Watts dressed smartly for these sort of functions. His suit wasn't too far and he had the speed serum and other items on his person. Of course, without the suit he was at a huge risk of endangering himself with the speeds he traveled at. There was a reason most speedsters had their abilities naturally - they had evolved to be able to withstand tremendous force and friction. Watts' body did not have that same luxury, meaning that he needed to wear the suit in order to protect himself from his own speed.
While the others were probably annoyed at this sort of event, Watts was thoroughly enjoying himself. "Dr. Pym, it is an honor to have you here," Watts said, extending a hand to the Pym Technologies owner and founder. "I have to say, I was deeply impressed with your publication on quantum tunneling with regard to tautomeric transition as key to Erksine's original formula. Though I did have to ask - how did you know it was superexchange-mediated tunneling? Forgive me, I've gotten ahead of myself - I'm Dr. John Watts, the head of the Research and Development department here at Serval."
Dr. Pym nodded slightly. "I had my quantum computer do the calculations, looking into tunneling and hopping on a model of Steve Rogers' DNA," he explained. "In fact, the new models are looking very promising. I'm expecting to publish a paper soon, assuming Stark doesn't go and publish first," he muttered, glaring in the direction of Tony Stark. "If it wasn't for his father, I swear... I would have had a working quantum computer decades ago..."
Watts smiled slightly. "If you'll excuse me, Dr. Pym," he said, wanting to talk with more than just one intellectual genius - and it seemed that Pym needed a bit of space to cool down. Tony Stark wasn't too far away so Watts headed on over, having a blast. It was his version of Christmas. "Tony Stark," he greeted.
"Hey there whoever you are." The Stark Industries owner had obviously had a few drinks, but at least he wasn't completely wasted. He wasn't certain whether or not it was better for the tension in the room to keep Tony drunk or not.
"Dr. John Watts - I run the R&D division here at Serval," he said, extending a hand just as he had done with Pym. A big part of this was networking. If Pym Tech or Stark Industries made him a better offer, he'd take it. His son, Stephen, was already in school and the fees were expensive. And even though his daughter, Leda, lived in England with her mother, Watts felt it was his duty to pay for her proper education too.
"Tony Stark but you knew that already it sounds like," Tony said, shaking Watts' hand. "So, the R&D division? Sounds like fun."
"I believe everyone in the room knows who you are," Watts admitted. Perhaps he was sucking up to these people - but they were giants in his field. They were the movers and shakers, the legends. "If you have a moment, I'd love to chat about your nanotech developments - I heard you're working on making a self-healing material of sorts for your next suit?"
"Yup, just something I've been tinkering around a bit with, definitely will make it a hell of a lot easier on me."
He nodded slightly, putting a slight hand to his ear as Andrew informed him of the situation. His blood ran cold - not because of who was there, but that they were in the lab! His pride and joy! His blood, sweat, and tears! Anger built up in him rapidly and he forced a thin smile. "Excuse me," he said, stepping out into the hallway and he went into a closet, changing into his suit quickly before injecting himself with the speed serum. "This is Mercury. I'm on my way to secure the lab," he said into the comms, his eyes glowing red from the serum as his entire body vibrated.
"Well darling, it'd be more accurate to say that Apple invented their own version of the Iris Message," Leda clarified. Her mother was a Greek goddess - she had been doing this long before Steve Jobs had even been thought of. She grinned as Kiera's weapons shifted down into their concealed form. Sure, it was disappointing that they didn't seem to do much more beyond that, but not all magical weapons could summon thunder and whatnot. She rolled her eyes at her sister, Tammy. "You are the worst!" she shouted after her. She didn't deny though anything that Tammy had said. She smirked a bit at Kiera as she headed out of the armory.
"I'll walk you there, but after that, you have to try to keep up," Leda told her. She didn't really want to walk to the Capture the Flag grounds, but she also knew that just ditching Kiera right now would be a bit of a jerk move. Besides, she partially wanted to see if she could get laid by the daughter of Poseidon. Once they got onto the field, Leda did a few stretches, brushing the loose portions of her hair out of her face. "The Ares kids are daft, but cruel. I recommend not being killed by one," she added. "Though you wouldn't be the first one if that happens."
