Session Start: Sat Aug 27 15:25:14 2005 Last time, on Hunters: Haruko returned after a couple of days on the lam. She apologized to the team, sort of, then got busy with the rest of them interviewing Lady Peavine's friends. Her best friend, Yukiko, more or less reiterated what her sister had told the team - there was a boyfriend, but Yuki never acknowledged him, and in fact seemed a little spaced out about the time she spent with him. She had also been a tutor to Princess. Elly had even less useful information, though she did mention this funky dream about fighting a Ningyo with an upside-down Tokyo Tower in the distance. The other friend, Chihira, was not at home when Leena and Taki came by to interview her. The team decided to reconverge to interview the last person on their list, Lady Wrench, Peavine's (former) team leader. [Friday, March 18, 2004 - 1520 local time] [Outside a somewhat dingy, but very busy car repair shop in Nakano] [Session start] The wind is blowing even chillier than before as the groups meet up outside. * LadyNightshade looks over to DM. "So how did it go?" * LadyRoyal shrugs, jacket pulled close around her. * Lord_Darkmoon has a somewhat thick windbreaker on, now. He doesn't seem to mind his pony-tail whipping in the wind, though. "Well, I think. Princess is concerned, but really had nothing more than a few bits of information that make the Rogue Lord our most likely culprit." * LadyMysteria rocks back and forth a bit on her heels, trying her best to stay warm. "Mn. That's not reassuring." Another piece of information she shared is best shared in less...dismal surroundings, and bears not on this case. * LadyNightshade looks through their papers to see what Wrench's real name is. * LadyMallet still has that slightly-shiny suit on, with the cute little black tie. Wrench, when not a Wrench, is a Fuka. * LadyRoyal glances over at Nightshade's papers, trying to read them upside- down. Yeah, that's pretty much what we got. So we're looking for a Fuka, then. Ayup. * LadyNightshade moves to the door to open it. Let's get to it. The more we know, the sooner, the better. Well, nothing to do out here except get colder. So let's go. Indeed. *follows Nightshade's lead* The sound of a girl screaming comes from inside the garage. "You put it on BACKWARDS! YOU IDIOT!" * LadyNightshade peeks in. "Uh... hello?" * LadyRoyal raises an eyebrow, and enters, knocking on the open door as she does. "Hello?" * Lord_Darkmoon raises an eyebrow sardonically. * LadyMallet giggles. "I bet someone messed up an engine." * LadyMallet knocks on the garage door. A car backfires - in the enclosed space, it sounds like Lady Mallet's big pistol going off. * LadyMysteria snickers... then JUMPS at the backfire, and almost whips out her wand. "Gah!" * LadyRoyal winces and shakes her head. "Fuka?" * Lord_Darkmoon winces, but is kind of used to that sound, so doesn't actually flinch. * LadyNightshade looks around the room as she enters. * LadyMallet laughs, warned by the 'backwards' comment. She doesn't jump. HEY, FUKA! A girl in one of the mechanic uniforms - slightly smaller, of course - with "Fuka" stenciled on a patch above her breast turns to look at the group. "Just a second." Of course. Right. * LadyRoyal stands off to the side, watching. * LadyMysteria continues to rock on her heels. * LadyNightshade is again sizing up the place for any possible attacks while she waits. * Fuka turns back to the 40-year-old mechanic standing with her. "Now, fix it right, or the repairs are coming out of your salary!" * Lord_Darkmoon stands off to the other side, also watching. The man grimaces and bows, and sticks his head back into the guts of a 20- year-old Beat. * LadyMallet giggles again. She must be good at this. Or... heh. * Fuka walks over to the team, wiping her greasy hands on a rag. "Can I help you?" * Lord_Darkmoon defers to Mysteria, stepping aside and gesturing to her. * LadyMallet steps next to Mysty, crossing her arms, and smiling at Fuka cheerily. You could actually. Ah, do you have a place where we can talk in private? We can use my dad's office, I guess. Good. We'll try to be quick... * Fuka leads the way back through a waiting area and into a barely-furnished office. You notice a picture family picture on the desk - Fuka, her short, grinning father, and a very stern-looking mother. * Fuka eyes the group. "And you are...?" * LadyMallet extends a hand, turning a bit more serious. "Lady Mallet." * LadyNightshade follows the group into the office, eyes still wandering about the place. Lady Nightshade. We're the Hunters team. The eager one, as you've noticed. Lady Mysteria, team leader. We have a few things we need to ask you about. * Fuka takes Leena's hand, distractedly. * Lord_Darkmoon bows. "Lord Darkmoon. We're here to speak with you about Hayasumi-san." ...they're coming after me, are- oh. * LadyMallet shakes, and lets go. "Yeah, sorry to drop in on you like this... but it's important." You are, so far as our information tells us, in no more danger than usual. * LadyMallet blinks at Darkmoon. Blinkblink. However, we have been asked to look into the whereabouts of your friend, Hayasumi. As you were her team leader, we were hoping you might have some information that might aid us. *smiles pleasantly, taking the edge off his serious tone* I thought she was on vacation? Nope. She never made her flight. Thus, we begin with some of the more cliched questions. *clears throat, smiling somewhat jokingly* "Have you noticed any odd changes in behavior in Hayasumi recently?" * LadyMallet frowns. Wait, so she's really missing-missing? Yes. Damn. * LadyMysteria shakes her head a little. "Seriously, though. Have you noticed changes? Odd patterns? Anything out of the ordinary?" Any little thing you might've caught could help immensely. * Fuka grunts. "The whole boyfriend thing was strange. I mean, she wouldn't talk about it at ALL, and we were worried she was getting in over her head." Hm. How did you know about this boyfriend, if she wouldn't talk about it? Can you tell us what you knew of the whole..."boyfriend thing"? It started... oh, it was right after a Ningyo we dealt with in December. We slaughtered the poor thing, of course - Peavine held it down, Beer kept it... pacified, and I, uh, wrenched it really good. * LadyRoyal nods encouragingly. "Mm-hmm..." * LadyMallet 's eyebrows raise. "Ooh. Someone who knows something." Go on. *nods encouragingly* The team was really clicking by then - Peavine had been added when Octane and Lord Traction had graduated, and she had some trouble fitting in around here. She was... well, we didn't have the same interests, let's just say. Oh? * Lord_Darkmoon smiles in a friendly way. "I can imagine. Good that she was beginning to click, then." He gestures for her to continue. I was new as a team leader, too, and maybe stepped on her a little too hard. Mn. It can happen. Go on. * LadyNightshade listens casually, eyes wandering around the room. Anyway, right after that, I noticed that she was getting a little weird. The team gets together after school a lot of days, and she started missing. A lot. * LadyMallet frowns again. Mm-hm. And you discovered the reason for these missed meetings? I... even Ordered her to show up, and she still didn't come every time. * LadyMysteria winces. I see. Did all of this come to a head at some point? * LadyMallet doubles that wince. >_< Well, I approached her normal friends about it, and they thought she had a boyfriend or something. *shrug* * Lord_Darkmoon 's expression darkens. Or something, yeah. Did she ever offer any explanation for her missed meetings? * LadyMysteria fidgets some, and reflexively draws closer to Darkmoon. * LadyRoyal listens stonily. * LadyMallet clenches a fist, then forcibly unclenches it. * Lord_Darkmoon