One Hell of a Summer Party

[Zefir]

[Into the Ballroom]

"I see." the man says. Sure his phrase seemed to be wrong as they don't see themself in that term.
"Well, I didn't want to be impolite. To be true I didn't saw your kind befor so I was just assuming and you two sound very close."

[Recaiden]

[Interview]

Shouldn't she have warned people about that before then? They'll have to try to find someone who made a fiendish pact at this party, that would make a great part of the article.
The pixie buzzes along after Sekhmet.
How do you feel about manipulating your followers like that? Shouldn't you let them down?"

[Grand Ballroom]

"Wouldn't it be better as a concert title?" Anchor muses.
Or even better, a song. Then they could perform In The Flesh in the flesh.

"Ah, Sekhmet goes to my church, so I thought I would come support her spirit of goodwill and cooperation."
"Plus, it's a party. Meet people, make things more fun, check up on a few demons..."

Anchor's shadow slides back up to her with a significant tilt of the head, but she brushes it off. In protest, it slinks over to stand by Euphoria instead.

[bc56]

Assassin Chase
If Miranda got that dress around here, it should fit perfectly as her shape changes.
Not again? Her body is primed to accept such an enchantment, thanks to her recent use of the disguise. The discomfort shouldn't last more than a few moments. After all, doesn't it feel good to look sexy?
The succubus considers the offer, but not for long. "Yes, of course I'd share a bath with a beautiful lady such as yourself."
No distrust in her voice, but rather a slight disappointment. The kind that seems to indicate, "this isn't what I wanted, but I'll settle." Odd. She attempts to hold hands with Miranda as they walk towards the pools.

Interview
"It's, uh, fine. I doubt that was a serious assassination attempt. There's very little down here that could, uh, actually hurt me. More likely, uh, they wanted to sabotage the interview," Sekhmet reassures Faith. But that's why they're moving, so they aren't so easily in the line of fire again. "If you mean letting them be, uh, attracted to me... I'm a married woman with two kids, I, uh, don't need or want, uh, that sort of admiration. But, uh, that doesn't really, uh, stop them. I believe they, uh, consider me an 'unattainable prize' because of it."

[Shadowcaller]

Interview

Well, that just raised even more questions!

"So are you saying that one of your followers wanted to attempt to sabotage this interview? Why?" And how? Just what had they done to Sekhmet's advisor?

Faith looks in the direction of where the assassin and Miranda had run off in. Shouldn't they have someone check on her? She had just saved her boss from sabotage after all.

[Ironsmith]

[Grand Ballroom]

At the mention of a concert, Marianne shuffles a little awkwardly. "Ah. Well, yeah, it would work for that... but we're not planning on doing any more concerts for a while. At least not as their own thing. We still play events... weddings, birthdays (eighteen and up), parties like this one but not this one, that kind of thing." She shrugs. "Maybe we could use it in an advertisement. It does make a pretty decent tagline."

Euphoria does a brief double take as the shadow finally does something noticeable. That's... peculiar. Anchor didn't seem to bothered, though, so it's not exactly alarming. She gives the shadow a hesitant little wave, not entirely certain what to make of a disembodied entity like that.

"...Hang on, could you back up a moment?" Marianne makes a re-winding motion with her fingers. "You say Sekhmet goes to your church? How exactly does that work?"

"...Asked the angel, within earshot of a succubus friend." Euphoria points out.

"...Well, yeah. But we at least met as demons and I can't take you to Elysium with me..."

Euphoria settles into a deep frown and says nothing.

[Assassin Chase]

She was already attractive before. She doesn't really need to go all the way up to sexy to feel good about herself, amd furthermore...

Miranda blinks blearily as the succubus starts flirting with her more openly. That's to be expected; succubi are just like that. What she finds odd is that she appreciated it at first. That... has to be the venom talking. Even when she had a succubus living in her head, she wasn't overly fond of this kind of talk.

And now they're holding hands.

...A little forward, but at least she knows the succubus isn't breaking away from her.

"...Right. Let's go." Miranda prompts, starting in that direction.

Okay. So she just has to keep the succubus interested in her long enough to either detain her for a proper interrogation or wheedle out the important information; what she was doing, why she did it, that kind of thing.

How hard can that be? Rose does this sort of thing all the time.

