Tatterdemalion

Breathless Dead

CRACK.

Redana's head is white noise. Underneath the bright white of that kerchief (and the darker white where it has already been absorbent) her cheeks are so flushed a hypothetical observer could see them from the other side of the room. She is staring at nothing in particular, her Auspex giving her garbage data about the room that might as well be a jammed transmission for all the sense it's making, and her shirt is threatening to make its escape, hiking up around her shivering shoulders.

Mynx just hit her. Mynx just hit her. And she can't raise her forearms to block off another blow and watch for an opening for a jab, throw the shapeshifter off balance. Mynx just hit her and she can't do anything about it. There's nothing for her to do, no way that she can figure out what to do, no way to escalate into wrestling where she'll win no matter what Mynx tries to turn into, they've tested that one out time and time again, all she can do is be. Be slapped. Be gagged. Be quiet.

CRACK.

Redana bends her knees and tries instinctively to bring them up defensively. There's little give, and that's because she's pulling Bella's shins up with her. It's a miracle she's able to raise them even an inch without leverage. But she can't stop Mynx from doing that again. Her writhing fingers hook onto Bella's and tug with frantic, panicked energy, like the blind giants of Nessus VII.

For a moment, a terrible sequence unfolds in front of her. If something goes wrong, if her gift fails her, if she waited too long and Mynx knocks her out with one of her venoms...

Gold to match her hair. An ornate collar and an outfit like the ones in the holonovels that Bella always 'accidentally cleared away' when she found them while cleaning Redana's quarters. Pouring the King a glass of wine, eyes downcast. Because if she looked up, she'd see everyone looking at her, and then she'd melt right through the floor. And then the King would put one arm around her waist and pull her in for a

for a

he'd kiss

ptah.

The spittle hits her cheek just below her eye and trickles down, cool against her burning skin. Every time she breathes in she can smell Bella. Bella's fur. Bella's mouth. She's burning up. She's becoming a sun. She's going to ignite and become another star, right here and now. The pressure inside her is intolerable. All her muscles are seizing up, and the gag over her lips, pushed up against her nose, is wet, and her cheek is wet, and the world is hot and wet and she squeezes Bella's fingers hard, hard, and her knees won't come up to protect her. She's defenseless.

She's making noise. It's, it's the muffling, the layering, that makes it sound desperate. She can't lift her eyes. Go, her nerves sing, go go go, run so you can be chased. Her every nerve demands that she run, wounded leg or no. And she can already imagine Mynx bringing her down, pouncing, with claws and purring--

CRACK.

Bella's good. Ha, funny, because Bella's been naaaaughty! But Mynx is calling her good. In that voice. Would it be such a bad thing if she held Redana's chin and said it? Good. Good prisoner. Good girl. Haha! Funny! It'd just be like Bella calling her a good student, a good athlete, her voice so alive and high and smiling.

But Bella never meant it, did she? She was another guard the whole time. She never meant it. So what does it matter if Mynx says it too? Maybe she wants Mynx to say it! And then after she hears it she can escape, she really can escape, she really truly will and she's taking everyone with her, she really can stand up to her Bella and her Mynx, and--

SLAM.

Mynx's attention isn't on her now. Mynx is distracted. And someone else is in the room and oh it's you it's the statue it's Alexa and she's not thinking again, she's just got to prove that she was lulling Mynx into a false sense of security and buying time the whole time until Alexa her awesome teammate showed up, she definitely does not need Alexa to sit on her and refuse to let her go anywhere exciting again, so it is time yes absolutely time to get! out! of! this!!

[Redana, Useless Lesbian, has rolled a 4 on Get Away.]

Masks: BABYLON MUST FALL

Anathet!

[You must hide,] Tia thinks sternly at you, but you can feel the fear roiling underneath the surface. The kind of fear that causes people to lash out and panic. [You may be brave after They leave. Yes. That is when you may be brave. Not now. Not like this. I am not allowing you to be brave.] She crosses her arms and plants herself right in front of you.

