Avatar of BrokenPromise

Status

Recent Statuses

4 mos ago
Everybody wants that fire IC but nobody wants to GM it.
16 likes
12 mos ago
If you're roleplaying with your only friends, you're roleplaying with your best friends.
7 likes
2 yrs ago
I think to sell someone on an interest check, it's really important to seem enthusiastic about your own idea. That means writing more than a single sentence to attract potential players.
14 likes
3 yrs ago
The virgin "My post was so bad it killed the RP!" VS the chad "My post was so good it concluded the RP."
16 likes

Bio


W I T H R I G H T E O U S H A N D S





Did you know that Dante's inferno is called a divine comedy because things work out for the protagonist? Back in the day, the only two genres were comedy and drama. The only difference was that in a comedy, the protagonist is better off at the end, and a drama is the opposite. So that's why a story about going through hell can still be considered a comedy, even if it's not funny.

Name:
Broken Promise, BP, Boss

Age:
Old enough to know better, too young to care. (that is to say 30's)

Preferred RPs:
I Prefer to make my own, but will occasionally join something if it looks interesting. I'll join just about anything so long as it isn’t overly edgy/sweet, though it's rare for me to do. I don't do 1x1s too often either.

Preferred Roles:
I tend to play adorable characters everyone wants to befriend or proper assholes everyone wants to stay away from. I try not to play moral paragons or prime evils.

RP Conquests:
I've completed quite a few RP's off site, but most of them are on private forums or have simply been lost to the ravages of server crashes. As for stuff here, I'm sure everyone who sees me post in the off topic sections has seen me find an excuse to talk about Danganronpa: Tower of Carnage. It's a project that took over 4 years to complete and I feel pride not only for myself but all the wonderful people who helped make it enjoyable during its run. Re: Zero: The High Council Is technically my first, but it was just something I kind of took over and ended up ending the story after just six months. It finished, but eh...

Last RP I finished was Symphony of Espers which turned out pretty good.

RP's in progress:
For some reason I can't seem to stay away from Ari's magical girl RP, even if I'm not sure why I'm still in it.

As for my own projects, I'm doing Symphony on High to continue the gigachad adventures of the espers in Pax Septimus.

RP Graveyard:
I've been pretty fortunate on this forum. I think I joined one when I first came on the site that didn't really do anything, and there are a few 1x1 things that didn't go anywhere. It's disappointing when an RP ends before it can be finished, but I've come to look at them as learning experiences.

And then there's that london magical girl RP, and that dark magical girl RP. I think I'm done joining magical girl RPs for a while.

Other interests:
Videos
I watch a lot of educational videos on youtube. Usually as research for something I’m writing or purely because a topic interests me. I like channels like Tier Zoo and Daryl Talks Games, and I’ll also watch things like Critical Drinker or Literature Devil to deepen my understanding of story telling. Though I also like memes and jokes, to which I’ll find myself watching stuff like Sseth, but usually find myself surfing through meme videos. I gotta work on that.

Games
I have a rather long history of playing virtually every platformer to come into existence during the indie boom, as well as quite a few other indie games. I’ve played Meatboy, Binding of Issac, Gunvolt, Cuphead, Princess Remedy in a World of Hurt, Classic Metroid, Warcraft 3, Final Fantasy 7,8, and 14, Left 4 Dead, Shantae, Celeste, Danganronpa, God Eater, the list goes on. What I’ve played is kind of all over the place. I don’t play many games these days, I tend to pick things that look interesting and go on a decent steam sale.

Painting Minis
I do this in moderation. Otherwise, it's a pretty expensive hobby to start...

Music
I listen to everything, save most country/rap songs. I have too many favorites to name.

Personality:
Not one to take life or the internet too seriously. Is only serious about writing well and having a good time.

People to Insult:
Dalton is a Dingus.

Most Recent Posts

In Lock and Key 9 yrs ago Forum: Spam Forum
Magenta!
Collabs, collabs, collabs.
I realized that I wasn't the last one to post, so I posted.
A lot of Magical Girls


The large voice in the sky startled Amber into falling backwards,Helga would have been able to catch her if she wasn’t just as startled by the sudden appearance of the ruining god. Amber propped up her hat and looked into the sky to see what was going on.

