Summer Beachparty Twenty Twenty One!

[Zefir]

[After Volleyball]

Zefir had a feeling something was off, since she said strange things at the start. Kinda like he is not she. He couldn't tell what exactly it is and he didn't focuse on his 6th sense to feel magic. Just for the fact he felt safe around here.

"Not entirely mortal any more?" he repeats with a little concern in his voice. "You became some kind of half god or did a dshinn fullfilled a wish?"

[Earl of Purple]

After Volleyball

"Nah, I'm an angel. Don't be scared, or something like that." A moment later, Mishnehel is gone. In her place is a large thing, half bison with the humped back and the horns, half magpie with black-and-white feathers and wings, half oak tree with thick bark and leaves, and covered with far too many hands and fingers. "I didn't know angels looked like this either, but then I ate a relic and now I do."

[Ironsmith]

[After Volleyball]

Zefir had a feeling something was off, since she said strange things at the start. Kinda like he is not she. He couldn't tell what exactly it is and he didn't focuse on his 6th sense to feel magic. Just for the fact he felt safe around here.

"Not entirely mortal any more?" he repeats with a little concern in his voice. "You became some kind of half god or did a dshinn fullfilled a wish?"

After Volleyball

"Nah, I'm an angel. Don't be scared, or something like that." A moment later, Mishnehel is gone. In her place is a large thing, half bison with the humped back and the horns, half magpie with black-and-white feathers and wings, half oak tree with thick bark and leaves, and covered with far too many hands and fingers. "I didn't know angels looked like this either, but then I ate a relic and now I do."

[After Volleyball]

Vlad visibly jumps when Mishnehel takes on her eldritch form. He wasn't entirely sure what he was expecting, but it probably wasn't that. "Whoa. Okay, yeah. I can see why you might have trouble coping with that."

Miranda shrugs. "Seen worse." She replies nonchalantly. "And besides, no matter what you look like... you're still a person in there, right?"

[Zefir]

[After Volleyball]

Zefir is obviously a bit suprised by her apperence. It is hard to say if he is just suprised by it or in any way disgusted. He still wonders how she can be three halv of different creatures.
"I can just say, this is not how angels looked in my world." Clearly something cultural.
"It would be a hugh advantage if you used that in the game."

[Earl of Purple]

After Volleyball

"I sincerely hope so." But sometimes, Mishnehel wonders. She'll turn to Zefir and roll her eyes. "Oh, yeah, because this wouldn't be cheating at all, would it? Also, I take up a lot of space and I'd maybe step on Miranda by mistake." Or deliberately, if she didn't like Miranda.

[Morty]

[ARC Shuttle]

"Oh, believe me, I don't." Rose shrugs. "Underneath it all, I'm... not as different from my old self as I would like to be. If the need arises, I can still gripe with the best of them." She pops open her Hotbox and produces a pair of coffees. "But, when you really get down to it, my job is social engineering. Manipulating people's thoughts and feelings to serve whatever ends. If I can't give my colleagues much of a reason to care if I just disappear one day, I don't get to claim I didn't know how to do that; it'd be my fault just from sheer lack of effort." She smiles and holds one of the coffees out to Fayyaad. "So, here I am. Making the effort. And from what you tell me, it's working."

"You make it sound like simply making friends is social engineering," Fayyaad points out, as he accepts the coffee. "Maybe it is, to a degree. We all put on masks we want to show to people, one way or the other. Though one of the things I like about the Nexus is that... I don't need to wear a mask often. Like I did back home."

[Ironsmith]

[After Volleyball]

Zefir is obviously a bit suprised by her apperence. It is hard to say if he is just suprised by it or in any way disgusted. He still wonders how she can be three halv of different creatures.
"I can just say, this is not how angels looked in my world." Clearly something cultural.
"It would be a hugh advantage if you used that in the game."

