Fantasy &nbsp; New Oasis: Four Heavenly Kings

SCENE:

Dragons Arc 2: Scene 1 [The Child]

LOCATION:

The Markets, East District

PARTICIPANTS:

Dyne, Julien, Ra

THE CHILD

The East District's Markets bustled with an even flow of Sunday afternoon grazers. They were citizens and denizens of the East, spending their day leisurely browsing the various stands stocked with farm fresh foods—fruits, vegetables, and various other produce harvested of the fields and farmlands that the East District alone could boast access to.

The air was abuzz with the chatter of conversation as small groups milled about and amongst one another, stopping here and there to peruse one of the stall's display. One particularly punctilious shopper might've stopped for longer at one stall or another to examine the produce on display for the odd blemish or bruise, and venture at securing a damaged goods discount. Though, on the whole of it, the scene was an idyllic one. Quiet, peaceful, safe. There were no worries, here. No violent gangsters causing a ruckus. No shadowy agents sewing strife and discord to serve their own clandestine agenda.

Here were simply people doing their best, for themselves and for one another. Some laughed unspoken in-jokes, while others haggled over one extra fruit in their bushel. A halo of peace enveloped everything. This was the East District as it was meant to be. And yet, even here, it seemed there was cause for some alarm. One needed look no further than the distraught merchant standing beside a ransacked stall, the remnants of what might have been a half-dozen heads of cabbage were strewn carelessly across the beaten footpath that snaked its winding way from one end of the Markets to the other.

At the sight of the trio of Dragons' approach, the merchant straightened, firstly in alarm. Soon enough, recognition flashed in his eyes. "Y-... You are Dragons, yes?" The merchant spoke in a hushed whisper, taking in the sight of the three of them as though they each had three heads apiece. The merchant was himself a middle-aged man of short stature, his weather-beaten face tanned from a life spent tending the gardens and fields that were his livelihood. His face was a poorly constructed mask meant to hide his evident fear of being in the presence of three Dragons at once, never mind their more exotic appearances. "T-thank you for coming," he said with a deep, reverential bow before he straightened and stepped to one side, as though his body alone were enough to conceal the cabbage carnage on full display behind him.

"Please," the man pushed his words out past the growing lump in his throat, "bring the fiend responsible for this to justice!"

Elenion Aura · Apr 1, 2022

SHEN YUE

SCENE:

Dragons Arc 2: Scene 2 [A Brief Meditation]

LOCATION:

白春花茶莊, East District

PARTICIPANTS:

Shen, Kairong, Hadrien, Omar

A BRIEF MEDITATION

Win one battle, and the people will call you victor. But win every battle, and they will call you King.

Shen did not consider why it had been suggested that he go and visit Mister Kairong's tea shop today. To him, it was simply a visit paid to an old friend. And perhaps that was all it was... Kairong was a revered elder among the Dragons, a novelty in his own right as the oldest member—in Shen's admittedly limited memory—of the Azure Dragons who had never deigned to retire to the Board. Shen wondered why that was... Perhaps he'd ask him today! Shen's uncle was a prominent member of the Board, along with being the former Dragon King... So it wasn't like the Board was just for nobodies! Shen had figured, one day, when his time as King had come to a close, he too would join his uncle at that 'other' table. But... If Kairong could continue to serve the Azure Dragons even at his age, then perhaps Shen need not even consider such a future at all!

As he waited, Shen gazed around the shop, and imagined a time when he'd been here before. With his waking eyes, he could almost see it. Ru Ri had sat there... Shuwei, his cousin, had sat there... No, wait... Perhaps he had been there, after all... Though, it didn't matter much now, did it? The past was like a fairytale. One might read about the past in a book, or think back on it fondly, but experience it? Never again. The past was memory. And memory was—

“Mister Kairong!”

Shen rose deflty to his feet as he heard the door to the private tea room sliding open—the room he'd been ushered into by the hostess who'd greeted him as he arrived—eagerly awaiting the arrival of the old tea-shop owner. Shen reigned in his disappointment when it was only the young hostess again, carrying a dark wooden tea tray with two ceramic cups and one matching pot. Shen folded his hands behind his back and waited while the hostess tip-toed in, set the tray down, and quietly excused herself again.

“Hm...”

Shen wondered... Is it... A part-timer? A grand-child? Maybe! He didn't know. It didn't matter, he supposed... And as the door closed behind her, all memory of her existence winked out of Shen's mind. He sat himself back down on his mat and watched the steam rise slowly from the tea-pot, as he waited alone in that empty, silent room for Kairong to arrive.

simj26
@Slav
@Vahn

Elenion Aura · Apr 1, 2022

DRAGON'S

SCENE:

Dragons Arc 2: Scene 3 [Error 404]

LOCATION:

Undercity, Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Isaiah, Kanna

ERROR 404

The undercity of Central was loud.

Rain pattered on the level overhead.

Cars driving in the upper level and lower level compounded the sound of horns honking and tires screeching as people weaved in and out of traffic or braked to a halt.

The Dragons have been doing some extra investigations after the bridge collapse. The Ace and Jack determined it best to attempt to find the three who pretended to be Dragons in the face of the public.

They’d gotten reports of those that matched their descriptions, mostly having found them in the Central District. It was also during these that they’ve discovered that the Data Breach may not have been as stamped down as originally thought. The Queen requested that while they were hunting for those Troublemakers, that they also keep their ear to the ground for any information on the leak.

Currently in the lower city, the investigators Yo sent were several blocks from the large Police headquarters building— the building that had entrances and exits on the upper and lower levels.

The streets were crowded. The lights in the lower city cast extra dark shadows in the lower levels down the alleyways.

From the few eye-witness reports those that worked for the dragons could give the three had been scarcely seen and quickly lost. Up until today the third of the group seemed to be unheard from, even with the wide web they spun.

It was recent that the three were spotted together, which hadn’t been found in the days leading up to today.

FabulousTrash
@Lucem

Elenion Aura · Apr 1, 2022

YO SAIWA

SCENE:

Dragons Arc 2: Scene 4 [The Underground]

LOCATION:

Azure Dragons HQ, East District

PARTICIPANTS:

Kasumi, Lorrin, Yo

THE UNDERGROUND

Skrrrrr.

A metallic claw dyed red scratched the rock wall that made up this particular room of The Underground.

Beneath Dragon HQ, this was the location the Dragons conducted business that the Public didn’t need to see.

Interrogations and Re-educations.

The air was colder than what it was outside. Breath could be seen in the air of those in the room.

Only one person was sat, but she didn’t have a choice, trussed up so she couldn’t go anywhere, heavily sleep deprived.

There was a slice in her arm, caused by the Queen herself. The weapon that caused the wound was scraping against the rock wall.

No questions asked yet, but that was payback for what they did to the citizens. To the Dragons.

And a promise of what’s to come.

Now, the Queen was walking around the room, her gloved hand trailing against that rock stone, allowing Lorrin and Kasumi to start with their questions.

A table with… instruments was available should they so choose.

Yo will have her in due time.

FabulousTrash

Pik

Taigakitt

Elenion Aura · Apr 1, 2022

HECTOR MOSES

SCENE:

Phoenixes Arc 2: Scene 1 [The Recruit]

LOCATION:

South District

PARTICIPANTS:

Boltius, Darren, Hector, Milo

THE RECRUIT

Not a single soul that passed by dared get in the way of the trio walking down the road. They weren't in a hurry, no, but they were walking with purpose. They had a place to be. The Phoenix Ace stood tall in the centre, with the former Ace by his side. On his other side was a clearly younger man, though one who still commanded the same respect through his gangster appearance. Even if you weren't familiar with the group, you could tell that they were men with a job and duties in this district.

If you were familiar with the man in the centre, you would know something special was happening. His fashion sense was usually notable for all the wrong reasons. Tacky shirts, flashy eyewear, and bold hairstyles were a staple. You could spot Hector Moses a mile away, though today he was dressed far more modestly. His sunglasses were tucked into the collar of a plain white shirt. A navy blue blazer hung loosely on his thin frame, a poor fit. The outfit lost cohesion by the time it got to the boots, which were his usual, though some effort had been made to wash the dirt off.

There could be only one reason for this sudden change in style. Dinner with Lyric. It seemed that there would be a big turnout this week, especially after last week's grim events, and Hector was determined to make a good impression for once. He clutched a dish of homemade (or so Hector claims) mac and cheese. It didn't look particularly impressive, but Hector was still proud. It didn't stop him from eyeing up the casserole his comrade was carrying, which looked far better than anything he could ever make.

The men turned the corner down a small road. Not far to go till they reached Lyric's home, though there was still some distance to traverse. It often seemed like the district was endless, road after road after road. Though they walked together with confidence, you’d have to wonder if they could really navigate by themselves. This particular street was desolate. Almost desolate. A solitary figure hunched over a sketchpad, appearing to be drawing. Ignoring the stranger, Hector broke the tranquil silence after elbowing Boltius.

"So Bolt.. you're just wearing that, huh?"

It was true that Boltius was dressed casually, though Hector didn't have much room to talk. If it weren't for Lyric's disappointment at his usual fashion sense, he wouldn't have bothered trying. Resting his dish on one arm, he wrapped a finger of his free hand around one of the chains hanging off the young Phoenix, holding it up a bit as though to admire it. "It's not what I would've gone for, but..." He let the chain fall back to Bolt's chest. "It's your choice after all. Just hope you won't be the odd one out."

Hector really didn't care that much, but it was easy for him to get under Boltius's skin, and he would take any opportunity he could get to try and anger him. He looked expectedly at the older Phoenix, hoping for some words to go with his own, or even just affirmation of his teasing, though he didn't expect him to play along. His feelings for Darren were mixed, obviously complicated due to both their Ace statuses. Hector could never see himself dropping his title, his power.

He let out a warm laugh as they passed the stranger on the street, still paying him no heed.

"Ah, it'll be nice to spend some time with the gang, y'know."

@Doctor Llamabean
Elenion Aura
FangS31
Rantos

Elenion Aura · Apr 1, 2022

PHOENIX'S

SCENE:

Phoenixes Arc 2: Scene 2 [The Bounty]

LOCATION:

Dilapidated Slums, North District

PARTICIPANTS:

Hide, Kyoden, Raphael, Sang-Cheol

THE BOUNTY

The Scarlet Phoenixes were known for a few things. For being the Gang that used to be top dog in New Oasis. That was a big one... And... For being a bunch of psychotic, murderous thugs who'd kill for money. That was the other big one. Everything else was sort of incidental, if you think about it. You got somebody you want 'got'? And you got the cash? The Phoenixes'll take care of it. Just... Pray that one day it's not your name that gets pulled, and a Scarlet Phoenix isn't dispatched to your doorstep to pick up the tab.

Today, that name was Martin Briggs. Who was he? Don't know. What did he do to deserve such a grim fate? Don't know. Don't care. Does it matter? Nope. The only thing that mattered to the Phoenix who took on the job was that somebody in New Oasis wanted poor, dumb Martin Briggs dead enough to fork over a truly egregious sum of money to see the deed done. Who was this Phoenix who accepted the solemn duty of shuffling off Martin's mortal coil—or not, the contract said "dead or alive", come to think, but where's the fun in "alive", really?—you ask?

Well, I think you already know the answer to that.

... Hide Ishida had something of a history with Mister Briggs. They had apparently had a sort-of falling out, or something, and that lead to Hide's, shall we say, personal involvement in the contract, once it was issued. Hide's vendetta against poor 'Briggsy' had led the eccentric Phoenix on a merry hunt as he tracked his quarry—alone—all the way from the scene of Martin's apartment in the South (which had, by the looks of it, been violently broken into by persons unknown, and its tenant excised) to a neighborhood chock-full of abandoned, dilapidated buildings in the North District of New Oasis, home of the Phoenix's Rival Gang - the Sable Serpents.

And, wouldn't you know? As fate would have it, a pack of Snakes were on their way to the house where Briggs was being kept. No, they weren't after Hide's prize. They were on the hunt for bigger game.

