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srwu Aug. 16th, 2016 11:51 am)
actuallyselfish posting in srwu Aug. 16th, 2016 11:51 am)[Pre "Story's End"]
[1]
There's no rest for the wicked or the righteous. As the final military operation against the Lady shifts into high gear, Project Unification staff and civilian volunteers are streaming in and out of Saikhama to donate memory imprints to the crystalline weapon.
Dido Sybil has been hovering around the hanger bay where the Anti-Lady weapon is store. Observant people might see her take a few steps toward the memory copying station, then turn around and walk away, looking at something on her phone.
Finally, she sees and approaches you. "Hey," she says with a weak smile. "If you've got a free evening next week, could you do me a favor?" She chuckles nervously. "It's a doozy."
[2]
"I, Alexia Sybil, ask of you all!" Dido's mom proclaims. "In the world of Italian cuisine, what is the mightiest dish? Calamari? Chicken Alfredo? No, it is bell peppers; the spicier the better! Those who can eat these peppers whole are shining champions of taste! Those who cannot stomach them...should just order from the children's menu!"
You've tagged along with Dido to have Italian dinner with her billionaire mother. More specifically, you're dining in a zero-g Italian restaurant, located in the central torus of a space colony, where all the the food is broiled in raw sunlight focused by skyscraper-sized solar mirrors.
For an utterly posh restaurant, it's rather messy.
"Anyways," Alexia Sybil says, turning toward you. "Wont you tell me what my little Dido's been up to?" She grabs a stray pepper floating through the air and wolfs it down. "She never talks about her work at the Unity Group...or is it Project Unification now?"
[1]
There's no rest for the wicked or the righteous. As the final military operation against the Lady shifts into high gear, Project Unification staff and civilian volunteers are streaming in and out of Saikhama to donate memory imprints to the crystalline weapon.
Dido Sybil has been hovering around the hanger bay where the Anti-Lady weapon is store. Observant people might see her take a few steps toward the memory copying station, then turn around and walk away, looking at something on her phone.
Finally, she sees and approaches you. "Hey," she says with a weak smile. "If you've got a free evening next week, could you do me a favor?" She chuckles nervously. "It's a doozy."
[2]
"I, Alexia Sybil, ask of you all!" Dido's mom proclaims. "In the world of Italian cuisine, what is the mightiest dish? Calamari? Chicken Alfredo? No, it is bell peppers; the spicier the better! Those who can eat these peppers whole are shining champions of taste! Those who cannot stomach them...should just order from the children's menu!"
You've tagged along with Dido to have Italian dinner with her billionaire mother. More specifically, you're dining in a zero-g Italian restaurant, located in the central torus of a space colony, where all the the food is broiled in raw sunlight focused by skyscraper-sized solar mirrors.
For an utterly posh restaurant, it's rather messy.
"Anyways," Alexia Sybil says, turning toward you. "Wont you tell me what my little Dido's been up to?" She grabs a stray pepper floating through the air and wolfs it down. "She never talks about her work at the Unity Group...or is it Project Unification now?"
From:
2
[Sielje shuffles on her seat awkwardly. This really isn't a time for this kind of meetings - but she felt the need to at least try to fix the sour relationship with Dido's mother, and that was a decent and possibly final opportunity for that. Though now she wonders if Alexia even remembers or recognizes her, the knight wearing her elegant dress and all.]
Ah, Dido, yes. She is very busy as of recently. The amount of work that awaits her and other mechanists every day is... overwhelming.
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Re: 2
"So I've heard, so I've heard," Alexia muses. She sprays a wobbling ball of wine into the air from a plastic bulb, then swallows it with her mouth.
"According to my sources, you've been leading my Dido into furious battles quite frequently...Dame Sieljie." Alexia raises an eyebrow. "You haven't been...pushing around my daughter too much, have you?"
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[Sielje briefly - but energetically waves her hands, trying her best to remain in the chair.]
I am a representative of Ankaia on Earth, technically I hold no rank in Unity Group or what became of it. I cannot impose myself on others, if they follow me it is because of their own will.
