EVENT: HERE THERE BE MONSTERS

[initiatesnpc]

Date & Time: October 24 - October 31
Location: Throughout Exsilium
Characters: ALL; tag yourselves in
Summary: The Transports return from their mission to find the island crawling with monsters.
Warnings: Violence, possibly injuries (notify a mod if there's cause to add a particular warning!)

The Transports return from their mission to Medieval Russia, but the Initiative Hold is eerily deserted. Normally, their would be a number of Initiative personnel prepared to meet the Transports at the end of their mission for debriefing.

Instead, there is only silence.

That is, until a distant thumping sound can be heard. It is growing closer, and suddenly the beast is bursting into the room. It lets out a roar and charges. Within minutes, it is easily defeated, but damage has already been done -- it collided with the Transporter machine, which is now making a low fizzling sound and lets off a couple sparks. The commotion is enough to draw the attention of the few remaining Initiative personnel who still inhabit the Hold, who arrive immediately afterwards. They are able to tell the Transports two things: that the machine is broken and currently unable to sent anyone back in time, and that the island has been overrun with aggressive, mutated beasts sent by the United Earth. They have been under siege for months, with the island's population reduced to a mere fraction of what it had once been.

Comments

[onblackwings]

Very good. [ Says the chaotic evil black dragon. But to be fair, she hasn't actually ever had the opportunity to keep any promises yet. ] Provided I have the right motivation, of course.

[strategic_guile]

[He gives her this look; a mix of his usual amusement along with a head tilt and an appraising look.] I'll believe that, at least. 'The right motivation.'

[Back to his slight smile.] Owe me a favor in exchange?

[onblackwings]

Alright.

[ There's not nearly enough of a pause there for her to be putting any real thought into owing someone a favor. If it's not a favor close at hand, then it's practically like it's free, and she certainly looks pleased enough about it. ]

[strategic_guile]

[He snorts a laugh because he knows it will probably be a wash for him in the end. No one agreed to a favor with no stipulations unless they had no intentions of doing what was asked of them if it didn't suit them. Or they were naive. He's not sure which she is. Either way, he holds out a hand to her for a shake, curious to see if she'll even know what to do with it.] Then it's a deal.

[onblackwings]

[ She stares at his hand for a second, but reaches out to take it, seeming to know what to do with a handshake. She hasn't, however, seen them used as anything but an introduction, so she's looking a little bewildered just now. ]

[strategic_guile]

[Finishes the shake and retracts his hand before he asks]

What are you really? [He has to ask, because he's not sure if human culture can be so different that he gets weird looks for things like bread and utensils.]

[onblackwings]

[ What. Hey now. That's not a question she likes. She blinks to hear it, then frowns. ]

What do you mean?

[ You mean her human disguise isn't flawless?? ]

[strategic_guile]

[Oh, her body is flawless, her mannerisms... not so much. If she said she was an alien he'd believe it, but he says the next thing as a statement.] You're not human.

[onblackwings]

[ Her frown darkens, but... it would be pretty futile to try to deny it at this point, wouldn't it? She casts a glance around, then leans in to speak in a lower tone. ]

Why do you think that?

[ Cuz she's totally gonna be taking notes. ]

[strategic_guile]

[Oh, good. He was right and wasn't just assuming that because she shifted into a cat she wasn't human. Or shifted from a cat to a human? Whatever.]

You act strangely sometimes. [Slight held tilt, like he's regarding her.] Your mannerisms are off.

[onblackwings]

Strangely how. [ Barely veiled annoyance there, which she gives into with a frustrated sigh. ] Humans are so picky about their interactions.

[strategic_guile]

What do you mean by picky? I'm still talking to you, aren't I? [He looks around and goes to find a place for him to sit and sprawl; the couch she had been sitting on as a cat would do]

Come on, sit. [He waves her forward, but it looks a lot more like he's waving her to sit in his lap than next to her, though his face shows no hints of slyness.]

[onblackwings]

[ She notices that odd discrepancy, and isn't entirely sure why he'd offer a lap when there's an entire couch. She looks confused gain for a few seconds, but after a moment takes a seat a cushion away from him. ]

Answer my question.

[strategic_guile]

[Partially because he's teasing her and he's also giving her a direct example.] Just now, you were confused. Why?

[onblackwings]

[ The prepared hostility fades a little when she realizes this is a lesson. She's had long, frustrating experience with getting into the proper mindset for lessons, and has come to the reluctant conclusion that it never works to be annoyed at them. So she collects herself, and answers as honestly as she can. ]

It looked like you meant for me to sit on you. But that wouldn't make sense, when there's all this room here. Did I misunderstand?

[strategic_guile]

You have a very attractive female body that is naked under my coat. [He says it plainly and hides the amusement he feels at having to explain this.] Wanting you to sit in my lap is an invitation for things that don't required talking. Most women would have given me a very flat, disapproving, and disgusted look.

[onblackwings]

[ Well, at least she'd known that she was attractive, but the rest of that just barely makes sense. The frown is thoughtful this time, though. ]

Why disapproving?

[strategic_guile]

Because I was inviting them to have sex with me without any proper conversation or any clue to them even being interested. [A pause] If not sex, at least to invade their personal space.

[onblackwings]

Oh. [ ...she knows about that. Kind of. Vaguely?? But more importantly: ] Then you were breaking form in the first place, so it shouldn't be my fault for having been confused.

[strategic_guile]

[He lifts his eyebrows at her.] Some men break form like that because they don't know what a douchebag it makes them. Unless you change into a male body you'll have to deal with those 'breaks in form'.

[onblackwings]

[ "douchebag" what are these words of which you speak. But she's starting to get the gist of this incredibly strange human rule, so she nods. ]

Then... disgust is the human reaction to that. [ Still not really getting that part, but at least she knows it now. ]

[strategic_guile]

Well, anything but confusion. [Here, have some more stuff to confuse you.] If you don't find him attractive at all, stare judgingly at him or look disgusted. You can give him a polite 'fuck off' smile, maybe. I think you'd do well with a smug look. It says, "I know you want to have sex with me but you're beneath me." That holier-than-thou approach suits you.

[Pause] Unless you do want to get close to him, then by all means sit on his lap.

[onblackwings]

[ She's trying to make sense of this, but there's one thing still standing in the way. She tries for a few seconds to figure it out on her own, but nope, just not working. So she glances over again, still with the frown. ]

Are humans really so interested in offspring?

[strategic_guile]

[Blink blink. Oh, well that question answers a lot. A soft smile as he explains.] No, having children doesn't have much to do with this. Having sex feels good, if it's done right.

[onblackwings]

[ She looks a little doubtful about that. The thought had never occurred to her, really — animals don't make it look like much fun. ]

Is it anything like swimming? [ A pause, and then with conviction: ] It can't be as exhilarating as flight.