Beann

Caffeine_Obsessed
@Misuteeku

Elenion Aura · Apr 1, 2022

REIKA TSUKIYAMA

SCENE:

Phoenixes Arc 2: Scene 3 [Shopping Spree!]

LOCATION:

Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Charlie, Hitoshi, Reika

SHOPPING SPREE!

Splash.

A tire flew through a puddle.

A blazing red vehicle tore down the roads, driven by the Queen red headed woman of the phoenixes.

On a lot of radio talk shows for New Oasis, the bridge collapse was still a heated discussion. The crashing flying craft against a wall of ice and the collapse of a bowling alley bit far behind.

[“Gangs are causing this city to fail!” …

A hero isn’t gonna come outta no where to save us. We gotta—“]

“Idiots,” came Reika’s snort.

Click. New radio talk.

[“While the investigation and recovery efforts at the site of the bridge collapse are still ongoing, police have been unable to confirm—"]

Click. Music. Better.

Reika had nothing to say about the report she was skipping over. She was there. She didn’t need to hear about it.

The rest trip to Central was a relaxing one, relatively.

The pitter patter of rain hitting windshields in the sunshine, concrete darkening with each splash. People shouting as they ran through or ran from cover to cover. Some people stood under shop awnings, looking up at the sky as if debating how long the rain would last.

The mall was on the upper level of Central. Tall, sparkling, bright, despite the rain! Posters of advertisements and gorgeous statues surrounded the building.

So many different stores made the mall their home. It was the biggest hotspot for fashion lovers.

And some of the Phoenixes were making a fun trip out of it.

The vehicle pulled into the parking deck and slipped into a parking spot.

She knew this location like the back of her hand. Back when the Phoenixes were on top, Reika spent a lot of time in Central.

The Queen of the Phoenixes stood in the front of the building now, her hair pulled up into a loose ponytail, not a wound in sight. Today, she was hornless and looking to spend her money on her lovelies.

With a stretch of her arms above her head, she nodded, “Where’re we thinking of hitting up first?”

Elenion Aura · Apr 1, 2022

LYRIC & ALEX

Phoenixes Arc 2: Scene 4 [Home Cookin’]

SCENE:

LOCATION:

Lyric and Alex's Townhome, South District

PARTICIPANTS:

Alex, Ashley, Auvura, Corvo, Lyric

HOME COOKIN'

The day began early at the home of the Phoenix monarch, earlier than usual. Prepping food was no simple task for the weekly sunday. The week before had been skipped due to a death that hit close to home for the Jack, but today would be business as usual. In preparation for today, yesterday had been a pricey trip to the store.Alex started his prep with his dessert of choice early in the morning, hours before his sister would awaken. Tres Leches Cake was what he wanted to present, and knowing how much time it would have to sit, he didn’t dare wait for day break. The rest of Alex’s prepwork involved lots of dicing of veggies and chicken, along with the making of dough for his fry bread.

As usual the morning started with an argument between the siblings. Lyric started on her cooking later on in the day having already prepared the cheese sauce for the baked macaroni and the marinade for the pork the night before. By now she was more than prepared enough as she started to pour the cheese sauce on the now cooked macaroni before throwing shredded cheese on top as well to give texture to the dish. The pork simmered in the pressure cooker. All that was left for her entrees was time as they would slowly cook absorbing the flavors added.

With that slipped the large casserole dish into the oven adjusting the temperature to a low setting to let the cheese mixture melt into the pasta. Her soup was a simple squash soup, with garlic rolls. She has the squash cut and ready to puree. Once that was done it would be quick work to cook. She took the mixing bowl filled to the brim with the cubes of diced squash before placing it back down.

“ALEX WHERE’S THE BLENDER?”

“YOU MEAN YOU DIDN’T SEE THE JAR IN THE SINK?”

“Clean YOUR SHIT!”

She shouted this out before moving almost on autopilot to collect and clean the pieces she would need for the next steps of her cooking. Seeing the items resting clean but still in the second sink she turned and yelled full force at the other.

“HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU TO PUT THINGS BACK IN THEIR PROPER PLACE WHEN YOU’RE DONE!”

“OH, DON’T START ON THAT AGAIN, WE BOTH KNOW I KEEP IT OUT UNTIL I’M CERTAIN I’M DONE!”

“YOU’RE DONE WITH IT I NEED IT NOW!”

“¡MUY BIEN, ELLA DEMONIO!”

“¡NO TOMES ESE TONO CONMIGO!”

Despite the company that had come in at various times of the day the kitchen was still a war zone between the siblings. Every so often Lyric would send a glare at the guests who attempted to help with her dishes before delegating silverware to them and explaining to set the table or throwing pieces of fruit and meat for the guests to feed to Athena, Ares, and Ventisca.

With how many of Alex’s dishes needed baking time, or had to be done right before dinner, he had a bit of down time before the meal later in the evening. Upon learning Auvura would be there, Alex had gone to his room and grabbed several things he stole from the warehouse and kept. As much as Alex just stole and sold many things, the shiny stuff he keeps he liked to know about. And so he asked Auvura to break away from the Sunday dinner crowd and accompany him upstairs to inspect the Ivory Claw.

Elenion Aura · Apr 1, 2022

TIGER'S

Tiger Arc 2: Scene 1 [Charity from the Upper City]

SCENE:

LOCATION:

Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Akira, Dimitri, Helva, Jesper, Lucy, Dimitri

CHARITY FROM THE UPPER CITY

The pitter patter of rain beat against the stained glass skylight as the sunlight streamed in leaving a cascading water effect on the floor below. The ballroom floor left plenty of empty space in the middle and closer to the stage. The space under the two balcony floors had long banquet tables covered in several platters of gourmet food. The servers would quickly replace trays of appetizers as the platters were plucked clean by the various guests of all ages.

The upper floors held various extravagant bistro table sets filled by groups. Several tables on the topmost layer were reserved and blocked off by security staff. There were several groups of children running across the ballroom floor, some more posh while others were brash enough to have the shouts of adults scolding them from the upper balcony.

From the stage the sound of a spoon being taken to a glass could be heard alongside a man clearing his throat. Feliciano Seda Coiro stood on the stage beside wife, Luna, and another woman clicking her glass. The woman with the glass gave the man a sultry smirk before leaving the stage. Luna gave the man a glare before he began to speak, grabbing the attention of the people.

“Welcome everyone to the Violet Skies Charity Gala. We would like to take a moment to ask you to feel free to take a seat at the appropriate levels as our team begins with an opening song led by my own Lovely wife Luna Seda Coiro.”

Luna turned to the guests raising her arms in a welcoming and wide open motion.

“Yes, welcome one and all. Ready? Go ahead and take a moment to get comfortable or come closer to the dancefloor if you wish. Once the song is complete our wait staff will start to take orders for entrees as well. We hope you enjoy your time with us as much as we do.”

She paused for a moment before letting out a low hum.

“I used to hear a simple song
That was until you came along
Now in it’s place is something new
I hear it when I look at you”

Soon the sound of the instruments began to come in as the pianist behind the woman made their presence known as their fingers hit the keys playing a melancholic beat. People on all levels began to move around several even coming down to drag a loved one down to the dance floor.

AriAriAbabwa

BriiAngelic

Nobody Special
@Peckinou

Elenion Aura · Apr 1, 2022

DANTE

SCENE:

Tigers Arc 2: Scene 2 [Matter of Time]

LOCATION:

Eternal Night Palace, East District

PARTICIPANTS:

Reveler, Dante, Meirin, Ruriko

MATTER OF TIME

Sept 17, 2021

As soon as Lucy had dismissed him, he had walked away in his sandals humming a tune, both ignorant of the costs that had befallen them with the way the Serpents had utterly trashed their work efforts, and possibly ruined Lucy's mood by extension. Like that classic dummy jock that Jasper was supposed to be, he had been content simply being told by the Queen to buzz off after they had returned, and once he was given that freedom, he made his rounds.

The first person he went to see later in the day, was Big Time. A fellow Rookie, now a veteran, that had joined the Tigers by paying their way in, around the same time Dante had allowed himself to be pulled in. Big Time, despite the name, was quite short. Her auburn brown hair and bright blue eyes were magnified by the freckles that fit her charming dimple smile. In another country, in another city, she could have been a model on cover magazines- instead, here she was. Using her Charm ability to act as a hostess for many of the Tiger casino establishments around town, not only was she just as good as pulling people into the Casino, but she was even better at hearing the details. A socialite that knew how to organize the entertainment, keep the drinks coming and keep the guests amused; her line of work exposed her to all kinds of conversations, topics, and information. She was a woman who loved gossip, and Dante was someone that loved to hear it.

The only times she didn't love her job, was when her own life was in danger- and had he not been on the job, personally acting on guard duty on one of the days a particular crowd of lowly thugs had realized that ol Big Time had taken a large chunk the night before out of all their respective wallets, perhaps her life would be a bit more high-strung than what she wanted.

It was through her that he found out about some sort of strange activity hitting the White Tiger Casino. The details on what had happened were scattered based on witness testimony, talk of an attack that resulted into some kind of chase, it sounded like a mess. The conversation had moved over to other forms of gossip; some guests over from the North District's better areas, had spoken of some kind of fight between the police and some Serpents. From the descriptions he had gotten from the same people that BT had been talking too herself, two of them sounded familiar; one the girl that had attacked him a month or so prior (

simj26 | Kisara), another he had met at a bar; Tri, if he recalled (

Damafaud ). As the conversation had continued, they had shifted into lighter topics of banter before Dante had excused himself to hit his next job, while BT could return to work without him as a distraction. Being called in by the Queen had taken priority over any job he had taken up prior to, but now that he was back, work would have to continue as usual.

Sept...

Work, travel, and keeping up to date with the happenings around Oasis took time, effort, incredible organization, and a significant amount of eyeballing. Every step Dante made, he had to make sure was carefully covered. There could be no slip ups or spills, else his blood would be the one spilling on the ground.

As a result, it was inevitable he'd miss some things while going about business as usual.

While he had not had the chance to see Young-Yut recently, he had been meeting with Auvura more than he had since he'd joined the Tigers. Yet meeting with a Phoenix that knew what he looked like, that knew his real name, one of the few people in this damned sovereign state that he could be truly himself around- required precautions. Carefully timed meet-ups, not too many, not too few, not too obvious. Locations had to change constantly, as while Auvura was his partner in fighting crime within Oasis, the last thing he wanted for her, was for her to be in danger for working with a Tiger. A gang that he was quite well aware that Phoenixes did not like in general, and would not hesitate to put the pressure on her severely if they found out.

His concern for ensuring not just both their safety, limited how quickly he normally would have caught on to other alarming situations.

Hunting for criminals was a time consuming job as Lancer. To work with Auvura on this upcoming case they had started on the 20th, there were details to work out. And so any trips to the North he'd make as Lancer had to be pushed back another day. He spent his time finding thugs to threaten and beat into submission if the happened to be an HP. Lowly scraps within the Southern district of small town gang turfs to break into and utterly fuck over to get more word on the happenings around town. Information that needed to be gathered. People that needed to be paid off, or silenced if they turned out to be the type that would be a blabber and would sell either him or Auvura out. And most importantly, time that needed to be allotted.

All dirty work. All stuff Lancer was perfectly fine executing.

For Dante however, he had no problem further staining his hands in filth. Nobility he may be, but crushing 'vermin'-- true vermin under his polished shoes, was a stereotype he didn't mind embodying.

So it was funny really that on a conversation out of the blue with Chatterbox, another Veteran who often worked with Isobel hunting down runaways, one he had often taken out to lunch since they tended to work similar guarding shifts, he found out that she had received some kind of big job.

Some digging had allowed him to piece together that she had received some kind of promotion.

From the King.

It was...peculiar. Isobel would have been the last person he would have expected among the Tigers to want something like that. As far as he'd known her, in the three years that had passed, as far as the number of interactions that had happened; brief or long enough to be considered awkward to the quiet collector, she had always come off as someone that did not really want to be in the gang. Didn't even seem to enjoy having to hunt people down with her gift, like some of the other Collectors, he had worked with since joining the Tigers, just someone that did because it was easier than the alternative and gave her peace of mind and allowed her to be out of sight- in that little shop of sorts she'd seem to have been building over her time.

