Location: Cedar Ash InnInteracting with: Callie Lenson@Caits, Linus Teague-Winslet@Oliver, Samuel Douma@Queentze and Magnus Bane@BlackPantherAlexis looked up surprised at Callie as she went towards the door. So far the witch has been nice and friendly even when Alexis acted rather odd and protective. Or worse, confused. It felt as if she had a bottomless pit of patience. Yet she called someone an ass. Who could push this woman so far that she’d say such a thing? The learning opportunity didn’t particularly cast a light on the situation. Of course, Alexis knew what Callie expected. To see the aura of this Samuel person. That was the only way so far the little warlock girl knew how to make a distinction between any of the supernatural creatures. Then she let a macho guy with a little boy in.
There was something odd about the two. It was obvious the kid didn’t really want to be here. Instead he rather just gave in to the situation. Probably looking for a way out the moment he could. The bigger guy looked like someone who didn’t give much about what others thought about him. Her father wouldn’t like it if Alexis knew him that was sure. His appearance was just too strange. Too bad boy. She stayed at the table where Linus was seated when Callie went for the another hot chocolate. Which prompted Alexis to realize she had her own cup to empty. The kid looked alright. Well, not entirely. Something was off on him but he looked harmless. Probably just afraid. In attempt to make him feel less afraid she took a sip of her own hot chocolate. Showing it was okay to drink it.
She guessed the conversation that would ensue would probably go over her head. Especially when Callie mentioned ‘Zoe’s orders’. Alexis didn’t know someone named Zoe. Though if she could give orders to Callie, she guessed she better learned her quickly. Still, to get out of the hair of the adults she took the bestiary Callie loaned her for a moment and went from her chair to the couch with the bestiary. But the young warlock hadn’t forgotten Callie’s exercise. She kept her eyes on Callie and the one Alexis assumed to be Samuel. But that didn’t particularly mean she knew how to activate her Sight. So far the only way she could manage was through visions. But she couldn’t really summon those. So she went for another approaching. She tried to see Callie as amber.
And it worked. For Alexis, the world turned grey and filled with fog. Before her she saw 3 figures enclosed in the black walls. One was Callie, a large amber light. It was incredibly radiant. Then there was a smaller figure. Another amber. But unlike Callie, his shone only little light. Looking more like a silhouette formed from the gem. But then there was the final figure. In a grey, fog-filled world not even the walls were truly black. Just a shade darker of grey. But this man, this man was the blackest thing she had ever seen in her life. Not just the shiny darkness of black paint. No, this man was a dark spot in a colored world. His black consumed light. It intrigued Alexis, who hadn’t seen such a creature in her visions yet. After she kept her eyes closed for a second her vision returned to normal and colored. A world she didn’t know she appreciated so much until she saw the alternative, grey filled world.
Curious she opened Callie’s bestiary. There was a ton of information in it. But the girl kept her eyes peeled for the black aura description. Until she final found it. Fallen angels. Alexis’ face went pale when she read it. She failed to continue reading, as her own mind was busy enough. Fallen angels were basically demons, she thought. Which made Alexis fully understand why Callie called him an ass. For now the man did seem harmless. But so did the little warlock. And she knew she was a little more dangerous than most assumed. It would seem the fallen angel and Callie kept their attention to each other and the warlock boy. Who would have demanded all her attention if Samuel didn’t stand so close to him. Quickly grabbing her bag she took out a strange amulet: the shape was obviously that of a hawk’s skull. But it was charred and engraved. The runes circling its eye sockets were painted with a bronze, metallic paint. She also grabbed her small knife. One thing she hated about the amulets and charms: she had to use blood to activate them. Though she kept the amulet hidden beneath her shirt and the knife up her sleeve while she pretended to read the book.
She didn’t have to act very long. Another person came in. Just like before Alexis activated her Sight. Which showed her emerald. But the light was bright and strong. But there was one thing she realized: the man didn’t introduce himself. He just entered. Silently. Hoping not to get noticed? Why wouldn’t you? You’ve just entered the house of someone. Only two kinds of people entered someone’s house without announcing themselves: thieves and murderers. Alexis hoped the man was just the first option. But she wouldn’t let fate decide what happened next. Not here, not against Callie. Not against a witch that could teach her. Alexis swiftly moved from the couch on the left of Magnus towards the nearby window. She opened it in a swift movement while she took out her amulet. The, with the knife, she made a small cut on her finger, grimacing at the pain. With the slightly bloody finger on the amulet. Focusing the power. She felt it coming. The strong gust of wind from outside. A forceful push of air that would knock the intruder off his feet. Nothing broken, no one harmed. But the room would be aware of the break-in while at the same time the invader laid on the ground.
