Letter Bee

Forgotten Worlds

@Dinh AaronMk, Just lacking inspiration and time right now; I still think I lost my touch.

Royal Rumble!

William Ascot

William blinked as he processed the new information going through his head; the battle was moving fast, but he had learned how scared these...puppets were, scared by something that wasn't the people trying to break them right now. Looking at Vera first, then Wolfram, then the Puppets, the boy would say: "Guys! Just please let go of Andras! I know you're real people; just not human - you wouldn't be scared if you weren't. So, just let go of Andras and we can talk this out. We can offer refuge, we can offer sanctuary, we can get you out of whoever scares you more than we do. This does not have to end in your deaths."

Another call from his mother: "William!" the shout came, "A tip; you guys need to go! The longer you stay, the more likely Murphy's Law will strike! Now flee before I use the Ekindu chain on you all!"

The sound of a car thrumming would echo over the din of battle as Gilgamesha continued, "Will, you have five minutes to negotiate, then I am forcing you to go! And if you choose to resist, I'll take only you and leave your friends behind when I use Ekindu!"

@RoflsMazoy@Dezuel@Bartimaeus@Crowvette@KillamriX88

Digimon: Counting Stars

@BeachDude7PH, Didn't Doc Sammy reserve Courage, or did I promise Courage to 2 people?

Forgotten Worlds

Name: The League of Cities of Sapientkind

Leader(s):

Isabella de Guzman, Representative of Commerce - Middle-aged, corpulent, and magnificently dressed to make up for her lack of physical attributes, Isabella de Guzman is a firm believer in the power of money and free enterprise to bind together disaprate religions, creeds, and even species. The main financier of the League's armies, Isabella de Guzman is known for hard business practices that extract maximum profit from a situation. Despite her grasping nature, Isabella claims not to pursue wealth for its own sake; she wants to use it to unify the world and end petty conflicts over matters of land and honor. And to some observers, she actually believes this.

Juan de Maldonado, Representative of Defense - Isabella de Guzman's counterpart in the army, Juan de Maldonado is proud of his accomplishments in molding a once-divided coalition into a cohesive fighting force. A better logistician and strategist than a tactician, Juan is nevertheless loath to admit that it was Isabella's wealth and actions that had made his victories possible and prevented his men from mutinying more than once, same for admitting that he owes anything to anyone other than himself. Nevertheless, these feelings rarely go beyond respectful rivalry, even as he is scornful of Isabella's beliefs.

Carol Padillia - The ideologiical heart of the League of Cities of Sapientkind, Carol Padillia is a Magus whose willpower is fuelled by her determination to secure a fairer world of less suffering. But this willpower and determination makes her more brittle as well, and less likely to compromise in foriegn affairs as Isabella and Juan. Like Isabella, Carol started off as a commoner, but she feels a stronger bond towards Juan as both are military people, and it is Juan that persuades her to adopt more pragmatic policies for now. However, her belief in the 'common soul' and 'innate rights' of Sapient Beings easily brings back her militant mood, especially when faced with atrocities occuring elsewhere...

History: The lands around the Great Inner Lake were rich and fertile, and from those lands, a civilization sprang. This civilization consisted of many cities that either formed a great empire, or were conquered by said empire; past records are murky. Nevertheless, the collapse of the Empire caused the cities to be independent again, warring with each other and outside invaders. And on the easternmost shore of the Great Inner Lake, where a river flowed from unknown lands, was established the city of Valladolid; Vallis Tolitum, Valley of Waters. This city became rich, producing glasswork and crossbows, swords and furniture.

But with wealth came peril, as a great horde from the east took the mountain passes by storm, and forced the city to pay tribute or be sacked. This horde then pressed on to the rest of the cities, extorting tribute when they can and brutally sacking those that refused. And when that horde passed, another came, and another, each army larger than before. So the cities knew that before their wealth was lost, they had to put aside petty rivalries and band together. Juan de Maldonado and Isabella de Guzman were part of those early efforts, with the latter financing an early effort to ambush the hordes of the east as they came through the mountain passes.

They failed, and Valladolid was besieged, only to be saved by Carol Padillia, a young woman who had manifested magic powers of unusual strength. Carol belived that she had gained powers from the Gods to banish the enemy, and so she did, allowing Juan and Isabella to make another try, recruiting armies from multiple cities to give battle against the eastern nomads. This time, they won, but the war that followed was long, even with the cities' new innovation; the Hand Cannon. It also didn't help that one of the Hordes brought in its own infantry recruited from vassal tribes and petty kingdoms. Stalemate loomed over the horizon.

