- Pronouns
- She/They
[x] Equivalent Exchange
Stardust Idols: Another Side
- Thread starter henriettahead
- Start date
- Original Fantasy Action Modern
Calling in Old Friends
henriettahead
Head of HЯ
- Location
- On the screen
- Pronouns
- She/Her
You let out a little sigh as you hold the mask in your hands, and stare into its empty eye sockets. A「Friend」huh? Pausa would count, probably, you've known her for long enough to be one, and she still sends you gifts from time to time, but it's actually been a while since you've both had the time to ah, talk properly. Admittedly it is kind of hard to keep in touch when she's not on the same plane anymore, but well, what could you do? Her last「Vessel」was-maybe summoning her would be a bad idea still? I mean she is more of a client than a 'friend', and that prick Maximoff is probably still rooting out her uh, cults, but. You really did enjoy talking to her, when she was still around, and she's trustworthy enough, or at least, more so than some random stranger, and well, you probably have better things to call in that favor of yours for.
You gently tug the mask bearing John's face off, the smooth latex slowly losing any remaining depth and definition as you pull it free, and set the poor facsimile of the young man's face aside. Your own body shifts slightly in response, seeming to deflate in both height and build as you assume your 'natural' form, leaving you gasping for breath a little by the end of it. That always hurts like hell, changing 'back' that is, feeling your bones crack into place, your muscles twist and reform, losing your head, it's part of the reason why you chose Joanna in the first place, same height, same build.
You find yourself letting out a slight yawn, as you felt a faint sense of drowsiness creep around the edges of your consciousness, no doubt called forth by the late hour, the softness of the bed, and your willingness to stand in an uncomfortable closet for hours earlier. Still, you couldn't go to sleep just yet, not when there was so much to prepare. You needed to prepare a new「Vessel」for Pausa, find a place that sells breadseed poppies and lavender candles during this time of night, and dig around your briefcase for that one notebook where you kept her sym-ugh. You let out another yawn, your body was starting to feel a little heavy now, making it a little hard for you to, well you were going to say 'focus', but even staying upright was a bit.
Optimistic, that's the word, one that you were struggling to recall as you found yourself starting to slump back against the bed. Left to wiggle a little in protest as you let out another yawn, and try vainly to keep yourself awake for just a few more moments, time enough to grab a coffee, or the dinner you missed, to find something, anything to jolt you awake. Your back lands on the bed itself with an unceremonious thump, and you feel your eyes close shut, as your body drags your mind kicking and screaming into a deep and peaceful slumber.
______________________________________
You experience hours of precious, uninterrupted sleep, allowing your untethered mind to wander a little, and get lost in itself. A muddled stream of your thoughts, worries, and the memories of the passing day mixing into a vague approximation of a dream, one potentially of excitement and adventure. You were the heroine, the rightful ruler of your little slice of this black and white world, one of many admittedly, but you had a cunning little plan for that, to obtain something more than a little speck of power, or the love of the eccentric people who called your land home. It was certainly a strange premise to say the least, but unfortunately you found yourself waking up long before the dream could actually get past the opening monologue.
It's odd, you don't feel particularly hungry or thirsty, and you don't hear any alarms going off in the house, or feel your connection to the「Server」go away, but your chest and stomach felt very heavy, as if something weighty was pressing down on it, from above. You open your eyes just a little, and find yourself trying your best not to let out a loud gasp in response to what awaited you. An all too human face made out of soft white porcelain, pointed directly at your face, mounted on a sleek bronze and gold clockwork spider shaped contraption that rested on your body. It had no eyes to speak of, at least, no visible ones, but you could feel it stare intensely at you in search of a response.
It takes a brief moment before you finally decide to.
[] Flail Wildly, Run away: Oh Gods, what the hell, what the fuck, use your free limbs to punt it into the wall and get the hell out of here!.
[] Good Morning Sunshine: Just, try and talk to it, maybe it won't try to kill you immediately?.
