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 Posted: Mon Sep 10, 2018 11:55 pm
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amicableAggressor Regina looked around her at the table, and pulled a face. She had decided on this set up just for laughs, and to try something different. A tea party in the rooftop garden. Ha ha ha, only no one had told the party planner that it was a joke. So whoever it was had gone hard. Topiary had been trimmed. More topiary had been brought in, and also mercilessly sheared back into various shapes. Baby grubs frolicing, five feet tall in their leafy glory. There was a frilly tablecloth. There were long side tables with matching clothes. There were ornate cake holders. There were ribbons. Reaching under the table, she adjusted the cushion on the chair. One of the large tassels hanging off it had gotten wedged in her spinal crevice. Eventually, she stood up and chucked the offending seat warmer behind an angelic rendition of a three headed dove in flight, breathing fire. Probably the gardener’s lusus. She settled back in her seat, trying to shut out everything but the door that led down to the stairway, that led down into the hotel. And pulled another face. Well, maybe her guests would get a kick out of this.
purplerosesbeauty A tea party was one of Eostre's wheelhouses, and she was predictably on time for the event, dressed up as expected. She made her way to the roof of the hotel (one of the classiest known places for a tea party), eager for some more time with Regina. It seemed like it was just too long since she last had a face-to-face with the Empress. As she opened the door, she looked at the decor - very fancy, frilly, elegant sort of highblood stuff, that she might have used if she held an event like this. Her brow quirked slightly. Well, maybe she'd nix the topiaries. She resisted the urge to ask who had done her event, and simply greeted the queen. "Regina, fantastic to see you," her voice light as she took a seat beside her.
Sypon Classic Regina, throwing a wonderful party to the clown’s liking. Tamiya was fashionably on time as always, dressed in an enormous gold outfit with shoulders that dwarfed even her horns, and stark purple sandals with wedges that would instantly crush a nutrition chute if stepped upon. In shorter terms, Tamiya was an imposing giant, eyes glittering with fierce excitement about the many whimsical topiaries that she made sure to touch as she passed by. The concept of the garden party looped around like an oroborous of everything Tamiya unironically and fervently believed in. It appeared that Eostre had made an appearance, looking elegant and compact as always. Tamiya took a good while to seat herself in her garb. “Greetings, hoes. Regina, this set-up is some kind of a lacey a** goddamn bigtop treasure island. Messiahs bless you.”
Quote: “Diazzi, sup!” Regina stood as she arrived, sitting back down as the other troll did. Her words had been what triggered the idea of the empress sending the regretful memo for this new meeting setup. Leaning back slightly in her seat, she grinned. “I'm glad you managed to spot me in this so quickly, it sure took me a hot minute to even pick out the table in all this clutter.”As she finished talking, a figure far more attention grabbing then even her own self was unfolded from the doorway. “Oh man, you were just in front of the pack. Hey ya mirthfullness! How's tricks? Have a cup of whatever we got brewing, and enjoy my er, shrubbery.” It figured the ambassador would be into this.
Melancholies Sarcel prided herself on being early, but she supposed she would settle for on time just this once. Between paperwork and setting up Fight Club, her time was a little more on the restricted side. The tea party set up was a little... strange, to say the least. However she had the benefit of following in after Tamiya; it was easily navigable thanks to her large, golden form. Sarcel herself was dressed in her regular military attire--even her jacket was being worn normally! Good job Sarce. "Greetings. Diazzi, Aiguma." She paused, "Empress Marian." Each one earned a nod of acknowledgement as she took a seat. Her face was a mix of ambivalence and confusion as she slowly looked over the grandiose décor.
Quote: “Captain Cincil. Glad you could make it. Take a cookie or a cup or whatever.” Regina eyed Sarcel over, the only one so far visibly unnerved by the entire decor. She felt Diazzi was aware enough to figure something was off with the party, but it was it was nice to at least see one reaction. That wasn’t asking too much, was it? “And that’s all of us -- I’m guessing Vidari will be fashionably late.” She wouldn’t put it past him to be lurking in the street outside, waiting until everyone else had gone in. Shifting in her chair, she crossed a leg. “So, how’ve you all been lately? Up to anything fun? Interesting? I haven’t seen most of you in forever -- what’s the gossip?”
