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Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




The skatepark is not one of Rose's usual stomping grounds. For one, her mobile activity of choice is more akin to the freerunning 'courses' that enterprising protesters have set up criss-crossing the back alleys and rooftops of Uhuru. For two, it's not clear if she's ever seen a skateboard. Food trucks are also a highly theoretical curiosity, though Elodie does require sustenance and often forgets to manage her intake. Purchases have been made. Never tiramisu, though, and never an item on what appears to be some sort of hidden menu. Truly a first for the android, though many things still are.

Rose arrives shortly after Elodie, soon enough that Elodie's request is still working towards a tiny please, and she sets a hand atop Elodie's head for a calming pat as she finishes. She says, in a much louder voice than her roommate-slash-social-media-manager managed, "Food vendor, I require your strongest tiramisu!"

The exact reason that they have to order an old-world confection of espresso-soaked ladyfingers has escaped her for the moment, but that is irrelevant. This promises a lead towards what transpired in the riots. It must be pursued.

quote:

Name: Rose
Pulsar Handle: @RoseGardenOfficial
Cool Crime Alias: Thorn
Pronouns: She/They

Origin: Android (1 augment does not count for burden, augments are modular during downtime, only active augments count for burden)
Occupation: Street Fighter
Burden: 0 (2 if all augments are equipped)
App (if any): N/A
Personal Goal: Find a solid lead on who is behind the murders.

Cool: +2 (10)
Clever: +0 (7)
Tough: +3 (14)
Quick: +1 (8)

Traits:
Hard Shell (+1 tough defense, disadvantage forward when Tough defense fails)
Hush Money (Decrease starting burden by 1, always 1 cheaper to lower burden, always disadvantaged to maintain stealth/stay hidden/keep out of sight)

Talents:
Martial Arts (No disadvantage from the environment, may make melee attacks against a second target in range, allows multi-grabbing)
Industrial Frame (+1 tough defense, functions in space, automatically save vs effects a spaceworthy android would ignore)

Specialties:
+1 Defense: Tough Defense
+1 Action: Bullshit
+1 Action: Charm
+1 Android Rights Movement
+1 Activism
+1 Personal Trainer
+2 Martial Arts

Assets:
Badass Headband (Rad, +1 Cool Defense)
A thick, red ribbon that Rose took off of a particularly fancily dressed thug that tried to jump her immediately after her awakening and subsequent exit from the secret Tetsuo lab. Allegedly marked with Japanese characters representing 'A Hard Fight,' but a brief consultation of the internet revealed the meaning to actually be 'The McRib Is Back.' Rose simply likes the color.

Gym (The Rose Garden, twice per mission give advantage to a personal prep roll made at the gym)
Small Local Business (The Rose Garden, gain +2 cash at the beginning of a mission unless you suffer economic shock)
Started through a UPAF grant, Rose's found that she has a natural acumen for personal training and teaching self-defense courses. The Rose Garden is a favored meeting spot for android rights activists, as it's as safe and secure as anywhere in Uhuru. After all, who's going to start trouble in Rose's home? Correction: who's going to start trouble in Rose's home more than once?

License (May legally possess two restricted items)
Rose is unaware of any licensing, nor any licensing requirements for the high-spec chassis she was constructed with. The Tetsuo observation team manages all the legalities remotely, mostly to cover their own rear end in the case of legal entanglements.

Membership: UPAF (+1 to Social rolls if they relate to the membership, 1/session call on the group like a community resident)
A known activist and supporter of the UPAF, Rose has been gifted a complimentary subscription to the monthly newsletter and a small pin she's attached to her headband.

Augments:
R: Powered Exoskeleton (advantage on all physical rolls, crits convert advantage to boost, must spend 1 prep to maintain benefits in fights/extended chases/etc)
A highly experimental feature, Rose is equipped with power rerouting subroutines (Codename: Tetsuo Maximum Overdrive), that leverage the sturdiness of her body to the fullest extent possible. It absolutely guzzles power, though, and full battlefield use would require advances in power storage efficiency of roughly an order of magnitude.

