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4 yrs ago
Need two more people for our Fantasy + Sci-fi roleplay - we have angry burning trees!
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4 yrs ago
New interest check is live, check it outttt
4 yrs ago
If i could go back now, i wouldn't change a thing
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4 yrs ago
You've got red on you
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4 yrs ago
Its just me, you, a pile of Chinese food and a couple of f**k off spreadsheets.
3 likes

Bio

New roleplay: https://www.roleplayerguild.com/topics/189457-the-eye-of-the-needle-where-fantasy-and-sci-fi-collide/ooc

Hey, I'm Catharyn! I joined the Roleplayer Guild on 2nd Feb 2011, then rejoined on the 17th Jan 2014 after Guildfall.

I was active every day until late 2015, accruing (i think) around 7k posts across dozens of roleplays. Then, I started working and had to gradually slow down my RP schedule. In 2017, I officially went on hiatus when other commitments got fully in the way of roleplaying.

This continued until the COVID-19 pandemic hit, when I suddenly realised I had a lot more free time in lockdown! So in mid-2020, I returned to the Guild with a vengeance. I also managed to get The Cradle 1x1 off the ground - a story i've had percolating for almost a decade.

My posting schedule has slowed down a bit now that the world has opened up again. I still love science fiction, fantasy and espionage themes, and generally aim for around 300 words per post.

Most Recent Posts

The Utaysi inclined their head graciously and spread their hands modestly at Senjen’s claim. “It would certainly appear that way.”

“You were great, really!” Ruk said. “I think I’ll pass on the martial arts class though; I like to think my disarming personality is enough to keep me out of trouble.” Her bill clattered together, producing staccato raps.

The staff member listened keenly to Senjen’s feedback, nodding.

“Yes, our frames are the most robust money can buy. There is a lot more we can add to your package in future if you want to ‘tank up’ even more.” They steepled their hands in a supplication stance when Senjen repeated that he wasn’t ready to buy today.

“I admire and respect your discipline. Will you allow me to merely share with you some incentives and programs that may help with your purchase?”

Senjen agreed, so they led both of them to a comfortable seating area suitable for all species and handed them each a holo pad.

“Ok. First things first - it is obvious you have a flair for combat. We think the people deserve to see more of that. So my supervisor has authorised me to invite you to our content creator program. If you agree to film a series of videos demonstrating and promoting Myrmidon gear to our Utaysi audience, we can offer you a 25% discount on all private security lines. What do you think?”



The gel rooms lined the back wall. They stretched from floor to ceiling and glowed a healthy, inviting azure. The ‘walls’ rippled but did not betray the contents of each room, which only served to increase Light’s excitement.

“Myrmidon has greatly expanded its QV-specific ranges over the last two decades.” Symphony began as they approached.

“At first it was limited to tools, medical equipment and mining rigs, that sort of thing. But now I’m very happy to say…” She disappeared into the gel. Light waited for Jess to venture inside first, then emerged last.

They were in a roughly rectangular room decorated with underwater flora. There was an opening to more rooms on the right and another on the left. Symphony had shed her suit and swum free. Light kept hold of his suit, self-conscious of his atrophied body and misshapen tentacle.

In the middle of the room was a sleek teardrop of silver gel, threaded with veins of gold.

“We’ve created a gelsuit with Myrmidon durability and tech built in.” She said, drifting close to it before looking back at them. Light couldn’t help but gasp at its beauty.

“Wow. Its…like nothing I’ve ever seen before.” He swam closer, examining it from all angles.

“You can try it on, if you like.” Symphony teased.
“Well done! I am impressed.” The Utaysi congratulated Senjen as he exited the simulation.

“Most people do not win on their first try; one versus two as well. Bravo!”

“Good job Senny, you were formidable in there.” Ruk toasted him with a few glass of champagne.

A servile droid appeared with a tiny olive tree sapling in a terracotta pot on their silver tray. The Utaysi staff member carefully took hold of it and presented it to Senjen.

“A token of Myrmidon’s appreciation - you have earned it. How did it feel, controlling one of our base models? You made good use of your custom loadout.”