”I’d ask who you are, but I probably can’t even pronounce your name. “ Amber chuckled nervously. She had heard about patron gods, but never actually seen one. The pirate wasn’t even sure if this was one. Amber turned her head to her side and looked at Penny. [cyan]”Is this guy a friend of yours? “[/cyan]

”That is my Patron..” Was Penny’s distracted reply as she looked up at Laat with awe. In the various time she had talked with Him he had always seems relaxed, so too see him now so filled with hate and anger was quite the sight.

She would have likely kept staring for a good while if it weren’t for the fact that Laat had turned his attention on to Amber as she had addressed him. In doing such the manners that Penny had forgotten earlier had her responding ”That is Laat’AlOfan, He who brushes away the old. Deity of destruction and runination. My lord has offered you a boon and awaits your response.” Her tone had become formal, and it wasn’t hard to see that Penny was acting as Laat’s mouth piece so that his titanic voice wouldn't drawn any more attention than it already had.

Shaking her head Penny added in a normal tone ”Ugh this is going to be a weird conversation” It was part of her role as The Gray Lady to act as his voice at times, this would be her first time doing such.

"Hey what's- Oh sweet nightingale." Scout and Anaya appeared from Mariette's portal, the witch stopping to look up at Penny's patron, eyes widen in shock and awe. Anaya instead walked up to the deity, having overheard his offer. "I'm unsure about the others' thoughts. But I myself accept your assistance in ridding Visceral, and will help reforge the water user's ship." the spirit mage answered, bowing down like a knight would.

The pirate fret her brow ”The water user’s name is Shining Scale!“ the pirate sat upright. ”A-and thanks guys!“ she looked up into the sky with a smile. ”Our goals seem to align in that regard.Sign me up!“

Alexander blinked in confusion “well, it looks like you’ve got everything taken care of here.” Then turning to the portal, he spoke again “well then Mariette, I’m ready; send me to that bitch’s place” His voice was oddly somber for him “Hey Amber; If I don’t see you again...I just wanted to say; you were tolerable. I...realize that might sound like a pretty shitty compliment, but coming from me it means something

"Nice to meet ya Shining Sc- wait what?!" Just before Scout could introduce herself, Alex had decided that he would face Justine alone. "You can't rescue Lily by yourself! Who know's how strong this chick is!" The witch objected, before grabbing her rifle from her back. "If anything, I'm going with you!"

”H-hey! “ Amber sprung to her feet. ”I’m not a hundred percent sure what happened while I was up there, but I don’t see Lily around here, and even a blind rat could see you guys were close.“ The pirate was gritting her teeth. ”You’ll drive me to scurvy, but you’re not going to throw away your life on some quest for revenge! CAPTAIN’S ORDERS!“

Right on cue, Helga and Sue moved between Alexander and the portal. Sue had to transform into a human again, but she seemed a lot less sure of what she was doing than Helga did. But she did her best to at least look like she was holding the line. “A-at least you got Amber acting like a real pirate captain again.” The familiar forced a smile.

Mariette could have rolled her eyes at Alexander's statement. She had been waiting on the other side of the portal, listening in. Of course, the others pointed out his foolishness, ensuring she didn't have to. Mariette wandered through the portal herself, walking on top of another portal that moved so that each step still landed on the portal, letting the bigger portal collapse because everybody was through already. She opened a smaller portal for Eli, who had been further away, letting the darkness harpy appear behind her.

‘Consider your preparations well,’ she stated to those present, also as a warning to Alex. Seeing new individuals present, including the deity, she stated her position again. ‘I've agreed to ferry those willing to fight to Justine's base, and whatever equipment they intend to use, through my portals. I will do so when you've determined yourselves ready, as a group. I remind that I've been in contact with Alicia, who's furthering my proposition to Beacon, as I've suggested I can assist their attack on Justine as well. I've been intending to go check on her progress.’

With that, they should be informed of the situation. Mariette intentionally didn't look in Amber's direction while talking.

Alexander was baffled “you’re...all coming with me?” The poor boy didn’t know what to do in this situation “but...it’ll be dangerous and you could all die! Hell, I’m not even sure why I’m going. I mean yeah, it’s to save Lily...but I don’t understand why I want to so much. I’m...not used to not being alone.