After Volleyball

"I sincerely hope so." But sometimes, Mishnehel wonders. She'll turn to Zefir and roll her eyes. "Oh, yeah, because this wouldn't be cheating at all, would it? Also, I take up a lot of space and I'd maybe step on Miranda by mistake." Or deliberately, if she didn't like Miranda.

[After Volleyball]

"Was gonna say... yeah, that would've been a huge advantage, which is a good reason not to use it." Vlad chuckles. "It's just a little back-and-forth between friends; hardly the ideal time to go all-out."

Miranda considers reaching out to Mishnehel, in a very literal sense, partly out of curiosity to see what this amalgam of textures felt like, but mostly to reassure the melancholy-sounding angel. Of course, last time she did that, it came off as a little rude, so she decides against it this time in favor of a more developed response:

"You want to go grab a drink?"

[ARC Shuttle]

"You make it sound like simply making friends is social engineering," Fayyaad points out, as he accepts the coffee. "Maybe it is, to a degree. We all put on masks we want to show to people, one way or the other. Though one of the things I like about the Nexus is that... I don't need to wear a mask often. Like I did back home."

[ARC Shuttle]

"There's less distinction than you think." Rose gives a tight-lipped little smile. "What we're doing now... when you really get down to it, it's a dance of hormones and instincts. Once you know all the steps, it's..." She fidgets a little, her fingers rapping against the sides of her cup. "...There's not much difference between wearing a mask and choosing the outcome you want. If you really want to try your hand at being honest, you have to forget a thing or two. Or walk straight into an encounter with someone who dances differently." That smile of hers turns a little warmer as she sips from her cup, letting the implications sink in.

[Rebonack]

[Hamburgler]

Tristan eyes the flask of fizzy pink fluid.

It has no label.

He's got absolutely no idea what it is.

If her were hazarding a guess he would say some sort of... pink sparkling wine?

Maybe?

"You," he says, pointing at the bar tender. "Don't know what that stuff is? There's nothing written on it? Or about it? Or... anything?"

After a few moments he holds out a hand toward the bottle. "Here. Let me have that. I'm going to run an experiment."

For science.

[bc56]

Hamburgler
Selekhael hands it over. "Maybe someone left it in the portable bar sometime? It was sitting next to the rum. I, uh, miiight have accidentally put it in her drink." "It looksh pretty, can I have shome?" Jade should almost definitely not have any.

[Morty]

[ARC Shuttle]

"There's less distinction than you think." Rose gives a tight-lipped little smile. "What we're doing now... when you really get down to it, it's a dance of hormones and instincts. Once you know all the steps, it's..." She fidgets a little, her fingers rapping against the sides of her cup. "...There's not much difference between wearing a mask and choosing the outcome you want. If you really want to try your hand at being honest, you have to forget a thing or two. Or walk straight into an encounter with someone who dances differently." That smile of hers turns a little warmer as she sips from her cup, letting the implications sink in.

"I believe I have done that once or twice," Fayyaad says glibly. Whatever he's thinking, he's not betraying it... proving Rose's point in a way. "Though at least here, the mask is only for myself. The reputation of the Zafar family no longer rides on what face I wear."

[Zefir]

[After Volleyball]

"Hey, that was a joke." Zefir replies. "After all WE would have had a huge disadvantage."

Zefir has no need to get in touch with her. He didn't have a liking to overnatural creatures. On top he doesn't know if she can feel things while touching. Some angels can immediatly feel if they are evil or not.

"Yeah, grabbing a drink would be a nice idea."

[Morty]

[Hamburgler]

"Speaking as a... okay, maybe not 'medical professional' but trained medic, experimenting with unidentified liquids is something they tell us pretty early not to do," Olvisin points out. "What do you plan to do, exactly?"

[Rebonack]

[Hamburgler]

"No," is the reply to Jade. And to Olivsin? "There are some precautions that can be taken if you're thinking something is possibly toxic. Or possibly magical counts, too."

Tristan holds out one arm and drips a single drop of the fizzy pink fluid on the back of his hand, causing a few hairs to immediately change a nice cheerful pink color.

