One Hell of a Summer Party

[Gold Leaf]

[Grand Ballroom - Malady and Platinum]

Well, the wine's either expensive or you got it off some schmuck who thinks wine has a best before instead of a best after date. Also, does anyone actually read lewd stuff for the writing? Usually people are being ironic when they say that.

"Well..." Platinum's expression suggests she agrees, but doesn't want to say that out loud.

Looks like it's her move now. Platinum will go for a move wherein she twirls Malady back to facing her, then tries a subtle dip. She doesn't mind that the succubus is nervous - that's normal. Maybe she's a little nervous herself, but just much better at hiding it. After all, this isn't exactly in her comfort zone.

Platinum's expression perks up now that the conversation has shifted to her daily life. "I wouldn't mind at all! My job as a fleet admiral encompassee quite a lot of things, actually. Mainly, I manage affairs like supervising commissioned officers, giving rousing speeches, playing war games, acting as advisor to the ruler of our country, and other naval military affairs. It's not easy, but I love it, so I'll be doing it as long as I live."

[Recaiden]

[Dungeon Interview]

"I'm not going to sell my soul, but you should have at least offered to buy it. Hmph!
The pixie then flies away from the succubus and her cell.

[Drinks]

"Haha. It wasn't a serious question. 'People' is a very competitive group, you know." Pre-metal culture is a lot less crowded around here, but again, it's not at all clear that Jack even belongs to it.
"And I mean, I'd rather take you out of the second category."
"But, it happens, you are far away the best 'person named Jack' that I know."

Anchor's shadow sashays off to the rest of the party. Maybe it'll find someone better at communication than Marianne was.

[Ironsmith]

Trouble Brewing - Space Angel
"You can call me "Prophet," if you wish. I have many names," The Prophet informs Miranda. "Ah, here she comes now." No one is visibly coming towards them.

[Trouble Brewing - Space Angel]

"I'm sure you do." Miranda replies flatly. She's no stranger to the concept herself, but thankfully, she's only had one alias to juggle here in the Nexus itself. "How did you happen to come by that one, I wonder?"

She's going to keep him talking. He seems... odd, no matter how she looks at him, and therefore just a little suspicious. Maybe he's just someone eccentric but harmless, or a prankster out to confuse her. Worst case scenario, he is, and she accomplishes nothing talking to him.

...But if he isn't...

[Grand Ballroom - Malady and Platinum]

Well, the wine's either expensive or you got it off some schmuck who thinks wine has a best before instead of a best after date. Also, does anyone actually read lewd stuff for the writing? Usually people are being ironic when they say that.

"Well..." Platinum's expression suggests she agrees, but doesn't want to say that out loud.

Looks like it's her move now. Platinum will go for a move wherein she twirls Malady back to facing her, then tries a subtle dip. She doesn't mind that the succubus is nervous - that's normal. Maybe she's a little nervous herself, but just much better at hiding it. After all, this isn't exactly in her comfort zone.

Platinum's expression perks up now that the conversation has shifted to her daily life. "I wouldn't mind at all! My job as a fleet admiral encompassee quite a lot of things, actually. Mainly, I manage affairs like supervising commissioned officers, giving rousing speeches, playing war games, acting as advisor to the ruler of our country, and other naval military affairs. It's not easy, but I love it, so I'll be doing it as long as I live."

[Grand Ballroom - Malady and Platinum]

Malady's face once again heats up as the admiral puts her into a dip, but she doesn't do anything to abort it; the implicit trust that Platinum won't drop her is there, even if she'd rather not admit to anything underneath it. There'll be a tense moment as the two make eye contact, before Malady hastily looks away, checking to see if anyone in the crowd is watching them.

"That... that sounds like a handful." She begins nervously, stepping back up out of the dip. "...What's this about a country, though? I thought he-... I mean, the Scorching Depths didn't have more than one. Do you work for Queen Sekhmet?"

