Cottonmouth

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

Nemo raised from the floor, using light magic to hover the chair closer to him. Nemo discarded the puppets and crawled back onto the chair. He depressingly rested his head on the table. "Call it what you want it, I can only wish I could have what Socko and Sockette have." Nemo stated with a mock saddened tone.

Nemo leaned back up, scanning the room. "Indeed it is, sounds lovely to me." Nemo replied as he stood up from the chair. "I'll find Raiya and start to prepare." Nemo added as he made his way out the door.

Nemo found Raiya not far from Felix's study. "Seems the venue to reveal the next mission will be by the fireplace in the living room." Nemo explained as he walked. "We probably have some time until everybody arrives, so how about some more questions? I'll do an easy one this time for mine. What are your favorite kind of movies?" Nemo asked.

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

"When you say love, it sounds a lot more like 'being nice' to me. It's not very hard to be kind. It's also a very corruptible and breakable notion." Nemo replied, as Felix continued his explanation Nemo let out a sigh and pressed his palms into his face, comically squashing his features. "You're beginning to make me confused." He stated, his voice slightly distorted by his hands. He slowly began to slide off the chair. "I'm a much more simple man when it comes to thinking about things like that." He got out before fully sliding off and flopping onto the floor.

Nemo rolled over to Felix's desk like a log putting him out of sight. "To me love is... how about a demonstration?" He proposed. Nemo's hands slowly raising up over the lip of the table and into view. Both of his hands now had silk dress socks on them in a puppet fashion. One was plain white, the other black with white polkadots. The socks he had were his spares, meaning that the ones he had on were also mismatched.

Both had been dressed up with googly eyes and fake hair. The white one seemed to imitate Nemo, while the other had a more feminine visage... for a sock.

"There's... there's something I've been meaning to tell you, Sockette." Nemo made the white puppet mouth the words.

"What is it Socko?" He made the other puppet respond with a somewhat impressive impression of a girl's voice.

"You are the light of my life, whenever I see you, my heart beats fast. I love you, Sockette." Nemo voiced with an overly dramatic tone.

"Oh Socko, I feel the same way. let's be together forever!" The whole time Nemo made the two puppets speak he had slowly been inching them closer together. The two sock lovers suddenly broke out into a passionate make out session, which Nemo accompanied with exaggerated sound effects.

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

By the time Felix was done speaking, a small grin appeared on Nemo's face. He let out a laugh and leaned back into his chair. "Now, now, that was an unexpected answer." He replied.

"I'm an old fashioned guy Felix, I fancy poetry, stories, some may even call me a romantic. I have seen Romeo and Juliet many times, and do you know what I think about the notion of showing love to anything that has a beating heart? It cheapens it... It's an insult to real love. Love should be rare, given to only those deserving, the ones you can't live without. The less it's given to, the more special it becomes with the ones you do." Nemo explained, his tone becoming more serious now. "The way I see it, the only people deserving of love is your family. That's one of the reason's it's so hard to live without one. Because then who do you have to love?"

"I've gone so long without one that I've turned into something that is no longer deserving of a family or love. When you give someone something they don't deserve, the only thing they really receive is shame. Things that usually feel warm or pleasant often hurt to them instead." Nemo crossed his right leg over in the chair.

"But you've got me all wrong Felix, I don't think that humanity is a lost cause. As long as I still see beauty in this world that sentiment will not change anytime soon either." Nemo finished.

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

"Yes... yes yes, very." Nemo rambled off in response. "I'm not gonna let you open your presents too early Felix, you have to wait like everybody else." Nemo said with a chuckle. "But what I can tell you is that I do have a lead, nobody is left to alert anybody, and we leave later today." He explained.

Nemo paused for a few moments, pondering something. "You know, there is something I've been wondering. I already know why you picked me for your group, but what I don't know is why you invited me inside your home. I could still do any task you want of me and accompany your missions without ever having to be here. So why do you permit me to stay?" Nemo asked. "You've put me in a situation where I'm terribly out of place, bringing me in here with all these nice people. I'm an animal to them, not much has changed over the years, now I'm just a very well trained beast who wears peoples clothes."

"Animals belong outside Felix, that or locked in a cage. So why have you brought me inside, are you trying to make a lap dog out of me?"

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

Finished with his food, Nemo got up from the table. "Don't mind her, she probably wont bite." Nemo said as he started walking towards Felix's study room. "Morning Travis" He commented as he passed by him.

Nemo walked inside the room and picked a comfy chair to sit down in. "Good morning Felix." He said to him once he walked in.

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

After a return trip to Cyrus' Cellar, and a long trek back through the redwoods Nemo and Wesley had finally arrived back at the home base. Once they passed the barrier threshold magically concealing the cabin, it finally came into full view for Wesley along with the clearing. "Well here we are, home sweet home for now. Rather nice view, good location, well designed. Comfy and no neighbors for miles." Nemo commented as he walked towards the cabin, sounding more like a real estate agent as he described the home.

Nemo approached the front door, the heels of his boots clacking as he tread over the wooden front porch. He opened the front door and walked inside, cleaning his footwear off with a simple spell after entering. "I've returned, and with a friend!" He announced. Nemo walked over to the kitchen, coming into view to the rest of the party. "Wesley, come introduce yourself." He suggested, looking back to him he began dishing up his own plate of food.