surreptitiously takes Mysteria's hand, squeezing once, reassuringly. She just would kind of go blank, and say she was busy. Even when I Ordered her to tell me, that's all I could get out of her. Some of us resist better than others, and I thought... well, I didn't want to make trouble, dammit. Perfectly understandable. Ordering is a nasty business. * LadyMallet says, softly, "Unless they had higher-ranking orders." Did you ever speak to anyone else about her? I had my own run-in with the Palace when I was a new Lady. I don't remember exactly what happened to me, except that I don't want it to happen again. *shudder* So I faked some of the logs. I see. Ghn. I hope that doesn't come back to haunt you. So you never saw the alleged boyfriend? * Lord_Darkmoon 's expression darkens CONSIDERABLY. His grip on Mysteria's hand tightens with anger, controlled enough not to hurt, though. * LadyMysteria tenses a bit. "Have you ever seen him? Did she leave around anything that might've hinted at what he did or looked like?" The last month, Beer has been trying to track her. ...she's not very good at it. * Lord_Darkmoon forces himself back to his serious lack-of-emotion. "Were there any times you found her...out of place? Where you ran into her that she might have just been meeting this boyfriend?" ... how long were the interval of her missing? A few hours, days? Hours. Never more than hours. ... ... I see. But if she met him would she even remember it? No, Nightshade; not with his M.O. * LadyNightshade gestures at Fuka. * LadyRoyal frowns. Well we should find out if he came after any other members of her team. We never saw him, though just before she was transferred out, there was one thing... Yes? * Lord_Darkmoon raises an eyebrow, listening. She arrived for a late meeting once - late, I might add - in a taxi. Beer snuck around and asked the driver where he picked her up... * LadyMysteria perks up. "Location?" Hm. That would be useful. It was... hm. Hm? Oh? * Fuka pulls a ragged notepad out of a pocket and starts flipping pages. "Feathery Dawn Tower. It's an apartment building, west of here in Asagaya." Was there something odd about that? Thank you. You've probably helped us more than you know. We were going to go take a look some afternoon when she was missing, but then her transfer orders came through. ... some rock solid knowledge. Rock on. I see. Thank you. * Lord_Darkmoon bows. "Yes, thank you." * LadyMysteria bows as well. "We greatly appreciate your time." * Fuka sighs. "I shoulda reported this, but it just seemed like buying us a lot of trouble for no good reason." Sometimes you just can't know. Beer and I can do a Ningyo just fine without her, and if she's found someone that interesting... You meant well. What about you? Any blank moments where you can't remember a period of time? I like a little romance, you know? Were the situation as it seemed, she'd have thanked you. Waking up in a strange place or something? It's alright. Things should work out in the end... * LadyMysteria pales a little at the 'romance' comment. * Lord_Darkmoon squeezes Mysteria's hand gently again. Me? No... I don't think so. Though if it were something I couldn't remember, how would I know? * LadyMallet sighs, and glances fleetingly at Maya, shaking her head. * LadyRoyal tilts her head in acknowledgement. "Too right." If you want, I can Order you to disregard any Orders you might have gotten to forget. But only if you want. Well um... ...huh? * Lord_Darkmoon mutters, "I will -not- Order someone against their will. Not except to save her life." I don't really understand. One Order can override another. Especially if the recipient prefers one over the other. Yeah, but what Order are you talking about overriding? ... she doesn't know about him. * Lord_Darkmoon glances at Mysteria, to see her opinion on this matter. Fearless Leader? Well, this man is not her boyfriend, in case you hadn't figured that part out. ... will or no, it wouldn't hurt to be certain. How do you know? Maybe she just eloped, now that she graduated... Lady Wrench, this 'boyfriend' is a rogue Lord. Or so we suspect. We... ah, have had some experience in situations similar to this. *blink* He has been using his power of Ordering to...take advantage...of Ladies. Eeeeeeewww! ... yeah. We're pretty sure. There's this rogue Lord out... who likes to trail MG's after a fight, ... *gulps, and clenches a fist* Order them to his will, rape em, and Order them to forget it happened. Precisely. We are hunting him for this crime. We're ... pretty damned sure her boyfriend is him. Therefore, if you have encountered him, you may be under Orders to forget the encounter. I think we can stop calling him that. But... woah. Thus, I ask again: Do you want me to Order you to disregard any Orders he may have given you? * LadyMallet slams her fist into her other palm. "We're gonna kick his ass." Uh, I guess? * Lord_Darkmoon closes his eyes, and takes a deep breath. "This will work best if you accept the Order willingly, and determinedly fight any Orders that contradict it." Oh, and it definitely works best if you transform, first. ...I can't transform here. Don't want to alert your workers, I assume? Is there someplace nearby that you can? It, uh, makes a lot of noise, and they'd come running. * LadyMysteria sighs. "I can try to give the Order nonetheless. I doubt you've been in contact with him, but it wouldn't hurt to be certain---ah." Lady Mysteria, with all due respect...she has not been Ordered by the Queen to heed you in this matter. Your Order is too low a rank. We should probably have a princess do it. Or she can stop by the Palace and get it done there. That would be safer. The Queen herself, moreso. But I would only trust Sakura amongst Princesses, and I would not subject her to the Queen. We don't know for sure if your orders will beat his either, DM. He is a Lord. I am a Lord. He cannot outrank me, and she can thus choose which to follow. * LadyMallet poinks Fuka in the chest. "Head over to the Palace when you get the chance, get that taken care of." ... very well, Darkmoon. Why don't you get your Princess to call me? I can arrange something then. And the rest of your team too, just to be safe. ...yeah. That might be a good idea. * LadyMysteria promptly pulls a business card and a pen, handing both over. "Your number?" * Fuka jots a couple of numbers down. I gave away my card to Yukiko... Mysty, do you have any from the agency? * LadyMysteria produces another card. "Always." Pass it on to Beer, too, just in case. I guess I should just take a stack with me. * LadyRoyal shrugs. "I do." Not a stack, but enough just in case. So... you guys are the ones who helped Octane out a few months ago? * LadyMallet nods. In any event... I think we have all we need, and we know where we should be now. And yes, that was us. * LadyRoyal shrugs the shoulder with the satchel on it for emphasis. She told me about that... I hope you can do as will for Peavine. I... she... ...wow. I mean, this is awful. We'll do our best, and we'll keep you posted. Anything else come to mind? Yes. * LadyRoyal nods. No... yes! There was one other thing I remember noticing, though it may not be relevant. Say it anyway. Anything you can think of. Please. She was... well, she was dressed a lot better in the last few months. She was always cute, and her family is, like, loaded, but she always was hanging around in T-shirts and shit. That was the one thing that she didn't have a hard time adjusting to with us gearheads - she never was afraid of getting her clothes dirty. ... I see. * Lord_Darkmoon frowns. All prettied up? But as she finally started to appreciate our, uh, interests, she started showing up in really classy dresses, and delicate, feminine blouses, and... it got to be a problem. Did anyone