Luciano heard what Nariana had said, and he was going to consider it. . But then he had an idea, "I think I know someone who can help us find him. . But they're currently in Gambino. But this person knows where everyone is, as it is their job to know. They worked for me as an informant for many years. . We'll go there, and they will take us to Koji's location." Luciano couldn't believe that things with his team had fallen apart. . But right now he couldn't focus on these feelings of self-loathing, as he had a job to do. He steppd on the gas and took the road leading to Gambino.
Meanwhile, At the Crozier Mansion. . .
At the Crozier Mansion there was a charity banquet being held. Most of Gaia's celebrities, and politician's were there eating, drinking, and mingling with friends and family. While people seemed to be caught up in their own small world, Beverly stood alone across the room just watching the people interact with each other. In one hand was a glass of wine, which she sipped on occasion. Drinking wasn't something she did, but tonight she thought she would do so that way she didn't seem so out of place. She didn't look too out of place, but she felt it. Beverly didn't know any of these people, and she didn't know what they were about at all. She sighed and took a small sip, then she heard a familiar voice- A voice she had been longing to hear all night, "More wine, Miss Beverly?" Beverly didn't look at him, but a smile crossed her face and she replied, "You can clearly see that my glass still has wine in it, Sir." "Oh, I know. I just wanted to look like I was doing my job, is all. . ." Beverly smiled and took a sip, Andrew looked around to make sure nobody was paying attention before he stepped closer to Beverly. Without looking down at her, but turning his head just a slight bit towards her direction, he said, "So, how are you holding up?. . I know these things make you uncomfortable." Beverly softly exhaled and replied, "I'm managing it nicely. . I just don't know what I'm doing here. ." Andrew nodded, "I understand. ." The two stood in silence for a moment, just glancing at the crowd of well-dressed folk. Beverly turned a slight bit towards Andrew and she said, ". . . I missed you today. ." Andrew smiled a bit and replied, "And I you, as well. . But you'll see me later. I promise." Beverly bit her lip and said to him, ". . Can't you sneak away for just a moment?- I won't keep you away for long. I just wanted to be in your arms for a little while. ." Andrew kept his smile and while nobody was looking he took her hand into his and he said, "Just a little longer here. . You'll be in my arms soon. Just a little while longer. ." Beverly closed her eyes, "That's such a long time from now, though. . " "Beverly. . I don't want what happened last time to happen again. . We nearly got caught last time. . Please? Just a little while longer. I promise it won't be too long." Beverly softly nodded. Across the room Andrew saw someone's glass was empty, he sighed then he said, "I have to get to work now. . I'll come by later, alright?- Wait for me?" "Yes. . Always. ." Andrew looked down at her, he intertwined his fingers with hers and then he whispered, ". . I will miss you. . I mean it." Beverly smiled and gently squeezed his hand. Andrew hesitantly let go then made his way over to the woman with an empty glass, he handed her a glass off of his serving tray. She uttered a quick 'Thank you' and then went back to talking to whoever she was talking to. Andrew rushed over to someone else with an empty glass, and so on. Beverly sighed, watching him work always made her both happy yet so sad. Happy because he was good at what he did, and sad because nobody else appreciated it as much as she did. She took a sip of her wine, which she was tempted to dump out just so he would come back to her. . The thought made her giggle a little bit. But she wasn't going to go through with it, though. Instead, she got out of her corner to go stand outside on the balcony.
Posted: Sat Jul 06, 2013 8:15 am
This was quickly becoming a blind chase. Nari said nothing for a few minutes, thinking this through as calmly as possible-- which was not very successful. 'Gambino? That's at least an hour away! We're not even trying to cover the area in a systematic approach... And how could this person possibly know where Koji and Twi went if they hopped through a portal? I don't believe this person can help. We're just going to lose time without a pinpointed location... Why hasn't Sabe spoken up? Does he not want to find Koji? No, that's not it. Or is he trying to be spiteful? Maybe; he is pretty spineless at times. Or perhaps he's just saving his sorry a-s because he knows something! Why wouldn't he tell me what he and Twi talked about earlier?... You know what? Let's not ask anymore questions. How about I just get my answers right now,', Nari thought extremely annoyed.