Then again, that description probably fit a lot of people in both Serpents and Tigers. He was pretty certain there was a percentage out there in any gang where someone felt like that, yet to hear it from Chatterbox himself, was something of an eyebrow raiser. That was news, and it was three days in when he had found out.

It had prompted him to focus more attention on what was happening in Tiger Turf than the other territories that same day. Already he had to schedule a meeting with the Palace after what he'd found out about some sort of digital highjack from his contacts there. So it was really unfortunate timing when he found out Alice was still not taking any new visitors, when it'd been three days after the incident.

Already he had checked with Charmy, Ezra, Cassidy and any of the other Tigers involved to see how they faired. Alice hadn't been willing to see him then, he'd thought all she needed was time to relax. Yet hearing that she still wasn't seeing people on the fourth day, made a cold sense of concern Dante hadn't been expecting, crawl its way into his mind and embed itself there for the remainder of the day.

Immediately, he began getting details from Ezra, as much as the Rookie would or could give him. He wanted to know everything. And so he'd hunted down Cassidy and peppered her on the situation that had went down- tracked down Charmy, chatted her up a bit out of curiosity to see if she could gleam anything either.

The puzzle began to form as a whole, and as the rumor began to spread among other Tigers that something was wrong with Alice- he knew it for certain.

Her caretaker was missing also. Which only made it clear.

She's gone.

He shouldn't have cared honestly. It was good. If she left he wouldn't have to feel obligated to doing something to help her. In fact there was no reason he should have felt obligated at all to help her. And it also didn't matter. She was one variable out of the sea of Tigers here, one that could have easily turned into an enemy if he misjudged her. She was young, beautiful, she had the influence, she could pull it off. With enough venom in her bite, she could be quite intimidating and he could see it, picture it in his mind's eye as he moved towards his next destination.

Yet through the interactions with her, like the few special souls he had seen, not every Tiger was a opportunistic manipulative scumbag that made him want to punch their teeth in. Most didn't give him that feeling, the few that did he steered clear of.

Alice, Ezra, Chou, even Cassidy and Isobel all had something in them, a sort of innocence or internal goodness he could tell that made them better than most of the Tigers here looking out for themselves and themselves alone. On some level he knew he was no better than any other gang member here. A philosophy he understood and could understand, nor found inherently wrong given the environment they were in. Yet it certainly made the people more likely he could find some sense of comfort in, much more valued as an ally for his end goals than the ones more likely to stab him in the back.

For the time being at least.

Yet, at the same time, a prized animal that was invaluable- would not be given such freedom from its gilded cage so easily.

Markus has to be searching for her. He knew it. He probably knew the very same day when she'd gone missing, as he'd been the one to set up and place her in that very Casino with Ezra and the others.

Disgust would have been an understatement to express how Dante was feeling. Yet years of training, years of learning the mannerisms to put on a show, his childhood love of acting and his practice in the arts, it allowed him to mask the emotion completely as he made it to a station to exit the West and enter the South, where he'd be heading to the East for his little get together.

A message was sent to Ezra.

It was simple.

If you hear anything about Alice's whereabouts, let me know immediately please. Stay safe out there.

The same text was sent out to Cassidy.

He'd have to get Charmy's number later.

And that was all.

The King was no fool, even if he was exceptionally so certain of his power. Lucy, while questionably insane, did seem to have a quality too her that he wasn't entirely sure he could place that left him the least detestable of the upper hierarchy. Reina fell under the same category as Lucy. It didn't mean he didn't find them, on some level, abhorrent.

Markus knew everything about Alice since he had to keep tabs on her constantly to keep her so ignorant of her own prison; to keep her unaware that she was essentially just a tool to bring in profit meant that Alice had a very strict schedule, tightly controlled, and limited outliers that could influence her without him knowing and taking care of them. It was why he had played it safe and given her that hint. He had hoped it would open her eyes, make her start questioning, make her start seeing- he hadn't thought she was so blind to everything that the incident that had went down in the casino, would be so shocking it would prompt her enough to flee.

He'd assumed she was used to violence. Used to seeing it in some of the Casinos at the very least. From what he knew, she'd practically been born and raised a Tiger. How could she not have had misfortunate experiences before?

It was simple: The ones in charge had just made certain her interactions with the outside world was limited and controlled.

Whatever brainwashing she'd underwent, Dante truly wondered if he could even undo it. There was a point where a person would be a lost cause, and the more he considered it- the more he wondered if there was even a point in trying. If she would be too far gone to even bother. After all, doing so would just be putting himself at heavy risk, and the pay off if he failed would be certain headaches and definite trouble. Worst case he'd have no choice but to leave the Tigers...and join another gang.

A drawn exhale left him.

On the move with them in the cover of many, as they all walked into the streets, he shifted. Light covered his form but neither made him brighter or shinier as he moved, if anything it was like a camera flash on the lowest possible setting. Not a real flash, just a glint or flicker. Easy to miss. Hair became longer, a faint red; ears more bovine, nose and facial structure changed, form more androgynous, his clothes shifted also, eyes changed color. All of it happening in a micro second- he was Dante, then by the time you were halfway through a blink, he was Callan.

Alice can wait. If she's been gone this long, she and her Caretaker can watch out for each other. Moment Ezra or anyone else finds her, I'll figure out a way to head to her location and see if I can meet with her before she gets pulled back in...or someone else notices her.

Within the next half hour he had made his way paste Phoenix territory and was in the East District at last, going through the Night Life District to meet the members of Callan's crew. Making his way with them in the Wave, his personal ride, they entered the Pleasure District, and then after a few words, Dante- Callan- parted with his team to head towards the Pleasure District alone.

In the midday it still found some form of business. Theatres, sex themed stores, and enticing bystanders engaged individuals crossing the path.

As soon as Callan entered the street, he heard whistles in his direction, and a lilac eye glanced in the way of its source. Three from Meirin's place of business he recognized spotted him and with a call out waved him over from the direction he was heading in. Bright smiles on their faces.

Dante smirked, lips pulling up in a gentle benign little smile. "Gals," he said in a soft voice, softer than his own soothing natural deep, "its good ta see you. Were you lovelies waitin o'er fer lil ol' me?"

"Just happened to be coming back from a little lunch actually." The one he recognized as Song Bell, replied. "We heard you'd be coming in but didn't know it was now." The brunette pouted.

"Not a problem gals, you headin' back?"

"Actually," Staccato chimed in, adjusting her glasses, pushing back strands of long black hair over an ear- "we were, we'll escort you back." And then she grabbed onto one arm. "For security of course, after what happened recently can't be too safe and sticking with us is better than walking around here alone."

"Oh?" A thin bushy brow went up in curiosity. "Did something happen?"

The girls glanced at each other.

"You haven't heard?" The fourth member of the quintet asked, Nori.

"Heard what?"

They looked at each other, a brief hint of concern on their faces. "Come on." Song Bell pulling on his arm. "We'll tell you what we can while we move."

He'd heard things about what had happened on the 17th, he just hadn't had the time to gather all the details. The members of his team that made up his studio crew lived within the Night Life and Pleasure District. Much easier to keep up with the happenings around, and find work that way. They'd kept him up to date on some of the things that had happened through their ins and outs between the two districts, he just hadn't pieced it all together yet. All he really knew was some sort of hacking fiasco had occurred that had put the whole District under high alert for a brief moment.

Song Bell, Nori, Staccato, and the others huddled around Callan as they walked with him back towards the Eternal Night Palace. Whispering at low volumes, where his large ears could easily hear and pick up everything they were saying, while not a soul outside or nearby them could.

He entered the final establishment with a smile at the guards near the entrance, and an exchange of greetings with anyone else new or old, he recognized or didn't know. The girls bid him a farewell shortly after, though only after he had to peel himself away from them- with the hint that they all picked up that he was here to also check up on Meirin, Ruriko, and not just here to fret over them. Pecks on the hand, a hug goodbye, and a promise to head out for lunch when he returned later if he had time or arrange for something else, and then he was off.

"Oh Meirin....Ruri...darlings" his called out, walking with a steady gait and a delightful little smile, "where are you dears, don't keep me waitin, I've been worried about ya. Heard sometin wild happened not a few days ago- come out n say hi." He sat himself down at a table, crossed an elegant leg over the other and flexed the claws of his digitgrade toes before retracting them.

Then gasped when he saw a waiter passing by.

"Ooh~ 'ey there charmin! Yoohoo! Over here gorgeous, I'm absolutely bored. Get me somethin sweet fer three while I wait." He beamed, and his nose did a little scrunch that could have killed a bear with how cute it looked.

"Maybe stick around n keep me some company when ya get back also." Eyes lidded, wink fired. "Would love to have someone ta talk to before Meirin shows up."

Mentions:

Mook-LandStrider (Auvura)

AriAriAbabwa (Alice)

Elenion Aura (Markus)

BriiAngelic (Lucy & NPCS)

Taigakitt (Chou) @Blu (Charmy) @Lucem (Ezra)

Participants:

Beann

QuirkyAngel

Mqueserasera

>>> To The Next Post

Dante | LINK
~ East Side, Eternal Night Palace

Scene
Arc 2 Scene: Matter of Time

Sept 17, 2021

As soon as Lucy had dismissed him, he had walked away in his sandals humming a tune, both ignorant of the costs that had befallen them with the way the Serpents had utterly trashed their work efforts, and possibly ruined Lucy's mood by extension. Like that classic dummy jock that Jasper was supposed to be, he had been content simply being told by the Queen to buzz off after they had returned, and once he was given that freedom, he made his rounds.

The first person he went to see later in the day, was Big Time. A fellow Rookie, now a veteran, that had joined the Tigers by paying their way in, around the same time Dante had allowed himself to be pulled in. Big Time, despite the name, was quite short. Her auburn brown hair and bright blue eyes were magnified by the freckles that fit her charming dimple smile. In another country, in another city, she could have been a model on cover magazines- instead, here she was. Using her Charm ability to act as a hostess for many of the Tiger casino establishments around town, not only was she just as good as pulling people into the Casino, but she was even better at hearing the details. A socialite that knew how to organize the entertainment, keep the drinks coming and keep the guests amused; her line of work exposed her to all kinds of conversations, topics, and information. She was a woman who loved gossip, and Dante was someone that loved to hear it.

The only times she didn't love her job, was when her own life was in danger- and had he not been on the job, personally acting on guard duty on one of the days a particular crowd of lowly thugs had realized that ol Big Time had taken a large chunk the night before out of all their respective wallets, perhaps her life would be a bit more high-strung than what she wanted.

It was through her that he found out about some sort of strange activity hitting the White Tiger Casino. The details on what had happened were scattered based on witness testimony, talk of an attack that resulted into some kind of chase, it sounded like a mess. The conversation had moved over to other forms of gossip; some guests over from the North District's better areas, had spoken of some kind of fight between the police and some Serpents. From the descriptions he had gotten from the same people that BT had been talking too herself, two of them sounded familiar; one the girl that had attacked him a month or so prior (

simj26 | Kisara), another he had met at a bar; Tri, if he recalled (

Damafaud ). As the conversation had continued, they had shifted into lighter topics of banter before Dante had excused himself to hit his next job, while BT could return to work without him as a distraction. Being called in by the Queen had taken priority over any job he had taken up prior to, but now that he was back, work would have to continue as usual.

Sept...

Work, travel, and keeping up to date with the happenings around Oasis took time, effort, incredible organization, and a significant amount of eyeballing. Every step Dante made, he had to make sure was carefully covered. There could be no slip ups or spills, else his blood would be the one spilling on the ground.

As a result, it was inevitable he'd miss some things while going about business as usual.

While he had not had the chance to see Young-Yut recently, he had been meeting with Auvura more than he had since he'd joined the Tigers. Yet meeting with a Phoenix that knew what he looked like, that knew his real name, one of the few people in this damned sovereign state that he could be truly himself around- required precautions. Carefully timed meet-ups, not too many, not too few, not too obvious. Locations had to change constantly, as while Auvura was his partner in fighting crime within Oasis, the last thing he wanted for her, was for her to be in danger for working with a Tiger. A gang that he was quite well aware that Phoenixes did not like in general, and would not hesitate to put the pressure on her severely if they found out.