comment on this to her? Did she reply? So he's been dressing her up too? * LadyMallet frowns, too. * LadyNightshade represses a 'sick fuck' comment. She just brushed it off when we asked her. I heard that her family was happy that she had finally started dressing properly... In the same way that she brushed off missing the meetings? Yeah. Yeah, pretty much. ...right. Thank you. Thank you once again. ... I think it's time we continued our search, people. * LadyRoyal nods. Good luck. * LadyMallet nods, as they say their thanks. "Yeah. Fuka. Make sure you and Beer get in contact with a Princess." Call us if you think of anything at all. Cal- what Nightshade said. Do you think we should talk to Beer, since she was the one doing the investigating? Now, we should go continue our investigation. Thank you for your time, Lady Wrench. *bows, then turns to leave, waiting for Mysteria before opening the door* Eh, she really was hopeless at it. Ah well. At least she was trying. Thank you for your time. * LadyNightshade bows politely before heading out. * LadyMallet waves. "Seeya." * LadyRoyal nods and leaves. * LadyMysteria bows as well, then slips on out. Once out of Fuka's sight, she bites back a shudder. * Fuka goes back into the garage. As the team walks away, you hear her screaming again, this time with somewhat more obscene language. * LadyMallet follows the others. ... you know. In a twisted sort of way, this reminds me of Oldman. Only... Oldman was a lech on a leash. * LadyNightshade looks visibly sick as soon as they leave the building. God, I don't know if I can handle this anymore... And Oldman did not deserve what he got. This creature deserves that and more. * LadyRoyal twitches. We're going to handle it. And finish it, once and for goddamned all. I've never even met him and I want to throw up... So, do we go investigate this apartment complex now? * LadyRoyal checks the time. It's after 1600 - the sun is getting pretty low... Might as well. Don't need the trail getting any harder to follow. * LadyRoyal looks up. "Better hurry." ... twilight magic time! Let's do this. Let's move. Dark clouds are blowing in from the north, and it's only getting colder out. You can see your breath. Yup. * LadyRoyal gets going. * LadyMysteria exhales a long-thin stream from her nose as she sighs, then puts the soles to the sidewalk. * LadyNightshade buttons up her coat as they walk. * Lord_Darkmoon takes a minute in an alley to detransform on the way. Rin is still bundled up, but now in a long coat that's almost a lady's cape. * LadyMallet shrugs off the cold. Pffft. * LadyNightshade smiles a bit at Rin but tries not to look too happy about the change. * LadyMysteria smiles a little as well, and doesn't make any noticeable expression stating that she's unhappy that Rinada's Rin again. Somehow I think I'd feel better if we had a Princess with us to just order him to shoot himself... So long as he's dealt with, I don't care what happens. Agreed. * LadyMallet giggles oh-so-happily. "That'd take all the fun out of it, Taki dear. I want to rip him into pieces with him alive and well to experience it." ^__^ The possibility of hidden, latent Orders sticking in their psyches that might make them turn on us, even briefly, is too great a risk. * LadyRoyal blinks. "Now there's an angle I hadn't thought of." He hurt you before Leena. From behind, and I was playing nice. I just... don't want anyone else getting hurt. We can't take him lightly, still. He's not gonna touch me again. Just the fact that he can pick up the Mallet is enough to scare me... Because I'm going to rip his hands off before he can. Taki's right. It may, sadly, be required that I allow the Feral Beast to have the joy of destroying him. Let me deal with the Mallet. Hopefully, it won't come to that, Rin. Of course, Mallet-san. The Mallet is yours. * LadyMallet waves her hand, briefly calling up the invisibly magical portal that she tends to store it in. * Rin smiles kindly at Taki, but without much real emotion. "Let us hope that is true, Nightshade-san." Mn... I just want this over. Assassins and Ningyo are starting to sound fun again. * LadyRoyal lets out a sharp laugh. "Yeah, pretty much." At least they're easier to deal with... * LadyNightshade still looks rather sick, but she's keeping it together for the most part. C'mon, let's hurry. I wanna find him already. * LadyMallet is a bit more impatient than usual. How do we even find him in there? Assuming he wasn't just crashing their that one time. I mean, he does get around. That's what worries me as well. * LadyMallet also speeds up a bit. "He'll recognize me." That's the issue... we might not, but there might be people who've seen him. Just ask around for someone who brings in a lot of women? There are several things we could probably cook up, but we gotta case the joint first. Also, the Mallet's hard to hide. We are unlikely to get invited in. But yes, he might recognize Lady Mallet. And so what, we put you out front with a big sign? What if he sees you and then just runs again? Maya'll ribbon him. Then I'll shoot him a lot. C'MON! Hurry up! I would prefer not to risk Lady Mallet directly. If we must bait him, I believe I would be a better choice. His commands have no chance of even slowing me down, and the shock of my transformation might give him pause. *smiles with a strange, feminine sort of cruelty* He will not live long enough to tell others of it. * LadyMallet speeds up again, to just short of breaking into a run. * Rin continues at the same steady pace, keeping with the main body of the group. I don't think he'd go after someone he didn't know was a transformed Lady. Then the solution to the bait problem just became clear, yeah? Thus, I 'transform' conveniently, using my Tessen. At the very least, we need to get an idea of where he might fall back to. * Rin seems amused by this prank she's outlining. I'm just saying we have no guarantee he'll take the bait. I mean he knows that Leena will resist his orders. Exactly. You're right. Which is why there are other alternatives. But it depends on what the place looks like. Lady Royal is, of course, completely correct. We need to find him without him knowing we're there. Which means we need to find Yuki, I think. I suggest we act like a Team going out for an evening of non-transformed fun as we pass the place. Lady Mallet would be most ideally hidden as someone else, so he does not associate her with us, should he spot us. I think that plan sucks. I say we hunt him down, ribbon him, and kick his ass. You're welcome to that... but as much as I'd love to break him, we need a plan. No running in half-cocked. Sure, Leena, let's go in guns a-blazing and let him know we're around, so that he can sneak out the back. Or, if he has Yuki, kill her so she can't finger him. Great idea. We should probably go door to door like we did when we looked for those other two... *shudders* guys. ... dammit, where's the sugar-glider? * LadyRoyal nods at Taki. At least that's where we can start. * LadyMallet takes a deep breath. "... fine. Plan. Okay. Door to door. Ask about some generic guy, and Yuki." If we don't even find him, then there's no sense worrying about what'll happen if we do. In that case, I should probably be transformed, after all. If we wish for me to remain a 'new face' to the odious creature. Go for it, Rina--er, Rin. Rin, give up on bating him. Not a good idea. Probably won't work, with Yuki there, too. * Rin nods, and ducks into another alley to retransform. Too much setup to pull it off, anyway. It's not far at all - you end up taking a bus between districts, and wandering around a little, but eventually you find the Feathery Dawn building. It's a decently maintained apartment tower of about 20 stories, and a small, though glitzy neon