"...the parade will be the First Regiment..." Aha! Yes! Your instincts were good: the Seneschal is hashing out the last of his plans for Shamash's triumph right here and now. Down in the bowl of the library, there are probably two or three of his peers, prepping and sending off their last-minute orders. If only you could pretend to be one of them! Or somehow sneak bad information in! But you're definitely not getting off any plans, clever or otherwise, with Tia being so overprotective. Who knows what she might do if you press her?

***

Team Mirrors!

The Sacred Field has been brought up from the depths of the Temple of Shamash, a vast circle of tempered brass and gold etched with holy geometries, and here the chariots make their final approaches. They, amusingly enough, resemble nothing more than George Lucas's podracers, with two tethered engines suspending a very dangerous energy field between them, crackling and lashing plasma, connected to an ornate car. Don't be fooled: they evaded missiles with ease and tore fighter jets out of the sky during the invasion.

There are two nobles here, along with their retinues, to welcome the High God: Asahel ab-Shamash, the Huntsman of Caphtor, and Jezcha ab-Marduk, here as a representative of her father. A full company of janissaries stand by as an honor guard. You arrive on the open hangar as Shamash's chariot touches down, and the Annunaki fall to their knees, shimmering shadows suddenly at half height. (Their retinues grovel on their faces.) The chariot's portal dilates, and Shamash unfolds from it.

They're eight fucking feet tall.

This is the first time either of you have seen one of the elusive High Gods, and it's a shock to realize that their superhuman depiction in Annunaki art might not just be artistic license. There isn't a hint of skin to be seen (and you can see them far too clearly, as if only a faint gauze separated you from them), just gleaming black and burning gold and a helmet shaped like a screaming horse. From every reflective surface nearby -- every tracking panel, every bowl of offered wine, every golden decoration on the banners of the city -- comes the sound of dying cavalry charges, or else of chariot engines shearing themselves apart. It's difficult to tell.

They are hesitant a moment, staring out at the assembly before them, but it's impossible to say whether they also stare at you. You can see the plaits of their helmet lashing in the backwash of the engines, the sway of the fleet keys upon their intricately graved breastplate, and the minutest twitch in the gauntleted hands, each one the size of your head, one at their side and one on the chariot.

They saw you once before, Canada. Was it a stupid, doomed plan to think that you could sneak up on them again? Does your nerve hold in that moment?

Their power is not like yours, Marianne. You can smell it. It is not even simply dead, it is other, alien. If this behemoth has any power in your land, it is the power of tools and devices and tricks. This "god" is not a deity here, even if it can see you, even if it can touch you. You belong here. It does not.

Breathless Dead

Ack! Blppph! Mynx, why is that handkerchief already wet? Reusing a handkerchief on the Imperial Princess is illegal!

...well, it isn’t, but it should be! And it can be! Let’s put a pin in that! One day, there will be an official ordinance outlawing the use of sweaty, gross handkerchiefs on royal lips! And the fact that Mynx is breaking this pre-law will get her punished terribly!

Yes, when she takes Bella and Mynx back to the ship, she is going to scold Mynx in front of the entire crew! And she’ll have to wear a sign that says NAUGHTY SERVITOR! That’ll teach her to be so naughty!! And...

W-what’s with that smile, Mynx? Wait, you’re not allowed to discipline a princess!! Bella! Bella!! “Dnn’t hyyu drrrr,” Redana burbles, and, oh no, oh no, here comes the blush! Why is her face so vulnerable to blushes? Bella’s tail is squeezing her tightly and Mynx is leaning in and her face is starting to get hot, and, gosh, where is Alexa anyway??

She starts to realize that, um, Mynx’s ideas of discipline might not involve being told to stand in a corner and think about what she did.

Masks: BABYLON MUST FALL

Anathet!