[bc56]

Assassin Chase
Why wouldn't she appreciate it? It's a compliment, isn't it?
A spade-tipped tail coils itself around Miranda's waist and the succubus leans warmly against her, bluish skin pressing against the folds of Miranda's dress.
Miranda should reciprocate the gesture. What's that? She doesn't have a tail? That can change quickly enough. She should probably have horns too, to complete the look. She just needs to imagine them onto herself.
The assassin's wearing a black two-piece swimsuit that shows a lot of skin. When did she have time to change?
She doesn't need time to change, and neither does Miranda. A little push with her power is all it would take.
"I'm glad to have someone to share the night with," the assassin continues, oblivious to any internal conflict Miranda might be experiencing.

[Recaiden]

[Interview]

"Then don't you think you should do something to shut down these 'admirers'?"
The pixie also looks in the direction the attacker went. She probably has a more interesting story than the Queen herself, actually. But how to get to talk to her?

[Grand Ballroom]

Oh, trouble with the band, though Anchor doesn't know the whole tragic story.
"Ah, okay. I'll remember you when I have an event to organize, then."

The shadow twists and gives Euphoria a big cheery wave in return. How nice that she noticed!

"Okay, backing up, well, it works about the same as for anyone. You can take the train up to Meadowgreen, then walk down the road past the Inn, and then you can't miss it."
"It did take a little special arrangement because of the half-fiend thing, but only a little." Anchor says, with a half shrug.

"Sekhmet means well; she's a very true person." She looks between Euphoria and 'Mania'.

"We've never had an active succubus or angel interested in joining. I mean, they'd probably be able to work something out, though."

[Ironsmith]

Assassin Chase
Why wouldn't she appreciate it? It's a compliment, isn't it?
A spade-tipped tail coils itself around Miranda's waist and the succubus leans warmly against her, bluish skin pressing against the folds of Miranda's dress.
Miranda should reciprocate the gesture. What's that? She doesn't have a tail? That can change quickly enough. She should probably have horns too, to complete the look. She just needs to imagine them onto herself.
The assassin's wearing a black two-piece swimsuit that shows a lot of skin. When did she have time to change?
She doesn't need time to change, and neither does Miranda. A little push with her power is all it would take.
"I'm glad to have someone to share the night with," the assassin continues, oblivious to any internal conflict Miranda might be experiencing.

[Assassin Chase]

Miranda doesn't like where this is going. She's getting a sort of impulse to be more succubus-y... completely against her will. Last time that happened, it was because someone was trying to hijack her body entirely, and she partially succeeded. Repeating the experience so soon is... rather unpleasant. She's not sure how much using the whole form-follows-thought thing will affect her... she might be able to maintain control even like that, but it's a risk.

...She's probably safest in a form she's familiar with. Her succubus disguise doesn't feel entirely foreign, and she was able to maintain coherence of thought in it easily. If that's enough to satisfy her venom-induced urgings, she can focus on gathering information.

Her body shifts, her skin taking on a reddish hue as a counterpart to the other succubus's blue. Her dress shifts into a simple, one piece bathing suit, changing from off-white to black in the process. The back opens up to give her wings room to stretch, and a little cloth sleeve lets her tail flick out without breaking the coherence of the outfit.

There. That should do for now.

"...Well, I am here to mingle." She replies, massaging her throat as if her vocal cords changing so rapidly had caused her physical pain. She looks down at the tail wrapped around her leg and then back up at the succubus, a disapproving frown working its way onto her face. "Slow down there, champ. We're not even up to dinner and a movie yet..." She emphatically presses her hand against her forehead, letting out a groggy-sounding moan. Even if she can shake off the venom, she wants her detainee to be unaware of the fact.

[Grand Ballroom]

Oh, trouble with the band, though Anchor doesn't know the whole tragic story.
"Ah, okay. I'll remember you when I have an event to organize, then."

The shadow twists and gives Euphoria a big cheery wave in return. How nice that she noticed!

"Okay, backing up, well, it works about the same as for anyone. You can take the train up to Meadowgreen, then walk down the road past the Inn, and then you can't miss it."
"It did take a little special arrangement because of the half-fiend thing, but only a little." Anchor says, with a half shrug.

