[IC] 🦄 The Paradoxical Emendation - Merged With T.S.

[Sigil]

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Gilbert Summers, "The Hat"

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Location: Ville au Camp, Kitchen House

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The impromptu education on the proper cup of Builder's Tea was a cheerful continuation to Gilbert's morning. It was nice to see Evelyn mirthful, if just a little. He noticed that "a little" became "a little more" as her accent shifted into something a hair more Cockney. The least he could do was acquiesce to her request for the perfect cup of tea in the broader but still early hours of the day. "No problem, Evie." He smiled, showing off damned near perfect teeth framed with a warm expression. He picked up his burgundy ascot from the back of his chair and hung it about his neck untied, thusly doubling the number of visible articles of clothing he was wearing at that moment. Between that and his pants, he was (very) slowly amassing a passable ensemble.

He gave a nonverbal offer before adding an amount of milk and sugar to Evelyn's cup, and continued his end of the discussion. "But of course. I would remind that the workaday ladies and gentlemen that are only allotted a handful of decades above ground have mastered the art of the perfect cup of tea. But I do admit that you have spent much more time in Western Tea Country." The comment about the choice of cup was also noted. Being honest, he would have said that he had completely forgotten the preferred style of cup in that moment, but there was no way he was going to just come out and say that. "You are right, of course. I can't just hand you a mug though, Evelyn. You are far too graceful for something so clunky this early in the day. We need to see you just like this: Petite, intelligent, powerful, and ever the lady." He smiled warmly again before sitting back down in front of his breakfast and shoving it into his face with semi-abandon. Luckily, there was a napkin present. It would likely be very needed.

The next bit of conversation took a more down note, sadly, as he may have overstepped a line with her concerning her abilities as an Emendator. Theirs were not gifts that they asked to obtain. Sometimes, even his were a burden. It must be doubly so for The Dice, if not more. Luck be a Lady, but no one ever asked the Lady if she wanted the honor in the first place. Gilbert tried to look as understanding as possible through his assault on steak and eggs and bread and fruit. Such was his way.

The last two things that she said to him were fairly pointed. Of course the day was unending. That was the point of their little temporal oasis. But the very last one... Checkmate. Gil invented the damned game a LONG time ago, and though it had gone through changes over the past few millennia, it was still Chess. Mentally reviewing the board however, she was correct. He sprinted to the back door which Evelyn had just left, calling out after her jokingly, "This will not stand, woman! GAAHH!" Sighing, he continued with an almost defeated, "...Pawn to Queen Four..."

At least he could return to what was still a nice, warm, massive breakfast, though now with less company.

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James Grady

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Location: Ville au Camp - Main House, Room 209 -> Room 107

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Sadly, no one passed by James's room while he was in clothing transition. Though his frame once went a little toward the girthy, he noticed that the years he spent living and laboring in what amounted to the worst parts of the Bible had worked some changes to him. He was a little older. There was no denying that. Time and terrors had taken their toll, but living to survive and help others survive had made him a leaner, stronger, more constitute individual. Okay, so it also drove him into a state of mental anguish wherein one particularly bad night and following morning nudged him to commit an act of murder. Maybe he had to, maybe he didn't. He'll never know now. But physically, James was doing just fine for a man in his forties. And now he had his troublemaking partner back. This might not be Heaven, but he was pretty sure it wasn't Hell, either.

During his rapid clothing switch, he heard something clatter on the floor next to him. From his pocket, a single curve of what appeared to be ivory fell and came to rest next to his boots. Carefully, he picked it up, examining the curious item. He remembered what this was from his previous life, though memories from what seemed to be just yesterday were still fuzzy. It was a tusk, one that came from a boar. He could not say why he had it now, any more than he could have told himself with certainty why he woke up in clothing better suited to ginning cotton. It was strange. But everything so far this day was, anyway. He tucked the tusk into a pocket of his overalls and looked around his room to see what else was provided for him.

The basic amenities were there; bed and dresser, mirror, etc. Basic furniture that one might find in a bedroom of the era. Interestingly, there was a fireplace as well. That was a feature he could appreciate. While he stood, giving a touch of awe to the respectable fire alcove, his eye caught a few things lined up on the dresser along the wall. One was a very familiar ornate brass necklace, featuring a detailed casting of a stag's head. Very gaudy for someone like James, but it wasn't his originally. It belonged to someone close to him, a fellow archer and agriculturalist named Maria. It was from Maria that the people of Newnan learned a very valuable lesson, turned into a horrifying cautionary tale:

Never kiss a corpse.

The necklace went to her sister after her passing, and upon his exile she gifted it to James. He genuinely cared about those girls. They were like family. It was a bittersweet reminder of them both. He picked it up for a moment, looking at it wistfully, then put it back down reverently. Slowly, he moved to close his door. About halfway through the motion, he stopped, transfixed by what was hanging on the back of it. He started to smile. Then he started to laugh. The Call of the Mirthy Blackneck sounded down the hallway as James tried hard not to fall over, his hand coming to rest on the nearby wall. He laughed long and loud, and when he had to pause to wipe the tears from his eyes, he looked back at it again. Really took it in. It was a tuxedo, the last one he had worn for the last wedding he attended for the last night he spent in his home, around the people he considered family. It dawned on him, his tears weren't just because he was laughing so hard.

"Hell with this, I'm findin' my girl Sophia..." he decided on the spot. Alicia said she was in room 107, so that's where he was going, and now. He pulled his boots back on and stepped outside of his appointed room, locked it up, and put the key securely in his pocket. He descended the stairs across the hallway, and navigated the rectangular path of the corridor until he located Room 107. James took in a deep breath, let it out, and gave three solid knocks. "Hey there, neighbor! Y'all mind if I can borrow a cuppa sugar?"

[Lady Absinthia]

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Evelina Lucas

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Location: Headed Towards Abandoned House Near Servants Quarters -> Abandoned House

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Evelina clasped the mouth piece of her pipe between her teeth and grinned slightly as she heard Gilberts outburst. He never did take it well when she beat him in a game of chess. He claimed he was the one to invent the skill based game and she believed him but just because he came up with the idea, well that didn't mean he was the best player. She couldn't fault his skill level, he was a master at the game but she still would get a win in a little more than half the time. She chalked it up not to her being more skilled than he was but just because it was how her mind worked. She had to deal with randomness constantly, especially every time the back of her mind tickled and the dice were dropped, so she did everything she could to keep as much control as possible on other aspects of her life. Chess was just a game but it was something she could control much more fully.

Looking up at the underside of the trees she watched the Spanish Moss sway gently in the fall air. The sun was up now and the colors were painting the ground beneath her feet. The weather had just the slightest coolness to it and the clouds passed by just enough to keep things from becoming too hot and humid. It was one of the few times of the year that it was nice to be in the South. Had they had to live each day of the calendar, they hardly would have picked such a southern location. The summers were nothing to mess around with. Eve was of a strong opinion that one is better of battling the winters than the summers. One could always put on another layer, one could only take off so many articles of clothing before they were wandering around in the buff. While Gilbert seemed to have no qualms with wandering around their home in as little as he felt was acceptable, Eve preferred to remain fully clothed as often as possible. She had put aside the sheer fabrics and loose robes when she left Greece some time ago.

