Yeeeeaaaaahhh! Ana?! You’re supposed to be dead! XD

Hello!

Ana: 'You can't kill me! I will always come back as long as Sargon needs me!!'

Lol, so, what’s on today’s agenda?

Well, hopefully King will be able to make it today and we can continue with the Crowley/Mia/Dianne stuff. Until then, we can do whatever you like in Sovereign City.

Ok, cool. Looking forward to it.

I'll reply to your last thing to start this off.

'Yeeeaaah...' Wendigo was quiet for a moment, undoubtedly lost in thoughts about killing Sargon. Then he shifted and peered down at the Old Man. 'So, anything interesting to do around here while we wait to go and kill him?'

{The Old Man shrugs.} “I dunno, what do you like to do for fun

?

literally every time you post a shacklestone i have to go and watch war saws-

(Draco - come back later
to be honest I don't really know what to do with Sheld and Toch anymore
last time you were here they were preparing for Sargon's attack but the attack is over now)

Wendigo considered. 'I like flying, and I like killing people... Only when I have a reason to kill them, though. I'm not a psycho. And when I still had my human form, I used to play computer games sometimes... What about you? What do you do when you're bored?'

“I like hunting. Like deer and stuff.” {He replied.} “Fishing, duck shooting, things like that.”

Wendigo chuckled. 'Seems like the kind of thing you'd do. I like that, too. Though, it's kind of necessary for me to hunt now, since I'm a huge dragon and can't turn into a human... Though, I don't think I can die of hunger anymore. I'm kind of dead already.'

While they were chatting, Ivy had emerged from the palace and come wandering through the town square. She didn't hurry over to join the conversation, though, instead pausing to flirt with a couple of nearby soldiers.

sorry i migjt come back later
i've missed so manythat my characters can't really do anyrhing anymore
woo hoo for me i am responsble

(Draco - alright
but if you don't actually want to participate anymore then you CAN drop out of the group
it's a legal move)

(Oof, I die. XD)

(Noooooo)

Old Man:“From what I understand, draugrs don’t need to eat, drink, or breathe. They also don’t feel anything, and apparently can’t get scared.”

'Well, I don't know if the last one is true. I haven't been in a situation yet where I might get scared. But I think if something really bad happened, then I could be. I mean, I'm still ME, even if I'm a bit different on the outside.'

(Nah draco it's all good
the doggo squad is just sorta stood there lmao they can be picked up at any time

Also
Sorry I just sorta died :')
I uh
feel really bad for just not existing

(It's fine King)

(I wrote a wall of text in the chatroom some days ago about my thoughts towards this RP lately. If you guys could check it out a maybe reply whenever you have some free time, I'd appreciate that.)

“True.” {He replys} “Maybe you’re a strong soul. Or maybe Dianne is taking it easy on you?”

'What reason does she have to do that?' Wendigo snorted. 'Unless she just felt bad for me or something.' He thought about it, then shrugged. 'Honestly, I don't really care about the 'hows' and 'whys'. I'm just happy that I DO have free will, and I'm not some brainless zombie.'

“True enough. I don’t know though, how long do you reckon she’ll keep you like that?”

'Eh... I dunno...' Wendigo quickly changed the subject. 'Hey, look, there's that little human who was with your group, right?'

As he spoke, Ivy turned her attention from the guard she'd been hitting on. She narrowed her eyes suspiciously, then walked over to join them. 'What's going on? You two have been huddled up here together for like, ten minutes. You'd better not be saying bad things about me.'

{The Old Man chuckles.} “No we weren’t. So tell me, you get that cute soldier’s number yet?”

Ivy continued to eye him suspicously. 'No, not yet. He says he's not interested, but I know he's lying. I'll convince him soon enough... And then we'll probably go on a lovely date together...'

Wendigo gave an exaggerated shudder. 'You're scaring me.'

{The Old Man smiles.} "Heh, real maneater, ain'cha? A cute girl like you, he'll fall for ya eventually."

Ivy's expression shifted to a grin. 'Why, of course. Nobody's ever managed to avoid me for long. I ALWAYS succeed in my romantic goals.'

'Do you care about anything except flirting with people?' Wendigo groaned.

'Yes! One of my other hobbies is matchmaking other people. That's why I'm always rooting for Eliza and the bloodsucker.' Ivy smirked.

(Gonna head off for the moment, but might reply later on!

Also heads up: I'm going to take a bit of a break from Shacklestone, so there probably won't be an RP for the next couple of weeks. But we can continue in this room for a few days, and I might post random RP rooms at weekends so we can get together if anyone wants to.)

Sure, I’m down. Sorry for disappearing abruptly, busy day.)

{The Old Man laughs.} "Ha! Sure, it's easy to pick two people who are obviously into each other and say you made that match after the fact, but I doubt you could take a lonesome individual and find them someone on the fly."

(No worries!)

