Guild Wars 2

“Ana? Are you awake?”

I turned around in my bed, still half asleep. The moonlight filtered through the small window, casting soft shadows in the room. “Mmm…Kristie…what time is it?” I muttered. “Why aren’t you in bed…”

A small hand tugged at my sleeve. “I hear someone downstairs. He smell like gunpowder.”

“Gunpow-wha?” I pushed myself up, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. “Kristie, what are you talking about?”

“I said I heard someone downstairs,” Kristie repeated a bit anxiously. “Mama’s really angry…and…I think It’s dad.”

I looked over at my little sister’s unfocused glassy eyes. “Did you hear what they were saying?” I asked.

Kristie shook her head. “No.”

Dad’s here? “Stay here,” I told her. “I’m gonna go check it out.”

I stood up and gently placed my hands on my little sister’s shoulders, leading her to sit on the edge of my bed. “Don’t move, all right?” I said. “I’ll be back soon.”

Kristie nodded, intently listening to my soft footsteps pattering down the hall. I think I heard her sigh as my footsteps moved over to climb up on the hallway table, and swing out over the ledge of the window. Mom would always scold me for using the window as an exit, telling me one day I’d break my neck.

“I have nothing more to say to you!” The door slammed downstairs. I frowned. That voice certainly was mom.

My gaze darkened. And the man standing outside certainly was dad.

He sighed, starting to walk away. I leaped down, habitually stealthing upon my descent. It did catch him off guard, as his hand went straight for the pistol on his belt.

“Mom might have nothing left to say to you but I do!” I snapped. “One day the Seraphs come knocking on our door, and you vanish out the back! Then we don’t hear or see you for eight months!?”

He slowly let go of his pistol. “….You’re getting good at stealthing…”

“Oh spare me…where’ve you been!?” I demanded. “You promised you’d stop working with bandits! You remember that promise?! You promised you’d come home!”

He guiltily looked down, adjusting the cuffs of his jacket. “Ana, I-“

“It’s because of the bandits Kristie lost her sight!” He looked up, confused. “Oh, you didn’t know?” I glared at him. “Bandits poisoned the drinking water in town one day. Some of that water got into her eyes. So now she’s blind!”

“Ana, I’m only doing this because our family needed money…”

“Money isn’t going to get Kristie’s sight back!”

“If that’s so, then why are you still in Lion’s Arch?”

I stopped. “That’s…different.”

He sadly shook his head. “Like father like daughter…if I was still alive, I’d have stopped you. You made the same mistakes I did.”

I blinked, tears welling up in my eyes. “No! You’re not gone!”

He sighed. “I am dear, I am. Like father like daughter…just use people to get ahead…”

“I’m not like that!”

He looked up. “You’re not? Are you sure? What about Londatt? You left him behind at the krait city.”

“That…has nothing to do with it,” I yelled “The krait…they were coming, dad!”

He nodded quietly. “You can use that excuse if it makes you feel better. I don’t blame you.”

“Londatt’s fine! He – he had a key!”

“I’m sure he wanted to see his family again. His little girl was the spark of his life.”

I covered my face with my hands. “Stop talking, stop talking…”

I jerked awake, momentarily confused to see myself in a medical ward, instead of outside of my house. I was even more confused to see a priestess of Dwayna and the Norn guard who had saved me earlier, instead of my father. I blinked a bit, quickly wiping the tears that had dripped down my eyes.
“I see she’s awake.” The priestess smiled, gently catching my hand and laying it back on my side. She adjusted a bandaid on my arm. “Don’t move so much. You’ve been through a lot, but you’re safe now.”

The Lionguard Norn smiled. “See? I told you. You’re not gonna see Balt-sarr yet.”

The priestess looked over. “Balt…who?”

“Balt-sarr.” The Norn replied. “You know, human god of death?”

“…No no no. You’re thinking of Grenth.”

“Grenth? I thought that’s the nature god.”

“…that’s Melandru.”

“Then who’s the pretty god?”

“The who?”

“you know, the one with two forms?”

“THAT is Lyssa. And she’s not two forms, they’re twin sisters.”

“So wait…Lyssa is two gods?”

“Yes.”

“So why do you call them the Six and not the Seven?”

“I – you – oh! Just keep to your animal spirits!”

“Fine by me…they’re less complicated. So…who’s Balt-sarr then?”

“Oh by the Six…BALTHAZAR is the god of war.”

“I thought that was Kormir…”

“…No. She’s the goddess of Order.”

“Huh…”

“…you’re going to tell me you thought that was Dwayna, aren’t you?”

“Yep.”

“…that’s the goddess of healing.”

“Oh! I get it! You’re a priestess of Dwayna because you heal people! That makes sense!”

The priestess shook her head in defeat. “I give…”

I couldn’t help but grin. “so how long do I have to stay in here until I can go back out again?” I asked.

The priestess shook her head. “I’m sorry Anakysha. But we can’t let you go.”

I blinked. “What? Why? I feel fine…matter of fact I feel great. Why can’t I leave…the…”

I slowly looked over at the priestess. “…What did you call me?”

“Anakysha,” the priestess replied. “That is your name, correct?”

My eyes darted from the Lionguard to the priestess. I immediately scrambled up, knocking the priestess back.

“Whoa now!” the Lionguard firmly pressed the head of her mace against my chest. “Sorry, but you’re not going anywhere. I got orders to take you back to Fort Marriner once you’ve been patched up.”

Forget that! I immediately casted stealth and dove between the two of them – only to trip with chain cuffed to my ankles.

I yelped, crashing on the floor, losing the stealth. The Lionguard solemnly shook her head. “Sorry kid,” she said, effortlessly hoisting me up like a rag doll, and dropping me back on the bed. “You’re not going anywhere.”