Glaring at Sabe's reflection in the rearview mirror, she said in a surprisingly calm tone, "Luciano, do you want a real informant? Why don't you talk to Sabe a little more? He's been awfully quiet. I have a feeling he's trying to remember something vital he's forgotten to let you know..." Whatever his intentions, he was going to have to speak up soon.
Luciano kept driving towards Gambino as Nari talked. 'What?' Luciano thought, 'What would Sabe know?- What didn't he tell me?. . . He has been pretty quiet, hasn't he?' He kept his eye on the road for a little while before looking up at the rear view mirror, "What's Nariana talking about, Sabe?"
Posted: Sat Jul 06, 2013 2:38 pm
When he heard his name, Sabe was nudged out of his haze. He glanced at the rear-view mirror to see two faces staring back at him...yet their voices were eerily calm. It took a while for him to understand what they were asking for, though in this context anyone would think he was stalling for time. For what, nobody knew.
"I heard he's approaching town from the east, coming from the Zen Gardens," he said, "I thought Nariana overheard the same conversation; she was right nearby. Apparently not."
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Posted: Sat Jul 06, 2013 5:45 pm
'He's still not telling all... Oh, we're going to get it all out in the open now,' Nari thought, aggravated at Sabe's omission. "Apparently not, Sabe. You never spoke to me about this, remember? So who were you talking to then?" Nari said calmly at first, hissing slightly at the last question as she continued to glare at him through the mirror.
Posted: Sat Jul 06, 2013 7:57 pm
Sabe took his gaze off the rear view mirror and turned directly to Nariana, with a gleam in his eye and the smallest imaginable smirk. He mouthed six words to her then nodded, though much of it was muddled: 'kp t p nd yr dd'.
Not turning his head around for anything, he gave her an answer. Not a proper answer, but an answer nonetheless. Who else would have an idea of where Koji is? You stupid c**t. Of course, you'd rather kill first and ask questions later. Thank goodness I stepped in when I did, otherwise we would be in this car all day and you couldn't go out and carry out your secret plan."
He paused for a moment, then his smirk turned into a grin as his eyes narrowed. 'your move', he mouthed again, this time perfectly understandable.
"WHAT?!!!!" Luciano suddenly shoved his foot down on the breaks and swerved the car off to the side of the road. Then he shouted at the top of his lungs "BOTH OF YOU SHUT THE ******** UP!! RIGHT NOW!!!" He sat there for a moment, breathing heavily. They were keeping secrets from him it turns out, and he did NOT like it one bit. . At this point, they were just as guilty of betrayal as Twi was. But Luciano couldn't afford to lose anyone else. But Luciano was losing his cool very fast, he growled at the both of them "Give me one good ******** reason why I shouldn't drop you off HERE to ******** WALK back to Durem. One good ******** reason!!" He looked at the both of them, "Because I refuse to be seen with TRAITORS. So give me a reason. A good ******** reason!!! NOW!!!!"
Posted: Sun Jul 07, 2013 8:09 am
Sabe was dead in Nariana's eyes at the moment. Absolutely dead. If she hadn't needed time to cover herself with a lie, she would have figured out a way to kill Sabe on the spot.
But Luciano's outburst was a little unwarranted; he still didn't know the full story. If he did, he'd know that neither of them were traitors-- she hated being called that. It stung, and it only made her angrier. Unfortunately, Luc couldn't know her plan yet, especially with his one-track mind. He'd slow the plan down, and she really didn't want to deal with anymore unnecessary arguments or objections. So she'd give him a hopefully believable story with some traces of the truth. A businesswoman knows how to cover her footsteps.
A bit gutsy, Nariana stood her ground. She looked Luciano in the eyes and hissed as she pointed to him, "You know why we keep stuff from you? Because we know you! We know how one-sided you are, and we can't stand it! We originally agreed not to tell you because if we did, you'd probably forget about Koji and hunt down Twilight without a second thought!" This was mostly true. She and Sabe never explicitly said why they kept silent, but this was a decent reason for now. Nari was going to try and put a guilt trip on Luc before the end of this speech. Placing the hand pointing in the air like a 'stop', she continued, "And don't try to convince me of otherwise! Everyone knows who hates him the most! And my 'secret plan'?" -- her icy stare made its way to Sabe, warning him to go with it or die-- "Since I hate Twi and Sabe didn't let me finish whooping his a-s earlier for a decent reason--" she was defending Sabe for the moment to lull Luc's nerves and nothing more-- "I was going to stay in Durem tonight and hunt him down, so you, the leader could focus on the bigger picture, regrouping and finding Koji with no distractions!" The reason for staying in Durem was a lie, but she couldn't tell him the truth on that. But if she had the chance, she would happily track down Twi. "So before you know the whole story, DON'T CALL ME A TRAITOR.... I'll see you at HQ. Don't bother to stop me," she concluded before unbuckling her seatbelt and getting out of the car.
