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Buffy's usual modus operandum for interacting with people went something like this: He would start talking, strike up a conversation with someone, talk their face off, get them talking, back and forth, letting them catch his enthusiasm. Then gradually he would taper off, until the other person was doing all the talking, essentially spilling their life story at him, revealing tidbits of information that they wouldn't normally tell anyone, but hey, he seemed like a good guy, feels like I've known him forever.

And all he had to do was listen, and gather it all in. He was very very good at listening.

So when Mime started off on the tour, Buffy -- no, Morganite, he'd have to remember -- fell in near the front of the little group of recruits and listened his heart out, smiling pleasantly the entire time. As she touted the purpose of the Foundation and nodded at him and the man called Spinel, destined for "communications, advancement, and acquisitions", he turned a dazzling grin on the other man, but didn't interrupt Mime's little spiel. He'd have to chat this good-looking charmer up a bit, find out more about his co-worker.

They made their way up the grand staircase to the second floor, with Mime pointing out the ameneties for employees. The usual items for a large corporation: gym, cafeteria, lounge, even a business center. Morganite nodded, carefully noting the location of everything for future reference. Then Mime became distracted by a small device and announced it was time to meet the Boss and collect... uniforms? In the Armory? Uniforms weren't much of a surprise, some corporations required them, but... What did they need with an armory? Curiouser and curiouser....

Despite all the questions he had, Morganite let the others go first (and there was Spinel with a question, good man), then shook his head and smiled. "No ma'am, no questions from me." He figured answers to at least some of his questions would be revealed sooner rather than later. The answers to Spinel's questions, too.

He couldn't wait.

The elevator opened to a stark hallway with black, tile floors and dark walls lit with strips of light running along the floors and ceiling and large, circular lights overhead. The woman lead them out of the elevator and into the corridor, nothing at all ominous about the way the elevator doors closed behind the last person off, the seams of where the door had been all but disappearing into the wall save for the panel that could be used to call the elevator back. When they reached a split at the end of the hall she turned right, rounding the curve in the wall towards the glass doors that opened into the Armory.

The room designated as the Armory was almost what one might have expected of something baring that name. An array of weaponry graced one wall, back-lit in its casing by the same white light that had guided their progress down the hall. From a distance and at first glance they all seemed rather impressive, but on further investigation one would find that they were all training variants of the real thing from an assortment of swords to knives, axes, staves, clubs and even a bow displayed with training arrows and a sling. The center wall displayed four manequins each wearing a different combination of uniform pieces with a choice of long or short sleeves, pants or a professional-length pencil skirt. It all looked very standard, but next to the weapons something made it feel more like a 'military issue' situation, more so given the swatches of fabric displaying color options beneath it. The remaining wall of the three towards the back of the room housed a collection of stones and crystals, minerals behind a glass case waiting to be assigned...

And in the center of the room stood a man, the cut of his suit tailored well to his frame, leaving him enough room for movement of his broad shoulders to convey ease as opposed to pulling too tight. He was tall and it was clear from his posture as he straightened from where he'd set the last of five talismans down on the black table before him that he didn't shy away the imposing aura of his physique. He was a busy man, all in all, and while this part of the process was necessary he was looking forward to joining the others out in the field.

"Good evening." He turned to greet them, the light above catching on the earthy green pendant he wore around his neck in place of the tie he hadn't wanted to put on earlier. "Thank you all for joining us here this evening. I would apologize for cutting your tour of the building itself short, but the majority of that can be done during hours of operation. This is what you're all here for, after all." He took a step to the side, making a gesture to the table he'd laid out for them. "This is your future. Preserving history and pressing towards the future is what we do through our day to day efforts. We have brought you here tonight to enlist you in our efforts to preserve Earth. Each and every one of you was selected for your talents and while the majority of those will be put to use for the Foundation the tools that I am here to provide you with will make you better, stronger so that you may serve and protect."

He beckoned Regalite forward first as she looked like the sort who would be good at following orders; a fine example to make for this group of recruits. As she did he turned, plucking a diamond-shaped talisman from the table. He ran his thumb over it, feeling the energy it radiated to make sure one final time that it had been properly charged before passing it over to her. "When you draw on the power from this talisman you are Regalite, defender of Earth. It is imperative that you only call on this power when you are certain that you can do so while keeping your civilian identity safe and never inside this building unless given clearance to do so by your superior officer, understood?" He then plucked one of the communication devices from the table, handing that to her as well. "This is to be kept on you at all times and used for all company communications because it is secure. It is attuned to your talisman, which means that only you will be able to use it."

He drew a teardrop-shaped, red talisman from the table next, calling the first of the two white-haired young men foward to pass it off to him. "When you draw on the power from this talisman you are Spinel, defender of Earth. It is imperative that you only call on this power when you are certain that you can do so while keeping your civilian identity safe and never inside this building unless given clearance to do so by your superior officer, understood?" He then plucked one of the communication devices from the table, passing that off after ensuring it was powered on. "This is to be kept on you at all times and used for all company communications because it is secure. It is attuned to your talisman, which means that only you will be able to use it."