But Alexis is but a warlock. She couldn’t control the power that was coming. She couldn’t even anticipate it would be so much. The gust of wind coming from outside tried to blow itself through the open window. The bottleneck made it violent. Instead of a focused wind blast the pressured air ran amok within the room. Blowing up papers and books. Even though she couldn’t control it, she could make an attempt to aim and Alexis did. She aimed the strongest gust of wind at Magnus. But suddenly the wind died down. The blowing was too loud to hear the window close itself. It wasn’t just window that locked itself. Normally she always felt something from the outside. The rustle of the wind. The flow of a creek. Maybe even the cool light of the moon. But now she didn’t. It was as if she was sealed off from the outside. “What the hell!?” she exclaimed, fearing the strange intruder might still be on his two feet. She tried to grab the window to open it again. But the second she touched it she felt a spark arc from the window into her. Prompting her to pull her hands back. “What the hell!?” she exclaimed, but this time at Callie.
PRESUMED: Syndicate, Triad, Italian mafia, Russian mafia, various Latino gangs
STATUS
ALIVE
P H Y S I C A L A P P E A R A N C E
RACE French SEX Female APPARENT AGE 28 HEIGHT Approx: 5'9" Weight Approx: 122lbs HAIR LENGTH Chest height HAIR COLOR Blonde EYE COLOR Blue-grey SKIN TONE Pale
ADDITIONAL NOTES
Has scar on her lower left side stomach. Possible past stab wound. So far unverified.
P S Y C H E V A L
DESTRUCTIVE? UNK DANGEROUS? Y UNDER SURVEILLANCE? N PRIORITY? Yellow
ADDITIONAL NOTES
04/02/2015 - Originally from France. Applied for work visum in 2008. Came to the United States in 2009 as company consultant. She specializes in various security and PR crisis management. First suggestion towards illegal activity came from an independant tip from inside a company she consulted. Miss Dechampe was, after said tip, seen various time at clubs with questionable clientelle. Limited surveillance has been aproved of. 07/15/2015 - Miss Dechampe has been seen exchanging word with questionable clientelle. Her name came up in several documents that may tie her with money laundering and fraud. 12/01/2015 - Miss Dechampe has been cleared of any alligations and successfully sued the United States of America for a breach of privacy. Surveillance has been redrawn. During investigation very little came up about her past life in France.
H I S T O R Y
KNOWN FAMILY
UNK
KNOWN RESIDENCE Del Perro Heights appartement 8, Intersection of Marathon Avenue and Prosperity Street, Los Santos
ADDITIONAL NOTES
Assumed to have a reputation built up in France before coming overseas.
Recent:
The interrogation room was small and grey. The 4 pieces of furniture were all made from the same, dull, matte-silvery aluminum. Except for the table who had a bad, black paintjob. Overhead a neon light illuminated the whole room but only succeeded at making it look even grayer. In one of the chairs Jimmy Divito sat. He looked jumpy and twitch with a clear side of pure anxiety. Everyone who’d cast him one glance would know there was something wrong Jimmy. One eye was almost closed as the other seemed to look around like frightened deer. His hair was shorty and oily. As if it hadn’t been washed for months. The patches around his shin betrayed that he tried to grow a beard. Or that he was simply too lazy to shave it off. His clothes weren’t much better. His wardrobe screamed pure offense against every stylist in the country. Even the hipsters.
The two detectives entering did nothing to calm Jimmy down. In fact, he got even more jumpy. The oldest one took a seat in front of Jimmy while the youngest one chose to observe from a corner. While opening the file, detective Hugh Williams silently looked over the kid in front of him. Hugh was dressed like a typical detective who has worked far too much for far too long and has seen enough in his life by now. His face screamed cynical and his eyes betrayed just how tired he was. Not the kind of tired you are after a sleepless night, but the kind of tired you are at life. With suspenders keeping his pants on and a shirt that betrayed he probably wouldn’t pass a young cop’s physical exam, he slowly took his seat. “Jimmy Divito. You’re a slippery eel but here you are at last.” Jimmy just kept twitching and looking but kept silent. “You were caught on tape for theft. Thrice now. That, combined with the fact that you’re on probation, was enough to convince a judge. You know what we found at your house?”Jimmy just kept twitching and looking around. As if Hugh wasn’t even talking to him. “It’s a pretty extensive list. Cocaine, heroin, marijuana, ecstasy, meth and even some pills the boys in the lab call: experimental drugs. What’s that going to give him these days, Julian?” asked Hugh to his partner standing the corner.
“15 years for possession with a mild jury. 25 years for possession and dealing. Another 20 years for theft. Of course, add a few years due to criminal activity during probation. All-in-all, when you get out, it will either be in a hearse or as earth’s oldest living man.” The young officer, Julian answered. Still, even this did not catch Jimmy’s attention. Which annoyed Hugh greatly. Not being discouraged by the addict, he pulled up another file and slid it towards Jimmy. “We can cut that in half, even less even, and let you go to rehab. While you only need to tell us what you know about that person.” This did grab Jimmy’s attention. With one, bone-meager hand he opened the file, cast one look at the face and closed it immediately. “No… no no no. Not her.” He kept repeating. Like a prayer. “I won’t talk about her.”