It was Carol who saved the situation once more. She observed that the nomadic horde's vassals were 'lesser' races; Orcs, Ogres and Goblins who were treated badly by their human lieges. So she proposed that overtures be made to them, overtures of liberation and equality. It would take some time for this to be accepted by the nascent League, and even longer for the resulting proposals to be accepted by the non-human races in the enemy ranks, but in a final, climatic battle, the nomadic horde that threatened them all was betrayed by its vassals and subjects, who joined the League in destroying their masters.

Isabella and even Juan proposed betraying the agreements made with the 'greenskins' there and then, but Carol would have none of it and she had the non-humans, as well as plenty of Juan's own men who were loyal to her on her side. And so the Orcs, Ogres, and Goblins were allowed life and liberty, and in time, proved themselves to be deserving of equal citizenship in a mere decade and a half. Now, the League of Cities of Sapientkind stands tall and strong, ready to trade in gold and blood all across the world...

Location:

Royal Rumble!

@Letter Bee, now that I read through everything, did Michael even meet with William? I've only drawn Body Arts on Alexander, right?

@Scarifar

He did; close to the beginning of the game, right? And William copied Michael's Body Art from when he used it on himself to lift up a few pieces of rubble; it was during the Mephisto's investigation case.

Forgotten Worlds

Name: The League of Cities of Sapientkind

Leader(s):

Isabella de Guzman, Representative of Commerce - Middle-aged, corpulent, and magnificently dressed to make up for her lack of physical attributes, Isabella de Guzman is a firm believer in the power of money and free enterprise to bind together disaprate religions, creeds, and even species. The main financier of the League's armies, Isabella de Guzman is known for hard business practices that extract maximum profit from a situation. Despite her grasping nature, Isabella claims not to pursue wealth for its own sake; she wants to use it to unify the world and end petty conflicts over matters of land and honor. And to some observers, she actually believes this.

Juan de Maldonado, Representative of Defense - Isabella de Guzman's counterpart in the army, Juan de Maldonado is proud of his accomplishments in molding a once-divided coalition into a cohesive fighting force. A better logistician and strategist than a tactician, Juan is nevertheless loath to admit that it was Isabella's wealth and actions that had made his victories possible and prevented his men from mutinying more than once, same for admitting that he owes anything to anyone other than himself. Nevertheless, these feelings rarely go beyond respectful rivalry, even as he is scornful of Isabella's beliefs.

Carol Padillia - The ideologiical heart of the League of Cities of Sapientkind, Carol Padillia is a Magus whose willpower is fuelled by her determination to secure a fairer world of less suffering. But this willpower and determination makes her more brittle as well, and less likely to compromise in foriegn affairs as Isabella and Juan. Like Isabella, Carol started off as a commoner, but she feels a stronger bond towards Juan as both are military people, and it is Juan that persuades her to adopt more pragmatic policies for now. However, her belief in the 'common soul' and 'innate rights' of Sapient Beings easily brings back her militant mood, especially when faced with atrocities occuring elsewhere...

History: The lands around the Great Inner Lake were rich and fertile, and from those lands, a civilization sprang. This civilization consisted of many cities that either formed a great empire, or were conquered by said empire; past records are murky. Nevertheless, the collapse of the Empire caused the cities to be independent again, warring with each other and outside invaders. And on the easternmost shore of the Great Inner Lake, where a river flowed from unknown lands, was established the city of Valladolid; Vallis Tolitum, Valley of Waters. This city became rich, producing glasswork and crossbows, swords and furniture.

But with wealth came peril, as a great horde from the east took the mountain passes by storm, and forced the city to pay tribute or be sacked. This horde then pressed on to the rest of the cities, extorting tribute when they can and brutally sacking those that refused. And when that horde passed, another came, and another, each army larger than before. So the cities knew that before their wealth was lost, they had to put aside petty rivalries and band together. Juan de Maldonado and Isabella de Guzman were part of those early efforts, with the latter financing an early effort to ambush the hordes of the east as they came through the mountain passes.

They failed, and Valladolid was besieged, only to be saved by Carol Padillia, a young woman who had manifested magic powers of unusual strength. Carol belived that she had gained powers from the Gods to banish the enemy, and so she did, allowing Juan and Isabella to make another try, recruiting armies from multiple cities to give battle against the eastern nomads. This time, they won, but the war that followed was long, even with the cities' new innovation; the Hand Cannon. It also didn't help that one of the Hordes brought in its own infantry recruited from vassal tribes and petty kingdoms. Stalemate loomed over the horizon.