Wandering over to the abandoned house near the servants quarters she pushed the door open and stepped inside. When Drem was alive she had shared a room with him, for many a century. Yet when he was taken from them she could no longer keep the majority of his possessions in the room anymore. It caused too many memories to creep in during the dark hours of the night. It made her feel far to out of control with her emotions. So she boxed everything up and kept it out of sight no matter where they lived. She couldn't bring herself to get rid of any of it but she couldn't be surrounded by it either. She placed a portrait of him in one room, kept his glasses by her bed but the rest of his long life was now in this house. She normally avoided the place but with so many new Paradoxes arriving today, she wanted a few moments to remember him. She wished he was there to be the eyes they desperately needed now.

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Alicia Gonzalez

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Location: Oak Tree -> Kitchen House

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Alicia took a look down at her clipboard and her brow quirked slightly. No new name had appeared yet. Pursing her lips she shook the board again as if it was an etch-a-sketch. Still nothing came up. That was odd. She was sure that Lady Lucas had told her there were going to be at lest two more showing up today if not more. Maybe The Dice was wrong? Nah, she doubted that. Then she felt her stomach grumble slightly. Maybe that was why no new names were showing up? She was getting a bit of a break to actually eat breakfast. She had had time before Sophia had shown up but she didn't take it. She had been far too excited to eat anything. Her first official day on the job and all that jazz. Yet now she had welcomed three new people and hadn't done a half bad job at it. Okay, she could have done better but it was her first go at it. And on an empty stomach!

She could fix the hunger pains. Turning towards the Kitchen house she spotted the front door open and heard Gilbert yelling out the back. Seemed Eve had beat him, again. Shrugging to herself she tucked the clipboard under her arm and make the quick walk over to the kitchen house and up the stairs. Looking around she didn't see him straight off but she did see the huge pile of food on the table. Smirking she started to move over to it, intent on snatching some steak but then she spotted him and stopped. "Damn it, couldn't your ass be outside for a few minutes?" she said as she eyed him and then the plate. "Where's the hot sauce?" she said as she wandered over to the ice box and popped the door open. Looking in she found some eggs and bacon. She wasn't a cook but she could fry up eggs and bacon decently enough. As long as she had enough hot sauce it would be fine.

Grabbing a cast iron skillet she set it on top of the stove and got to work. This was a huge change from her kitchen back in Justice but at least this place didn't have her enchiladas stuck to the ceiling. Granted it wasn't her fault that had ended up in the ceiling. It wasn't every day a Mexican in smiley faced boxers and fluffy bunny slipped kicked in someones front door screaming and waving a bottle of tequila around. That had caused her to jump while carrying the food and sent it flying into the air and all over the place. Poor Lorna had ducked and covered, weapons were drawn. All because her Papi thought she was under attack. It was a day to remember that was for sure. As the eggs bubbled in the grease and the bacon spurted Alicia looked over to Gilbert and smirked a bit. She thought her Papi and The Hat would have gotten along, maybe one day they would. She hoped she wouldn't find out any time soon though. As long as Caesar wasn't there she could imagine him taking care of her son Liam.

"Seen Eve this morning? I wondering if I have any more bitches from Georgia showing up today. Be nice to know before they showed up. James shocked the fuck out of me. Whose next? My ex-lover?" she said as she wrapped a towel around the handle of the cast iron skillet and set it down on the table. Pouring a heavy amount of hot sauce on her eggs she sat down and took a huge bite. She didn't even bother with a plate. It was just a waste of time and she didn't know how long she had until the next person showed up. Looking down at the clipboard no name had showed up yet. She at least had a few more minutes to chew and swallow, at least she hoped she did. "We need stronger hot sauce," she said after a large swallow and just before she shoved a slice of bacon between her lips.

[Nallore]

Sophia Harris

Location: Ville au Camp: Room 107 (Sophia's Room)

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As Sophia sat in her chair she reached down and started to take off her heels, just to get comfortable setting them down next to the chair she opened up her book once more. At least she had something to read and her own space in the new house, she leaned back to get a bit more comfortable. She would have to get used to not being around people that she didn't know, though Alicia seemed to be nice she thought then Sophia turned her head towards the door after hearing three knocks. She paused for a moment the voice sounded really familiar to her, Sophia really wasn't expecting anyone that she truly knew back in Newnan.

Though the voice she knew Sophia never really gotten the chance to know him that well spending most of her time up until her death inside the infirmary. Sophia quickly got up not bothering to put on her heels, and made her way towards the door unlocking it and opened the door. And indeed it was Black James, though they never talked during her time there she had a feeling that they would have gotten along really well. She quickly gave James a friendly hug.

She had so many questions for him, how did he die, what happened to Newnan, how long has it been since she passed, and the most important ones. Is Niesha still alive, and how has she been. "It's so great to see you, I don't believe I have any sugar here though please come in!" Sophia said with a smile before opening her door a bit more to let James in.

[Sigil]

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Gilbert Summers, "The Hat"

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Location: Ville au Camp, Kitchen House

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Alicia and Gilbert seemed to have a similar style of table manners while at leisure. That is to say, none really at all except for the broadest of concepts. For example, neither of them had used their sleeves or tablecloth as a napkin yet and both of them were using forks. Being fair, there wasn't a cloth over the table at any rate and Gil wasn't in sleeves, but the principle remained the same. The fork issue was actually something that Gilbert had to learn, once upon a time, as his existence predated the invention of the personal table fork. Still, it was a welcome addition to his repertoire of common human knowledge. Gilbert was knowledgeable of, and indeed fond of formal dining etiquette when it was called for; otherwise he couldn't be bothered. This was particularly true of times when he was eating with Alicia, who again, shared a similar style of table manners.

He would have answered her question straightaway, but one of the few points of tact he possessed prevented him from speaking openly with a mouth crammed full of steak and eggs. He answered her first question (concerning why he couldn't be outside for a few minutes) with a shrug, tilting his head to the side. Not that he minded so much sharing a bit of his meaty preparations with her, but she seemed to have moved on from it as quickly as she brought it up. When she started cooking, Gilbert immediately started kicking himself for neglecting to include Bacon in his breakfast. Tomorrow, maybe.

Alicia's second question also seemed to resolve itself. He had attempted to motion over to where it lay, failing to pass along the message as she had already began turning back around to see to her meal. So, he continued to happily munch away until she had finished preparing her own food.

