VVVVVigil: Valorous Veterans Vanquishing Venal Vermin

[Gullara]

[Investigation]

"I see." Kirk frowns. This is about exactly as much of a mess as he expected. It doesn't make it any less frustrating. "I'll consider her an option, but don't get in touch with her yet. I'll send you a message if I'd like to arrange a meeting with her." Perhaps as a last resort, but there's no use cluin Helios in so early. "I'll have to see if your brother is feeling amicable."

[Morty]

[Succubus Hunt]

Wenomir can only watch in dismay as the door shatters under the bulk of Anika's bear form. His dismay doesn't lessen in any way when he sees Cessie and... Jezebel? Under the door? In a state of... not quite undress but getting there. What is happening in here?

"What just- what is-" By all the gods he doesn't believe in or actively loathes. Wenomir grasps at the only certain thing amidst this absurdity. "Yes, let's... get those wounds looked at. And I also have questions."

[UncleWolf]

Succubus Hunting

Jezebel returns the squeeze as she helps Cessie to her feet and takes a moment to try and rearrange her dress so it isn't outright falling off of her. "At least my heels seem okay." She points out, looking down at her shoes before checking out her shoulder. "As long as you truly are unharmed, then this is nothing some tweezers and bandages won't patch up. If anything, it is my pride that has taken a small blow." She says, giving a small smile to try and ease the situation. "Pity about the dress though. I'd planned on wearing it more than once." She jokes as she turns towards Wenomir and Anika while not letting go of Cessie's hand. "Well, lead on. I've no clue where the infirmary is here. And I will say that I imagine a great many of your questions won't need to be asked once you think on it on the way over."

[Shadowcaller]

Succubus Hunting

Cessie gives Wenomir a frustrated glare. "You can begin by explaining why you and miss sunfletcher were tearing down the door, please." She remarks while ushering them all out of the room.

Anika looks fairly helpless now as no help seemed to be given from Wenomir. "Come on guys! Tell me something!" She let's out while gesturing at Jezebel. "Who is she? I though she was a demon since no one seem to bother explaining anything to me!"

This does not seem to sit well with Cessie. "She is the reason Riverside isn't a smoking crater. You were there, miss Sunfletcher and you're going to address Jezebel Tel'vree with the respect she deserves." Her cold stare shifts to Wenomir. "And the same goes to you. She nearly died defending Riverside and just went through a long physical and mental theraphy while you were..." She gestures dismissively into the air. "Having your fun. Perhaps if you took our mission as seriously as she was this wouldn't have happened. Use your brains instead of your guts for once."

"Wait, huh?" Anika blinks as she stares at Jezebel.

A beat.

"So are you actually a demon?" She quickly glances at Cessie before her gaze darts back to Jezebel. "Uh, miss Tel'vree."

[Investigation]

"I wouldn't count on it. Keep in mind though, Helios is likely to have an eye on my brother. They've worked together in the past which is why he knows so much about him." She crosses her arms over her chest. "Dealing with Helios is always tricky that way. Looking for more information about him will likely lead to him knowing more about you, mister Locke."

[Morty]

[Succubus Hunting]

Wenomir's mouth sets into a thin line and his face darkens. This situation is humiliating in so many different ways for everyone involved and Cessie's jabs don't make it better.

"Anika came to my office claiming you had been seen with a 'succubus'. I had no idea what this was about, but I figured you'd simply met some new member that looked like one, so I went with Anika to check and clear things up. I didn't expect to find your shoe on the floor, or for it to look like something had been dragged there... or anything else that happened. And I don't see how-" He pauses, then gnashes his teeth, clearly biting back some rather unkind words.

[Gullara]

[Investigation]

"I wouldn't count on it. Keep in mind though, Helios is likely to have an eye on my brother. They've worked together in the past which is why he knows so much about him." She crosses her arms over her chest. "Dealing with Helios is always tricky that way. Looking for more information about him will likely lead to him knowing more about you, mister Locke."

[Investigation]

"I'm afraid that's a risk I'm going to have to take at the moment. I think that's all I'll need for the moment, however." The drow stands to leave. "Unless you have anything else you'd like to convey?" He asks, just in case.

[UncleWolf]

Succubus Hunted

Jezebel doesn't answer Anika right away as they leave the barracks, frowning slightly as she hears the argument breaking out between Cessie and Wenomir. She didn't really enjoy hearing such as it had been a wonderful night for the most part until now. Barring the pain in her shoulder, she didn't feel all that awful either. Eventually she looks up, hands clasped behind her back as she looks up at the multitude of stars. "Perhaps it is a bit childish for you all, but sometimes I look up at the sky in terror. Even now, despite having been under such skies for years now, I cannot escape the sensation that I will simply float away. Sometimes it is all I can do to keep from burrowing under the ground or hide in a building. I grew up under a sky of steel and rockcrete after all. So perhaps it is childish, but for me that was the natural world. Everything else seems so chaotic and unnatural. Unsettling and disturbing." Hopefully that is enough to at least distract the others a bit and calm things down.