"Sekhmet means well; she's a very true person." She looks between Euphoria and 'Mania'.

"We've never had an active succubus or angel interested in joining. I mean, they'd probably be able to work something out, though."

[Grand Ballroom]

"That is kind of you, but-" Euphoria begins.

"Actually, we should check that out." Marianne smiles at Anchor. "I mean, if you're open-minded enough to have a demon queen among your congregation..."

Euphoria's frown breaks into an outright scowl. "Mania, do I need to remind you that anti-demonists tried to kill us not so long ago?" She snaps, the punch glass in her hand splintering under the force of her clenched hand. "Where would that sentiment be stronger than in a church? That's a disaster waiting to happen, and since three of us can't afford to die again I'm not going to let you drag us into it!"

"...Euy..."

"Don't 'Euy' me! The answer is no, do you understand?"

Marianne's shoulders sag as she stares at Euphoria sadly, before slowly turning back to Anchor. "...I'll still go." She says finally. "I want to see this place for myself."

"...Fine." Euphoria grumbles, cleaning herself off with a napkin. "You do that. And be sure to tell us all how wonderul it is when you get back." She turns and storms away, heels clacking against the floor.

Marianne gives Anchor an apologetic smile. "Sorry about that. Things have been... tense lately."

[bc56]

Interview
"Uh, I've tried. It's not easy to convince a demon whose primary traits are, uh, lust and vanity, uh, not to be attracted to someone." Sekhmet's response has a suffering tone to it. She doesn't want to deal with succubi and incubi hitting on her. "Why? I don't know yet, but, uh, Miranda will find out. I trust her to handle this. How? My, uh, best guess would be that that dart was, uh, treated with a drug that could affect my, uh, unusual biology." Hopefully that answers the questions. "I'm, uh, moving our discussion to a more private room so that, uh, you will not be in the line of fire."
The private room in question turns out to be Sekhmet's throne room. Sekhmet ascends the raised dais where the throne is, but doesn't take a seat. The throne itself is a simple affair: a carved wooden chair with some gilt trim and purple cushions, designed for someone with wings and a tail to sit on.

Assassin Chase
Magic is a hell of a drug. The feeling of reality bending to conform to Miranda's will is almost intoxicating.
"Is that for me? Damn, you clean up nicely," her companion comments, but she does release Miranda's leg.
Something about her assessment of Miranda seems to have changed. She seems to feel threatened by Miranda's complete transformation.
Don't let up. Show her that you're the succubus in control of this situation.
And there are the baths, just ahead. Miranda and the assassin whose name is still unknown are hardly the only succubi here. And there are incubi too if Miranda prefers...

[Ironsmith]

[Assassin Chase]

Oooh that's not good. She hadn't expected that much of a dopamine rush to come from transforming like that. Staying like this for too long runs a much greater risk of loss of control than she thought.

If she's in danger of that kind of effect that imminently, she'll have to move up the timetable a bit. Fortunately, in doing that, her plan and the venom's impulses align almost perfectly.

Maybe too perfectly.

"Actually... we need to make a bit of a detour." Miranda adds, pulling her companion along by the hand down another hallway. She needs to get them out of sight.

At which point she'll change her stance rapidly, intending to pin the assassin against the wall, hands behind her back.

"Do you have any idea how much trouble you're in?"

[Recaiden]

[Interview]

The pixie is quiet for a little while, letting the others get in some questions. Then, once they're in the throne room, she speaks up again-
"Why keep your realm connected to the Nexus now that your mother isn't in power?"
Then, as they reach the dais, she dives down and takes a seat on the throne. She has wings and a tail, after all.

[Grand Ballroom]

Anchor starts smiling at Mania's response, but then-
Well-
It goes away pretty quickly.

Her shadow jumps back when Euphoria breaks the punch glass, and turns away.

"...because people are trying to kill you? Good reason to be tense."
"I'm sorry too. I mean, first I interrupted her, and then I set all those worries off. Is there anything I could do to make it up to her? Later, of course, I won't drag this argument on right now."

Her shadow crosses its arms as if to say "isn't it obvious what you should do?"

"We will be glad for you to come-" Anchor tells Marianne a time to be at the church. "-and I promise this isn't some sort of anti-demon plot." she offers, a small smile returning to her lips.