"Yes, Eve was just here, actually." Finally, a question that he could answer. "I think she was headed in the general direction of the servants' quarters." It was a funny and irregular language, English. He had become quite enamored with the continued use of it. Answering questions seemed a decent expression of the language. "You know some of these people personally? This explains all the noise from earlier." The Emendator known colloquially as "The Hat" scraped a fair portion of chopped steak onto a bread plate and pushed it across the table to Alicia with his index finger. He raised his eyebrows for an instant and leaned back in his seat. Gilbert yawned a little and stretched, raising his arms high above his head and leaning back a bit. While his head was tilted back, his ears picked up the burbling sound of water on the stovetop. Deftly, Gilbert stepped out of his chair and procured two cups, dropped a full tea infuser in each, and poured the simmering water into each. He kept one cup for himself ad set the other in front of Alicia. "Yeah, I'd say we do need stronger hot sauce. I'll see what I can do about that later. It's too bad that we can't easily find a Curry nearby. Have you ever tried Vindaloo? It's the closest thing to fire I think I have consumed. It's from India, or near there. Eh.." Gilbert was starting to ramble.

"But to business," he said in an ironically casual fashion. "Did Evie mention how many will be joining the household today?" The tall immortal swept up his shirts and vest, finishing dressing himself next to the dwindling heap of his very large breakfast. "I am to give the new group a tour of the grounds after they have settled in. I'd rather take care of it sooner than later. But first, you never speak much about your other timeline. The one with zombies? I think that is the term... This is where the new ones are from?"

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James Grady

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Location: Ville au Camp - Main House, Room 209 -> Room 107

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James was relieved to see that she had taken the whole "Thou Art Dead" bit with grace and tact. He had half expected to see a woman who was broken and sobbing with depression. Hell, he kind of felt like doing that, himself. He didn't get to know Sophia all that well prior to her death, but she seemed like a stand-up lady. James accepted the hug and returned the gesture, giving her a formidable but not too forceful squeeze and lifting her off of the ground slightly. It was his way.

"Ha HA, girl! It's damn nice to see another friendly face up in here! I mean, I'm sorry you're dead an' all, but still, it's good to see you. Now, you gotta know I ain't needin' no sugar, Sugar. But I'll be happy to step inside an' visit a while." The optimistic blackneck took a step of two inside of Sophia's room, nodding his head with a grateful, "Thanks ya much." He reminded himself that this was 1943and that they were in semi-rural Louisiana, of all places. "Now, don't you go around tellin' folks we was talkin' all alone-like. Get a brotha strung up a muthafuckin' tree... But hey, how long you been here, an' what can you tell me 'bout what's goin' on?"

Considering the utter confusion and meeting of old friends, James could go for something along the lines of a nice, flammable nerve tonic. "Come to think on it, I could really use some o' the Captain's sippin' mash. We got anything like that 'round here?" Maybe not the most appropriate thing this early, but to James's credit, he'd very recently been dead. Circumstances were a little extenuating. "Maybe we can talk over a drink, hmm?"

[Morose]

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Nancy Parker

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Location: Ville au Camp: Main House (Room 202)

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Nancy snickered at Gio's unintended joke. While she was only a few centuries younger than him, so to speak, she was incredibly childlike in many ways. She would sympathize with Peter Pan if the character was real, as she too remained almost timeless over the millennia. Would she ever reach a higher state of psychological maturity and abandon her chaotic, impulsive, and often childish ways? The jury's still out on that one, but Nancy wouldn't advise anyone to hold their breath to wait and see.

"Don't mind at all, Gio," Nancy replied cheerfully. She bounced lightly on her toes, hardly able to contain her giddiness. She absolutely adored every break in the routine. Once the dresser was out of the way and Gio pulled the costume out, Nancy was able to view it in all of its glory. As prisoner costumes went, it wasn't half bad. There definitely had been worse get-ups over the ages and she knew that fashion was pretty much the only thing guaranteed to get better with time. The way it even seemed faded only spoke to the lengths Gio had gone to get this absolutely perfect.

"If we ever get a chance like this again, Gio, I'll play designer and you can have the lead role," Nancy offered. "I can probably give you some tips on acting as well," she added with a wink. Acting and mimicry were some of her specialties - some of the less strange ones she had. It was always funny to see a way a Paradox's eyes just popped when they realized she was skilled in torture.

Making sure that the door was closed, Nancy promptly stripped. She could have left her clothing in a neat little pile, but it instead more appeared to be a contained disaster. Undergarments remained on, as there was no reason to switch those out. If a Paradox was able to critique her undergarments, then there was a bigger problem with their plan to consider anyways. Nancy pulled on the jumpsuit, putting in one foot at a time with a little hop in order to keep her balance. Once she managed to get it through, Nancy glanced down at her oxfords. Should she wear shoes or should she go barefoot? She figured it was an artistic choice at that point and opted to go without.

"You've really outdone yourself," Nancy added. "Alright-y then. Chain me up, please."

[FantasyChic]

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Faith Masters

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Location: Room 108 -> Outside Hallway

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As Faith entered her room, and her introduction guide left, she scoped her surroundings again. Despite being told she was in the past, her room felt more modern than that. It felt like a room she would have had before the end of the world happened. There was the cutest pink stuffed puppy on her bed, one she gave a quick squeeze to as if she needed consoling. She also walked up to the full-length mirror and gave herself the once over.

She had to admit that she didn't know history all that well, but if this was the time period that woman told her it was, then she did, in fact, look like she was at the pinnacle of fashion. She looked cute, in an old-timey, "this is what your grandma wore" kind of way. It wasn't terrible. She would get used to it. She hoped....

Still, it hit her again. She was dead. Like, wasn't death something to be feared? She was stuck here and wasn't able to go back, which was a no-no in her eyes. She would definitely go back. Surely if there was a power to send her here to her limbo, it was able to send her back.

Until such a time, she may as well make the best of things. Her accommodations were acceptable for now. She wondered what else was in store. Should she wait in her room?

Nah fuck that. Once she checked herself out again, she stepped back in the hallway, ready to explore her new "home".

[Lady Absinthia]

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Evelina Lucas

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Location:Abandoned House

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The sun was pouring in through the cabins front door and specks of dust caught in the light dancing around like glitter in the warmed air. The windows were covered with dust and pollen from years of build up. It was one of those places on the land that hadn't been taken care of before the day was frozen in time. The place was just a run down abandoned building when they came there and Evelina had never thought to use it for anything. There were plenty of places on the property that had needed tending to that would be used heavily. The main house had been the first to be tended to, after which was the kitchen house. Then there was the mill and the barn. A few other choice smaller buildings, the grounds themselves, etc. Yet this one building had been left alone. It was alone, in the middle of the woods nearly, away from the rest. Maybe she should have done something with it but looking around, even now, she was glad she hadn't.

A curl formed at the corner of her lips. Drem would have liked this house. It was messy, broken down, covered in a layer of dirt but yet it had character. It looked as if it had been lived in before it was abandoned and the belongings of his that she kept stored there looked as if they were made for this setting. As if the building had been placed there for the very purpose of holding his life in stasis after he was gone. The only thing that wasn't in there was the last pair of glasses he had worn....