"Raiya, my lovely partner, I bet you're glad to see me." Nemo said as he sat down next to her. He took a bite of the food, truth be told he was a little disappointed that Raiya didn't cook this time, as he had been looking forward to it. Nemo momentarily lost himself in thought, his expression growing a bit more deadpan as he tuned out everything around him, which appeared especially cold on someone with a visage like Nemo's. Something was on his mind, but it didn't stay for long.

"I've got much to discuss about our next mission, but I'll wait until the rest of the group joins us. Spoiler alert... a lot of people died." Nemo explained.

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

"Good, good." Nemo replied, looking around the room after Wesley's suggestion. "Really? And here I thought the blood gave it character." Nemo commented. He got up from his seat and walked to the middle of the room and crouched down. "Very well, but you're lucky I'm the one who came, restoration spells are one of my niche specialties. Come in handy for cleaning up a mess, and keeping my clothes in good shape." Nemo explained as he placed his gloved palm on the floor. Within a few moments a pulse of faint white glowing energy emitted out from his hand and slowly coated the whole room. Blood began to disappear, the bullet hole filled back, causing the projectile to be pushed out onto the floor, even the stains and dust began to disappear. The room was left cleaner than it had probably ever been by the time Nemo was done.

Nemo stood back up. "Not too shabby, right? Now, we should get going, I'm sure we attracted a bit of unwanted attention during that encounter. Wouldn't want to keep everybody either right?" He finished and then made his way to the door and exited the room.

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

"I must apologize, as someone like me isn't exactly the best poster-boy for our bunch. The others are much more amiable than I seem, however I do try to be polite." Nemo replied. "From what I understand we are trying to prevent the full power of the Paragon's from being used at all. The first step is containment, naturally the second would be to destroy them, if that's even possible." Nemo explained. "Not exactly the most climactic plan, but I like the world as it is anyways."

Nemo gave a small laugh after Wesley's final question. "Oh yes, I'm sure most of the other members will welcome you with open arms. You'll be able to live for free at a place much more comfortable than... this. If fame doesn't do anything for you, I find most of the people we cross swords with are quite wealthy, feel free to part them of there resources as you see fit. Though save the weapons and the knick-knacks for me. And I'm sure Felix himself would be willing to compensate you too, surely he doesn't expect everyone to work just for the good of their heart."

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

Nemo seemed to be humored by the interaction between Wesley and the hunter. He sat silent throughout it and simply watched. The male hunter had heard the end of the conversation as well, finally coming out of his not-so-voluntary nap. He got up from the floor, wary of being at gun point and made his way to the door. Knowing he couldn't fight back with his partner gone, he exited without a word.

After Nemo sensed the hunters had gone far enough away Nemo nodded and spoke. "I've been sent here to ask you to join our motley crew, searching for some very special, very powerful artifacts. The Paragons." Nemo explained.

"Many people even in our society think these artifacts are just a myth, but I can assure you they're real, we already have one of them in our possession." He added. "Other groups are also searching for the Paragons. Right now we know that the Catholic Arcanocracy is aggressively trying to obtain them as well, likely with unpleasant intentions in mind. If these artifacts were to fall into the wrong hands, it would spell disaster for the world. That's where we come in, that's where you can come in as well Wesley." Nemo finished.

Nemo seemed to have remembered something, speaking once more with a hushed voice. "I should probably add that I've been instructed to make sure this information doesn't spread, I'm sure you understand. So if you're not interested I do hope you're confident that you can best me in a duel. Though given how smoothly recruitment has gone so far, I doubt that will be necessary."

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

Nemo seemed relaxed in his seat, he rolled his fingers on armrest of the chair. "Not the most thrilling explanation, but I think I got it now." Nemo noted with a chuckle. "Nemo Smiley, and yes, I'm here for you. But I'm not here to hurt you, I have a proposition for you. Though that will have to wait until our company leaves." Explained Nemo.

"Wanted? Me? Well you caught me there, I'm wanted by most well-known factions. Organizations and me don't seem to get along. Though every once in a while even the most pious groups call to me for assistance in their problems. Most people consider me an assassin, but that's not true, I'm a problem solver, and an artist in his craft. It just so happens that the problem people are often interested in having me solve is the problem of somebody else's heart beating." Nemo looked to the side back to the female hunter. "I often find once the job is done, and they no longer need me, they appreciate me no longer as well."

Nemo seemed to be irritated by her lack of formalities. "I'm sorry nameless girl, how very rude of me to interrupt your buisness. But if I'm recalling right, if I didn't get 'involved' you'd be currently bleeding out without prayer or a forearm. I'm detecting a distinct lack of gratitude in your voice. When someone is good to you, and you're not good to them back... bad things happen. That's easy enough for anybody to understand." Nemo spoke with a sarcastic tone in the beginning, which faded to seriousness. "As long as you play nice, I'll let both you and your plus one here to walk out of this building. But if you intend on getting in my way, I'll slice off both your arms and hang you by that ceiling fan, and the last thing you'll see is the inside of this crummy apartment." Nemo threatened.