His concern for ensuring not just both their safety, limited how quickly he normally would have caught on to other alarming situations.

Hunting for criminals was a time consuming job as Lancer. To work with Auvura on this upcoming case they had started on the 20th, there were details to work out. And so any trips to the North he'd make as Lancer had to be pushed back another day. He spent his time finding thugs to threaten and beat into submission if the happened to be an HP. Lowly scraps within the Southern district of small town gang turfs to break into and utterly fuck over to get more word on the happenings around town. Information that needed to be gathered. People that needed to be paid off, or silenced if they turned out to be the type that would be a blabber and would sell either him or Auvura out. And most importantly, time that needed to be allotted.

All dirty work. All stuff Lancer was perfectly fine executing.

For Dante however, he had no problem further staining his hands in filth. Nobility he may be, but crushing 'vermin'-- true vermin under his polished shoes, was a stereotype he didn't mind embodying.

So it was funny really that on a conversation out of the blue with Chatterbox, another Veteran who often worked with Isobel hunting down runaways, one he had often taken out to lunch since they tended to work similar guarding shifts, he found out that she had received some kind of big job.

Some digging had allowed him to piece together that she had received some kind of promotion.

From the King.

It was...peculiar. Isobel would have been the last person he would have expected among the Tigers to want something like that. As far as he'd known her, in the three years that had passed, as far as the number of interactions that had happened; brief or long enough to be considered awkward to the quiet collector, she had always come off as someone that did not really want to be in the gang. Didn't even seem to enjoy having to hunt people down with her gift, like some of the other Collectors, he had worked with since joining the Tigers, just someone that did because it was easier than the alternative and gave her peace of mind and allowed her to be out of sight- in that little shop of sorts she'd seem to have been building over her time.

Then again, that description probably fit a lot of people in both Serpents and Tigers. He was pretty certain there was a percentage out there in any gang where someone felt like that, yet to hear it from Chatterbox himself, was something of an eyebrow raiser. That was news, and it was three days in when he had found out.

It had prompted him to focus more attention on what was happening in Tiger Turf than the other territories that same day. Already he had to schedule a meeting with the Palace after what he'd found out about some sort of digital highjack from his contacts there. So it was really unfortunate timing when he found out Alice was still not taking any new visitors, when it'd been three days after the incident.

Already he had checked with Charmy, Ezra, Cassidy and any of the other Tigers involved to see how they faired. Alice hadn't been willing to see him then, he'd thought all she needed was time to relax. Yet hearing that she still wasn't seeing people on the fourth day, made a cold sense of concern Dante hadn't been expecting, crawl its way into his mind and embed itself there for the remainder of the day.

Immediately, he began getting details from Ezra, as much as the Rookie would or could give him. He wanted to know everything. And so he'd hunted down Cassidy and peppered her on the situation that had went down- tracked down Charmy, chatted her up a bit out of curiosity to see if she could gleam anything either.

The puzzle began to form as a whole, and as the rumor began to spread among other Tigers that something was wrong with Alice- he knew it for certain.

Her caretaker was missing also. Which only made it clear.

She's gone.

He shouldn't have cared honestly. It was good. If she left he wouldn't have to feel obligated to doing something to help her. In fact there was no reason he should have felt obligated at all to help her. And it also didn't matter. She was one variable out of the sea of Tigers here, one that could have easily turned into an enemy if he misjudged her. She was young, beautiful, she had the influence, she could pull it off. With enough venom in her bite, she could be quite intimidating and he could see it, picture it in his mind's eye as he moved towards his next destination.

Yet through the interactions with her, like the few special souls he had seen, not every Tiger was a opportunistic manipulative scumbag that made him want to punch their teeth in. Most didn't give him that feeling, the few that did he steered clear of.

Alice, Ezra, Chou, even Cassidy and Isobel all had something in them, a sort of innocence or internal goodness he could tell that made them better than most of the Tigers here looking out for themselves and themselves alone. On some level he knew he was no better than any other gang member here. A philosophy he understood and could understand, nor found inherently wrong given the environment they were in. Yet it certainly made the people more likely he could find some sense of comfort in, much more valued as an ally for his end goals than the ones more likely to stab him in the back.

For the time being at least.

Yet, at the same time, a prized animal that was invaluable- would not be given such freedom from its gilded cage so easily.

Markus has to be searching for her. He knew it. He probably knew the very same day when she'd gone missing, as he'd been the one to set up and place her in that very Casino with Ezra and the others.

Disgust would have been an understatement to express how Dante was feeling. Yet years of training, years of learning the mannerisms to put on a show, his childhood love of acting and his practice in the arts, it allowed him to mask the emotion completely as he made it to a station to exit the West and enter the South, where he'd be heading to the East for his little get together.

A message was sent to Ezra.

It was simple.

If you hear anything about Alice's whereabouts, let me know immediately please. Stay safe out there.

The same text was sent out to Cassidy.

He'd have to get Charmy's number later.

And that was all.

The King was no fool, even if he was exceptionally so certain of his power. Lucy, while questionably insane, did seem to have a quality too her that he wasn't entirely sure he could place that left him the least detestable of the upper hierarchy. Reina fell under the same category as Lucy. It didn't mean he didn't find them, on some level, abhorrent.

Markus knew everything about Alice since he had to keep tabs on her constantly to keep her so ignorant of her own prison; to keep her unaware that she was essentially just a tool to bring in profit meant that Alice had a very strict schedule, tightly controlled, and limited outliers that could influence her without him knowing and taking care of them. It was why he had played it safe and given her that hint. He had hoped it would open her eyes, make her start questioning, make her start seeing- he hadn't thought she was so blind to everything that the incident that had went down in the casino, would be so shocking it would prompt her enough to flee.

He'd assumed she was used to violence. Used to seeing it in some of the Casinos at the very least. From what he knew, she'd practically been born and raised a Tiger. How could she not have had misfortunate experiences before?

It was simple: The ones in charge had just made certain her interactions with the outside world was limited and controlled.

Whatever brainwashing she'd underwent, Dante truly wondered if he could even undo it. There was a point where a person would be a lost cause, and the more he considered it- the more he wondered if there was even a point in trying. If she would be too far gone to even bother. After all, doing so would just be putting himself at heavy risk, and the pay off if he failed would be certain headaches and definite trouble. Worst case he'd have no choice but to leave the Tigers...and join another gang.

A drawn exhale left him.

On the move with them in the cover of many, as they all walked into the streets, he shifted. Light covered his form but neither made him brighter or shinier as he moved, if anything it was like a camera flash on the lowest possible setting. Not a real flash, just a glint or flicker. Easy to miss. Hair became longer, a faint red; ears more bovine, nose and facial structure changed, form more androgynous, his clothes shifted also, eyes changed color. All of it happening in a micro second- he was Dante, then by the time you were halfway through a blink, he was Callan.

Alice can wait. If she's been gone this long, she and her Caretaker can watch out for each other. Moment Ezra or anyone else finds her, I'll figure out a way to head to her location and see if I can meet with her before she gets pulled back in...or someone else notices her.

Within the next half hour he had made his way paste Phoenix territory and was in the East District at last, going through the Night Life District to meet the members of Callan's crew. Making his way with them in the Wave, his personal ride, they entered the Pleasure District, and then after a few words, Dante- Callan- parted with his team to head towards the Pleasure District alone.

In the midday it still found some form of business. Theatres, sex themed stores, and enticing bystanders engaged individuals crossing the path.

As soon as Callan entered the street, he heard whistles in his direction, and a lilac eye glanced in the way of its source. Three from Meirin's place of business he recognized spotted him and with a call out waved him over from the direction he was heading in. Bright smiles on their faces.

Dante smirked, lips pulling up in a gentle benign little smile. "Gals," he said in a soft voice, softer than his own soothing natural deep, "its good ta see you. Were you lovelies waitin o'er fer lil ol' me?"

"Just happened to be coming back from a little lunch actually." The one he recognized as Song Bell, replied. "We heard you'd be coming in but didn't know it was now." The brunette pouted.

"Not a problem gals, you headin' back?"

"Actually," Staccato chimed in, adjusting her glasses, pushing back strands of long black hair over an ear- "we were, we'll escort you back." And then she grabbed onto one arm. "For security of course, after what happened recently can't be too safe and sticking with us is better than walking around here alone."

"Oh?" A thin bushy brow went up in curiosity. "Did something happen?"

The girls glanced at each other.

"You haven't heard?" The fourth member of the quintet asked, Nori.

"Heard what?"

They looked at each other, a brief hint of concern on their faces. "Come on." Song Bell pulling on his arm. "We'll tell you what we can while we move."

He'd heard things about what had happened on the 17th, he just hadn't had the time to gather all the details. The members of his team that made up his studio crew lived within the Night Life and Pleasure District. Much easier to keep up with the happenings around, and find work that way. They'd kept him up to date on some of the things that had happened through their ins and outs between the two districts, he just hadn't pieced it all together yet. All he really knew was some sort of hacking fiasco had occurred that had put the whole District under high alert for a brief moment.

Song Bell, Nori, Staccato, and the others huddled around Callan as they walked with him back towards the Eternal Night Palace. Whispering at low volumes, where his large ears could easily hear and pick up everything they were saying, while not a soul outside or nearby them could.

He entered the final establishment with a smile at the guards near the entrance, and an exchange of greetings with anyone else new or old, he recognized or didn't know. The girls bid him a farewell shortly after, though only after he had to peel himself away from them- with the hint that they all picked up that he was here to also check up on Meirin, Ruriko, and not just here to fret over them. Pecks on the hand, a hug goodbye, and a promise to head out for lunch when he returned later if he had time or arrange for something else, and then he was off.

"Oh Meirin....Ruri...darlings" his called out, walking with a steady gait and a delightful little smile, "where are you dears, don't keep me waitin, I've been worried about ya. Heard sometin wild happened not a few days ago- come out n say hi." He sat himself down at a table, crossed an elegant leg over the other and flexed the claws of his digitgrade toes before retracting them.

Then gasped when he saw a waiter passing by.

"Ooh~ 'ey there charmin! Yoohoo! Over here gorgeous, I'm absolutely bored. Get me somethin sweet fer three while I wait." He beamed, and his nose did a little scrunch that could have killed a bear with how cute it looked.

"Maybe stick around n keep me some company when ya get back also." Eyes lidded, wink fired. "Would love to have someone ta talk to before Meirin shows up."

Mentions:

Mook-LandStrider (Auvura)

AriAriAbabwa (Alice)

Elenion Aura (Markus)

BriiAngelic (Lucy & NPCS)

Taigakitt (Chou) @Blu (Charmy) @Lucem (Ezra)

Participants:

Elenion Aura · Apr 1, 2022

Janay Fox // Mr Hat

SCENE:

Tigers Arc 2: Scene 3 [Happily Ever After]

LOCATION:

Shopping Mall, Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Alice, Elias, Jack, Charmy, Jackson

Happily Ever After

"How doth the little busy bee
Improve each shining hour,
And gather honey all the day
From every opening flower.

How skillfully she builds her cell!
How near she spreads the wax!
And labors hard to store it well
With the sweet food she makes."

At this point, the poem had become synonymous with Alice—maybe even their lives. Passed from the mother, Darcy; to Alice, herself; and now to him. Janay Fox looked to where Alice usually sat in their crude compartment, across from him on the other bed. Only her diary remained there.

The caretaker tried shaking his head to rid of the gnawing anxiety weighing over his head. Since taking Alice, he'd only been banking on lucky chances and heat-of-the-moment plans; not once did he think they would end up hiding out inside of a shopping mall. His thoughts were then interrupted with a swing of the door, and Janay spun around in his bed. "Alice?" he called out, though his expectations fell short very quickly.

"What's with that face?" Grinning, his older sister invited herself further inside with the distanced clicks of her heels. "You look disappointed to see me." Her cadence filled with biting sarcasm, Acacia giggled softly. Amid the hastily prepared room, she only look out of place. To note the ounce of curiosity to Janay's countenance, she continued, "Alice is at her usual place; she's taken a liking there."