”It Seems That An Accord Has Been Reached”
Laat boomed out as he surveyed those gathered below him with a critical eye. What he felt about the gathering was anyone’s guess as he was impossible to read.

Penny, meanwhile, was glad that everyone had been able to talk Alex down from his suicidal plan, she wanted to help with that but she was in a weird position at the moment acting as Laat’s voice. Stepping forward she once again spoke up in a formal tone “By my lord's decree we shall receive the supplies needed remake the Sky Bastion as well as the temporary knowledge needed to facilitate this process, those among us who have pledged support in this endeavor, who also seek the decimation of the Visceral family, shall be granted supplies for personal use as well.” her gaze swept across all those gathered as she spoke ”The supplies offered are primarily of mundane origin, and most shall be tools or weapons that will be of use in the coming assault. After which any supplies left over or unused are yours to do with what you will as payment for the services rendered.” As Penny spoke the color seemed to leech itself from her until she was completely grey, save for the neon blue of her eyes.

After a moment she turned to face Mariette ”My lord and I are aware of the Alicia of whom you speak, as we stand in alliance with her and The Beacon for the moment. With luck they shall be able to muster their forces in time for this assault, regardless, your assistance Is much welcomed.”

"Dangerous my ass, I'm not letting another friend of mine get killed cause of my stupidity!" Scout told Alex, before Anaya turned back to the group. "The eight of us aren't enough. If we're dealing with what made Penrose the core of monster sightings, we might be going against one of the strongest magical girls I've ever known."

Sue breathed a sigh of relief. “Alright, it seems like we're all unified in cause.”

Unlike Mariette, Amber seemed rather insistent on looking in the portal witch's direction. Her eyes were squinted, but she remained silent. ”Yea.” She turned to face Penny, but her eyes were still on Mariette. ”I'd send the Viscerals to Davy Jones's locker for free. Getting compensated for it is just a bonus!”

Mariette nodded to the deity and Penny's words, then listened to the following exchange. ‘I wish to add that Justine von Visceral is exceptionally confident in her plan, calling me a fool for trying to play her game. She has a game-plan that she doesn't think can fail, and that will include circumstances where she's attacked,’ Mariette added to what Anaya said. ‘That said,’ Mariette continued, ‘the fact she manufactured the collapse of the alliance proposed by Victoria Reales proves it may have been a threat to her. Also, I have now survived two attempts on my life from her side. My still being here proves she is not infallible. She can be overcome.’

So Mariette shared. It was also a low-key message from Mariette that "Justine wants me dead, keep that in mind". She was aware of Amber's gaze, but intentionally didn't react to it.

Huh. This...might actually be possible” now that defeat was no longer an absolute in Alexander’s mind, he racking his brain for any way that they could further improve their odds “I think...” he began “I’d have to talk to Sol first, but if it’s cool with him, I should be able to temporarily bless the airship after it’s been rebuilt. I’ve got a lot of different blessings on my house, but for the ship I’d just focus on Blessings of Fortitude, to make the ship even harder to damage.

"Sounds good, but what does that mean?" Scout asked the portal witch."We need to finish what Victoria started." Anaya answered, before turning to Theresa and Sue. "Do you mind spreading the word around? We need all the help we can get."

"I'll try my best." Theresa said, taking a bow.

Sue placed her hands together and lowered her head. "O-of course! I'm sure Amber plans on filling her ship up with as many people as she can find. At least, that had been our plan from the start."

"Great. Unless anyone objects, let's do this."

Laat gave one more look across the assembled Maho, giving them time to speak their objections if they had them. When it was clear that none would be voiced he hefted his massive weapon in preparation. Penny glanced up at her patron with a hint of unease about what was coming next. Laat’s gifts of knowledge tended to feel very disorientating at first.

Without any delay Laat swung his titanic maul at the wreckage of the Sky Bastion, rather than turning the street and the nearby building in to rubble with the strike there was a sound not dissimilar to that of shattering glass. When Laat raised his weapon again there was dozens of shipping containers filled with all the material they could possibly need and more to rebuild the Sky Bastion, in the wake of where it he had struck, alongside the crates sat a few rows of ethereal looking industrial machines. A quick glance of the machines would prove that they would be able to fashion the materials they had in anyway they would want or need.