Quote: "Tricks are as everpresent and inescapable as always, Regina." Tamiya noted, "Not to menton the tricks threaded into this... Very... Sybaritic Soiree."The Empress was acting - perhaps not unusually, but impressively droll. Tamiya laced her fingers over a cup of 'brew'. "No particularly hot goss. I am currently pursuing an intelligence lead into the ******** vexatious Phoenix Initiative, and caring for my mirthful brood. There are a number of up and coming honking youths that interest me."
Quote: Eostre nodded to Tamiya and Sarcel as they entered, smiling pleasantly to them with a quiet returned greeting. Good to see Tamiya was as boisterous as always, and Sarce had her coat buttoned. Her brow quirked at the captain Cincil. When had that happened? She swallowed her curiousity to focus on the task at hand. "Since my time at the Violet Knuckles, I've been putting my feelers out, trying to work on some personal projects. Things have been going well with my sergeant's help." She tilted her head slightly. It seemed like most of her peers were doing the same. "Tamiya, if you have an intelligence lead I would like to be informed of it as well, I might be able to offer some assistance to you."
Quote: "It brings me so much goddamn joy to have you as our new rigorous Mole Queen. We will reconverge soon. The manner of... Information requisition has been purr and squeakbeast; Sinter and I have had to bushwack some ******** to appraise the potential operative that has emerged. We are in the wiggler stage, so to speak."She noted. The situation was unorthodox, to be sure. It was a no-brainer for Eostre to be in the loop, of course, once their immediate investigation into their new one-eyed friend played out.
Quote: Regina’s brain churned. Of all the puzzles in life, the tricks and traps, truly the most challenging one was keeping up with Tamiya’s speech while maintaining a straight face. Mole queen. She’d have to work out what oblique reference that was later. “The good ole poop initiative, huh? Nice to hear they still haven’t figured out how to disappear. How ‘bout the space towers? I know I didn’t single anyone out to look into what caused that ********, but technically whoever did that is at least on threat level with those little turdmunchers - if not higher.”Hesitating for only a second, she gave into temptation and reached for a cookie.
Quote: "My sergeant, Moachm and her... kismesis. I think he's Vidari's sergeant, Furore. They've been interested in that mess, but no leads yet." Eostre tapped her cheeks. Something she meant to follow up on.
Quote: Sarcel wasn't sure what was worst between Tamiya's general manner of speech and Regina's referral to criminals as turdmunchers. Still, information gathering and intel wasn't her realm of expertise so she looked to Eostre and Tamiya as Regina slowly laid out conversation topics. She opted out of a fancy cookie for a safer, albeit boring glass of water. That is to say, she produced a bottle of water from her person and poured it into the cup. She was listening patiently.
Quote: Tamiya recalled Furore and Moachm. She made a 'hmm' noise with her mouth. At the same time, she tried to remember Sinter's intelligence from the Space Tower fiasco. Ah! Her notes. Tamiya reached deep, deep into her robes. At last, she procured a small legal notepad. "Heilig's report showed that one Vostok Verier was confronted and taken in for investigation at the scene of one of the new launch sites. He was cited exclaiming structural ********. This was confirmed. He is being heavily monitored. No sign of a confession or evidence against him yet. Investigation still on-going." It was clear that she was reading from the page, save for a single juggalo ad lib.
Quote: Regina's eyes slid from troll to troll as they talked. New names to remember - notes? Oh. "Yeah, Verier had nothin' to do with it. Apart from being incompetent enough to let it happen in the first place - but so was Diacal." She gave the physical version of what humans would know as the shrug kamoji, fully encapsulating the trials of having to sate a panicked and/or bloodthirsty audience whenever things went wrong. “Only difference is his tower went boom and hers didn’t. I figure it might be nice if we get a real criminal before his hunt is scheduled, but I know everyone’s stretched thin these days. So much to do, right?”
Quote: Tamiya didn't particularly care one way or another if Vostok had to run through the woods or not, but she did care about taking a bite out of crime. She took Regina's bait. "I am ready to pursue any and all leads, my pelagic ruler. I will make time. My b***h."
Quote: “Cool, cool cool cool. Excellent. I think I can safely say that one of our goals, in general, is zero military-owned facilities explodin’ per sweep. Minus like. Planned demolitions. Even just taking the time to check places over, yanno, before they’re gonna be used. Establishing a security team, with like, eyes.” Tapping her index fingers on the table, she brought them up to her mouth, frowning in concentration. “Maybe enforcing rules about keepin’ doors locked. Or locked and wired with high voltage electrical currents. Dropping ... cage traps.” Her eyes narrowed in thought as she trailed off, then she straightened up and smiled at the three other highbloods. “Ya feeling me on this? Hey, maybe we could set a trap. It worked once with the PI - did I ever tell any of ya about that?”