It was Carol who saved the situation once more. She observed that the nomadic horde's vassals were 'lesser' races; Orcs, Ogres and Goblins who were treated badly by their human lieges. So she proposed that overtures be made to them, overtures of liberation and equality. It would take some time for this to be accepted by the nascent League, and even longer for the resulting proposals to be accepted by the non-human races in the enemy ranks, but in a final, climatic battle, the nomadic horde that threatened them all was betrayed by its vassals and subjects, who joined the League in destroying their masters.

Isabella and even Juan proposed betraying the agreements made with the 'greenskins' there and then, but Carol would have none of it and she had the non-humans, as well as plenty of Juan's own men who were loyal to her on her side. And so the Orcs, Ogres, and Goblins were allowed life and liberty, and in time, proved themselves to be deserving of equal citizenship in a mere decade and a half. Now, the League of Cities of Sapientkind stands tall and strong, ready to trade in gold and blood all across the world...

Location:

Forgotten Worlds

Hey; I might be claiming this, guys; watch out for my App.

BeeNCQuest Lore Thread.

Political Parties of Haven

Democratic Union Party of Haven - Haven's largest party by a slight margin, rivaled only by the Remember Australia Party (and earlier in the past 500 years, others), the DUPH stands for "social equality, justice and the freedom of belief", and, mostly - mostly - adheres to its principles. Promoting a society based on 'Self-Reliance, Liberty, and Shared Benefit', the DUPH has been charged with being overbearing and even coercive, and there were periods where it was that. Nevertheless, it has fought for the peace, prosperity, and survival of Haven for half a millennium before the liberation of Australia, and has knit the newly-freed territories together under its political and diplomatic network.

Remember Australia Party - Not everyone is pleased by Haven taking political, economic, and cultural ideas from a place as far away as Northern Syria, Northern Syria in the early 21st Century, no less. And they have a right not to be, because Haven is underneath Australia, not Rojava. The people of the Remember Australia Party have a hodgepodge of political and economic views, some merely advocating 'Democratic Confederalism with an Australian Face', others advocating for a return to indirect Democracy, and some few advocating coming back to an actual Free Market and a repeal of the rules regarding sharing property (private property is allowed in Haven, but only with a voluntary recompense to the community; if one wants both private property and not pay recompense, they get a fully-armed populace pointing their guns at them).

Justice and Development Party - A widely growing party composed of expansionists, the JDP are a group who believe strongly in Haven's moral superiority over all Humans stuck in either Corporate, Plutocratic Rule or Mindless Anarchy. They believe in the expansion of Haven into the surface through force, and taking over the Corporations' dominions, something that they believe they can administer better than 'those plutocrats'.

Isolation Party of Haven - Another, widely growing party composed of isolationists, the IPH are a mix of sane people who have calculated that taking the Corporations and their superior resources head-on would just get them killed, and blatant Xenophobes who believe that people from outside Haven would contaminate their culture and DNA, and that they'd be best off staying underground. Oppose the JDP bitterly, but also have animosity towards the DUPH.

Federation Party of Haven - The fifth major party in Havenite Politics, the Federation Party of Haven regards themselves as the only party who realizes that the system of direct democracy will not work in an expanded Haven, and have the facts to prove it. With the liberation of Australia, the party has begun to cry out for the division of the liberated territories into a Federation, in which Haven would be First Among Equals, as well as keep its unique political system as part of said Federation. Frequently allies with the JDP and ISH whenever it is convenient and poaches the more sane members from the two parties every so often.

National Union Party of Haven - A small party allied with the DUPH in the ruling coalition, they are the smallest political group in the city, but has sway in contested areas. Their main ideological difference is that Haven should lend services to people only when it's needed, not universally and all the time. Basically, selective welfare. Unpopular with areas that are only middle-class, and also divided between (relatively) rich districts who want social services abolished entirely, and (relatively) poor districts who feel that the rich can take care of themselves...

BeeNCQuest Lore Thread.

NPC Character Sheet

Name: Theodore Narra

Appearance:


Age: 58, but looks 21 thanks to Anti-Aging treatments.

Sex: Male.