After raising his maul again Laat proceeded to bring it down upon those gathered in shared want of the Vicerals demise. The moment the strike landed the world of those struck would be drowned in sound, and their sight would fade for just a moment as years worth of experience in metal working, shipbuilding, tank construction, large scale weapon manufacturing were forcefully added in to their minds. The new knowledge would feel pointedly out of place and incredibly vivid for days to come. In addition these temporarily granted skills would come a detailed blueprint for a new ship. The ship in question would use the Sky Bastion as a base, but rather then a skyship the plans detailed a ship that would be able to freely travers land as sea, It was also a highly fortified war ship, armed with row upon row of cannons. Altogether it would be a vessel of vast destructive potential that would be difficult to render to scrap again.

”For Now, This Shall Suffice.”
Laat said after giving those below a moment to regain their equilibrium.

”Within the creates is everything we will need to reforge the Sky Bastion as well as a variety of explosive ordnance for use with the cannons as well as on foot when we storm the castle. There is some basic medical supplies as well as a small amount of food stored as well . Everything that is left over after the assault is yours to take as per the agreement. Penny explained to everyone, as she had been gifted that knowledge as well the gifted skills “The capabilities Laat’AlOfan has granted to us will only last until the ship has been reforged, the machines that have been sent to assist will also fade at that time.” As she finished explaining she turned to face the deity and gave Him a bow. Laat gave a nod of his head in return as he turned to leave. His form shattering into countless stars before he completed a single step. The moment Laat vanished Penny visibly shook.

”Blegh. That was all sorts of weird” She complained as her color returned in a sudden rush. She looked at all that had been deposited at the base of the ship when a sudden realization came to her “How are going to move all of this?”

"Leave that to me." Anaya reassured Penny, before summoning her doll army back to her side. "With them, re-building the ship will be more efficient. Yet we still need transportation for new recruits to here..." the spirit mage went into thought, before her griffin walked to her side from the portal.

"Guess that answers my question." Anaya said, petting the mythical beast.

Mariette had stood silent watching the god speak, summon items and then staggered when new information was added to her mind. Did they expect her to actually grab a hammer and help with construction? ... Mariette was silently thankful when Anaya summoned her army. They had workers, good. But... about this matter of "spreading the word around"...

‘New recruits?’ Mariette asked. ‘Do you intend on getting more people to join this charge?’

"Why yes. Like I said, we'll need all the help we can get."

Mariette considered, briefly. ‘Then, we may be of assistance,’ she said, briefly glancing at Eli. ‘Eli, reexamine the list. Consider whom of those remaining may be willing to join a crusade and where they're likely to be located.’

‘Ah- yes, mistress!’ Eli called somewhat in surprise, bringing up her notebook, full with information on those they had considered kidnapping, starting to quickly leaf through it with her liquid wings, eyes scanning and reading. There were a fair amount they eventually decided not to kidnap, and it was useful to keep track of as many Magical Girls as possible anyways, for perhaps times just like this.

‘We have a list,’ Mariette continued, ‘of Magical Girls that my underlings have scouted in the past. Using those notes, my portals and Eli's sight, we can find most of them again in moments. Just request a portal, and I can bring you around. I'll keep a small portal open at the place you entered a new area, so you can tell me you want back.’ So Mariette said, still squeezing her bunny.

‘Would that be relevant?’ Mariette then asked, looking at Anaya but open for anyone to reply.

“I think that would be really useful!” Sue hugged herself. “If we're going to grab magical girls on such short notice, we need to make sure none of them are going to be a problem.”





Heh...

Ever since Tonya got here, she had been working in the background. Bending events to her patrons will to prevent things from turning out too bad. It wasn't a job she fully understood, but she knew it was important. It was, however, a bit lonely. And while Tonya didn't mind working by herself for periods of time, it did take its toll after a while. No, it wasn't the loneliness, it was just that she couldn't see the fruit of her actions. She was just fighting, and actively avoiding discovery.

But to see so many magical girls working together to rebuild the ship was a sight to behold. It was quite the occasion. Never again would Penrose get to see so many different factions working together to achieve a common goal. This was the kind of world that Tonya wanted to live in, one where power was distributed evenly, and good people could come together to make something special.