Getting inside the library is easy. There's always the thrill of risk: for all that you have planned things out, there's still the chance that some guard, or even a guest or servant, might be in the abandoned corner of the library you are sneaking into. Does that make you anxious or does it fill you with energy?

Either way, you're inside. You're on one of the upper rings of the library: it radiates outwards and upwards from a luxurious reading area on the ground floor. Tablets are tightly packed on the shelves, but there are a multitude of niches for paintings, statues, and trophies, much more than you'd expect from a human library. (It's the fact that they pack all that information onto a tablet, you see. Gives them room to show off.)

There's conversation close by, and you start towards it, only to come face-to-face with Tia immediately, and that's not a face you want inches from yours all of a sudden. It's a jump scare, to be honest. How do you handle the sudden surprise?

***

Team Mirrors!

There are no people here. Only their shades. In the mirrors they are a strange menagerie, but here, in the Mirror-Margravate, they are indistinct and trembling shadows that bend and warp as you pass through them. (On the streets of Caphtor, Annunaki feel a chill run down their spine and step aside without thinking. Guard patrols unconsciously bend their paths to avoid the sense of being watched by many burning eyes. Gardeners clutch their shears tighter, their collars itching about their necks.)

The wind, too, is only here. It is cold and dry, wailing down the streets. In the neon-blue sky, painfully vivid, chariots scream and roar in their final landing approach. You are on your way now to the landing pad to get a first-hand look at Shamash's shadow.

Fellowship: The Heart

Team Train!

The song snaps into cessation as the antisirens throw themselves upon the thrown book. The whole Heart shudders from the moment the cover is swung open, or so it feels. They don't notice, gorging themselves upon the pages. It would be a good idea to get down before whatever happens to them catches you up in the crossfire.

One terrifying train rappel later, you've managed the Descent. At the bottom of the drain the world opens up into a desert. Each grain of sand is a bit of rust, and out of the dunes jut hideous iron buildings clawing at the sky. (The sky is false. It is yellow-white, and the glittering stars are black. It bulges like the shell of an egg.) Off in the distance stand the feet of a statue; there is a plaque beneath it. Doubtless it is telling you to look, ye mighty, and despair.

At the other end of the desert is a riotous jungle that will allow you to Descend, if Jackdaw's maps are correct. Now you must simply cross these dunes. Other than the Worms, all you must worry about is starburn and heat exhaustion, dwindling supplies and sand madness, not to mention the mirages.

Jackdaw, Lucien, tell us about the night that you spent cooking together.

Ailee, Coleman, tell us about the petty argument you had.

Breathless Dead

“MNNX???”

To say Redana is flabbergasted is an insult to flabbers, probably. How is Mynx here? Oh, wait. She was probably working with Bella all along. Who Redana is still mad at! Don’t get it twisted! But at least... at least they were working together for once. At least Bella had a plan to save her that wasn’t relying entirely on herself. And now that Mynx was going to let them free and help them escape and—

Sorry, what?

“Nnnh! Mnnx! Dnn’t huu drrrr!!” Redana glares! She furrows her brows together and gives her best impression of the Empress, despite (or because of) her shirtlessness, right up until Mynx leans in and bites her and— “MMMMHMHMHMHMMMPH~!!”

Mynx is a fiend! A devil! A tormentor from the pits of Tartarus! She knows that is exactly where Redana is vulnerable. Helpless. Ticklish. Redana squeals and grabs frantically, desperately, at Bella’s fingers, which she squeezes like a vice because Mynx is holding her still and she can’t pull her knees up to her chest and all of this frantic be elsewhere energy has to go somewhere.

While Mynx talks to Bella, Redana is wetly panting, making a mess all over her lack of shirt and clinging to Bella’s fingers. When she escapes— because she is, she can’t be held by anything, that’s what Zeus promised her— she’s going to have her revenge!! There will be pinning, Mynx! And noogies!!

From the sound of it, Mynx is pulling a prank on Bella anyway. But the joke’s on her, because Bella? Bella’s coming with her Princess. And so will Miss Ticklefangs over here!!

