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 Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2014 6:28 pm
If you participated in the Mistral exploration RPs and decided to follow Babylon to his wonder after returning your device piece, the adventure continues here! Once everyone finally returned from the depths of the labyrinth, Babylon did a final headcount on who wanted to take the trip up to his wonder. Most of them looked suitably dressed, although he did take off his cape and insist that Hvergelmir wear it. Once they were up on the surface, he picked Mistral up into a piggyback carry - she was in no condition to be making the hike, but neither was she in any condition to be left alone. It was about a half an hour's hike, the weather holding steady and cold. The city gates loomed out of the distance, flanked by great stone cats of uncertain taxonomical classification. (Snow leopards, probably, though Babylon.) Once through the gates, the air was warmer and a little moister. Glowing blue flowers like the ones in Mistral bloomed around the edge of the square. An elegant streetlamp at the center burned Babylon Blue. Turning, Babylon felt himself step into his ancestor's skin. Raziele was waiting, a smile on her face. "Asimov's adjusting well to the academy," she said.
"That calls for a drink," said Menachem. "I have some good bottles in my cellar."
And turning once more, Babylon felt his ancestor step away from him, heading towards a grand house on the east side of the square."This way," he said to the assembled group. The front windows of the house had long since been blown out, and the front room was a mess of ruined furniture, but there was a long dining room past the staircase that was more well-preserved. The upholstery on the chairs looked to be in decent shape, and the table looked more than long enough to seat everyone. Babylon tapped his signet ring experimentally against the base of a sconce, and the rest of the room sprang to life - even the hearth. "Okay," he called to the group, trying not to let on that he was playing by ear. "There's glasses in that china cabinet behind the table. You might have to dust them off a bit. I'm gonna go see if there's anything still good to drink. Mistral, I'll run over to the study and get you a soda or something?" He left the room, allowing the rest of the group to get settled, and confessed, "I have no idea what I'm doing," to the page who was still riding on his back. "So, like, let's find the wine cellar." A flash of intuition suggested the staircase to his right. The bottom was sealed with a heavy door, but opened to his touch. Inside was a room far more advanced than anything he'd previously seen at his wonder - it was like the technology that ran Mistral. He released his hold on the page, letting her down. "These bottles have your sigil on them," he said, pulling one down and uncorking it. Babylon took a swig, expecting vinegar, and what he got instead was sweet, lightly carbonated wine. "Here, have a sip," he said, handing her the bottle and collecting a few more. "It's like a Moscato or something." He returned to the group upstairs and set the bottles out, laying the corkscrew on the table beside them. "Okay," he said to the assembled knights. "Mi casa es su casa and there's no drinking age on Mercury, so just use some common sense. Pour and pass, everybody."
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Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2014 8:53 pm
Niflhel had powered down to clean his uniform and get everything back as it should. Once he was ready he followed the rest of the group offering one of the other knights his coat when he'd noticed they weren't properly dressed either.
Walking through the snow totally reminded him of Polaris and actually he wished he'd had time to grab a second coat - - just in case. As for climates like this one could never have too many coats. At least the long sleeves of his shirt and the gloves along with the scarf kept him from worrying too much about the cold and while it was a half hour trek the knight kept himself distracted keeping tabs on everyone.
He knew from Polaris how dangerous cold weather could be. When they'd finally reached Babylon Niflhel looked impressed at the structure and gave a low whistle. "My, what a nice place you have here Babylon."
When they reached a hall with tables and chairs he suddenly lit up a little and moved to dig out the glasses and find an old towel which he promptly snapped the dust out of before he began to clean the glasses. "I wonder if there's running water here too." He mused as Babylon and Mistral went to find something decent to drink.
It didn't seem to take Babylon too long to come back, "Oi Babylon do you think there's any running water anywhere? We might could give this place a little scrub down and make it feel a little more lived in. Or well. . . . At least for the dishes when we're done. Can't leave a dirty kitchen." The Saturn Knight had been trained well.Buyan was quite sure she'd freeze walking towards Babylon if someone hadn't actually offered their coat and she taking them up with that offer. After all. . . she wasn't about to let it go to waste if the others were better dressed than she. Humming as the walked the page found it interesting that they had to trudge through the snow but she also confirmed that her shoes were not made for such terrain.