The younger Tiger smiled at that. He was initially worried that bringing Alice to this mall for the next days would have made the sheltered girl upset. It was far from the luxury that the Tigers brought her up in. Even now, despite her ever bright smile, he still worried if she would fall homesick. He couldn't read her thoughts, after all.

Janay's eyes drifted to two papers in his sister's hand, and he immediately lit up. "Any word from Ophelia or Zac?"

Acacia shook her head. "Zilch." She waved the papers up. "I have, on the other hand, found out what they've been up to for the past several years." Raising a brow, Janay rose from the bed, taking them from her grasp.

The caretaker promptly furrowed his brows. "Contract killers?"

"They've never left the lower layer since we joined the Tigers..." Acacia's tone fell solemn—almost regretful—as she watched her brother scan through the sheets, especially eyeing their pictures. Their gaze met once, but not again. Yet another chance Janay was banking on. Acacia sighed. "And how's it going on your end?"

This earned a sharp exhale from his nose. "Yesterday, I went around an older community down in the lower layer." He began clenching his fist open and closed, trying to grasp his thoughts (which steadily ran dry of confidence over the past few days). "I'm closing in something, I can taste it. Perhaps a safe place for Alice, I can't be sure. I just need to do a little more digging today, and we should be out of here..."

Acacia let loose a giggle, meeting his confused glance with her grin. "Look at you. To think you were such a brat back then." She walked around the room, grabbing the ornamental top hat left to hang across from Janay. Her brother scoffed at the sudden remark, but she went on regardless. "Do you know how surprised I was to see you crawling back to me with that girl I've heard so much about?" Acacia stepped in front of Janay with a sudden stop, and there was quiet as shock took his face briefly. "To be perfectly frank, I considered ratting you out. Thought something deranged came over you all of a sudden; made you do things you normally wouldn't ever do." Acacia raised her hand, bringing the top hat into Janay's view.

Janay breathed a sigh over his smile. "I wouldn't blame you. I've essentially dragged you down with me." He took the top hat, smiling. "I can't thank you enough for what you've done." He tapped her shoulder, motioning to step outside of their hidden room.

"Silly... why would I do something this stupid for you?" Acacia took in the cooler breeze of the compartment's front, one of the mall's many stores inside. "It's all that girl. She's got something very few people have: an undying hope. I thought Alice was some snobby Tiger princess before I met her. Turns out our gang only had her around for the Potentiality...Guess it made me realize how far in we've engrossed ourselves as Tigers..." She met eyes with his younger brother. He looked far more optimistic about today, now.

"Well. It's never too late to turn things around." The hat fell over his head, and the transformation from Janay Fox to Mr. Hat now complete. "Every fairy tale ends Happily Ever After."

Acacia Fox

SCENE:

Tigers Arc 2: Scene 3 [Happily Ever After]

LOCATION:

Shopping Mall, Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Alice, Elias, Jack, Charmy, Jackson

Happily Ever After

There was a minute silence from Acacia while watching her brother disappear amid the crowd, and she still lost sight of him faster than she could have anticipated. This was their routine for well over a week; by now there was the ever looming threats of the Tigers over their heads. She glanced over to the area Alice wandered, unable to help the frown morphing her face. "Poor little thing..." she muttered. "A girl needs to grow up with choice in her world." With that, stood back straight to move again.

It was her turn, now.

Tapping into her Potentiality, Acacia felt the presence of her lackeys within the mall. While Janay was gone, it fell to them to protect Alice. Ladies and gentlemen, here's to what oughta be the last day of patrols. Stick to the established protocol as per usual.

After hearing their affirmations, she finally made it to the staff rooms, disappearing behind the restricted doors. She'd make her way through the halls and over to the building's camera room, glaring at the seated security guard until he realized who she was and left his chair for her. She nor her partners knew what Tigers—if any—to look out for, but in knowing Alice's location within the massive building, she knew they had an advantage.

For any arriving Tigers, they'd find their trail end at the mall. Alice is in there somewhere, and it's just a matter of pinpointing exactly where...

Tigers Arc 2: Scene 4 [Hostile Agenda]

Elenion Aura · Apr 1, 2022

TAZZ (August August)

CS Link

SCENE:

LOCATION:

West-Side, Central

PARTICIPANTS:

August, Matsuda, Camila, Chou

HOSTILE AGENDA

Somewhere in the Central District…

A young man by the name of Christen Kinslee—he couldn’t have been much older than thirty—paced back and forth, frantic. His black hair was unkempt; his eyes tired. But his clothes spoke of success, well-tailored and fitted to his athletic form.

The dingy locker-room was harshly unbefitting for a man of his apparent class. Though, the scruffy facial hair did him no justice. He could have very well been a bum in a nice suit.

“I’m in deep… I dug too deep,” muttered the man, biting his knuckle. He’d been somewhat regretting his decisions of late.

“Stop whining,” came a sharp, feminine voice from within the room.

The man faced her. She was short and pale, ghostly so; her black hair cut into a pixie-bob, and a teal lighting-strike was tattooed over her left eye. They locked eyes, and the man scowled, “YOU DON’T GET IT! I’M IN DEEP, YOU STUPID BITCH! THE TIGERS- THEY’RE COMIN’ FOR ME! JELICA PUT A HIT OUT ON ME! THAT’S WHAT YOUR SHIT-FOR-BRAINS BOSS SAI-” All of the sudden, the young woman’s green-and-blue-gradient eyes lit up, and the man clocked himself hard across the jaw. Hard enough to knock himself on his ass.

She went by Synchrony.

“I said stop. whining. you pathetic. weak. useless. sack. of shit.” The woman stepped closer with every word, fingers sprawled and flexed as images of strangling him pervaded her mind. She’d been stuck with him for eight days, no break, and was starting to go stir-crazy.

Straining, she spoke in a loud whisper, standing over him, “I have had it up to HERE-” The woman leveled a hand with the top of her head, “-With your pussy-bullshit… You have bitched and cried. NONSTOP. And it is starting. TodrivemeFUCKINGcrazy.”

Just then, the metal door to the locker-room swung open and in stepped another woman, slender and intimidatingly tall. Her hair was blonde with thick bangs, and her eyes red.

In a nasally voice, she spoke, “Synchrony…” and the other woman turned to attention. “Finally?” she whimpered wearily.

“Trade out,” said the blonde woman.

Synchrony grinned, and with one last, hateful look toward her male client, she made her long-awaited exit. As she did, the blonde woman opened her mouth. “He said to meet him at the warehouse,” she relayed.

“Got it,” confirmed Synchrony as the door shut behind her.

Christen, still sitting on the floor like a dumb-struck fool, rubbing at his sore face, glared ahead at his new company. “And who the hell are you supposed to be?”

“You can call me Belinda.”

Christen got up and sat on the bench behind him. Leaning back against a locker, he pulled out a cigarette and stuck it between his lips, lit it, then drew from it. A pause of silence as Belinda simply watched him, hands crossed behind her back. Then, on an exhale of smoke, Christen asked, “What’s the word on the Tigers?... I’m sick of sitting in the dark, wondering when they’ll find me.”

“They won’t,” said Belinda.

August slipped his debit card into the machine’s card-slot. Then after selecting from a list of available lockers, he registered a personal safety combination, acquired a keycard, and took his debit card back once the transaction was finalized.

With a teary-eyed yawn, he stepped up to locker 29 and scanned his keycard. A mechanism on the inside whirred, beeped, then the locker door popped open, into which he stashed two comics, his nintendo switch and charger, his cell phone charger, and the more personal contents of his wallet—such as his driver’s license, credit cards and debit cards, personal phone, and the key to his apartment.

When he was done, he zipped up his pastel-pink backpack and hung it around his shoulder before leaving the building.

He’d only woken up thirty minutes ago, freshened up, wasted no time fixing his hair, and dressed himself for comfort over fashion before heading out.

Down the street a short ways, he stopped at a café called Good Mornings and purchased a small bite to eat, chatted up the cashier about the weekly paper, then occupied a bench beside the busy street—centered on a platform of herringbone surrounded by tidy grass and shadowed by a weeping cherry tree that had yet to fully shed its bloom. There, August enjoyed his meal whilst scrolling through a feed of memes on his phone.

He knew that with today came business, but… truth be told, he hoped that if he pretended to forget, the others would go on without him.

They’d been hired by some bigshot CEO of a video game development company whose name was currently eluding him. Something about a bad egg slandering her company in order to sabotage an acquisition arrangement... She was very firm about not wanting to stir a commotion, wanted them to be discreet in their approach, and she emphasized the safety of their target. Should something bad happen to him, it could very well dirty her hands.

What was the company again…? He wondered briefly, admiring the sky.

Oh, right! Painstake Gaming, Inc.

He’d heard the name more than once but couldn’t pin where, nor remember the context.

Back at his phone, he flipped through another handful of memes, coming across one about Alduron’s Wrath, and that’s when it hit him! Alduron’s Wrath. Painstake Gaming… Painstake was the company that would be developing the Alduron’s Wrath video game that was being widely debated all over the internet. Would it be good? Would they butcher key components to the story? Would it be multiple platform compatible? And so much more.

Having come to this realization, August was quick to his feet. He gathered his things, threw away his trash, then sent a text to his old friend, Camila, who would be partnering with him and some others on this little adventure.

“Are we meeting someplace? Been dodging the groupchat. Lol. Not caught up. Also, did you know that the company we’re helping is the same company that’s supposed to be developing the Alduron’s Wrath video game? I wonder how that’ll go. There’s talk that they’re leaning toward a linear RPG but there’s so much to include that they’d have to simplify the story in order to stuff it all into one game. Who knows, though, maybe they’ll shoot for more than one. Think about it. Hardcore fans would be livid to see the greatest comic of all time (subjective, of course), dumbed down to suit the development of, potentially, a one-hit-wonder. I would like to see the comic in its creative entirety fleshed out in order to expand the fanbase. An MMORPG might work, but it feels like players would become more focused on the multiplayer-PVP aspect over the story. If they even included PVP…” The text went on.

Caffeine_Obsessed
@Doctor Llamabean

Roda the Red

Taigakitt

Elenion Aura · Apr 1, 2022

ISOBEL PHAM

SCENE:

Tigers Arc 2: Scene 5 [A Dangerous Game]

LOCATION:

South District

PARTICIPANTS:

Callahan, Ernesto, Ezra, Mbaye, Isobel, Welsha

A DANGEROUS GAME

Markus Weiss didn’t need a reason. Those were the words whispered through the streets of West, in the casinos and clubs that lined the tourist district, in the dark and bleeding alleys of Highreach. The man also known as King Cold didn’t need a reason any more than he needed permission – to break an arm, sever an alliance, or change a man’s fortunes with the turn of a card.

Isobel would argue they were wrong. Standing on the roof of a large, luxurious, brownstone situated in the heart of Phoenix’s territory, dressed in plain blue work coveralls that were a tad too big for her frame, Isobel was certain Markus always had his reasons. She could just never be sure what they were. Why he wanted his Tiger Claw so badly was beyond her but she’d promised to get it for him and get it for him she would even if it meant breaking into the home of the Phoenix’s King and Jack.

Baby blue skies dotted with puffs of white stretched across. Not the psychedelic cyan-blue that came with the blazing summer heat or the gloomy sheet of grey that were the trademark of wintry mornings. It was a lovely day and Isobel could only hope it would remain this way. Bringing a pair of binoculars to her eyes, she scanned the roads below and quickly spotted a familiar black car parked several blocks down. Inside, Ernesto and Welsha would be waiting and watching, keeping an eye out for any signs of trouble. Although she had no intentions of failing, it was a small comfort knowing that their backs were covered should the need for it arise.