She'll turn to Anika after her moment of introspection, hands still clasped behind her back. "If I am a daemon, it is not a kind you are familiar with though it does seem to be a question that has come up multiple times today. In the end I am not sure."

Jezebel gives a small sigh when she turns to Wenomir and Cessie. "To put it rather indelicately, the thing that had been dragged had been me." She explains, giving a small gesture of her hand to wave it off almost dismissively. "And Cessie, you are being somewhat unfair. Not in the anger or indignation, but I cannot say there had been any sort of malice in what happened. It couldn't have been more than an accident. An unpleasant one to be sure, but I would rather that those here would act on suspicions than not. Even if I consider the method extremely questionable." She says, narrowing her eyes at Anika a bit. "Settle down on the Bear-ing a bit in the future."

"You wanted to know if I'd be willing to join, Cessie, and the answer is yes. In the end, this entire somewhat ludicrous situation has settled the question."

[Zefir]

[Visitor]

A man is coming to visit. From what i know only Wenomir should know him directly since they met befor. The man appears to be an average human of 5'8" heigth. He wears a sleevless labcoat while his arms are covered in scales. His grey hair make him look old, but his face says different.

The man known as Arkant takes a shuttle up to the island and then starts searching for Vigil people..

[Visitor]

As time passes Arkant wonders why he hasn't met any Vigil member until now. maybe they are all stuck in some tasks? So he starts walking futher into the island. On his way he meets some NPC which he friendly asks about the whereabouts of any Vigil members. All of them direct him at the base telling him that they have their own Harbor for shuttels so they barly notice if they leave or not. Arkant thanks the man and heads of for the Vigil grounds. Let's hope he can meet anyone.

[Shadowcaller]

Succubus Hunt

Anika appears completely confused when Jezebel starts talking about the sky. Was she being a demon sky related? She didn't have wings... unless she could manifest them? She could totally see her with black wings. Still, if what Cessie said was true then she was the person who had helped them defeat the demons in Riverside. So maybe she was more like a demon hunter?

"So why do you have demon parts?" Anika gestures at Jezebel's tail.

"She's not a demon." The commander remarks sharply. "Like she said, she's had to explain this many times."

The druid gestures at Cessie. "Hey, I was just trying to save you! That's why I was 'bear-ing'. But I am sorry, ok?" She insists as the two women bear down on her.

Cessie closes her eyes for a moment and lets out a sigh. But instead of saying anything she simply gestures for them to follow until they've reached reached her office in the other barrack. "Well, Wenomir. To leave that behind us, do you accept Jezebel as a member of VIGIL? Since I suggest that her first positition will be to direct miss Sunfletcher among other new recruits." She gestures at Anika but is looking at him. "It should also be known that we've initiated a relationship, for full disclosure. Therefore, it would be inappropriate if I had too much to say about her position here. Instead, I'm going to leave all decisions regarding Lady Tel'vree in your hands. I am simply putting forth the request along with a couple of suggestions."

Anika raises an eyebrow as she looks between Jezebel and Cessie. Hadn't Wenomir said she was into guys? Suspicious! She still wanted to know about the demon parts. Felt like that deserved an explanation...

[Investigation]

Cessie stands up and offers her hand to shake. "That should be all, mister Locke. I hope MERC and VIGIL will be able to help out one another more like this in the future."

[Morty]

[Succubus Hunt]

Wenomir breathes out.

"I had little but sky to look at when I was a child. Hills on one side, river on the other, nothing but steppe beyond the river and sky above," he says in response to Jezebel's aside, before focusing on the topic at hand again. He's not sure how Cessie dragged Jezebel on the floor and why, but he's not going to ask. Some things must still remain secret. "Yes, I've put that together by now. Hell of a way to find out. And here I was assuring Anika you're the straightest woman in the world. I've already agreed to Jezebel joining and I uphold that decision. But I must ask what you mean by her directing Anika."

[Visitor]

Arkant will eventually be directed to Wenomir, who had previously been occupied training new recruits.

"How may I help you?"

[Gullara]

[Investigation]

Kirk smiles and nods as he grasps Cessie's hand. "I'm sure that's a possibility. Merc is always open to cooperation." Generally at a price, but that doesn't make it any less true. And with that, Kirk will take his leave. He'll keep an eye out for Anika, though if she's gone off to do her own thing in the meantime, he'll have to simply leave. He can always get in touch later for their 'arrangement'.