[Morty]

[Trouble Brewing - Cape and Cowl]

Sophie follows the cowled figure at a steady, unsuspicious pace that nonetheless keeps them in her sight at all times. It seems that while outrunning her may well be possible, escaping her sight is far more difficult. The hunter-turned-Solar heads to the dining hall after the stranger.

[Deathkeeper]

A Meeting of Rulers

Tep nods with a small smile on his canine-like face. Good, the library is nice but not any more so than his own shop.
"How pleasant." he says, his voice respectfully soft.
"If you don't mind...?" he gestures at the shelf, suggesting that he wants to browse.
Hopefully he finds more than suggestive materials.

[bc56]

A Meeting of Rulers
"Of course, be my guest." Sekhmet gestures to the shelves.
There is a good amount suggestive literature on the shelves, but also books of arcane knowledge and secret histories, all neatly organized on the shelves (which show a layer of dust when examined closely). "I'll, uh, leave you to it." She moves to leave the library, for now.

Trouble Brewing
Pursued by Sophie, the cloaked person rounds the corner into the dining hall. She intends to run right through, using her small size to slip through the crowd where Sophie cannot.
"Excuse me a moment," The Prophet steps away from Miranda, moving towards the approaching figure. Nonchalantly, he positions himself just by her path.
If nothing happens to prevent it, a collision is imminent...

Ballroom - Arkant
"Are you looking for something?" someone asks in a cheery voice. A succubus with fiery hair is looking at Arkant expectantly, "I could point you in the right direction."

[Gold Leaf]

[Grand Ballroom - Malady and Platinum]

Platinum smiles reassuringly when she and Malady lock eyes, quietly uttering a "You're doing great." Then, having finished the dip, she'll return to the neutral back-and-forth dance.

"Well, we're a country for all intents and purposes. Basically, our region, Bermuda, is located under something known as the 'Bermuda Triangle', and it's constantly spitting out lost souls, wrecked ships, and gallons upon gallons of water. So much so that a sea formed around the region, turning it into an actual island. We even have a monarch, the Flying Dutchman, though he's really more of a figurehead now - I work for, and make most of the political decisions for him. So, with a quote-unquote monarchy, island geography, a sizeable population, and a powerful navy, I think we can safely say we've made our own country.

[Aviary - Where's Gold, Though?]

Through a mixture of taking only wrong turns, being consistently unreliable and reliably inconsistent, and sneaking like in Minecraft, the tall gold-headed jack-o-lantern-faced red-tied white-dress-shirt-wearing grey-dress-pants-and-shoes-clad demon Gold has found himself in the aviary. As far as he knows, he slipped in unnoticed, but what he knows doesn't go very far.

"Well, I finally lived up to that thing I said a few minutes ago and went somewhere I'm not supposed to be. Hopefully I don't face full life consequences."

Gold looks around himself, taking in whatever sights there are.

"I just flew in from Damnilton, and boy are my arms tired! I mean, how do birds do that stuff every day? I don't fly often, but when I do, it's usually preceded by an explosion and followed by a call for a very frustrated medic. Actually, a lot of the things I do are followed by a very frustrated medic. Not this one, though. This time, it's followed by the realisation that I'm talking to nobody."

[Morty]

[Trouble Brewing]

Who is this person and why are they evading her so doggedly? And now it looks like they'll collide with someone. She can't really do anything to prevent it at the moment (at least not without making her power more obvious than she wants) so she can just hope no one will be hurt.

[bc56]

Aviary
There is no way in hell that Gold entered the aviary unnoticed. All the birds are staring at him with perceptive and intelligent eyes. Ravens, vultures, eagles, and other birds of all sorts, all subtly wrong in various ways, cling to their perches that rise up the interior of this tower. A narrow spiral stair follows the perches up.
"Who's there?" One buzzard asks. "A foreign - CAW! - birdbrain who thinks he's funny," a bloodred bluejay snaps back.