[Try not to think about shoving people. That only happened a few times.]
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"Is that so?" Alexia leans back, a gleam in her eye. "If people follow you of your own will, without any obligation to your rank, you conviction must be strong indeed. I see interesting things in your future. Try the caprese, it's delectable."
Alexia followed her own advice, seizing a few slices of mozzarella and tomato before they fly apart into infinity.
"I have heard," she says between chews, "that you have been organizing efforts to improve relations between Earth and Ankara. That dreadful Fumerco Company hasn't been causing more trouble, has it?"
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[Sielje's eyes follow after the food as it floats away. Unfortunately her hands are too busy preventing herself from floating. Good-bye caprese, I will miss you... whatever you are.]
Any movement of people or goods between Ankaia and Earth is examined carefully, so whatever they have in plan, they cannot do it. And if they try force instead, all will turn against them...
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"Would you like me to crush Fumercro for you?" Alexia asks casually. She flexes her long-nailed fingers back and forth like the jaws of a beast.
"My portfolio managers can buy a controlling interest in their company and shred their finances to the five winds. Not to mention my youngest daughter keeps some very hungry prosecutors on leash."
Alexia arches an eyebrow at Sieljie. "I'd expect compensation for this favor, of course. But what I want is a small price to pay for the satisfaction of seeing your old enemies crushed into the dirt."
Alexia locks eyes with Sieljie. "Are you interested in hearing more?"
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[Sielje's eyes wander about. But she makes her choice, and stares back at Dido's mother.]
The ones responsible, the masterminds in the shadows remain hidden. Fumerco was said to "protect the identity" of its masters. But now, it seems as if they abandoned it... probably, seeking fortune elsewhere.
As long as it remains so, that is fine with me. I do not need vengeance.
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"Very well," Alexia says, nodding at Sieljie's answer. She seems to approve...but also seems to be worried.
"My satellites spotted the explosion at Alhambra base...and the altered space that formed there," Alexia says, glancing at her daughter. "Dido, the sweet thing, doesn't want to make me worry."
Alexia locks gazes with Sieljie. "But you, Dame Knight, do not tell lies. Tell me: can you beat it? Can you win?"
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I... do not know.
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"I...see."
Alexia leans back in her zero-g seat, scraps of italian food floating around her. At this moment, she looks...weary. Old, even.
Dido stretches out a hand and takes her mother's hand. "It'll be alright, mom," she says. "Sieljie's honest...but she really underestimates herself sometimes. She...is a stone-cold operator." A faint smile crosses her lips. "I've gotten good myself."
"Ah," Alexia says, her brow smoothing out. "That's good, I suppose."
Mother and daughter float there for a moment in silence.
"Oh, by the way, mom," Dido asks, "can I get your Brain Scan?"
"What?"
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...
A what?
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2
It's Project Unification...
But you have to understand that things are busier than ever, and it's a proper military group unlike Solaris. There are things we can't really just talk about to anyone.
[She gives her fellow pilot a reassuring look. Don't worry, she's got your back here Dido.]
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Re: 2
"Could I get a plate of Portobello mushrooms for the table? Cooked with just salt and pepper? Graci."
Dido's got your back too.
"Ah yes," Alexia says with a roll of her eyes. "Classified intelligence. One of these days I should expand my military-industrial complex holdings so no one else can use that excuse on me."
Alexia leans towards Mizuki. "I'm not a fool, Abyss Empress," she says quietly. "I get regular updates from my satellite network. I saw the explosion above Alhambra base. Their sensors picked up huge emissions of Tronium radiation. And my little Dido came over for dinner today, despite 'things being busier than ever'."
A rare emotion slips over the face of Dido's mother: worry. "How bad is it?" She asked.
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Good enough that we're still alive. Bad enough that we might not be for much longer unless we take action.
But that's exactly what we're intending to do. And we have a plan to go with as well.
Until it comes to an end, I just have to ask... to please have faith.
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"Faith," Alexia says archly, "is a construct to soothe the psyches of primitive minds. Faith is not good enough for me. I believe only in the human will, the Hunger for Gain that makes the impossible possible."