“It's a room made of gel.” Light said simply.

“You’ll be perfectly safe in there. Safer, even, than out here.” Symphony chuckled musically.

“Please, show us the way!” Light concluded with vigour. He placed his drained glass on a passing tray, grabbed a manipular full of vol-au-vents and meandered through the crowd after the salesperson.
Satisfied that they wouldn’t win a gunfight against Senjen from his fortified position, the Blue team leader unclipped their grenade. Leaning out from behind cover for a second, they activated it and threw it under arm straight through the right-hand doorway.

Senjen scarcely had a second to dive for cover before it detonated, filling the room with a fiery explosion and shrapnel. A solid wood dresser took the brunt, splintering into a thousand pieces. The rest crashed into Senjen’s shield bubble, lighting it up with a loud SHHZZZZZZZZZHHHHH. As soon as the grenade exploded, the Blue team leader rushed to take cover on the opposite side of the right hand door from Senjen, dodging flying shrapnel that exploded through every opening.

The damaged Red team droid crawled around the barrier towards its Blue team equivalent as they were still reeling from the damage to their arm and the fall. They slashed their claws at their would-be executioner, and would have decapitated it had they not thrown their rifle in the way. The claws bend the weapon so severely the Blue deputy discards it, launching themselves at Senjen’s damaged ally with claws drawn. Too weak to defend themselves, the claws slice through their neck, and take them out of the fight permanently.




“Myrmidon encourages a diverse range of viewpoints within our ranks. It means we can solve our customers’ problems in a balanced and empathetic manner.” Symphony explained. Light nodded sagely in agreement.

“I saw some gel-rooms back there. Is there anything exciting in them?” He asked.

“Yes of course! Would you like me to show you both?”
The droid tussled wildly with Senjen, trying to dislodge the claws from its chest. They brought their gun back up and smashed it into his head to no avail. Senjen swiped the rifle away and dispatched the damaged droid with a swift stomp to the head.

The two remaining soldiers on the opposing Blue team conducted a tight fire and move sequence, gaining significant ground towards Senjen’s beleaguered opponents. The droid on the left was hit again, rendering it unable to support its teammate who found themselves quickly pinned.

Reaching the other side of the tall piece of cover, the blue team operator duked left but appeared right, putting an energy bolt straight through their opposite number’s head. They clattered to the ground, rifle falling from their limp hands.

The leading droid on the blue team directed its deputy to finish the damaged ally off while they themselves moved to take up cover overlooking the side rooms.




“Oh…I was just telling…Light…about what I did before joining Myrmidon.” Symphony blushed.

“She was part of this group mind called Zeteticist. They’re what Humans might call vigilantes?” Light filled Jess in helpfully.

“It seems we may have been eating from different sides of the same plate, as it were.” Symphony added. Light was tickled with endearment at her use of a Human metaphor; plates and cutlery were a most bizarre concept for QV.
The enemy droid on the left hand side launched a stream of superheated plasma at the droid to Senjen’s right. Wise to an early salvo, they were already dodging and it sailed over their head to sear the simulated walls behind. Senjen’s ally made it safely behind cover; their assailant waited a split second for another shot. When none presented itself, they ducked down behind a concrete barricade.

The enemy on the right had taken their time aiming at Senjen and loosed a laser bolt at the top of his head peeking from behind cover. It was pinpoint accurate, bouncing aggressively off Senjen’s new shield unit with a satisfying Pzzang-krrrhhht.

The leader of the enemy team looked to the soldier on the Senjen’s left and ordered them to flank through the covered rooms off to the left of the killhouse. They weren’t much more than a series of walls with holes in them punctuated with flimsy doors and smashed windows.



“I’ve heard of the Zeteticist!” Light warbled.

“You stormed the Starveling Cult’s migdol on the Moon of Enduring Serenity to free those QV settlers, right? It made the news here on Korit.”

“That's correct! It was a terrible situation. The peacekeepers made a deal with the local warlords but it fell apart in a horrible fashion. We arrived too late to save them, but at least we could rescue some innocents.”