Quote: "Security, huh?" Eostre picked up a cup of tea and sipped on it thoughtfully. Security cameras were all well and good, but easily manipulated and often left alone. Easy enough to use no matter whose side you were on. Getting more eyes on board would be useful. She was smart enough to know how to lock, secure and trap a door, as well as disarm traps in most cases. It all reminded her she needed to talk to Hemera again soon. "I don't believe so, Regina. I'd love to hear it," she said.
Quote: "Oh it was great. I planted a false rumor that I was buildin' a new one of those weather ... things, as if the first one wasn't disastrous enough. Then I trapped them all in a room with a giant robot that subdued them and dumped them all in the punishment pits. Managed to cull like, a pretty big bunch of them. But yeah they keep poppin' back up. You really got to get all of them." She sat back in her chair and rolled her eyes. Tamiya would probably get a bigger kick out of the idea than the blueblood, it hadn't exactly been .... elegant. She turned to check Cincil's expression, daring her to look disapproving.
Quote: Sarcel's expression didn't give too much away, although her mouth set into a tiny frown. "That's disappointing." She said quietly as she selected a cookie after a considerable mental debate, "I knew they were disorganized, but their following must be desperate to make such hasty mistakes." Underhanded tactics weren't her preferred method of operating at all, but she couldn't say the PI weren't faultless for playing into it. She bit into the hard cookie with a loud snap, her expression somewhat pensive and calculating as she thought on the matter.
Quote: "That's.... Incredible. Foolish ********, following the weather like leathery tuskfriends on a pilgrimage to nothingness." Tamiya agreed. She shook her head and grabbed a handful of cookies.
Quote: Eostre smiled. It was hard to believe they really would manage to fall for a trap like that, but they were much like vermin skittering into the crevices of a dilapidated hive. She eyed the other women grabbing cookies and reached for one as well, turning it in her hand. "I wonder if they'd fall for another trick like that or if they've wisened up. Will we end up only strengthening them with attempts that don't manage to completely wipe them out?"
Quote: Regina hemmed at the last comment. "I mean ... define strengthen."
Quote: She put the cookie down in front of her. "The few that remain get the chance to learn and solidate their efforts. Become more cautious and aware, and seek to remove what vulnerabilities they have. A squeakbeast that sees another eat the poison isn't apt to do repeat that and all," Eostre said. They had been suspiciously quiet as of late, but that didn't give her any peace of mind that they were gone. She highly doubted that. "Might not strengthen their numbers and have them building an army or what have you in particular, but might allow them to keep slipping past us and doing their business, if that makes sense."
Quote: "Sounds like trying to tempt them in masse is not our popcorn bag. We should capture individual leaders, or insert informants into their ranks." Tamiya said, mouth full of cookies. "Did we not have the horrendous pink heretic in our possession at some point? I do not see how we could not do that again."
Green Minuet "Bya-whatsername? Fat chance of that."A voice drifted up from below. From out of the shadows of the stairwell, Kursha's lanky form appeared. He finished ascending the steps, and strode towards where the others were gathered on the patio. "Sorry, I'm late. Some rabble outside was giving me lip, so I had no choice but to cull 'em. Real shame."The greenblood grabbed the back of a chair, gave it a spin, then flopped down. He leaned back with casual grace, just enough to keep from tipping over. It must have been a practised skill. "Anyway, Akko is probably the last one you'd be able to bait. She's survived this long with that fruity blood of hers, and if it weren't for that sentimental streak she has for the initiative, I doubt she'd even show up on our radar."Never mind that Kursha had once captured her and them promptly released her. Life was funny like that. He glanced around as though only noticing the decor for the first time. "Gotta say, Your Royal Highness, I didn't peg you for a tea party type. When do you wanna go ballroom dancing?"
Quote: Tamiya wrinkled her nose. Kursha feigned not knowing the monstress' name and yet endeared her with a nickname. His entrance wasn't even that dramatic. 5/10.
