Re: The Phenomenal Fracas (GBS2G6) [Round Five: The Ambitus Phenomenon]
05-27-2012, 01:40 PM
Originally posted on MSPA by MrGuy.
The Blue District was so named for the structure that dominated it more than anything else: the tremendous cathedral with a gleaming blue roof. The joke was typically that there were two types of people who lived in the Blue District: Those certain they would get into heaven, and those who were terrified that they wouldn't. The suspiciously low crime rate certainly suggested at least one of the two.
But regardless of what might or might not be happening there, the people were devout. They went to church and prayed each day, and they were exceptionally polite, which Ripper found quite disorienting on such an evening. Don't these blasted idiots know there's going to be a revolution? Look at them, milling about while they throw a damned party in that idiotic palace. Ripper's pulse quickened, which she took as a good sign, given that earlier she was becoming increasingly unsure she had a heartbeat at all. Probably eating gold and drinking silver in there, buying perfectly good firewood and steak just so they can eat three times as much as they need to get by... Annoyed, she shoved past the waves of passerby, and stormed into the church, past the atrium and into the church proper. If there's a revolution here, the priest'll know about it. Don't many things go too far without a breeze passin' the chapel. Down on one knee, facing a towering statue of a vaguely humanoid creature, was what appeared to be some sort of robed lizard man. By this point, Blackmask was more or less desensitized to meeting people like this, and simply tapped him on the shoulder.
He slowly turned, pointing what (considering the fangs) was a surprisingly soft smile at Blackmask. "You're a fresh face, child. At least, I should think I'd remember someone as distinctive as you." He made a sweeping gesture towards the idol. "Are you here to pay your respects to the God?"
Ripper flinched. She always hated dealing with the clergy. Made her feel guilty. Made her wonder if she'd get into heaven because the people she killed deserved it anyway, or if God wouldn't like it. She didn't like to think about these things. She decided to cut to the chase. "No, Father, that is not why I'm here. What do you know about a revolution?"
If he'd had a beard to stroke, Triumphan probably would have. Instead, he just widened his eyes. "I don't know anything about that, child, because if I did, it would be treason. And betraying the king is almost as bad as the king betraying the God." He smiled bitterly. "Speaking of which, I really must tell you the good news. Not everyone gets such a chance at salvation."
The pirate paused for a good, long while, trying to read the lizard. "Well, it's a good thing you aren't, then. Because if you were, you might find it all too useful to know that there was a messenger coming to inform the palace."
Now it was the preacher's turn to pause. "Did he make it?"
"Of course not. You think a loyal subject like me would pass up the opportunity to... discuss things with him?"
"Come with me." Triumphan gave a powerful push to the statue, apologizing to his god as he did so, and revealed a trap door. He lifted it up. "Down we go."
The two slowly descended a ladder into a dark, cold room. Ripper was astonished to find what appeared to be the biggest weapon cache in the world: guns, swords, and bombs littered the ground as concerned citizens paced back and forth, taking inventory. As soon as she reached the ground, the lizard piped up again: "You know that if you're a spy, you'll be the first one we kill. I could rip your arms off just by grabbing your shoulder and flicking my wrist."
The pirate grunted noncommittally. "So, what's an old padre like you riling up the powder monkeys for?"
"As I said, the King has betrayed the God. He has ignored our traditions, and he is taking our country on the path to ruin. For that, he no longer holds the mandate of heaven." The lizard rambled on like this and Ripper quickly zoned out. As far as she was concerned, the king was probably going to hell one way or another, the damned old aristocrat. This was just speeding up the process. About five seconds after the priest stopped talking, Blackmask noticed the silence and jumped back in.
"Well, just so happens I know a bit about revolution and fighting myself. Think I could be a help to you folks?"
"Absolutely." Triumphan smiled that soft-yet-toothy grin again. "In one hour, we are to attack the police stations in the Red and White districts. You head down the river at that point and take care of some heathens, as violently as the situation dictates."
The pirate nodded. "Don't worry, padre. I'll blow those raffle-wrecks down." She quickly walked off, grabbing a couple of bombs from the ground, not even giving the priest enough time to ask what she meant before she had already left the church. As another cool breeze blew in, Ripper smiled at the sky, relieved yet excited. For now, she could rest easy.
As the pirate blinked out of existence, a pair of gleaming mechanical eyes closed and opened again. Their owner would not forget any time soon.
----
One hundred years later, very little had changed in the Blue District. The cathedral still stood (although partially converted into a museum), the river still flowed, and the citizens still spread rumors of organized crime. For now, none of this was of concern to Blackmask; what concerned her instead was the fact that, on the horizon, she could still make out the palace.