The memory of that day came flooding into her mind. A journal had appeared in Brogden, a little town out in the Dakota Territory. The year was 1884. The journal however was from a woman by the name of Silvia and it was from her life before her transfer from Earth to Atlenia in the year 3590. Needless to say, it did not belong there and could horribly throw off the time line. That time line had already been distorted, creatures running rampant that should have never seen the light of day. Vile creatures that sounds of their unlife were whistled on the wind and others even more horrid that were black masses, with tentacles who froze the earth and waters where they appeared. Angpetu Dulain, a paradox, went with Drem and Evelina back to that time to hunt down the journal. They found it, Evelina was the only one to return...

Seeing the journal sitting there on a table, Evelina picked it up and sat down, flipping through it slowly until she froze. Blood was splattered on the pages. It was odd to find a relic from a future era that was as old fashion as this journal but there it was. And because it was nothing high tech other than the cover itself, the blood soaked into that wood pulp based papyrus. The sound of the journal snapping shut echoed through the cabin as the sound of crickets and cicadas crept in. She tossed the journal back on the table as she stood up, the dust billowing from the floor and up around her black shoes as the smoke rose from her pipe. "Enough of this cobblewobble," she told herself as she stepped out of the cabin and the door closed heavily behind her. Shoving her hands into her jacket pockets she looked out over the green before her and steeled her emotions.

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Alicia Gonzalez

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Location: Kitchen House ->

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Alicia kept shoveling in the eggs and bacon with a vengeance, shaking more and more hot sauce on between bites. "Shit, I wish we had some. Fuck man, find me a ghost pepper and we can start talking." If one didn't know better, one could easily think that Alicia was Gilberts long lost sister. The way she carried herself and ate nearly mirrored the multiple millennia old warrior. Granted there was no way possible she was related. Emendators couldn't have children. So there was never a spawn of such. Yet if there ever had been one that did, it was probably Gilbert and the result of his seed was probably the Gonzalez line. I mean, who else would cook shit, bust down doors in fuzzy bunny slippers, and be feared through the centuries? Well other than a Gonzalez or Gilgamesh.

Evelina had been in that morning? That was good she was out and about but sadly she had missed her. She doubted she would get a chance before the next person showed up. Leaning back she wiped her mouth with a rag on the table and shook her head slightly. "No idea, she never said exactly. I think we have a couple more new asshats showing up. Yeah... Already brought in three and every damn one of them is from the same damn area," she said before dropping the cloth on the table and downing her cup of coffee. "It's weird, dying one way, getting here and remembering dying elsewhere. But yeah, they're form then. Only one of them I actually know. James. Think you'll like the Blackneck, cooks up some mean BBQ," she said with a smirk as she stood up and walked her things over to the sink.

Turning she looked back over to him and out of the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of her clipboard. There were words appearing on it. "Shit! Gotta run! Clean that shit for me, please!!!" she said as she grabbed the clipboard and darted out of the kitchen house. She jumped from the porch to the ground, skipping the front steps entirely, and sprinted the short distance to the tree. The portal had already turned and was lifting up as it was dropping off the next person. Alicia basically did a hip slide right next to the woman as she appeared and if there had been an umpire present they would have yelled "SAFE!" Her face ended up right next to the woman. "Welcome to Thunderdome! You're dead!"

[Nallore]

Sophia Harris

Location: Ville au Camp: Room 107 (Sophia's Room)

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Sophia smiled to herself when she was lifted up slightly by James' hug before letting her down, she took a step back tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She was happy to at least see a familiar face here and she wasn't alone still, once James took a step into her new room Sophia closed the door behind her. "Your secret is safe with me don't worry, wont leave a familiar face hanging." She said with a light laugh as she remembered during these times people like James were treated very poorly back then. Then James asked how long she has been here, and if she had any kind of answers for him.

"I honestly only just woke up here not that long ago myself, other then us reliving the movie Groundhog Day over and over, and people called Emendators here are like really old one of them brought us back from what I know. Other then that I haven't the slightest clue why we are even here." Sophia answered truthfully, then the thought of getting some drinks wasn't a bad idea but then again she hadn't fully explored the grounds just yet.

"A drink sounds good, I think there might be some in the kitchen house just across the grounds from the main housing building. We could maybe find something there? I have so many questions to ask you as well how long I've been gone and things like that." Sophia said, she really had a lot of questions as to what had happened since her death.

[Dragoknighte]

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Giosue Zino

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Location: Ville au Camp: Main House: Room 202

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"Nonsense Loki, I'm quite the actor already," the Emendator spoke with complete confidence, his voice increasing in volume by 10 decibels at the least. As he spoke he began to pace about the room dramatically and gesture with great energy. "I'll have you know that I was in the fifth performance of Sophocles' Ajax. What a play that was. I'll tell you, theatrics have lost their way." The fact Giosue always failed to mention when he brought up his brief, ancient history with theater is that he only held a bit, non-speaking background part, covering for a friend who had grown ill that night.

Giosue continued to gesticulate until he turned around and found the mess that was Nancy's discarded clothing. Immediately his mood switched from bombastic, playful boastfulness to overworked housemaid. He stooped over, picking up all of his friends clothes, shaking off any stray dirt they may have picked up from the ground and making sure they were all properly hung up or folded before getting back to Nancy. He knew she didn't care, but her clothes being thrown about his room, being dirtied unnecessarily really bothered him. Even if he did ignore them, he wouldn't be able to focus on the rest of their business before something was done about the whole situation.

Mess now clean, Giosue opened the drawer to his work dresser and fetched the binder containing the finalized version of the script they'd worked on together. Well, script wasn't entirely correct. It was half script, half character outline. A great deal of the time she spent would have to be off the cuff, so she needed to be in the proper head space to method act the part without a hitch. Gio pulled out a copy for himself and for Nancy each before taking a seat in his Writing Chair.

"Where shall we begin, Ashley?"

[Sigil]

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Gilbert Summers, "The Hat"

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Location: Ville au Camp, Kitchen House

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A smile and knowing nod came from the still chewing form of Gilbert. It did seem to be a curious coincidence, having three come from the same place in the same alternate timeline. Four, if you count Alicia. While not a particularly religious person, Gilbert did skim the various holy texts once upon a time. He recalled from one something about a time of trials, the dead rising from the grave, and people being tested in horrible ways. This sounded a lot like snatches of descriptions he picked up from Alicia every now and again. Even curiouser, Gilbert found that he wanted to speak with some of these people. He had survived pandemics in the past, witnessed what people could turn into when war turned their homelands into waste and ash. Those who made it out alive were a unique breed of person, and this alternate line sounded like it was the most extreme example of pandemic/war that he had personally heard about.

That would have to wait for a little while. Alicia's clipboard was giving its subtle warning that the High Magical Tree was about to upchuck another dead person, and with it another individual for the other Immortals to do... well, knowing some of them (ahem - Gio and Nancy) something questionable. He preferred to stay out of their shenanigans whenever possible, but maintained a sort of grudging neutrality; unless a Paradox was having a particularly bad time of it, Gilbert didn't give but the basest of warnings. At any rate, Alicia had give him the name of one of them that had just arrived, plus the bonus fact that he was a skilled hand with barbecue. Well, was a skilled hand with it. It was a depressing turn of events that getting revived as a Paradox scrambled the skills picked up in their previous lifetime. He did have his memories, though. And it was precisely that which he wanted to peruse. That James fellow, Sophia, and whoever the newer one was. By the sound of it, the first two seemed to take their situation fairly well. Maybe it was time to introduce himself and have a chat.