The priestess dusted off her robes. “It’s bad enough we don’t have enough doctors. I’d appreciate not being knocked over!” she snapped. “Don’t try to escape again, Anakysha. You’ll only pop your stitches.”
I groaned, lying back down on the bed. “Out of the frying pan and into the fire…then back into the pan and out on the fire…this isn’t fair…”

The Norn shrugged. “Is there a human god of luck?”

“…No…”

“Too bad. You could have prayed to him.”

“And with all the recent chaos, the hospital’s been so full. Lucky you – well, sorta – you needed intensive care. So you got to go on the upper floor.”

I heaved a sigh. “So…the mermaid’s dead…”

Omaya – as I had learned was the name of my guard – nodded. “Afraid so. Or, at least that’s the word on the street. Haven’t heard of anyone finding the body yet.”

I looked over. “So she could still be alive?”

Omaya shrugged. “Maybe, maybe not.”

I propped myself up on my elbows and frowned. “I’m actually kinda surprised you’re sharing all this with me…you know…seeing as I’m the criminal and you’re the Lionguard…”

Omaya chuckled. “This is all gossip. I don’t even know if it’s legit. I’m fairly sure telling you won’t change a thing. Besides,” she tapped the cuffs on my ankles. “You’re not going anywhere, anytime soon.”

I eyed the key tucked in her belt. “Nu –uh,” she said. “Don’t even think about it, dearie.”

I sighed and flopped back on the bed. Mermaid potions. Go figure. If I had not gone after Bubbles, and just stayed here in Lion’s Arch, I’d have made more money than this trip cost me! I know how to make fake potions! And I know how to sell it too!

It was not too long until the priestess came back. “Let me give your prisoner one final check-up and then she should be good to go.”

Omaya nodded, moving aside to let the Priestess look me over. I watched them quietly. Maybe I could grab the priestess neck and hold her hostage? No…that wouldn’t work. The Norn was more likely to bash the side of my head and knock me out, then agree to my demands.

“She’s good to go,” the priestess said. Omaya hoisted me up, snapping a pair of cuffs over my wrists, before removing the ones on my ankles. “You got boots over here,” Omaya said, handing them to me.
I quietly slipped the boots on, and stood up. Omaya gently snapped another pair of cuff links over the boots. Long enough that I could walk, but not run. She tugged the end of the chain, leading me down the steps. I dropped my head, letting my bangs cover my face, and trying to hide from all the curious children that had flooded the hospital.

“Mama, why is that Lionguard leading that person in chains?”

“She must be a criminal. Don’t look, dear.”

Bounty HUNTER. Not all of my work is illegal. So I’ve taken a few hostages and…assassinated some…targets. Doesn’t make me a criminal your daughter shouldn’t look at…

“Maybe she’s the one that made the mermaid potions.”

“You think so? Man, if I could get my hands on her for what she did to my daughter.”

“Who?”

“That girl. She must be one of the people that made the mermaid potions.”

I rolled my eyes. Gossip in Lion’s Arch flew faster than the crow flies.

I asked Omaya if she could at least lead me through the backstreets instead of the main streets, so I could avoid being stared at by passerbys. She refused, but was kind enough to purchase a wide brimmed hat. At least it partly covered my face.

The streets were full of people, bustling about. Every snippet of conversation I heard was about the mermaid. Mermaid this, mermaid that. She had certainly made quite an impression within the past few days. Anyone who wasn’t talking about the mermaid was talking about Scarlet. I guess she really had made her appearance here in Lion’s Arch. I even managed to catch someone talking about a Sylvari using – what, a gun? – and making a daring leap off the edge of a cliff and into the harbor lighthouse. That I had to dismissed as another tall tale. No one could make THAT jump. Not even if the Sylvari in question was high on caffeine and sugar.

A slight twinge of jealousy crept up. Everyone was so enthralled by the recent events, but not a single person seemed to take any notice of me. Not the ‘unknown criminal in chains’ – that I could live without – but ‘Bounty Hunter Midnight captured’ or ‘survivor from krait slavery.’

How could I be so coldhearted? Someone just died… I clenched my eyes. I was supposed to be coldhearted. And the only reason people didn’t know about me was because I did my job right. The less I was known, the better.

Except for that Whispers agent. He knew about me…he knew my name. My mind went back to him. How much did the Order of Whispers know about me? Was I really his mission? Just me, and not every other single prisoner in the krait city? The thought of the Orders actually having any kind of interest in my actions unnerved me. Maybe they were the ones that tipped me off to the Lionguard. No…they couldn’t care about me THAT much.

Right?

“You’re slowing down,” Omaya said, giving a gentle, but firm tug on the chains. “Come on. I know you don’t like where we’re going but you’re gonna get there eventually.”

I nodded quietly and picked up my pace – just not too much. I needed time to think.

If life gives you lemons, it was time to make them combustible.

Gosndarnit, did my last segment really need to be divided into three seperate posts?

Double-goshdarnit.

Making a double post last time was bad. Now it’s triple. I wonder if my next has to be quadruple…

Triple-goshdarnit.

As expected my investigation in LA didn’t went well. Nobody had a clue where Bubbles body was. One person recognized me from my first investigation and told me he had seen captain Storyteller recently. He didn’t know much, though it’s nice to hear that he hasn’t vanished.

I went back to the headquaters to see what my investigators found out. Stan was unfortunatly onsuccesfull. The only connection Stan could find out was that the Asura wanted to catch Bubbles. I knew that already. Duma told me that the priory wanted Bubbles body too, but wasn’t really involved a lot. The vigil didn’t seem to care about the mermaid, (ofcourse they don’t, it’s a military organisation. I still wanted to know for sure anyway)
Only Anivia could get me some good info. She had found out that Ash legion has got some agents on it, but she couldn’t acces the files as the clearence level was too high for her.

I have to know what’s in those files! I guess it’s time to call in a favor. I walk to my desk and open secret drawer with a key. The only thing in the drawer is a mysterious potion. I put it in my pocket and reseal the drawer.