Buyan was glad when they finally reached the city and found a warm place to stay. Even if it had just been lit with torches and a fire place. She found a chair actually nearish the fireplace after hanging up the coat she'd been offered and sat down watching as the others mingled and one Knight started cleaning the glasses that they'd drink out of.
"Maybe we should wipe down the tables to get rid of the dust too?"
Of course it didn't take too long for Babylon to return with bottles. She couldn't help but think he was kidding when he said there wasn't a drinking age. . . but then again some of them had come out worse than others it appeared.
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Posted: Sat Jul 19, 2014 5:01 pm
Mercury, it turned out, was a beautiful planet -- and the city of Babylon was a lovely feather in its cap. The weather on the planet was freezing, which was odd for its being so close to the sun. If Hvergelmir'd expected it, it was only because she was used to the way the Mercury knights she'd met thus far had all dressed: covered from head to toe, with thick fur, clothing layered. She supposed it was because of some kind of astronomical quirk -- a side of the planet permanently cloaked in darkness, tilted away from the radiant heat of a star. She was glad Babylon had offered to loan her his cloak. Within the city, the weather was less harsh. She kept the cloak around her shoulders, though, grateful for its presence -- it was like having her friend's arm curled around her at all times. Hvergelmir sat by Sarras at the table, and when the wine reached her, although she'd only been twenty-one a few months and wasn't much of a drinker, she filled her glass high. Everyone always said alcohol went well with grief. "Your city's beautiful," she told Babylon, well aware that they needed to get some kind of a conversation going. She remembered him telling her there are flowers on the trees now, and I did that. "So much life. Did it look much different when you first arrived?"
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Posted: Sat Jul 19, 2014 8:24 pm
How many wonders had he been to today? Was it even still the same day? It felt like forever had passed, but the dull ache was still there, so maybe not. Admittedly, Sarras had lost track of time, space, etcetera etcetera, and how he came to be on Babylon was a mystery to him. Maybe the Code teleported him there. Maybe Babylon piggy backed him there. Maybe Hvergelmir slung his a** over her shoulders and carried him there.
Maybe... he didn't care. He got there. He was there. And he felt... nothing.
While he knew where his body was (simply a mystery of how his body got there), his mind was a completely different place. His mind wasn't seeing the beauty that everyone else seemed to be enthralled in, assuming they were legitimately enthralled or if it was more of a matter of wanting to have something to talk about that wasn't the grotesque onslaught of deaths they had all just witnessed. He wasn't even looking at the glass ahead of him, not until Hvergelmir filled her glass and passed it on to him. His mind was elsewhere, but it was there long enough to know when to stop pouring and pass the bottle on to the next person in line, whoever that may have been.
His mind was probably still back on Mistral. On Ankh, Hogwarts, Burj, Pigfarts--oh lord Pigfarts-- Hollow Bastion, Isengard... Menae. His heart... was with them as well. Or it might as well have been.
While others complimented Babylon on his wonder and made small talk, Sarras simply had nothing to say. The only thing his mouth was good for this evening was to be filling it with wine, and he did so without a word. He was here to get drunk. Really drunk. 'Mother is scared' drunk, and no one would stop him.
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Posted: Sun Jul 20, 2014 3:56 am
It hadn't been hard to be convinced to follow Babylon's lead. The… the bodies would still be there, later. Maybe. The doll, Ana--they shared the same name, wasn't that sick, Ana and Ana?--it was still there, and she wasn't sure that it hadn't been-- She thought of Raziele. Blood is magic's river; it is known. Then she gagged, one hand over her mouth, and let Babylon pick her up. What kind of Wonder had she inherited? The thought occupied her on the walk from Mistral to Babylon. Blue lantern-light washed the snow ahead of them and that was calming, wasn't it, a sign that had always meant comfort to her in small, stupid ways. She lifted a palm and turned it over, staring into the blue-white and the darker-toned shadows as Babylon passed through the gates to his city, and clung to him like a shadow while the rest of the group got settled in. "I'm not sure that will be a comfort to them," said Mistral, dully. Why wouldn't they suspect poison or something worse? Nevermind that if anything from Mistral would be safe, it would certainly be the wine brought to the Knight's brother's house. Raziele had been twisted enough to design those traps, but she had loved her brother. Hadn't she? Mistral followed Babylon back up the stairs only because she felt like she was… expected to. "The flowers are new," she said to Hvergelmir, remembering her own first trip to the Wonder. It felt emptier without the ghost of her past life uncle. Her dog nudged her hand, trying to direct her to sit, but did Mistral deserve that? People had died because of her. All of those deaths… tragic. Avoidable. The secrecy and subtlety of her Wonder had preserved it, not the killing machine or wire trap or the Wall of Light. She would, she promised herself, go through the Wonder and take down every one of those traps. The dead demanded it of her. Everything had a price.Mendel barked, took the end of her tunic in his teeth, and dragged her bodily to one of the chairs. "Okay," she said, laying a hand on her dog's head. "Okay."