The Small Wet Country Across the Sea: Date Unknown
Whenever he is, Ahote still won't have much of a clue. He won't have any ideas on how to get back to his time yet either - nothing concrete beyond just poking at the glass shard over and over again, hoping to recreate the accident but in reverse. As he sees back through time, he will feel that he has gone beyond the normal five minutes. The traces are faint and they are like echoes now, but whatever happened here had taken so much energy that he could still feel it. While he won't be able to see the fall of the Castle and the destruction of the Palace itself, Ahote will see this man sitting on the throne, the body of a Castle Queen at his feet.
In the midst of his attempt to seek answers, he will also be able to hear some shifting rubble nearby - he isn't alone here.
The Small Wet Country Across the Sea: November 5th, 12,508 - 9:10 PM
The Entrance Hall - the Palace, the Castle...
As Bruce and Amarantha enter the Entrance Hall, the overwhelming sense of death and chaos is striking. As the ex-Deputy Hunter already observed, most of the blood trails were in the direction of the Long Walk, but not exclusively. Some of them head towards the Library Wing, some to the Throne Room, and even some to the Tea Room! Unfortunately though, the odds were not in Amarantha's favor to be able to head back to her room quickly. A pack of vampires - twelve, from a rough count - have emerged from the Throne Room, blood streaking their faces and trailing behind them with each step.
"Hey, you!" Philomena called out. "Mind telling us where the dear old Queen is?" she asked, her fangs plainly visible. She kicked a corpse to the side as she walked forward, not even caring to step around the poor departed soul.
The Old Port Witch Coven Home - the Port...
Nera Appeared to Fleur as she always did - of course, she could have decided not to but why would she? Fleur was the only one who came to visit her really, aside from that odd girl, Miranda. She had also loved Fleur both in life and in death. "I thought you would be joyous, not sorrowful," Nera said with interest. "Even once I am free to leave this place and go wherever I wish in this world... I will always be there for you." She meant it as well. Ghosts could only go once more where living they had gone before - so essentially, anywhere Nera had been when she was alive, she could go now as a ghost. She had even been to some parts of the Witch Country before.
"So tell me, what has changed in the world since I saw you last?" Nera asked her. Given that the Port Witch Coven Home was abandoned, she didn't really get much news of what was going on outside. Sometimes she would peer out the window, down into the street, but that mostly just gave her a view of the drunks going home from the tavern.
The Keeper's Cottage - Draggen Island, the Marram Marshes...
The Dragon Boat continued to rise, the ground around them shaking with each beat of her wings. Just as Luna had described, the elegant creature was a Magykal hybrid between a dragon and a boat. Unlike the dragon they had met a few years ago of course, she didn't seem to be able to change into a human form - but at least she did not have an annoying trophy husband with her, so that was definitely a plus. The creature's eyes seemed to be made out of emeralds and the Dragon Boat stared at Titan intently, attempting to determine if he was friend or foe. The boat then bowed her head slightly towards him.
Antonije and Myrus
Location: the Palace Grounds - the Castle (C9, D6) Skills: Telepathy, Trivia Knowledge
You MUST specify where you are on this battle map each time. Yes, tis a new battle map.
Antonije hesitated for a moment as Sylvi hugged him, not certain that he deserved her embrace. Regardless, he returned it for her sake. He didn't know much about vampires, but it wasn't the life she deserved. She had run away from her country and her family - all to pursue her dream of music. There was no cure for vampirism. "You're a daughter of the night," he told her quietly. Her skin was cold to his touch, like marble. She felt stronger than the precious ores his father had told him about, lamenting that they did not have as much of this Magyk metal as they would have liked. "I'm... I'm so sorry," he whispered to her, not certain what else to say.
What was he going to tell her? He could have told her about feeding habits she'd need to maintain or speculate about how she would need to avoid sunlight and fire, but... Every time he even thought about beginning some sort of sentence like that, he just saw the love of his life in pain. There was blood on her face - Mavis' blood - and if he was honest with himself, it was a bit of an attractive look. As Myth came over to them, Antonije stared at her for a moment and he shook his head. "I'm not leaving her," he said into Myth's mind. "...I love her more than I love machines... or fire..."
Myrus stared at Lennox with frightened violet eyes. They weren't getting anywhere with Asphodel and he hadn't even considered really the possibility that there could be more vampires inside of the Palace. He hoped that his siblings were hiding in the vault or the Queen's Room - the safest places in there. Maybe Valda would have suggested they go down and hide in the Royal Crypt, she was a bit different like that at times. "If we can't get more from him..." Myrus said softly, sniffling. His best friend had died. Sure, Asphodel hadn't been the one to do it, but...