It’s time to go to the Black Citadel. I smile, even the Order of Whispers doesn’t know about my secret potion.

And from somewhere deep and dark…

A wisp, a breath, the air of death, the husk lay ever still at the bottom of the span, waiting. Like a cold, lifeless mass of discarded fay it rests, tempus fugit. Fret not little fish, your story has not seen its final chapter. I have just begun with your ‘tail’. Rest now and allow the mad, upstart, sapling to languish in her false triumph. MY story, is in its preface and your character my dear, is barely introduced.

From the depths, my will arises, ever cold and ever night. A tendril of thought brings the faintest of quivers, yes I feel you half-breed. Soon, so very soon, your story will begin a new and this time, the human of the sea will not be so easily ushered to ossuary. Timbers creak, ‘ware troubles deep. Unwitting, unknowing and unseen, you remain an incarnate of my divine countenance, my intrigue awaits.

Fate snickers in slight disdain, a hidden nuance of given name.

Coincidence, “Bubbles”, yes my precious, coincidence assured.

<the sea rumbles deeply, the bass essence of laughter resounds, rising to the surface>

And then… there was silence.

((Yay for more combustible lemon references! And wow Ari, that’s some extensive backstory there. It’s showing effort.

To think it all started from one rock O_O

Getting all the Norn talking about Gods sequence is hillarious too. And yeah, I’m surprised there’s no deity of luck in this game.

I’m still waiting for an agent to come to the Lighthouse before making the next move))

((I love this topic!!
I hope you like what I write, because i’ve never done something like this. I just thought: you never know if you like something/ are good at something if you don’t try it. and that’s why I started writing here.

Further: eventhough my character sorta likes it that Bubbles is dead (for the books at least), I’m sitting here hoping that Bubbles is still alive somhowe. (I make up stuff like mermaids might have regen powers underwater, but i know it’s probably not true)

I’m just gonna make some screenshots and then write something.))

I hope people like what I write as well. XD I’m not that great at writing comedy, but I try. Even though, it still has a realistic-ish tone. Eep.

I just came across a dilemna. LIONGUARD HAS NO HEADQUARTERS. How am I supposed to get Ana interrogated now?

Perhaps I can use the Vigil outpost….would that go along with the story?

Didn’t they keep Mai Thrin in that cage in the bar?
They have some kind of a ‘prison’. It’s far south of the city where the bar is. Then go up the stairs and there should be some cages. Or two.

Sophiera.1209:

Didn’t they keep Mai Thrin in that cage in the bar?
They have some kind of a ‘prison’. It’s far south of the city where the bar is. Then go up the stairs and there should be some cages. Or two.

Really? I’ve never seen them. I just used the Vigil outpost. I’m gonna check there now. It’s inside Fort Marriner? The only cage I’ve seen is the one with Mai Trin inside.

From somewhere shallow and unforeseen…

A rustle, a twitch, a swirl in the muck and mire of the Harbor’s depths, the sentient fish it stirs. The golden mane billows in the current, like fine strands of spun gold waving in the breeze. A barest hint of pastel mint returns to flesh and scale. Gills filter a new and the twinge of consciousness brings lashes a flutter.

Yes my child, tis time to wake. Destiny yet holds a tale to be told. With unforeseen tie and a twist in the weave of the nets of Fate, the time has come for you to begin to take up your true destiny. History will tell of the frivolous waif, stricken a sunder by the insane schemes of an uninspired seedling, but history, has a way of being rewritten.

Arise my epitome, enigma and Prior and with slate wiped clean be that which you were ordained. Sally forth my namesake and carry the mantle of Elder enlightenment. Plans within plans lay hidden and thrive for the essence of Bubbles remains alive.

“you want to do what!?,” shouted the charr, “I hope I didn’t hear that right.”
“Yes Chris Titan, you heard me. I want to infiltrate the Ash legion.”
“But how?,” he asked, “they will see you’re a sylvari.”
“Let me worry about that, you just go get your permission to see the ‘mermaid’ reports,” I said. He left and told me that it he would be back in two hours.
Titan, the charr who still owes me one, is highly trusted in the char ranks. He’s one of the few people who can acces those files.
I hope my plan will work like I planned.

2 hours is a long time to wait, espacially when you’re about to do something illegal. It’s a long time to think. The longer you think, the more nervous you get. And I already was really nervous. Not because I think my plan won’t work, not because I’m going to do something illegal.
I’m nervous because I am going to use my secret potion. I’ve used it before and it’s absolutely safe, that’s not it. I never had to show it to anybody before. there are only two other people who know about it.

I can’t stand the wait, how long has he been gone 1 hour?, 30 minutes? I don’t know.

I can’t stop thinking about the risks of someone finding out about my secret potion. What if he tells anyone? What if the Whisperers find out? The Whispers won’t hesitate to steal it from me. I can’t let that happen!
I get an idea, if the truth is too dangerous, lies are your best friends.

After an agonizing wait Titan finally gets back, he asks me how I plan to get in. I reach in my pocket and grab my Secret potion. I tell him that it has been made by powerfull magic a powerfull mesmer, and can only be used twice before it becomes a powerfull poison. Unfortunatly the mesmer can’t make it again, because she was killed because of this potion.
“but what does it do?,” he asks. I open the bottle and drink a little bit. I quickly close the bottle again and put it in my pocket. after a few seconds I transform into.. a cat. An ordinary cat.

It’s a powerfull potion that makes me miauw like a cat (even though I still don’t know what it means), look like a cat, and even smell like a cat. It’s almost undetectable. Almost. But ash won’t expect it, it will be fine.

Titan immediatly understands what I want. As a cat… No, as HIS cat, I can follow him to the Vault where Ash keeps their dossiers and copy them.
As we arrive at the Vault we sea a charr guarding the door. Titan shows his papers and we go in. An Blood legion soldier brings us to a magic-shielded door, the Blood soldier opens it for us, and brings the Dossiers I wanted to see. He then leaves the room and locks us in.