[] Pretend to be asleep: It can't study your face for a reaction, if you do nothing for long enough it might go away.
[] Rhapsody: There's no use in panicking, this is very clearly a part of the dream, just say hi and go on with your day.
You gently tug the mask bearing John's face off, the smooth latex slowly losing any remaining depth and definition as you pull it free, and set the poor facsimile of the young man's face aside. Your own body shifts slightly in response, seeming to deflate in both height and build as you assume your 'natural' form, leaving you gasping for breath a little by the end of it. That always hurts like hell, changing 'back' that is, feeling your bones crack into place, your muscles twist and reform, losing your head, it's part of the reason why you chose Joanna in the first place, same height, same build.
You find yourself letting out a slight yawn, as you felt a faint sense of drowsiness creep around the edges of your consciousness, no doubt called forth by the late hour, the softness of the bed, and your willingness to stand in an uncomfortable closet for hours earlier. Still, you couldn't go to sleep just yet, not when there was so much to prepare. You needed to prepare a new「Vessel」for Pausa, find a place that sells breadseed poppies and lavender candles during this time of night, and dig around your briefcase for that one notebook where you kept her sym-ugh. You let out another yawn, your body was starting to feel a little heavy now, making it a little hard for you to, well you were going to say 'focus', but even staying upright was a bit.
Optimistic, that's the word, one that you were struggling to recall as you found yourself starting to slump back against the bed. Left to wiggle a little in protest as you let out another yawn, and try vainly to keep yourself awake for just a few more moments, time enough to grab a coffee, or the dinner you missed, to find something, anything to jolt you awake. Your back lands on the bed itself with an unceremonious thump, and you feel your eyes close shut, as your body drags your mind kicking and screaming into a deep and peaceful slumber.
______________________________________
You experience hours of precious, uninterrupted sleep, allowing your untethered mind to wander a little, and get lost in itself. A muddled stream of your thoughts, worries, and the memories of the passing day mixing into a vague approximation of a dream, one potentially of excitement and adventure. You were the heroine, the rightful ruler of your little slice of this black and white world, one of many admittedly, but you had a cunning little plan for that, to obtain something more than a little speck of power, or the love of the eccentric people who called your land home. It was certainly a strange premise to say the least, but unfortunately you found yourself waking up long before the dream could actually get past the opening monologue.
It's odd, you don't feel particularly hungry or thirsty, and you don't hear any alarms going off in the house, or feel your connection to the「Server」go away, but your chest and stomach felt very heavy, as if something weighty was pressing down on it, from above. You open your eyes just a little, and find yourself trying your best not to let out a loud gasp in response to what awaited you. An all too human face made out of soft white porcelain, pointed directly at your face, mounted on a sleek bronze and gold clockwork spider shaped contraption that rested on your body. It had no eyes to speak of, at least, no visible ones, but you could feel it stare intensely at you in search of a response.
It takes a brief moment before you finally decide to.
[] Flail Wildly, Run away: Oh Gods, what the hell, what the fuck, use your free limbs to punt it into the wall and get the hell out of here!.
[] Good Morning Sunshine: Just, try and talk to it, maybe it won't try to kill you immediately?.
[] Pretend to be asleep: It can't study your face for a reaction, if you do nothing for long enough it might go away.
[] Rhapsody: There's no use in panicking, this is very clearly a part of the dream, just say hi and go on with your day.
- Location
- St. Petersburg
We would recognize our own latex mask if it were wearing it, right?
[x] Rhapsody: There's no use in panicking, this is very clearly a part of the dream, just say hi and go on with your day.
tankdrop24
Tread First into Hell
- Location
- The Center of the Universe: Toronto, Canada
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[x] Rhapsody: There's no use in panicking, this is very clearly a part of the dream, just say hi and go on with your day.
henriettahead
Head of HЯ
- Location
- On the screen
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Yes, you would be able to recognize one of your own masks if the creature was wearing one. It just has a disturbingly human looking face made out of porcelain.