display above the office entrance. Perhaps. And cutting him apart with my katana will be more satisfying. * LadyNightshade looks around for the manager as they enter the place. * LadyRoyal looks around at the area. * LadyMysteria looks about, trying to make sure she has an eye out on the immediate area. The manager seems to be out - it's getting to be the weekend... Bah, figures he's out. * LadyMallet shrugs. "That means we can get to the tenant list easier." * Lord_Darkmoon whispers to Mysteria, "Show the doorman Yuki's picture." * LadyNightshade looks around for what kind of security the place has. Inside the tower, there's a laundry and a small bodega on the first floor. Large elevators disgorge residents, who seem to be mostly young, mostly professional. * LadyMysteria nods, once, then scans for a possible doorman and other staff. ... I'm betting the top floor. Sleazeballs have rich tastes, and like their privacy. If he's actually rich. There seems to be a supervisor in the bodega, though it's hard to tell if he's in charge of more than that. * LadyMysteria approaches him, fishing out the picture. "Alright..." * LadyRoyal follows. * Lord_Darkmoon follows, too. ...can I help you? * LadyNightshade checks out the office area, looking for the best way to get in the back without getting caught. The offices have a rear exit, which is a solid metal door. Well, metal. Not, like, a block of metal. * LadyNightshade looks around for anyone that might notice her picking the lock. Ah, excuse me sir. Have you seen this lady passing through here before? * LadyMysteria holds up the picture of Yuki. Hmm? *peers through bifocals at the picture* No... someone who looks a lot like her, I think, but not this girl. A lot like her, you say. Does she live here? * Manager hands the picture back. * LadyMysteria takes it and tucks it away. I think so - she came through here a lot in the afternoons that I saw. Sometimes with a young man, sometimes not. This week, I've seen her other times, later in my shift. And this young man--do you know if he lives with her at all? I just manage the shop and the laundry, miss, I don't keep close track. She didn't have a resident's discount card the one time she bought something, though. I see. What about the young man? He never came in here. --wait. Do you happen to remember what it was she bought? * Manager scratches his head. "It was a month ago... some snacks, I think? Pocky, maybe." * LadyMysteria purses her lips. Ooh. Ah, thank you. Thanks for your time, sir. * LadyRoyal nods and exits. * Lord_Darkmoon bows, and leaves. * Manager nods, and continues inventory. * LadyMallet waves, and bouncy-walks behind the others. * LadyRoyal mutters. "...pocky, huh." That's a fairly standard item for anyone to buy, really. I don't know that it gives us any new information, other than confirming that she was here. Not much of a lead. But I can't see *why* she would buy it if she were doing it of her own volition. I mean, granted she might not remember, but... ... that's bugging me. You get pocky when you're happy. Exactly. We really need to find... a room. Or more solid info. Or something. Maybe she bought it for him, but...why couldn't he buy it for himself? This is weird. * Lord_Darkmoon raises an eyebrow but doesn't comment at the "pocky = happy" idea. He's -here-. Wanna go door to door, wait and hope we get lucky, or wait for Norcliff? * LadyNightshade says over the radios. I'm gonna try and break into the office, if no one minds. * LadyRoyal continues muttering. "Don't get caught." Hope you can find something. And yeah, we know she's transed when she's here, so show off that pick. Don't get caught, Nightshade. If you need help, call me over. * LadyNightshade fiddles with the lock, trying to get it open. ... but what in the world do we do now? We have a location, but no other leads. Perhaps someone else to question? I dunno. Ask around. Door-to-door may be our best bet. Someone is bound to have seen her enter or leave an apartment. There's always a nosey neighbor. Door to door, hope we get lucky. * LadyRoyal sighs. "Guess so." She eyes the floorplan. "Hope no-one's got anything planned for tonight..." * LadyMallet punches the elevator for the TOP FLOOR. ... door-to-door might spook him if he catches wind of us, but... let's do it. No other choice. Right. Taki slowly tries to pick the lock, but doesn't make any progress for several minutes. Eventually, she hears a door open in the next lot over. * LadyNightshade covers up what she was doing, and looks over towards the sound. Let's do each floor together. Stay together, so we can respond quicker. A guy steps out, lights a cigarette, and looks at her. It's obvious he wonders what she'd doing... Someone stay to watch the first floor and cover the obvious exits. Taki can do that, if she's-- * LadyNightshade looks around like she's confused and looking for something. * LadyRoyal says into the radios. "How's it going, Taki?" It doesn't yet... The guys just stands there, smoking and watching her. We want Darkmoon, we want Mysty, and I'm sure as hell going. So Taki or Mina, one of you cover the ground floor. Whichever wants to find the guy least. * LadyNightshade walks over to the guy. "Um... hi, do you work here?" *innocent* No, I work *here*. If you want into the Feather, go in the front door. There wasn't anyone in the office, I was hoping maybe if I tried the backdoor someone would hear me... * LadyMallet pushes the elevator button again, impatiently. * LadyRoyal growls at Leena. "I don't think anyone doesn't want to find him, Leena." I'm looking for a girl. Maybe you've seen her around? * LadyNightshade pulls out the picture of Peavine to show to the guy. Lots of girls around. Like - maybe. I think I've seen her once or twice... but not in my building. Where did you see her? Well. Keep in mind that there's probably gonna be a fight, and that Yuki may be there. I'm needed to deal with the Mallet, Maya to incapacitate and keep him from escaping, and Darkmoon for his rank. Hm. Point. In the street? I dunno. Look, stop snooping around behind the buildings or I'm gonna get the cops to chase you away. Someone should stay on the first floor so they don't slip by us with bad timing. I dunno which. I'm sorry. It's just really important that I find and nothing I've tried has worked so far and and... *here come the waterworks...* GIT. Fine! * LadyNightshade pouts and leaves. * Guy tosses his cigarette butt after her. * LadyMysteria keeps her voice down. "... Nightshade?" Don't worry about it. Mm. * LadyNightshade tries to choke back the tears she just let out. She was just acting, right? The top floor of the Feathery Sunrise is not quite designed as a penthouse, though there are fewer, larger apartments here. We're going to have to get moving. And soon; it's getting late. * LadyNightshade wipes her eyes as she peaks back to see if he went away. * Lord_Darkmoon opens and closes his tessen impatiently, face set sternly as he steps off the elevator. Well, if the lockpick was a no-go, can you stay down here and keep an eye on the exits for us? We can put in a couple late nights once in a while. No one is in the hallway, and the doors here are not numbered. Hm. Nice. * LadyRoyal shakes her head. "Well, let's get to it." After you, Ladies. *no inflection* * LadyNightshade goes back to try the door some more once the guy disappears. * LadyMallet steps out, clasping one hand with the other. * LadyMallet knocks on the closest door. * LadyMysteria steps out, keeping her eyes peeled. A woman answers the door. Fuckin door... * Housewife wipes rubs her hands on her apron. "Can I help you?" * LadyMallet waves, cheerily. "Hi! We're looking for a girl that's visiting here." ...we don't have any visitors... But we're not sure where she's staying, so we