Thankfully he had enough sense not to drink the stuff.

Who knows what would have happened?

Well.

We probably know.

Something involving pinkness and foxes.

"Yeeep this is definitely our culprit," Tristan concludes. "Should probably go in a magical hazard bin or something."

He glances around on the off chance that whatever hooligan planted this thing might suddenly appear.

"Was there anyone else around the drink cart when you were setting up, miss? This has got to be some kind of weird prank."

How would they find a prankster, though?

[Earl of Purple]

After Volleyball

"Sure! You buying, right? I don't have a lot of cash." Mishnehel starts to walk off before transforming back into her half-elf shape. She'd have been happy to let Miranda stroke her fur, feathers or leaves, since unlike Geneva she didn't start off this way and she understands a humanoid's inherent reaction to something fluffy.

[bc56]

Hamburgler
"I don't remember seeing anyone. But there might have been?" It's at this point the three of them may suddenly become aware of someone stifling a lot of laughter beneath a barrel that's been set up for tropical, slightly piratey decoration near the bar.
"Oh ha ha ha he hee. If only he'd drank it!" The barrel begins scuttling away on little wooden legs. It's not very fast or very good at steering and bumps into a few objects as it goes.

[Ironsmith]

[ARC Shuttle]

"I believe I have done that once or twice," Fayyaad says glibly. Whatever he's thinking, he's not betraying it... proving Rose's point in a way. "Though at least here, the mask is only for myself. The reputation of the Zafar family no longer rides on what face I wear."

[ARC Shuttle]

"Good news for you, I'm sure." Rose nurses the coffee cup between her hands, rolling it around plaintively. "...Tell me about them." She says finally. "Nothing that's being said will leave this room, and it certainly sounds like they are- or at least were- a heavy influence on you. Seems as good a time as any to let out your honest thoughts on them."

[After Volleyball]

"Hey, that was a joke." Zefir replies. "After all WE would have had a huge disadvantage."

Zefir has no need to get in touch with her. He didn't have a liking to overnatural creatures. On top he doesn't know if she can feel things while touching. Some angels can immediatly feel if they are evil or not.

"Yeah, grabbing a drink would be a nice idea."

After Volleyball

"Sure! You buying, right? I don't have a lot of cash." Mishnehel starts to walk off before transforming back into her half-elf shape. She'd have been happy to let Miranda stroke her fur, feathers or leaves, since unlike Geneva she didn't start off this way and she understands a humanoid's inherent reaction to something fluffy.

[After Volleyball => Bar]

Miranda clicks open her hotbox and withdraws a couple of coins, smiling. "Of course. Anything for a friend, right?" She leads Mishnehel to the bar and orders a root beer for herself; like Klaus, she's not fond of getting drunk in public, albeit for completely different reasons.

Vlad will take up a similar spot next to Zefir and order some vodka. He clearly does not share his ex-boss's views on inebriation.

[Morty]

[ARC Shuttle]

"My family is powerful," Fayyaad says slowly. It seems he's willing to trust Rose on this one. He hasn't spoken much about it before in the Nexus. Not even to Electra, whom he likely trusts more than anyone else and who trusted him with her own troubles. "One of the most notable in the city. When the empire came, it all obviously changed, but even now our name carries weight. Especially among those who resent our oppressors. There are many tieflings among us, too. My father wasn't one, but my mother certainly is, so her marrying into the family was a stroke of good fortune." He sighs. "It was also believed to be good fortune when I was born a tiefling as well. It's a sign of blessing from our goddess. And it came with appropriate expectations."

[Hamburgler]

Olvisin reacts surprisingly quickly and tries to grab the barrel, then lift it up if she can.

[Ironsmith]

[ARC Shuttle]

Rose nods slowly, drinking it in at roughly the same pace as her coffee. Fayyaad was going through this slowly; starting by re-hashing what he'd told her at the bar, and working his way up from there. She could hardly blame him for being cautious about it, though. Even with as much more as he was already sharing, Rose got the impression he'd need a little prompting to really spill his guts here. "...Marked from birth as special, huh?" She probes. "I bet your siblings were delighted about that."