Also sorry for the delay in posting, joined a new D&D game this week, and got caught up in preparing a character and all that.
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Flail Wildly, Run away: Oh Gods, what the hell, what the fuck, use your free limbs to punt it into the wall and get the hell out of here!.
[X] Rhapsody: There's no use in panicking, this is very clearly a part of the dream, just say hi and go on with your day.
Rhapsody
henriettahead
Head of HЯ
- Location
- On the screen
- Pronouns
- She/Her
You blink at the mechanical spider sitting on your chest, only to blink once more as it firmly refuses to go away. The mechanical spider's continuing existence causes you to feel quite a bit of panic at first, until you realize something, something very important. You skipped dinner to hide inside of a high school girl's closet, and you didn't go to sleep so much as unceremoniously passed out last night, but for some strange reason, you don't feel terrible?. You blink again, as your mind hastily creates a link between the surreal sight, and the sheer absurdity of feeling well rested after the night you've had. A dream, yes, this was just another dream, as far as you are aware mechanical spiders don't magically appear on people's chest while they're sleeping, and sleeping on an actual bed for once doesn't magically grant you the ability to not feel terrible when you wake up.
But of course, since you're feeling lucid in a pleasant dream for once, it might be best to enjoy it while it lasts. You can never quite tell how long you have in these things, dream time always has a tenuous connection to real time at best, and who knows how long you had wasted on that other dream. These were the thoughts that ran through your head as you let out a little sigh, and stretched your arms out, your movements causing the mechanical spider to jerk back a little in response. Although it remains silent still, even as you start to get up, and gently push it onto the bed with a curt, "Hello."
It skitters around on one of its many feet to try and face you once more, but by this point you were having none of it. You spare no thought for the mechanical spider itself as you move to sit up on the bed, and start to hurriedly walk off towards the bathroom, hoping against all hope that your mind would simply forget about the creepy little thing if you change the locale quickly enough.
Unfortunately, you find yourself having to slam the bathroom door shut after you spot it trying to skitter inside with you. The satisfying click of lock sliding in place provides a small amount of comfort, until you hear it thump against the door, and feel it shudder a little as several tiny things clack against its surface. "What are you supposed to be? A traumatic experience? One of my old clients? A weird prop in some movie I watched as a kid?," you ask, in a very firm if not overly loud tone of voice, without expecting much of a response.
Your gaze glances over to every nook and cranny of the small bathroom to try and find a way out that wouldn't put you face to face with that thing once more. It takes you a bit to realize that you can't find another way out actually, because for some strange reason, your mind had decided to replicate this specific bathroom as accurately as it could manage. It was almost a perfect copy really, which is a bit strange, considering the fact that you've only been here once before. You hear a slight thunking sound coming from the roof as it finally hits you, your dreaming mind didn't come up with an oddly accurate replica of Joanna's house, you are in Joanna's house, this wasn't a dream. Which would mean that the spider is…
You hear a slight clunk coming from the little vent of sorts placed over the bathroom door, and spot the damned thing pressing up its face against the mesh, seemingly intent on forcing its way inside, finding little difficulty with tearing through the flimsy metal. You yell out a simple, "What the hell do you want from me?," in response, as it tries to find purchase on the wall before it lurches on forward. You were expecting a fight more than a response at this point as you start to move towards the door, but you got one nonetheless, in the form of a tinny, if almost feminine voice saying, "A short conversation, where you will explain what right you had to barge inside of my home, and put my「Aspirant」to sleep."
Well, this was a problem, neither her file, nor your week or so of stalking had even indicated the presence of a「Familiar」, but well, unless it secretly turned out to be her「Patron」as well (Which happens from time to time, some of the「Well Wishers」 are really desperate), the only threat was if it managed to get away, and report you to her associate buddies..
With that in mind, you take another step forward, and.
[] Agree to Parley: Look, it might be a good idea to lower this thing's defenses first, if it wants to talk, let it. All the better to get it within range of your knock out punch.