R: Heavy Armor Frame (Always reduce incoming damage by 1 box, +1 tough defense)
A design heavily 'inspired' by recent OGREMOCH battlefield models, a mixture of adaptive shielding and self-repairing armor plating offers unparalleled battlefield survivability. Of note, it also ensures that Rose's surface is free of dings and scrapes.

Friendly Design (1/mission, reroll a crit fail on any Social or Stealth roll)
An aftermarket addition by a friend in the UPAF, a pair of AR emitters in her faceplates give the illusion of having giant, expressive anime eyes. While not rated for combat purposes, they are absolutely adorable and distract people from how lethal Rose is built to be.

Tricky fucked around with this message at 23:39 on May 10, 2021

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Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose tries a different tact, "Are you aware of forums user 'Sk8P'? They have requested that we rendezvous at this location and make this order."

The growing crowd of fellow tiramisu afficianados are tagged in her equally growing combat analytic databanks. The vendor is clearly the most threatening, though suggested courses of action for the other are duly processed and logged.

Tricky fucked around with this message at 23:40 on May 10, 2021

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose offers a helpless shrug and a pair of gleaming anime eyes in these trying times to the baffled food vendor, though it rapidly becomes apparent that the as-yet silent partner seems to be their actual contact. Continuing to lightly massage Elodie's ears while she acquires sustenance, Rose offers a slight head-tilt of acknowledgment to the incredibly sturdy and equally Australian full-body who's taken up the baton of absolutely baffling their mutual host.

Tricky fucked around with this message at 23:40 on May 10, 2021

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose gives a slight nod to Penny, though all she really says about the legality (or lack thereof) of her body is, "Well, I know Kung Fu." And about fifty other forms of advanced pugilism, but who's counting, really? "And I have an obvious interest in current events, given the givens, so here I am."

Her head snaps back to focus on Elodie as anxieties fitting the scale of some sort of anti-kaiju mechanized weapon come flooding out of a teeny tiny teddy bear frame. She squeezes the poor girl's shoulder, then adds, "If you don't, she'll cry. Nobody wants that." A beat, eyes narrowing. "Right?"

Tricky fucked around with this message at 23:40 on May 10, 2021

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose looks back to Penny, considering the institution of Moon Rock Yeezys, and then falls down a lightning-fast computational hole of figuring out how long those would last if she was running at full power. Conclusion: not nearly long enough to be a fashion statement.

She says, "Those are some pretty sweet kicks. Good angle, too." The semi-competitive nature of cutting-edge androids does tempt her into slightly exceeding the leg raise with one of her own, but she realizes that Elodie's position would make that both precarious and patently ridiculous. Instead, Rose adds, "It's hard to find a pair of shoes that can keep up with my needs."

Tricky fucked around with this message at 23:40 on May 10, 2021

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose grins. Or, well, a very specific confluence of anime eyes, head tilt, and lighting give that particular impression. She says, "Nice to meet you, Bluey. We're..." There's a brief moment where she almost introduces the two with their normal identities, then she corrects herself, "Thorn and Beara Bellum, I suppose." Then she realizes that Elodie already paid for her stuff with a multipass tap, so names are clearly out there, but... well, that's a later problem.

Looking over to Omar, she says, "Well, depends who and what we're investigating. If the pitch was right, these are the same sort of people who gunned down activists in the street."

Tricky fucked around with this message at 23:40 on May 10, 2021

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage



Harm 000000 - P.Prep 2/2

Rose takes the proffered thumb drive and plugs it into a convenient access port. After a moment of quiet contemplation, she reaches a conclusion: she could beat these guys up. She probably will beat these guys up in the very near future. Passing the thumb drive along to whoever else wants to take a look, she says, "Well, that armor isn't exactly standard issue. It looks a little more high-speed than you'd expect out of the rank and file, but not as high-speed as you'd expect out of a full corporate kill team. The guns don't really match up to the armor, either, so chances are they were using confiscated weapons or evidence locker stuff to hide their tracks."