But first... Gilbert had to handle some dishes that his protege left for him. Or not. He could just leave them sitting there until the next morning, when these things would reset, anyway. Yeah, that was a good idea. He did take the opportunity to run a bit of water over them, though, knocking off the more obvious bits of mealtime flotsam and jetsam, before he added his own dishes to the sink. He filled the sink with water and a bit of detergent and let them soak (you're welcome), dressed the rest of the way, and readied to leave. On the way out, he grabbed a half loaf of bread and some persimmon jam. You know, for the road.

---

---

James Grady

---

---

Location: Ville au Camp - Main House, Room 107

---

"Yeah hey, thanks for that." James responded quickly, in reference to her willingness to keep her mouth shut about him being unattended with her in her private room. "Aight, aight, so you sayin' that I can't even cool my heels here, next few years until we get to the 50's?" An odd look crossed his face for a second, "O'course, they wasn't good years on my people, either... Hell woman, I got half a mind to run my ass to Alabama, see if I can't get in with the Tuskegee Airmen! Lawrence Fishburne was the man in that flick, wasn't he?"

He sighed. "But we supposed to be here for a reason, right? Just that you don't know what it is, I don't know what it is, an' the folks in the know are these Enema-daters." Well, that narrowed down his options somewhat. If he wanted answers, he needed to go out and get them. So he'd been dead lately. Apparently these things happened, and sometimes death was a temporary condition that could be averted by taking a detour into the 40s and hunkering down in a godforsaken part of swampland with some particularly interesting architecture. "Aight then, Miss Sophia, if'n you'd be as kind, would you please show me to the "Kitchen House", where a man such as myself can locate somethin' flammable to sip on in the early mornin'?" He was already walking toward the door, a hand on the knob, his other hand reaching out to Sophia. "Maybe even some crumpets & tea?"

[Morose]

---

---

Nancy Parker

---

---

Location: Ville au Camp: Main House (Room 202)

---

Nancy couldn't help but snort at Gio's defense of his acting skills. She was very much aware of his lengthy resumé when it came to theatre performances. Had he not used one of her favorite names, one echoing back to her favorite era, she likely would've teased him about it. Those insults and playful jabs could be saved for next time - she was certain that there would be a next time, of course. With the exception of the Glasses, nothing in her long life had ever suggested anything to the contrary. The wheel of time would keep on turning, bringing back similar situations over and over again.

Of course, there were some that she simply didn't care for.

"I completely believe you," Nancy simply said, her voice laced with sarcasm. She shot Giouse a winning smile. If he had asked her, she would've cleaned up the small mess her clothing had made - but he hadn't. She wasn't about to stop him. It was his room - his rules. The chains seemed like they'd be waiting for later, as Gio handed her a copy of the Script instead of handcuffing her or putting on the ball and chain.

Her eyes flickered over the front page of the Script, tapping her fingers against it for a few seconds. While it would've been nice for a Paradox from this era to have arrived, so that way she could merely mimic their voice, she had a rough idea of how it should sound. "Gorram...Gorram...Gorram," Nancy said, changing her volume and pitch. She then shook out all of her limbs, ready to enter the headspace of her character: Ashley Windshire. She and the Watch had spent a good deal of time on this, researching everything they would need to make this prank their masterpiece. At least, until they came up with something better.

"I reckon you oughta field me some questions, about me and my role in the 'Verse," Nancy said. They had identified a few common slang words for her to use. Gorram was the obvious and most common one. Authenticity was important for both of them, just in case one of the Paradoxes really was from this era. It'd be a tragedy if all of their hard work and research was wasted instantly.

[FantasyChic]

---

---

Faith Masters

---

---

Location: Outside Hallway ->
Library

---

Faith looked around in the hallway. She was looking for somewhere particular. She wouldn't admit it to the woman that met her, despite their shared trait, but she was worried. Back in Georgia, she didn't have anything to take care of this problem. Looting in different stores yielded very little. However, she was lucky on occasion, but more often than not she had to make do and that was a bitch. She knew it was coming and she dreaded it.

Nothing was happening though. She didn't feel different or uncomfortable or anxious or anything! In fact, she felt much the same (apart from still being pissed off she was killed by that bitch). She took a moment to check and sure enough, nothing was happening.

She didn't have her period!

She assumed that, despite being killed, since she was here and all she would still have the same basic needs, but she wasn't having it.

Faith let out a rather loud holler Hell yeah!" Did that mean she couldn't get pregnant either? Could she have as much sex as she wanted and not have to worry about little annoyances popping up? Oh if that were true, it may not be so bad here.

Faith entered what appeared to be the library. It wasn't her original intent, but it would do. She was curious about this place. Perhaps there was a book about it? She searched the bookcase for anything relating to where she currently was.

[mnkee]

---

---

Alexandra & Alicia

---

---

Location: Ville au Camp: Oak Tree

---

Alexandra's eyes flew open, and her nostrils flared as she took in a gasping breath, filling her lungs with the air that they had so rudely been deprived of. An unfamiliar face swam into view as her eyes regained their focus. No sooner then did the stranger's words hit her eardrums. She blinked, the only sign that she had heard the woman. She was uncharacteristically quiet as she processed the words, and her eyes widened as memories of her death trickled back.

Resting her head on the palm of her hand, Alicia lay there in her "slide into home" position and let the woman think for a minute. From what she had seen on the clipboard this woman had had a rather quick and unexpected death and Evelina had explained to her that when death occurred that quickly it was a bit more for people to take in than a long coming death. Alicia had known she was going to die, she had been fighting for a long while to try to stay alive but she knew it was coming. It wasn't unexpected, in fact at the time it had partially been welcome to stop the events from going any further.

"Ya think?" she finally countered sarcastically, though it lacked some of its usual punch. "I just had my head lobbed off." She suddenly let out a small gasp and sat up quickly, her slender hands flying to her head and neck. She let an almost maniacal laugh as she felt her head fully intact and attached to her body.

"Shit bitch, I would say it's nothing to lose your head over but in this case I'll just say it's nothing to get your panties in a wad over," Alicia said snickering as she sat up and crossed her legs. Draping her arms over her knees she let the clip board dangle there for a minute.

"I've got my head back!" she exclaimed. Her brows then furrowed with confusion as she finally took in her foreign surroundings. "Vhat the hell?" she further exclaimed. "--Or heaven?" She looked back over at Alicia, arching a brow in question.

"Neither actually," the Mexican woman in very odd clothing for Alexandras time said as she looked down at her clip board. "Russian... Late 1700's, circus.. Oh hell, going forward is a lot fucking harder than going back," she said letting out a huff and blowing some of her dark hair out of her face. Looking at Alex she pursed her lips and grumbled a bit. "You're in America now and it the 1900's."

