[Date: Unknown time since October 23, 2020. Crossing time zones can be a real pain when you're zen walking.] [You're on the third level of the pagoda. Kristof to your East. Raleigh to your South. And a painting of Will in Prison cell in the North East Corner.] [Breaker is still with you as are your fabulous prizes from rounds one and two.] * Yuri lets herself slip to her knees, slumping heavily and shaking a little. "Buddha above..." * Marguerite is holding the Eye! She looks down at Yuri. "You okay?" * Yuri nods shakily and manages to say, "Choices like that... really fucking suck." Beat, and a weak chuckle. "I didn't figure they'd tempt me with something I wanted." * Marguerite lights up a cigarette. "... aren't you a Buddhist? Isn't that one of your fuckin' things? Desire leads to sufferin' or some shit?" * Yuri nods and says, a bit wryly, "Yeah. Seems like it, don't it?" Yeah, but there's supposed to be balance too, right? So like hitting people in anger is okay in moderation. ... really? Fuck, maybe God's okay with a little pinch hitting for the Rotund One. Hitting bein' the operative term. * Breaker snickers. * Yuri shakes her head and says, "Some things are... important." She stands up slightly. "We're not as--as traditional as Saldin looks, all the time." Which things? Wait, I'm confused. Punching People For Buddha... okay charity name, or no? * Yuri takes a deep breath and draws herself up to her full height, looking around at the windows. "No." Aww.. shit. * Marguerite looks a little sad too. "Enh. Shoulda figured." Hm. Let's take a look at this Eye doodad. * Yuri nods slightly. "You do that." She looks at the Will figure a moment, and then back around at the doorways. (Visual awareness roll, Yuri.) * Marguerite whips out Bubba, and looks between the two. "Not a bad fit, but it's gonna take a little workin'." She sets Bubba down and pulls a small set of tools out of her satchel. [Will looks a little different, but it's hard to pin down.] Am I allowed to enjoy hitting at all? * Yuri frowns a little and glances to Maggie. "Depends. You want to be buddhist?" * Marguerite spot-welds, clips, and screws! She stands up, with the Eye properly clipped, and removable, on Bubba. "Fuckin' rock. Hell no, I enjoy a drunken brawl too much." She sucks in the last of her cigarette, and spits the butt on the floorl. That's like, a triple-moderation-whammy. Drinkin' to excess, smokin' to excess, and introducin' a guy's teeth to his colon. Fuckin-A. * Breaker gestures towards Maggie. "That sounds like more fun." * Yuri chuckles a little and nods. "Yeah, yeah it is. Buddhism... probably ain't for you, Maggie." Beat. "You'll have to keep the hitting to people who really need to be hit, Breaker." Well, I guess I can do that. Ya gotta be a Christian, then. Or a Jew. Yahweh's in with the "Get drunk and flood the Earth" type shit. * Yuri sighs slightly and rubs her head. "Right... right." Beat. "I'm already in a good mood, let's go." She starts walking towards Will's door. I got drunk and woke up in a puddle once. I wonder if... Right. * Marguerite follows Yuri. She glances at Breaker, and starts humming "Mine Eyes Have Seen The Glory". [As you pass into the gate you end up not in a prison cell but in an alley. Across the street there's a movie theater showing "No Prison but the Grave." The marquee has both Chinese and English writing as do most of the signs. There's nobody around although the occasional car does drives by the end of the alley.] [Give me cultural arts (movies) and mechanics (automotive) rolls.] [But neither of you notice anything note worthy. And Maggie thinks that the movie was actually a Jane Austin adaptation by Ang Lee. She thinks it got panned.] * Yuri clamps down on the confusion from the shift in position, murmuring, "You'd think magic doors would be more accurate." She looks around a moment and then steps out into the street. Well, she'll draw some attention, for sure! * Marguerite looks around. "You people get me into the weirdest shit." * Marguerite stows Bubba and follows Yuri. [Awareness rolls.] [As Yuri walks towards the street she notices that the pavement beneath her seems to be slowly rising and that Maggie is looking a bit less battle-worn. She also feels a bit weaker.