Admittedly, teams always made her nervous. The more people you had, the more uncertainties there would be and uncertainty was the crutch of any plan. It was why she always preferred working alone, but that wasn't an option now. Behind her stood the rest of the crew assigned to this mission: Callahan, Ezra, and Mbaye, all of whom were dressed in the same blue coveralls she donned. While the former two hadn’t much to say about their disguises, Mbaye’s displeasure was plain to see but the young woman had decided to conveniently remain ignorant to the man’s opinions. At the very least, he was going along with it. Isobel definitely wasn't going to let their plan fall apart simply because someone was too concerned with the way they looked.

Taking out her phone, the screen now good as new thanks to Ezra, she sent a short message to Markus and Ernesto. “Plan’s a go.” With that, she started the ten-minute timer and nodded to the rest of the group. There was no turning back now.

Springing into action without a moment's hesitation, Isobel began to focus in on the electrical wirings that ran through the walls of the building. Specifically, she was looking for the wires that linked up to the home’s security system. Like a magnet to metal, her senses were unerringly pulled to what she was looking for. Tracing the lines carefully, she pointed out an area to Ezra and Callahan where the wires were isolated enough from the main electrical lines for them to start work. The last thing they wanted to do was accidentally cut out all the power in the house and alerted its esteemed tenants of their presence.

@EdwardDewey98
@Lucem
@Nova Anyw
@Peckinou
@Saturn_moon

Elenion Aura · Apr 1, 2022

Passeri Park

SCENE:

Tigers Arc 2: Scene 6 [All Proceeds]

LOCATION:

Cloudwalk Stadium, South District

PARTICIPANTS:

Passeri, Daemon, Sabrina, Dagger, Fahru, Masker Concertgoer K, Minato

ALL PROCEEDS

Music was already blaring throughout the stadium. Anybody who was here for the concert would've been quick to recognize the particular thrum and rhythm of each song, even over the bustle of the crowd. All of them had been pulled from Iroi's latest album, stripped of their vocals, and then retouched ever so slightly to be sold as an instrumental track.

An assembly of various tents, stalls, and food trucks were splattered across the stadium grounds, leaking out of the stadium proper and out into the surrounding parking lot. Around them masses of people, HP and NP alike, flowed like water, chattering amongst one another to the point where their voices merged into a single congealed mass, not unlike the buzzing of a beehive. Above it all, Passeri Park wondered if it would've been egotistical to think of that as appropriate.

It'd been a long time since she'd put on a show in New Oasis. Even during her brief stints back in the city she'd never stayed long enough, or simply been too busy, to think about organizing a concert. She was aware that it wasn't the best look. How couldn't she be, after all, with all of those BlueBird and 2Sama threads decrying her as having forgotten her roots. None of them had ever found much traction, especially not in the face of her snowballing success, but their existence in and of itself signalled that the sentiment was there.

That was part of the reason why she'd made such an event of her return to the city. Especially with the recent incident between the Dragons and Phoenixes, she couldn't afford to been seen as unsympathetic to the South's continued plight.

It'd been a few hours since the start of the event. A few other performances, those she'd brought in on last-minute favors, had already taken to the stage, and the festive spirit had already had plenty of time to spread and thoroughly infect the crowd. Whatever sense of grief or anxiety they were holding in their hearts had been numbed for the moment, at least that was the plan, and now it was her job to properly blow it away.

Or at least it would be soon.

Passeri withdrew one of a few phones from her handbag. Of the collection, this one was by far the most spartan. Thick, grey, and generally unmarked, if anyone paid it a glance, they would’ve never expected it to belong to The Passeri Park, and that was rather the point. It was held under the lock of a thirteen digit code, which the silver-haired woman was able to recite from memory, and the contact list was furnished only with the names which Markus had lent her for the event.

Dagger. Daemon. Fahru. Minato.

She wished that they were more familiar to her. As productive as her time overseas had been, it had left her dreadfully out of the loop when it came to her fellow Tigers’ identities. Of course, there was always a certain amount she could learn about anyone in this city, especially with the return of that info broker who held the heart of the Queen, but she’d never been one for second-hand experiences.

Still, she’d managed to cobble together a list of responsibilities for the lot of them. Minato had been the hardest of them to figure out a job for, so she’d ultimately saddled him with the role of keeping an eye on things, and relaying anything that might be going wrong to the appropriate parties.

Fahru had been easy. She had a gift, after all! That Potential of hers had set her mind abuzz the moment she’d heard of it, and she’d shipped the young lady right off to the stage crew. She was pretty sure she’d be able to put on some positively dazzling special effects with her in tow, especially if they worked together.

Daemon on the other hand was just the sort of strapping young man that could lift, haul, and muscle the day away. At least, that’s what he seemed like, so she’d put him to work alongside Fahru behind the stage. Except where she was there to make things look pretty, he was there to… Be… Strong?

She thumbed through the phone until she landed on the name that’d had the most responsibility piled on its shoulders, Dagger, and then tapped the call button. The woman was their assigned Head of Security for the event, at Marcus’s own recommendation.

She was… Hard to get a read on.

Passeri waited for the phone to finish ringing in silence. This wasn’t her first time hosting an event like this, but it was still just a little bit nerve-wracking.

“Heya!” She spoke, a beaming brightness possessing her voice event through the burner phone’s low-quality microphone. “Just calling to check in, Dagger! How’s everything looking? Minato spotted any trouble since we last talked?”

>>> To The Next Post

Elenion Aura · Apr 1, 2022

ROCCHI (Nakazajo Chikage)

CS Link

SCENE:

Insufficient Details

LOCATION:

Central District (Mach Sling)

PARTICIPANTS:

Chikage, Jaimme, Billie, Odessa, Carter (Pending)

INSUFFICIENT DETAILS

The man who asks a question is a fool for a minute; the man who does not ask is a fool for life.

Chikage sat in the driver’s seat of his police cruiser with one foot out the open door, biting the end of a pen in visible contemplation. The air was to his liking. Subtle winds, not too cold. Beside him, in the passenger’s seat, were several orange folders, each containing one or more sheets of paper inside, and each folder was labeled. Some had names; some read ANONYMOUS.

The one in Chikage’s hand, resting in his lap, read 'Hirabayashi, Bash'.

He stared out at the aftermath of Mach Sling where a small handful of officers could be seen probing the area. Witnesses had already been interviewed, and the bodies of dead civilians cleared, but there were still questions in the air, and Chikage wanted to see the mess for himself.

He opened the folder in his lap and reviewed its contents briefly.

Fucking pain… A vein buldged on his forehead as he grinded his teeth, rolling the end of his pen between them.

Stupid little shit…

Fucking worthless waste of space… I’ll have your fucking hea- Suddenly, the pen he’d been grinding between his teeth shattered, and shards of plastic broke off in his mouth.

Chikage dropped the pen, heaved out of the cruiser, and swat at his lips, leaving the orange folder he’d been holding in place of where he’d been sitting. “Ptuh, ptuh-” he spit the bits of plastic out with a grimace, making for a rather amusing performance to some of the officers who noticed him.

When he was finished with his little bout, he swept the lot with his gaze, and the officers watching him hastily averted their attention back to their duties.

Ksssshht.

A static hiss sounded from the radio in his cruiser, and a man’s voice broke through. “Captain Nakazajo,” before cutting out.

Chikage ducked back into the cruiser and reached for his walkie. “Nakazajo speaking, go ahead.” He waited.

The voice broke through another static crack and said, “We’ve received info on the stolen arms case. Officer Kiane Dancy came around. She filed a report describing the suspects, break-” The voice dropped.

Chikage responded, “Go ahead,” and the voice continued, “If you’ve got a minute, I can go over the details with you.”

“Give me twenty then call my cell,” said Chikage.

“Copy.”

Now that that was over, Chikage hung up his walkie and left the cruiser, slamming the door behind him as he approached the bowling alley. A female detective stood nearby a gaping hole in the parking lot preceding the entrance, and she was covering her nose, rather disturbed. As he grew closer, Chikage understood the need, but he didn’t mimic the gesture.

Stopping beside her, he smiled politely. “Anything new?”

She smiled back, glanced at her notes, then met his eyes again. “Found a beanie beneath some rubble. Just sent it off for analysis.”

“I see,” Chikage mused. “Same textbook stuff.”

“Pretty much… But we’ll keep looking. I’m sure we’ll find a diamond in the rut… How're the reports looking?”

“I’ve reviewed them all… When you piece them together, they tell a rather choppy story, but a story nonetheless. Seems it might have been Tigers on the scene first.”

The detective snickered, “And you want every detail, hm?”

Chikage winked at her, “You’re as bright as your eyes, dear.”

>>> To The Next Post

Taigakitt

BriiAngelic

WhiskeyMarten

Damafaud · Apr 1, 2022

TRI

SCENE:

Serpents Arc 2: Scene 2 [Tailing the Dragon's Heart]

LOCATION:

Shaded Alley, East District

PARTICIPANTS:

Anna, Tri, Yuto, Kisara, Bash

WEAPON:

-

Tailing the Dragon's Heart

<<< Previous Post

"I have an idea."

Unfortunately, Tri had an idea.

The Jack had been feeling so fine today. He didn't tell Anna, but he had been preparing for this mission since three days ago. He bought a nice suit with matching gloves, shades, and suitcase. In the evening, he went to a hair dresser and confirmed that the other three party members would attend.

Tri snubbed his cigarette against the shopping cart handle and looked at his comrades. For once, he took the time to remember their names for coolness factor. Seeing them here, Tri nodded with satisfaction. As expected, he was still the coolest.

"Anna and I sneak in to grab the gem. Prinz and Arachnid come in to make a distraction. Prinz pretend to get drunk and demand to fight the Platinum Rabbit the secret wrestler and hidden boss of the brothel. Arachnid come in to take Prinz, but you two end up fighting. Anna will run away after getting the gem. Then I'll come in, cause chaos, and then we run away. Easy."

Nothing can go wrong. Tri felt satisfied with himself until his gaze from behind the sunglasses met Bash.
He forgot about him.

...

"You take care of my shopping cart." Tri finger gunned Bash. "Radical."

Speaking of shopping cart, this specific one was filled with not-groceries. Some guns, several metal-looking rods, five blocks of cheddar... oh, that last one were grocery.

---

A taxi driver answered a call. Yes, he took the doctor right to the alleyway. Yes, he left immediately. No, of course he didn't see anything, but there was just some difficulty with the shopping cart- yes? No, he wasn't joking. The doctor had a folded shopping cart with him and he saw the doctor assembling it after he got out of the taxi- hello?

The assistant was distressed. Paris had his hands full with an experiment and he couldn't ask. After hearing horror stories about the doctor's gangsta last time, anything that struck out as unusual filled the assistant with fear.

What the fuck was the shopping cart for.

Mentions:

The One Eyed Bandit

Nobody Special

Caffeine_Obsessed

simj26

>> Next Post

simj26 · Apr 1, 2022

Dagger

SCENE:

Tigers Arc 2: Scene 6 [All Proceeds]

LOCATION:

Cloudwalk Stadium, South District

PARTICIPANTS:

Passeri, Daemon, Sabrina, Dagger, Fahru, Masker Concertgoer K, Minato

All Proceeds

<<< Remember

A bag check station at the entryway. About five men to the stage, keeping the barriers up, and the crowd at least 10 feet away from the stage. Team Gunnolf on the west section of the stadium, Team Akela on the east, each patrolling the secure areas of the place, keeping watch for any intruders, sweeping the blind spots of the cameras. Gunnolf and Akela were accompanying three other Tiger members each, and could pick up a stray scent from a distance away. Some other Tiger members were injected into the crowd, milling about them as regular visitors, ordered, of course, to keep an eye out for any suspicious individuals, though she was of the suspicion that a handful of them were probably choosing to enjoy what the event had to offer. Each post rotated their shifts when the activity died down a little, allowing them to catch some fresh air, and do whatever they wanted. She had advised them not to get lost with the atmosphere, but again, she wouldn't put it past them to have ignored her orders. It didn't matter. As long as nothing happened, this was an easy job. Cameras were mounted across various spaces, manned by one singular person, guarded by Alpha. Door was secured. But not enough that a HP couldn't get in. She scowled. Alpha could handle it, she supposed. At the very least, it would buy the Tiger manning the station enough time to contact her or someone else for assistance. He might not make it out alive if things go south. It was a risk she had to take.