I transform back in my sylvari form and take a look at the Dossiers infront of me. I see that two diffrent agents are involved: Kyra Nightspark and Kraag Deadsoul. I’m surprised to see that last name, I met him once. We worked on a story together, though he never told me he was Ash legion. I didn’t expect that from him.
Anyway, I need to do something; I quickly start copying the Dossiers, writing down the most important information. When I’m done I drink a bit Secret potion again to become a cat again. Titan knocks on the door three times, that means we want to leave, and the Blood soldier opens the door. YES, I did it. I infiltrated the Charr, now lets leave quick.

Back at titans home I become transform back to normal. “Titan, can I use a powerfull incinerator?” I ask, “I need to destroy my Secret potion, its undrinkable now and very dangerous.”
“Sure”
He brings me to a powerfull iron legion destroyer-thiny (I couldn’t hear correct how he called it). I throw my secret potion in the destroyer. “CRAP”, whoops did I just shoot that?
“What’s up?” Titan asks.

I think: ‘it is because I just threw away a powerfull potion. I have the recipe, but the ingredients to make are as rare as they get. Now I can’t use it anymore. WHY didn’t I think of that before I did this’

But I tell him: “it’s nothing.”

“Let’s go celebrate our succesfull mission, you want some apple cider?’
“You pay, saladface”

((EDIT I changed a few things that I didn’t say how I meant it. + added a screenshot))

With our equipment ready and target set, we set off for Lion’s Arch. We very quickly learnt that LA was on high alert due to another Scarlet threat and decided that it was probably best to avoid using the Asura Gates due to a very high level of security and the news that they weren’t letting many people in or out of the city. So another ship was hired and we set sail, this time avoiding the rock we sought to locate a few days earlier.

With no recent word of Captain Storyteller, we decided to begin our search in some of the local bars. After all .. where do all honest sailors like to go when they make port? No one seemed to know anything of the Captains whereabouts but we very quickly learned that the sea-bookah had be killed and that Scarlet was behind it. We learned how that posing as a friend, she had struck down the sea-booker forcing her to fall off the bridge and into the water. The locals pointed us to the large high bridge known as “The Gangplank” which joined the vigil fort to the Lion’s Court. and it was here that we decided to go looking for clues, after all .. we could still study a body.

We finally found the spot where she fell. A great silence and sadness swept over us, for all our hard work and research had lead up to this point. We were going to be the first ones to discover and study a real live mermaid. There would have been parties on the streets in Rata Sum when we returned with her. Nothing gets Asuras more excited than discovering a brand new species! We pictured this scene time and time again with so much excitement. We just never pictured it with her dead.

To be honest we didn’t know quite what to expect as we dove down into the gloomy waters of LA. Half of us expected to see the poor dead mermaid lying there unconsciously on the sandy seabed, and half of us expected to see nothing but the boney remains of whatever parts of her the fish didn’t want to eat.

However, what we found was something none of us expected. For once in our lives .. We were lost. Every clue, every piece of high tech equipment, every slither of evidence pointed to this very spot… But where was she? Not only was there no sign of the body, there was nothing at all .. Not a single scale from her tail or one silky strand of her hair. The calm sandy Seabed was completely untouched.

Where was she?!?!…

Laru

Standing on top of the lighthouse is a wonderful feeling. You get to see the world far and wide like the tops of the Pale Tree. Well, not as great… but good enough.

Friendly Lionguard told me that the fans’ search turned up absolutely nothing. Oh boy, here comes the Broken Base Syndrome.

Camp Optimists believe Bubbles still lives, Camp Pessimists insisted she’s dead.

Then we have the third base, The Apocalypse. Some had packed up their belongings in fears of another ‘tsunami’. Creatures of the deep will rise for vengeance, they say.

I witnessed one conflict breaking out at a nearby beach. A Norn Elementalist insisted on an appeasement ritual to calm unknown sea spirits. As she built a simple altar, some hotshot Charr Engineer kicked it down.

Aye, it didn’t take long for it to become a pretty ‘explosive’ brawl.

Lionguard prodded the city for toxic bombs and managed to just find one by luck: buried under the Black Lion itself.

Well, ruining the economy is a strategic move. Without Evon and his assistants, the flow of adventurer’s gold will plummet.

No funds=no resistance=a happy Bad Salad.

One down, two to go. Can’t rely on luck forever! I really hope someone comes by!

Call me paranoid, but I think I’m seeing something very, very wrong at the ocean horizon.

Arikyali.5804:

Sophiera.1209:

Didn’t they keep Mai Thrin in that cage in the bar?
They have some kind of a ‘prison’. It’s far south of the city where the bar is. Then go up the stairs and there should be some cages. Or two.

Really? I’ve never seen them. I just used the Vigil outpost. I’m gonna check there now. It’s inside Fort Marriner? The only cage I’ve seen is the one with Mai Trin inside.

That is pretty much the only known prison they have. :P

At least you can see the lighthouse from there. I think?

Dead to the world but not to the ocean…

Consciousness hovers on the edge of a razor, threatening to teeter hither and yon. Fleeting wisps of light and dark shimmer and blur, then back to night.

Time passes, as does the current. Bubbles rise but not to the surface. Twelve feet above the floor, a thermocline is reached halting the assent of the assumed dead. Had eyes and mind been allowed to see, they would bear witness to a rocky outcrop with nary a scrape of anchor or hull, yet deemed “Slayer of Ships” pass slowly by, full circle.

Along with the current and the outgoing tide, refuse all goes out to sea. Flotsam and jetsam drain from Sanctum Harbor cleansing the discard of Lion’s Arch. On this day though, like too many others, a body lies in tow. However, this unfortunate, contrasting some pin cushioned cheater at cards or stumbled drunk, this lithe body half fem, half fish… lives.