[ [The changes are small enough that Maggie doesn't notice anything.] * Yuri blinks and looks at her hand in confusion, as she walks. * Marguerite looks down at Yuri. "You seein' things?" [Her hand is a bit less calloused then she remembered.] [And as you get a bit further out you can see that the most establishments on the street are closed. A bank sign shows the time to be 11:59. There's a few people about but they seem to be moving briskly about their business. [Maggie can notice that Yuri's slightly glowy eyes are fading.] * Yuri looks up at Maggie, her yellow eyes flat and normal dullness, and says, "I don't think... I think we've walked weirdly, Maggie." Is her voice sounding younger, too? [It is.] ... okay, are we talkin' weird like "not in the right direction" or are we talkin' "Fuck, there goes the time-space continuum?" [And give me awareness rolls. Yuri add a sixth sense roll as well.] [You both notice a rat rushing in alarm from behind a dumpster at the other end of the alley. It also sounds like someone may be back there. Yuri picks up ambiant power centered on the alley but fading as it goes out into the street. There's a second source, moderately powerful, behind the dumpster.] [Give me an occult (spirits) roll Yuri.] [The general magic is oddly familiar, really familiar, but she can't quite nail it down. The dumpster she doesn't recognize but it isn't from this plane.] * Marguerite blinks. "Hey, whoever's back there, you've got five seconds before you're cosmic toast." * Yuri glances at the rat, and then the sensed power source. "Okay, who imbues a rat with power...?" Wait, what? Magic? * Yuri shakes her head. "Spirit... some sort of spirit. And that ain't a real dumpster." She walks towards it, tensed. Hey, awesome. I love fake fuckin' dumpsters. * Marguerite lights up a cigarette. * A figure wearing a long black coat steps out from the dumpster. As in simply walks through the side. It's dark back there, but even so the figure's face seems oddly cloaked in shadow. "Chill it's just.. wait, who are you?" * Yuri frowns and says, "Not who you were expecting?" * Marguerite puffs on her cigarette. "We ain't the fuckin' welcome wagon, that's for sure."
Doesn't matter. I'll be going. You ladies have a nice night. [Repeat the sixth sense check Yuri.] [No new info.] * Yuri shakes her head and says, "Wait. * Figure stops. "Why?" * Yuri says, "You were waiting for someone..." she trails off a moment, then goes, "Will?" * Figure takes a few steps back. "What's going on here?" * Marguerite throws up her hands. "When you fuckin' find out, tell me." * Yuri chuckles. "Yeah, we're not really in on exactly what's happening... I just need to be here right now, I guess."
That's not cool. I have business to do here. * Yuri nods a little and says. "Yeah." She glances back to the street. "I guess you do."
So scram. No?
No? * Figure seems confused by this reply. Look, maybe you're not into this whole fuckin' Zen daytripping shit. But we got here, and we don't get to go until Little Miss Cryptic figures out what the fuck we gotta do to make the next Leap. * Marguerite inhales on her cigarette. "So 'scram' innit really in the op list." * Figure puts a hand into his long coat. "I don't know what you're talking about lady, but I'm not looking for company. And with that bald head of hers your friend looks like Narc." [And awareness check.] * Yuri exhales noisily. "I'm not here for you. That'd be a huge waste of time..." [Maggie notices that there's suddenly a fair number of doves watching from the top of the alley. On a less trivial note, there's a younger version of the figure in the painting (Will) has just slipped out of the movie theater and is walking towards the alley.] * Marguerite blinks. "Hey, that's that dude from the painting." * Will glances down the street, sees the time, and swears in Chinese He then picks up the pace. * Yuri glances back and whispers, "Will." Beat, then she looks up to Maggie and pulls her aside, reaching up to her head and pulling it down. She's strong! "This is complex, Maggie. Will made a deal with a demon here... in another timeline, but Kristof buys the deal off him and traps him if he does. But he didn't in yours." ... ow. So why am I here, and why the fuck are you not buying me a drink while you try to explain this shit? * Yuri laughs weakly. "I'm underage?" * Will glances in puzzlement at you two but then sees the figure at the end of the street. "Hey. I'm here. You didn't mention others?" His English fairly accented. Fuck you. * Marguerite lights up another cigarette. "Explain later. Let's grab his ass and go." * Yuri whispers, "What?" Beat. "_Take_ him?"