She clawed at the skin around her eyepatch. What was she thinking? These weren't soldiers. They weren't her responsibility. Her quarry was the performer. That was the focus. There were other participants, other sideshows to the event, but they were largely unimportant. Markus had assigned the performer's, the main attraction's, safety to her. She wasn't against taking up responsibilities. If anything, this job was actually making her feel slightly more alive. Not enough to bring her back from the dead, but it certainly leeched the lethargy out of her limbs, if only just by a little bit. It was something to distract her from the dull aching in her eye, like someone slowly jabbing a blunt knife into it, and the visceral pain that wracked her body every other hour of the day. She had largely ignored the pain for the past two years, but ever since that day, the pains had intensified, clawing, biting, gnawing, as if something wanted out from her. She could only grit her teeth, clench her fists, and bear the pain. She paced about the room behind the blonde Tiger that glanced over the screens as he chewed on some snacks that had been procured from the event itself by a helpful ally of his. "Y'know, I gotta say, Ms. Dagger. This is a pretty good place you set me up in," he commented in between munches of his cheese fries.

"You're the first target anyone with a brain will think to hit." It wasn't even a threat. It was just a fact.

"Oh." It was also enough to get him shifting in his seat and shut up.

She bent down beside Alpha, who was curled up beside the door, and stroked his head. He didn't react much, merely stirring slightly, and then settling back down peacefully. In the past few days, the wolves had proven to give her some repose in her moments of pain. They were soft to the touch, and, though not exactly warm, they felt exceedingly comfortable to the hand. Just brushing her hand across their fur seemed to drain some of the pain away from her body. She wasn't thankful for the people who gave her this, not at all, but she could appreciate the fact that this was what she had rolled in the lottery, rather than something like heightened strength or speed.

Her burner phone started beeping in the pocket of her Passeri Park hoodie. She hadn't a clue why she was wearing this, just that she was almost certainly forced into it by one of the other Tigers. It was made of comfortable material, at the very least, so it didn't really bother her. The bright white colour scheme with pink trims hurt her eye, though. She supposed that if she were to join the crowd downstairs, she could blend in easily, even with the eyepatch. Turning her attention away from the idea of a Passeri Park eyepatch, she withdrew her phone from her pocket, glanced at the screen. It read 'park'. The performer, huh? Dagger refused to make anything of the members of the gang. She didn't want to know them. This was, as far as she was concerned, merely a professional relationship. She answered the phone.

"Talk," was her simple command. She needn't be nice. The bright, chirpy, almost artificially sweetened voice that came from the other end grated on her ears. Maybe she was getting too used to hearing Markus talk. Maybe none of the other people in her life spoke in such a way. Either way, it made her feel as if her arteries had clogged up.

She straightened up, nudging Alpha slightly with the crook of her foot. Alpha yawned, looked up at her, then lay back down. She gave him a look of incredulity. "Everything's green. Situation's normal. As for Minato..." she struggled to remember who that was. She didn't exactly keep track of who was who in this place. By the sound of it, he was probably one of those who were roaming the crowd. Was it Garm-2? Maybe Garm-5? She stifled a sound of annoyance. "Give me a second." She raised her comms set to her face. "Garm Team. Yes, that's you guys on the ground. Minato, whichever one of you that is, you got anything? Anyone with anything to report, give me a sitre--" she caught herself, then resumed, "talk to me."

Given how the crowd was, and how the people she's met have been, she wasn't expecting a response.

gxxberkit · Apr 1, 2022

TENEBROSITY

SCENE:

Serpents Arc 2: Scene 1 [Arcane Informant]

LOCATION:

Nearby Heavenly Beasts Plaza, Lower Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Caio, Urien, Ten, Darius, Delynn, Orion

Arcane Informant

<<< Remember

The sound of rain and Ten’s own footsteps filled their ears, ignoring almost anything else. Just knowing that in front of them were seven unconscious Dragons was enough to bring them joy. Ten's first fight —and they'd won! The thrill of having helped get them down was flowing through them, and even though they couldn’t see the look on the Dragon’s faces, they figured it was more than worth it. A great start to working towards that one, pesky objective on their bucket list. They bounced back and forth, wondering how completing that objective would go down. Who would be their victim? When? Where?

Before Ten could get too far into their daydream, Caio’s approval pierced their thoughts.

“Nice job, kid.”

…Oh! Nice job! Ten looked over to the source of Caio’s voice, shooting him a wide grin accompanied by a giggle. They were already impressing the man who convinced them to join, and they could only hope Darius would be just as impressed.

As the man turned his attention away, Ten moved to face the Dragons again. They were almost about to start bouncing before they remembered that they were in the middle of texting their friends before getting distracted with the fight. They had been silent in the chat for a good amount of time —it’d be a good idea to reassure them they hadn’t spontaneously combusted or something.

They quickly fished their phone out of their pocket, putting in one of their earbuds to listen to what they had missed thanks to text-to-speech technology. Not wanting any background noise to accidentally get into their message, they squinted their eyes open at their phone and sent a text.

sorry guus !!! dont worrey im noto dead !!!! jus got busyy!! can still talk tho !! might reppy slo ! love u guys!!!

Still holding their phone, they closed their now slightly burning eyes and looked for the shadow of their boyfriend. “Dairy?”

Tobi Naefaerne (texted to:

AriAriAbabwa

Roda the Red )

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The Prophet · Apr 1, 2022

DIMITRI BELLARI

SCENE:

Tigers Arc 2: Scene 1 [Charity from the Upper City]

LOCATION:

Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Akira, Helva, Jesper, Lucy

Charity from the Upper City

<<< Remember

"Is that so? Well, I'll be sure to invite them to come see me once my schedule is less cluttered."

"You do? I do love compliments. Your suit is quite nice as well, Mister...?"

"A picture? Oh of course, miss. I would hate for you to not have something to remember me by."

"-If you'll excuse me, I have to take this. There was another offer this morning, and I asked my agent to give me the details."

Dimitri Calisto Bellari loved social events, and social events loved him. While at first he considered turning down the invite in favor of...well, anything else really, in the end he made plans to include it in his itinerary. So far he hardly had any complaints, even if it felt he was talking to the same person most of the time. Separating himself from yet another group - He hardly felt like talking about his scene in 'Fangs' anymore - and moved to his table. Good timing too, for the hosts began the event in earnest and wonderful music began to play. He couldn't say as much about some of the resulting dancers, but they got points for the effort. "Hmm." Crossing his legs and swirling a glass of red wine, he watched the dancing going on for a moment before looking at his phone. There were offers, but he didn't much care for them today. Instead, he was checking the status of his transport and reservation. Not for any restaurant, but for a cake. Two to be exact. Usually the baker was extremely exclusive and needed reservations months in advance, but money did love to speed things along. Can't just show up to a dinner without a gift, no? At least that's what his crew said when he told them about it. People eat food, and medovik was food. They were eating food. Easy.

Oh wait. Didn't people have that allergy thing?.....Oh well, he could figure it out later.

Upon confirmation that both were ready to go when he was ready, Dimitri put his phone away and smiled. He could leave now, but where was the fun in that? Instead he re-crossed his legs and set the wine down. It wasn't like he was going to drink it anyways, it was more so so be polite. Briefly having a conversation with a woman who came up to him and feigning a laugh at their jokes, Dimitri wished them well and made to stand as they left. Now then, what was the point of coming to a ball if he didn't dance with someone?

>>> To Next Post

WhiskeyMarten · Apr 1, 2022

DARIUS KENNEDY

SCENE:

Serpents Arc 2: Scene 1 [Arcane Informant]

LOCATION:

Nearby Heavenly Beasts Plaza, Lower Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Caio, Darius, Delynn, Orion, Ten, Urien

ARCANE INFORMANT

<<< Remember

Darius stared down at their fallen opponents, brushing the rain-soaked hair away from his face with one hand. In his other hand, he clutched a metal bat, evidence of the fight already being washed away under the downpour. He had said very little so far. He hadn't said much to anyone in the past week, not since the incident at Mach Sling. In fact, he had barely seen sunlight. His own actions had spooked him into hiding, still afraid that a certain black-haired fiend would be creeping around the corner at any moment. He had kept his phone off, and the door locked tight, only allowing Ten inside.

It would be a good time to address the elephant in the room that Darius was desperate to pretend wasn't plaguing his mind. Ten was here. And because Ten was here, Darius was finally coaxed outside, which is a good thing, right?

Wrong. On top of the fears that Darius hadn't shaken away for years, and the new enemy he had made last week, he now had yet another thing to worry about. He had been unable to talk Ten out of joining the Serpents and all he could do now was act accordingly, bringing him to today.

As soon as he knew when Ten's first outing with the Serpents would be taking place, Darius broke his silence with the gang to contact Caio. Thankfully, the Queen accepted him into the group as soon as he asked, and now Darius could keep an eye on things. The thing being his partner. A partner he was terrified of losing.

He should've been happy with the victory. A victory meant that Dragons were lying beaten on the ground instead of Serpents, and Darius cared very little about the lives of Dragons. His dear Ten remained unscathed through it all, and they seemed to be happily basking in the glory of their win. Darius couldn't help but find himself admiring them, despite it all. First victory of many, I hope... Though I'd be happier if they could call it quits now. It was hard for him to pinpoint his own first fight, but he doubted he was as excited as Ten seemed. The afternoon was going well though.

“Nice job, kid.”

If only Caio wasn't here. Darius was grateful that he had allowed him to join them today, but it didn't stop him from being absolutely furious at the same time. He wasn't allowed to be furious though, not at his boss. He's had plenty of reasons to hate Caio in the past, but it was nothing he hadn't brought upon himself by joining the Serpents in the first place. Him making Darius a player in his crooked experiments was one thing, but bringing Ten into the gang was something else entirely. If he was foolish and brave enough, Darius would've started chewing his boss out as soon as he found out, but he had enough sense and fear to just stand there seething. He shook his head at Caio's words. He hadn't done any log-keeping so far. Hopefully one of the others was.

It was a good thing Darius wore a mask that covered at least part of his face. He often found it hard to keep his emotions hidden, and now was one of those times. Though his mouth was covered, you could see the anxiety and anger in his eyes as he brought them up from the Dragons, to stare at his allies. The only one there he trusted enough to confide in should've already been able to tell why he wasn't happy, the others could only make assumptions.

He brought his attention to Ten when they called his nickname out, and Darius rushed over to their side. He placed one gloved hand on their shoulder to alert them of his presence, tightening his grip ever so slightly. His demeanour had changed almost instantly, more alert and ready to act now that Ten had spoken to him.

Be positive. Be supportive. This is about their feelings, not yours.

"Ten!" Be. Supportive. "You alright? How are you finding things so far? Is it really what you expected?"

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FabulousTrash · Apr 2, 2022

Kasumi Katsura - Azure Dragons - Veteran [CS LINK]
Scene - Dragons Arc 2 | Scene 4: The Underground
Location - The Underground, Dragon HQ - East District
Mentions/Interactions - Yo Saiwa (

Taigakitt ), Lorrin Yumi (

Pik )

<<< Remember

She was the first to return home that hectic night.

Kanna got home hours later, and the two spent all night decompressing and unpacking all the events that transpired. That was when Kasumi learned about the bridge collapse and the confrontation between the Phoenixes. She also learned about the group of three that Kanna and Ruriko ended up chasing.

There was the white-haired man they initially ran into in the alley, then there was a couple that joined them. The female of the couple sounded a lot like the missing worker from Paradise Forever, Swallowtail. In fact, Kasumi was very sure it was her, based on what Kanna described.

Now, it was their turn to be on the offensive. Kanna was sent out along with Isaiah to track down the trio from the bridge. And Kasumi? She was deep underneath the Dragon's HQ, in what they called 'The Underground'.

Why am I here?

Kasumi stood near the door of the cold, stone room. She could see her breath as she exhaled. Yo and Lorrin were in the room with her, along with a captured member of the group that caused so much chaos that night. It wasnt one that Kanna had run into, but instead it was the patrol group that Lorrin was with that ran into this one. Kasumi stared at the girl, who had a cut on their arm from Yo. Her eyes then drifted to the table on the side, which was lined witch various instruments for torture. Pliers, clamps, and other tools she wasn't familiar with.