Alexia regards Mizuki gravely. "Do you have that Will and Hunger, Mizuki Onodera? Can you make the salvation of our world...and my family...true possibility?"
"She damn well can," Dido growls, raising her hand. "But I'll let her say that in her own words..."
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2)
Well... with everything that's been happening Dido's been working overtime. Its been really rough on us all... we really appreciate the invitation Lady Sybil.
[Peola gives a light bow of her head before she spied some calamari floating by... but before she could snag it her sister was already chewing on the morsel with a playfully smug grin.]
Khhhhh....
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Re: 2)
"Let it never be said that the Sybil cannot show hospitality, especially when hosting royalty!" Alexia proclaims. "A noble deed done must be returned nobly, as I believe you once said."
She then inclines her head towards Ourania. "On that note, it's a sublime pleasure to see you again, Lady Ourania! I gather by your presence that you've managed to reconcile with your sister?"
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"I suppose you could say that. Though mostly I've just been reserving judgement."
[The small and polite smile on her face twitched in a way that hid her desire to give her sister a trollish, playful grin. Peola took a deep breath and contented herself with trying to snag more food... much to her difficulty.]
Well I can definitely see you didn't spare any expense-
[Peola's attempt at politeness was promptly derailed as Ourania once more managed to snag yet another delicacy with ease.]
-Okay. How are you doing that.
"With my Ki. Really sister I thought that you would have attempted it yourself.... or did you suddenly decide to remember when father told you not to use ki at the dining table from that scolding he gave you two years ago?"
.... So how are your other children faring Lady Sybil?
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"Oh," Alexia says with a wave of her hand. "Hyacinth has been assembling a new art exhibition. He claims it's going to be twice as daring as the one you saw, Ourania...which probably means he's going to add more jellyfish."
Alexia purses her lips. "Persephone's firm is busy defending a construction company in court. Apparently, the plebian rabble insists on continue to live amidst the rubble of alien invasions..."
Dido snorts. "Or maybe they don't want to get kicked out of their only homes by a gentrification-mad megacorp!"
"Progress must not be halted by the masses, lest humanity slide into degeneration...!"
"Grrr!"
Alexia and Dido both glare at each other across the table, teeth clenched in the same expression. How are Peola and Urania going to break the ice?
Literally, that is. The waiters have lost control of their chilled-wine cart, and a meteor made of fused ice chips is barreling toward your table!
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"Go play sister. I'll deal with this."
[There was a small grin on the blonde's face as she shooed her older sister, the Bluenette grinning eagerly as she leaped out of her chair, twisting past the free floating food towards the incoming ball of ice-]
Haaaaaaa-! EEERRYYYYAAAAAH!
[And with a precise strike ended up making it look like winter as the ice chips may as well have been so many snowflakes. Peola of course now had the task of moving through Zero-gee to nab the wine before it flew all over the place and hit someone.]
"Hm... I would say at the very least your son is quite dedicated to his interests... I can admire that actually."
[The princess takes some time to sample one of the other seafood dishes. Earth fish was much different from the gargantuan leviathans back home but the varying tastes made them just as interesting.]
"As for the matter that you are verbally dueling with Dido on... I think my father dealt with something similar. Unlike those of the Royal Family or Noble lines the so called plebian rabble you refer to have precious little and worked for what they have - however small it is."
[Ourania leaned forward, tilting her head with a small smile.]
"Since it wasn't a cultural matter which would have made the point moot, the Noble who was in charge of that particular province sought my father out and tried to talk him into allowing his beautification works to be carried out."
"Father of course stated that while he admired the Noble's desire to replace the ragged dwellings his charges lived in with edifices of beauty, the noble's duty was to his people. If he wished to carry out his works he would need to have his people share his dream."
[That being said the younger princess leaned back in her seat.]
"I suppose what happened next was that the Noble made a number of concessions since my Father recently mentioned he was planning to see how the work is progressing. I didn't really find out since that meeting of the King's Court was interrupted by a horde of spiders."