With a sigh, Tonya retreated into the ship. There were a few places she could reasonably sleep without being noticed by anyone. With her spool of thread, she could be sure of that much.
People die when they are killed after all.


Bliss was taken back by how assertive Emily was. She hadn't expected to be ordered around by someone who just showed up. It was refreshing to see, if a bit annoying. Bliss had hoped to learn more about Emily, but she was quick to task herself with bringing everyone to the dining area. It wasn't like she really needed help cooking bacon, but it would have been a good opportunity to talk a little bit.

Fortunately, Daimyon arrived to offer his help. Even though the poet had also mostly wanted to get to know the new Infinite, he believed that gentlemen did not go back on offers they had just made. He had, as he had confessed mere minutes ago, little to show for himself in terms of cooking skill—still! Stepping out of his comfort zone might be exactly what he needed after his self-exile, he told himself.

“Oh, that would be wonderful!“ Bliss started to hover around the kitchen. She was giving everything she walked past a prod with her finger. “I think we have enough pancakes for the moment, but I have the batter all prepared if we need more. We're also good on scrambled eggs, there's plenty sitting in that food warmer.“

“The kitchen is your domain indeed, madam,” Daimyon remarked, taking a few steps inside this thoroughly-equipped kingdom of delicious potential.

Bliss lifted a finger to her cheek. “We just need to cook up some more bacon. Bacon makes everything better!“ she looked out the window of the kitchen to see who had arrived. A few people were already eating. She could see Noel and Ice talking at one end of the table. But Thomas seemed like he was all by himself. A child, by themselves? This was unacceptable! “Daimyon!“ Bliss turned to face the poet. “We have a situation! Keep cooking!“

“Right away, chef!” As Bliss hurried out of the kitchen, Daimyon reached for a white apron that was hanging around with a childlike grin on his face and tied it around himself. There were no mirrors, but he was absolutely sure he looked fabulous. It got him swiftly into the cooking spirit as well as he took stock to figure out what to do. Bacon, he had to make bacon. The raw strips had already been prepared, though unfortunately the nanny left no instructions on how to proceed with them. He had a feeling that bacon was one of the simpler things one could cook, so if he wanted to prove himself, this was the place to start. But how?

After some deliberation, Daimyon realised that poets and chefs actually had much in common. Though their mediums of choice differed, they both created art, and art could only be truly great if one put their heart and soul into it. So that was exactly what he was going to do. He gravitated towards the large stove—his quill for today's masterpiece. He felt the temptation to simply put the whole batch into the oven and be done with it, but he reminded himself that it was not the artist's way. He grabbed a skillet—a small one, for even the greatest geniuses started humbly. He laid down the bacon strips into it, arranging them delicately like words in a flowery sentence. Then he placed the skillet on the burner, his attention wandering to the knobs that controlled the heat. He started turning up the main one very slowly, like a painter painting a detailed landscape. All along he kept his eyes on the bacon as it began to cook. The strong smell was a sensation up there with the sweetest pleasures of life, the crunching sound and the crispy texture of the meat together made for a heavenly image.

Ah, art!

Bliss couldn't really run with the way her clothes fit around her legs, but she walked very quickly over to the breakfast table and sat across from the boy. They were not so far away that Daimyon couldn't hear the conversation. “Good morning!“ She said with a warm smile. “ I'm Bliss Buckly, but you can call me Bliss or Ms Buckly. Whichever you prefer.“ She placed her hands on top of the table. “You're Thomas right?“ She extended her gloved hand across the table to shake his.



Talents are a fickle thing, and they never seem to tell the whole story. There’s always a person behind the talent, someone who may not always be what they seem. Behind some infinite’s were feats worthy of epics — or epics worthy of their feats in Daimyon’s case — but even then that doesn’t paint the whole picture. Infinites are a conglomeration of interesting aspects and personalities and quirks that lay the canvas for their infinite talents.

For one such as Thomas however, his talent seemed very indicative of who he was as a person. Reserved, quiet, logical; a scientist through and through. More so than that though, Thomas was a bystander. He was just a footnote in a story, a side character in the grand story of a greater killing game. He watched, thought, and repeated until he couldn’t anymore. Fitting, for someone with such an inconsequential talent.