[Shadowcaller]

[Investigation]

Cessie gave it for free, that kinda implies something here.

However, Kirk will soon have a far too up close encounter with Anika when she peeks down from above as he leaves the barracks, nearly knocking their heads into one another.
"Hi." She greets him with a smile, hanging upside down as she is. "Think you can catch me if I drop down?" The druid grins at him.

[5a Violista]

[An unsuspecting loner goes for a walk...]

Awen has been pretty much a shut-in for the past several months, ever since that party ended and she finally decided she needed to rest and recover from those broken ribs.

...

It's honestly been a couple weeks since she last saw the sun. She borrowed a bunch of books from Vigil's library on magic and...still nothing. She just finished the last of them, so she decides it's finally time to bring them back and find new books.

As usual, she's wearing way more clothes than she needs to, including headscarfs and long sleeves and a long dress and everything. Her fox is, for once, tagging along as she carries a stack of seven books precariously across the surface of the flying island.

[billtodamax]

More like a dumb loser goes for a walk hahaha gottem

Celestia this buckin' blows. Bet that dumb spider got her curse fixed. Couldn't even find a proper priest to fix this dumb curse, stupid robot priest can't even see a real curse when she sees one.

Violet flies in closer to VIGIL.

What's this dumb island doing up here anyway. Bucking thing's gonna fall outta the sky soon as someone sabotages its engines.

HEY! IDIOT! WHAT'S THIS DUMB- Hang on she recognises that fox! Oh my god you cutie come here! Violet flies in toward Awen and tries to scoop up the fox, books and all. Ok so she doesn't really care about the books. Awen might not recognise Violet - she's been turned into a pony since they last met.

[5a Violista]

Dumb loner going for a wak

The fox doesn't mind getting scooped up. He tries to turn around and start licking the flying pony.
Seems...either the fox remembers her or just likes licking ponies?

Meanwhile, the books fall. If nobody cares about the books, there's no way they'll stay up.

"Heywaitwhat-" Awen says, very surprised when a pony dive-bombs her fox.
...
Why is this horse flying here?

"What are you doing?" she yells out, trying to find out what the buck is going on. She winces...yelling still hurts. And her voice sounds weird and is a lot quieter than she had thought, and it cracks halfway through her sentence. It's almost like she hasn't talked in like a long time.

[billtodamax]

Dumb loner going for a walk

I might be stealing this fox if he keeps being this cute. Violet says in baby talk to the fox scritching it under the chin with one of her hooves. She glances back at Awen, trying to remember her. Hey, Thanksmas right? Did you get anything nice? Are you still wearing all that dumb garbage? She asks, looking her up and down.

[5a Violista]

Dumb loner going for a walk

The fox likes being pampered.
He moves his head so that Violet can reach all the right spots.

"Hey, I'm wearing less than I did before!" Awen replies. "But I...I don't think I met anybody like you?" She only met like two other people. But neither of them looked like that, at all. "I got some cleaning equipment...Sorry but I don't remember meeting anyone who could fly."

[billtodamax]

Dumb loner going for a walk

Oh, right. I wasn't a dumb horse before. Violet says, frowning. This spider buck turned me into a horse cause she was jealous probably. Complete psychopath. She says, telling the complete truth. God I forgot you got cleaning equipment. Complete rip off of a gift. Isn't that right mister fox? Isn't that right! She descends into baby talk again, mercilessly pampering the fox as she does.

[5a Violista]

Dumb loner going for a walk

"Oh!"

Recognition shows up all over her face.
...
Not that you can see it. Veils and stuff.

"I remember you! You said the same thing back then. Right? That was you." Maybe not the exact same thing, but she remembers some woman insulting what she got, saying it was a waste or something like that.

Awen carefully crouches down so she can stack the books in a pile and lift them....and she, again, winces. Luckily it's almost completely healed so it's not that bad.
"That sounds awful. A horse? Why would she turn you into a horse? That doesn't even make sense. What kind of person goes around turning people into animals?"


Meanwhile.
The fox decides it is getting riled up enough to start playing. It gently swings its paws at Violet's face and tries to catch her hoof in its mouth.

[billtodamax]

Dumb loner going for a walk

I dunno who the buck remembers that? Pretty sure I was drinking. Violet says, as she pushes her hoof a little into the fox's stomach and shakes it slightly as it bites her. Like how you'd grab a cat to play with it, she's not hurting the thing. Right? What an *******. And then this dumbass priestess couldn't even fix me. The buck's the point of a priest huh? Anyway how come you're on this dumb island anyway. Don't you have uh... things to clean? Or whatever?