He stared down at the head and slammed his foot down onto the nose. Nothing happened and Myrus' hands started to shake, the red energy flaring up as his eyes shifted colors. He stomped again and this time, the nose shattered.
"You'll have to do better than that!" Asphodel sneered.
Myrus let out a scream and jumped up, before bringing his foot down on the head. This time, his heel connected perfectly and the skull cracked open, caving in on the brain. He didn't seem to realize he had succeeded in this, as Myrus kept on stomping on the head until the brain matter had been sprayed all over a five foot radius. He was panting slightly from the exertion and the release of emotions, his foot throbbing immensely but he didn't care.
"L-Let's go inside, then...." he said to Lennox, as if he had not just repeatedly stomped on the head to kill the vampire in the grossest and most inhuman way he could.
In front of the Palace Entrance, the civilian vomited, having been so paralyzed by fear a moment ago and now overcome with nausea. He was a burly short man with a massive beard and beady eyes - portions of his beard had flowers braided into it. "T'anks...." the man said weakly, glad that Mona had gotten him out of that mess.
Halley Banner
Location: the Docks - the Port Skills:Chaos Magyk, Perception
Halley didn't notice anything out of the ordinary in the Port - everything seemed relatively calm and peaceful, given that it was Bonfire Night and something odd was going on in the Castle that her brother had decided he just had to deal with. More realms than Midgard needed protection and if they were to interfere in every little matter, then they would not be able to help when it truly mattered. "Let me see what I can Sense," Halley said, closing her eyes slightly. Her mutant abilities allowed her to warp the fundamental nature of reality, meaning that she had inherent Magykal skill. There was definitely an entrance in front of them to a grand structure - a palace, in fact - but it was Concealed.
"There's a palace complex behind the wall, the entrance is Hidden - we just need to figure out what key will allow us to pass," Halley told her companions. She raised an eyebrow slightly, watching as Cuyler went along the wall and attempted to feel out its secrets. "Are you quite down molesting the facade?" she asked, shaking her head slightly. There was a reason Cuyler was a warrior, not a mage. She tried thinking on what sort of key this enchantment would take to allow them through, but nothing was coming to mind. Maybe some of the locals new about the Concealed palace complex in the Port, but she doubted it. Either Loki had built it in order to make himself a secret base - he did enjoy grand structures - or someone else had and wished to keep it Hidden for a reason.
As Cuyler searched for the Magyk, he would instead Sense something else. Despite the time it had been since they had last seen each other and all that had happened, he would know Arya Rincewind's Magyk like the back of his hand. A wave of sensations would hit him - the feeling of summer rain, the scent of the sea, the rhythm of a song... He wouldn't know it, but his mother was interfering in his love life!
For the most part, everyone was behaving as he expected them to. Andrew was naive and gullible, a bit like a puppy - but like a dog, he was loyal to a fault and Watts knew that he could trust him as long as no cats were around. Sapphire was poking fun at people in order to feel better about herself, a method that Watts would never admit he practiced as well. The former X-Men, Gambit and Rogue, they seemed alright... with the exception of Gambit's desire to rob the rich and powerful. No wonder he never got called to join the Avengers. Bobbi was an idiotic drug addict who had fallen strangely silent and her handler was present as ever. He frowned slightly, noticing the cut of the dress that Belladonna was wearing. Evelyn was being pragmatic and serious, ready to handle the mission - as was expected for her. He was having a bit of trouble getting a read on Psylocke, mostly because of her stiff demeanor and mannerisms.
"Andrew has a photographic memory - and excels at being a fly on the wall," he agreed with the group. It was pretty much the closest he had ever gotten to praising him. "Unfortunately, his suit is not working at the moment," he explained, a bit surprised that Andrew hadn't brought this up himself. It hadn't been that long ago that he had come into the lab and told Watts about the issues, and given that Andrew had stormed out after eating a bunch of cupcakes, Watts figured he hadn't repaired it yet. "And once again, I have to disagree with the plan of breaking into the CEO's office. You all may not realize it, but we have a good gig here. We are well paid and we are able to do work worth doing. Gambling all of that away on paranoia?" he scoffed, shaking his head. "Who do you think would take you in if you were fired from Serval? The Avengers? The X-Men? The Fantastic Four? None of us are at that caliber - with the exclusion of the former X-Men here."
>TFW you take a step back and realize that for all your plots and intrigue, you're still the kid smashing their action figures together in a sandbox...