Alexandra made a face like Alicia had just grown a second head. "Time travel, seriously? Nov you sound like the crazy voman," she retorted. She then stood up, brushing herself off. As her hands touched unfamiliar fabric, she looked down to find that her attire was entirely different. She wore a black and white dress of all things, and it was paired with black opera length gloves, pearl earrings, and low black heels. As far as she was concerned, it totally wasn't her style. She didn't do dresses. They were too stifling. She much preferred wearing pants, to the horror of the women of the 1800s ton.

Smirking Alicia stood up and dusted her read end and sides off from sliding in when Alexandra arrived. "Says the bitch who clearly remembers dying because of some Rube Goldberg death trap and ended up being the Alice the Queen fucking wanted after playing croquette," Alicia spouted off in a snarky voice. Then it dawned on her that she just used two terms that this woman would have absolutely no idea about considering they hadn't been around in her time.

Her lips thinned, and her eyes narrowed slightly. She put a hand on her hip as she looked expectantly back at Alicia, arching a brow in question. "Vould you care to explain this--" she began sassily, gesturing to her foreign clothing with her free hand before gesturing to her similarly foreign surroundings. "And all this in more detail."

"It's why I am here, come on chica, walk with me," she said as she motioned for Alexandra to follow her towards the big house. "You girl are what is known as a Paradox, a person that died but was brought back to life. You are now in what is 1943 United States - Southern Part. Louisiana to be exact. This place is known as Ville au Camp. Everything within it's perimeter is on a twenty-four hour time loop, that reset everyday to keep us here and safe. We have four people that watch over us called Emendators - they have been around since the beginning of time. The Dice, better known as Evelina Lucas today, is the one that brought you back. Why I don't know. She just does this shit. Here you will live out a new life, get a second chance. You can't go back to your old life, you can't do what you used to do," Alicia rambled on nonchalantly as she opened the door to the main house and motioned for Alexandra to step on into the mansion. "On an up note, we don't have periods here so no more bleeding down our legs every fucking month."

Alexandra dropped her hands back down to her sides as she let out a small sigh. She nodded her head slightly and followed alongside Alicia. Her dark brown eyes took in her surroundings as they walked and talked. She glanced back over at the woman ever so often as outlandish things poured forth from the woman's mouth. "Uh huh, sure," Alexandra commented when there was a momentary pause in Alicia's rambling. She rolled her eyes before once again examining her new surroundings. As far as she was concerned, Alicia was crazy, but then again perhaps she was too.

Pushing some of the drooping Spanish moss back and out of the way Alicia continued up towards the house. She knew it was a lot to take in but the girl and the others were handling it better than Alicia had when she had arrived. Alicia had been a wreck. She had died, and then got flooded with memories of another death, another life she had lived. She didn't bother mentioning that yet though, the usual one death was enough to take in during the first minutes.

Ultimately, her head just couldn't quite wrap around the sheer magnitude of all this new information. Though, in the end, she supposed it didn't really matter if she understood everything that was going on. She would make the most out of this crazy situation, just like she always did. Her eyes widened and her gaze snapped back to Alicia at the woman's last comment. It was an inappropriate thing to say in public. She liked this girl. An amused sparkle came to her eyes. "Do continue, oh great storyteller," she remarked sarcastically. A small smile played at the corners of her lips as she followed Alicia into the expansive manor.

Heading up the stairs Alicia made her way back to the door marked 201 and looked at the clipboard hanging next to it. "These four rooms here are the Emendators. Really different fuckers. They are all old, like fucking old old. Like the woman here, Evelina, the one that brought you back, she's been conscious for like 3000 years, and she is one of the younger ones," she said as she checked the clipboard. "Ahh, 209, next store to my main man James. You'll like him. Big ass Blackneck, talwks somethang likes this," she said doing a horrid impression of a southern drawl and smirking as she did.

A laugh left Alexandra's parted lips. "You knov hov insane this all sounds. I don't knov vhether to believe you or smack you," she chuckled. "The only thing I knov vith certainty is that I died, but nov I'm alive and vell. As far as I'm concerned, the rest is just details."

Motioning she lead Alex out on the front upstairs porch and over towards her room on the other side of the massive house. "Oh and I don't know what you got but don't be surprised if suddenly shit really strange starts happening. Seems each of us wakes up with something new and nifty but what I see about from your time, yeah, won't be nothing you can't handle," she added as she reached the room and unlocked the door. Pulling out the key she handed it over to Alexandra and it dawned on her she hadn't mentioned the power surge to the others.... Whoops.

"I vill be prepared for anything then," Alexandra replied as she followed close behind Alicia. She seemed so nonchalant about everything, like none of this truly fazed her, but perhaps it was just that it had all yet to sink in. She gingerly took the key from Alicia and then stepped inside the room, her room. Her inquistive gaze took everything in. When her gaze finally rested on the framed pictures of both sets of parents, birth and adopted, it finally wiped the carefree smile from her face.

Alicia noted the smile leaving Alexs features and sighed. Whatever had caused it, it was heavy but oddly enough that wasn't uncommon. "I had the same look on my face when I spotted a picture of my son and my dad holding him Chica," she said in an understanding voice. Patting her on the shoulder slightly, a bit of reassurance without pushing the boundaries. Turning she left and pulled the door closed behind her. She figured the girl needed to let things sink in, most did. Taking a breath she looked down at her clipboard before heading back towards the stairs.

Alexandra nodded her head slightly but didn't dare speak. She just stared at the photographs of the parents she lost and the parents who had just lost her. As the door was shut behind Alicia, she walked over to the framed photographs, which sat side by side, and traced her fingers tenderly over the faces of her loved ones. "I'm sorry, truly," she murmured.

[Dragoknighte]

---

---

Giosue Zino

---

---

Location: Ville au Camp: Main House: Room 202

---

Gio couldn't hold in a chuckle at Nancy's sudden change in accent. It was one of the most important parts of the ensemble, to sound like she actually was from the distant future, but she still sounded absolutely ridiculous. Sure while one was actually in the Verse it was hunky dory, but October 31st 1948 in his room was a very different context. However, he was quickly able to regain his composure, thereafter he cleared his throat as a sign that he was ready to move on with the questions.

"We'll start with something simple. As a child, what was your favourite food item, has that changed since? If so, why?" Many times when writing a character, it was easy to forget little things that every real person would have and be able to articulate with nary a thought. When those aspects weren't present, the character could easily cease to be a convincing illusion of a real person, thus shattering all audience engagement. Have a stable foundation before trying to accomplish anything complex or outlandish.

[Nallore]

Sophia Harris

Location: Ville au Camp: Room 107 (Sophia's Room)

---

---

Sophia smirked slightly and smiled. "No problem at all." She said with a friendly smile as she nodded towards James as far as she knew that was how it is. "We are stuck here pretty much until the Emendators decide to move us to god knows where. Though I've never seen that movie I believe you it was probably a great flick to watch." Sophia smiled she tried to hold back a slight laugh the way her pronounced the word emendator she made sure that she had her key to her room and started to make her way towards the door. Sophia opened the door and then accepted James' hand as she started to look around the hallway for a moment.