[] Show it who's boss: Fun fact, you can actually fly, another fun fact, you are very good at punching, and it is conveniently in range. It wants to talk? Sure, it can talk all it wants, after you've made sure that it can't get away.
[] Feign Weakness: Okay, as unlikely as it is, this thing might actually be Joanna's boss, you know, the one granting her powers?. It might be a good idea to hear it out first before you do anything rash…
[] Retreat: Some fun facts about the mechanical spider, you know that it seemingly moves slowly, and you have been able to push it away pretty easily up until now. What all of this means is that is either going really easy on you, or it actually sucks at direct combat. Either way it might be a good idea to just take your high school girl and run, you've got the bag for it anyway.
But of course, since you're feeling lucid in a pleasant dream for once, it might be best to enjoy it while it lasts. You can never quite tell how long you have in these things, dream time always has a tenuous connection to real time at best, and who knows how long you had wasted on that other dream. These were the thoughts that ran through your head as you let out a little sigh, and stretched your arms out, your movements causing the mechanical spider to jerk back a little in response. Although it remains silent still, even as you start to get up, and gently push it onto the bed with a curt, "Hello."
It skitters around on one of its many feet to try and face you once more, but by this point you were having none of it. You spare no thought for the mechanical spider itself as you move to sit up on the bed, and start to hurriedly walk off towards the bathroom, hoping against all hope that your mind would simply forget about the creepy little thing if you change the locale quickly enough.
Unfortunately, you find yourself having to slam the bathroom door shut after you spot it trying to skitter inside with you. The satisfying click of lock sliding in place provides a small amount of comfort, until you hear it thump against the door, and feel it shudder a little as several tiny things clack against its surface. "What are you supposed to be? A traumatic experience? One of my old clients? A weird prop in some movie I watched as a kid?," you ask, in a very firm if not overly loud tone of voice, without expecting much of a response.
Your gaze glances over to every nook and cranny of the small bathroom to try and find a way out that wouldn't put you face to face with that thing once more. It takes you a bit to realize that you can't find another way out actually, because for some strange reason, your mind had decided to replicate this specific bathroom as accurately as it could manage. It was almost a perfect copy really, which is a bit strange, considering the fact that you've only been here once before. You hear a slight thunking sound coming from the roof as it finally hits you, your dreaming mind didn't come up with an oddly accurate replica of Joanna's house, you are in Joanna's house, this wasn't a dream. Which would mean that the spider is…
You hear a slight clunk coming from the little vent of sorts placed over the bathroom door, and spot the damned thing pressing up its face against the mesh, seemingly intent on forcing its way inside, finding little difficulty with tearing through the flimsy metal. You yell out a simple, "What the hell do you want from me?," in response, as it tries to find purchase on the wall before it lurches on forward. You were expecting a fight more than a response at this point as you start to move towards the door, but you got one nonetheless, in the form of a tinny, if almost feminine voice saying, "A short conversation, where you will explain what right you had to barge inside of my home, and put my「Aspirant」to sleep."
Well, this was a problem, neither her file, nor your week or so of stalking had even indicated the presence of a「Familiar」, but well, unless it secretly turned out to be her「Patron」as well (Which happens from time to time, some of the「Well Wishers」 are really desperate), the only threat was if it managed to get away, and report you to her associate buddies..
With that in mind, you take another step forward, and.
[] Agree to Parley: Look, it might be a good idea to lower this thing's defenses first, if it wants to talk, let it. All the better to get it within range of your knock out punch.
[] Show it who's boss: Fun fact, you can actually fly, another fun fact, you are very good at punching, and it is conveniently in range. It wants to talk? Sure, it can talk all it wants, after you've made sure that it can't get away.
[] Feign Weakness: Okay, as unlikely as it is, this thing might actually be Joanna's boss, you know, the one granting her powers?. It might be a good idea to hear it out first before you do anything rash…
[] Retreat: Some fun facts about the mechanical spider, you know that it seemingly moves slowly, and you have been able to push it away pretty easily up until now. What all of this means is that is either going really easy on you, or it actually sucks at direct combat. Either way it might be a good idea to just take your high school girl and run, you've got the bag for it anyway.