wondered if you could help us. Oh. * LadyMallet nodnods. "It's a surprise." ^__^ * Lord_Darkmoon puts on an amused 'isn't she cute' expression. * LadyMallet pulls out a picture of Yuki, the Lady. "Ring a bell?" * LadyMysteria was seconds from producing her own, and instead lets the perky one handle it. This time. Huh... not up here, I don't think. Seems like I've seen her in the lobby now and then. Doing anything in particular... or with someone? She's staying with a friend, you see, but we don't know him all that well. I'm not sure. Try the staff apartments on the second floor - the security guys might know. Ah, thank you. Very much. * LadyMallet nodnods. "Thanks!" Thank you, ma'am. * LadyMysteria bows deeply. * Lord_Darkmoon bows equally deeply, then turns to head back to the elevator. * LadyRoyal follows. Taki makes no progress at all with the lock. She looks up from her work in time to see a policeman walk around the corner of the building. * LadyMallet bouncey-walks over to the elevator. At least while the lady's door is open. * LadyMysteria is right behind Darkmoon. "Finally." * LadyNightshade 'eep's and moves along. * Policeman yells after Taki, but she's faster than him. Shit, well that's not gonna work. ...Taki? * LadyNightshade runs a safe distance away. I couldn't get the door open. Don't worry about it. Uh, right. Will you be checking the exits then? You should talk to Sakura about getting better tools. I should probably like practice like Mitsuko keeps telling me. >< * LadyNightshade tries to find a place she can watch the building without arousing anymore suspicion. * LadyMallet sighs. "Just break the lock with your sparkly pink magical ninja fists if it's that important!" Mitsuko-sensei has said you need to concentrate more and relax less, Nightshade. The elevator stops on the second floor. Half the floor is a large workshop, where various fixtures and appliances and tools are strewn about in various states of repair. The other half has apartments, again unlabeled, save for one door that is marked "security". * LadyRoyal looks around and beelines to security. Yeah, yeah, I know. And we have our security office. Shall we? * LadyMysteria is right behind Royal. * LadyMallet bee- beelines for Security. Yes. * Lord_Darkmoon is right behind Mysteria. You can hear a television on behind the door. * LadyMallet knocks! Helllllloooooo~~~? An older man answers the door. There's an office immediately behind him, but you can see that an apartment is attached to it. Can I help you? Yeah! We're looking for a friend, and we don't know where she is in here, but that she's here. And she's staying with a friend. * LadyMysteria presents the picture. "This lady in particular." Can you help us, pleeeeeeaaasssse? Pretty please? I think... I think she's staying in 0710? For a long time, it was rented, but barely used, but she's been decorating it with her boyfriend the last few months, and she moved in full time this week. Oh? Is it under her name, then, or his? Yeah. *taps the picture* 0710. Thank you! ^__^ * LadyRoyal shrugs. "Thank you." Actually, that's one of a couple apartments on the floor that are sublet. * Lord_Darkmoon bows, and exits. You found something? * LadyMallet doesn't leave yet, since he's got more to say. I don't have info on who lives in those. Ah. Huh, I see. Well, thank you, sir. You've been a great help. * LadyMysteria can't help but smile slightly. "Yes, thanks a lot." * LadyRoyal gives him a fierce grin. "A very great help." Glad to help. * LadyRoyal turns away and quick-strides to the elevator. * LadyMallet giggles. "Yay, this is gonna be fuuuu~uuun!" And bouncy-walks over to the elevator. You found something? Does that mean I can stop watching? 0710. We might need you. Try not to get caught. * LadyNightshade moves to head back into the building, heading for the elevators. * LadyNightshade keeps her eye out for the cop. * Lord_Darkmoon is grinning evilly. "Let's get him." Yes. * LadyMallet is nearly bouncing in place, waiting. Her feet don't quite leave the floor, but they're close to it. Bouncebouncebounce. It's not that long a ride up to the seventh floor. Unlike the other floors you've seen so far, there are numbers on the apartments here. * LadyRoyal stretches. * LadyNightshade meets everyone up there. * LadyMallet paused, and closes her eyes, putting a palm forward, silently. ( pauses ) * LadyMallet holds her hand over the door a few moments, like she listening to something. "... this is the place." And snaps her eyes open. Is everyone ready? * LadyRoyal grins toothily. "Quite." Hm. Good security around here. Nice place. *nods to the camera on the wall* * LadyRoyal nods. "I see." Wait up. Shall I take care of it? We should probably cover that up. Cover, or arrange for a little...malfunction? Either will attract attention. Doesn't matter. Right. * LadyRoyal flicks and disables. * LadyMallet retracts her hand, and pulls her gun out. Well at least he'll know there's not a group of us coming into kill him. (he won't know there's a group etc.) Move. On your toes. Yes'm. * LadyRoyal takes up position. * LadyMysteria slips a hand in her pocket, hand on wand. * Lord_Darkmoon has his Tessen in hand, and strides forward, seeking room 710. * LadyMallet tries to open the door. Is it locked? A girl pokes her head out of a door across the hall as Lady Mallet finds the door is locked. Oh, my. * LadyRoyal steps in front of Leena, covering the gun, and turns to the girl. "Hm?" * LadyMallet uh, frantically moves the gun to a not-so-obviously-in-view spot. * Girl is a little younger than all of you - maybe 14 or 15. She steps out into the hall, and frowns at the group of you. * LadyMysteria detenses a little and tries to look innocent. * LadyRoyal eyes the girl. "Yes?" * LadyMallet waves with the hand that doesn't have a gun in it. "Hi!" * Lord_Darkmoon smiles at her. "Is she home, M-chan?" he asks Mallet. I'm afraid I can't let you go in there. Oh? Why not? Darkmoon? Tell her it's okay. Eh? * LadyMallet frowns. "... is that so?" Because that's what he said. SOLAR SHINE! Oh great, she's not the only one. STAND DOWN. ---ohman! * Lord_Darkmoon directed that at the girl. Get that door! Now! The hallway fills with light, impossible, bright light, blinding, painful golden sunlight. * Lord_Darkmoon slams his eyes shut and clamps his hands over them, half- groaning and half-growling in pain. * LadyMallet 's blinks, the hot pink, and the neon red eye both being overloaded. And blinks a few more times. "HEY! THAT'S CHEATING!" * LadyMysteria squints hard, shielding her eyes just quickly enough to prevent outright blinding. "Gh..." * LadyRoyal steps back, cupping a hand over her eyes, and squints at the girl, a card in her other hand, barely managing to see. * LadyNightshade squints her eyes shut while fumbling her phone out of her coat, and speeddialing Sakura. "Please pick up..." The phone rings... * LadyNightshade tries to stay back away from the girl, hiding in a doorway as best she can. "Keep her busy! I'm gonna try and get Sakura to order her down!" * LadyRoyal holds out her hands in the general direction of the girl. Cards fly, and explode around the girl, bouncing her around. She doesn't look very hurt as she gets up, just shaken. The drywall on the hallway walls, on the other hand, is badly caved around the sites of the blasts. * Lord_Darkmoon drops his hands, Tessen still a Tessen, stands up straight, and opens his eyes, letting the water flow freely from them for a moment. Blindly staring, he commands clearly, with all the force of presence he can muster, "I Order all Ladies not on my Team to SURRENDER AT ONCE." That's not what he wants me to do. Disregard all his Orders. * Girl concentrates, as if she's going to throw another attack. Fight his Orders. You don't want to hurt