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Posted: Sun Jul 20, 2014 1:41 pm
Although going to yet another wonder on this (to his mind) cursed planet had given Falias pause, the lure of being able to get absolutely roaring and downright stinking drunk had been a lure that the Earth Squire had been unable to resist.
He hadn't bothered to power down and then up as the Saturn Knight (Niflhel) had, making the walk over in the same blood-stained uniform in which he had ascended from Mistral's labyrinth and although the walk had been cold, Falias had walked in silence although he had kept away from the two Mercury knights leading the way over.
He had been silent too, even as some of the other knights around him had made chit chat, but he had filled his glass to the brim when the wine bottle reached him before passing the bottle in the direction of the next person in line, whoever it may be, his mind intent on downing as many glasses of alcohol as it took so that he could finally drown out the faces of the seven knights that had lost their lives on level six of Mistral's deathrinth.
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Posted: Sun Jul 20, 2014 4:09 pm
"I'll take some of that..." Kairatos rumbled.
He wasn't even sure why he'd come. He'd stood in mute silence for most of the hand over, the effects of that pink dust fighting and conflicting fiercely with anger. Over the urge to yell at people that 'good reasons' for someone to die did not involve ancient death traps on the ally of a wonder.
He shouldn't even be drinking. He should just go home, grab a pain pill, since he was pretty sure they'd worn off, or else weariness and stress were just making it feel like they had, but right now he really just wanted to make bad choices involving alchohol at least as old as the taps and hope it hadn't turned to vinegar or...
He wasn't sure really. He'd sat through part of a late night documentary about having to turn wine bottles so the cork didn't dry out and having to keep them at specific temperatures and what have you.
Then again he supposed if the wine was s**t he could try and hike his way home and make bad choices there. He was pretty sure Zia wouldn't mind after she was done bitching him out for getting hurt worse. He might even manage to not tell her about what had actually gone down until they were both too wasted to not laugh at the black absurdity of it all.
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Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2014 12:37 am
At Niflhels's suggestion, Babylon did a cursory look through the adjoining rooms while everyone was getting settled and found the kitchen. It was in pretty good shape for how old it was, and the decor again suggested the level of technology evident in Mistral. There was running water in the sink, although the pipes rattled for a bit before producing anything. He found a few rags and wet them before returning to the dining room, where he tossed one each to Niflhel and Buyan before taking a seat at the table. "None of the lights were on when I first got here," he said to Hvergelmir, sitting beside Mistral and waiting for one of the wine bottles to come back around. No doubt he'd need to go back down to the cellar multiple times tonight, but Menachem wasn't around to be offended that they were drinking from his stores. "And the lights power the barrier, so that wasn't here, either. There were snowdrifts. It was colder. The trees were all dead and there weren't any flowers. I had to light all the lights myself." It had been worth it, he thought, glancing around the table. Sarras looked catatonic, Babylon thought, as did Falias. Level six sounded like it had been beyond terrible. Seven dead was a catastrophe. His own group had only lost Cove and Degrasse and he'd never forget the way that girl had wailed, the way her blood had painted the walls. He'd never forget Cove - there one moment and gone the next, his hand still clasped in Hvergelmir's. The wine came around, and, standing once more, Babylon poured himself a glass. "Thank you all for coming," he said. "I think - I think it would be good if we began with a toast to- to our friends who didn't make it. To Cove and Degrasse and..." He nodded to Falias and Sarras, although they didn't look much for talking. "I'm sorry. I need you to help me."