[Gold Leaf]

[Aviary]

Gold did not account for the birds noticing him. Told you he didn't know much. As it is, he's taken a little by surprise when the buzzard speaks up. Birds where he's from are comparatively untalkative, probably owing to the fact they're mostly undead Earthen birds that sailors kept as pets. He quickly recollects himself as he realises that the bird is, in fact, heckling him.

Gold starts pacing the room, holding a fist in front of his chest as if he has an imaginary microphone. This poor bird has really got him started now.

"Heh, you're heckling me? Call that Angry Birds. But you know, you and I, we're not so different. You rise into the air, I get a rise out of people. You land yourself, I land my jokes. And, you know, I think it's really cool that you can fly all on your own. When I want to fly south for the winter, you know what I have to deal with? Airport security on a whole other plane of pain, plane tickets that are just plane overpriced, and airplane food that's just plain. Fun fact: that is, in fact, what's up with airline food. The deal with airline food, though, is something that involves throwing it behind your back to pretend to eat it, and paying off the guy you just covered in soup to not say anything. Oh, and heck forbid there's a baby on the plane. In fact, I just don't like babies in general. All they do is eat, poop, and eat poop. And when they kick a pregnant woman, it's 'cute' and 'funny', but when I- ah, nevermind. Birds lay eggs, don't they? Your horoscope says 'keep close watch on your eggs, for green pigs may be en route to steal them.' My horoscope, on the other hand, just says 'go suck an egg, Gold.' Of course, horoscopes are not be trusted. Learned that lesson a long time ago when mine just said 'DUCK!' but I searched the entire park and didn't see a single waterfowl. And, to add insult to injury, I got hit in the back of the head with a boomerang. Didn't actually injure me, but I was billed for one broken boomerang."

[Zefir]

Ballroom - Arkant
"Are you looking for something?" someone asks in a cheery voice. A succubus with fiery hair is looking at Arkant expectantly, "I could point you in the right direction."

Ballroom - Arkant

The man turns to the source of the succubus.

"Oh yes, I was looking for the host of this event. I wantted to discuss something with her, something we might help each other out. Do you know where she is, or maybe arange a meeting if shes not to busy with other guests?"

[Shadowcaller]

Grand Tour
"I don't know why you'd want to. You can't trust anything they say." But you can trust Pex, right? ... Right? "But I don't think I can stop you." Once again he proves himself to be a permissive guide.

Grand Tour

"Sometimes their lies tell a lot about a person. Or a demon in this case." Actually now that Faith though about it... "Are Sekhmet's advisors actually demons or something else? Since it was hard for me to tell as most people here are shapeshifters aren't they? Could be worth talking to one of her advisors."

[Recaiden]

Tep nods with a small smile on his canine-like face. Good, the library is nice but not any more so than his own shop.
"How pleasant." he says, his voice respectfully soft.
"If you don't mind...?" he gestures at the shelf, suggesting that he wants to browse.
Hopefully he finds more than suggestive materials.

Okay. She's talked to the queen, and talked to the attacker. What she really needs is to see something outrageous happen at the party.
But that's not very likely.
So the next best thing is some in-depth context on the Scorching Depths.

And for that, the pixie has made her way to the library...

[bc56]

Aviary
"Did he say anything meaningful?" the buzzard sighs. "Of Caw!-rse not." the jay replies. "Very well."

Ballroom - Arkant
"Oh, she's just right over there, getting back from the library. I'll introduce you!" The succubus leads Arkant over to where the demon queen has just returned from the library. "Your majesty? This man would like to speak to you." "Thank you Charcoal. Can I help you?" The last question is directed at Arkant. What does he have to say?

Grand Tour
"Some demons, some humans. At one point there was a lady who looked like a demon but wasn't, but she left." That's at least a partial explanation. "Her advisors came from before she became queen. She already trusted them before she took the throne. Mostly."

[Shadowcaller]

Grand Tour

"And are any of these advisors, human or otherwise, available to talk right now? They're public persons so I feel like an interview wouldn't be out of place to them." Faith gestures at their surroundings. "Perhaps someone whose close by? Since I assume you're going to interrogate that 'assassin' we saw earlier."