And then there was his senior, Bliss Buckly. Covered in Victorian garments, warm and smiling, someone who’s talkative and personable. If Thomas was just a side character, Bliss Buckly could be the protagonist. For the second time in less than twenty four hours, Thomas found himself opposite someone who was nearly entirely a contrast to him.

Thomas himself however was entirely unaware of this development. At the moment Bliss approached him he was in the middle of a losing battle with his orange and it’s peel. He was so absorbed in this battle that he entirely missed Bliss’s shuffle across the dining hall and it took her greeting to catch his attention.

He froze for a moment and his eyes darted to Bliss. Thomas’s characteristic physiognomy didn’t change, but he surely must’ve of felt a little sheepish at the moment. He had briefly saw Bliss’s card in the handbook, and knew that she was the Infinite Nanny; that was the entirety of his knowledge though. Furthermore, he had trouble telling anything about her by looking at her, the dress obstructed much of her physical features. Thomas was flustered by his oblivion in regards to Bliss.

Once Bliss finished speaking, Thomas reacted by slowly raising his hand up to meet hers. “I’m Tho-” he stopped himself. She knew he was Thomas! She just said his name. Why was he telling her that? “That’s right. Nice to meet you.” he mumbled, grasping her hand meekly.

Bliss's eyes immediately darted for the orange. “Oh, you like oranges too?” The nanny adjusted her seat so that she was sitting on the same side of the table as Thomas. “The spot where the stem meets the orange is usually very thick. If you can dig your fingers into that, you can peel the skin back with the stem easily.” Bliss watched Thomas, presumably to see if he was going to take her advice. “Biomechanic, that's an impressive talent. I can barely pronounce it!” She leaned on the table with her elbow. “What made you choose to pursue something like that?”

As the nanny queried the biomechanic, the poet-turned-culinary artist was making magic happen in the kitchen. And just like most magic, his work was a series of narrowly-avoided disasters. He had a lot of fun with the heat knobs, so much that he spotted the spots of charred black appearing on the wonderful brown texture of the bacon bits almost too late. In a panicked scouring of the kitchen, he found a pair of tongs with which he could save most of that delicious potential. Once he had deemed both sides worthy of presentation and—hopefully—consumption, he turned off the stove, grabbed the skillet and headed out to the break room.

...or he would have, had he not stopped himself at the kitchen entrance. Looking at the greasy, sizzling bacon, he could feel something was missing. He turned back, his determination unshaken: there were still some finishing touches need applying.

“Oh.” Thomas said, a little less quiet. There were many reasons he became the infinite he was, but there was a single objective meaning to his talent. As he thought about this, he idly started to fumble with the orange in his hand. He kept trying to drive his thumb past the peel, and for a moment it looked like he was making progress on peeling the orange.

“A few years ago, when I was just a boy-” Thomas paused for a moment, mulling over his next words. “Have you ever heard of someone with my name? Besides myself, I mean.”.

“I can't say that I have.” She lifted a finger to her chin and tapped as she thought. “Hmm...” She wasn't smiling anymore. It felt like she was actually trying to search her memory for something. Then her eyebrows raised under her hat. “Is that your father, or grandfather?”

“Father.” Thomas said slowly, now back to his typical lack of volume. His eyes were now settled on Bliss’s face. He felt a little bit at ease around her, surely a consequence of her talent.

“He wasn't a celebrity, but he carried a small degree of fame with him as a runner. A lot of infinites I've met have even known him personally, although he wasn't one himself.” Thomas remarked. His thumb was nearly through the orange peel “When I was younger, he'd bring me to his training facility and I would watch the athletes. When he didn't concern himself with me, I would draw pictures of them. Eventually, pictures became diagrams. Then diagrams became theories, and those theories became experiments. One experiment was all it took to have the initiative knock on my door.”

Bliss's eyes lit up. “That's actually very impressive!” She turned her seat so that she was facing Thomas and no longer leaning on the table. Then the Nanny folded her hands and placed them on her lap. “And what did this experiment entail? It must have had good results or been on a fairly large scale to get the initiative's attention.”