Quote: In the privacy of her head, Regina added another 'called it' trophy to her wall mounted display stand. "Whenever you're offering to teach, Vidari." The last time she had danced with another troll, it had been Odette. And they had won first place. Smiling, she nodded towards the spread of tea and dainty snacks on the table. "Help yourself to some post cull snacks if ya like, we were just talkin borin old work."
Quote: "Yuck," Tamiya said aloud. "So enticing the mistress of fish-flesh pudding is out. Infiltration, then." She tapped her claws on the table and snapped another cookie in half. "They also have a mother grub at their disposal. Children are weak and fallible. Surely at this point they have some wigglers we could track."
Quote: "Fish-flesh pudding," Kursha repeated, taking a cooking from the closest tray. He crunched down on it. "That's a little insensitive, don't you think, Tam?"
Quote: Regina smiled. "Oh they definately got at least one kid."
Quote: Sarcel slowly ate another cookie.
Quote: "Am I ******** wrong?" Tamiya smiled at Kursha with needle-teeth. She slowly turned her head to face Regina, eyes narrowing with suspicion. "It sounds to my holy spongeclots like... Her honorable grace of the oceanic bigtop knows something. Do we have intelligence on a known child of the rebellion?"
Quote: “Hm?” Regina turned to Tamiya. And raised an eyebrow. “Well there was those mutantblood kids at the party. I doubt they woulda thrown away their only wigglers on a suicide mission like that, right?” She leaned back farther in her seat. "If their recruitment from society's been limited after we chased them out into Gl knows where, they're probably fortifying the only natural way possible. Bangin those buckets together all hours of the night’."Regina steered her mind firmly away from the mutantblood and her posse. “But eh, this isn't what I wanna really talk to you all about. I figure you all focus plenty on the defects of society in your regular workin’ hours.”
Quote: Tamiya tapped her claws on the table. "The silver mutant child was unresponsive. And I executed the gold one. Plus, the hive burnt to the ground." She seemed rather confused, tilting her head and chewing slowly. Fortunately, the idea of 'banging buckets' jarred Tamiya out of her thoughts and into a purely grotesque expression. Out with that train of thought.
Quote: Eostre watched the interactions with a curious eye. She picked her cookie back up and nibble it slowly. Obviously they wouldn't get to the leader of the rebellion, but the idea of them having... wigglers was unnerving. Especially the crude banging buckets comment. She took a sip of tea. They all thought about the rebels plenty, which was why she had been focusing on clearing out betrayers and other criminals trying to organize. "So were you truly just after our hot goss Regina?" Eostre smiled.
Quote: "Ya - "A trolley suddenly burst out of the bushes, followed by a stumbling drone. Wearing a blue knee-length dress with puffy sleeves, apron, hair bow, and polished black shoes with stockings. The decorator hadn’t just stopped at the inanimate objects. Catching themselves in their stumbly fall, the drone brought the tray around to the table and unloaded a new steaming jug of stewed leaf juice, as well as a large cistern of the finest cubed sugars. Regina sat back and gave an eye roll as her view of the other guests was momentarily obscured by the hulking dress and accompanying troll. After the drone finished and hurridly lurched back into the foliage, she straightened up and smiled again. “Ya better believe it. I mean, we got a shitton of paper. Right. With all these facts being written down and sent around. I can figure out how we’re doin’ on the activities front pretty easily by reading a report or twelve.” She crossed one leg over another, and as she did, something faintly sloshed under the table. “What I really wanna do is play a lil’ game.”
Quote: Tamiya perked up and straightened in her chair, concerns forgotten. “I love games.”
Quote: The greenblood was all smiles as Regina announced her intentions. Behind the grin however, he felt his digestive cavity squirm with unease. Regina's games were either asinine, dangerous, or both. His lookstubs slid around the rooftop, from the meeting's participants to the saccharine décor. "Yeah? Who's all playing?" The greenblood mirrored Regina, crossing one leg over the other, albeit without the sloshing. He folded his hands back behind his head.
Quote: Regina smiled back at Tamiya. Bless clowns. Then she shifted to look at Kursha as he spoke. “Well, I guess it’s more of a gamble, than a game. Like, bettin’ on gerbil races. Sorry, I didn’t mean to oversell it. Yeah like .... ” She steepled her fingers thoughtfully. “ .... team buildin’ gambling?”
Quote: Eostre folded her hands in her lap. "What are we betting on?"