[Zefir]

Ballroom - Arkant
"Oh, she's just right over there, getting back from the library. I'll introduce you!" The succubus leads Arkant over to where the demon queen has just returned from the library. "Your majesty? This man would like to speak to you." "Thank you Charcoal. Can I help you?" The last question is directed at Arkant. What does he have to say?

Ballroom - Arkant

Arkant nods to Charcoal . "Thank you miss Charcoal." befor turning to the queen.

He bows slightly to the queen befor he talks.
"My Name is Arkant del Gadis. I wanted to talk to you about a possible partnership to strengthen th bonds between your people and people in the nexus."

[Earl of Purple]

Monarch and Husband

Prumathe blushes at the heckler, though his skin's dark enough it's hard to tell. "Of course, honey." He'll let her lead, since it's her palace and if they're going somewhere private she knows where is suitable.

Drinks

"I'm not looking for anything serious." A long-term relationship would take her out of it, after all. A second one-night stand might not. Jack smiles though. "Well, by that metric, you're the best Anchor I know." Which is precisely one, though Jack is a more common name.

[bc56]

Monarch and Husband
The two of them reach a private room. Sekhmet shuts and locks the door, then finally lets go of her composure. She looks very sick.
"Did I really just... With her... In front of everyone?" She can feel the succubus still pressing at the back of her mind. That much more indulgence than usual gave that Name a lot of extra power, hence why her "normal" form looks a lot more succubus-ish right now and she doesn't even seem to have noticed.
She pulls up a wastebasket and vomits burning sulphur into it.
"I feel awful. How could I let myself get carried away like that?"

Ballroom - Arkant
"I see. What did you have in mind?" Sekhmet sounds curious. She didn't expect anything like this, but maybe Arkant can make an interesting offer?

Grand Tour
"I don't know," Pex replies. "They're all working to keep the party running. I don't know where they are, and I don't think any prisoners will be interrogated until after it's done." Hopefully that's not too much of a disappointment.

[Shadowcaller]

Grand Tour

Faith raises an eyebrow. "So you have already confirmed that she's working alone then? Or are these 'lone wolves' common?" Was this even considered an assassination attempt? Or was this more of a... prank? It didn't seem like they were taking it as seriously as she would expect.

[Earl of Purple]

Monarch and Husband

"Yes, you did. She riled you, and kept you off-balance. Don't worry, it was only a dance and whilst, uh, not your usual thing it didn't go further." Unless there was some telepathic stuff going on that Prumathe doesn't know about, anyway. He's going to try calming her and reassuring her, but Earl isn't sure what would be a good move in this situation and Prumathe probably does, given he knows Sekhmet at this point better than I do.

[Zefir]

Ballroom - Arkant
"I see. What did you have in mind?" Sekhmet sounds curious. She didn't expect anything like this, but maybe Arkant can make an interesting offer?

Ballroom - Arkant

"As you are aware, your kind isn't liked in some parts of the nexus. For reasons you are aware of." he say watching her expression as he states that. His body language and speech are calm and rational with a hint of sadness as he speaks.
"Even if it is only a part of the nexus such things tend to spread to other parts. I am aware that this is just the action of some which makes others suffer. So I would like to change that with a counter rumor or better said to encounter the bad experience with good ones. I plan to expand my company to inside and I would like to offer some of your kind to work there for me. Gettin paid like others, working together with others adn living with them. Sure thats just a mere sketch of the plan and details should be diskussed in a quiet place. What do you think?"

[Deathkeeper]

Library

Dust just means it's properly forgotten or restricted knowledge- both very good kinds.
The investigating pixie will find the tall demonlord perusing the stacks assuming they arrive any time in the next several hours. And the librarian succubus of course.
Secret histories are nice but he sadly lacks the context of Sekhmet's world. So he settles for starting with the arcane, which is somehow less difficult to parse for him.