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"I've never like concessions much," Alexia says hesitantly. "It's a habit I wanted to discourage in my children."
Dido snorts again. "That may not have been as good for us as you'd hoped..." Dido shakes her head. "No, no, enough snarking." Dido leans forward, brushing aside an emptied pasta bowl floating through the microgravity. "There's something I need to say to you Mom. And I want you to listen."
Alexia bites her lip, then reluctantly nods.
Dido sighs. "I've been butting heads with you for a while, Mom. About college degrees, jobs, ambitions, tipping waitresses–damn near everything. I always thought I could use some clever logic or grand gesture to–to get you to see things my way..."
Dido chuckles. "Obviously that didn't work. I've been avoiding you so that I wouldn't have to replay the same old fights. But then I realized something..."
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Dido then gestures towards herself. "I like who I am too–a lazy mechanic that sleeps in on her off days. None of your arguments or gestures will change me either."
She reaches out a hand towards Alexia. "Let's stop trying to change each other, Mom–and just be the best versions of ourselves to each other. Sound good?"
Alexia hesitates–then takes Dido's hand and shakes it.
"Every thinks I want to attack the Earth with my super-laser," Alexia mutters. She looks at Ourania. "Why do people keep assuming that?"
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"Its mostly because its there. People like to make assumptions. Most seem to think I'm plotting their downfall. Admittedly they're right half the time and its mostly in the literal sense."
[Falling down. Down fall. Damnit Ourania. The princess shrugs and shakes her head at the opinions of the masses.]
"Its best to prove them wrong... or maybe prove them right in a way they don't expect and have them be pleasantly surprised. After all... a giant laser would be useful in a number of ways I'm sure. Now if you pardon me I think I need to make sure my sister stays away from the wine. She's very much a lightweight."
I am not!
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"Truly you understand me, Ourania!" Alexia replies, eyes looking rather moist. "My reputation may not suggest this, but I wish to use my Mercury Superlaser to help humanity! Propelling space transports to the far edges of the solar system, beaming energy to space stations, vaporizing meteors nearing earth and the colonies...the possibilities are endless!"
A gleam appears in her eyes. "Of course, if people neglected to pay the monthly bills...I could always turn the laser up a few settings..."
"Mom!"
From:
1)
[Calvin takes a deep breath and smooths out his crumpled coat and messy hair with a sigh.]
Okay. What've you got for me to do?
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Re: 1)
Never has the chirping of crickets in the fields outside Saikhama been more appropriate.
"The restaurant would be posh. We could get a seat for Lori?" Dido suggests hopefully.
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[The inspector's taking a deep breath and suddenly looking really uneasy.]
I don't do well with posh stuff that well and... things are kind of difficult... not to mention I thought I'd visit my parents...
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Dido frowns. "What are your parents like, if I might ask?"
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[Calvin shakes his head with a small smile.]
Mom and Dad were pretty happy to let me and my siblings figure out what we wanted to do and where we went. Moira met her husband Ansel doing some reviews for a magazine she works at overseas.
One of my brothers -Victor went into Aerospace engineering, said he wanted to follow in my cousin Connor's footsteps. My other brother Jeffrey went into Marine Biology.
Then you've got me. The kid brother.
[Calvin sighs.]
Lost my job, have a terrible reputation and they all still think the world of me.
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She leans back against the wall. "It's strange. On paper, we've got the exact same family setup...but I honestly envy you right now."
Her face turns solemn and contemplative. "I hope this isn't forward...but what was it like, having a dad?"
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[Calvin's filling up a cup of coffee, having decided to spoil himself a bit with a better brand. With what was to be the biggest and most decisive fight for the world, he figured he could live it up a bit.]
Nah... its fine. Its like... having a safety net I guess. Mom might've been the one who encouraged me to find my dreams but Dad was the one who helped me back to my feet the most whenever things got bad.
He cooks a mean barbecue too. Probably why my sister Moira decided to be a food critic, loved his cooking and it sparked something off.
He didn't take kindly to people giving his kids grief either. I remember when I was a kid... there was this one jerk of a teacher, about just as nice as my old boss...