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[x] Agree to Parley: Look, it might be a good idea to lower this thing's defenses first, if it wants to talk, let it. All the better to get it within range of your knock out punch.
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Feign Weakness: Okay, as unlikely as it is, this thing might actually be Joanna's boss, you know, the one granting her powers?. It might be a good idea to hear it out first before you do anything rash…
- Location
- St. Petersburg
"be"
[x] Feign Weakness: Okay, as unlikely as it is, this thing might actually be Joanna's boss, you know, the one granting her powers?. It might be a good idea to hear it out first before you do anything rash…
It was waiting for us to wake up. It does seem to want a conversation.
But we should probably look up for ways to prevent it from telling on us in case we don't find common ground.
tankdrop24
Tread First into Hell
- Location
- The Center of the Universe: Toronto, Canada
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Feign Weakness: Okay, as unlikely as it is, this thing might actually be Joanna's boss, you know, the one granting her powers?. It might be a good idea to hear it out first before you do anything rash…
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Feign Weakness: Okay, as unlikely as it is, this thing might actually be Joanna's boss, you know, the one granting her powers?. It might be a good idea to hear it out first before you do anything rash…
- Pronouns
- She/They
[X] Agree to Parley: Look, it might be a good idea to lower this thing's defenses first, if it wants to talk, let it. All the better to get it within range of your knock out punch.
Feign Weakness
henriettahead
Head of HЯ
- Location
- On the screen
- Pronouns
- She/Her
You stare long and hard at the impassive, porcelain face of the mechanical spider, taking a little step back as you try to narrow the wide range of possibilities. The first thing that strikes you is how odd it would look alongside Joanna. Most「Familiars」at least try to appear somewhat natural looking, especially since the few who bother to keep them around these days treat them as little more than glorified, quasi-magical pets for the most part. Granted, you are talking about a highschooler who wields a .50 cal machine gun to battle here, for all you know the woman really does find this damned thing to be 'cute', but the point still stands. Of course, it also seemed a little too intelligent to be the 「Familiar」of such a young and 'inexperienced'「Aspirant」, and there was the matter of how it had managed to remain hidden all this time…
Unfortunately, you don't quite manage to puzzle out its true nature before it finally starts to slide through the little hole it had cut in the wiring. A slight whirr follows its every movement as it ungracefully climbs down to the bathroom door. "Or of course, I could simply dispose of you," it states, as the empty, porcelain face swings up to face you once more. The sight unsettles you a little, but not as much as the lack of information. The spider certainly thinks highly of itself, but the question remained, was it a mere bluff to stall for time, or were you face to face with an actual threat?.
You shift into a more defensive stance as you prepare yourself for the inevitable fight, before you realize something. You're not a thug or an assassin anymore, you're a private detective. That should mean something more than filling in a different box while doing your taxes. You let out a sigh, visibly deflating as you try to not seem ready and willing to try and take the spider downtown. "Alright, fine, you got me, I'd say that I'll come right out, but I think we're well past that." You slowly raise up your hands, a universal gesture of surrender that thankfully enough, still applies for an「Aspirant」like you.
The spider simply stares you at first, a tense moment passing before it finally scuttles towards the bathroom floor. Another cracking sound rings out throughout the room, before you hear its tinny voice say, "A shame, I was expecting more of a fight from The Butcher themself." The spider's response was almost enough to make you grimace, you never liked that name, and this thing seemed to know a little, too much about you. "It's Suspirium now. I figured that trying to fight you would be pointless, so I might as well try to talk this out while I still can."
The spider creeps in a little closer as you speak, closing the distance with a surprising amount of speed. "Flattery will get you nowhere Butcher, only answers. Why have you come here? What is it that you seek?." The spider's porcelain face shifts around a little to better stare up at yours, as it waits for your response, just a little too far away for you to kick the damned thing properly.