Turning back, Daimyon realised quickly enough that he had foregone a crucial step: actually taking the bacon out of the skillet. Worried that any further hesitation would ruin the whole thing, he hastily tore off a sheet of paper towel and laid the strips on it. And there it was: the epitome of creation! The smell invited him for a taste right away and he would have happily obliged, only to get rudely rebuffed by the heat when he tried to pick one up. “Art is pain...” he hissed, shaking his hurt hand. He decided to let it cool some before going anywhere near it again.

Thomas’s eyes narrowed for a second, and then widened. Why was he telling Bliss all of this? He had just met her. Foolish. That's what he was. Hadn't he learned to keep his mouth shut yet? His only advantage in this game was his talent. The scope of which he couldn't reveal to anyone who didn't already know. Not yet, at least. Sure it was only a search on the internet away on the outside, but here information here was an asset that could be used against you at any moment. And also, part of him didn’t want to tell her.

Thomas’s thumb slid off the orange, sliding to the side of the yet to be peeled citrus. The round fruit slipped out of his hand and rolled into the table. Instead of grabbing it though, Thomas placed his two hands together and crossed his fingers, as if he were about to crack his knuckles.

”I won a competition actually, it must've impressed them.” He said, his eyes returning to their typical shape. He settled his hands, and reached for the orange slowly. Something seemed to have changed though. ”It's a pleasure to speak about myself, but you haven't said a thing about yourself yet. I'd hate to talk your ear off, so, Infinite Nanny, please tell me about yourself.”

Before Bliss could have answered, though, Daimyon emerged, wearing his apron and a proud smile, holding a plate. He ambled up to the table the two Infinites were sitting at and presented the fruits—or rather, meats—of his labour. “And here it is! I must admit this is my first foray into this genre, but let not that discount the love that went into these pieces of heaven!” he said to the nanny, letting out a relieved sigh. Only with that and the food finally off his mind did he notice that there was someone sitting opposite to the woman: a young man. “Oh! Good morning! You must be...” He raised a finger to his temple, racking his brain. He had done his homework this morning diligently and read up on every new Infinite from yesterday, yet the identity of this particular blue-haired boy escaped him. Or wait! “...Thomas!” A momentary pause and bated breath: hoping he did not screw up horribly.

The nanny nodded at Daimyon. “Yes he is! And he was just telling me about what made him pursue his talent.” She looked back at the boy. “I don't mind sharing the story of my talent with you. I just thought it would be rude to start talking about myself. But now that you asked...” The smile ran from her face. “I wish the story of how I discovered my talent was as innocent as yours. But it wasn't admiration for anyone that made me interested in children. It was actually hate, if you can believe it.” She started to smile, but it looked forced. “At the orphanage, I never really liked how the adults would treat us. I'm not talking about the adoptive parents, but everyone involved with managing the orphanage turned me off. Nobody acted like they wanted to be around us. We were always treated like a hindrance. It wasn't until I grew older that I understood how difficult it was to keep an orphanage running.” Bliss sighed, but continued. Daimyon listened intently and sat down at the table himself. “So as I grew into a teenager, I became the bridge between the children and the adults. I could understand what the adults were trying to do, and relay it to the children in a way they would understand.” Her smile broadened, it looked more natural now. “I probably could have been adopted a few times, but I always tried to send someone else out in my place. But when Infinity initiative showed up, there was no way around it.” She shook her head. “I still visit the orphanage, I've done a lot of donation drives for children. As it turns out, I can help them better by watching other people's children.” Bliss sat up a little straighter and turned to Daimyon. “You must have an interesting story if you can write poetry like that.”

“Yours is an inspiring story, Bliss.” The poet leaned back in his chair, a wistful smile on his face. “The world is full of inspiration like this—my talent is the ability to harness it and turn it into a form of art. Mind you, it's not something unique. The world's writers, singers, painters, sculptors...every artist does the same thing as I do, only through different mediums. I was given a particular way with words and...that is all. I am honoured to be an Infinite, but even among us there are those who can really change the world, and be the heroes the people need. Me, I...I'll be happy to tell their tales when it comes that.” His tone by the end was almost glum, which he noticed and quickly perked back up. “Anyway! This bacon will end up cold if we do not grace our bellies with it soon enough!”

