Chapter Three, C :: The Fallen

[Lawric]

Between hating his mission and waiting for this lady to answer, Lawric had been trying to work out and mentally practice what exactly he was going to say.

At some point during that short span of time, he had a slight change of mind.

"It's not my emergency, it's yours," he answered the dispatcher, careful to maintain a cool but confident tone. "I am an explosives technician who works for DotNA. There are three bombs planted within the sewers beneath the festival. They will all detonate in fifteen minutes; if you don't want casualties, I suggest an evacuation take place."

He slammed the receiver against the hook before giving her a chance to respond, pushed the glass door of the phone booth open, and strode back over to where the rest of the team still stood.

"C'mon," he said stiffly, approaching them all just as Jax's sentence trailed off. "Now we need to get to that tower before they evacuate everyone. We don't have any more time to fuck around." He said this as he walked right through and passed the group of them, heading for the tower now whether or not they would follow. What he had just done for this mission was probably one of the more ballsy things he had done in his life, but at this point, he wasn't even nervous about it. He was still riding on the fumes of his anger, which incidentally was doing a great job at keeping self-doubt at bay.

[Jun]

"Well...you heard the man." Jun said to the rest. "Since Stardust knows the blueprint by heart she can lead everyone to the struts. Right Stardust?"

She hastened to keep up with Lawric, which was not an easy task due to his long legs and furious stride. She stepped up her speed and barely managed to match his stride.


"Are you...alright?" She asked peering up at his face, which looked anything but conversational. Coupling with the stiffness of his posture it made her question all the more stupid. But she had to ask. Even if it sparked off a lashing down for her, she just had to ask.

[Lawric]

The question made him want to roll his eyes. Am I alright?

"No, Jun, I am not." he answered with a carefully controlled but stiff tone, staring straight ahead as he paced. "I find it very ironic that the only person who didn't want to be a part of this is the only person who has made any effort so far."

And he stopped himself there. He could probably go on, and on, and on... But he didn't want to take it all out on her, even if she was part of what he had a problem with.

[stardust]

"Since Stardust knows the blueprint by heart she can lead everyone to the struts. Right Stardust?" Jun said.

By heart? Stardust wanted to shake her head. Jun was...a dork.

"Actually," the pinkhead turned to Jax. "I do have the blueprint here with me." She motioned to the black body bag strapped on her. "But you can't look at it here. It'll be too big. You can have it once we get inside the tower."

A cart with a peddler tooting horn started passing by them. Stardust got a good look of the festive masks he was selling. There seemed to be a lot of carbuncle masks lying around in his cart. It didn't take long till a lot of screaming child flooded around the cart and rocked it to get a hold of masks. She snatched one of the masks that was stomped to the ground.

"Is this maybe an Otaku festival?" Stardust glanced at the dirtied mask and brushed the dirt off. "In any case, let's see if they'll let us in the tower without any tricks." Shoving the mask to Deo, she went towards the direction of the broadcast tower.

[Storyteller]

Everyone follows behind Stardust to the broadcast tower. It looms above you casting its shadow over the festival. As you get closer you catch glimpses of police cars arriving from all over. However people at the festival look unafraid. You sneak around the edge of the building to see whats happening at the festival.

At the far end you spot a startlingly beautiful woman standing on the stage. Her long black hair flows around her shoulders and she is covered in a sparkling white dress. She seems to be addressing the people her arms out stretched to each side. From this distance you can't hear what she's saying.

One of you peeks into one of the windows of the building the broadcast tower is resting on. It seems to be a lobby of some sorts. A receptionist sits behind a desk idly twirling a pencil.

[Lawric]

She doesn't look like DotNA material.

Lawric turned away from the window and faced his team.

"Almasy said the place is heavily guarded and insinuated that DotNA might get involved, but other than that we don't know what we're getting into. I'm going in for more information."

None of you are going to do anything, anyway.