Quote: “Yer subordinates.” Her grin got wider.
Quote: “Perfect,” Tamiya whispered.
Quote: What luck. Eostre had absolute faith in her subordinate, knowing Moachm wouldn't dare let her down. "How lovely!"
Quote: Sarcel had long since finished the bottle of water she had brought, and had now taken it upon herself to pout a cup of tea. She gently put one sugar cube into it. And then another. And then another. "And what exactly are we betting on them doing?" There was a tink tink as she tapped her little tea spoon on the side of her glass, and then after a moment she added another cube and resumed stirring.
Quote: “Hm. I guess ... succeeding? How about before we get into that, we do a little exercise.” Even Cincil was playing interested, this was good. Regina felt that this game would be fun. Not only for her, as they always were, but for the rest of the table as well. She pointed at Eostre. “You go first Diazzi. Name three of your subordinates. One who you think has the most potential, one who has performed the best so far, and one who has ... underperformed. Don’t tell us which is which.”
Quote: Eostre crossed her arms. Three? "Well, I only have my sergeant, Hemera Moachm, at the moment. There's quite a few lieutenants I have to compete with for subordinates, and I've been a bit busy to really spend a lot of time personally recruiting when the skill sets I'm looking for... are perhaps a bit more specialized than military grunt."
Quote: "A few?" Regina hemmed. "Wait a tick, you're still a lieutenant? Hm hm hm that won't do. You. And .... " She looked over at Tamiya. " .... you, are now ..." There was a moment of drumming fingers on the table. "Vice-Captains. Brand new military rank, yer welcome. We shouldn't have lieutenants wandering around without direct chains linkin' back to me. Find any that are hangin' around loose and get them under you, sort that s**t out." She shook her head and folded her arms, frowning. "That ain't right at all. How many trolls does everyone else here have?"
Quote: Sarcel ceased stirring, "My corporal, Nahori Caviap. Though I do have a few prospects I'm scouting out." She looked thoughtfully to Eostre, then to Tamiya. Vice-captains, huh?
Quote: "Sergeant Furore and Sergeant B-Bonbon." It was a barely perceptible hesitation.
Quote: Tamiya smiled and bowed her head deeply, nearly touching the table with her horns. “Excellent! This will give me more reach.” She said, thanking the Empress in her own special way. It hadn’t really hit her that Kursha and Sarcel were above her in rank until now, but at least closing the rank a bit satisfied her. Even if she was of more appropriate blood hue for the role of Captain. “Sinter Heilig is under my charge, as well as my mentee Punkie Vielli. I have a personal connection to Odette Cygnet as a subordinate, though she is leaning into her civilian lifestyle as is.” Tamiya waved her hand dismissively. Odette had a duty, she would come to her eventually for an official mission. She could also mention Setlar, but as he was not officially enlisted he was more of a.... contractor. A consultant, perhaps. Hopefully a soon-to-be mole.
Quote: Eostre nodded at the promotion - even if it was a simple change of name not being so far behind Sarce and Kursha was nice. Hopefully it would help her to enlist more trolls under her, and she'd have to see what loose end lieutenants there were she could work with. She tilted her head a little at Tamiya's mention of Odette. "A personal connection, hm?"
Quote: “I saved her.” Tamiya responded, while putting a few sugar cubes in her mouth.
Quote: Kursha kept his face professionally blank.
Quote: Sarcel looked between everyone as she finally took a sip of her now lukewarm, overly sweeten tea.
Quote: "I see," Eostre said, lifting her teacup again. "So we all don't have more than two subordinates directly under us?"
Quote: Regina took the names in, tapping the table. “Hm. I’ve met with Heilig and Bonbon.” And Odette, though not really in the same capacity. Once in a dance, once in a fight, now sliding her around on the media circuit like a pawn on a game board. “The rest, I assume, were at the party. Yeah, we don’t want any rouge Lieutenants wanderin’ around. I know they’re all here for ‘the good of Alternia’, but what they think that is might not line up with the reality of things. Also.”She looked over at Eostre. “I know a troll might not line up with you an’ your personal strengths, but let’s look around this table. You’re all a pretty diverse group, and I got you all under me, and what I bring here might be pretty different from you. Strong leaders got their fingers in more than one pie. Yea?”
Quote: "Of course. I'd simply been looking for trolls who might be interested in pursuing intelligence works, but I can manage anyone," Eostre replied.