[Shadowcaller]

Interview
"Uh, I've tried. It's not easy to convince a demon whose primary traits are, uh, lust and vanity, uh, not to be attracted to someone." Sekhmet's response has a suffering tone to it. She doesn't want to deal with succubi and incubi hitting on her. "Why? I don't know yet, but, uh, Miranda will find out. I trust her to handle this. How? My, uh, best guess would be that that dart was, uh, treated with a drug that could affect my, uh, unusual biology." Hopefully that answers the questions. "I'm, uh, moving our discussion to a more private room so that, uh, you will not be in the line of fire."
The private room in question turns out to be Sekhmet's throne room. Sekhmet ascends the raised dais where the throne is, but doesn't take a seat. The throne itself is a simple affair: a carved wooden chair with some gilt trim and purple cushions, designed for someone with wings and a tail to sit on.

Interview

Faith tags along, surprised by how casual Sekhmet acted in the face of people trying to inject her with mysterious substances for even more mysterious ends.

"So... is this a saboteur a part of your court? Is sabotages something which happens to you regularly?"

[bc56]

Interview
"Uh, please get down from there." Sekhmet won't answer the pixie reporter's question until she does. "On occasion. I, uh, suspect the public nature of tonight's event, uh, inspired the saboteur. But they should not trouble us again in here." Hopefully Miranda is all right.

Assassin Chase
"And you told me to slow down," The assassin comments as Miranda leads her off into a side hallway.
Moments later when she gets slammed against the wall, she understands. "What!? No!" She realizes she's been had. "Damn, I knew this was too good to be true!"
The electric feeling of the transformation has already subsided. It's the act of using magic that triggers it. Do all succubi feel that way when using their powers?
"Please, I didn't do anything!" Big, dark, weepy eyes stare up at Miranda.
A transparent attempt to foster pity. Easily ignored. Is this really the best she can do?

[Shadowcaller]

Interview

Faith taps her pen against her notebook. "On occasion? Please elaborate. Who was trying to sabotage you, how and why?" Since that could give her a clue what the motives for this person was.

[Ironsmith]

[Grand Ballroom]

Anchor starts smiling at Mania's response, but then-
Well-
It goes away pretty quickly.

Her shadow jumps back when Euphoria breaks the punch glass, and turns away.

"...because people are trying to kill you? Good reason to be tense."
"I'm sorry too. I mean, first I interrupted her, and then I set all those worries off. Is there anything I could do to make it up to her? Later, of course, I won't drag this argument on right now."

Her shadow crosses its arms as if to say "isn't it obvious what you should do?"

"We will be glad for you to come-" Anchor tells Marianne a time to be at the church. "-and I promise this isn't some sort of anti-demon plot." she offers, a small smile returning to her lips.

[Grand Ballroom]

"Less 'trying' and more 'tried'. We've only had the one attack but everybody got hurt from it." Marianne explains. "A couple of demon-haters snuck into our concert and made attempts on our lives. One of them even succeeded." She brushes her fingers up against the spot on her sternum where Ilpholin had stabbed her. "Fortunately, one of the people we hired for security was a psychopomp, and she helped everything turn out okay...ish. I got to go to a better place thks second time around, but the other three..."

"...It doesn't seem quite fair. I've been trying to get them set up to join me in Elysium, so we can all enjoy paradise together, but... they don't seem to see it that way. They look at me like I'm a whole other person, like I don't remember what demonhood is like. And at whenever I try to nudge them towards Elysium by telling them what it's like, they take it as bragging. 'Look what I have that you don't.' They don't really take it well."

"But, that aside..." Marianne nods toward Euphoria. "Now is actually the best time to make it up to her. Demons tend to hold onto things that aggravate them, and the older they are, the worse a habit it is. Euy's over half a millenium. The last thing you want is for her to stew."

Assassin Chase
"And you told me to slow down," The assassin comments as Miranda leads her off into a side hallway.
Moments later when she gets slammed against the wall, she understands. "What!? No!" She realizes she's been had. "Damn, I knew this was too good to be true!"
The electric feeling of the transformation has already subsided. It's the act of using magic that triggers it. Do all succubi feel that way when using their powers?
"Please, I didn't do anything!" Big, dark, weepy eyes stare up at Miranda.
A transparent attempt to foster pity. Easily ignored. Is this really the best she can do?