He turned away from them immediately and followed the side of the building to the entrance door.

Once he open that door, he put all his energies into releasing the tension his body language carried and temporarily letting go of his anger and anxiety. Instead he tried to move in a casual and relaxed way, and, when she noticed him coming into the room, he even managed what he hoped would seem to be a natural-looking smirk. He stepped up to the desk and rested an arm upon it, bending his body and letting his weight lean.

"This is probably going to sound really lame, but I've been wandering around at the festival all morning -- which isn't that great, by the way. But anyway, I was just walking by and I noticed you through the window, so I, uhh... " He faltered for a second. "I'll just be honest; you're the prettiest girl I've seen all day. So I had the sudden temptation to come in and hit on you. Can you blame me?" He cracked a grin. "My name is Ian. What's yours?"

[Jax Ridean]

Jax studied the ridiculous looking mask that Stardust had picked up. "An Otaku festival?" he frowned. "Never heard of it. What is it, some sort of costume event thing?"

He went ahead of the others, walking close to the shadows as he made his way around the corner towards the Broadcast Tower. There were police cars everywhere and in a crowd of masked kids running and screaming, the five of them stuck out like sore thumbs. "You know," he chuckled, calling behind him "These masks make pretty good disguises..."

As he waited for the rest to catch up, Jax paused for a moment to gaze at the festival again.

Whatever he had intended to say next, the words had flown out of his mind. For standing in the center of the stage was the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes on. Tall and willowy, her glittering white dress wrapped like a glove around her slender form. Her smooth alabaster skin only accentuated her stunning dark features. Silky onyx hair that flowed over the nape of her swan-like neck. Eyes like a rich pool of velvet purple with flecks of amber. She was exquisite...like some strange creature out of a dream...

He wanted to gaze at her a little longer. Brushing past someone, he strained to hear what she was saying, but was still too far away. He had to get closer.

[Storyteller]

Lawric

The woman looks up at you seeming a bit flustered as a blush creeps up her cheeks. She shuffles some papers on her desk before answering.

"I'm Anne" she says with a flirty little smile causing you to notice that she is actually rather pretty.


Jax

As you take a few steps closer to the stage your eyes locked on the entrancing woman there you happen to over hear two Timber natives speaking.

"She's a lovely lady, wouldn't you say?" One of them says.

"Yeup Harry, stunning"

"It's hard to believe that she's the new sorceress. Maybe she'll finally turn this place around"

[Jax Ridean]

He wanted to get closer to the stage, but the collecting crowd of people were starting to complicate things. With the advantage of his height, Jax could simply lift his head over the swarming mass of people to see her. But still standing at a good distance from the foot of the stage, he could barely pick up the beautiful lady's words over the buzz of conversation all around him.

"She's a lovely lady, wouldn't you say?" said a gruff voice from behind him.

Thinking the comment was addressed to him, Jax swung his head around, only to see two portly middle-aged construction workers deep in discussion.

He snickered. As if baldy ever had a chance. Besides, that combover was fooling anyone.


"Yeup Harry, stunning"

Jax sighed. His pudgy peanut-butter-faced friend wasn't any better. And what a shame to...for such a gorgeous girl to be wasted on goggling flocks of men like him and Harry...they were way too past their prime to even be out on the singles market...

It didn't look like he was going to get a step further. Muttering curses under his breath, he turned around and began walking back.

"--she's the new sorceress. Maybe she'll finally turn this place around."

As if a thousand sirens had simultaneously gone off his brain, Jax did a 360 turnaround. Her? She was the new sorceress? Suddenly, he was overcome with the sickening sense of deja vu. He had just finished with one uppity sorceress going apeshit on power. Now there's another one? He had to get more information. Digging his hand into his pocket, he fished out the mission statement and pen. He folded the page into two, so that the blank side was facing up. This should work.