“Listen Jimmy. You’ll get locked up for life. No more Olivia. Nor more Sarah. Nothing. Help us now and we make sure you can see your wife and child again.” Persuaded Hugh. But Jimmy didn’t seem to listen. He just shook his face as he looked away from the very file. While he kept repeating the same no. As if merely thinking what he thought was a mere offense to god or the devil. “Talk to us Jimmy. Whatever she got on you, we can help.” Said Julian from his corner. Jimmy looked up, with a sprinkle of hope, before it collapsed again. “No no no. You can’t help. You don’t understand, I-“ But Hugh cut him off as he opened another file. Within it a picture of Olivia, Jimmy’s wife. “You know, we got enough to tie Olivia to your crimes. We got a team near Sarah’s school right now. You want to see Olivia go to prison, Jimmy? You want Sarah to be put up for adoption. I heard they really ruined the system these days in Los Santos. I heard that one time, they allowed a convicted pedophile to adopt. Nasty business, that case.”
This seemed to push Jimmy over the edge. “No! No! Don’t you dare! Olivia got nothing to do with any of it! Stay away from her.” He yelled form the top of his lungs, at wish Hugh jumped up from his chair, sending it sliding over the ground for 2 feet. With a slam on the table he yelled: “Then give me what I want!” Jimmy cowered deeper into his chair. Like a wounded dog fearing the belt. For a second silent ruled the cell. As if a word could suddenly burst the peace and send Hugh into a frenzy. A silence that was eventually broken by Jimmy’s whimpering request: “I-I need some water.”
Huh, seemingly calmed down, sat down again. “No water until you give us what we want.” Jimmy eyed Hugh with unveiled fear in his eyes. Begging the older man not to force him. But Hugh remained cold. Eventually, the crook surrendered and shakenly opened the file again. He looked at the surveillance picture. His entire body shivered when he saw her face. A beautiful face but he looked as if he just committed a mortal sin. “What’s her name?” Asked Hugh, rather impatiently. “Eloïse Dechampe.”
Julian and Hugh looked at each other, trying to see if one or the other ever heard that name. Neither had a look that said that they didn’t. “We saw miss Dechampe with several key figures of various gangs and mobs. What does she do?” Jimmy looked up, surprised. Not surprised that he asked the question but rather surprised that they had to ask it. “She… You don’t know?” he asked in amazement. “You don’t know!?” this time it came out a lot more frantic. “How can you not know.” This time it sounded almost animalistic.
“Cut the crap, Jimmy. We know she works in the higher echelons. Tell me everything you know.” But Jimmy did not calm down. In fact, he only got more nervous and jumpy. As if he finally broke: “Okay-okay-okay so, it’s world war two, alright?” Hugh and Julian looked at each other again. The older detective trying to guess his younger colleague’s opinion of what was happening. Julian just looked intrigued. “Okay so you’re the Germans, right? You’re the Germans and you’re gassing and you’re annexing and this big, BIG Russian army is coming for your ass and you basically want to yell f-“ “Get to it!” yelled Hugh. Which shook Jimmy. “Okay so, the Germans, they had a superweapon. The V2. You know how many people in London got killed by V2s!? They leveled Antwerp with the damn things! No, wait, wait, it wasn’t Antwerp. What was it? Okay so they need to make those things go to the right place, right. They needed diamonds. You know where you can find diamonds? Africa! But who held Africa! The damn Brits! At the same time those tea drinking suckers figured they needed something to keep their bombers going straight. Cause, you know, you can turn Dresden into the 7th circle of hell if you can’t keep straight! So they needed a gyroscope. Guess who had gyroscopes!? Now, now both factions thought they could trade. Because, you know, they both thought they could win that way. But you can’t just, you know, come visit for afternoon tea and biscuits!? So they needed some neutral ground.” Hugh got more irritated and chopped him off now: “So what does this have to do with Miss Dechampe.” Much as the frustration of Jimmy. “She is Switzerland!” he practically yelled. “She’s the neutral zone! She can get you anything you want! Drugs, guns, cars, a piece to warm your bed! She has it all!” This took Hugh by surprise. “Are you saying…” But Jimmy just went off the hook: “I’m saying she doesn’t just dabbles in all those things, she practically controls them! Half the bullets shot in Los Santos she got in here!” Hugh got up and walked to his partner. When they were close enough, he whispered: “I’m getting someone from higher up. This is much bigger than we anticipated. Keep an eye on him.” Julian just nodded as Hugh turned around. “I’m going to get a glass of water for you.”