Unknowing and uncaring, time muddles on. And like a swaddled babe, cradled in the protective arms of Mother Ocean, the Mermaid dwells in dreams.

This just didn’t make sense.

The redheaded woman shook her head, hands clasped together behind her back as she paced back and forth. The city was abuzz, and there were things she needed to do, but at the same time the events that had transpired demanded some thought.

It made no sense. But maybe that was the problem. The person they were dealing with was someone who didn’t depend on sense.

Lion’s Arch was in an uproar. After all of the commotion of the ‘mermaid’, as she was deemed, word had leaked that Scarlet Briar had made her presence known within the city. The Captain’s Council had met, but were trying to keep a lid on things, presumably to avoid panic. But the Lionguard had been rooting around the city since then, and the rumour mills had kicked into high gear. Whispers had spread that some kind of explosive device had been found underneath the Black Lion Trading Post, and almost immediately Gnashblade had blamed the Consortium for an attempt at corporate sabotage.

As an agent of the Order of Whispers, Felicia Rios was privy to knowledge and secrets. It had taken a day for her informant to come through, but she had received word of the encounter between Magnus and Scarlet high in the city, and Scarlet’s threat against it. And that was what gave her pause now. Why did Scarlet feel the need to communicate the impending doom of Lion’s Arch in such a way? Why would she not just remain quiet and let it happen, if it was what she truly wanted? This wasn’t the first time she had acted in such a manner. There had to be something else at play here…

But Felicia could continue to think about what her motivations were, or she could act. And clearly, it was time to act. The kind of disaster that had befallen Kessex Hills occurring in Lion’s Arch cause unparalleled destruction. It would make what happened at the Queen’s Jubilee look like child’s play.

The Lionguard were already hunting for more devices, but there were nooks and crannies to the city that even they did not know existed. Smuggler’s havens, sewer entrances, hidden chambers within the old city’s ruins… assuming that Scarlet was ignorant of these places would be naïve. Let the others deal with the mermaid, if they still felt the need to. She would make sure that the city wasn’t destroyed around them while they did so.

((Well, good news is that I got over my drama queen hissy fit…

I reevaluated things, continued reading, and had to realize that Scarlet or not, this is just too awesome not to remain part of. [The story is like a Lamborghini or a Ferrari, and Scarlet is just an annoying, splashed bug or a micro-sized bird dropping dried onto the windshield… it doesn’t take away from the quality and power of the beauty.]

Zann will be back, and his feelings are quite… puts on sunglasses… explosive.

P.S.: If you turn up alive, Bubbles, he’d like to slap you for trusting a friendly-looking sylvari who gave you megalomaniac ideas so obliviously and dragging that stain on Tyria’s honor into this. The slap would be all within the frame of foreplay, of course.))

(( Yay Bubbles lives! Though sleeping and status unknown :< ))

After only a half hour of waiting, I was led into the interrogation room. My time alone in the cell prior had allowed me to gather my thoughts and construct the next steps of my plan. It was fairly simple and straightforward, but I would need Lyssa’s guidance to pull it off.

If I thought Lion’s Arch was bustling with activity, it was doubly so inside the the Vigil outpost. Guards were running off, carrying orders from their lieutenants and commanders. I was ushered off for questioning before I had any chance to listen in and pick up on any important details of their conversations.

The Charr walked into the room shortly after, shutting the door behind him. He turned and looked me over. “So,” he said gruffly. “This is the criminal Midnight…”

“Bounty Hunter,” I corrected. “Bounty Hunter, Midnight.”

He walked over to the other side of his desk. “I don’t care what you want to call yourself, Anakysha. Bottom line is, you’re deep in trouble.” He leaned across the desk, extending his claws over the hardwood surface. “So, mind telling me what you’re doing in the restricted side of Lion’s Arch?”

“I was escaping my captives,” I replied.

“Really. Who captured you?”

“Krait.”

The Charr drew in a long breath, his whiskers twitching slightly. “How’d you get caught by krait?”

“I was hunting for the mermaid,” I shrugged. “krait caught me instead.”

“Where?”

I smiled sweetly. Bingo

The Charr frowned at my sudden change of expression. “There something more you wanna tell me?” he growled.

“Well that all depends,” I answered. “What’s in it for me?”

“…excuse me?”

“You see, I’m beginning to think there’s a lot more going on than what the surface holds,” I said. “The mermaid, the krait, the pirates, the nightmare courtiers, and now, Scarlet…”

The Charr’s tail twitched in slight annoyance. “I’m not the patient type. Get to the point…”

“When the Krait captured me, they took me to an underwater city. They made us build something.”

The Charr frowned, listening intently. “Go on…”

“The sailors from the shipwreck were enslaved there, and all the parts from the shipwrecks were used as building material,” I said.

“Where is it?” He asked.

“THAT…I can’t tell you.”

The charr’s stance dropped as he gave a sidelong glare to the side. “You don’t remember…”

“Oh no. I remember. I remember every bit of it. Every inch from my escape to the beach where I was found…” I nodded quietly as his eyes looked back up at me. “I remember where the krait ambushed me, and where they kept me after I woke up.”

I smiled. “Question is…how much do you want to pay for that information?”

The Charr was taken aback. “…what?”

“I’m serious,” I said. “How much gold do I get for telling you where it is?”

The Charr growled. “How about I don’t throw you in prison right now so you can rot behind bars?”

I shook my head. “Going to cost more than that…” I looked up. “There were people there. Quite a few. And the krait priestess was talking about sacrificing them – no, us – for some kind of ritual.”

I dropped my gaze and steadied it with the seething charr. “I want a paycheck for the information. I’ll tell you everything you need to know to find the krait city. And I also want a free pass out of Lion’s Arch.”