Chuubo's GMD: Love and Shattered Alchemy

[Storytime: 3/9
Adventure GET: 5/21
Up to Date: 1/15
Something To Deal With 2]

"After her!" Sessily is hard to steer, and I have to frantically wave my arms to keep my balance as we turn and chase after you, Dulcy! Don't think you're getting away that easily! Especially at the speed you're moving, which is keeping pace with a concussed and very sleepy snail. That snail's careening all over the sidewalk at half a mile an hour, can barely keep its eyes open, and doesn't even really look forward to arriving at its destination, which is the snail doctor's office, because it's getting a salt removal, and that really stings, and it's not looking forward to its snailsthetic which always makes it light-headed after an operation, and the snail's still keeping up with you, so really it's no wonder that we're able to catch up pretty quickly.

"Well, yeah," I say, leaning one elbow precariously on your head in a familiar and friendly manner. "A giant snake! A real one would be inconvenient to get out of the lake at this time of year, and besides, the handling requirements are killer! So we need you to whip up a mechanical one for us so we can win the competition!"

Breathless Dead

Don’t despair. That’s what Redana clings to, desperately. Don’t despair. If you give up now, then Odoacer wins. There’ll be a sham wedding, where the bride hobbles down the aisle while the Admiral preens. Don’t forget, she’ll whisper as the sacrifice to Aphrodite is performed, one word from me and your precious little Servitor will be spaced. Now, be a good princess and say I do. And after that... another gilded cage. A cell deep within the flagship, meals delivered by dumbwaiter, a door triple-locked from the outside, and always the threat: one word from me and Bella dies.

So that has to be stopped here and now. There has to be time. She needs time. The longer she can delay Odoacer, the more likely it is that her friends will come to save her, guided by the wisdom of her father. The gods help those who delight them, after all.

She takes a moment to try and steel herself. It’s not easy. Her stomach feels strange, like she’s teetering in the edge of a cliff, nervous and guilty and tight — and that was before Bella wrapped her warm, soft tail around it. There’s a tension taut at her breastbone and a breathlessness in her head that absolutely, totally only has to do with how any breath through her mouth is wet and slobbery. Is it warm in here? She’s so warm. And tingly. Is that because her body’s falling asleep?

If she squirms out of the chain (and she totally could) she’d just be making Odoacer angrier. She can’t fight with her leg still numb and useless, she can’t run away, and she needs to let Odoacer think she has the upper hand completely. That she can gloat.

So instead she rests her head against her shoulder while Bella furiously wiggles behind her. (Fingers accidentally interlace. She feels guilty for how reassuring that feels. Bella is being a real brathead stinkyface right now. And letting her free so she can kill another person is very much the wrong idea![1])

She looks Odoacer in the eye, and then casts her gaze down and flutters her eyelashes like Cassiothe in Danger on Orion VI when she’s captured by the Azora captain. She groans, huskily, around the leather bit in her mouth; spit bubbles on her lower lip; her toes curl in her boots as she keeps going. Look back up, keep your eyes lidded but let her catch you sneak a look, then push out your chest[3] and moan.

Come closer, she says. I’m helpless and all yours, she says. Tell me everything, she invites, wordlessly.

***

[1]: ”You’ve been a very bad girl,” Redana says, going down to one knee to look Bella in the eye. Her bloody-handed Servitor writhes against the steel stocks, her hair messy, her ridiculous skirt hiked up. “And I’m not letting you back out until you’ve been unmurder-trained properly—“[2]

[2]: this is where Redana’s imagination burned itself out out of sheer embarrassment, leaving her to note that maybe Keeping Bella Contained was a good idea.

[3]: this was, comparatively, much less visually impressive than if Bella had done the same thing. Redana has a bad case of Olympians’ Chest[4].

[4]: “two bronze medals,” as the punchline goes. Or “built for archery,” as the polite euphemism goes.