Location: Gretna Green - Church Skills: History (Crypt Family), Deduction
Virginia was not phased by the Great Bazhooli's subtle implication that he would use his knives to ensure that Elizaveta could go about her work. Her entire family was filled with morose and macabre eccentrics, so his antics really were more or less seen as normal to her. Ny thankfully knew the faith that Ludwig practiced - well, more of didn't practice and Virginia nodded. "Then perhaps we can find a book to bury with him," Virginia suggested. She didn't know if Ludwig would have wanted that, but it seemed right. "Or - as lovely as it is and I would not wish to part with it - perhaps the journal you gifted me? So he might record the knowledge he gains in the next realm?" She hoped that Ny didn't take offense to her suggestion to bury the journal he had given her with the corpse. She loved the gift he had given her, but perhaps Ludwig's soul could make more use of it and it might be appropriate for his burial rites. Elizaveta came through the Church and hurried to Ludwig with apparent urgency, which Virginia could appreciate. While she did not share the Grand Duchess' faith, she could appreciate that her training and skills allowed to prevent the transformation into the Soulless.
She couldn't fathom what was going on with the haze, even reflecting back upon her family's history and legends. However, it was perhaps a good thing she couldn't get much headway, as her name was called out and she turned her head. She set her eyes on Millicent for the first time in what felt like a century. She smiled, happy to see that her dear friend was alive and well - that wasn't the case for most of Virginia's friends these past few days. "Millicent," she responded. "Might I embrace you?" she asked, noticing that Millicent was clutching her weapon tightly. It also was just a matter of simple respect and courtesy. She didn't wish to force a hug on her friend.
"The Grand Duchess had a vision that you would be in danger and need our assistance here," Virginia explained to Millicent, giving her the short summary of how they had ended up here. "Are you well? Do I need to slay anyone for my dear friend's sake?" she asked, concerned.
Maeve Brennan
Location: Outskirts of Gretna Green - in the Carriage Skills: N/A
Maeve raised a slight eyebrow as Colette told a brief portion of her tale. "Pirates? Nigh, dat sounds like a tale for de ages," she told her, curious to know more about this. She wondered why the pirates had helped them. From what she had heard, those sorts were pretty much like any criminals and only served their own inherent self interest - Maeve would know, she was one of those criminals. Had Colette and her friend bribed them for safe passage? She had to imagine some sort of deal was struck, but they didn't have the time to discuss it. The carriage driver had finally finished clearing aside the blockage and they eventually reached the outskirts of Gretna Green.
She considered for a moment his question. "De nearest Church, please," Maeve requested. It seemed like a sensible location for Millicent and her fiancé to travel to. If they were planning to get wed or just were going to partake in some sort of confession or religious rite along the way, then the Church would be an ideal location for them to stop at. And if they weren't there, well, they would just have to come up with another idea as to where the two lovebirds had gone. Hopefully Colette would have some sort of notion, as Maeve's mind had only produced the Church as a starting point and hadn't come up with any other ideas.
Location: The Asylum - Main Floor -> Down the Stairs Skills: Cool Headedness, Constitution
Cecily barely registered what was happening and she quickly stuffed her fingers in her ears, crouching her neck down slightly like a turtle attempting to retreat into its shell. It was a good thing she had, with the gunfire and screams that immediately followed. She slowly took her fingers out of her ears and wiped her fingers slightly on her pant leg, not really having anything more sanitary to do that on in this creepy old Arkham Asylum location shoot. Hearing a scream that the stairs weren't stable and then someone else calling out Riley's name, her heart quickened slightly and practically skipped a beat. They were so close to Riley.
Doing her best to stay calm and braced, she followed Roy down the stairs closely, fortunate enough to not end up falling to her doom or anything along those lines. "We really are living in a fucking comic book..." Cecily said with disbelief, her eyes wide as she stared at the supposedly dead girl. She had helped Natasha with the autopsy on Alicia's corpse. She was dead. Caesar had positively identified her as his daughter, hadn't he? She blinked slightly, wondering if Alicia had really gone to all of that trouble to fake her death. It seemed like something someone related to Caesar would do out of paranoia. "... Maybe that body we examined wasn't hers," she said quietly, making a statement but really asking a question to Roy. However, at least Riley was down there too - and alive. Maybe she knew how Alicia was here and not in Mexico six feet under.