With Hugh out the door, Julian walked up behind Jimmy. He was so tense it looked like he could snap at any moment. “You’ve done well.” Said Julian in a voice that put Jimmy at peace. “This will all be over soon.” A comfortable shoulder pat followed, but Jimmy wasn’t entirely bonkers. He felt something was off and looked. The hand was gloved. His eyes shot wide open but it was already too late. A needle got jammed in his tight. “What are you-“But Jimmy’s body went into shock before he could finish. Shaking badly he fell out the chair. He tried to talk. He tried to say something. But the muscles in his jaw just went stiff. Slowly Julian put the needle in Jimmy’s pocket while whispering in his ear: “The trade took place in Argentina. Switzerland traded rubber and jews. Now, you talked a bit too much, Jimmy. You know Miss Dechampe doesn’t like to be called Switzerland.” Only 3 minutes later did Julian call the OD. When the paramedics arrived, Jimmy was already dead.
C R I M I N A L R E C O R D A N D K N O W N I M A G E S
Clean Reccord.
O F F T H E R E C O R D
CHARACTER'S DIALOGUE COLOR9e0b0f FACE CLAIM'S NAME Natalie Dormer CHARACTER'S RANK IN ORGANIZATION ROOK
PRESUMED: Syndicate, Triad, Italian mafia, Russian mafia, various Latino gangs
STATUS
ALIVE
P H Y S I C A L A P P E A R A N C E
RACE French SEX Male APPARENT AGE 28 HEIGHT Approx: 5'9" Weight Approx: 122lbs HAIR LENGTH Chest height HAIR COLOR Blonde EYE COLOR Blue-grey SKIN TONE Pale
ADDITIONAL NOTES
Has scar on her lower left side stomach. Possible past stab wound. So far unverified.
P S Y C H E V A L
DESTRUCTIVE? UNK DANGEROUS? Y UNDER SURVEILLANCE? N PRIORITY? Yellow
ADDITIONAL NOTES
04/02/2015 - Originally from France. Applied for work visum in 2008. Came to the United States in 2009 as company consultant. She specializes in various security and PR crisis management. First suggestion towards illegal activity came from an independant tip from inside a company she consulted. Miss Dechampe was, after said tip, seen various time at clubs with questionable clientelle. Limited surveillance has been aproved of. 07/15/2015 - Miss Dechampe has been seen exchanging word with questionable clientelle. Her name came up in several documents that may tie her with money laundering and fraud. 12/01/2015 - Miss Dechampe has been cleared of any alligations and successfully sued the United States of America for a breach of privacy. Surveillance has been redrawn. During investigation very little came up about her past life in France.
H I S T O R Y
KNOWN FAMILY
UNK
KNOWN RESIDENCE Del Perro Heights appartement 8, Intersection of Marathon Avenue and Prosperity Street, Los Santos
ADDITIONAL NOTES
Assumed to have a reputation built up in France before coming overseas.
Recent:
The interrogation room was small and grey. The 4 pieces of furniture were all made from the same, dull, matte-silvery aluminum. Except for the table who had a bad, black paintjob. Overhead a neon light illuminated the whole room but only succeeded at making it look even grayer. In one of the chairs Jimmy Divito sat. He looked jumpy and twitch with a clear side of pure anxiety. Everyone who’d cast him one glance would know there was something wrong Jimmy. One eye was almost closed as the other seemed to look around like frightened deer. His hair was shorty and oily. As if it hadn’t been washed for months. The patches around his shin betrayed that he tried to grow a beard. Or that he was simply too lazy to shave it off. His clothes weren’t much better. His wardrobe screamed pure offense against every stylist in the country. Even the hipsters.
The two detectives entering did nothing to calm Jimmy down. In fact, he got even more jumpy. The oldest one took a seat in front of Jimmy while the youngest one chose to observe from a corner. While opening the file, detective Hugh Williams silently looked over the kid in front of him. Hugh was dressed like a typical detective who has worked far too much for far too long and has seen enough in his life by now. His face screamed cynical and his eyes betrayed just how tired he was. Not the kind of tired you are after a sleepless night, but the kind of tired you are at life. With suspenders keeping his pants on and a shirt that betrayed he probably wouldn’t pass a young cop’s physical exam, he slowly took his seat. “Jimmy Divito. You’re a slippery eel but here you are at last.” Jimmy just kept twitching and looking but kept silent. “You were caught on tape for theft. Thrice now. That, combined with the fact that you’re on probation, was enough to convince a judge. You know what we found at your house?”Jimmy just kept twitching and looking around. As if Hugh wasn’t even talking to him. “It’s a pretty extensive list. Cocaine, heroin, marijuana, ecstasy, meth and even some pills the boys in the lab call: experimental drugs. What’s that going to give him these days, Julian?” asked Hugh to his partner standing the corner.
