Welcome to the Jungle : A Mage Quest

[Emral282]

[X] Our familiar is... A Faery who calls herself Navi.
-[X] Our (new) favorite routine is good cop, bad cop. Don't ask which is which, we like to take turns.

Because Navi was Legit useful.

 

[Hymn of Ragnarok]

[X] Our familiar is... A Faery who calls herself Navi.
-[X] Our (new) favorite routine is good cop, bad cop. Don't ask which is which, we like to take turns.

Because Navi was Legit useful.

Click to shrink...

Fairies are described her as little bastards that make themselves a giant pain in the ass. Less helpful healing fairies of Hyrule and more asshole fey who fuck with people because it amuses them. So are you going for irony?

 

[Happerry]

[X] Our familiar is... A Faery who calls herself Navi.

I just like Navi.

Edit: And still voting for [X] Tim

 

[Hymn of Ragnarok]

[X] Name: Puck.

Also, if I were going to pull something from Zelda, I'd choose Tatl. At least she's got some sass to her, which is much more in-llne with the impression I've got on the the resident fae.

 

[Pipeman]

So, first of all, choices for familliars are a Fairy, an animal that can be reasonably expected to have turned up with us (I assume this means local things or stuff we could have found in a pet shop) and the last option, trying to bind a Goetic Demon, ("I pull my sins out of my soul and leash them into a manifested form.") would end "interesting!" ("And no, you have no idea how one would go about doing that.")

We are mainly that limited in choices because we have no formal magical education as The Prodigal and we didn't think to acquire Skill (Occult). Which basically means we met a few other magic users (probably mainly those who drove us away) and met a couple Faeries. And that's all of our experience with the supernatural.

But hey, things aren't that bad! Faeries know lots of stuff and asking them is going to be real fun!

 

[Hymn of Ragnarok]

But hey, things aren't that bad! Faeries know lots of stuff and asking them is going to be real fun!

Click to shrink...

Well obviously. Why vote for a Faerie Affinity if you don't want to live in Interesting Times?

 

[Guile]

[X] Puck

 

[Hymn of Ragnarok]

Inspiration for Puck:

[embed=425,349]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlKRDI5kq2U[/embed]

Fun little song.

 

[Scia]

[X]A Fairy be it the Puck or another all of them of them do work but I want us to remember that the Fae are not nice after all.

 

[R.A.G.]

[X] Name: David Constable Hartstone Chicago

[X] Our familiar is... A Faery who calls herself Navi.
-[X] Our (new) favorite routine is good cop, bad cop. Don't ask which is which, we like to take turns.

 

[drake_azathoth]

[X] Name: David Constable Hartstone Chicago

[X] Our familiar is... A Faery who calls herself Navi.
-[X] Our (new) favorite routine is good cop, bad cop. Don't ask which is which, we like to take turns.

 

[Voidling]

[X] Victor Constantine. Because you always win, in the end.

[X] Our familiar is... A Faery who calls herself Navi.
-[X] Our (new) favorite routine is good cop, bad cop. Don't ask which is which, we like to take turns.
-[X] To strangers, she's fickle and fey, cruel and vicious - but those who have won her over couldn't ask for a better behaved child. She oft dispenses small favours, easily missed - good fortune for a day, domestic bliss - but woe to those who refuse to repay them (preferably in hard candy).

I hope that the elaboration isn't amiss.

 

[Vindictus]

...

[X] Name- Ramirez Cervantez

No background meaning, just a cool name.

 

[Jans]

The long two weeks are over now, I apologize for the delay. A wild update will appear before I turn in tonight.

 

[Jans]

The unmarked police car slows and pulls to a stop in front of your bench, the heavy rain making twin cones of gold in the street ahead. The Dodge Charger Pursuit had become a pretty iconic sight in American and European cities over the years and this one wasn't trying terribly hard to remain anonymous. You knew next to nothing about cars, but you could see that this one had had some serious work done beyond the built-in lights and sirens.

A man steps out of the passenger seat, leaving the car running. He's about six feet tall and wearing a heavy black rain coat, but his posture screams cop. He takes a moment to survey the street (currently empty of anyone but the two of you) before crossing behind his vehicle and approaching you.

"You the Prodigal?"

Despite yourself, you grin. Bosworth may be shifty, but at least he had some sense of style. What kind of midnight rendezvous didn't have passwords?

"There are some who call me... Tim."

The cop snorts and gestures to the car.

"Alright kid, hop in and we'll go see the Lieutenant."

---

You've never been in a cop car before, but you're pretty impressed with this one. Armored, bullet proof glass, massive engine, and packing serious firepower. The officer, Michaels, had an assault rifle of some sort and several grenades mounted behind the passenger's seat in easy grabbing range for the driver. Your not entirely sure, but the space that should have been a backseat was partially taken up by what looked like a locker and probably had other weapons stashed inside.