Location: Athribis - Underground Skills: Acute Observation, Psychophysics, Counterfactual History
Nora observed the stranger for a moment, finding that he oddly reminded her of Vera - the Lady Munn. He had been in quite a few accidents and that was just from what she could tell based on his appearance. If he were cursed, then he would be a welcome addition to the Fellowship - after all, some of them had been branded and all of them had experienced deeply disturbing dreams. Well, with the exception of George and his sister, as well as Belladonna and J.C. But they were odd enough to fit right in with the entire group, as Nora reflected on it a bit more.
Gene, meanwhile, was busying herself with thinking on the haze. She knew her Counterfactual History well and it gave her a leg up on everyone else here. This wasn't a physical phenomena - this was an environmental one. Facts went through her mind quickly - bodies and reanimated corpses, those without souls, recreation of life, haze caused by spells... None of it though should have been on this level. Perhaps it was all of it happening at once, but then again, what would have caused that? She had a gut instinct that whatever these people were messed up in, maybe it wasn't as easy and carefree an adventure as she had been expecting. She changed her outlook on the situation slightly, going out of ~amused babysitter mode~ and into ~amused warrior mode.~
As Mahendra asked if she would like the honor of being the pathfinder, Nora blinked slightly. She had a brief fantasy of smacking him, but that just wasn't in her nature. "With all due respect - your discoveries are yours. Please stop trying to acquire mine," she told him curtly, essentially telling him no, she was going to path find. She had already located a route that would bring them downstairs, so passing the map over to Mahendra would just be a waste of time. There was a foul taste in her throat and she was briefly reminded as to why she usually withdrew from society and kept to herself. Even now, feeling fulfilled and successful, her discoveries were almost reframed to be another's.
"Try not to trip while you're searching," Gene advised the stranger, as he said he would back off. She wasn't really too concerned about him, but she also wouldn't have minded if he came along. Maybe whoever he was looking for would have something to do with all of this. "Of course, tell us who you're looking for and maybe we'll let you come along with," she offered with a smirk. She could feel the pull back in the direction they had come from, but they needed to go and find Belladonna - and quickly. She glanced at Nora and gave her a smile. "Lead on, Lady Pathfinder," she told her.
Character current location: Athribis, Underground Characters attempted actions: Nora is heading down the path she had previously figured out to try to get to Belladonna, using her map Any and all skills being used: Pattern Analysis, Cryptography, Mathematics, Decipher hieroglyphics, Acute Observation Why each skill is being called: Pattern Analysis, Cryptography, Mathematics, Decipher hieroglyphics - these are all being used for her map, since she made it based off of patterns math and hieroglyphics. Acute Observation - following the map and avoiding traps! Desired location of the character: To Belladonna!
Character current location: Athribis, Underground Characters attempted actions: Gene is following the leader, looking out for traps/points of interest (perception check basically) Any and all skills being used: Counterfactual History Why each skill is being called: Counterfactual History - if anything she sees rings a bell Desired location of the character: Closer to Belladonna, hopefully
Andromeda agreed with Sophia's suggestion, and it bothered her that Gilbert and Giouse seemed to have largely forgotten the female Emendators. It was another slight piece of evidence in the growing pile of their misogynistic behavior. It was disappointing that these cosmic powers seemed to have a gender bias, but then again, men tended to be disappointing in general. A few names popped to mind as the exception to the rule, but if anyone came here shouting not all men, she would be liable to punch them (provided she could do so in the shade. She didn't want to see if Paradoxes could get skin cancer). Gilbert explained that Nancy would be able to feel that they were in the same country, but Andromeda was skeptical that Nancy would know she needed to hurry over to them. It sounded a lot like phone apps that showed you the location of your friends - it didn't really let you know what they were doing or why. Did the Emendators have SnapChat?
"How do you know the haze is following Nancy as well?" Andromeda asked Gilbert. She could understand it following them, as they had been there at the loop when it was destroyed, but she hadn't seen any evidence yet that the haze was going to follow around people who hadn't been there. And she was pretty certain that it was entirely possible that Nancy could just think they were here for a training exercise or something. There was a lot of guesswork going on here. Andromeda was debating whether or not to stay behind with Giouse, but she decided she liked Gilbert slightly better. "I'll come to," she said, before following the Hat along with Bart.
Achronum
kittyluna45
Scrawl Banditta
Not a Sayan
KazAlkemi
Neziul
Kirah
Blizz
BlueSky44