The poet. While a spider could spin webs of silk, the poet could spin words into stories. The spider is often feared, even though they created such things of beauty. Thomas couldn’t help but wonder what was behind this Infinite Poet who crafted such beautiful stories. Perhaps he was a man like Thomas, whose talent spoke volumes when volumes was all there was. Perhaps he was someone like Bliss, whose story could inspire. Perhaps a person like Davis, who spins his own web of lies and despair throughout these killing games. Thomas couldn’t be certain about anything yet, rarely could he be about anything in this new world of chaos.

His right hand landed on the orange, and he rolled it towards himself with his palm. The orange tumbled, wobbling on the dent where his thumb had tried to pry it open, and then settled right in front of Thomas. His eyes followed the orange while Bliss and Daimyon spoke, but he was listening intently to both of them. For a second he felt a pang of guilt, but only for a second.

Following Daimyon’s cue, he noticed the bacon that he brought to the table. Thomas furrowed his brow, and twisted his head slightly away from it. He looked to the orange, and then to the bacon on the table. He didn’t want to eat anything heavy for breakfast initially, but both his orange and his hunger seemed to have bested him. Still, something looked to be troubling Thomas. He brought his gaze up to the infinite poet, but it was his voice that finally betrayed his uncertainty. ”What are they made of?” Thomas inquired, his voice suddenly filled with skepticism.

The young man's question caught Daimyon somewhat off-guard. He took a second to process it, see if there was some deeper meaning behind it, but he could find none. “...all bacon is made of pork, isn't it?” He turned to Bliss, suddenly unsure of himself. “Admittedly, I just cooked it, but our chef may know where the ingredients are from…”

“Oh, um.” Bliss looked around sheepishly. “I mean, it's not like I acquired the meat at a supermarket. I just took it out of the fridge and started cooking it. But I'm sure it's pork.” She picked up a slice of bacon and took a bite. “It certainly tastes like the meat I've come to know and love. Daimyon, you did an excellent job!”

The trio enjoyed the food Daimyon brought out without speaking. Conversation was good, but every once in a while it was nice to just spend time together doing something as simple as eating. Even if Thomas couldn't observe how his companions moved, he could most certainly watch their eating habits. It wasn't until everyone had a few slices before someone else showed up at the table.

”Ugh!” Geina shook her head. ”Whatever, I just came here to drop off some shit.” The carnage sister placed an E-handbook on the table in front of Daimyon. ”So we kind of lifted some stuff out of Marianne's room.” She then placed some crinkled notes on top of the device. ”There's more shit in there, but you can look at that yourself with the E-handbook.” The robot folded her arms and walked away without saying anything else.

“Marianne's...room?” Daimyon looked back at the Carnage Sister who graced him with no answer. “There must be some misunderstanding, then, for I'm not her!”

“Oh, when the first case was over, Mary got Mondatta's handbook. They must know you spent a lot of time with Marianne.” Bliss leaned across the table. “It's probably not my place to ask, but what does it say?”

“Is that so?” In all honesty, the poet forgot about there being precedent for this sort of thing. He did spend time with Marianne, more than with any other Infinite these last few days, but they were all minute meetings with little substance... His curiosity quickly getting the better of him, he finished the piece of bacon he was holding, wiped his hand with a paper towel and carefully picked up one of the papers ahead of him. His eyes scanned the lines with commendable speed, finding general observations about the hospital, the killing game and the Infinites, some more specific than the others.

Then...one sentence caught his attention. It concerned him, and it made his heart skip a beat.

“What? It can't be...” he muttered, eyes growing wide with terror. He rushed ahead a few more lines but quickly stopped, slamming the paper back onto the pile. He did not believe what he was reading. “My apologies, I...I have to go.” Leaving Bliss' question unanswered, he stood up, almost pushing the chair out from under himself, gathered everything the robot gave him in his arms and hurried out of the break room.

Bliss watched the poet run off. “Is everything alright?” Bliss called, but Daimyon was already out the door. “Oh, there’s actually some people I need to check on. If anyone asks, there’s still plenty of breakfast out back.” the nanny excused herself from the table and left the dining room.
And with that, I think this collab is pretty much done. I'd post it, but I don't like to DP in ICs if I can help it.
Peel & seal
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