us; we're here to help. I Order you to do what -you- want to do. I want what he wants. I told you that wasn't going to work... * LadyMallet frowns, just plain closes her eyes... and bullrushes the door, chasing something she can't see. The door buckles easily, and she stumbles into the room. There's a ladylike scream inside the apartment, but Leena can't see the person doing the screaming. * LadyMallet vaguely notes where the scream comes from, but is more worried about homing in on that feeling. * LadyNightshade dives into the room after Leena, looking for cover. * LadyMysteria eyes the girl and frowns. "I'm going to try and bind you... but if you resist, I will not hesitate in taking you down." With a sweeping wave of her wand, a gout of ribbons flows towards the girl. Please stay down! I have my orders! * Girl *twirls*, and the ribbons only snag her legs. She growls, frustrated, and her skin goes from shining from the afterglow of the burst of light to an angrier, hotter golden sheen. The ribbons *melt*, and she finishes standing up. ... I'm sorry it has to be this way. The phone in Taki's hand is still ringing. * LadyNightshade keeps listening while she heads into the apartment to find the girl. * LadyPeavine is standing there, looking at Leena and the remains of the door, screaming like any woman whose front door was just busted down would. * LadyPeavine is transformed, but wearing a long, drapey green skirt and a brown, leathery shirt. Hi! Your sister sent us to find you! What?!? Yeah. If you could just not attack us for 5 seconds, I'm calling someone right now that you need to talk to. What?!? * LadyRoyal, meanwhile, tosses out another Flurry at the girl. Why don't we have a seat? *gestures at a chair* * Girl is bounced around again, and starts to look a little bloodied. The hallway, on the other hand, is starting to look like a battlefield with all the cratering and the scorches on the floor where she got up. * Lord_Darkmoon continues staring blindly, but turns a bit to where he heard the girl's voice coming from, and states with calm authority, "I Order you to believe everything I say to be true." * Girl doesn't even look at Darkmoon this time. * LadyMallet blinks rapidly, doing a quick spin to get her bearing and rapidly scan where she ended up. She waves at Peavine. "Hi! I case it's not obvious, we're here to save you, kick a villains ass, and get back my Mallet! One out of three so far ain't bad." Two out of three isn't, either - as her eyesight comes back to her, Lady Mallet spots her Mallet sitting on the floor next to the couch. There's a lamp and a doily on top of it, and it looks to be making a nice end-table. * LadyMallet's eyes widen. "... there we are." She dashes forward, and grabs it by the handle. The lamp goes flying. * LadyMallet then cuddles it. "Oh, I've missed you so much! It was so horrible, being apart from you... let's never part again!" Don't use that in here! ...my antique!! * LadyMallet doesn't hear either of them. She's distracted. * LadyPeavine flutters her hands in distress. * LadyMysteria doesn't hesitate to aim and launch a Star Gun bolt at the fighting girl, her eyes both looking determined and immensely pained. "It shouldn't have to be this way..." * Girl takes the bolt in the shoulder, spinning her around. She whips back to look at Lady Mysteria, hair flying everywhere and no expression at all on her face. "LIQUID LIGHT!" What comes from her hands might be a golden laser beam... except it doesn't fly that fast, and indeed even seems to visibly arc on the way there. It splashes over Maya's chest, burning her, setting her clothing on fire, and the splashover sets the carpet and one wall on fire as well. * LadyMysteria evades poorly, and is quick to scream in immense pain as she burns. That only lasts for a moment, as she promptly collapsed to one side, overwhelmed. Someone has finally picked up the other end of Taki's call. Sakura?! * LadyNightshade moves to head back towards the hall. In a hurry, Taki... * LadyNightshade hits the speaker button on her phone. "I need you to order a Lady to stop attacking right now! Just shout it!" * LadyNightshade holds out the phone. Uh... You can almost hear Sakura blink. * LadyRoyal *dives* at Maya, grabbing her and rolling her away from the spreading fire on the floor and walls, trying to pat her out and wincing at the hot hot hot. Royal finds that fans of her cards are good for smothering fire on a burning friend. Maya goes out - the carpet fire spreads. * PrincessSakura finally gets her mental balance. "All Ladies other than the Hunters STOP FIGHTING!" Thank you... * Girl puts her hands together and starts gathering another bolt of burning light. Why the hell isn't it working?! * Lord_Darkmoon takes one very cautious step forward, still staring blindly, as he states calmly but loudly, "He doesn't want you to die. You will die if you keep fighting us. I Order you to do as he wants, and live, by surrendering." Darkmoon, it's not working, give it up! He wants me to stop you from reaching her. At the cost of your life? You will not stop us. I will stop you. * LadyMallet sighs, and gives the Mallet a final squeeze, then trudges out to the hallway. "Come off it, already. I'm gonna floor ya." The only way to stop us is to detransform. * LadyMallet yells, "LEENA LEENA MALLET PANCAKE STRIKE!" And brings the Mallet swooping down right in front of the Lady, hopping forward with the impact to get close to her, and then.... MALLET GODDAMN IT! DAMN IT, NO! Mallet!! The building doesn't quite shake, but the floor does start to crumble around the point of the Mallet's impact. The next floor down is already visible... Lady Mallet tries to grab the girl, but instead bounds right past her. * LadyMallet tries to give the Lady a good shove to the direction of the impact, but doesn't quite get her bead on the Lady right, still a bit off-balance from the property damage. Mallet, what have you done!? *wobbles, trying to keep his balance while unable to see how the floor's changed. LIQUID LIGHT! Fuck! * Girl channels her beam wildly into the crater at her feet, deliberately setting the building on fire. ... are you INSANE? YOU FUCKING IDIOT! What's happening? * LadyMallet gapes at the girl. He wants me to stop you from reaching her. Even if you and she die? Nothing is more important. WHAT'S GOING ON? * Lord_Darkmoon squints, suddenly realizing that he can make out the girl. Your Order didn't work! She's going to force us to kill her, if we can't break this! You talk to her! Get the Queen on the line! *tosses the phone at Darkmoon* * Lord_Darkmoon fumbles it, but manages to catch it without it falling to the floor below. Lady Nightshade takes a flying leap across the flaming hole in the floor, and slugs the girl... then screams, as the girl's still-glowing skin scalds her hand painfully. * LadyNightshade growls in pain and tries to ignore it and hit the girl again, but it's too much for her and he swing goes wide. * LadyRoyal gets up after putting out Maya and gets ready to Flurry, but notices Taki and goes for a Cut instead. The card flies, and creases the side of the girl's head. Blood sprays over Taki. * PrincessSakura still has no idea what is going on. "HELLO? HELLO?" * Lord_Darkmoon speaks into the phone, "Sakura, she seems hung up on not letting us into that room. If you can phrase an order to make her stand down that will circumvent Orders making her 'want what he wants', it might work." The room with Peavine, I mean. There's a Lady under the rogue Lord's Orders. And they're tight. She's ignored both mine and your Orders now. Who, Peavine? No, another one, guarding Peavine's room! If what I said didn't make her stop, then I'm probably not going to be able to do it in time! Lady! We will stop trying to enter that