Jess may have heard the end of this exchange as she approached. Light went in for an enveloping, slightly slimy hug.

“Well done! It was fun to watch; shame about…well…you know. But it's taking part that counts, right?”

Light flicked nervously back to look at the QV sat by him for a millisecond, then back to Jess.

“Ermm, Jess! This is my friend Jess. And this is…” He looked to her for clarification. She gave it in spades - her name evoking a fever dream of orange, red and pink.

“Symphony-Of-Stars-Eternal-Lasting. Very pleased to meet you, Jess. You gave a good account of your expertise up there. Your friend said you were the best mechanic he’d ever met.”

“Oh, how rude of me!” Light cut in. I’m Into-The-Abyss-In-Search-Of-Light. My friends call my Light, mostly.”
“Oh, naturally!” The Utaysi waved a hand dismissively.

“I just have to let you know that any prices discussed here today may not be available once you leave.”

Once Senjen had confirmed his choices, the fighting stopped at once. One of the droids loped over to a shuttered door on the lower level that opened to reveal an automated loadout station. As they watched, it deftly added and removed parts from the stationary robot frame while the others watched passively. They had returned to their rally points on either side of the kill house.

Once the droid was re-equipped it joined its teammates on the Red Team. The Myrmidon staffer handed Senjen an interface that could be plugged directly into his own body.

“This will let you remote control your avatar using your mind, to ensure you get the most immersive experience. The hard line prevents any griefing - you understand.” He also offered some viewing goggles to Ruknar, who took them with a skeptical look on her face.

Once Senjen had plugged in, the other two Red Team members looked at him. As soon as he made a move, the round would start.


“You’ve got this!” Light cheered from the sidelines, quaffing his new glass of champagne.

The officiant nodded their head appreciatively at Jess’ stoic riposte.

“Ahh, our champion is of the strong and silent type, ladies and gentlemen! Evidently getting focused for the task ahead.” They played to the crowd, who murmured excitedly.

When Jess did speak, they waggled a ringed finger at her.

“While I'm sure that’d be fun to watch, I’m afraid it’d void this beauty’s extended warranty.” The crowd laughed politely.

Once the two competitors got going, some cheering erupted from the spectators. Light joined in, forgetting his previous anxiety, until Jess began to fall behind the droid.

“Pick up the pace!” Light offered as words of encouragement, though he wasn’t sure individual voices were registering in Jess’ mind.

“Your friend certainly knows her way around a bike.” Came a message from his side. Light’s suit and eyes instantly decoded the flurry of colours despite no sound passing between them. He turned slightly to regard the QV staff member who had sidled up next to him. She regarded him.

“She is a mechanic?”

Light immediately felt nervous again, in such proximity to this stranger. It felt as though magnets were drawing them together.

“Yes. The best I know.” The reply that arrived on his hide was erratic and plagued with emotional tics.

“High praise indeed. And what are you good at?” This warrior-priestess turned away from the contest to focus all her attention on him.

“I suppose travelling safely is my special skill. I transport cargo…well, my friend, erm, body guard and I transport cargo. All over, really.” Light angled himself so he could reasonably say he was looking both at this female and his friend at the same time.

“That sounds very adventurous. You must see a lot of interesting things in your line of work.”

“I suppose we do.”

“I’d like to hear about them, some time. Maybe we’ve been to the same places at the same time! Imagine that.”

“Oh, I’m sure that's not the case. We mostly visit warzones and…precarious situations at the moment. We work for a medical NGO.” She positively lit up with intrigue upon seeing this response from Light.

“Not possible! Before joining Myrmidon I was with the Zeteticist.” Light had heard the name before, after a moment he remembered they were a QV group mind that rescued their kind from oppression and war crimes throughout the cluster. Word was that they were ruthlessly effective against the aggressors.

The crowd politely clapped Jess as she finished behind the droid. The tank-topped officiant raised the droid’s hand triumphantly by the wrist, before coming over and shaking hands with Jess. They presented her with a wooden spanner engraved with her name.

“Another round of applause for our valiant runner up!” The crowd duly complied. Some then dispersed, off to examine other displays. Others moved into the enclosure to examine the product range in closer detail.