New Dresda Police Headquarters was equally impressive. All thick stone and armored windows, with three officers "casually" hanging around in the motor pool area. "Casually" because they were all wearing body armor, had submachine guns close at hand, and were watching you like hawks.

You were starting to wonder what, exactly, Bosworth had gotten you into here. Even more so when the officers inside were similarly armed. You're fairly certain that even the military didn't wander around with enough firepower to start a war in their own building.

Officer Michaels led you into the bowels of the building with a minimal amount of red tape. You were expected, but they still needed him to fill check in and fill out some paperwork.They ignored your presence for the most part, and you were told in curt tones that the Lieutenant would answer your questions in a few minutes.

Despite what TV would lead you to believe, your meeting with the Lieutenant did not occur in a bare interrogation room with grim faced cops. Instead you were led to a tasteful office, greeted by the man himself, and offered coffee.

"So. You're the wizard Bosworth claims can solve all of our problems with the wave of his hand."

Erm.

"Relax kid, the man's a fink and we all know it. I'm not expecting the world here, just honest answers. My name is Lieutenant Alexander Harmon, what should I call you? We know you wizard types have a problem with real names and I can't just keep calling you the Prodigal eh?"

This wasn't how you imagined the conversation going. You had the mysterious wizard meets skeptical authority figure act all planned out and he wasn't playing by the script. This was a good opportunity to get back into the game though.

"My name is Tim, the Enchanter."

You give a little flourish, a half-bow-while-seated kind of thing. The Lieutenant just stares.

"Kid, that joke was old before you were born. I'm not going to call you that. How about something I can actually put on the books?"

Books?

"Books?"

Harmon snorts.

"Financial books. You DO want to get paid if you end up working for us right?"

Honestly being "paid" to do research and cast magic was a pretty foreign idea. You usually had to pay other people to let you do your work (Reagents, lab space, tuition, library fees, book trades... Ugh), not the other way around. You had half thought Bosworth might be kidding or mistaken with that one.

"How about David Constable Hartstone Chicago?"

"David Hart it is."

You pout. Slightly. That was a perfectly acceptable name!



"Alright Mr. Hart, let me tell you a bit about the New Dresda Metropolitan Police Department. We're mostly in charge of the shorefront districts. That's everything from uptown to the industrial docks and into the city proper, right up to the walls. We don't cover corptown, residential, or the industrial districts themselves. Any questions?"

"I don't actually know where an of the places you just mentioned are, I've only been in town for a couple hours. I haven't even been to this continent before that."

Lieutenant Harmon stares at you for a moment before pressing a button on his phone. (Interestingly it was a landline, you don't see those much any more. Like... ever.)

"Mary, could you do me a favor and pass down the word that I'd like to complicate the lives of a few of Mr. Bosworth's less reliable contacts? Apparently our little wizard has never set foot on the continent before today, let alone the city."

As someone, Mary you presume, hashes out a few details with Harmon you stew. Just because you were a bit young did not mean you were incompetent!

"Just because I'm young doesn't mean I'm incompetent!"

"Didn't say you were kid. Don't know you well enough to call that one way or another. Bosworth just gave me the impression that you were going to be a serious asset, and we really need that right now."

"I can be a serious asset Lieutenant. Maybe if you'd let me demonstrate instead of criticizing everything I say you might realize that."

Maybe a bit far, from the look on his face. But fuck it, you were one of the wise; a mage and a prodigy to boot! You weren't just going to roll over for the first person to offer you a job. You hadn't stood for it at school and you wouldn't stand for it here.

Silently, you and Lieutenant Harmon glare at each other for a minute. Finally he nods and gestures at you.

"Alright, fair enough. Impress me kid."

"Don't call me kid, I'm Mr. Hart now. I'm going to grab a knife out of my bag to demonstrate alright?

Always better to warn the guards when you were pulling out a weapon if you didn't have the intention to use it. You assumed the same went for cops. Harmon's eyebrows raise as you pull out the knife and a small steel block, though you don't know why. You hadn't even started yet.

"My main talent lies in Enchanting. Taking the mundane and using magic to make it better. This blade is supernaturally sharp."

You carve a corner off of the block without apparent effort and pass it to the Lieutenant for inspection.

"I usually use this one for lab work. It doesn't dull, but isn't terribly durable. You could bend it with your hands, as long as you didn't lose a finger or two in the process. Alternately, I could make it almost indestructible, it just wouldn't be nearly as sharp. My satchel has enchantments to that effect."

You calmly press the knife into your wrist, burying it to the hilt. The Lieutenant doesn't register what he's seeing for a moment, but gasps when he realizes exactly what you've done. Before he can do anything further you pull out the knife. There's no wound, and no blood.