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Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2014 6:01 pm
"To the fallen." Kairatos raised his own glass with a hint of growl. He didn't know the names of those who had fallen on the other floors, but he knew they had. The voice screaming about a trap felt like it had etched itself into his head, like Degrasse's voice, or Cove's comforting words to Hver,
Hell his ears were still ringing a bit from the bomb and he wanted to drink until he stopped hurting. Or until he stopped being angry... or until he was pretty sure he could relay all of this, including the,,, kiss... without feeling ill again.
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Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2014 5:17 am
Whatever he had poured for himself, he knew it wouldn't be enough. Whether space wine was more potent than Earth wine made little difference, he told himself, and even when he fit his glass to the brim, there wouldn't be enough to get him to the stage he longed to be.
Kairatos seemed just as disgruntled as him though he didn't think to share the same table, and immediately he respected the Mars knight, more than the bulk of knights at this gathering. Maybe once this charade was over, he could join the Mars knight to partake in real drinking. It would mean kicking Richard and his hounds out of his apartment, but he knew where to go for some good stuff... if given a chance, he'd clean the entire cabinet clean!
For now, Sarras was content just to sit there with his own cup, in his own little world, with Hvergelmir and Falias nearby, and drink his god-damn wine. It wasn't bad. He may not have been a huge fan of wine and preferred something a little less fancy, but he needed the alcohol more than anything. If the rest of the night could have been done in silence from his part, that would have been just fine...
And of course, it wasn't meant to be. Babylon began to speak, giving his honor to the two that had fallen in level 7, then turning to him and Falias, as though expecting them to contribute. What Sarras really wanted to do was take the easy way out, and Kairatos had the best idea. No names, no faces, simply 'the fallen' would have suffice, and it would have been enough for Sarras... had he not wanted others to share in his misery.
"Ankh. Hogwarts. Pigfarts. Burj Khalifa. Isengard. Hollow Bastion. Menae." Sarras said, bitterly, making sure to pronounce each and every name for everyone to hear. He cast a glare to Mistral, but said nothing to her, knowing he wouldn't have to. She'd remember their names. She'd better remember their names.
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Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2014 5:54 pm
Whilst Sarras may have glared at Mistral whilst he spoke, Falias was conspicuous in the way that he avoided looking in Mistral's direction as he spoke, the normally cheerfulness tone in his voice drowned by grief as, after taking a big gulp of wine to fortify himself, he recited the names of the knights who had lost their lives on Level 6 of Mistral's deathrinth, the rawness of his voice almost a counterpoint for Sarras as he too spoke out each name one by one
"Ankh..." Old man Pluto Page who had yelled at them all to run and whose wallet and ring lay oh so heavy in his pocket.
"Hogwarts... Burj Khalifa..." The stick waving Mercury Page who had looked like he should be in high school and the Uranus Page both, slaughtered in the dark by the thing that Mistral had called a 'doll'.
"Hollow Bastion..." The even older Mercury Page, killed by shards of metal.
"Pig... Pigfarts..." In his mind Falias heard the tortured scream of metal on metal, his hands shaking as he remembered frantically and futilely trying to push at the broken pieces of remote and the sick knowledge that her blood was on his hands and his voice fell into a choked silence leaving Sarras alone to finish listing the names of the remaining three knights that had given their lives for the device piece.
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Posted: Sun Jul 27, 2014 8:05 am
Mistral's attention was drawn from the solemn recitation of names by a letter arriving. She unfolded it, scanned it, and crumbled it up one-handed. "Babylon," she said in a tiny, strangled voice, trying to keep attention where it should be--on the dead--rather than on herself. "Does that fire burn, do you think?" She didn't wait for an answer. Mistral dropped the letter into the hearth, where it was consumed by whatever power ran the fireplace, and excused herself; she didn't know where she was going, but she was going. Upstairs, she found a bedroom--a nice, quiet place, with a view of the valley. The flowers glowed bright enough to be seen through the reflection of the stars in the sky, and Mistral sat down on the bed with a huff. Let them mourn, she thought, bringing the pieces of the device out before her and spreading them with the blueprints on the bed. Her presence there only soiled the gathering with anger. Maybe Bifrost was right, and she no longer deserved the title of Knight or the respect due to a comrade. That didn't matter. She would still see this device finished; she would see the sacrifices of the dead honored. Slotting the pieces together didn't seem to require any special tools, or any real force. They slipped together easy, gently almost, and when she twisted them into place or closed the chamber containing them they stuck fast. Mistral focused on her task, to the point where she didn't notice the growing well of power inside her, or the change in the length of her sleeves, or the glowing of myriad tiny Babylon lights that trimmed gold chain on her uniform. Squire Mistral actually glowed as she finished the device. It was heavy in her hands. Behind her, Mendel whined. "It's okay, baby," she said. "It's alright." She'd done it. Now all she needed was a power source. She got up, and that was when she noticed the changes, the rustling of her long half-skirt. Now she was as far up the scale of rank as her past self had ever gotten; she wasn't sure she liked the feeling. Especially not now. Mistral sat back down. What the hell was she supposed to do about this? She couldn't go back down there. No. She'd leave them be. Mistral picked up the device piece and put it across her thighs, started to take it apart again. Now that she knew she could do it, perhaps it was time to investigate its function.