“15 years for possession with a mild jury. 25 years for possession and dealing. Another 20 years for theft. Of course, add a few years due to criminal activity during probation. All-in-all, when you get out, it will either be in a hearse or as earth’s oldest living man.” The young officer, Julian answered. Still, even this did not catch Jimmy’s attention. Which annoyed Hugh greatly. Not being discouraged by the addict, he pulled up another file and slid it towards Jimmy. “We can cut that in half, even less even, and let you go to rehab. While you only need to tell us what you know about that person.” This did grab Jimmy’s attention. With one, bone-meager hand he opened the file, cast one look at the face and closed it immediately. “No… no no no. Not her.” He kept repeating. Like a prayer. “I won’t talk about her.”
“Listen Jimmy. You’ll get locked up for life. No more Olivia. Nor more Sarah. Nothing. Help us now and we make sure you can see your wife and child again.” Persuaded Hugh. But Jimmy didn’t seem to listen. He just shook his face as he looked away from the very file. While he kept repeating the same no. As if merely thinking what he thought was a mere offense to god or the devil. “Talk to us Jimmy. Whatever she got on you, we can help.” Said Julian from his corner. Jimmy looked up, with a sprinkle of hope, before it collapsed again. “No no no. You can’t help. You don’t understand, I-“ But Hugh cut him off as he opened another file. Within it a picture of Olivia, Jimmy’s wife. “You know, we got enough to tie Olivia to your crimes. We got a team near Sarah’s school right now. You want to see Olivia go to prison, Jimmy? You want Sarah to be put up for adoption. I heard they really ruined the system these days in Los Santos. I heard that one time, they allowed a convicted pedophile to adopt. Nasty business, that case.”
This seemed to push Jimmy over the edge. “No! No! Don’t you dare! Olivia got nothing to do with any of it! Stay away from her.” He yelled form the top of his lungs, at wish Hugh jumped up from his chair, sending it sliding over the ground for 2 feet. With a slam on the table he yelled: “Then give me what I want!” Jimmy cowered deeper into his chair. Like a wounded dog fearing the belt. For a second silent ruled the cell. As if a word could suddenly burst the peace and send Hugh into a frenzy. A silence that was eventually broken by Jimmy’s whimpering request: “I-I need some water.”
Huh, seemingly calmed down, sat down again. “No water until you give us what we want.” Jimmy eyed Hugh with unveiled fear in his eyes. Begging the older man not to force him. But Hugh remained cold. Eventually, the crook surrendered and shakenly opened the file again. He looked at the surveillance picture. His entire body shivered when he saw her face. A beautiful face but he looked as if he just committed a mortal sin. “What’s her name?” Asked Hugh, rather impatiently. “Eloïse Dechampe.”
Julian and Hugh looked at each other, trying to see if one or the other ever heard that name. Neither had a look that said that they didn’t. “We saw miss Dechampe with several key figures of various gangs and mobs. What does she do?” Jimmy looked up, surprised. Not surprised that he asked the question but rather surprised that they had to ask it. “She… You don’t know?” he asked in amazement. “You don’t know!?” this time it came out a lot more frantic. “How can you not know.” This time it sounded almost animalistic.
“Cut the crap, Jimmy. We know she works in the higher echelons. Tell me everything you know.” But Jimmy did not calm down. In fact, he only got more nervous and jumpy. As if he finally broke: “Okay-okay-okay so, it’s world war two, alright?” Hugh and Julian looked at each other again. The older detective trying to guess his younger colleague’s opinion of what was happening. Julian just looked intrigued. “Okay so you’re the Germans, right? You’re the Germans and you’re gassing and you’re annexing and this big, BIG Russian army is coming for your ass and you basically want to yell f-“ “Get to it!” yelled Hugh. Which shook Jimmy. “Okay so, the Germans, they had a superweapon. The V2. You know how many people in London got killed by V2s!? They leveled Antwerp with the damn things! No, wait, wait, it wasn’t Antwerp. What was it? Okay so they need to make those things go to the right place, right. They needed diamonds. You know where you can find diamonds? Africa! But who held Africa! The damn Brits! At the same time those tea drinking suckers figured they needed something to keep their bombers going straight. Cause, you know, you can turn Dresden into the 7th circle of hell if you can’t keep straight! So they needed a gyroscope. Guess who had gyroscopes!? Now, now both factions thought they could trade. Because, you know, they both thought they could win that way. But you can’t just, you know, come visit for afternoon tea and biscuits!? So they needed some neutral ground.” Hugh got more irritated and chopped him off now: “So what does this have to do with Miss Dechampe.” Much as the frustration of Jimmy. “She is Switzerland!” he practically yelled. “She’s the neutral zone! She can get you anything you want! Drugs, guns, cars, a piece to warm your bed! She has it all!” This took Hugh by surprise. “Are you saying…” But Jimmy just went off the hook: “I’m saying she doesn’t just dabbles in all those things, she practically controls them! Half the bullets shot in Los Santos she got in here!” Hugh got up and walked to his partner. When they were close enough, he whispered: “I’m getting someone from higher up. This is much bigger than we anticipated. Keep an eye on him.” Julian just nodded as Hugh turned around. “I’m going to get a glass of water for you.”