[Rebonack]

[Hamburgler]

Tristan is about to pounce.

He's pretty good at pouncing, honestly.

Comes from the part of him that's Leona.

But when he sees Olivsin grabbing the barrel he quickly decides that it would be a better plan to try heading off whatever might come skittering out from UNDER the barrel.

To that end the fizzy pink bottle is left on the counter as he swiftly moves around in front of the skittering decor and prepares himself to nab whatever obnoxious little imp has decided to cause trouble for everyone.

Well.

Not everyone.

Trouble for Jade. And anyone Jade has stolen food from. And him, too, since he should be elsewhere studying a giant hermit crab at the moment.

It was a very possibly once in a life time opportunity! Stupid pranks.

[Zefir]

[After Volleyball => Bar]

Miranda clicks open her hotbox and withdraws a couple of coins, smiling. "Of course. Anything for a friend, right?" She leads Mishnehel to the bar and orders a root beer for herself; like Klaus, she's not fond of getting drunk in public, albeit for completely different reasons.

Vlad will take up a similar spot next to Zefir and order some vodka. He clearly does not share his ex-boss's views on inebriation.

[After Volleyball => Bar]

Zefir looks much confused about the box. Since he can't sense magic around it it should be a technological thing. Kinda interessting.
"What is that?" he says and points at the hotbox.
He will order a whisky for himself, but he will likly drink it rather slow. He also doesn't want to get drunk, but he's not the beer type.

[Earl of Purple]

Bar

Mishnehel orders dark rum, since she's not sure she actually can get drunk. She's also interested in the box, so she'll lean against the bar and have a sip of her rum. "Are we friends? We've just met, but I'd like to get to know you better anyway."

[bc56]

Hamburgler
Left unattended, the bottle of pink stuff floats up into the air and pours a little of itself into Tristan's drink.
I'm sure that's nothing to be worried about.

Meanwhile, Olvisin grabs the barrel. It struggles futilely against her grip for a moment, before popping free from whatever is underneath it.
It's not a trickster imp.
It's a trickster crab. An oversized, spiky king crab, complete with a little gold crown and burgundy robes. It looks more than a little silly. It skitters away, rapidly veering away from Tristan and preparing to lead him on a merry chase of its own. It's much faster than it was with a barrel on top of it.

[Rebonack]

[Hamburgler]

Given that Tristan's attention is very much on the barrel he isn't paying a great deal of attention to what's going on behind him.

Surely Selekhael will save the day and warn him that his drink has been spiked.

...right?

So!

Crab.

Tristan is momentarily dumbfounded.

Should he be, though? The Nexus IS pretty weird. And pun-crabs fall well within the confines of Nexus nonsense. Even if king crabs are carciniforms and not TRUE crabs. In truth, other crabs don't recognize the sovereign authority of king crabs.

"Get back here you hooligan!" Tristan yells as he takes off after the crab.

This would be the perfect opportunity for Jade to eat Tristan's burger while he's otherwise occupied.

[Morty]

[Hamburgler]

Olvisin considers giving chase after the crab that has caused so much trouble. But she spent a while chasing Jade, so she'll let Tristan handle this one. Instead she'll keep an eye on Jade and make sure she doesn't get into more trouble.

[ARC Shuttle]

Fayyaad sighs.

"Weren't they just. My brother and my sister aren't tieflings. The odds weren't in their favor. A human and a tiefling produce a tiefling child roughly half of the time. They were both born before my conflicts with my parents truly began, but... there was always the sense that they did a better job of being their children despite not being blessed as I was."