Skills: Theodore's foremost skill is administration and logistics, as the brains behind Haven's attempt to expand its holdings on the Surface, he is a master at ensuring that supplies, money, and arms get to wherever it's needed - not an easy task considering Haven's need to keep itself secret. Though generally open and honest, Theodore knows how to govern his image, and what he projects is the aura of a benevolent leader, one who cares for the city and his people...which makes it easy to forget that he can and is able to kill, whether with guns, knives, or even his own, mysterious NC.

Short bio: One of the first 'Adventurers' from Haven to make it to the surface, Theodore made his first appearances as a mysterious NC Pilot who saved Independent settlements and villages in exchange for information and supplies, and was strangely ignorant of how things worked aboveground, although he was clearly a vagabond, albeit one with an amazingly good salvaged NC. Making it to the ruins of Darwin, Australia, Theodore encountered Red-Star for the first time, but managed to pass himself off as a new mercenary, and thus found himself serving them in exchange for money and more information. Finding Red-Star's methods and ideology distasteful, Theodore took the first opportunity to defect to Denver-Vegas, then Volkov, before finding his way to Al-Amir Group of Companies.

There, he found a way back to Haven again, through another secret tunnel, where he immediately became a celebrity, with his experiences providing valuable information about the world outside. He was 24 then, and two years later, he would depart again to search for more information about the surface, as well as help build a network of proxies that would increase Haven's land-bound wealth. Various Independent settlements, outlaw bands, mercenaries, the Adventurers from Haven bound them together to create a force capable of taming the Australian Outback...and catching the ire of Red-Star in the process.

For although the rule of that corporation was largely nominal, it could not tolerate a rival power taking advantage of the island's still-immense natural resources, and so it sent a force to destroy the nascent 'Confederation', still not knowing that Haven was behind all this. The expeditiona involved a relatively small flotilla, composed of cruisers, transports, and a couple of light carriers. But it was technologically superior to the alliance that Theodore had helped build, and Red-Star was confident of victory. They were soon to be proven wrong.

In several months' time, Theodore had lured the enemy force into the Australian Outback, isolated whatever allies they found and began dealing them a death of a thousand cuts, using tactics learned from Al-Amir, as well as constructing hidden factories and supply depots in Australia's wasteland. He then, with a small squad of Haven NCs, which were secretly as advanced as the corporates' but managed to hide it, devastated Red-Star's own supply lines and patrols. before, in an ambitious amphibious strike, turning against the Red-Star Fleet, disabling most of its ships, but careful not to destroy so many that the Corporates stopped underestimating them.

And so Red-Star withdrew, allowing Australia to be the first large region freed from Corporate Control (not including the various Independents and virtual Nation-States in the Middle East and Africa, as well as the Latin American Warlords). This was something that Red-Star would have continued to do something about, if not for a series of renewed skirmishes with Volkov, Denver-Vegas, and Fairbanks; at the end of the day, 'Oz', for now, was just too much of a 'backwater' to focus much attention on.

But in the midst of triumph was a tragedy, for several of Theodore's teammates had died in the final strike, and in operations before that. This included close friends and even a lover, and Theodore was eager to get back to Haven, where he can rest and recover from the ordeal of combat...and begin the next round of plans to liberate more of the surface.

He knew that the 'Big Bad MegaCorps' were not going to tolerate any more territory out of their hands, especially not ones that were actually valuable in their eyes. But at the same time, Australia was not enough; the region of Oceania was not enough. It would take years, centuries, even, but the MegaCorps had to be brought down before there can be peace before Haven can have peace. And so, he proposed a risky plan: Include outsiders in Haven's plans; there was only so much that can be done with Havenite 'Adventurers'. No, outsiders were needed in order to provide the information and experience needed to actually make 'World Liberation' work.

And so, Theodore sent agents to the surface, agents whose goals were to build more networks aboveground, as well as find people, malcontents, and mercenaries, who were willing to work for his city, for a cause 'like none other'...

Bio Update (Applies only to RPGuild NCQ Canon): Theodore was instrumental in conducting the grand strategy that drove off Red-Star's largest assault on Australia yet, where the main thrust of their attack, the 'Darwin Offensive', was broken by a combination of his spy work and the incompetence of the enemy forces. However, quarrels with the rest of his command staff have given him a bitter taste in his mouth despite his victory, same for his own sub-par performance on the tactical level.

Cape Town will be a moment of reassessment, a moment where Theodore feels he has to redeem himself and his reputation as a commander...

Notes: Music

NC: Perfect Qamishlo, Capabilities Unknown.