Quote: “Excited to take more under my ******** fold.” Tamiya nodded. “Does our current lack of subordinates affect the game, or are we still in this shitshow to win this?”
Quote: "Hm. Hm! Ya caught me, I'm trying to repurpose it now. How about ... we go with trolls overall in the military. Anyone, even serving under another troll at this table. Will that work for you all?" Regina quirked an eyebrow and leaned in.
Quote: Tamiya looked around. “Sure. I will break the frozen swan. Heilig, Vielli, Dromen.”Lieutenant Dromen was not under her command, of course, and technically had Punkie under her (being a juggalo of course and Dromen being a scientist, Tamiya could not have this. Yoink.) But she was a fascinating and productive challenge to tackle. This felt like a game of Pail, Ferry, Cull.
Quote: Eostre thought for a moment. She had some rather limited contact with some military members who interested her, and would have to try to make contact at some point. There were enough names rattling in her thinkpan to make her bets though. "Moachm, Furore and Fyrste, then."She wanted to work more with the public liason lieutenants, and while Diasis interested her with his psionics, she saw something in Fyrste that intrigued her. And Furore... well, he liked her well enough to be at her offices frequently. Her sergeant was of course going to be mentioned.
Quote: Kursha pretended to think. He pursed his lips and looked skywards, as though he would find his answer in the stars. After a moment, he finally spoke. "Hm... Charge, Gorgos, and Cincil." His eyes slid back down towards the blueblood. "Oh wait. My bad. How about Caviap instead?" He offered the blueblood an unrepentant grin.
Quote: “Are you giving up Bonbon? I can take Bonbon then.” Tamiya interjected.
Quote: "Bonbon" rolled off the clown's tongue far too easily. "I was interested in hearing Cincil's assessment," Kursha replied breezily.
Quote: “Then why would you take Caviap.” Tamiya responded, flat. After a pause, she waved her hand. “Whatever. If Bonbon is up for grabs at the end of this, I lay claim to her.
“How do you say. Dibs?”
Quote: Regina's grin was growing as the others talked. If nothing, Vidari and Cincil were, in her private opinion, an adorable black pair.
Quote: Sarcel didn't give Kursha the satisfaction of a glare, "Why wouldn't he." Somehow, she managed to sound less exasperated and more deadpan. "I'll take Sergeant 'B-Bonbon' then, only fair. And... Devile and Diasis."She sat back comfortably in her chair.
Quote: "Ooooh?" Kursha exclaimed with far more intrigue than Sarcel's decision warranted. He lifted his eyebrows. "Interesting choices, Cincil." He turned towards Regina. "How about you, Reggie? Any names you feel like throwing out under the omniscuttlecoach?"
Quote: “Well, my sweet little Kurshie, if I had to, they’d be trolls from this table. And that would just make what I want you guys to do next to be real mean.” Settling back in her seat, she uncrossed her legs and mirrored the gesture with her other leg. Again, something sloshed. “Let’s start with your three nominees first. Everyone else, give your vote. Out of Charge, Gorgos, and Caviap, Which one is the most likely to surpass Captain Vidari, and which one will be discovered first to be a traitor?”
Quote: “My vote is Gorgos for surpassing Vidari.” Tamiya thought a moment. As loyal as she was, Caviap’s low blood status and skittish nature meant an ease of intimidation that Charge might not have. She might fold to terrorist demands in a pinch. Granted, if she had been working closely with Sarcel she might sooner lay down her life. Tamiya didn’t know as much about Charge in comparison. “Charge for traitor.”
Quote: Hm. So the game was like that. Eostre went over the list of names in her head again. She put her hands on the table and leaned forward. "I agree with Tamiya. Gorgos to surpass Kursha, and Charge to be discovered traitor."
Quote: "Indeed." Sarcel was frowning, though, as she agreed with the others. She had faith in all members of the military, and though this was just a thought exercise, she worried about any of this leaving the tea party. "Gorgos for surpassing Vidari, Charge for..." She hesitated, then sighed, "...traitor, I suppose."
Quote: Regina grinned. "Alright. If either of those comes true, I'll pay out one billon beetles, split between all three of you." She swivvled to look at Tamiya. "Now, if ya don't mind, it's Aiguma's turn. Will you be switchin' to Bonbon, or are your current picks satisfactory?"