Sophia then decided to change the subject to try and find out what exactly happened since she passed away and woke up here. "So how long have I been uhm you know dead, and is Niesha still alive?" She finally asked, looking over at James as she started to lead the way outside of her room. She turned around and made her way through the passage way and, and through the back towards the Kitchen House. She really did miss her and hoped that she was alright, and she maybe even moved onto someone else. "How did you you know end up dead before waking up here?"

Once she was there she looked outside taking in a deep breath from the fresh air letting out a slight sigh before making her way across the large yard seeing the kitchen house in the distance gesturing with her right hand. "It's over there." Sophia said, she wasn't sure if there was any drinks there or not but hopefully there was some.

[Lady Absinthia]

---

---

Evelina Lucas

---

---

Location:Ville au Camp Abandoned House -> Main House (Downstairs front porch outside Room 100)

---

Lady Lucas forced herself to focus on the task at hand. Several new comers had arrived already and more were on the way. She couldn't spend the day out in the abandoned house thinking on the past and being melancholy over a future that would never occur. ironic as it was, there was nothing the Emendators could do to fix their own time line. When they died there was nothing to stop it or fix it or later it. She knew, they tried. It was a miserable failure and one they promised they would never try to repeat. It could have ended another one of them or all of them and then what would happen? When there were no more Emendators left, who would fight the Destruere? Yes, the Paradoxes could but they were of limited numbers currently, untrained, and with no one to get them from point A to point B, to read the cards, to provide the needs, to... No, it wasn't enough.

Playing her pipe between her lips and gripping it slightly with her teeth The Dice slipped her four fingers into each of her front pockets and let her thumbs rest along the seam. Admitting to herself that it was a rather beautiful day, granted it always was. The weather was one of the reasons they had chosen this day. Each of the Emendators had lived through harsh conditions brought on by nothing but the weather. Evelina could remember the scorching summers of Carthage, the wet and stormy days in Saxones, the intolerable bone chill of Norway. Each made you swear you would rather put up with one of the others. That was until you were there again. Having such a pleasant day with just enough sun to warm the hint of chill in the air and a light breeze was the closest Evelina could imagine to perfection of weather that could be obtained.

Instead of taking the most direct route from where she had been to where she was going, which mean cutting through the Kitchen House and then going passed the Oak tree, she took a more sweeping path. She figured it would be best if she didn't walk directly passed Alicia as she welcomed someone at the Oak Tree. Around the back side of the garages to the main house and then around the outside of the house The Dice went before finally making her way to where she had intended to go. The front porch of the main house that looked out and down the drive way of dirt and gravel between the sweeping oak trees on either side. Resting herself down in a rocking chair she puffed on her pipe a bit. This was normally her way once they had new arrivals. Seat herself and wait for one of them to come to her. She didn't press herself on the new comers. That would be rude.

---

---

Alicia Gonzalez

---

---

Location: Ville au Camp: Main House (room 208) -> Oak Tree

---

Alicia on the other hand didn't seem to care if she was rude or not. She was welcome most everyone with a you're dead bitch. Manners obviously were not high on her things to worry about list. Now, one thing Alicia did hate though was being held up by poor planning. Thankfully The Dice and The Watch helped to keep pretty much everything running on a schedule of sorts around the place and it was rather well organized. The cards seemed less likely to plan anything but hey, she was fun at times. The seven of them had been getting along well enough, at least Alicia thought so. She wanted to talk to Evelina about the other two again but there as too much to do today and last time she brought it up she was tomorrow. At first Alicia had thought that meant the next change over but then it dawned on her - tomorrow never really comes here.

Smirking slightly at the word play, Alicia made her way down the stairs and left Alexandra to get settled in. Once she was out the backside of the house she took another look at the clipboard. "₁Que mierda..." she whispered under her breath before repeating herself a bit louder. A lot louder. "₂¡¿QUÉ MIERDA?! Her eyes widened a bit as she made her way over to the Oak Tree. Slowly sitting down on the low hanging branch she kept reading what had appeared on the magical Etch-A-Sketch. Her jaw lay half slacked open, one hand gripping the clipboard the other one half way and frozen to a face palm. It was what her friends, back when she was alive, lovingly referred to as Ted face. The exact look she got when she watched the movie Ted for the first time. She had kept that look of disbleif/shock/wtf for an entire hour.

"₃¡QUE FOLLADO!" she finally managed to say to herself as she finished reading and the portal started to shift. Blinking a few times she stood up and pushed her hair back. Okay, this guy was from Justice, well not from Justice but he had lived there. He hadn't survived long. Granted she had died in Justice as well and she was one hell of bad ass back then but Justice dropped her like a cheap prom date in quick time. That was a day she still couldn't get out of her head; nor the images of the person that had finally ended her life. Those eyes still bore into right then. So icy, so blue, so cold. Shaking it off she looked down at their newest arrival and finally spoke. "I'm surprised your ass isn't waking up with a splitting head ache," she said before she burst out laughing. Alicia always did have a sick sense of humor.

Translations

1 - What the fuck?
2 - WHAT THE FUCK!
3 - THAT'S FUCKED!

[Sigil]

---

---

Gilbert Summers, "The Hat"

---

---

Location: Ville au Camp, Kitchen House -> Main House
Skills: N/A

---

The calm and dedicated stride utilized by the casually dapper Emendator in distressed clothing suddenly broke into somethig a little more suited to skulking about, preferably in the evening. He had remembered that Alicia had run outside for the purposes of introducing a new Paradox into the fold. Knowing her luck over the last few of them, it was just as likely to be another casualty of that other, awful timeline wherein some incarnation of her experienced an awful, flesh-tearing death. Whether it was or not, it was her job at greet them and answer questions, and in that moment, it was not his job to be present for it. There he was though, walking out of the Kitchen House to witness a Paradox appearing next to the big Oak.

Nope, not on his watch. Instead, Gilbert ducked back around house and made a good sprint for the foliage across the path, away from the big, scary tree they used as a welcome mat. He kept low and moved fast, trying hard not to make this recent newcomer's initial act as a Paradox to soil his undergarments, provided of course that Fate provided them with undergarments in the first place. Could go either way sometimes. He unknowingly took a route not dissimilar to Evelina's, cruising around the garages but instead making tracks for the back of the main house. Apparently, he was just in time to see two Paradoxes (Pair of Doxes?) emerge from the building. He gave a wave and began to jog up to them.

---

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James Grady

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---

Location: Ville au Camp - Main House, Room 107 -> Behind the Main House
Skills: N/A

---

As far as James could tell, time was funny. Not really "haha" funny, more "wuzzafuck?" funny. Or both. James could agree that is was both hilarious and confusing. Such was the question posed to him by Sophia just then. How long since she died? "Aw hell, hon. I ain't particular sure how to answer that'n. I mean, you ain't gonna die for 'nother seventy-odd years, right? Or I don't know how long you been kickin' 'round in this place. But... if'n you askin' how long from when you died to when I died, that'll be just 'bout seven, eight months, near as I can reckon."