[Assassin Chase]

"Bull." Miranda grunts, quickly patting down the assassin im search of her blowdart gun. "You made a shot at the queen, with a potentially deadly weapon that made use of a mind-altering substance. Where I come from, we call that Aggravated Assault. If you'd hit someone less disciplined and gone on to [curtain] with them, it would've violated any and all notions of consent and you'd be guilty of even nastier stuff. If you'd hit someone with too large a dose, you could have killed them, and with so many people there much smaller than her highess, you almost certainly would have. Which also puts you on the hook for Reckless Endangerment. And then you actually did hit someone; that's Forceful Application of a Controlled Substance. And in case it didn't sink in the first time, you shot at the queen, in a highly visible setting, with the whole of Inside watching."

Miranda gives the succubus a little shake by her arms, attempting to drive home the message. "That's not funny, that's not cute, you could have hurt someone!" She snaps. "You're damned lucky you only hit me or else you would've kicked off a diplomatic incident, at a minimum! And even now, all I have to do is press charges and your life is ruined." She turns the succubus around and takes hold of her hands. "Look at me. Do you understand what I'm saying to you? Do you get why this is such a big deal?"

[bc56]

Assassin Chase
The assassin doesn't seem particularly concerned with everything Miranda just said.
Nor does a patdown locate her weapon.
Check her chest. The cleavage pocket is an old succubus parlor trick, perfect for fooling less thorough investigators.
But before any checking can occur, something else does.
The captured assassin proves that succubus horns aren't just for show with a ferocious headbutt towards Miranda's face. If it connects, she'll be using the diversion (and injury) to escape Miranda's grip and start running.

[Morty]

[Interview]

Sekhmet and the reporters will see Sophie approach and step in to join the conversation as though she had left moments ago after participating in it for a long time. There's not a trace of hesitation of awkwardness in the way she does it. She exudes the sense that she has every reason to be there.

"I'm glad the situation is well in hand. Miranda is doing a good job." Or hopefully she is. But if she's not, the reporters don't need to know it. "The party is going quite well, all things considered."

[Ironsmith]

Assassin Chase
The assassin doesn't seem particularly concerned with everything Miranda just said.
Nor does a patdown locate her weapon.
Check her chest. The cleavage pocket is an old succubus parlor trick, perfect for fooling less thorough investigators.
But before any checking can occur, something else does.
The captured assassin proves that succubus horns aren't just for show with a ferocious headbutt towards Miranda's face. If it connects, she'll be using the diversion (and injury) to escape Miranda's grip and start running.

[Assassin Chase]

whunk!

"Agh! Son of a-" Miranda swears, one hand over her injured eye as blood trickles down from her nose. Her vision is still blurry and she's in a lot of pain, but she can see which way her captive fled. It's also very clear that she's probably going to need backup on this one.

"Fine. Make it harder on yourself." Miranda grumbles, starting after her. Your highness. I'm going to need to borrow some of your guards. I caught up with the lady who tried to dart you, but she's a little slippery. She's heading toward- Miranda quickly rattles of their location.

With any luck, she'll at least get the succubus away from the party, and keep her away. It's not ideal, but it's better than letting her take a second shot.

With a little more luck, Miranda will be able to suppress the urge to strangle her when she catches up.

[bc56]

Assassin Chase
Our face, our beautiful face! Fortunately fixing it is another easy application of magic.
Sekhmet receives Miranda's messages. Got it. Uh, you're all right, right? You, uh, sound a bit succubus-ish.
Meanwhile several other psychic voices are joining in to the conversation.
"Orders, Ma'am?"
"Orders, Ma'am?"
"Orders, Ma'am?"
The guards ask.
They don't have anything a succubus would want, except unflinching obedience.

[Earl of Purple]

Mingling

Prumathe is here, a young man with dark skin, green eyes and dark hair, with the powerful build of a stonemason. He's wearing a pair of jeans and a navy blue shirt, and looks a little awkward. He's accompanied by a knee-high marble statue of an idealised man holding a tray over its head, a drink resting on the tray.

Arrivals

First there's a pale-skinned woman with short black hair and grey eyes, a pair of auk wings emerging from her back with another pair of eyes in the middle of the joint. She's wearing a grey dress and hiking boots, which looks a little odd. She's going to look around and find some drinks to socialise.