[] Explain Yourself: Telling the truth might not be the best idea, but maybe you'll get points for being bold and brash this time around? It's worked before...
[] Inner Politician: You're not here to answer it's questions, you're here to get answers. Give it fragments of the truth if you must, enough to let you dance around its accusations and avoid letting it in on what you're planning. The less it knows, and the more you know, the better.
[]「Spin」the Nugget: And on that note, why should you even bother with trying to tell the truth? Just tell it what it wants to hear, and try to get it to talk itself hoarse about itself.
[] Well You See, I Actually Came Here to KICK YOUR ASS: What? It's within kicking range.
Unfortunately, you don't quite manage to puzzle out its true nature before it finally starts to slide through the little hole it had cut in the wiring. A slight whirr follows its every movement as it ungracefully climbs down to the bathroom door. "Or of course, I could simply dispose of you," it states, as the empty, porcelain face swings up to face you once more. The sight unsettles you a little, but not as much as the lack of information. The spider certainly thinks highly of itself, but the question remained, was it a mere bluff to stall for time, or were you face to face with an actual threat?.
You shift into a more defensive stance as you prepare yourself for the inevitable fight, before you realize something. You're not a thug or an assassin anymore, you're a private detective. That should mean something more than filling in a different box while doing your taxes. You let out a sigh, visibly deflating as you try to not seem ready and willing to try and take the spider downtown. "Alright, fine, you got me, I'd say that I'll come right out, but I think we're well past that." You slowly raise up your hands, a universal gesture of surrender that thankfully enough, still applies for an「Aspirant」like you.
The spider simply stares you at first, a tense moment passing before it finally scuttles towards the bathroom floor. Another cracking sound rings out throughout the room, before you hear its tinny voice say, "A shame, I was expecting more of a fight from The Butcher themself." The spider's response was almost enough to make you grimace, you never liked that name, and this thing seemed to know a little, too much about you. "It's Suspirium now. I figured that trying to fight you would be pointless, so I might as well try to talk this out while I still can."
The spider creeps in a little closer as you speak, closing the distance with a surprising amount of speed. "Flattery will get you nowhere Butcher, only answers. Why have you come here? What is it that you seek?." The spider's porcelain face shifts around a little to better stare up at yours, as it waits for your response, just a little too far away for you to kick the damned thing properly.
[] Explain Yourself: Telling the truth might not be the best idea, but maybe you'll get points for being bold and brash this time around? It's worked before...
[] Inner Politician: You're not here to answer it's questions, you're here to get answers. Give it fragments of the truth if you must, enough to let you dance around its accusations and avoid letting it in on what you're planning. The less it knows, and the more you know, the better.
[]「Spin」the Nugget: And on that note, why should you even bother with trying to tell the truth? Just tell it what it wants to hear, and try to get it to talk itself hoarse about itself.
[] Well You See, I Actually Came Here to KICK YOUR ASS: What? It's within kicking range.
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Explain Yourself: Telling the truth might not be the best idea, but maybe you'll get points for being bold and brash this time around? It's worked before...
[x] Explain Yourself: Telling the truth might not be the best idea, but maybe you'll get points for being bold and brash this time around? It's worked before...
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Explain Yourself: Telling the truth might not be the best idea, but maybe you'll get points for being bold and brash this time around? It's worked before...
tankdrop24
Tread First into Hell
- Location
- The Center of the Universe: Toronto, Canada
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Explain Yourself: Telling the truth might not be the best idea, but maybe you'll get points for being bold and brash this time around? It's worked before...
henriettahead
Head of HЯ
- Location
- On the screen
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Sorry for not keeping to the schedule all that well, inspiration comes and goes when it wants unfortunately, and I still have the other Stardust to run. It also occurs to me that I should write more about what Suspirium actually looks like, and what their capabilities are in a fight and out of it, but I've been waiting for an opportune IC moment. Dumping their character sheet wholesale seems a little blase.
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