You don't know them? They know you. What's your game Will? What's the problem? I don't know this schmuck, you claim you need him from this timeline. He's here, we're here, what's the fuckin' deal? My game? ::He glances back at Maggie who I'm guessing is not keeping her voice down too low:: * Yuri puts her hand to her forehead and looks past Maggie to Will. "Just... ugh." Beat, then she glances back to the shadow. "Does your deal have a time limit?" * Marguerite eyes Yuri. "This is one of them Zen things, isn't it? Fuck. Why'd you pick ME for this?"
Nope. * Marguerite stands back and smokes her cigarettes. Both of them. "So let these two talk, hey?"
This isn't a negotiation, this is a signing. Will gets to be a star and I get the all profits. Sort like having an agent, but I don't take as much. Right. You get the profits. That's the deal. * Yuri pauses, then blinks, looking at the demon and pointing. "But no transferring."
Great, a Narc lawyer. I don't like this at all. Deals a deal. ::He produces a contract:: You signing or not? * Will looks back at Yuri in confusion. "Transferring? What?" * Yuri frowns and steps towards the shadow, saying, "Transferring. You... you can't transfer the contract to anyone else. Just you and him." Beat. "Shouldn't be a problem, he's gonna be rich, right? And so are you?" * Figure reaches into his jacket with his other hand and draws a gun, he keeps it pointed down for now. "Narc, stay back. Will, this is sounding like a trap. If I transfer the contract the terms stay the same, what's that to you?" * Yuri grins and says, "What's it to you?" * Marguerite has Bubba in her hands rather quickly. "I'd use my brain twice before raising that fuckin' gun," she says. Rather casually. * Figure glances over Maggie. "Okay, I'm done. No more stalling, sign the contract or don't. Be a star or be no one. Your call. I can find someone else." * Will glances at Yuri. "Uh, I'm not sure who you are. But what does it matter if he transfer it?" * Marguerite looks at Will. "Deals with the Devil never work right, kid. Yuri'll tell you." The whole movie industry is based on deals with the devils. * Yuri bites her lip and murmurs, "Why couldn't I have been here earlier?" She looks to Will and says, "If he gives the contract to someone else, then they can screw you over. Don't you only wanna deal with the guy who wrote the contract?" (hmm.. give me a... persuasion of some sort check. Do it off soul or body, go with any skill you can justify) [And I'll count that as a successful assist by Maggie. Yay good cop, crazy cop with a giant gun.] I.. guess that makes sense... bloody hell. * Marguerite looks at the demon. "Come on. You can't tell me you're scared of a human." * Marguerite grins. Crazily.
I'm outta here. ::He walks up to a nearby door and opens it with a wave of his hand. His then suddenly leaps to the side as Breaker rushes out:: What's going on! Why does it feel like I'm having my first period again?! This trial sucks! ::She looks a few years younger as well:: Hey, backup. * Yuri groans and says, "Stop the shadow, Breaker!" * Figure takes that as a cue to scram... [Init off] [You guys can go first, but it looks like Breaker is reacting faster than the shadowy guy.] * Marguerite goes for a flying grapple. [Maggie rushes the guy but he's moving a little too fast.] [Yuri!] * Yuri steps up to do the same, quickly. "Hold on, spirit." [Yuri trips on a pothole and misses her chance.] [However, with her superior prowess, she's able to scramble up again and nab the guy.] Can I hit him? I really want to hit something! * Yuri frowns and says, as forcefully as a 12 year old can, "No. He has a contract to rewrite, and a deal to make." [Now that you've got a hold of him you can see through the shadows and see this is a baby-faced demon. Small horns and just looks young.]