"Its also enchanted to bring me no harm. Terribly useful when you've been up all night."
He looks impressed, you think, as you pass him the knife. He tests the edge lightly and it splits a few layers of skin. Satisfied, he carves a chunk off of his desk and passes it back.

"Very nice. You can do that with other objects, not just blades?"

"Yes, though results very with the item. I can't make an iron pipe cut steel for example (Yet, you think to yourself), but I could make it deliver enough force to crack it."

"Interesting. Anything else?"

"I'm good with the arcane arts, manipulation of raw magic and the like. Its kinda hard to display in practical terms without breaking something that took me a lot of time to make, but I can give you a light show at least."

You gather up some mana from the area around you and force it into existence above your palm. It appears as an angry violet color that seethes and roils. The Lieutenant looks interested, but you frown to yourself. That wasn't a good sign, something was seriously unbalancing the ether of this place. You dismiss it and make note to address the problem later.

"I also dabble a bit with the manipulation of fate, probabilities and the like, as well as some minor healing."

Your attempt to drop that last one casually is ineffective, as Lieutenant Harmon's eyes widen slightly. Healers were rare and highly sought after in the magic using community, and it looked like they weren't any less desirable here. Frankly you thought Fate was a much more useful school of magic but...

Harmon leans back in his chair and looks you over seriously. You keep quiet, suspecting that this "job" hinges on the next few moments. Finally, he nods.

"Well, that's good enough for now. I'm interested, and I am certain we could find a use for the talents you've mentioned if nothing else. You can consider yourself hired, providing you can deliver the kind of support you're imply on a consistent basis. We'll get the paperwork cleared away in the morning. Do you have a place to stay tonight? Bags that you need picked up?"

"Er, no. I pretty much just got in town and all of my stuff is on me."

"That's fine, we've got beds here for anyone that needs them. Lord knows I've used them enough. Any questions or comments before I let you go?"

"I..."

[-] Questions?
[-] Comments?
[-] Sleep?

(OOC: No familiar introductions just yet. Fae police don't do Good Cop / Bad Cop so much as Bloodthirsty Psychopath / Barely Interested Drama Queen Who Might Remember They Need You Intact If You Flatter Him Enough)

 

[Pipeman]

Can't think of antything else to ask or say, but since I'm sure there's something, I'll wait for others to vote.

 

[Vindictus]

Well, we've got the job.

Now it's time to check out the benefits.

[X] Questions-
-->[X] Wages and Benefits- We've got a bed for the night, and that's good- But what sort of office space can we expect, if any? Will we have our own lab, or will we be sharing with the science geeks? Etc.
-->[X] Job expectations- Yes, obviously, magic. But what kind of magic do they think you'll be using regularly? You're going to need different supplies, depending, and it would be silly of you to hunt down more specialized enchanting equipment if you're going to spend most of your time healing injured officers.

 

[Darik29]

[X] Vindictus

Looks good to me. Also, Yes! We picked up Healing. I Knew it was a rare talent. Good thing we nabbed it.

Now we just need to get through the Q&A part of this interview, and we should be golden.

 

[Pipeman]

[X] Vindictus

 

[Fellgar]

[X] Vindictus

 

[hunter09]

[X] Vindictus

 

[Jans]

-->[X] Wages and Benefits- We've got a bed for the night, and that's good- But what sort of office space can we expect, if any? Will we have our own lab, or will we be sharing with the science geeks? Etc.

"Our R&D department currently consists of one officer on desk leave, you'll meet him tomorrow. He's using one of the bunkers as a lab at the moment, you could probably set up there or use an empty one if you need your space. As for salary, that'll largely depend on your contributions. We're thinking to set you up as an on-call subcontractor for now, small salary in addition to lump pay for services rendered. You're looking at about..."

He throws out a figure. Its very nice, better than you would have expected really. You open your mouth to say so but the Lieutenant holds up a hand.

"Don't try to bargain with me, you can rake the hiring guys over the coals tomorrow when you set down the paperwork. We'll have your ID ready by then too."

Honestly it hadn't even occurred to you that the issue of pay was negotiable. You cover it up with the magnanimous smile you had practiced in the mirror and nod.

-->[X] Job expectations- Yes, obviously, magic. But what kind of magic do they think you'll be using regularly? You're going to need different supplies, depending, and it would be silly of you to hunt down more specialized enchanting equipment if you're going to spend most of your time healing injured officers.

"That will largely depend on you. To be honest I would prefer you didn't spend your time patching up my men, that would mean they're getting hurt in the first place. It would be unbelievably helpful, but preventative action is infinitely preferable to reactive in this business. We can discuss it in detail after you get your paperwork squared away and I can start paying you for the time."