“Unlucky there. You’ll get em next time, eh?” They grinned.






“I suppose you’re right. I’ll just have to relearn all your card game tells again…” Ruk joked, clapping the Utaysi appreciatively on the back.

“Now what fresh hell is in here.”

As soon as they passed the quiet barrier the sounds of general commotion assaulted their ears. There was laser and shard fire mixed with the scrape of metal on metal and shield deflections.

It was a kill house, sunken into the ground with a viewing gantry around the outside. A collection of small rooms snaked around the edge, opening onto a courtyard with a few pieces of cover dotted around it. Half a dozen Utaysi mil-droids were simulating an intense battle, three on the red team and three on the blue team.

“Sorry about the noise! They are really going at each other.” The Utaysi explained, gesturing for Senjen to attend a console.

“Each of them represent one of our six base private security/personal military models. You can customise any of them to the spec you desire. You can also take control of any of them at will.”

The console’s interface was highly engaging to a Utaysi, including elements of gamification. For example, the act of bulking out a droid’s loadout also added it to the ‘shopping cart’. On offer for the next ten minutes were the backpack shield supplement drone, the active camouflage module and the Infiltrator’s shardrifle.




Light could tell Jess knew what she was talking about regarding this ‘personalisation’ thing from her voice and body language. It made him even more nervous about speaking to any of the staff, and he now felt bad that Jess’ participation in the contest was contingent on his presence.

“We need to win at least one stupid contest today, regain our dignity. Let's go.” With some effort, Light turned his back on the warrior-priestess and blobbed towards the workshop display area.

The member of staff calling for volunteers over the PA system was a lithe androgynous Human with a black bob, a tank top in Myrmidon white and arm tattoos. They waved Jess over as she entered the display area.

There were two Myrmidon hoverbikes resting on the floor. A Myrmidon workshop droid stood over one of them, examining it closely with its sensory array.

“We have our contender, ladies and gentlemen!” The cute salesperson called to the small crowd of onlookers which now included Light.

“The task is simple. Disassemble and reassemble this bike in working order quicker than my droid here to win. Think you’ve got what it takes?” They grinned cheekily at Jess, goading her.
“Well of course! I am just sentimental about my current housing. I didn't wanna give it up.” The Utaysi rapped a hand surreptitiously against his body.

Ruk studied Senjen closely. “I think I like you just the way you are, Senny. Are you sure you wanna ride this train?”

The Utaysi glanced quickly between the two of them before replying. “We do indeed. What sort of models did you have in mind? We have a good selection here, but I can also offer you a virtual try-on for almost every product in our catalogue.” He began leading them towards a quiet barrier containing the louder displays before Senjen had had a chance to answer.




Light pondered this for a moment. “Isn’t that a good reason to go and talk to them about it?” He seemed pleased with his reasoning skills.

“You don’t need an old codger like me cheering you on; you’ll win it blindfolded. I might go and check the QV area. Meet back in 5?” He peeked back at the female, who was finishing her conversation and was looking back at him now.
“About two years ago. So fair warning, I don’t have the experience that some of my colleagues have. But I think I'm uniquely placed to help you in particular. “Was there anything specific you were looking for today?”

A service droid wafted past with a tray of hors d'oeuvres. Ruk picked precisely at it like her ancestors may have combed a lawn for grubs. She was getting bored.

“Have you visited our Agora bar?” The droid asked, gesturing politely to an area fashioned after an ancient open-air theatre/market space. A few people stood talking loudly and sipping on cocktails.

“No, I’m here to help my friend. Besides, I’m trying to save money.” Ruk replied.

“Its all free, ma’am.”




“Are you calling my future life partner a prostitute?!” Light flashed colours of mock offense, then laughed and patted Jess’ face to hide his sadness.

“Oh? Well colour me interested.” It was a Human turn of phrase that had gained widespread usage among QV.

“You should go and win that Myrmidon mascot. It’ll look good adhered to your shoulder.”

Another tray of champagne flutes passed by; Light grabbed one and sniffed it.
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