[bc56]

Grand Tour
"Don't ask me. She just told me to be your tour guide, I'm no political advisor," Pex protests. He genuinely doesn't know the answer to that question. Did the attacker work alone? He wasn't there, how would he know?

Monarch and Husband
A hug is probably the best option. Sekhmet will gladly return it. "You're, uh, not angry?" She releases Prumathe. She glances down at herself and starts. "I, uh..." She conjures an illusory mirror with a wave of her hand. "I look different." This is the first time she's really noticed the changes to her "default" form and her clothes. Her figure is still somewhat exaggerated but much more compliant with normal human anatomy and the laws of physics. She's wearing a tight black halter top with a cropped midriff and a large cutout over her cleavage, a fiery orange, glowing, knee-length skirt, and a pair of dark grey high heeled pumps. She closes her eyes for a moment, opens them again, and then swallows nervously. "Uh, Honey? I think I'm stuck." Internally, she's panicking. She went to revert all her transformations, so why does she look different? If she failed to revert, why can't she try again?

Ballroom - Arkant
"Interesting." Sekhmet isn't sure it's entirely wise. Many of her subjects aren't very well adjusted to mortal society. "What does your company do?" she asks. That's the most important part of this. She can't approve her subjects working for something she disagrees with.

[Earl of Purple]

Monarch and Husband

"Why would I be angry? I trust you. And you've never really shown much interest, y'know, in girls." Prumathe doesn't get jealous, at least he doesn't over something like one dance. Although he was quite quick to get the second one so nobody else had the opportunity to flirt with Sekhmet when she was in more of a mental state to flirt back. "You leant into succubus, right? You usually change like this when you do." Prumathe's a fan, but more of the increased confidence Sekhmet displays when she's drawing on he succubus-self; the alterations to her body are... less important to Prumathe. "You... are? I don't know what to do. Um. Let's see." Prumathe closes his eyes and presses a hand against Sekhmet, reaching in to his own biotheurgy and the spark that he got from Sekhmet and trying to draw them out, to offer them to his wife. He doesn't know what he's doing, besides 'what feels about right', and Sekhmet's immortality makes drawing on his magic less risky- especially if she's able to draw on his memories and experience of using the magic, as well. Prumathe's magic doesn't let him transform, however; all it does is enable him to enhance his physical abilities in various ways.

[Recaiden]

[Drinks]

"I'm not looking for anything serious." A long-term relationship would take her out of it, after all. A second one-night stand might not. Jack smiles though. "Well, by that metric, you're the best Anchor I know." Which is precisely one, though Jack is a more common name.

"I know. I mean, you've gotta be you. But after the party, you're welcome to come be not serious with me."
"Oh, thank you, I'll try to live up to that clearly high bar." Anchor hasn't met anyone else named Anchor either. But a win is a win!

"Speaking of bests, what do you think of this hell we're in?"

[Library]

Dust just means it's properly forgotten or restricted knowledge- both very good kinds.
The investigating pixie will find the tall demonlord perusing the stacks assuming they arrive any time in the next several hours. And the librarian succubus of course.
Secret histories are nice but he sadly lacks the context of Sekhmet's world. So he settles for starting with the arcane, which is somehow less difficult to parse for him.

Shame that fiends of corruption and lust aren't more interested in reading.

A pixie zips up to the demonlord and asks-
"Excuse me. Could you direct me to books about the history of the Scorching Depths, where it came from, that sort of thing?"
Apparently having taken him for part of the library staff.

[Deathkeeper]

Library

Tep lowers his glasses and gives the pixie a bemused expression.
"Well I imagine it isn't over there, I just found out that's the section dedicated to the succubi's Leisure Activities. You could probably ask the librarian, but something tells me you're looking for something over there." He points. He's good at guessing the location of books. Lord of Knowledge and all that.