 

[Hymn of Ragnarok]

[X] What problems do you and your men expect to encounter, and what problems have you already encountered? If you'd prefer prevention to cure, then you need to know what to prepare for in advance.

 

[Vindictus]

[X] Hymn of Ragnarok

 

[MrGazzer]

This just popped into my head. what with all the ideas for our Fairy friends name.
"Oh! This is my Familiar,Puck-Navi-Robin-Tinkerbell Goodfellow...don't look at me, she's the one who picked it. I've managed to talk her down to settling with Puck, for short but only if I get her an extra bag of M&M's twice a week. She likes them."

 

[Vindictus]

... Robin Goodmarm?

Damnit, the internet genderbends EVERYONE these days...

 

[Jans]

[X] What problems do you and your men expect to encounter, and what problems have you already encountered? If you'd prefer prevention to cure, then you need to know what to prepare for in advance.

"Well."

For the first time, Lieutenant Harmon looks at a loss. Tired too.

"We were actually hoping you could help with that. We don't know what the hell we're fighting most of the time. Monsters, for the most part. Demonic boars the size of minivans rampaging downtown, tentacle monsters boiling out of the sewers at the docks, misshapen masses of flesh, eyes, and teeth lurking into the industrial areas. Thankfully we've only had a zombie problem once, and they weren't terribly fast."

Your eyes narrow. The undead were a fairly hot topic among young mages, in that they didn't actually exist. An Animator could make a corpse move on its own like a flesh golem, and a Summoner could stuff spirits into them for quick and easy minions. Releasing either type into the streets was a big no-no in most places. Necromancy though, the actual raising of the dead? That was fallacy, lost magic at best and terrorized fantasy at worst.

Either way, that might mean one of the locals will-workers wasn't playing by the books.

"Then there's all the little stuff. Businesses terrorized by things they can't see, reports of ghosts and goblins stealing children out of their beds or off the streets, bridge trolls, and above average highway accidents. We've been getting by on hearsay and guesswork for the most part, told the boys to put their natural paranoia to work and start bringing up suspicious coincidences and patterns. We think we've got a minor problem here actually, more stuff breaking down or getting lost than usual. Thankfully the Bureau has picked up the handling of a lot of that and leaves the big shit to us, frees up a lot of my time and manpower."

His face darkens.

"These things are getting harder to put down every day though. Saxton does all he can to get us military hardware and personel but bringing the actual troops in would mean explaining why we need them.

"Who's Saxton?"

"Who's...? Oh, right. You must not have gotten out much kid, Harold Saxton is a pretty famous guy even off the continent. He's the Governor of the territory New Dresda is in. Includes what used to be Tanzania and up to the Red Sea, goes inland out to where Rwanda was before that bit of nastiness in 18. British by birth, charismatic and more than a bit manic. His office is downtown, and he signs our paychecks. Saxton's in the know about what goes bump in the night and was crucial in getting the Special Weapons Division, that's us, funded and set up. You can cut through a lot of red tape when you're effectively an elected dictator."

 

[Hymn of Ragnarok]

[X] "That....is a lot of problems. Still, at least we aren't entirely out in the cold."
[X] Give a summary of our assessments of the problems described, precautions to take, et cetera.
[X] With all of these problems, it seems our first order of business will likely be enchanting the police's gear as best they can for improved offense and defense. Possibly get started on a Fate ritual to aid anyone investigating something mysterious.
-[X] Which may very well be us. Got any cases for us to chew on?

[X] If appropriate, broach the subject of our familiar. Being Fae, it's an enormous pain in the ass to almost anyone who catches their attention....except you. Bastards like you. We could ask our Faerie familiar to start marking its turf, so to speak. Have it work on shoving out all of its competitors, making their lives miserable, or sniffing them out. But a faerie is dangerous. We can work with it, but the police should be warned not to antagonize it. In fact don't draw its attention at all if it can be avoided, suck up if it can't. Otherwise, we'll keep our familiar pointed at our enemies.



Thoughts?

 

[Vindictus]

>Necromancy

Yup, having the two Necro-schools wouldn't have been AT ALL useful~

More seriously, seems like we have our work cut out for us. I don't think we'd be very useful in the field, given our personal build- We should probably focus on support roles. So, if you'd cut that portion out I'd vote for Hymnplan, but for now I'll hold off.

 

[Hymn of Ragnarok]

What portion Vindictus? I thought I did have us working support in my plan. What's unclear? We focus on enchanting, fate magic, possibly some investigation because we have ranks in it and fate magic and background knowledge. Do the info digging, support, and point the popo at the right target.

And bringing up up our Faerie, and frankly letting it start cleaning up the town of vermin is a mixed bag, but at east we can be damn sure people are gonna die. We just need to make sure they're the right people.