Next came the round, blue talisman as he called forward the young man it belonged to. "When you draw on the power from this talisman you are Apatite, defender of Earth. It is imperative that you only call on this power when you are certain that you can do so while keeping your civilian identity safe and never inside this building unless given clearance to do so by your superior officer, understood?" He then plucked one of the communication devices from the table, passing that off after making sure it was powered on and connected to the network. "This is to be kept on you at all times and used for all company communications because it is secure. It is attuned to your talisman, which means that only you will be able to use it."

Another blue mineral followed as he called the dark-haired woman foward. "When you draw on the power from this talisman you are Lavendulan, defender of Earth. It is imperative that you only call on this power when you are certain that you can do so while keeping your civilian identity safe and never inside this building unless given clearance to do so by your superior officer -- which is more likely than the others, given I believe you have been recruited for our Special Operations and Science is your specialty?" He then plucked one of the communication devices from the table, passing that off after making sure it was powered on and connected to the network. "This is to be kept on you at all times and used for all company communications because it is secure. It is attuned to your talisman, which means that only you will be able to use it."

And last, but certainly not least, he drew the final mineral from the table, calling forth the final recruit. "When you draw on the power from this talisman you are Morganite, defender of Earth. It is imperative that you only call on this power when you are certain that you can do so while keeping your civilian identity safe and never inside this building unless given clearance to do so by your superior officer, understood?" He then drew the last of the communication devices from the table, passing that off after making sure it was powered on and connected to the network. "This is to be kept on you at all times and used for all company communications because it is secure. It is attuned to your talisman, which means that only you will be able to use it."

For all that the words were the same for each of them he made sure that his voice carried the same inflection and importance as well, taking the time and trying to put forth the effort for the connection they didn't really have time for. As each recruit took their talisman they would feel a surge of energy, a tangible transfer of power and a subtle thrum of something as the talisman aclimated to them. He looked like he might have had more to say and likely would have continued on with at least a little more information on this side of their new 'job' had every single communication device in the room not at that very moment made the wretched sound of the high-alert message coming through one final time.

He brought his hand up to pinch at the bridge of his nose, drawing his own com out of the breast pocket of his coat to review the message. Lips pressed into a thin line he read the missive again before stuffing the com away, looking around to those gathered in the Armory with him. "Something's come up and it seems like we'll be handing out the rest of the equipment in the field this evening. If any of you are confident enough that you'd like some first-hand field experience, select a weapon from the wall and come with me. The rest of you... Go home. Mime will see you back to the lobby. You'll receive a communication from your team leads in the morning to follow up on your assignments and they'll be able to answer any questions I obviously cannot because of these noisemakers. "


[ OOC: And that concludes our recruitment RP! We appreciate each of you for taking part in this guided tour and apologize that it was both delayed and cut short. As the Boss said, those interested in getting some Hands-On Experience are welcome to join their fellow soldiers out by the fountain. If you would like to arrive in the company of the dashing gentleman who's just provided you with your talismans please post the following in your post wrapping this role-play:



If you have written at least 500 words in this role-play it will count towards your growth requirements as an ORP! All future role plays started after this date will now count towards your growth requirements HOWEVER those not heading to the field mission will need to obtain the information and equipment (divining shard) through an additional Role Play that will be arranged in the near future! Powered role-play for the Dark Kingdom will be officially unlocked following the completion of the Field Mission.

If you are unable to join us in the field mission please post the following in your post wrapping this role-play:

]

Spinel will be heading to the surface with South Division Leader!

There was an odd sensation creeping over King as he moved with the group onto the elevator and downwards into the depths of the unknown. Maybe in another lifetime, he might have even questioned their host a bit more rather than accept her half answer as the truth.

But not this life time.

The farther they went into the mystery, the more his heart began to race. It thrilled him, excited him in ways he had not expected to be walking into what could only be described as the lion's den. Weapons, though clearly not lethal without a great deal of effort, lined one wall and drew his attention before the collection of rocks at the back of the room drew his eyes. He almost didn't realize he had let out a low whistle seeing it.

It was the man standing there though that caused King to bite his tongue. Something about him told the young man he was not one to be toyed with and best to smile and nod for the moment.

Especially when the simple speach that he appeared to have said so many times began.

Holding his own talisman in his hand as the last three went forward, King found the cool material inviting, welcoming and oddly, comforting. There was something about it above all else that made him smile as he closed his hand around it and nodded. There was much more to this place than meets the eye and he couldn't wait to get started uncovering it.

Oddly, he didn't have to wait long as the devices in their hands flared to life. Glancing down at his own, King realized he had a chance sooner rather than letter.

"Count me in, Sir." He spoke up, looking at their host and then at the man who was also in his division. Maybe he wouldn't be so bad...

"Why waste the evening since we are already here."

He waited until the three who'd spoken up had selected their weapons, sending a response to the communication through to the others waiting for them outside. "Alright, Morganite, Spinel and Regalite, you're with me..." He turned to lead them out of the Armory and back towards the elevator, leaving the others in Mime's care to wrap up their "Orientation" -- or whatever nonsense they were calling it now.


[[ South Division Leader is heading to the surface.

Next post will be here, at which point Morganite, Spinel and Regalite will be able to join the ORP with the others. Consider this RP a wrap!

Apatite and Lavendulan will receive their divining shards and additional information in regards to their use in a future Role Play. If they have any additional questions regarding anything they may ask Mime on the way back up. ]]