A deep angered growl emitted from his throat. “You’ve got to be kidding me,”

“Not at all…I’m serious. And you better make your decision fast…those people enslaved by the krait might not have much time…”

His fur riled up. He reached over and grabbed my hand, shoving his snout inches from my face. “Now listen here mouse,” he growled. “You’re gonna tell me where those people are and maybe I’ll consider shorting your time in the dungeon.”
I shook my head. “My terms…or no deal.”

“I don’t make deals with criminals…”

“Well then, can you live with the conscience that you condemned several innocent people to their watery death?”

The Charr snarled, spinning me around and dragging me to the door. He threw the door open, throwing me into the startled arms of the guard outside. “Take this piece of filth and lock her up!” he bellowed.

The guard quickly nodded, dragging me to the cell. My face was contemplative, but deep inside I was smiling. There was no way they’d pass up the opportunity to learn about the krait’s whereabouts. It was only a matter of time and all I had to do was wait.

I did not have to wait long. I looked up at the sound of the cell door opening. The Charr stood at the doorway, one hand resting on the frame. “Had a change of heart?” he asked.

I shook my head. “The price remains the same. My freedom, and a nice sum of gold, for the location of the krait city.”

The Charr rapped his claws against the wooden frame. “And if I refuse?”

“Then I guess all those people will get sacrificed by the krait priestess,” I replied nonchalantly.

“And you can live with yourself like that?”

“I can,” I answered. “But I don’t think you can.”

“No, you’re right…” he growled. “I couldn’t…” but instead of making any gesture to let me follow him, he turned to the side and look across the hall. “Heard enough?” he asked.

“Indeed I have.”

I blinked. The Charr stepped away, allowing a familiar Asura into the cell. My eyes widened in disbelief. “…Londatt?”

He nodded. “Greetings, Anakysha.”

I stammered, my heart sinking. “I…how?”

“Ooh, it wasn’t easy,” he replied. “My predicament was not lightened by you and your ally’s escape. I am no fighter, and I barely made it out alive.”

I stared, my mouth agape. “A myriad of explanations was going through my head as I watched you swim off. Perhaps you assumed I had gotten free myself, and I was supposedly behind you? Or perhaps you would come back when it was safer? Certainly you would not leave me there alone to deal with the krait, especially after you had procured their increased hostility.”

He shook his head. “All you had to do was reach over and turn the key. Was it really that difficult?” he glared at me. “I could have forgiven you, Anakysha. I honestly could have. You were fearful, desperate…fine! Such emotions cloud judgment! But after hearing your demands for our freedom, I could not.”

He angrily pointed at me. “When I heard you had landed yourself in prison, my first reaction was to come here and help clear up whatever misunderstandings you had acquired. Certainly the young human girl who had kept me company in that forsaken pit could not deserve to be in here. But after hearing how you were more than willing to SELL the information of the krait’s whereabouts…or else leave the rest of us condemned – my previous inference about you changed. It appears you are very deserving of your new confinement.”

I stammered. “It’s not like that…”

“Oh really?” he asked. “Then do enlighten me on ‘how it is’. You did not only condemn the other captives in the krait city, but future captives as well! You have seen the ruckus in Lion’s Arch! You had just willingly condemned all of Lion’s Arch to the krait’s treachery!”

“And do not attempt to tell me ‘you did not know,’ Anakysha. You are no bookah. Oh no, you are a very clever girl. You are a clever, deceitful, conniving, treacherous, cold-hearted, and ruthless little girl…

“Wow,” the charr muttered. “You’re like a walking dictionary…”

Londatt shot a look over at the Charr. “On the contrary, I’d be akin to a walking thesaurus. But whatever. I am done here. I will inform you of whatever you wish to learn about the krait city.”

Londatt looked back at me, and shook his head in disbelief. “You have one thing to be thankful for, Anakysha,” he said. “At least this cell is bigger than your last one.” Without another word, the Asura strode off, without looking back.

I numbly sat on down on the bed as the charr locked the gate of my cell. I sat there for a long time, I had not even noticed the Norn guard, Omaya, until she was standing in front of the bars, shaking her head with a sigh.

“You know kid,” she said, “when I first saw you I just thought you ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time. But after hearing that little Asura…by the Bear. Seeing you terrified back on the beach, then you crying in your sleep at the hospital…I couldn’t even believe you’d be so heartless. IT was all just an act, wasn’t it?”

I wasn’t terrified, I was startled. tears welled up in my eyes again. I angrily brushed them away.

“Nu-uh, kid. Waterworks ain’t gonna work this time,” she said. “Wonder what your parents must think of you…” she shook her head and walked away.

I pulled my legs up to my chest and cried for a long time. I laid down on the hard plank bed and eventually I cried myself to sleep.

I expected to have to explain my story to an officer, and lie to them. I didn’t expect to be summoned by Riel Darkwater herself, and have to try and lie to her. At least my story was good, if I stuck to it there shouldn’t be a problem. There were a couple of other senior officers nearby, as well as her personal assistant. Something wasn’t right here, and I’d have to keep my wits about me. I knelt as was customary, and announced my prescence.