Second is another woman, this one with ashy skin and a head completely shaved- no hair or eyebrows. Her eyes are dark, and she's wearing a white halter top and a pair of thick orange and reflective yellow fire-fighter's trousers. She's going to try and find the dance floor- and avoid any areas with open flames.

[Ironsmith]

Assassin Chase
Our face, our beautiful face! Fortunately fixing it is another easy application of magic.
Sekhmet receives Miranda's messages. Got it. Uh, you're all right, right? You, uh, sound a bit succubus-ish.
Meanwhile several other psychic voices are joining in to the conversation.
"Orders, Ma'am?"
"Orders, Ma'am?"
"Orders, Ma'am?"
The guards ask.
They don't have anything a succubus would want, except unflinching obedience.

[Assassin Chase]

Don't knock unflinching obedience. Some succubi find that extremely attractive in a demon.

That's because I am a little succubus-ish. Something to do with that stuff she put on the dart. I'll fill you in later. Miranda offers, letting out an involuntary moan as she fixes her eye. She can see and fighr just fine with a broken nose, so she'll leave that alone for now... using magic is too addicitive to waste on frivolities.

All right, you three. I want you to take up positions *here*, *here* and *here*. We're going to box her in.

A simple, but hopefully effective tactic.

[bc56]

Assassin Chase
That's, uh, what I thought. It, uh, should wear off eventually. I, uh, don't know exactly how long. Depending on the dose, it, uh, could be a few hours to a few days. A few days like this? Could Miranda live through that? Maybe she could see Sekhmet about a cure later, after the current situation has calmed down. Or maybe she could enjoy being beautiful and magical as long as possible.

The guards take up those positions immediately.
Obedience can be attractive, but a complete inability to be attracted is not. The guards are almost tailor-made to deal with lust demons. They might look male and female, but they lack the relevant equipment. How many pieces do you want her in? It sounds needlessly bloody, until you realize that non-embodied succubi can survive almost anything. Miranda might not realize that.

The assassin realizes pretty quickly that she's penned in by guards. Their wicked polearms prevent her escape and force her back towards the center.

[Gold Leaf]

[Into the Ballroom]

Gold's mood seems to have improved now, with his frown being replaced by a menacing (but in no way malicious) jagged jack-o-lantern smile. Even Iron chuckles slightly at his own joke.

"Oh, you've never seen our kind? Then let me tell you just what we are. I'm Gold, of the Periodic Army."

"And I'm Iron, also from the Periodic Army. Not to be confused with a real army."

"We were created a few decades ago to fight a battle that's supposed to happen centuries from now."

"Those predictions were... a little off."

"The fight happened 5 years ago. But we handled it! We showed all those angels trying to kill The Frostbitten."

"It was pretty damn fun, all things considered."

"Anyways, after that, control of the army was handed off to Platinum, admiral of the navy and a real ***** sometimes. Oh, and in case you're wondering why any part of hell would need a navy, the answer is "we don't".

"So, now we kind of just goof off in Carbon's spaceship - or Gold's mansion or Platinum's aircraft carrier, if we feel so inclined."

"You know, Carbon should be here soon. It's not like her to be late. Copper and Sodium might be coming too."

"Hey, you heard of that band Deathkiss? Apparently they're here."

"Who? Oh, right, them. You like that stuff?"

"Eh, I'll listen to anyone long as they got a guitar and a singin' voice."

"Okay, well... Hey, you! Since this is a party, wanna see a party trick? Iron, get ready to do the thing."

"Fine, but only once."

With that, they turn to fully face each other, lean back, and smash their round metal heads into one another with force. This doesn't seem to hurt either of them at all, but what it does do is create the sonorous ring of metal hitting metal, in this case able to be heard at a very far distance out (basically the entire building) whilst not being offensively loud.

"With that, everyone'll know we're here!"

"Which doesn't mean a lot, considering you're one of two people in the region to know who we are."

[Ironsmith]

Assassin Chase
That's, uh, what I thought. It, uh, should wear off eventually. I, uh, don't know exactly how long. Depending on the dose, it, uh, could be a few hours to a few days. A few days like this? Could Miranda live through that? Maybe she could see Sekhmet about a cure later, after the current situation has calmed down. Or maybe she could enjoy being beautiful and magical as long as possible.