She was mad, but she wasn't so mad at Luc that she really felt the need to leave. It was for dramatics, and she didn't want to discuss this any further. Plus, she could get to Emilio this way. She gave Sabe somewhat of an alibi, though he didn't deserve any help at all. If he stayed with Luc, she hoped he would shut up and say no more about the matter today. She also hoped her little monologue would give Luc some things to reconsider.
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Posted: Sun Jul 07, 2013 7:16 pm
The sudden movements of the car tossed Sabe around almost like a ragdoll held back by strings. Whatever smirk he had before was wiped clean off his face and his thoughts had scattered away, likely never to surface again.
While Nariana went on in her crafty monologue like a truly charismatic executive, Sabe had absolutely nothing going for him. The only thing coming out of his mouth was absolutely terrified blubbering and gibberish. It wasn't so much fuss about the walking home as it was because he just made an enemy of someone who he considered his only close friend here in all of Gaia. All because he tried to get back at Nariana for essentially throwing him under the bus when her own plan failed miserably due to a fault of her own. He learned this lesson for the second time today: he shouldn't try to stand up for himself anymore as it only landed him into more trouble.
Posted: Mon Jul 08, 2013 1:20 am
Luciano wasn't about to stop her. He got all the proof he needed from her behaviour. Luciano didn't bother clenched his jaw, and said to Sabe, "Are you a traitor, too? Or are you going to tell me what I want to know?- and don't lie to me." Luciano's plan was well-thought out in his head. Taking bullshit wasn't part of it. He took a deep breath and waited for Sabe's answer, almost afraid of what was about to be said. But he knew he could handle it. In the rear view mirror he could see Nariana walking away. All of what he had just seen and heard was a lie. He knew it. People didn't realize that part of his training was learning how to be a great liar, and only a great liar could spot a perfect lie. Luciano could've called her out on it, but no. . he wouldn't. The guilt would eat away at her eventually, and then she would have to confess. It happens all the time. While Luciano awaited Sabe's answer, he was flashing back to all of the times someone has ever lied to him and remembering that Michelle never did that to him. . His chest clenched just remembering her. And he wished that he hadn't now. This was a bad time to be emotional about anything- He needed to focus.
A few minutes seemed like forever as Sabe tried to pull himself together. One tiny mistake is all it takes for this to go from bad to worse. Yet he could not shake off the feeling that he would be dead no matter what he did; if not at Luciano's hands, then at Nariana's. He partly did want to die right now, if only to escape the problems he had to put up with recently, but he was too cowardly...or hesitant...to pull out his knife and end it right there; it was too final of a choice.
"...you think I'm one already," he finally spoke, "so..."
He took of his scarf, folded it with a respect that looked odd for just a piece of cloth, and tossed it over the front passenger seat, where it landed hanging off the dashboard.
"Why haven't you killed me yet?"
Posted: Mon Jul 08, 2013 8:09 pm
'He didn't try to stop me... He didn't say anything... Is that bad?... Nah, I must have done okay... Or did I?... What if he really thinks I'm a traitor?... Should I still stay at HQ?... Okay, let's say Luciano hates me like Twi... Can I really trust Sabe?... Obviously not after today... But who else do I have?... F-ck, I don't know how this happened...' Endless thoughts like these plagued Nari as soon as she felt she was out of earshot. She trudged down the highway's side road and swore under her breath every few seconds. This was not the plan. This was not supposed to happen. How did two people suddenly seem like enemies so quickly?