[bc56]

Hamburgler
Unfortunately, the barrel had everyone distracted, even Selekhael. So nobody's noticed the drink-spiking.
Olvisin turns back in time to see Jade trying to surreptitiously grab Tristan's unattended burger, and also the bottle of pink stuff which she was told she shouldn't have. Those are both problems, one probably significantly worse than the other.
And also meanwhile, the crab shouts, "No! and scuttles into the surf. "Get him, my minions!" A bunch of actual crabs dig their way out of the sands and swarm towards Tristan.
Given his superhuman strength and durability, they probably can't be much more than a nuisance, but they're trying.

[Rebonack]

[Hamburglar]

To make a long story short, no.

Tristan doesn't catch the king crab. With it scuttling off into the surf it doesn't take long for it to move beyond his reach.

Hydra or Scylla might have been able to chase the crab down but Tristan sure couldn't.

He returns to the bar defeated, a crab dangling from the leg of his shorts by its claw.

Hopefully, at least, his burger is still intact.

"Well at least the pest is gone," he sighs. "No idea what that thing's deal was."

[Ironsmith]

[After Volleyball => Bar]

Zefir looks much confused about the box. Since he can't sense magic around it it should be a technological thing. Kinda interessting.
"What is that?" he says and points at the hotbox.
He will order a whisky for himself, but he will likly drink it rather slow. He also doesn't want to get drunk, but he's not the beer type.

Bar

Mishnehel orders dark rum, since she's not sure she actually can get drunk. She's also interested in the box, so she'll lean against the bar and have a sip of her rum. "Are we friends? We've just met, but I'd like to get to know you better anyway."

[Bar]

"You helped me give Vlad the most thorough spanking he's had since he was a kid. As far as I'm concerned, we're bosom buddies now." Miranda jokes, giving Mishnehel a playful nudge.

"Hey, come on, that's not entirely fair." Vlad mumbles.

"Oh? What's your excuse for that one?"

"I was distracted. By your, ah..."

Miranda gives him a glare, indicating he'd better choose his next words carefully.

"...Team spirit." He concludes. "It was a little mesmerizing, honestly, watching you two work together."

Miranda smirks. "...Passable save."

"Not even. You gals seriously did good."

She rolls her eyes playfully, turning to Zefir when he asks about her Hotbox. "What, this? It's just gadget from home. Think of it as a high-tech purse/printer combo."

[ARC Shuttle]

Fayyaad sighs.

"Weren't they just. My brother and my sister aren't tieflings. The odds weren't in their favor. A human and a tiefling produce a tiefling child roughly half of the time. They were both born before my conflicts with my parents truly began, but... there was always the sense that they did a better job of being their children despite not being blessed as I was."

[ARC Shuttle]

Rose visibly winces at that part. "A lot put on your shoulders, but they did a better job carrying it..." She shakes her head sadly and takes a sip of coffee. "...That's rough. How did your parents respond to that? Surely they weren't just silent all those years..."

[Zefir]

[Bar]

Zefir is a bit confused about the spanking part. It seemed like an equal match didn't it? Whatever let's focus on the things at hand.

"Purse/printer combo? Does that mean you could make stuff out of it?" he asks. "Like you could have made the drinks or is it limited to something like the glass."

[Morty]

[ARC Shuttle]

"Differently at different times and occasions." Fayyaad sighs again, slumping a little. "They didn't often confront me... just make it apparent they expect better. They did approve of my eager pursuit of pyromancy. Which is also an innate gift, that more frequently appears in tieflings. They tolerated my study of dance because of that, since it helped me channel it."

[Hamburglar]

"What the- you leave that alone!" Olvisin yells when she sees Jade take the pink vial. This can go very poorly. "You've seen what this stuff did already!" She'll try to reach out and take the vial from her, but this might not work too well.

[bc56]

Hamburgler
"But it looksh sho pretty! Don't you want shome? Jade both tries to keep the bottle away from Olvisin and offer her some, which means she has little success with either endeavor, and in fact spills a little, turning a patch of sand bright pink. Olvisin should probably not drink any of that stuff, but it's easily within her reach.