room if you detransform and stop fighting us! * LadyMallet growls, and yells, "Lady go down the hole!" * Girl teeters, not expecting the push from behind, then surrenders and drops almost gracefully into the fire below. She screams, apparently not fireproof, but she also lights off her own attacks, and the fire flares. Alarms go off in the building, and you can hear shouting from all around you as people begin to evacuate. Damn it! ... wish Kyo-chan was here. We need to get out of here. Not yet! * LadyPeavine has wandered out through the remains of the door, and her eyes are wide at the destruction around her. * LadyNightshade heads into the apartment to get Peavine. * LadyMallet runs back into the room- but stop herself mid-run, stopping just short of running into Peavine. Where is he!? * LadyRoyal rushes into the apartment to see if A Certain Person is around. * LadyNightshade stops as she sees the Lady, grabs her and says "Come on, we need to get out of here..." * Lord_Darkmoon looks down the hole, finally. "...she's set the building on fire!" * LadyMysteria coughs, once, and makes a very pained sound as she starts to come to. "My... chest..." Leena finds no one else in the apartment. * LadyMallet goes back to Peavine, and stares at her. "Where is he?" My husband? Yes. Let's get out of here since we had to destroy the place just to deal with his guard. Lady Peavine, everyone, we need to evacuate now. That other Lady has set the building on fire; regardless of whether it spreads, questions will be asked. At least this time it wasn't Leena. He should be home from work soon... should I stay here? They say we should leave when the alarms go off, but he said I should stay no matter what... If you don't leave, he'll find you dead. Would that make him happy? Come with us; we'll take you someplace safe he can get you from. * LadyMallet shakes her head. "Get out of here. You'll be back with him soon." * LadyPeavine has a hard time parsing that, and seems to blank out for a second. "...he said I should stay, no matter what?" He's not going to come in here anyway. We'll take you to him, come on. And then you can stay with him. Too bad? * LadyMysteria rises to her feet, coughs again, and looks immensely angry. "I'll wrap her... if I have to. We need to go." * LadyRoyal manages not to make a face at that last. ... c'mon, Yuki. The floor underneath your feet begins to feel hot. * LadyNightshade drags her towards the stairs. * LadyRoyal goes over to Maya and helps her up/stabilize. "You all right?" * LadyMallet grimaces. "You guys deal with her. I'm gonna see if I can't save that Lady at all." * LadyMysteria just looks at Royal. Much of her chest and shoulders are a charred, cracked mess. "... no." * LadyRoyal nods. "Yeah, about what I thought. C'mon." Don't wait up for me, I'll be fine! Hopefully with the veggie. * LadyMallet takes a deep breath, and jumps down the hole into the fiery pit. Do you think you should tie her first? Not if she comes willingly! Let's GO! * Lord_Darkmoon gestures emphatically, not willing to leave before everyone else is going. * LadyPeavine doesn't seem to want to move on her own. * LadyNightshade drags her down the hallway anyway. * LadyNightshade just shakes her head at Leena. * LadyRoyal shakes her head and help/drags Maya to follow. * LadyPeavine halfheartedly resists, but seems too weak to really stop herself from being pulled. * Lord_Darkmoon helps Royal with Mysteria. * LadyMysteria slogs along, looking back with obvious shock as Mallet seeks the other girl out. Leena drops to the floor below, and immediately catches on fire. Flames - solid walls of smoke and flame - surround her, and she can't see more than two meters in any direction. The girl is nowhere to be seen. * LadyMallet holds her breath, and prays, groping about blindly for the Lady. .o0(You better still be alive!) All she finds is burning construction materials - her hands blister, then the skin begins to fall off. * LadyMallet hisses, and jumps back out. "DAMMIT!" A burning Lady Mallet comes flying out of the hole in the floor, and sprawls by the door to the stairs. * Lord_Darkmoon gasps, concerned, "Leena!" Get her, I'll take care of Maya. * LadyMallet gasps, and rolls. Fireouthothothothothothot! ... girl, you baffle me sometimes. Right. *runs over to help, whipping a long cape off his back as he gets to her, and throwing it over her to smother the flames* * LadyRoyal shakes her head and gets Maya downstairs. I wasn't going to just LEAVE HER! ARE YOU NUTS!? * LadyNightshade heads down the stairs with Peavine. Do we still have Sakura on the line? Darkmoon puts Leena out in a jiffy. MALLET! Use your goddamned *HEAD* sometimes! * Lord_Darkmoon uses the tessen to make the cape vanish. "Are you okay? Come on, we've got to get out of here." * LadyMallet stashes the Mallet into MalletSpace, and breaks into a run for the stairs. "Let's go!" * LadyMysteria proceeds to let out a cry as she tears something in screaming, and coughs a bit more. Ag!--Later, Maya, later. Evac first, reaming out LATER. Ghn. * LadyRoyal takes up more of Maya's weight and continues. * LadyMallet stops next to Royal, and helps out with Maya. Take care of yourself, Leena. I'll help with Maya. *gently, but as controlled as he can be* * LadyMysteria just gives Mallet a glance, then shakes her head. * LadyMallet hisses. "Just massive pain and burns all over. Nothing much to complain about." The stairs are CROWDED, with everyone on the higher floors coming down past 7, but the mass of bodies does move downwards at a regular, reasonable rate. The door to 6 radiates heat like a stovetop, and the crowd inches away from it. Don't make me carry you both, Leena. Please. Take care of yourself first. I'll live! * LadyNightshade turns to Darkmoon. "Where's my phone?" HELLO? HELLO? I am going to find this man, and I am going to take exquisite pleasure in seeing him dead. Damn the consequences. * Lord_Darkmoon tosses it to Nightshade. * LadyNightshade snatches her phone and takes it off speaker. Leena, there are patches of skin on you that have melted off. I'm sorry, Maya will have more use for you after they've grown back. Yes, My Lady. You will. I will give him to you to do as you please. ... Sakura... We have Peavine. The Lord wasn't around. * Lord_Darkmoon continues trying to take Maya from Leena. * LadyMallet shrugs off Mayas weight, then squints her eyes shut, and presses the palms of her hands into her sides, little tears of pain coming from her eyes. * LadyRoyal keeps on helping Maya down the stairs. * LadyMysteria grunts now and then, teeth on edge. "... and that was my favorite shirt, too." * Lord_Darkmoon takes up Leena's position. We'll get Squeegee to get you a new one. Two new ones. The other Lady is... We don't know. Probably dead. Um, help, you're kidnapping me? * Lord_Darkmoon keeps glancing back at Leena to make sure she's still following, and then at Maya to make sure she's still breathing. That must be sweat from the heat. Not tears. Really. Quiet! I'm on the phone... * LadyNightshade keeps her other hand firmly around Peavine's arm. * LadyMallet gives up on trying to hold it in, and just starts crying, keeping her eyes open just enough to follow. We are not kidnapping you, Lady Peavine. We're protecting you. Your husband will appreciate that we're going to keep you safe. * LadyRoyal notices Leena, catches Darkmoon's eye over Maya's head, and jerks her head back at Leena. The team emerges into the crowd outside. Looking up, the sixth floor is entirely on fire, and flames are starting to come out of the fifth floor windows as well. Help, help. * LadyPeavine isn't calling very loud - in fact, she seems incapable of really doing anything. * LadyMysteria just shakes her head, fists clenched. She notices Leena, but pays her no