What? No. I don't negotiate under duress. Lemme go! Don't think you've got much choice, bitch. * Yuri sighs and adds, "It wouldn't have been under duress if you hadn't run." * Marguerite grabs Bubba from where she dropped him. "Edit and sign, or the Eye of Ra gets a test fire." I ran because I don't trust you people! Gah! That sounds bad, don't do that! * Will walks up and looks over the demon., Come on. Give me an excuse. * Marguerite grins. "Please?" Yeah, me too! Let me punch him before you shoot him Maggie. Other way is no fun. * Yuri keeps him on his feet. "You want the deal. He wants the deal. Just... make it non-transferable. What's the harm?" She glances to the beat'em up twins. "Well, I guess there's harm in not..." Aw, what's the problem? Don't like punching cooked demon mash? Pretty much. * Yuri replies, in Chinese which is likely the language of the day, * Yuri looks back at Will and says, * Will laughs. * Breaker looks to Maggie. "You understand any of this?"
Not a fuckticle. * Yuri smiles a little and says, overdramatically, Beat. * Will laughs more. [And Yuri notices that the spell in the alley is fading fast. Give me one more occult (spirits) check.] * Yuri lets the demon go, shoving him towards Will. "You two... just work this out." She glances to Maggie and Breaker. "We gotta go." * Marguerite looks at the demon. "Oh, come on. We just GOT here." * Breaker lightly kicks the demon while Yuri isn't looking. * Breaker then joins up with Yuri. * Marguerite follows Yuri wherever! [And as Yuri moves Will and the figure suddenly vanish. The theater across the street is suddenly significantly more upscale and has a large line waiting for the next showing. The movie is called Emperor. YOu can see promotional postered tiled on the building next to the alley.] ... whoa, wait, what? FUCK. You gotta STOP that shit. [You're now proper age.] Pain is gone. Good. Yeah, that's not cool. * Yuri laughs weakly and looks at the poster. "It's not me, Maggie." Beat. "All I have for control is picking the path in the pagoda..." [Cultural arts (movies) roll. -4 bonus.] * Marguerite pulls out her hip flask. "It's drinkin' time." [This looks to be a real big name project. Yuri instantly recognizes the director and leading actors and actresses. Will's not one of them. He appears lower down with a "Fight Choreography by Will Cheng" line. * Yuri blinks, and then smiles weakly. "At least he's not in jail." Beat. "I... can't really hope for better than that, can I?" Could be worse. * Yuri looks at the action figure palmed in her hand a moment, and then nods, before stepping out of the alley. * Marguerite follows Yuri out of the alley. "Okay, so start explaining this..." [And about now the previous show lets out. There's a lot of chatter, mostly in Chinese "Huh, that wasn't the ending I read about. Ain't It Cool said he fought side by side with the emperor and unified the country."] * Breaker follows along. [ * Yuri starts explaining, "Okay, so... in the first timeline I remember, Will was an action star. Hong kong stuff." She gestures at the movie theater. "Like that." * Marguerite takes a swig. "... keep talkin'. I'll keep drinkin'." * Yuri chuckles a little and says, as a little more explanation, "He gave me a gun after I beat him in the tournament." Beat. "That's why I felt like I knew you better than you knew me." * Marguerite blinks. Then takes another swig. "Didn't work. Try that one again." [And you walk and explain. After a few minutes you guys notice a few undercover cop cars (look ordinary but have sirens on the dashboard) heading in the direction of the theater and the marquee is suddenly turned off.] * Marguerite looks back. "Fuck. That can't be good..." * Yuri blinks and starts to say, "Oh--' and then jump. "--hell." [And then you're back in the pagoda. The wall continues to show Will in jail, and we'll have an exciting new set of options next week!]