“Agent Nuregar, reporting in for debriefing.” I stood and waited. Riel sat for a moment, her eyes locked on mine. This kind of eye contact was nice between two lovers, but right now it just made me extremely uncomfortable. The woman was, unsurprisingly, good at her job.
“Thank you, Nuregar.” Riel replied. “As you are no doubt suspect, we have a number of questions about your recent-” her eyes flicked to my wounded side for a moment “-mission.”
Son of a Skritt. I thought to myself. This didn’t start well.
“Firstly, could you remind me what communications you received during your mission?” This was a fairly standard starting question from Riel. They liked to know that orders sent were received, and also that people were being honest about receiving them. Some agents were under surveillance to see when orders arrived to them, and then tested to see if they admitted to getting those orders.
“Yes Ma’am. I was given initial instructions to find the location of a missing mercenary, Anakysha.” I replied. “During my investigation, there was a secondary message that informed me of other interested parties, which had been fed misinformation and were no longer a problem. This second appeared to come from a different person than my usual handler.” There was a muffled click of money from where the two officers were, and I thought I heard something like ‘he would notice’.
“You didn’t think to question the second message?” Riel queried.
“No Ma’am. It contained no instructions, just information. As far as I knew, my mission had not changed.” Riel nodded at the explanation. It made sense, from an Agents point of view. “I must admit that without the third message, it would have taken me longer to figure out that Anakysha had been taken by Krait.” Riel tilted her head slightly, and looked at her aide for a moment, before returning her attention to me.
“That third message,” If I though she was watching me intently earlier, it was nothing compared to now. “how did it arrive?” My mouth suddenly went dry. Why had I not considered this? My nerves got the better of me as realisation hit. That message wasn’t from the Order.
“It.. it was left by the door outside my hideout.” My composure was shot, but so too was hers. She held herself in much better control, though. I made the statement everyone was thinking. “It wasn’t from the Order, was it Ma’am?”
“No, Agent.” Riel murmered. “It was not. What was written on it?”
“A single word, Ma’am. Krait.”
“Leave us.” Riel ordered. “Do not go far, this meeting is not over but we need to discuss this first.” Riel indicated the nearby officers, who looked a little uncomfortable.

I was glad of the opportunity to take a break. My carefully thought out stories and lies were still somewhat useful, but they would need working on and I needed to compose myself. Who sent that message? I thought. It had been the exact clue I needed. Did someone else want me to find Anakysha? I frowned. I’d always thought of her as Midnight. Why the change? I could worry on that later. That message. What did it acheive? It got me out of the city. It got me out of the city! What if that was the aim? Had I been close to discovering something else?

I resisted the urge to interrupt Riel and her officers with this idea. I’m sure they would have thought of it themselves. I shook my head clear, and got to work on my stories. So, how exactly did you get injured, and what happened to Anakysha? I could hear the questions they would ask. I could use this third message to my advantage.

Lies. Secrecy. Misdirection. The game was fully on now, and the stakes were very, very high.

Jaric.5679:

Reil kittened her head slightly, and looked at her aide for a moment, before returning her attention to me.

It seems the filter got you. Although now I’m thinking of a cute kitten on top of Reil’s head.

((* She’s Riel Darkwater.))

((Wait, what? A filter? It exists?! I thought the Kitten is an injoke about filters, not the filter itself ))

Fortunately, the meat of Scarlet’s plan was in the set-up, and thanks to everyone being on high-alert already because of the mermaid panic, the battle with Scarlet’s minions went quicker than expected, and the damage to the city was significantly less than might be expected.

Unfortunately, the whole incident had some more lasting effects, ones that may change Lion’s Arch…FOREVER!

((Quick Note: Remember, just because you can write a lot doesn’t mean you need to. Even if your writing is quite good, like many of the long posts in this thread, remember that other people have to read it, too, and it’s exhausting to read pages and pages of story about other people’s PCs, especially if they’re dramatic and don’t interact with other PCs. An ounce of restraint is worth a pound of work sometimes.

You’d be surprised by how much you can do with a little. See the first couple pages of this thread, and I think you’ll be surprised by how much the style of writing has shifted.))

(( Captain, those pictures are awesomesauce Thanks for the reminders too

Just double checking, does that mean we’re done with the scarlet fiasco and moving on to post-scarlet? ))

Arikyali.5804:

Jaric.5679:

Reil kittened her head slightly, and looked at her aide for a moment, before returning her attention to me.

It seems the filter got you. Although now I’m thinking of a cute kitten on top of Reil’s head.

Trying to remember what I typed that would cause the filter. So strange. Going back to edit it to make more sense.

Additional: Ta, Thal. I’ll change that too.

I just made a few small adjustments to my last posts. and added a screenshot.
I didn’t say everything the way I meant it.

After the drink with Titan I went home too give the Dossiers a closer look. When I open my door, I find a note:

Yerol Star,

Midnight is in LA she’s in vigil holding, you wanted to see her right?

Best whishes,

Duma.

I rushed to LA to try convince the vigil warmaster, but he wouldn’t let me.
If only I still had my Mystery Potion, I could sneak past everyone, but I just had too destroy it.

I’ll try again tommorow, now I’m going back home to read the Dossiers.

((Redekitten tried to “copy” you for a bit, 1. make a short post and 2. put some text on the images. Tell me how do you do it? I improvised a bit))

Yerol.9546:

After the drink with Titan I went home too give the Dossiers a closer look. When I open my door, I find a note:

Yerol Star,

Midnight is in LA she’s in vigil holding, you wanted to see her right?

Best whishes,

Duma.

I rushed to LA to try convince the vigil warmaster, but he wouldn’t let me.
If only I still had my Mystery Potion, I could sneak past everyone, but I just had too destroy it.

I’ll try again tommorow, now I’m going back home to read the Dossiers.

((Redekitten tried to “copy” you for a bit, 1. make a short post and 2. put some text on the images. Tell me how do you do it? I improvised a bit))

Aw, that’s so cute!

Allow me to respond with one of my own…

-Out-of-character Notes-

Please don’t get the wrong impression, or think I want everyone to start posting exactly the way I do. I’ve enjoyed a lot of what I’m reading, and I’m just happy to see other people getting excited about the game in a new way for many of them.

My bigger issue is when something like ten, twenty-plus pages of meaty, narrative prose pop up overnight and I’m still not caught up on it. I know I’m not the only one who can hardly post because they’re struggling to keep up on the reading. I just want people to be a little more aware of their word count, and what that means for everyone else.

Sophiera.1209:

Just double checking, does that mean we’re done with the scarlet fiasco and moving on to post-scarlet?

I believe so, although I haven’t gotten a chance to read everything. Unless someone is still fighting Scarlet’s minions, though, I think that’s finished.