Looking back to Roxie, she says, "Tell you what. I'll get you your answers, but..." She points a finger at the fully functional collapsible gun-scythe. "I want that when we're done."

--

Later, after the meet...

The funny thing about being an android, particularly one who mostly operates through physical contact, is that there's not a lot of movement during her preparations. Rose looks, to anyone who drops by, like she's gone into sleep mode and is charging extra capacitor banks with a comically large power cable. And, admittedly, that's a lot of it. Just making sure she has the power on hand to go completely ape shitt if the need arises. The secondary factor, of course, is that it gives her plenty of time to sim through various combat scenarios. The challenging aspect isn't taking down a bunch of thugs with small arms. It's unlikely they can punch through her armor in any appreciable timefreme. The real challenge is doing that and protecting any other non-combatants on the field.

There are a number of less-than-successful skirmish attempts where flanking maneuvers, ricocheting bullets, or even one particularly low probability scenario where Elodie accidentally starts a chain reaction of falling construction materials cause unacceptable casualties. Still, by the time power readings are at an acceptable level, Rose has achieved a reasonable expectation of success if her fellow vigilante crimedoers hold up their end of the job.

--

Even later...

Everyone receives a cordial invitation to The Rose Garden for a last-minute discussion and training session. Anyone who chooses to attend is treated to a remarkably enlightening treatise on projected equipment, tactics, and worst-case scenarios given the information gathered so far. There is a very cool space powerpoint. There are also small giftbags, for some reason, though Rose assumes that was more of an unscripted Elodie addition.

There's also a slightly less welcome combat drill that begins when people are enjoying post-presentation refreshments, though it's sure to keep everyone on their toes for the mission to come.

--

Spending both of my local business cash to boost my prep rolls. The gym has one advantage remaining for personal prep rolls, if anyone wants to prep there. Rolled a 12 on personal prep for a total of two in my personal pool. Rolled a 19 on group prep for a total of five group prep.

Tricky fucked around with this message at 23:41 on May 10, 2021

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage



Harm 000000 - P.Prep 2/2

It feels like punching a tank, if slightly less effective.

Rose gives the doors a long, contemplative look, "Well, if we're making a fuss out front, I can't imagine that'd leave much to get in the way of anyone sneaking in the back to find evidence." She looks back towards Omar, "If you can keep them from calling out for help, at least long enough for us to get what we need, I'd be happy to work a distraction."

Pantomiming cracking her knuckles, she adds, "Couldn't imagine it happening to a bigger bunch of assholes."

Tricky fucked around with this message at 23:41 on May 10, 2021

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage



Harm 000000 - P.Prep 2/2

Once the infiltration team makes their way back and around, Rose fixes her shimmering anime eyes on Elodie and Bluey. She says, "So, a distraction... I'm fine starting a fight right off the back, but we might want to make a scene first. Any ideas, Elodie?"

Tricky fucked around with this message at 23:41 on May 10, 2021

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage



Harm 000000 - P.Prep 2/2

There's a long, painful pause as Rose watches Elodie break into a dramatic monologue-slash-call-to-action. Part of this is decoding Elodie's unflagging dedication to chuuni rights to figure out what their play is here. A longer part is consulting the complete Rose Garden extended universe lore bible on their shared cloud storage so that she can properly contribute to this unexpected sequel to the cult classic gym advertisement. After processing complete, Rose's normal lady anime eyes flicker and transform into haughty, evil lady anime eyes. Character: established. Acting: commencing.

Rose turns up the volume on her speaker system, ensuring that their distraction is catching the attention of anyone even close to earshot, then begins to stomp menacingly towards the bearmeido, "That's right, my dearest disaster to ever lesbian! I stole everything from you and performed a transaction for the sake of merchandise! Dark, EVIL merchandise." She slams the poor girl (gently) into the wall of the police station, pinning her with the most diabolical of evil robot techniques: a thorough kabedommeing. This is probably all happening right up against a window, to the continuing fascination of Jack and the lady cop. "And you know what? I'd do it again! If there were any thoughts left in your head, I would steal them away and gift them to my lieutenant for her years of dedication to bullying poor, sweet maids."