The guards take up those positions immediately.
Obedience can be attractive, but a complete inability to be attracted is not. The guards are almost tailor-made to deal with lust demons. They might look male and female, but they lack the relevant equipment. How many pieces do you want her in? It sounds needlessly bloody, until you realize that non-embodied succubi can survive almost anything. Miranda might not realize that.

The assassin realizes pretty quickly that she's penned in by guards. Their wicked polearms prevent her escape and force her back towards the center.

[Assassin Chase]

After the stunt she just pulled, Miranda's very tempted to answer that question with a number greater than one. The watch-the-world-burn attitude she was picking up from this lady was getting on her last nerve, and cutting through all the rest of them to do it.

But... loathe though she is to admit it, the succubus does still have rights. If nothing else, she (probably) doesn't even really have the authority to order a dismemberment, even if the guards seemed to think otherwise. What would Sekhmet think if she heard about that?

Just the one. I want her restrained but unharmed. If she's going to face execution or corporal punishment, that order is going to come from the queen. Understood?

As she approaches the trapped succubus, she wills her outfit to be changed a second time, attempting to change it to a set of tactical gear. Chasing down a criminal in a swimsuit just doesn't seem right. Besides, even if all she accomplishes is making herself look like she's wrapped up in kevlar, that might be enough to convince her quarry to not try to headbutt her again.

The fact that it sends a dopamine rush through her brain has nothing to do with it.

[bc56]

Assassin Chase
The assassin has no place to go, stuck between three rocks and a hard place.
Miranda's clothing shifts again, into the familiar weight and stiffness of kevlar body armor. The magic is limited only by her imagination.
The assassin moves toward Miranda, seeing her as the weak link in this maneuver, but her path is barred by a pair of extended polearms. The third guard grabs her by the shoulders from behind. "Lemme go! Lemme go!" She squirms and protests.
Now that we're out of danger, you should fix that broken nose. It's unseemly.

[Ironsmith]

[Assassin Chase]

A broken nose is nothing that can't wait for her to get to a sleeping pod. Besides, as it is now, the only people she'd need to impress are the guards (who aren't exactly going to care) and the assassin (who could use the reminder that Miranda isn't going to be happy with her). As long as that's the case, there's no point in taking the risk.

"Let's try this again." Miranda growls as she approaches. "Aggravated Assault, Reckless Endangerment, Forceful Application of a Controlled Substance, and now Resisting Arrest. Is there any other way you'd like to screw yourself over tonight?" She reaches forward and tries to search the succubus again, this time following the new instincts presented by the venom and checking the less conventional hiding places.

If she were a little calmer, Miranda might recognize the signs of someone who is frightened, confused, and more than a little desperate to avoid punishment. But what she sees now is someone who has behaved with unabashed malice, attempting to drug the queen for her own entertainment and only interested in preserving herself against the consequences. Both may well be true, but Miranda's broken nose is pointing her toward the latter.

[Zefir]

[Into the Ballroom]

"Kinda strange Story." Arkant admits as he looks over those two guys hitting their heads against each other.

"But you kinda catch my attention. I might get a few questions. It does sound like your kinds ranking is based on the periodic System? What abilities do you bring in other then your connection to your names metal?" he says.

"Don't get me to wrong. I don't wanna get involved in any wars. You migth say I am intressed in such things." Even as he speak de doesn't seem to be overexited. sure he seems to be in his topic but he can keep calm.

[Recaiden]

Interview
"Uh, please get down from there." Sekhmet won't answer the pixie reporter's question until she does. "On occasion. I, uh, suspect the public nature of tonight's event, uh, inspired the saboteur. But they should not trouble us again in here." Hopefully Miranda is all right.

The pixie pouts, but she hops down from the throne before flying back up to question-asking height.

"Queen Sekhmet; you don't seem to lean much on ceremony or formality; is that a deliberate choice on how to run your court?"
"And the question about connecting to the Nexus still stands!"
She waves her tiny recorder for emphasis.