[bc56]

Monarch and Husband
"I don't, normally, but, uh, to the succubus, she... Never mind." Sekhmet blushes. "I do but... Normally when I'm back to normal I can just change back. This is, uh, different, somehow." Prumathe should notice that his wife isn't freaking out about how she's dressed. She seems worried by the fact that she doesn't look the way she intended to, but isn't objecting to her current appearance.
Prumathe's power goes out and Sekhmet takes hold of it. He can feel her twisting it around, testing it. Then she releases it. "I, uh, don't know. I don't think, uh, biological enhancement will help. I, uh, don't really have a biology." She only really seams alive, she isn't really alive. Not in the way humans are.

[Gold Leaf]

[Aviary]

Gold stops pacing and turns to face the jay heckling him, with a smile that suggests he's annoyed but not angry.

"Alright, I get it. Tough crowd today, and not the chewy kind. Fine, fine, I'll see myself out. But before that, I want you to hit me with the best joke you've got. Just one. And don't say something cheap like 'you' or 'me', nobody finds that funny. You don't think I have any good material, so tell me the kind of joke you like, and I'll get out of your feathers. Seriously, just one joke, and I'll make like an executioner and head out."

[Ironsmith]

Trouble Brewing
Pursued by Sophie, the cloaked person rounds the corner into the dining hall. She intends to run right through, using her small size to slip through the crowd where Sophie cannot.
"Excuse me a moment," The Prophet steps away from Miranda, moving towards the approaching figure. Nonchalantly, he positions himself just by her path.
If nothing happens to prevent it, a collision is imminent...

[Trouble Brewing]

Miranda frowns and follows along with this "Prophet", but does not interfere with his actions. So far, he doesn't appear to be doing anything more problematic than simply being vaguely ominous, and that really had as much to do with her own paranoia as it did Prophet himself. She'll stay within arm's reach of him, just in case.

[Grand Ballroom - Malady and Platinum]

Platinum smiles reassuringly when she and Malady lock eyes, quietly uttering a "You're doing great." Then, having finished the dip, she'll return to the neutral back-and-forth dance.

"Well, we're a country for all intents and purposes. Basically, our region, Bermuda, is located under something known as the 'Bermuda Triangle', and it's constantly spitting out lost souls, wrecked ships, and gallons upon gallons of water. So much so that a sea formed around the region, turning it into an actual island. We even have a monarch, the Flying Dutchman, though he's really more of a figurehead now - I work for, and make most of the political decisions for him. So, with a quote-unquote monarchy, island geography, a sizeable population, and a powerful navy, I think we can safely say we've made our own country.

[Grand Ballroom - Malady and Platinum]

"It... um... certainly sounds something like it." Malady agrees with a little nod, shuffling nervously in front of Platinum, briefly fumbling over the steps of the dance but managing to make it look like a spontaneous flair rather than tripping over her own feet. "...Wait, hang on... the Bermuda Triangle? That Bermuda Triangle?" She asks, a note of both curiosity and incredulity in her voice. "Is that what was going on with it? I always just assumed it was a mix of superstition and confirmation bias that made it seem like a mysterious place for ships to be."

[bc56]

Aviary
"We do not tell jokes," the buzzard finally acknowledged Gold directly. "We are her majesty's messengers and her eyes and ears, not her jesters." He puffs himself up with the air of an indignant noble. "I am insulted, insulted, that you would... SQUAWK!" The jay kicks the vulture from behind, sending him plummeting off the perch and down to the floor below. "Traitor! Murderer! I'll have your head for this!" "Pipe... Caw! Down, you old windbag."

Trouble Brewing
The cloaked person dives for the table, hoping to slide under it to safety. At the exact same instant, the Prophet takes one step to the left. The result is that the two collide, with the smaller person slamming headfirst into the Prophet's legs and winding up dazed at his feet. He bends down and pulls the hood off her head.
"Whuh?" Mary, Sekhmet's adopted-ish daughter, blinks in confusion a few times. The Prophet only chuckles good-naturedly. "It is a good thing I found you. Does your mother know you are here?" The question goes unanswered.