A finger stabs backwards at Bluey. Rose does not stop, having gotten onto a bit of a roll herself, "And you've got a lot to learn if you think that these people will save you." Rose tilts her head slightly, giving the impression of a sly grin, "Because, my little bullybait bear, nobody speaks bottom. And if they do... then I suppose I'll simply have to bully them too."

Tricky fucked around with this message at 23:41 on May 10, 2021

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage



Harm 000000 - P.Prep 2/2

Rose lets out a melodramatic "OOF!" as Bluey puts her through the window and into a desk that erupts into a comical fountain of paperwork. She milks the reaction for a moment, looking stunned, as she analyzes the interior of the station for the biggest problem that they'll have to deal with. Conclusion: the crowd fighting to get weapons from the weapon locker. Making that process break down further should buy the interior team that much more time to secure the evidence before bullets start flying.

Kipping up to her feet, Rose points a finger at Bluey, "So, you've chosen to throw your lot in with the platonic ideal of bottom brattery? I see she's not the only fool around here." Sparks begin to dance across her chassis as Maximum Overdrive protocols are engaged. "And I cannot abide a fool! Prepare yourself!"

Lightning quick, Rose shoulder tackles Bluey and begins charging her towards the weapon locker. For any with the time and space to process, it looks very much like Rose is planning to spear Bluey straight through the far wall. It's practically a spot out of Grand Cross Professional Space Wrestling!

There's a quick, synthesized whisper, "Through the crowd and into the locker. Impact in 5, 4, 3..." The android and her full-body counterpart don't slow down in the slightest as they hit the backline of increasingly panicked private security contractors and push towards the locker area proper.

---

Figuring we'll do another no-attack Rush to model the pinball action.

Tricky fucked around with this message at 23:42 on May 10, 2021

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage



Harm 000000 - P.Prep 2/2

Standing back up and brushing stray bits of wall off of her chassis, Rose says, "Alright, the intrusion exercise is over everyone. Stand down and prepare for debrief." She jabs an accusing finger at Jack, "First and foremost, start taking notes. HQ is going to expect a full after-action report and you've just been voluntold."

It's easy enough to break things down with unwarranted authority. After all, she's an android who handles personal training for the more fleshy members of the gym. She's got to convince them she's legit somehow, right?

"The external security on this station is tragic. The walls aren't rated for any significant impact, I'm pretty sure our electronics specialist cracked your wi-fi with a half-hearted rainbow attack, and the back door was left propped open." Her finger starts pointing at one of the people in the weapons locker, "And don't get me started about the storage solutions! Properly rated lockers wouldn't crumple under that force. See that fog? You're never going to get the tang of tear gas out without fully ripping out the flooring and doing a full renovation."

Rose starts moving with purpose into the ruined office, getting closer and closer to the hole in the wall, then she turns back around and barks at the stymied set of rent-a-cops, "And put the fire out! You've got an audit tomorrow and a report due by 11:30. Get moving!"

---

That's a 12 to Bullshit the cops into thinking this was some sort of bizarre, corporate-mandated drill.

Tricky fucked around with this message at 04:50 on May 12, 2021

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage



Harm 000000 - P.Prep 2/2

Once they're all clear of the station, Rose scoops up Elodie into a princess carry and casually keeps pace with the others as they maneuver towards the getaway scooter. It's just because those OL heels are clearly a bit uncomfy, of course, and Rose doesn't want her dear roommate-slash-director-slash-whatever-else to trip and fall and hurt herself on the way out of the job.

She says, "Well, I'd hate for this one to be late to her next appointment. Shocking, really, to think that Cozy Guardian Cinnamew might miss a birthday party." There's a moment of stark, metallic po-faced seriousness, then the anime eyes give the game away. "This was fun, huh? I haven't had to make that much of a mess in quite some time. Couldn't have happened to a more fitting group of... professionals, either."