[Ah yes, the former head of the OSI who turned out to be a horrific abomination from times most ancient. Yikes.]
Wasn't mine though - the guy heaped a bunch of abuse on Jeffrey.. I told dad about the whole thing, my brother wasn't happy at first... but I heard from Jeff that dad walked into class one day, no phonecalls no nothing and just decked the asshole before getting all the parents whose kids got it just as bad and had the school have to pull of a lot to avoid a major stink.
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Dido sighed. "It took me a while to realize everyone was scared stiff of my mom. Either that, or she'd send vaguely threatening messages to ensure they gave me just the right amount of respect. I'm in no position to complain...but none of the relationships I had during that time felt real..."
Dido suddenly snorts. "Plus, there was that time I asked mom who my father was, and she showed me a pair of cloning tanks in the biology lab."
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[That or there's even more weird science going on. Calvin takes a deep whiff of the contents of his cup and it felt like his neckhairs were standing on end. This might just be the best cup of coffee he had in a long while.]
... and I think its probably alright to complain. Not knowing if anyone actually wanted to reach out or if they actually cared about you is honestly the worst. At least with people who treat you badly out in the open are honest with things-
[There was a squawk from down below. Should Dido look down she'd notice that it was the Polarion Raptor hatchling that Calvin had been taking care of. It was now roughly the size of a beagle and chirping curiously at Dido, scampering on all fours as its wings flapped and fluttered with a leash clamped in its beak.]
-...Oh damnit I knew I forgot something.
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She reaches for the raptor's leash...only to get her fingernails chew. "Ah! Get it off! Get it off!"
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Mmm, well, we're usually in different areas, so we don't see each other all that much. I'm always focusing on piloting right now, and she's been busy getting as much materiel ready as possible. But she works hard, and well.
[Gwen flicks a piece of calamari back towards her mouth with effortless grace.]
Sorry to disappoint, I'm not too much of a gossip.
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Re: 2
"How frustratingly loyal," Alexia remarks, spearing some calamari for herself and dipping it into a wobbling ball of marinara. "Still, I'm hardly in a position to complain, and I'm glad to hear my daughter continues to distinguish herself from the ambition-less dregs of humanity!"
Alexia rests some hands under her chin. "Perhaps, Ms. Douglas, you'd be more inclined to gossip about yourself! Did you join Project Unification to support your sister Jen? Or perhaps to compete with her?"
Dido raises her hand. "Uh," she says. "That's not quite right, mom." She looks at you. "But I'm not sure that's my place to explain..."
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[Gwenhwyfar's smile and cheery demeanor don't falter, even as Alexia's eating sends a splinter droplet of sauce into the robot's hair. She just cheerily wipes it up with her napkin, as if nothing happened.]
And I'm afraid whoever told you about me was severely misinformed. I'm Jen's sister in mind, not in blood; as her replacement, I only came to exist with her passing. Really, I just joined Project Unification so I can fight people.
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Alexia freezes. "Is that so?" She mutters. She stares at Gwen. "So you're a copy of Jen Douglas's mind-state in a cybernetic organism? Fascinating!"
She leans closer toward Gwen, stroking her chin. "I find it strange though," she muses. "Why, after awakening to sentience, did you join the P.U. and step into Jen Douglas's shoes? It's not like you're actually her..."
"Mom..." Dido says in a warning tone.
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I'm more her than not. And weren't you listening? I did it so I could fight people. You might not get it, but to risk your life in a battle with a master-That's fun, more fun than a night with an escort.
Besides, I like some of the people there.
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"A hunger for the battlefield," Alexia muses, stroking her chin. "I wouldn't have expected such primal instincts from a mechanical life-form."
Clearly she hasn't met the Dinobots.
"I wonder, do you thrill in the heart of battle because of your practical immortality, the ability to save and reload yourself like in a video game?" Alexia asks.
She leans forward, lips parted in a wicked grin. "Or is the other way around? Perhaps you are drawn to the sweet embrace of death; the thrill of brushing against it, of escaping it's overwhelming draw by mere inches..."