After several minutes of aimless walking in the direction the group originally came, Nari snapped out of her gloomy reverie long enough to realize that she had a cell phone. "Max..." she mumbled to herself before pulling it out and dialing her only true friend's number. "Hello? Is that really you?" a male voice was heard through the device, clearly surprised. "Yeah... You know the exit that takes you out of Durem? There's a gas station there. Come get me, please," Nari responded, somewhat meekly despite the anxiety and raging emotions she felt on the inside. "Is everything okay?" Max asked cautiously. A long sigh was heard before Nari answered, "No, just please come." And with that curt conversation finished, Nari made her way to the tiny gas station, still about a quarter of a mile away.
spoiler content is extra, not necessary. I was in an artsy mood. Also, the dream comic was big so I separated it into 3 sections. Don't ask why I used Deadric letters... it sounded like a good idea at the time. (I included translations sorry)
I Sinistro I
Koji left the shrine at the Zen Gardens, head pouding though he had insisted to Twi that he was alright. He couldn't remember the last time using his powers had caused such problems. Ever since their time travel adventure, it hadn't been working properly. Was it a side-effect of the device that sent them through time? Maybe he had unintentionally changed something in his past that reduced his powers limits? Then again, it could always just be psychosomatic from experiencing his brother's death again. None of this was on Koji's mind as he trudged his way out of the gardens. The sun was not agreeing with his current condition and the conversation he left on just made his head hurt even more. By the time he made it to Barton, he was drenched in sweat and his hair was plastered to his forehead and cheeks, no matter how frequently he pushed it aside. He hopped on a bus back to Durem, hoping he would have some kind of plan on what to tell the others by then. His mind fought to think up a plan, but the relief of being out of the sun soon took over and put him to sleep...
For ******** sake, Koji... ...I'm HELPING!
Don't you want revenge?
After everything they did to us... and you're going to try and stop me?
Koji regained consciousness with a shortness of breath. After taking a few second to calm down, he realized that there weren't many people left on the bus. He had missed his stop. The nightmare was still slightly rattling his mind as he got off and it took him a little while to register where he was. When the bus pulled away, he realized he was across the street from Salon Durem. "s**t.. " He whispered. "Well, at least I've got a little more time to think up a story for Luciano." The matted tufts of hair falling in his face got in his eye and he pushed it back in aggravation. '...I guess a little extra time wouldn't hurt.' He thought, then doubled back across the street to the salon.
It was around sundown by the time Koji was close HQ. He had let one of the interns at the salon talk him into some almost mohawk hairstyle which he was positive only happened because she accidentally shaved too far and needed an excuse for it. Regardless, there was less to deal with so he was fine with it.
[x] [shut up this was a perfectly valid excuse to change his hair]
And, even after all the time he had spent putting it off, he still couldn't think of any way to explain what was going on to Luciano. He was only a couple blocks away when he heard a car screeching into movement. His head popped up and caught sight of the car just as it was getting ready to pass by. Inside was Luciano.. and he did not look happy. "...s**t."
Posted: Sun Jul 14, 2013 1:51 pm
Luciano's reaction to Sabe was a simple shake of his head. He had zero patience for things like this, and he wasn't about to deal with it. Dealing with Nari was one thing, but to deal with someone who couldn't give him a simple answer was another. Maybe Waffle ******** him up too badly that Sabe really was incapable of giving him a straight answer. Luciano started up the car again and mumbled, "What the ******** am I? A Babysitter?" And drove off to Gambino. Finding the Informant wasn't easy, it was a troublesome time, but once they found her she told Luciano everything he needed to know and everything his group was doing. . And he did not like it one bit. Luciano got her to come back to Durem with him to help his group find his people. Two blocks away from HQ Luciano could see a man, who he eventually found was Koji, just arriving. Luciano pulled up to the garage of HQ, "I told you he would be here," "I will handle this." Luciano got out of the car and approached Koji. The man clearly looked like hell, but otherwise he looked fine. Lucky for Koji, Luciano wasn't as angry as he was earlier, and with the informant now working with the group things should be easier. Luciano stood up straight and asked Koji, "Where have you been?"
The question only earned Sabe scorn for being utterly ridiculous. He had his scarf tossed back at him and was ordered to get out of the car. He did exactly as he was told, and now had to get back to Durem on foot. The buses running between towns didn't stop on the side of major roads to pick up hopelessly lost pedestrians, let alone for any cheap prices.
Sabe crossed the road to the southbound side when it was completely empty. As he walked toward Durem he couldn't help but think at least once about jumping in front of a zooming semi or bus to explode into a cloud of gore and giblets, but he couldn't bring himself to act on that thought yet.
It took him hours before he finally made it to dark elf territory in Durem, but he had stopped by a park and sat down on a bench to rest his sore legs that felt like stone by now.