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage



Harm 000000 - P.Prep 2/2

The ride over has the beargirl and android chatting much more about the greater The Wishes Flowers Hold In Their Hearts extended universe, and theoretical possibilities for a part 3. Conversation eventually trails off as the apartment comes into view and the end of this particular mission does at well. Detective Eckert has a lot to answer for, as do his collaborators.

Rose's anime eyes narrow as the quiet patter of bullets on glass put her on alert. She finally puts down Elodie, saying, "...That sounds like trouble. Keep down, okay?"

She's moments behind Bluey as the Aussie breaches and clears, ready to grab and go and provide mobile cover for her friends if needed. An easy guess is whoever hired the detective decided the risk of getting exposed was greater than the cost to quietly eliminate the evidence. And if this guy got got, then maybe they're going to be next on the menu. Not on her watch, not by a longshot.

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage



Harm 000000 - P.Prep 2/2

Quickly scanning the room, Rose spots the flip phone in the detective's hand. It's a matter of little effort to remove it given her prodigious strength, though she does try quite hard not to inflict additional damage while extricating it from the dead man's grip. Rose says, "Whatever you're doing, do it quick. Whoever comes to check isn't going to be interested in how this isn't what it looks like."

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage



Harm 000000 - P.Prep 2/2

The Elodie situation is... concerning, of course. It's not the first time Rose has seen her roommate experience a disassociative episode related to past trauma, though it is the first time it ended up with the poor girl elbow deep in a corpse. Once she has the flipphone tucked away in an access panel, Rose moves to ensure that Elodie is... well, if not okay, then at least okay enough to make it back home. Of course, now she's on Discourse, so that does imply that's the case... though is it really smart to video chat in a murder scene? Even if they didn't commit said murder?

Rose helpfully blocks out most of the apartment from the phone's view as she moves up behind Elodie. She says, "I think that's a bit too much excitement for one day! We should get going." She scoops Elodie back up, surely giving Harriet a moment of dizzying confusion as the phone angle changes, "I'll carry you so you can focus on your call. Hang on tight!"

With that, Rose starts jogging out past the kid, doing her best to look like she was taking someone who'd been lightly gnawed on by a small dog and a bottle of vodka to the hospital.

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage



Harm 000000 - P.Prep 2/2

Rose says, "Deep breaths, Elodie. You're fine, she'll be fine, everything is okay."

For all that she's preaching calm, though, the android is certainly keeping a sharp eye out for trouble. The matter of the drone is somewhat spooky, even if it's not necessarily an imminent threat to her own well-being, and there's enough movement and excitement in the skate park to conceal some sort of bad actor... even if there probably isn't anything out there. It's days like these that she wishes she could imbibe something like humans do, to take the edge off, though her elaborate security suite has proven most resistant to the usual strains of orange_juice.exe making the rounds.

Without any reason to continue delaying, Rose approaches the window and says, "Hello! Are Jenna and Roxie available?"

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage



Harm 000000 - P.Prep 2/2

Elodie is, absolutely, still wrapped up in an anti-anxiety burrito of coat and maid outfit and OL regalia and living in Rose's arms. The android gives Bryce a quick nod, then looks over at Roxie, "Well, the word is they were out to add to the chaos. Probably cover for the activists that've gotten silenced, so it looks to idiots like they weren't getting assassinated. So, good news, they weren't after you in particular. Bad news, this mess is looking bigger than we thought going in. A lot of money changed hands to get a bunch of goons kitted out in scraps from Goliath's evidence locker."

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage



Harm 000000 - P.Prep 2/2

Rose says, "Mm, I don't really have the sort of facility that can house high explosives."

Well, okay, the Rose Garden could, given it was rated for her own personal training uses, but explosives were trouble. Insanely impractical, yet functional cosplay weapons? That she could handle. She gingerly grabs the gunscythe, shifting Elodie into more of a one-armed grip, and gives it a few practice swings. Analysis: hella rad, plus you never do know when you'll need a shotgun as well.

