of potential kidnapping charges, she knew that he was her golden ticket. It hadn't been easy finding him at first, but once she did it didn't take much convincing. Playing him, or the people that had disappeared (who were often in the Microcosm) to prove his innocence was simple enough. Eventually, a partnership was founded upon the basis of [i]'You scratch my back, I scratch yours.'[/i] She typed in Archie's number from memory, and sent him a text. She waited another minute for him to respond. He was usually fairly good about replying within a few minutes. [hider=(916) 716-8273] [pre]TO: (916) 716-8273 Archie, I'm going to be doing a job. You'll get a cut if you help. [hr] FROM: (916) 716-8273 Ari? [hr] TO: (916) 716-8273 This is her. [hr] FROM: (916) 716-8273 It's been months. What the hell are you up to? [hr] TO: (916) 716-8273 Planning something, and I need your help. We can talk later. [hr] FROM: (916) 716-8273 Ari when you say "plan" and "help" in the same sentence, that concerns me. [hr] TO: (916) 716-8273 It's going to be at Jiao-Long Liu's party. Meet me there. [hr] FROM: (916) 716-8273 I only just got to Baybridge. I don't know where the hell that is. And I haven't even agreed to whatever this is. [hr] TO: (916) 716-8273 You'll figure it out. See you soon. [hr] FROM: (916) 716-8273 Ari god damn it. [/pre][/hider] Now that her getaway was secured, it was time to move into the next stage of planning. One of the most important things about pulling a heist was establishing a relationship, or a voucher per say. Ari has found in her years of thievery that if you have someone of equal or higher class than the target to vouch for you, oftentimes the victim's energy will be diverted into the next most likely canidate. The White Spider Society was nothing she was afraid or, or a stranger to. In fact, due to her ability they had taken a distinct interest in her. It had taken them years and likely had cost a fortune for them to find her, fortunately for the Spider Society- they had both. When the Spider Society came to her she had been surprised they found her, and has since upped the ante. But, she doesn't regret this particular instance. Auri Auclair was one of the most important people within the Society, and fortunately for Ari, a friend. With her status, she would likely be attending the party. She was an opportunist- and if this was a chance to make her life easier, she was going to take it. Ari's rule of 'Dont get caught' had her do many things to remove any chance of suspicion. Having multiple phones often allowed her to circumvent any form of tracking. She personally had a rule to never contanct two people on the same phone. So, she stuffed her phone into her pocket, pulling it into her body for storage, and pulled out another phone. [hider=(207) 277-6108] [pre]TO: (207) 277-6108 Auri, this is Ari. Are you going to the party Long-Lui's hosting tonight? [hr] FROM: (207) 277-6108 Of course, mon chéri. The Croquetaigne sisters want a representative there, and I'm excited to see all the new faces. [hr] TO: (207) 277-6108 I'm really not looking forward to waiting in the lines. When you get there, could you let me know? [hr] FROM: (207) 277-6108 Yes, yes, yes. [hr] TO: (207) 277-6108 Thank you so much! I'll look for you when I get there! [/pre][/hider] So, now she had a voucher. She didn't know she was a voucher, but showing up in the same group as The Spider Society would definitely demand respect from the higher ups, and make them think twice before considering her as the thief should things go south. It would make her life so much easier. She set her phone down, planning on maybe texting Auri again in a few minutes purely to be friendly, when she felt another phone vibrate. She squinted her eyes, and pulled a flip phone out of her back pocket. It was on it's last legs, but it was the only phone she kept. [hider=Mom] [pre]FROM: Mom Hello, sweetie, just to let you know; I'm in Baybridge with some friends... To do some business, of course. The usual secret spy stuff. Perhaps we can talk when I'm not busy. [hr] TO: Mom Holy shit. [hr] TO: Mom I halfway thought you forgot I existed. [hr] TO: Mom Yeah just.. let me know. I miss you. [hr] FROM: Mom Well, I did! Just that I remembered my little Ari, and I miss you so much! I'll definitely keep in touch while I'm in town. [hr] FROM: Mom Also don't tell anyone I'm here. This message will self destruct in five seconds! [hr] [/pre][/hider] Ari set down the older phone and stared at it for several minutes. She hadn't spoken with her mother in... she couldn't even remember it had been so long. She supposed that was normal given the powers they had the the jobs they did, but she had always kept the phone her mother had given her in case contact could be made. Oftentimes it wasn't, but Ari had refused to give up hope in her mother. She sniffled, and rubbed her eye so it wasn't glassy anymore, and decided that tonight, she was going to be a ghost in the crowd. She was going to do her momma proud, even if she didn't know it.