mind. "We need to go. Now, before the police shows. Get us a ride." * LadyRoyal nods. "You still have your phone?" Any idea if you'll be able to order Peavine, or should we get the Queen on the phone? If I wasn't effective against that other Lady, and I could tell she responded and could hear me... then maybe we'd best get the Queen. I'll call, and explain. * PrincessSakura hangs up * LadyNightshade closes her phone. * LadyMysteria simply digs out her phone and dials the secretary. "Yeah... forgot." Are your hands okay? I can do it. * LadyNightshade looks at Peavine. "Do you have a number we could reach your husband at? A cellphone or anything?" Oh, will you take me to him? Just my chest. Hurts to breathe. Ah. Yeah. * LadyPeavine suddenly looks radiant and hopeful. I don't have his number, though. Do you know where we can find him? The secretary agrees that the team needs a ride. No? And quickly, please. Thank you, ma'am. * LadyNightshade is trying to push her way through the crowd so she can get outside as soon as possible while she talks. * LadyMysteria rather abruptly hangs up, and goes back to looking drained. So then the only way you can talk to him is when he comes to see you? * LadyRoyal watches Maya with concern, and looks relieved when she hangs up. He sees me so often - he loves me, after all... Of course he does. * LadyMysteria twitches, once, and grits her teeth. But we need to tell him what happened. * LadyRoyal glances at Maya. "Yeah, basically." * LadyNightshade looks around to see how close they are to getting out of there. I can't help you, I'm sorry. *smile* He'll find me, though. He always does! * LadyNightshade does her best to repress a shudder. "I guess we'll have to hope for that then..." * LadyMallet intakes a sharp gasp of breath, and she bumps into something. " ... nothing... " The team has separated themselves from the crowd, and is now moving up the block, eastward. Three floors of the building behind them are on fire now, and the fire trucks are just arriving. You don't see him anywhere around here, do you? * LadyRoyal keeps an eye on the surroundings, now that they're out of the building. * LadyPeavine looks around, and back at the crowd. "No... but he always seems to sneak up on me." Right. Taki's phone rings. * LadyMysteria continues to clench and unclench her hands. Now and then, a few flakes of burned skin fall off to reveal new, raw skin. Guys, I-- er.. ... eh? * LadyNightshade answers her phone. Yeah? Lady Nightshade? Oh um... *stands up straight in spite of herself* Your majesty? I understand there is a Lady who needs my... help. * Lord_Darkmoon 's eyes dart to Nightshade, as he stiffens just a bit. Then he relaxes. "Oh, right." * LadyMallet grits her teeth. Yeah. He wrapped her up in orders something fierce. Here I'll put her on. It's for you. *hands Peavine the phone* Is it him? Uh... yeah. * LadyPeavine puts the phone to her ear. "Darling, I'm being kidnapp-" * LadyPeavine freezes in place, unable to move, or even blink. * LadyNightshade gets ready to catch her in case she might faint or... anything. * Lord_Darkmoon shudders, watching this. ... After a few seconds, she begins to tremble, and the phone slips from her hand and bounces off the pavement. * LadyMysteria watches... and doesn't look at all disturbed. ... I'm sorry that had to happen, Peavine. * LadyNightshade grabs for it as it falls. ...are you alright, Yuki-san? * LadyNightshade puts it back to her ear. "Your majesty?" Did that have the desired effect? * LadyPeavine seems to collapse, then catches herself and starts crying and tearing at her clothes. The shirt is ripped free before anyone can react, and she begins at her skirt next. Yuki! Well she doesn't look very happy. Is she going to be okay? Darkmoon, a coat? Please. * LadyNightshade is speaking in the formal tone that her parents taught her. How would I know? Take good care of her, get her out here soon. * LadyMallet shudders. Maybe uh... you could get her to sleep or something. This isn't really the best place for this... Can you get her to listen long enough? I can hold the phone to her ear. All right. * Lord_Darkmoon takes off his jacket, which is suddenly a heavy coat, and offers it to Lady Peavine. Alright, do it... now. *presses the phone to Peavine's ear* * Lord_Darkmoon drapes the coat around the girl, as she's in no condition to take it of her own volition. * LadyPeavine flinches away from the phone, but then slowly seems to relax and collapse at Taki's feet. * LadyNightshade catches her with her other arm so she doesn't fall too hard. * LadyNightshade takes the phone back. ... I swear to whatever God that's listening that I will see that man, and anyone like him, dead. Okay, she's out. Thank you, your majesty. A black panel van pulls up to the curb, and the cabin door pops open. ... no one deserves this. Thank you as well. * LadyMallet gets into the van, looking distant. We didn't see... him though. I don't know if we'll have another opportunity like this again... * Lord_Darkmoon nods to Mysteria. "No one." All aboard! * Lord_Darkmoon helps Mysteria and Royal in. * LadyRoyal helps settle Maya in. * Lord_Darkmoon helps Taki with Peavine once Maya's in. * LadyNightshade helps get the girl into the van as best she can. * LadyMallet hisses with pain as she gets on, but she gets on, and wipes her face with some intact piece of clothing. Well that's something at least. As the van door shuts, a gust of wind carries a flurry of snow into the street. You don't think some of us should wait around to see if he shows up? * Lord_Darkmoon offers Mallet his tessen. "This won't help the burns, but you can be wearing clean clothing, at least," he says, almost emotionlessly. * LadyMysteria takes a seat by a window, and just rests her head on the window. * LadyRoyal wipes her forehead. "Might be a good idea, at that." * LadyNightshade is back to her normal casual speak as she addresses Maya. I'm mostly okay. I don't mind sticking around. He won't show, odds are. Me too. He won't know what happens till he gets here. We might get lucky... Can't hurt. ... but you can stay if you wish. Thank you. * LadyRoyal nods. "Good luck." She climbs out of the van. I will remain, as well. Unless any of you need my help... I'll be fine, Darkmoon. We should probably leave someone unwounded around, though... So Darkmoon and I then? You all decide. I'm too angry to think. * LadyMallet swats the Tessen away, looking up long enough to realize it's held out. * LadyMysteria catches that... and pause. "... Rin. Stay with us." ... I'll stay, too. No Leena. You HEAL. You're in no condition. Okay, Mina and I will stay then I guess... Mallet, no. You need to heal. Suck it up or I Order. I'll heal just fine no matter where I am. * Lord_Darkmoon looks to Mysteria, and nods. "With pleasure, my Lady. Good luck, Lady Royal." He climbs in and sits next to Maya. * LadyRoyal nods. "Right. See you all later." Good luck. * Lord_Darkmoon hasn't spoken with his usual firmness since leaving the building. Like he's just worn out, and emotion, even strict control, is too much effort. * LadyNightshade waves at everyone as they depart. * LadyMallet, however, makes no motion to get up from where she is. * LadyRoyal stuffs her hands into her jacket pockets and turns to Taki. "Well." * Lord_Darkmoon eventually rests a hand on the top of Maya's back, just below her neck, and rubs gently. Just some physical contact. He doesn't say anything. Yup. I bet you a fruit smoothie we don't see him... * LadyNightshade starts walking back towards the building. * LadyRoyal shakes her head. "Yeah." She starts walking back to the apartments, falling into step with Taki. " * LadyMallet closes her eyes, and falls still. * LadyMysteria closes her own eyes, but looks no less tense. [end session]