[Grand Ballroom]

"Less 'trying' and more 'tried'. We've only had the one attack but everybody got hurt from it." Marianne explains. "A couple of demon-haters snuck into our concert and made attempts on our lives. One of them even succeeded." She brushes her fingers up against the spot on her sternum where Ilpholin had stabbed her. "Fortunately, one of the people we hired for security was a psychopomp, and she helped everything turn out okay...ish. I got to go to a better place thks second time around, but the other three..."

"...It doesn't seem quite fair. I've been trying to get them set up to join me in Elysium, so we can all enjoy paradise together, but... they don't seem to see it that way. They look at me like I'm a whole other person, like I don't remember what demonhood is like. And at whenever I try to nudge them towards Elysium by telling them what it's like, they take it as bragging. 'Look what I have that you don't.' They don't really take it well."

"But, that aside..." Marianne nods toward Euphoria. "Now is actually the best time to make it up to her. Demons tend to hold onto things that aggravate them, and the older they are, the worse a habit it is. Euy's over half a millenium. The last thing you want is for her to stew."

"Ah. So you were the one who died again."
"I mean, it doesn't seem like it's a fair situation, right? To either- to any of you."
"Elysium probably still seems impossibly far away to them, right?"

Anchor shakes her head and hurries over towards Euphoria, as recommended.
"Hey, I'm not asking you to come anywhere, just, I'm sorry about all that." she begins.

Her shadow stays with Mania, obviously curious about the angel.

[bc56]

Interview
"There's, uh, no organized group responsible for the sabotage. It's, uh, individual actors, whose beliefs about, uh, what sort of person should be on the throne inspire them to do, uh, various things ranging from, uh, mean-spirited pranks to, uh, sabotage and attempted poisoning." Hopefully that provides enough detail to not prompt too much deeper questioning into the saboteur's motives, because Sekhmet doesn't know much more specific.
"I, uh, haven't disconnected from the Nexus because, uh, to put it quite plainly, I have friends and family there, and, uh, I'd rather raise my children in the real world than here. As for, uh, formality, I use it when it, uh, suits me, but I don't really, uh, want all the pomp and circumstance." She wants to be "approachable" to her subjects.


Assassin Chase
"Yeah, sure," The assassin replies skeptically.
Miranda finds the blowpipe and 3 more prepared darts stashed in the succubus pocket.
If she injected herself, her power would grow.
But now that she's apprehended the suspect, what should she do with the prisoner?

[Gold Leaf]

[Into the Ballroom]

Gold thinks for a moment, then turns to properly face the man.

"Alright, let's start with the stuff we all have in common."

Gold taps the side of his head.

"First off, our heads are completely impervious to all forms of damage. You name it, our noggins aren't gonna feel it. Also, we can bite through anything less unbreakable than our heads. Also known as 'everything'."

"As for the unique things, I can create a magnetic force, and have an uncanny aim with a revolver in hand."

"Meanwhile, I'm a crack shot with an assault rifle, and my jokes are comedic gold."

Gold looks up slightly, as if remembering something.

"Now for the other guys... Copper's a tech genius who conducts electricity; Carbon's incredibly agile, has an unbelievable throwing hand, and is certified to drive a spaceship; Sodium can fix up any wounds as quickly as if we'd jumped in lava; Iron's a textbook berserker with incredible strength; Lead brings the firepower to disable a car and the skill to put it back together; Nickel has magnetism and perfect sniper aim, and always looks effortlessly badass and cool while doing it!"

Guess which of them is Gold's boyfriend.

"And those are just the ones we talk to often."

Iron then starts as if he just remembered something.

"There are some that think they're better than us, so they try to kill us to prove it. Silver, for one. You can guess what his thing is. There's also Arsenic and Uranium, two people who you do not want to be punched by."

"Arsenic's a billionaire too, as if being big and angry and purple wasn't evil enough. Uranium, on the other hand, is green and barely makes a living wage."

"He actually makes a lot of money off of his private detective work. It's just, he keeps having to pay for damages."

"Speaking of Uranium, his boss, Pyrite, is the worst of all. He's not even an element - he's just a shapeshifter who pretends to be me because he's unoriginal and goes around murdering people."

"Ironically, his profession is as a prosecutor. That's why he hires Uranium; as a detective, and some backup muscle."

"Okay, well, that's the readout on most of us. What about you, then? What sets you apart from the crowd?"