The indomitable blackneck had seen enough science fiction shows about time travel to know that actual scientists didn't agree on the nature of time travel, and the fiction writers liked to make things up without regard to meaningless things like continuity or plot holes. This was enough of an issue to make his head hurt if he thought about it too much. He could answer a couple of questions for Sophia, though. His memory of everything was a little fuzzy. Still there, but like it was the loudest voice in a room of other people talking. Was it because he was dead? Or he was something different now. Paradox. James knew what that word meant. It meant that he shouldn't be there. Technically, couldn't be there, but was anyway. Something told him that he would have to brace for a brutal mindfucking sometime later on.

"Niesha's doin' alright, well, was doin' alright, near as I can tell." He didn't know what to tell her about Newnan, or even if he should. Truth was, he wasn't one hundred percent sure himself. "Aight, long story short, Miss Sophia... I died when a bigass sinkhole opened up an' tore Newnan a new one. I wasn't anywhere in town when it happened, an' I don't know how bad it got. Last I saw of Niesha, she was gettin' on fine with the folks in town. She gave me a big box of medical stuff when I... ah... N'mind that. I'm sure they got it handled an' she good."

He was unsure how to proceed with the conversation. Luckily, a tall, brick-shithouse man of indeterminate ethnicity was ogging in their direction carrying a loaf of bread and jar of something to distract them. "Hey, who that?" James quickly asked Sophia, nodding his head in the direction of the unknown man.

It was Gilbert, of course. He was upon them very quickly, and began ushering the two of them back toward the Main House. "Come on, then. Sorry about this - we have another very new Paradox coming in. He shouldn't see us before Alicia gently breaks the news and smooths things over. Or until she yells at them until they accept it. Hey!" he reserved a broad smile for James, "Our girl told me a little about you. James, right? Here, hold this." He pressed the bread and jam into James's arms and kept motioning for them to duck back inside the passageway. "Sophia, would you please introduce us properly when we get back in?"

[Morose]

---

---

Nancy Parker

---

---

Location: Ville au Camp: Main House (Room 202)
Skills: Acting, the Cards

---

Nancy noticed the brief look of bewilderment across Giouse's face, and as she dived into the mind of the imaginary Ashley Windshire, she considered how she'd react to such an occurrence. How would a rebel from the 'Verse react to that expression on the face of an old man? Well, not that it was fair for her to think of Giouse as old - he was only a few centuries older than she was. Yet that was only counting consciousness, of course, and if any Emendator had earned the title of Old Man, it was Gilbert. He was an elder to them all, having been conscious for at least ten more centuries.

"You find my accent funny? I don't need this gorram dram," Nancy scowled. "Reckon you're Alliance, ain't ya? Or Core at least - talkin' all fine and polished like that."

She folded her arms, pacing a little bit before pausing as the questions began. What was her favorite food as a child and had it changed? Only lies had detail, so Nancy elected to keep her answer simple as she continued to improvise as Ashley. "Strawberries - 'cause they were sweet. And as I got older, it got harder and harder to get fresh berries out in the 'Verse. Made them all the more special a treat."

Nancy was about to continue when she felt a tingle in the tips of her fingers. It was different than what she felt when she gained consciousness, yet similar in a strange way. Sometimes she imagined that she felt the tingle in different areas - perhaps a scratch on her back, a bit of restless energy in her legs. But more often than not, it was always the same - a tingle in her fingertips. "Pause," Nancy said, losing the 'Verse accent and readopting her assumed New York accent. She sat down on the ground cross legged, pulling out her deck of cards. While she could do readings standing, just really needing a flat surface to use, she always liked to sit on the ground with her legs cross. It was one rare bit of routine that the chaotic Emendator enjoyed.

"Got to check the cards," the Cards explained. It wasn't a passing whim or fancy - it was instinctual. And quite possibly, the main thing that would ruin the illusion that she was a new Paradox, unless they passed off her need to do readings as a Paradox's new found abilities.

[Dragoknighte]

---

---

Giosue Zino

---

---

Location: Ville au Camp: Main House: Room 202
Skills: N/A

---

It was a good reaction Nancy had, immediately being able to act in-character from the word go. However, she still sounded ridiculous, and he had to squish his lips together to avoid smiling or otherwise acting in such a manner that would derail the entire exercise. He could see it in his head: he slips too much and prompts Nancy to go into a long in-character tirade that only feeds his laughter. After awhile he finally regains control of himself, but gets a wild idea in his head to have Nancy break character. Next thing you know, a pillow fight ensues, there's feathers scattered all over the floor, and they used up all the practice time goofing off. To avoid such a dreadful future he had to remain strong now.

After Ashley's first response, Gio lowered his eyes to the script once again to ready another question before the Cards decided to put a hold on the whole thing. Knowing her it was probably something that she couldn't properly ad-lib, most likely a reading. Can't exactly pretend to get complex readings of the future as a Green Paradox.

"See, this is why I didn't put on the accessories. It would be quite the inconvenience to perform a reading with your hands bound, no? Hopefully by the time we have finished all our guests will have arrived and they will cease to be an obstacle." The older emendator rose from his seat and walked behind Nancy, peering over her shoulder to see what she would foresee in the Cards.

[mnkee]

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Alexandra Andonova

How terrible it is to love something that death can touch.

- "Sweet Regret" by Roby Fayer ft. Noa Danay

---

---

Location: Room 208 (Bedroom)
Skills: None at this time

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It was strange to Alexandra to see side by side such lifelike imagery of both sets of her parents. She could only imagine what it would have been like if they had met each other in person. She was sure that they would have hit it off, if not just for their shared love of her, their daughter. She could not say that she loved one set of parents more than the other. They both forever held a special place in her heart, the parents who had raised her and the parents who had remade her. With that in mind, she felt a pang of sorrow in her heart, for what she had lost and for what they had lost.

Her hand fell from the framed photograph back down to her side. She closed her eyes as a single tear rolled down her cheek. She had to stay strong. She had to. This time she didn't have anyone to pick up the pieces of herself if she fell apart. Or did she? Maybe she did. These Em-en-dators had brought her back to life and had given her a home to call her own. Perhaps they had the compassion in their hearts to care for a broken orphaned girl from the Russian Imperial Circus of the late 1700's. Perhaps. But it was probably best not to count on it. This time she needed to be her own savior.

She took a deep shuttering breath before opening her eyes again to look at the pictures of her loved ones again. "I vill stay strong. For you. I owe you that and much more," she vowed. She wiped the tears from her cheeks before turning away. Her gaze took in the rest of the quaint little room. A small smile came to her features when her gaze landed on a poster hanging on the wall. It was from the Russian Imperial Circus. It included the whole gang. "Мои братья от другой матери," she exclaimed in Russian, her smile growing. She then moved on to explore the nooks and cranies of her new room before eventually deciding to venture outside. What adventures lied ahead? Only time would tell.

Translations

Мои братья от другой матери. = My brothers from another mother.