She shook her head and sighed. Should've known it wouldn't have been so easy to careen a whole kingdom. Guess I'll head off for a nipperkin for now. As she prepared to leave, she was approached by a cream-colored woman in a ragged cloak. Aside from the spidery legs she walked on, she appeared more or less ordinary, giving a pleading smile to the pirate. "Pray tell, are you that woman who appeared on the night of the revolution? I would be overjoyed to meet her."
Ripper attempted to laugh disarmingly, but instead ended up coughing. "Are you addled, lass? S'been a century since all of that."
The woman laughed in turn. "Of course, silly me. Sometimes I forget that most people aren't as long-lived as I am. Astonishing resemblance, anyway." She sighed. "Anyway, I'll just be leaving you now." With that, she slowly began walking off.
Ripper frowned. Poor old woman... well, maybe I can help her. She ran after the woman in rags and tapped her on the shoulder. "Miss, if you don't mind me asking, is there anything I can do to get you out of the exhaust?"
The woman shook her head. "I'm afraid not. You see, I used to run a charity way back when, but, well... we ran out of money about a hundred and twenty years ago. Ever since then, I've been down and out." She sighed. "If only I'd had the courage to sell off my few possessions earlier on, I could have invested, gotten back on my feet... maybe I'd still be building homes for the homeless, instead of being one of them. But there's not much you can do about the past, is there?" She smiled sadly. "My name's Paige. It's been a pleasure speaking with you, sir." And once again, she began walking off, as Ripper stared at her, heart aching both figuratively and literally. Shame it's too late for the lass... There was a considerable pause before the pirate realized what she was thinking. Belay that, it's not too late at all! I just have to get a bit angry, and that'll do it! Shouldn't have much trouble finding a lady with eight legs and glowing deadlights, anyway... And with that the pirate headed off, staring intently at the opera house to focus her anger before eventually blinking out of existence again.
Smiling, the Countess (now, as she had for decades, wearing a modest dress instead of rags) extracted a cheap pocketwatch (which she had also possessed for decades) from her left arm and checked the time. Hm... if that fellow one hundred years ago was to be believed, then I have a snake to meet with. And so she headed off into the darkening night, smiling and whistling as her eight legs clicked against the cobblestones.
The Blue District was so named for the structure that dominated it more than anything else: the tremendous cathedral with a gleaming blue roof. The joke was typically that there were two types of people who lived in the Blue District: Those certain they would get into heaven, and those who were terrified that they wouldn't. The suspiciously low crime rate certainly suggested at least one of the two.
But regardless of what might or might not be happening there, the people were devout. They went to church and prayed each day, and they were exceptionally polite, which Ripper found quite disorienting on such an evening. Don't these blasted idiots know there's going to be a revolution? Look at them, milling about while they throw a damned party in that idiotic palace. Ripper's pulse quickened, which she took as a good sign, given that earlier she was becoming increasingly unsure she had a heartbeat at all. Probably eating gold and drinking silver in there, buying perfectly good firewood and steak just so they can eat three times as much as they need to get by... Annoyed, she shoved past the waves of passerby, and stormed into the church, past the atrium and into the church proper. If there's a revolution here, the priest'll know about it. Don't many things go too far without a breeze passin' the chapel. Down on one knee, facing a towering statue of a vaguely humanoid creature, was what appeared to be some sort of robed lizard man. By this point, Blackmask was more or less desensitized to meeting people like this, and simply tapped him on the shoulder.
He slowly turned, pointing what (considering the fangs) was a surprisingly soft smile at Blackmask. "You're a fresh face, child. At least, I should think I'd remember someone as distinctive as you." He made a sweeping gesture towards the idol. "Are you here to pay your respects to the God?"
Ripper flinched. She always hated dealing with the clergy. Made her feel guilty. Made her wonder if she'd get into heaven because the people she killed deserved it anyway, or if God wouldn't like it. She didn't like to think about these things. She decided to cut to the chase. "No, Father, that is not why I'm here. What do you know about a revolution?"
If he'd had a beard to stroke, Triumphan probably would have. Instead, he just widened his eyes. "I don't know anything about that, child, because if I did, it would be treason. And betraying the king is almost as bad as the king betraying the God." He smiled bitterly. "Speaking of which, I really must tell you the good news. Not everyone gets such a chance at salvation."