With Hugh out the door, Julian walked up behind Jimmy. He was so tense it looked like he could snap at any moment. “You’ve done well.” Said Julian in a voice that put Jimmy at peace. “This will all be over soon.” A comfortable shoulder pat followed, but Jimmy wasn’t entirely bonkers. He felt something was off and looked. The hand was gloved. His eyes shot wide open but it was already too late. A needle got jammed in his tight. “What are you-“But Jimmy’s body went into shock before he could finish. Shaking badly he fell out the chair. He tried to talk. He tried to say something. But the muscles in his jaw just went stiff. Slowly Julian put the needle in Jimmy’s pocket while whispering in his ear: “The trade took place in Argentina. Switzerland traded rubber and jews. Now, you talked a bit too much, Jimmy. You know Miss Dechampe doesn’t like to be called Switzerland.” Only 3 minutes later did Julian call the OD. When the paramedics arrived, Jimmy was already dead.
C R I M I N A L R E C O R D A N D K N O W N I M A G E S
Clean Reccord.
O F F T H E R E C O R D
CHARACTER'S DIALOGUE COLOR9e0b0f FACE CLAIM'S NAME Natalie Dormer CHARACTER'S RANK IN ORGANIZATION ROOK
Another morning, another briefing. Bjronson was prepared as ever. In fact, he came in early once again. Still, his army of aids were ready for him at the door. “Gaoyu has started putting capital in the European stock market. So far no important majority votes have been bought but the hedge fund managers under the Bank are getting antsy. They want assurance that their capital won’t get overshadowed.” But soon another aid intervened. “Gaoyu keeps up sending volunteers and other aid. Together with military power it claims to protect their volunteers. So far the help Italy gained has been quite substantial. In both goods and finance. SEER cautiously advice buying into Italy’s bonds.”
The Gaoyu team then split off the main group and went towards their offices. While the others remained near. “Miss Neosca gave a rather touching speech in Italy. Well, touching by EDA standards. It seems like the general populace will still rally behind her. Despite clear security issues.” An officer from Einherjar came up to the other side of Bjornson. “We succeeded in getting a meeting with Miss Neosca. But failed to give her a rundown of the specifics to be discussed. The EDA guards are keeping a suspicious tight grip around their representative. I wouldn’t be too surprised Mr. Valois is watching from the shadows.”
The group was now half-way towards the elevator when surprisingly enough the GAZPROM team came walking beside Bjornson: “We got some reports about alleged terrorist activity around the Danube and the Ukrainian -Moldavian border. Reports so far remain unverified. Mostly because we got a light grip on events in the Balkan at best. Even SEER can provide accurate projections. However, with the limited information sources available SEER preliminary projections suggests a refugee flow from Romania and maybe Ukraine. Poland is the nearest area owned by a Megacorporation. Then there is also the problem of potential Romanian terrorism. But again, GAZPROM’s media is the only source of this information.”
Now it was time for the largest army, Jötunn’s monitoring group. “If not a sense of humor, the Germans certainly seem to have a sense for insults.” Said one aid as he handed Bjornson a tablet showcasing a certain propaganda show from Munich. For a second Haldjor chuckled. “Munich and Nuremberg are quite emboldened by your support. They have been raising militia groups and inviting various other free German cities in a form of alliance against Jötunn. Which would be required, as it appears that Jötunn is moving armed personnel towards the borders.”
Times were getting increasingly interesting. Especially now. The top executive level had gone through a certain restyling. The Mega-corporation advisory boards each had an office on the floor now. Near Haldjor’s office a meeting room turned into a Central Command. When Bjornson entered, the room didn’t stop. But certain people looked up as he took his seat. Charles was among them, keeping a watchful eye over some monitors against the wall. There was a stark contrast between the young CEO and the veteran leader of Einherjar. “What’s the situation with Jötunn and Operation Mimir?”
“Everything proceeding as planned.” Answered Charles, not looking away from his screens. “Bastion’s first and second shipment is on its way. Mimir has ‘vanished’ from Norway 2 days prior. All seems to go according to plan.” Said the elderly man who still held a very strong aura of strength around him.
“I hope you’re right about him, Charles. Because if this goes wrong, the best case scenario is that we have a notorious terrorist with Top Tier equipment in our borders and the worst case is that Jötunn finds out and the markets are not in the mood for wargames so close at home. ISIL might blow a few market squares in the Middle East and the Balkans may descend into a bit of skirmishing. But I can’t have another Euro-War on my hands.” There was a certain tension within the Command Center. Even though neither of the participants looked at each other, there was a certain charge in the air. The room, despite being big, was still too small for these two giants. “Now, I see that there may be some issues in Romania?”