"It was good working with you all." Her anime eyes evoke a wide grin. "We'll have to do it again sometime, yeah?"

---

Taking that gunscythe!

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose gives the biggest sigh, but eventually says, "If you shoot a hole in my gym, the repairs are coming out of your snack budget."

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




It turns out that the first challenge of owning a fully-functional gunscythe replica (for cosplay purposes only, says the attached liability waiver) is understanding how to properly use a fully-functional gunscythe replica for non-cosplay purposes. Luckily, Rose's positronic brain is extremely up to the task of binge-watching eight seasons of the absolutely trashy popcorn action romp LILY. In one sitting.

On the upside, she quickly is able to decode, revise, and adjust some of the combat patterns for her own use. It turns out that having a body capable of literally superhuman feats translates well to anime action. On the downside, she quickly finds that she has strong opinions on the show and causes at least one minor firestorm on Pulsar by livepulsing her impressions on an episode-by-episode basis. The thread is completed in approximately two and a half hours and leaves dozens of banned accounts in the aftermath.

Of course, Rose being Rose, she completely misses the social media devastation she leaves in her wake. It's... not entirely clear if she even knows how to check her Pulsar notifications.

Business is booming at the gym, for better and worse, and that means that there's non-LILY matters to attend to as well. On the upside, Rose really does enjoy working with the assorted scamps, scallywags, ne'er-do-wells, and chuuni teenagers who signed up for her self-defense courses. On the downside, it's all too real a need with corporate hit squads causing chaos in the streets. That's why she has her students working on an impromptu parkour course. Can she fistfight people with guns? Absolutely. Can other people, that aren't her or Bluey? Absolutely not. Better to book it and escape fire lines ASAP.

Rose watches the self-proclaimed reincarnation of the dark lord, Stefano Slimm, absolutely eat poo poo as his chuuni eyepatch proves enough of an impediment to depth perception to cause him to completely miss a jump and fall into a pile of mats. Spotting Bluey come in, she claps a few times, "Alright, class, good work for today. Nice hustle, Stefano, you're getting a lot better. Do your stretches, then..." Rose looks over in the vague direction of the kitchen, "I'd imagine Elodie is almost done cooking some cupcakes. Might as well share, right?"

After a moment of making sure they actually start stretching, Rose wanders over to meet Bluey, "Hey, Bluey." She pauses, thinking, "Well, we had someone come in and do some pankration lessons last month, but... Not exactly the sort we were doing the other day. Not a lot of people around here are combat-rated, or even the right sort of combat-rated, so I'm working on extreme kid gloves levels here."

---

9 on Economic Shock, so no worries! Also no cash to lose, so hey! Given my serious personal objective was completed, how about something lighter for the next? Rose's new goal is to get her gunscythe signed by Lavender Lilac's VA.

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose nods, "Oh, yeah, of course. I have the proving grounds in the basement -- it's a little too wild for community outreach, so it's more of a me thing most of the time. You're certainly welcome to use it, too. Why not catch a cupcake while I finish up here, then I'll show you around?"

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose takes the cupcake, holding it gingerly like one might a porcelain doll, and says, "Well... I wouldn't say that I'm not interested in following up. Given that they were going after my people and all, but..." She looks around, then at the door to the basement, "Follow me, it'll be better to talk down there."

Leading whoever's interested in following down to her basement of training nightmares equipment, she spends a few moments showing off an obstacle course that is clearly tuned for someone with superhuman speed, strength, and the ability to shrug off a direct hit from a main battle tank's main cannon, then turns the conversation to work, "So, if we're thinking on things that are coming out of that job, it's gonna get real big real quick. A podunk Goliath station isn't going to put up much of a fight compared to the people behind all of this."

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose laughs, "Well, it was live, there was action, we were... technically role playing, I suppose." A beat. "Yeah, I guess you could call it LARPing."

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose considers that for a moment, then says, "That sounds good, Elodie." A beat, an almost imperceptable narrowing of giant anime eyes. "It would be good to talk with her before you go."