Redenaz.8631:

-Out-of-character Notes-

Please don’t get the wrong impression, or think I want everyone to start posting exactly the way I do. I’ve enjoyed a lot of what I’m reading, and I’m just happy to see other people getting excited about the game in a new way for many of them.

My bigger issue is when something like ten, twenty-plus pages of meaty, narrative prose pop up overnight and I’m still not caught up on it. I know I’m not the only one who can hardly post because they’re struggling to keep up on the reading. I just want people to be a little more aware of their word count, and what that means for everyone else.

Sophiera.1209:

Just double checking, does that mean we’re done with the scarlet fiasco and moving on to post-scarlet?

I believe so, although I haven’t gotten a chance to read everything. Unless someone is still fighting Scarlet’s minions, though, I think that’s finished.

Hmm… there is a mountain of new stuff here every time I get back to reading. I caught that one device was found under the Black Lion Trading Post, and that they were continuing to search. There were a dozen such devices (if you can believe Scarlet). Did someone get the last of ‘em? Is anyone bothering to try, or are they just gonna seep out their deadly fumes in 2-3 days time and wipe out the city? Did I miss something? (I’m still reading too).

(Love your reports, Kraag! Helps a lot in keeping caught up!)

As an update….nope, I don’t think anyone else found anything. The city is still in a state of red alert panic.

((Nobody has as yet mounted a toxic barrel search that I can see, aside from Cap’n Storytellers quick, but efficient, narrative. Any minions were taken care of with the city on high alert.))

Sophiera.1209:

((Wait, what? A filter? It exists?! I thought the Kitten is an injoke about filters, not the filter itself ))

Yup, the kitten filter is real. You never knew? It replaces offensive words with the word ‘kitten’. I guess it’s Anet’s way of saying, “Don’t get mad! Kittens make everything better!”

I mean, look at this. Don’t tell me you didn’t just go “D’aww”

Jaric.5679:

((Nobody has as yet mounted a toxic barrel search that I can see, aside from Cap’n Storytellers quick, but efficient, narrative. Any minions were taken care of with the city on high alert.))

(I’m doing a toxic barrel search! But I’m also posting from work which limits my ability to attach screenshots…)

Ok… for those of you who always just have to skip to the last chapter, here’s the story so far:

A young girl named Bubbles who may or may not be an actual mermaid was worried about ships crashing on rocks in the harbor of LA. She began to try to warn the citizens.

Captain Storyteller began an intensive search for her, and developed an emotional attachment during the search, which sent his wife, Adorabelle into a jealous rage.

The Orders got involved in the search, believing the mermaid was responsible for the wrecks of several ships and the loss of all lives on board.

Bubbles began to travel to other parts of the world, and everyone else was going crazy trying to find her. She made friends all over Tyria and returned to LA.

People were selling “mermaid potions” that made a lot of people ill, and all the wanted posters are being stolen by souvenir hunters.

Long story short: It wasn’t Bubbles, it was the krait, who kidnapped all the sailors and are planning a yet to be discovered evil. Meanwhile, Bubbles met a “nice woman” named Cerise who turned out to be Scarlet, and was murdered on the bridge from Ft. Marriner to LA proper. Scarlet had a half baked plan to destroy LA, but it was found out, and now everyone is focusing on why the krait are doing what they’re doing.

If you have the time, please do go back and read it all. This brief synopsis is woefully inadequate to define the story.

((The krait got dragged in through the greed of the surviving pirate factions. The scuttling of ships and their following sinking are their doing, and they tried to blame it on the krait thanks to the skills of a Nightmare Court alchemist dealing with transformation potions (I wonder where Noir is)… problem is the real krait decided to join the party as well. – OOC knowledge, if everything goes well tomorrow, it will all be revealed to the public.))

((The problem with a completely freeform thread like this, rather than one which has someone officially serving as the GM, is that you can’t have one person who decides what the overarching story is (and if anyone was to, that would be Hamfast). Personally, I’ve been regarding Hamfast’s posts as “first among equals” (and Redenaz as “second among equals”) when it comes to canonicity, but in order to not invalidate everyone else we need to bring everyone’s plot threads together somehow.

To be honest, while I was dancing around the issue myself, I’d been expecting Scarlet to come up, directly or indirectly, ever since it turned out we had pirates, Nightmare Court, and krait all involved. Much as I dislike her as a character myself, she has been established as having rallied all three to her banner.))

((The second problem is that the main characters can’t really have smooth face-to-face conversations with each other. If we want to meet and talk in the story, we really have to meet outside of the story and collaborate. Then one person writes what was agreed upon. Not to say it can’t ever happen…))

((Speaking of which, Hamfast, did you get my PM? :P ))

((Why does everyone talk in double parenthesis?))

((It’s a fairly common convention for people to use double parenthesis to mark out-of-character discussion in text-based roleplaying.))

((Oooooooh. Okay.))

Hamfast.8719:

Neural.1824:

Funniest thread I’ve read in a long time. Thank you all for the laugh.

This, to me, is what makes casual role-playing fun.

WHY am I not on the Tarnished Coast server?

I’ve been considering a server move myself if the roleplaying is decent.

((And where does that gw2 tshirt come from for your character? that’s awesome lol))

(( I’m from Sea of Sorrows and I don’t mind guesting to complete some RP stuff. If I’m awake. I live all the way in GMT+8 so meeting some characters might be difficult.

I’ve added Hamfast and Ari to my contacts too, though I should add Captain Storyteller as well because I have some questions to ask him

As for the captain. I’m still waiting for him to catch up.

Hamfast, I found the locations of the Bombs but I need someone who can translate from gibberish code into something tangible ;_; ))

Wait, how’d you find the bombs? Did she ever drop any hints of their locations? I don’t recall…

((They kept the plans and all at the lighthouse. Didn’t get to clear them out yet. Perfect hiding spot because nobody is ever allowed to enter there))