“Unverified reports from GAZPROM. True or not, they’re mobilizing. It all depends if the international media jumps on early enough. But GAZPROM is a lumbering giant. It’s getting too big. Even worse, they are aggressive above all else. They’ve proven it time and time again when they threw out the banks and-“
“A move that made us a lot of money.” Noted Bjornson.
“One man’s trash is another man’s treasure. We shouldn’t assume GAZPROM gave us a gift the day they started throwing out their financial institutions.” Said Charles as he turned around and marched towards the map projected on the main table. He looked over it, at the Danube. “What does GAZPROM want with that river…” the old man mused, trying to see the game of chess being played with 3 players. The EDA, GAZPROM and Jötunn.
Bjornson rose from his chair and looked out of the window. “Can Poland handle the refugees?” he asked, more in an off-hand interested voice than legitimate concern. Haldjor had no interest in humanitarian aid. Such things were best left to Gencultura. Who had long stand experience on the subject. This however, gave him an idea. “What if we asked our North-African brothers for help?”
“Gencultura? Hmmm, a fair proposal. Their humanitarian resume is a lot bigger than ours. We’d have to give something in return. Those guys down south may be sentimental from time to time, but they certaintly aren’t cheap. We’ll have to give them something.”
Haldjor nodded, agreeing with Charles. “For now, just monitor the refugee situation in Poland. Give the Gencultura taskforce orders to dig in. I want to have something they want if the Balkans situation turns into a crisis.”
“There is still Jötunn to worry about.” Noted Charles to Haldjor who moved to the other side of the table. With a doubtful gaze he looked at the divided Germany. “East and West. History repeats itself. Only this time the west is screwed. I cannot blatantly go up against the Giants. Another Euro-war would cost us billions if not more. So we need an alternative.”
“The rising German Federation seems to be doing rather well on its own for now.” Said Charles. Who, with a single movement, enlarged the map of Germany. It showed a clear red line to separate East and West. “At this rate, I doubt Germany would become part of Jötunn soon. At least not in any peaceful way. Sadly, Jötunn has never been known as peaceful. I do, however, have a continuity plan I’d like to suggest.” The old man looked at Haldjor without continuing. It was a silent sign. Whatever was going to be said now was the very least illegal, often highly immoral and at worst, it could destroy relationships between Mega-corporations for years. Haldjor nodded. “Germany will fall. We’re just buying it more time. I will not deny Germany’s fighting spirit though. They are though and stubborn. But Jötunn carries too much police and military weight. Right now SEER is trying to figure out why Jötunn wanted Germany so bad and I feel it will give us that answer soon. When we have it, we move that resource out of the free Federation.”
“Scortched earth tactic.” Noted Haldjor.
Charles nodded. “Rather, still-burning-earth. If we play our cards well and Jotünn still grabs East-Germany, we can have trained resistance fighters tucked away in every nook and cranny there is. We make it our Trojan Horse. Once Germany gets annexed the sleeper cells can spread themselves through Jötunn territory.”
“A daring plan… I will think it over. At least the Trojan Horse part. I will await SEER’s report on West-Germany’s value. Once we pinpointed what Jötunn wants, we drain West-Germany of that. You have my blessing for that plan. Now, for the next issue.” With a few taps the holo-map moved towards Italy. “The bomb, the EU and the EDA. It seems Miss Neosca is somewhat cooperative. But not enough. I don’t know if it’s indecisiveness, stubbornness or cheer incompetence but so far we only got paperwork from her.” One of Haldjor’s famous secretaries moved closer, knowing she’d at least would have to relay a message to her colleague. “Luckily the EDA is still quite an open economy. Start buying stocks in French and Italian companies. Keep them afloat. Show some economic goodwill. In that we have always been better than Jötunn. Central Europeans may desire more security but what they truly love is economic stability. Help the EDA in that.” The secretary nodded and excused herself.
“Then there is still the issue with Goayu buying European stocks. Our financial experts don’t see an immediate pattern in it. It’s neither aggressive nor hugely influential.” Said another secretary. “I’d personally say they are slowly but surely trying to get into the EU’s economy as times become more interesting.”
Haldjor nodded in understanding. He couldn’t show that it went unnoticed. Nor could he risk antagonizing another mega-corp. “Buy stocks of the companies they bought. Slowly, steadily. Try to use the same randomization they’ve used. Don’t buy too much influence. Just enough so we can get the board’s attention when required but try not to poke the panda bear.”
Location: Cedar Ash InnInteracting with: Callie Lenson@CaitsThe charms did help as Alexis her entire body tried to balance itself out again. Still, she had some convulsions. She tried to keep it together in the presence of an actual witch. But there was only so much she could fake. Fear dripped into her psyche as she realized what just happened. Alexis had never gotten a vision when she was awake. Maybe with reason, as the magic involved almost literally attacked her. Maybe a body could only take such visions when it’s asleep? She’d want to ask the book but as always, it would probably be mute on the subject. Maybe Callie could help her, she certainly knew her way around the world of witches. Or rather, the world of witches, werewolves, druids, angels and sirens.