Quote: "Cincil grabbed Bonbon; I am satisfied with my first choices." She noted, and waved her hand for Regina to continue.
Quote: Regina nodded. "Right, then it's your turn. Everyone, who's the rising star, and who's the turncoat. Dromen, Heilig, Vielli."
Quote: "Heilig to surpass Tamiya and..." Eostre thought of her options. Dromen was the medical aspect of that duo, wasn't she? "Dromen as the turncoat."
Quote: Interesting choice to see that the vote had been unanimous for Static. Not that Kursha was surprised that his name had come up at all for the traitor. He had already noted the kid's timid nature, and himself questioned his worth to the military. However the kid had spine. Besides, he could not help rooting for the underdog. "Swap 'em for me," Kursha said, crossings his wrists over each other with index fingers extended to indicate. "Dromen to surpass, Heilig as the turncoat."
Quote: Tamiya's lip twitched indiscernibly.
Quote: Kursha caught the subtle movement. Truth be told, he had said it more to bait the juggalo than anything.
Quote: Sarcel was fiddling with one of her wrist cuffs, "Hm," after a moment of stopping to look between Kursha and Tamiya, she spoke up again, "Heilig to surpass Tamiya. Vielli as turncoat." She spoke frankly. Members of the faith were unpredictable. Her own faith in the sirens was not.
Quote: Not as unanimous as the first time. But that's what made it more interesting. “Right, we've got two for Heilig, one for Dromen in surpass. And either Dromen, Vielli or Heilig to be a turncoat!” Regina put on a face of mock suspense. She didn't especially think any names tonight would become double agents, but putting the world in this view was important for these trolls. It was how she operated, every day. Weighing each troll, seeing if their benefits outweighed potential future losses. “Diazzi's turn. Fryste, Moachm and Furore.”
Quote: “Easy. Fyrste to surpass, Moachm to betray.” Tamiya made a sugar sandwich out of a few cubes and two cookies, and crunched down on it.
Quote: Sarcel thought about it. Popstar, pacifist, or... Furore. Hm. Well, she didn't have much to work with here. "Furore to surpass, Moachm as turncoat."
Quote: For the first time, Kursha genuinely hesitated. He drummed his fingers on the arm of the chair. Furore, rabid dog that he was, had passion and near zealous fervor for his military career. It would take him far, provided he didn't self destruct first. However Fryste came out of nowhere. Despite the extra allowance her blood gave her, there was something almost sinister in her fast ascent. At last he uncrossed his legs and stretched back. "I'm with Tam. Fryste to surpass, Moachm turncoat."
Quote: Eostre crossed her legs, listening intently. As much as it felt... strange to hear her colleagues point to her sergeant as the best likely candidate for a turncoat, she couldn't disagree with the assessment. But that's why you keep those sort closest to you.
Quote: Another unanimous call for the turncoat. The thing was, it didn't necessarily point the troll out as lacking in skills or ambition. It just suggested that maybe the would feel that their talents were better off spent on a humiliating death and regrettable cause. “All three for Moachm, then? Alrighty, last is Cincil. We have Bonbon, Diasis and Devile.”
Quote: Sarcel set her hand on her chin and looked around the table, somewhat intrigued, someone placid.
Quote: "Diasis to surpass, Bonbon to turn traitor," Eostre said, taking another sip of her tea.
Quote: "Devile to surpass, Diasis for traitor."
Quote: Hm. Three lowbloods? It would be difficult for any of them to surpass Sarcel in military skill alone. Tamiya supposed that Diasis, a rising star and helmsman, might be able to surpass her in legacy. "Diasis to surpass."She tapped her chin with a claw and trilled. She could tie up the traitor score with Devile, another prominent celebrity figure, or choose Bonbon, who she had a fondness for and a history with. Tamiya did not quite trust Dromen enough to leave Devile out of this. "Devile for traitor."