Stalking up to Harry, he put on a fake cheesy grin and tapped the man on the shoulder. "Hi there. Couldn't help but overhear what you and your friend was saying. I'm a reporter for the Timber Maniacs and I'm doing a story on this event. Do you think you can describe to me your thoughts on the new sorceress? Things you feel she'll be able to do for this great city?"

[Diego Stanton]

Deo put on the Otaku mask that Stardust had given him and was about to follow her to the broadcast tower when he caught sight of the woman on stage.

Now, very rarely did a girl catch his eye so readily and make him stop in his tracks and forget what he was doing. He wondered what the festival was all about again, for he was sure it had to do with this woman now.

Is this 'the world's best looking people' festival? Deo jealously scanned the area for any ridiculously looking guys but found none that were as astonishing as the woman.

Then he noticed the police cars.

"Hey.. Law," Deo said concernedly. Lawric was nowhere in sight. "Jax?" Deo asked. Where were they?? He realized he had kind of wandered off by himself again and his teammates were nowhere in sight.

[Lawric]

"Anne, huh? I like that." Lawric grinned back down at the receptionist.

"So, Anne... " He leaned over a little bit more, pretending to peek at what was down on her desk. "Why on the planet is it so important for you to be sitting at this desk, instead of enjoying the festival?" He laughed. "What are they paying you to do? Make sure no one tries to steal a free tour of this place or something?"

[Storyteller]

Lawric

"I, ah, just answer the phones and stuff" Anne says looking down at the desk in front of her. She blushes toying with a strand of her hair.

"I'm only on the schedule for a few more hours then I'm going to go to the festival, I'm really looking forward to it actually" the receptionist giggles a little and looks up into your eyes.

Jax

"Well uh...." the guy looks a little stunned before glancing over at his friends, "They say she's gonna make us more prosperous and stuff. Certainly you've seen the news cast..."

[Lawric]

Lawric's grin widened at Anne's giggle, and this time it actually wasn't purely an act. He considered himself lucky. Not only did Anne seem to be a relatively naive girl, making the job of charming her so much easier... But she was actually pretty cute.

"Answer the phones? They've seriously got you stuck here at this desk on a day like today for that?" He let out a chuckle. "C'mon, practically the entire city is out there in the street. Who's going to call today?" He let out another laugh and shook his head.

"It's cool that you're getting off soon, but it's kind of ridiculous that you even have to be here in the first place." He smirked. "And let me guess, the higher-ups in charge of this place are all enjoying a vacation day today while they let their receptionist man the building alone... I used to work at a library and they always did this kind of shit with me."

[Storyteller]

Lawric

"Oh no, there's plenty of big strong men up there. They wouldn't leave a little girl like me all alone down here" she giggles a little and fidgets.

"Actually" she pouts a little glancing up at the clock, "you should probably go... wouldn't want them to catch you here, I could get into serious trouble"

[waterlily43]

Jun peeked into the window 'marvelling' at the ease with which Lawric was working up the receptionist. He was really good at it. Within seconds the receptionist was beaming back like a beacon.

But that was hardly surprising. She had been a receiver of those charms not so long ago. But she shouldn't be delusioned enough to think that she would gain monopoly on them. Especially if her sparkling impression on him was starting to deteriorate, if she started the trace everything it all went downhill from last night.

And besides it was alllll for the mission.

Although it did looked like he was enjoying his task a little too much...

Affixing her "mission face" even more firmly on, she turned her back to the window, leaning against the wall to cross her arms at the chest. Jax and Diego had wandered away without her noticing, so she turned her attention towards Stardust.

"Where did those two go?" She muttered at her pink haired teammate, an edge starting to creep up in her voice. "It looks like there might be some civilians inside the buidling, at least the receptionist looks like one. My assumption was wrong...the Dotna aren't as careful as Almasy says afterall. Where's the heavy security barring our exit?"

Her eye caught a movement in the compound. There were rats scurrying around the waste area.

"Can we like pretend to be pest exterminators and chase them out of the building?"