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Posted: Sun Jul 27, 2014 4:02 pm
Mimisbrunnr was silent and somber on the approach to Babylon. It was cold, but she barely noticed, and she wasn't sure if she was well-insulated in her uniform, or if the cold ache in her chest was just preventing her from noticing the environment.
Chatter seemed out of place, particularly for someone who was shy anyway. She was surrounded by unhappy people, and she worried that to speak would be to encourage more anger. So the Mercury Page wrapped her arms around herself and trudged up the mountain, focused on getting up there and not much else.
She might have better appreciated the beauty of the planet - her planet, in a way, or at least a planet on which she had a small stake in a small piece - if she wasn't so damn sad about everything that had happened.
The inside of Babylon was warm, and welcoming, and she could at least appreciate that. Once she got inside, she took a seat at the table and pulled down her mask, taking a deep breath.
"I'll take a glass," she said, softly, pulling off her goggles and wiping them desperately on the cloth arm of her uniform before she returned them to her face.
She felt tears shimmering at the corners of her eyes, as they read out the names of the dead.
Nine.
Nine had died on the floors of Mistral's labyrinth. Two with them, seven on the floor above. The horror of it sank into her stomach and settled, and it was a physical effort for Mimisbrunnr not to cry.
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Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2014 9:01 am
So many names. So many dead. The others, the ones that had died on Level Six... had they been happily unawares, like sweet little Degrasse? Had they been worried and brave, like pretty Cove? Had they all died screaming? Had some of them died fighting for all they had? Had others died so quickly that they never knew it at all? Had they tried to escape? Had they looked for help? Had they -- Hvergelmir downed her glass in one long set of swallows, then reached for the bottle to be passed around again. The wine settled hot in her stomach, driving a few of her shivers away. She didn't usually drink. That should make this easy. "I saw someone die once before this," she admitted, her eyes trained on the wine she was pouring into her glass. "I met this corrupted senshi, her name was Sailor Ate. And he was unconscious, and I was -- you know, I tried to talk her down from killing him, but she didn't listen. She wasn't interested. And there was all this smoke, and I screwed up -- I forgot to cover up his mouth and nose so he wouldn't breathe it in -- and he, uh, he didn't make it. I left him there in a pile of trash. I still see his face sometimes. I dream about it. It's like it's always there, like if I turn a corner, I might find him there, waiting, dead. Do you . . . Am I the only one? Is it always like that?" She didn't know who she was asking. Everyone. Anyone. Hvergelmir just wanted to know that she wasn't alone in the shadows and the smells and the quiet, quiet coughs that sometimes haunted her. That other people struggled too, and maybe she wasn't struggling alone.
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Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2014 10:21 am
Kairatos opened his mouth to speak on the matter, than shut it again, frowning at his cup. It didn't get better. If anything he rather thought it had gotten harder. If you lost sight of the fact that the people dying were actually people, not some marching doll you dismissed under the vague umbrella of 'soldier', then maybe it was easier. But maybe it shouldn't be. If you lost sight of that... what did you have?
He didn't remember the parts of him that had been 'just' human. It felt awkward, uncomfortable, and alien, and he was coming to terms with the fact that while it was an acceptable loss, it was still a loss.
"Dunno." he finally managed, in response to Hvergelmir. "Maybe, but I imagine it comes with a damn steep price."
Didn't everything at the moment?
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