The pirate paused for a good, long while, trying to read the lizard. "Well, it's a good thing you aren't, then. Because if you were, you might find it all too useful to know that there was a messenger coming to inform the palace."
Now it was the preacher's turn to pause. "Did he make it?"
"Of course not. You think a loyal subject like me would pass up the opportunity to... discuss things with him?"
"Come with me." Triumphan gave a powerful push to the statue, apologizing to his god as he did so, and revealed a trap door. He lifted it up. "Down we go."
The two slowly descended a ladder into a dark, cold room. Ripper was astonished to find what appeared to be the biggest weapon cache in the world: guns, swords, and bombs littered the ground as concerned citizens paced back and forth, taking inventory. As soon as she reached the ground, the lizard piped up again: "You know that if you're a spy, you'll be the first one we kill. I could rip your arms off just by grabbing your shoulder and flicking my wrist."
The pirate grunted noncommittally. "So, what's an old padre like you riling up the powder monkeys for?"
"As I said, the King has betrayed the God. He has ignored our traditions, and he is taking our country on the path to ruin. For that, he no longer holds the mandate of heaven." The lizard rambled on like this and Ripper quickly zoned out. As far as she was concerned, the king was probably going to hell one way or another, the damned old aristocrat. This was just speeding up the process. About five seconds after the priest stopped talking, Blackmask noticed the silence and jumped back in.
"Well, just so happens I know a bit about revolution and fighting myself. Think I could be a help to you folks?"
"Absolutely." Triumphan smiled that soft-yet-toothy grin again. "In one hour, we are to attack the police stations in the Red and White districts. You head down the river at that point and take care of some heathens, as violently as the situation dictates."
The pirate nodded. "Don't worry, padre. I'll blow those raffle-wrecks down." She quickly walked off, grabbing a couple of bombs from the ground, not even giving the priest enough time to ask what she meant before she had already left the church. As another cool breeze blew in, Ripper smiled at the sky, relieved yet excited. For now, she could rest easy.
As the pirate blinked out of existence, a pair of gleaming mechanical eyes closed and opened again. Their owner would not forget any time soon.
----
One hundred years later, very little had changed in the Blue District. The cathedral still stood (although partially converted into a museum), the river still flowed, and the citizens still spread rumors of organized crime. For now, none of this was of concern to Blackmask; what concerned her instead was the fact that, on the horizon, she could still make out the palace.
She shook her head and sighed. Should've known it wouldn't have been so easy to careen a whole kingdom. Guess I'll head off for a nipperkin for now. As she prepared to leave, she was approached by a cream-colored woman in a ragged cloak. Aside from the spidery legs she walked on, she appeared more or less ordinary, giving a pleading smile to the pirate. "Pray tell, are you that woman who appeared on the night of the revolution? I would be overjoyed to meet her."
Ripper attempted to laugh disarmingly, but instead ended up coughing. "Are you addled, lass? S'been a century since all of that."
The woman laughed in turn. "Of course, silly me. Sometimes I forget that most people aren't as long-lived as I am. Astonishing resemblance, anyway." She sighed. "Anyway, I'll just be leaving you now." With that, she slowly began walking off.
Ripper frowned. Poor old woman... well, maybe I can help her. She ran after the woman in rags and tapped her on the shoulder. "Miss, if you don't mind me asking, is there anything I can do to get you out of the exhaust?"
The woman shook her head. "I'm afraid not. You see, I used to run a charity way back when, but, well... we ran out of money about a hundred and twenty years ago. Ever since then, I've been down and out." She sighed. "If only I'd had the courage to sell off my few possessions earlier on, I could have invested, gotten back on my feet... maybe I'd still be building homes for the homeless, instead of being one of them. But there's not much you can do about the past, is there?" She smiled sadly. "My name's Paige. It's been a pleasure speaking with you, sir." And once again, she began walking off, as Ripper stared at her, heart aching both figuratively and literally. Shame it's too late for the lass... There was a considerable pause before the pirate realized what she was thinking. Belay that, it's not too late at all! I just have to get a bit angry, and that'll do it! Shouldn't have much trouble finding a lady with eight legs and glowing deadlights, anyway... And with that the pirate headed off, staring intently at the opera house to focus her anger before eventually blinking out of existence again.
Smiling, the Countess (now, as she had for decades, wearing a modest dress instead of rags) extracted a cheap pocketwatch (which she had also possessed for decades) from her left arm and checked the time. Hm... if that fellow one hundred years ago was to be believed, then I have a snake to meet with. And so she headed off into the darkening night, smiling and whistling as her eight legs clicked against the cobblestones.