To say that Kasumi was out of her element was an understatement. However she felt obligated to be present, for herself and her sister. Kasumi wanted to get to the bottom of this just as much as everyone else.

She looked up towards the corner of the room. It was hard to see because of the dim lighting, but Kasumi could detect the camera that was present. Small and compact, it was a live feed 24/7 to the surveillance room. It would also record everything that was said and done in this room.

It was time to begin. Kasumi took a moment, steeling her mind and composure.

Kasumi's gaze returned to the girl sitting in the middle of the room, restrained. They looked tired, having been sleep deprived for multiple days. But, if she was as dangerous as Kasumi assumed her to be, she knew that it would take a while to get information out of them.

She stepped towards the table, running her hand along the handles of the instruments as she spoke up, breaking the silence. Kasumi kept her gaze to where her hand was.

"Its only a matter of time before your friends are found. As we speak, there are others out there, tracking them down."

The tips of her fingers continued to run over the tools until eventually returning to her side. Kasumi's arms came up and crossed over her chest. She looked at the girl in the chair.

"One way or another, we'll get the information we want, either from you or from them. And unless you want them to end up in the same position you're currently in, it would be in your best interest to talk."

Kasumi's demeanor had drastically changed. There was a slight shadow cast over her eyes, and it looked like her eyes were narrow. She reached up, pushing her glasses up slightly, before continuing.

"Why did you attack the East District that night?"

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QuirkyAngel · Apr 2, 2022

Meirin Azuza

SCENE:

Tiger Arc 2: Scene 2 [Matter of Time]

LOCATION:

Eternal Night Palace, East District

PARTICIPANTS:

Dante, Reveler, Ruriko, Meirin

Matter of Time

“Will you really?”

“Yeah, like I said, if I see anything suspicious or if this…Swallowtail…returns to the Pleasure District, I’ll be sure to let you know.”

Sighing, Meirin slumped over the table shared between her…employee…for lack of a better word, though it wasn’t the most accurate way to describe their relationship. Criminals didn’t get paid for their community service, after all. Mattias Krutz hadn’t been a willing worker in Eternal Night Palace at first, nor had he been the nicest guy around, especially not towards women, but…measures…had been taken to ensure his compliance…or, at least, that was what the Night Lord had told her. Meirin hadn’t been there to see it. She didn’t want to see it. Ever since the death of the Night Lord, when she and Jun inherited the brothel owned by the veteran Dragon, the one they used to work at, changes had been implemented for the better…but it was still a brothel and some of the old ways still remained. The Dragon way.

Those that defiled had to be punished.

As much as she saw the workers of the Night Palace as her family, as much as she wanted to protect them, she was still a Dragon—the Sleeping Giant, warden and co-owner of a house of sex left to them by their former boss/adoptive father. There were rules to be followed—ones she didn’t necessarily disagree with. With rules came order and with order came safety. Humans were beings prone to dark, selfish desires as much as they were capable of good. That was just how it is. Meirin didn’t hate them for it. She understood it. She was one of them, after all; Gave into her impulses more often than she did not.

However, it was for that very reason that Meirin understood why rules and restraints were necessary. She and Mattias, aka Eros, hadn’t liked each other much at first either, but time mellowed all things and they came to an understanding. Besides, she let him keep his tips at least. As Eros climbed the rankings, becoming an invaluable asset to Eternal Night Palace, she convinced Jun to let him keep the majority of his earnings as well. Money mattered little to Meirin…which was why she’d left most of the matters dealing with it up to Jun—the former #1 of Eternal Night Palace. Her sister knew more about running a brothel anyway. Meirin was better at enforcing the rules.

“Thanks, Matt. I don’t normally like to ask this of you guys, but you’ve no idea how confusing it’s been for me the last couple of days.”

Mathias snorted. “I can imagine. Hard not to notice a giant, 15-meter-tall Madam running around the pleasure district like some sort of lost bimbo.”

“Madam makes me feel old,” Meirin pouted. “And I wasn’t lost.”

Fortunately, the laptop that started it all, that disturbed the peace of the East District, had been found. Slowly, but surely, digitally-run systems were being repaired and things in the Pleasure District were returning to normalcy. Kasumi—and Jesper—would’ve made sure to wipe the results of the dox, as well as any lingering viruses, from all databases and systems. Meirin helped where she could…but mostly just did what she was told where manual labor was needed. Perhaps if she had known more, she could’ve helped more. Perhaps Jun had been correct (like she usually was) that Meirin needed more education…if nothing else, to protect the things important to her.

"Whichever the case, it's pretty obvious, even to a regular guy like me, that the Dragons are being targeted. Watch your back."

"I thought you didn't like the Azure Dragon Gang." They’d been the one to force him to sell his body, after all. If the gang no longer existed, the former rapist certainly wouldn’t have to.

"I don't. But you've made this place bearable, Chouchou would be pissed if you died, and I’d hate to have to find another friend.”

“That’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me~”

Retrieving her phone, Meirin checked the text messages shared between her and her new friend Jay. Just random chatter. None of it was important stuff. However, it hardened her resolve to help him find his friend all the same. She made a promise, after all.

‘Plz text me if you find Swallowtail…or if you need my help for whatever reason.’

@Lucem

FabulousTrash

Sending the message to Kanna and Isaiah’s phone, the Jack and Ace of the Azure Dragons respectively, Meirin glanced up as one of the waiters working at Eternal Night entered the Eastern-styled gazebo she and Mathias currently occupied. If not for Jun asking her to watch the brothel for the day, she might’ve joined them in the investigation in Central. The woman in the image captured by Jesper’s drone looked suspiciously like Swallowtail after all…though it was hard to see through the fog. Still, Meirin had her priorities. She liked Jay. But she liked her sister and her family at Eternal Night Palace more.

Besides, it seemed like she had a visitor.

“I wonder what that stripper wants,”

“Dancer,” Meirin corrected as she moved to stand. “Only one way to find out. Want to come with me?”

“Nah.” Mattias stretched and yawned, scratching his head. “I’m going back to my room to sleep. I’ve got a couple of hours until my next client shows up.”

“It’s not Dyne, is it?” Giggling at the horrified look Mattias gave her, Meirin used that opportunity to pluck the cigarette from between his fingers. “I’m just kidding~ Also don’t smoke. It’s bad for your health and will give you bad breath. You'll lose your number 1 spot~”

“I haven’t heard a customer complain yet,” Mattias grumbled. “Not that I’d care if they fucking whine. Bitches should be grateful I even let them fuck me…"

(mentioned:

Damafaud - Eros for you~)
***

Lifting a curtain to enter a booth in one of Eternal Night's main 'parlor' rooms, Meirin spotted Callan flirting with one of the waiters.

She wasn't quite sure what she thought of Callan. Personality wise he was friendly, flirty, and fun. The girls liked him well enough--or at least, Song Bell, Nori, and Staccato did. Having him perform at Eternal Night Palace boosted business as well according to Jun. Meirin was fairly sure he had a potential…if extremely sexy could be considered a potential. Yet she couldn't quite shake the feeling the HP(?) was hiding something…which was likely attributed to the fact that she didn't know him very well Where he came from? What his goals were? Callan was a mystery that just appeared in the East District one day. But then, that could also be said of many that stepped into the Palace of Eternal Night.

,Nodding at the waiter, who seemed to get the message and quickly left to get the sweets, Merin smiled as she approached the androgynous, violet-skinned dancer. “Good to see, Callan! Looking as hot as ever I see~”

She took a seat beside him, head slightly tilted as unmasked curiosity showed in her red orbs. “What brings you here? I’m pretty sure you don’t work today.”

Probably.

Meirin hadn’t exactly memorized Callan’s scheduled performances at Eternal Night Palace…if he even had scheduled performances. The first had been a request of one of their wealthier clients. Any future business interactions would’ve been made with Jun. Or Long. They handled most of the administrative affairs of the brothel. Meirin helped. And learned. And tossed in her input as co-owner…but, frankly, she didn’t have their experience.

She wasn't even sure which Dragons were patrolling today, though she'd spotted Ruri on her way to the booth and had given her fellow Dragon a friendly wave.

The Regal Rper
(mentioned:

Beann )

AriAriAbabwa · Apr 2, 2022

JESPER ALBRECHT

SCENE:

Tigers Arc 2: Scene 1 [Charity from the Upper City]

LOCATION:

Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Akira, Helva, Jesper, Lucy, Dimitri

Charity from the Upper City

<<< Remember

Jesper could feel the eyes on them, and it wasn't because of the grueling hours the maids put into tidying him and his mother up.

It was no secret to the family staff that the young heir and the stand-in matriarch, Sophia Albrecht, loathed social events. There was no blanketing the family's prominence within the East, nor the questionable places that their technologies reached. Especially now, when the outspokenly members of the Dragons—one of the two groups this charity was dedicated to—it seemed like everyone stopped in their tracks to watch them shamble by. Without the patriarch around, Jesper only felt stressed underneath the layers of suit as he tried to avoid meeting eyes.

If it weren't for the Sedas' endorsing the South and East, there wouldn't have been no need to come at all, but refusing such a "generous" luncheon would have been viewed as disrespectful.

Jesper looked to his mother; she stood straight and held her chin high. Nobody could note the discomfort that curled down the ends of Sophia's lips, nor the dryness growing in her throat. Part of him worried if she could handle the public environment; it wasn't too long ago that Sophia finally stopped keeping in her room all day, something which had been happening since Lars' disappearance.

The boy then moved his gaze to their maid, Tina. It was odd, seeing her so composed and quiet as opposed to how she acted at home: bubbly and always talking. She looked so... proper, it was unusual.

Biting his tongue, he made sure for the umpteenth time to straighten his neck and watch his gait. The party hadn't even fully started, and he wished he was sat in front of his monitor set-up alone.

By the time they made it to a table on one of the upper balconies, the atmosphere thankfully seemed to lighten with the Sedas taking the stage. Feliciano's speech drew everyone's attention away and cast a silent spell over everyone to listen.

But his words fell on deaf ears of one Jesper, who decided that now was the best time to check his phone's notification and find a text in the group chat awaiting. nw Ten-Ten ur good lol he typed. Jesper also went inactive in the group chat not too long ago, having arrived to the place in their car.

"Jesper, please put your phone away."

The boy's phone immediately disappeared from sight, fumbling down from the tabletop and to his lap. "Sorry," he uttered, trying not to fold under Sophia's sharp gaze. Even now, she could afford to chastise his phone usage... Jesper peeked down to send one more response. I wont be on as much, too. am at some boring party in central rn.

"Jesper."

He almost tore one of the suit's knots trying to jam it in his pocket. "Sorry..." he said sheepishly, shrinking under the looming scowl.

At the same time, Luna's voice soared throughout. It took Sophia's attention away, and by the time the instrumentals kicked in, she was already hooked. Jesper, who didn't find much to enjoy in music like this... had no idea what to do. People were filing onto the dance floor, arms linked with their loved ones or just a partner in general. Normally his dad would have taken her to the dance floor...

Regardless, Jesper didn't feel like sitting there and doing nothing for the whole show. "Tina, stay with my mom," he said, rising from his seat.

The maid nodded. "As you wish."

To his mother, he opened his mouth to explain where he was going... but Sophia did not look back at him, still peering over the edge. On his mother was something else: A tinge of sadness. Whether she was focused on the couples or entranced by the music, he did not know. Jesper bit his lip, hesitating on leaving her; but one wink from Tina told him that Sophia wouldn't be alone.

Jesper left wordlessly, already pulling his phone out to hop back into his group chat's conversation. The boy would wander to the ground floor and into one of the areas a fair distance from the dance area, left remote by the dancing crowd. He found himself a lonesome chair and sat himself down, funneling in on his device. so anyway, did either of u ever watch Juniper's Tale since the anime con? the series finale came out last week,, made me cry...

gxxberkit

Roda the Red
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Beann · Apr 2, 2022

RURIKO IKEDA