Quote: And that was all over the place. Regina sat, watching the others. How quickly their answers came, if they seemed to be thinking about it, versus trusting in their gut and going with whatever came first. “Right. So if either ... hm.” She looked around the table. “One sec.”Standing up, the empress strode over to the side table, accompanied by a hollow clicking of shoes rather than her usual sandals. Also she had magically grown a foot. (Through her new shoes. Get it? A foot? Shoes? Genius.) Squatting in front of the side table, she fished out a notebook and pen from under the draped cloth and smoothly returned to her seat. “Ok. If Dromen, Vielli, Heilig, Moachm, Charge, Bonbon, Diasis or Devile gets discovered as playin’ for another team, I'll huck out some beetles.” As she spoke, she wrote down the names, along with which troll had called out each. However, she was careful not to title the list 'TRAITOR GAMBLE’ - that would just be tempting fate to have the names leaked. Flipping the page over, she continued. “And if Heilig, Dromen, Fryste, Furore, Diasis, Devile - phew! - or Gorgos passes the troll who nominated them in rank, same results.”Regina sat back and capped the pen, twirling it between her fingers. “Now, does anyone know why I suggested this game? Apart from the endless fun that comes with talkin’ about others behind their backs.” She rested her eyes on Sarcel for a heartbeat longer than the rest of the table.
Quote: Ah, there it was, the source of the sloshing. Kursha's mouth momentarily quirked with amusement, only to fall back into a stoic mask upon Regina's return. He offered the empress a bored look. "To get a fresh perspective on our recruits and promote 'team-building'?" Yes, he did the finger quotes, as if the evident sarcasm in his voice was not enough. He played the dismissive school kid well. After a beat however, he adopted a less condescending tone. "As well as to gauge the motivations and perspectives of our fellow officers." Or at least what they chose to make public. His eyes swept casually from Eostre to Tamiya, before settling back on Regina.
Quote: Eostre leaned on the table. What cute shoes Regina had! Very suited to her look. "Mmm, yeah, I imagine it's something like that. Getting to change the way we think of our fellow military officers, and see things perhaps a bit more with regards to cost-benefits." She drummed her fingers a little, glancing at Kursha.
Quote: Sarcel made no comment as she mentally tried to find any sort of practicality to Regina's shoes.
Quote: Tamiya tapped on the table, her attention visibly taken by Regina's shoes.
Quote: Shoes. “I mean, if that's what you wanna get out of it.” Regina didn't bother to look at Kursha - she had invited him so he didn't feel shunned or left out, but it was too much to hope he'd give this entire get together much thought. “It's more the fact that this is a game I play with myself, every time I meet a new troll. 'Course I take out the surpassin’ part.” Still playing with the pen, she looked down at the surprisingly empty sugar bowl, then back at the others again. “I want you all to get a better read on my decision making, and feel like you're working as part of me. Whatever trolls rise to your rank or beyond, you're the ones I chose at the start. I want you with me wherever I go, whatever ends up happening.”
Quote: Kursha vocalised a hum at the empress' words, folding his arms across his chest. Was that sentimentality or a strategy? Then there was the very clear subtext regarding their own involvement in her own game. He studied Regina for a moment (his observation made easier by her blatant decision to ignore him). Then, he nodded. He had arrived at some conclusion or another. "Aw, thanks," he replied quickly. His mouth opened as though to say something more, but he closed it again and eased back into a more comfortable position.
Quote: Now that was a compliment and an honor, to know no matter what happens she was one of the few trolls Regina wanted at her side. And she'd be there, as long as Regina would have her. "Of course Regina, there's nowhere else I'd rather be than with you."
Quote: "I see." Sarcel had also pursed her lips into some line of thought. "That's fair." Her facial features relaxed then. She actually almost looked... content? There was still some unease eating at the back of her mind, but she decided to leave it for another time. "Your trust won't be misplaced." Sarcel gave a polite nod as she spoke.
Quote: Tamiya folded her arms. "Of course. Until the Paradise Planet takes me, I have no where to be but by your side. And aside from the Messiahs, there is no one I will follow as wholly."
Quote: Her usual pleased grin relaxed into something less often seen on the empress's face. A relaxed smile. “Glad to hear. I know we don't really get to talk much, or gather like this. So it's important, to me, that I try and hold something like this every sweep or so. It's not - " She shrugged. “ - ideal, but we're all busy. And second best's not too bad."
Quote: "Couldn't have put it better myself, Tam. All praise the Empress and the Mirthful Messiahs," Kursha said, and on the side offered juggalo a good-spirited wink. He had done his bit to ruffle a few feathers; now it was time to iron them out. The clown was the last person he wanted as his enemy. Sarcel on the other hand could withstand a bit of emotional battery, and Regina... Well, she'd make her mood known sooner or later. "Hey, thanks for hosting. It's been fun." With business concluded, Kursha grabbed a cookie. One for the road. |
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