Is she contemplating a show of force? Perhaps. The bunny did cause damages at her abode, for whatever reason. Also: strangely possessive of her Elodie, which doesn't make sense to the android, given the givens, but maybe a pecking order needs to be established for this Harriet to properly comprehend the dynamics surrounding her dear, sweet little roommate. Slash social media manager.

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




At some point, between the basement and the meeting with Harriet, Rose has grabbed her entirely impractical (yet lore accurate) shotgun-scythe and has it resting easily on her shoulder. She considers the bunny girl, then says, "Harriet."

There's a moment where they both look at Elodie, then back at each other.

"A LARP at the Slumbering Court? What's the time frame?"

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose's eyes flick between the two, considering. There's something to be said that (usually) LARP days end up being harmless fluff that Elodie gushes about for days, if not weeks, afterward. Admittedly, Elodie generally isn't tied up in a conspiracy that may well involve the sort of people who have a line item budget for covering up crime scenes and dead bodies. Better to be safe, than sorry.

She says, after a moment of consideration, "So I see." A beat. "I will be joining you."

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose shakes her head, "No, that's fine. Rosabeth seems fitting for the setting." There's a beat, a moment of considering, then she ventures, "Dame Rosabeth, famed for her unbreakable armor? Cursed by the General to wear it til the moment of her death?"

One of the challenges with Elodie can be decoding exactly where on the regular story to Rose Garden OVA level of tone everyone's working at. And, while she may be crashing the duo's LARP date, it's for entirely legitimate not-letting-people-get-shot safety reasons. Mostly, anyways. Maybe a little bit of lowkey payback for the wall incident. All that to say: she's trying to fit into the story as best as she can manage... at least while wielding a fully functional replica of the iconic LILY weapon.

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




An extremely chuuni scythe interposes between the two, Rose finally entering the scene in dramatic fashion, "Enough, Lady Grriselda. The Lady Ewelia is not the one who deserves your ire." She looks from one, to the other, "Her mother, the late Queen, may well have wronged you, but we find ourselves at a crossroad: we are but three, our enemies are not so limited in number."

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




"A life well lived is oft the best revenge, but..." Rosabeth looks pointedly at the Lady Grriselda, then can't help but put a hand atop Ewelia's worried little head as she continues, "Meaning and purpose are something you discover day by day. I know a little about curses, enough to venture that the feelings and actions you've taken haven't been entirely invented, and perhaps untangling the two will give you some sense of how to proceed."

Rosabeth ruffles Ewelia's fluffy little ears, "And I'm sure the little lady will be more than happy to make things right, however you decide that looks."

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose gives Elodie a little bit of a look, trying to divine where she's going with this, but then decides to step in before the poor dear short circuits entirely. Leaning the scythe against the wall, she gently picks up Elodie, like one might a puppy, and holds her towards Harriet. Rose says, as if this gesture is not entirely clear and completely free from any misconstruement that might occur, "Perhaps what she's suggesting is a touch of... role reversal? I'm sure she would be amenable."

Flipping Elodie around so she's facing back towards her, Rose cocks her head a bit, "Right? Or..."

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Chiming in as Elodie switches to an actual real-world phone call, Rose says, "Well, you've heard her wishes. I trust that you'll treat her tenderly?" There's a beat, a small flash of robotic menace while the poor meido is distracted and busy, "After all... I don't think the consequences for abusing her good will need to be stated."

Likewise!

Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose shrugs, "Well, it's complicated. I'm sure Elodie will be able to smooth things over later." Her bearing switches from posh lady knight (with a gunscythe) to rabblerousing android badass (with a gunscythe) like one might turn on the lights. "But since we're talking business, what was this about stolen computers? Is this a simple recovery job, or are you expecting heavy resistance?"

Rolled prep on the discord and got 6 personal, 3 group.

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Tricky
Jun 12, 2007

after a great meal i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage




Rose laughs, "Basically. Now we just need to take a bunch of computers back before the parts are worn out."

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