The very fact that she named all those creatures made Alexis’ brain race again. With one part fighting to keep her from being overwhelmed, the other part was working through what she just learned. Sirens? Mythical creatures of the sea. Alexis had read the Odyssey which described Sirens as beautiful but vicious creatures. They had a beautiful voice and their songs were so enthralling that it made sailors lose their minds and crash upon the rocks. Those things were real!? Then the angel? There were angels in this world!? Only that fact could be enough to question faith. But Alexis did not linger on that, she lingered on what she saw. A bright light. While everything else their aura burned like a candle, the angel’s was an actual flame. Which made her question just how powerful an angel was. Then there was a druid too? First she’d assume druids were merely witches with another name. But no, she didn’t see an amber aura but an emerald one. Which she guessed to be the druid. So they were something different as well? For a moment she regretted not trying to see who the druid was. But she had a clue to follow: the emerald aura.
Then there were the werewolves. Which explained quite a bit: the silver dot that moved so swiftly and spread its silver aura around was making more werewolves. Remembering just how many silver aura’s there were a shiver ran over Alexis’ back. What if they were rabid? Wild? Could they control themselves during a full moon? What else could they do? She had so many questions yet she knew that with every single one she’d ask, two more would come up. Giving the Grimoire a sideway glance, she wondered if it held some knowledge about those other creatures as well. There was no denying that it contained a vast amount of knowledge.
Callie was still upstairs but Alexis felt the need to puke pull away. Absent mindly she held one of the disks in her hand. How did she never come up with that herself? Infusing potions into disks. Just looking at the disks with amazement felt like more proof that she didn’t really know what she was doing. That and the fact that she kept her crystals charged all the time. Maybe she used the moon’s magic often enough so the crystals never got a chance to explode? Again, so many questions coursed through her. Still she smiled a little when she remembered what Callie said about them. ”Excellent for that time of the month, really” She had the world at her finger tips and yet she never even thought about such useful things.
But Alexis looked back at the book again. She learned so much, enough to start asking it questions again. Looking at the stairs quickly, she didn’t see Callie coming down just yet. What harm could it do to ask a few questions? The young girl opened up the book and took her pen to write: Auras
But the book, once again, seemed to prefer mute on the subject. Yet, not entirely. Unlike when she asked after her nighttime visions, the book gave away something more this time. Written in red ink, it said: Blood of our blood. Heir of us. You have the Sight. Be patient, oh young one. Be patient and see the truth. It felt like a rather ominous thing, but before Alexis could ask anything else the book slammed itself shut right when Callie came down.
“What?” asked a surprised Alexis who almost jumped up from her chair. Quickly realizing what Callie asked, she answered: “Oh, oh yeah. I’m fine. Thank you.” It was the truth, the charms did seem to help. She slowly took them off and put them on the table, after which she picked up her own little bone pendant, smiling at Callie. No, she didn’t kill the shark herself. In fact, there was a fair chance the shark was still alive! They constantly lost their teeth. Alexis just happened to have found that it on a trip a year ago. Holding no fear for the pendant she looped it around her neck. Keeping curious eyes on the book Callie was carrying.
Okay so many of you know I absolutely LOVE this roleplay. It’s the one that I’ve helped working on for the longest now. I’ve had tones of fun with everyone here. So it truly pains me to say it but: DWS right now is dead. I say this because the activity has reached an all-time low. The last post was from more than a month ago. The last addition to the collab I’m is from more than 3 weeks. Again, I hate and feel sad to say it but DWS as we know it ended.
We could revive it but the death of DWS isn’t the issue. It’s the fact that everyone got their real life to take care of. Aewin and me are still in university and college and several other people are either looking for work or working. Which is also quite a drain on the creative spirit. I’m pretty sure, should we try to revive, and we’d just extend DWS’ life for maybe 2 weeks again.
That all being said, DWS could be revamped or recreated. With the same world and maybe even the same school and characters and what not. But not now and not in the near (2 months) future. I’d say wait at least until mid or end of spring (though I’d personally prefer start of summer)? In the end that’s a GM decision. But we’d definitely need a new thread so we can attract the new meat and make it accessible for them. I think this is a part of my opinion most could agree upon?
However, I do have another opinion that’s a bit more radical: make another RP (again, much later on) but one no longer revolving around Mayweather or Delphina but maybe two entirely new schools somewhere else. Or maybe not schools but something else entirely? But all in the same universe as DWS. This comes from my personal belief that we should never try to re-live something but rather create new experiences. But that’s just my opinion and again, I’m not 100% sure it would be a good idea.