***

[7 on Keep Them Busy!]

Breathless Dead

"I wanted you to come!"

This is too much. Everything is too much. Her body throbs and aches and Bella is yelling at her so confusingly, everything is getting upended and she needs time to think through everything that's happening, but Bella sounds like she's mad she got left behind and is blaming her for wanting to go on a magical adventure alone and that's not what she wanted, that's never what she wanted, and the unfairness, the unfairness is burning her up and vomiting up words.

"Why do you think I told you? Oh, Bella, I'm going to save Tellus, be sure to have my laundry done when I come back!" This is such a bad idea. She hasn't even thought through what Bella was saying yet. "You and me! It was always supposed to be you and me and then you hit me and what was I supposed to do, cry and go to my room?? And, and it's not a servitor thing! My new friends are servitors too and I don't order them around! And they can pilot ships too so good for you, I guess, but it could have been us piloting that ship because honestly Alexa was not a very good copilot!!" She's babbling and her heart's going faster than Poseidon's tempests.

Thank gentle Aphrodite that Bella does not move at her, so that Redana does not flinch and make that gentle maid's heart shatter into ten thousand fragments. Instead, Redana gets up, wincing and making a strangled noise when she has to put weight on her tainted leg, but she forces herself to stand up and look Bella in the eye. Her cheeks are that mottled red-and-white that they go when she's trying her hardest not to start bawling.

"So thank you, I guess, for going the long way around and killing someone you didn't have to and yelling at me and pretending to be my friend this whole time, you did a great job until I wanted to stop sitting around being useless!!" A wave of nausea hits her and she doubles over, putting her hands on her hips and nearly toppling over. Okay, Dany, breathe. Through your nose. You're not going to throw up on Bella's pretty boots.

Masks: BABYLON MUST FALL

||SHAMASH||

OBJECTIVE: One of the High Gods is visiting. The Annunaki are all abuzz, and there will be a triumphal parade from the landing pads on the far side of the city to the Temple of Ishtar, which has recently stepped up their security. Making a play there is foolhardy. No, what we want is to make a play. Preferably one that doesn't lead to us getting nuked from orbit.

OB1: Acquire one of the Fleet Keys that Shamash carries and replace them with these forgeries. The Fleet Keys are concentrated data shaped into rods instead of tablets, hanging upon their breastplate. If #MAT can take one apart, she'll be able to put together a "skeleton key" - something that identifies you to the ship's systems as having the authority of one of the High Gods.
OB2: Identify what Shamash is doing here. Ideally, figure out some way to get them to leave. We don't need the attention on this city in particular.
OB3: do NOT allow yourselves to be compromised. As long as Shamash is here, this city does NOT have revolutionaries. It is law-abiding and smoothly operational. The reprisal would be terrible if anything were otherwise.

***

The chariots are a host darkening the sky. There are at least fifty of them, heavily-armed and expertly piloted. Work crews in Caphtor Below frantically finish their realignment of the intricate hangar systems as they begin their final approach, after seven times soaring over the city. It is impossible to tell which one is piloted not by one of the Annunaki but by Shamash themselves.

If you are human in the city, you are either collapsed in bed after three days of double shifts or rushing to finish your tasks under the watchful eyes of your overseers. There is a nervous mania in the air: what Shamash has decided to do is almost unthinkable, breaking with centuries of tradition. While it is understood that Shamash must by necessity often leave Babylon, they never stoop so low as to descend upon a planet personally. (Excepting, of course, upper atmosphere dogfights, where the unworthy foe seeks to hide in the winds and the clouds, but even then they do not land.) It is not done.

But now it is happening. (And of course, the Annunaki nervously joke, if any of the High Gods were to do this, of course it would be Shamash, wild and free, touched by the spirit of adventure that so define the ab-Shamashi. Of course it is them, and not Ishtar or Ereshkigal.) The rumors as to the reason for their appearance are wild and excited and impossible.

Name your approaches.