[5a Violista]

[Dumb loner going for a walk]

Awen remembers because she doesn't really talk with very many people.

...
Jeez, she just unlocked an achievement for being a loner.

So, yeah. That's definitely her. Confirmation.
"Maybe it was just a regular non-magic priest. Like, one that's in charge of reading scriptures and praying or whatever." Awen is religious, too, so she ought to know that there's priests that don't do magic curing healing stuff.

"This island is VIGIL's," she says, shaking her head. "Not here to clean," though she does sometimes do it for fun, but just little parts of it near her place. "I joined VIGIL a while ago, and...and that's why I'm here. Been practicing summoning stuff recently."

[billtodamax]

Dumb loner going for a walk

What the buck's VIGIL? Some sort of self help group? Violet is of the opinion that Awen really needs a self help group. They helping you take off the rest of those dumb bandages? Is it some bucked up face thing or what?

[5a Violista]

Dumb loner going for a walk

Violet is correct.
Awen really does need a self-help group.
"No, it's, like a hero group? Or vigilante group. Or something like that. Saves the world and stops bad people."

"There's...nothing wrong with my face." She, having now stacked all the books, lifts them up leaving her hands full. "It's just, like, there's snakes in my hair. And eye contact's uncomfortable. And, well, I'm from a world that doesn't have as loose chastity codes or whatever they're called as here." And she is incredibly shy and has a crippling guilt complex. And eye contact, while it doesn't turn people to stone, does impair their mental faculties. And she grew up a servant so having her eyes uncovered makes her feel incredibly self-conscious like she's doing something that's beyond her place.
So, basically, somebody who definitely needs self-help.

[Zefir]

[Visitor]

Arkant will eventually be directed to Wenomir, who had previously been occupied training new recruits.

"How may I help you?"

[Visitor -> Training Grounds]

Arkant greets the warrior in a friendly way. "Good day Mr. Wenomir" he says. His voice is friendly and like the other time Arkant is all alone here, which might be a sign that he feels safe around here. Arkant normaly never leaves without a bodyguard these days,

"Sadly there has been an incedent lately and it might be a little to much for me to handle right now." he looks at the recruits. "We might also discuss this under 4 eyes."

[billtodamax]

Dumb loner going for a walk

You got snakes in your hair? Lemme see! Violet says, tucking the fox in one foreleg and floating over to Awen, trying to pull off her bandages around her hair with her other. Are you some sorta medusa? Gonna turn me to stone? She asks as she works. Violet does not respect personal space.

[Gullara]

[Investigation]

Cessie gave it for free, that kinda implies something here.

However, Kirk will soon have a far too up close encounter with Anika when she peeks down from above as he leaves the barracks, nearly knocking their heads into one another.
"Hi." She greets him with a smile, hanging upside down as she is. "Think you can catch me if I drop down?" The druid grins at him.

[Investigation]

The drow reacts pretty quickly, thankfully, or they might just have knocked heads. He takes a small step back and quirks and eyebrow at her. "I can manage." And if she does drop, he'll catch her just fine. She maybe tower over him, but he's more than capable. "But now that I have you, so I need to turn you in for spying?" He winks.

[5a Violista]

Dumb loner going for a walk

The fox starts licking her foreleg.


"No wait"

Awen closes her eyes and tries to turn her head away, but she can't do much because of the books and ribs. The headscarf is easily taken off.

She's got long black hair with thin black snakes mixed in. Like, most medusa-people only have snakes, right? And they're usually thicc snakes. She's got both snakes and hair.
And her hair is super messy. Like, if you had snakes slithering around in your hair, it would probably be messy too. She comments on this: "I haven't had a chance to brush it."

Actually, speaking of her hair, the actual hair part of it starts moving on its own and tries to wrap itself around Violet's foreleg, so that it can push her away with a stronger force than she could with just her arms.

[billtodamax]

Dumb loner going for a walk

Hahaha holy buck. Violet says as she lets herself be pushed away from Awen. Did you know about this dude? She asks the fox. I thought it'd be a medusa thing but you just straight up have snakes like... living in your hair huh? Is your hair moving by itself? That's bucked up.

[Shadowcaller]

[Investigation]

She disappears for a moment before calling. "Incoming."
Then she drops down in his hopefully waiting arms, still grinning. "Spying? Tsk. I got good hearing, but I can't hear through walls. They're built thick enough to stop a rifle-shot, y'know?" She raises her long eyebrows. "But I do wanna know what you were talking about. You said you'd tell me!"

[Gullara]

[Investigation]

"I don't remember saying that. In fact, I seem to remember the opposite." Kirk gives her a skeptical, if amused look. He'll put her down if she wishes, but he's not in any hurry if she wants to linger in his arms.