'Well, it doesn't work like THAT,' said Ivy, sounding exasperated. 'I couldn't do it with random people. I'd have to talk to them first, get to know them, their interests, what they're into... I admit, haven't had much practice lately, but I was really good at it in high school.'

{The Old Man just nods.} "Yeah, I bet. In high school, everyone was probably really open. Now, no one wants to talk about this stuff with strangers. Other than my niece and the bloodsucker, what other couples are you 'shipping'? That's what the young people are calling it now, right?"

Ivy giggled. 'How do you even know about that? ...Hmm, well, I'd LIKE to be shipping a lot of people, but there isn't really anyone around here at the moment... Mostly, I just like to IMAGINE what it would be like if people loved each other, even if it would never actually happen. Like, imagine if it were Anastasia and Wendigo.'

'OH MY GOD!' Wendigo backed away with a revolted expression. 'No way would I hook up with that freak who killed me! I'd rather get together with Dianne!'

{The Old Man laughs.} "Yeeeaaah, I don't think either of them would be a good match. And from what I've heard, Dianne isn't very big on dating and love. Plus, you're dead. I think being paired with someone is off the table now."

'Hmmmh...' Ivy put a hand to her chin in a thoughtful gesture. 'I guess that's true, but that doesn't stop me from shipping Wendigo with someone else who's dead. Though you're right, shipping Ana with ANYBODY would be disgusting. Hmm, what about Jerry? Has he ever been interested in anyone?'

{The Old Man tilts his head.} "Not that I know of. He seems to keep himself too busy to find a partner."

Ivy smirked and folded her arms. 'Well, maybe someday he won't be so busy... Did I miss anyone important? There's that Frederick guy, but I don't think he cares much about anyone. Hmm, there's less of us here than I realised.'

"Yeah, most of us are already spoken for or just aren't interested in finding anyone. Not a lot to work with."

'Thank god,' grumbled Wendigo. 'I'm not getting shipped with ANYONE.'

Ivy sighed. 'I'll just have to wait, then! I'm sure things will be different after this war's over. Personally, I plan to settle down right here in this city and look for someone to be with. Where do you think you guys will go, now that Shacklestone's gone?'

{The Old Man gives this some thought.} "Well, most of us live out of province anyway, so we'll just go home. I can't speak for everyone else."

'That sounds nice... That you have a home to go back to, I mean. You're really lucky you didn't live in Shacklestone.'

"Something has to be done. Every survivor, despite how few they are are homeless now. That can't just be ignored."

Ivy nodded. She leaned against the side of a building next to Wendigo, watching the soldiers hurrying back and forth in search of any more injured. 'Yes, but they'll be able find new places to live. There's plenty of other towns and cities around here. It's sad that Shacklestone is gone, but everyone will just have to move on. That's all there is to do.'

{The Old Man nods.} "I suppose." {He just subsides into silence after this.}

'Hmmm...' Ivy made a thoughtful noise, then fell silent as well. She continued watching the troops running around, occasionally trying to catch one's eye, but they were all busy.

(Hmmm, got any ideas for random things we could do in Sovereign? XD)

(I'll think of something. Maybe with Vitis.)

(Alright, just let me know if you want to do anything.)

(Hmm, I might do something with le inspector, if Armin's around.

(Ooh, the Inspector's still alive? I was wondering about him. XD
What are you going to do with him? Armin is pretty much free right now. Just hanging around the hospital.)

(I dunno yet. I'll see what I can do.)

(Alrighty.)

(Hmmm, let me try this.)

{The halls of the palace were mostly quiet, except for the occasional hustle of a group of soldiers. Wandering about these halls was a man in a cloak. He seemed suspicious and was actively avoiding the troops that hurried by.}

The soldiers didn't seem to pay much attention to the strange man. Most of them were too busy collecting the injured, bringing them to the hospital bay, or simply cleaning up and listening to reports from the battle.

Armin was still sitting by Eliza's bed, dozing.

{The man, as he walked around, came across Eliza's room. Slipping in to avoid some passing soldiers, he quietly closes the door behind himself. Turning, he sees Eliza and Armin, both asleep.}

A couple of doctors glanced up, seeming a little suspicious of the stranger, but after a moment they all returned to their work. There were a lot of people in the hospital, so they weren't too worried.

Armin stirred as the cloaked man came in, but didn't fully wake.

{As the man looked upon the pair fondly (Creepily), Eliza had stirred and opened her eyes. Seeing and recognizing the man, she starts to panic a bit, feebly struggling and trying to get Armin or Steve's attention. Upon seeing this, the man hurries away, trying to avoid detection.}

Armin snapped awake. 'Wha--' He looked around just in time to see the cloaked figure slipping away. 'Hey, who was THAT? Something about them seems familiar.' He glanced at Eliza. 'D'you know who that was?'

{Eliza spoke up weakly, in pain and tears, as her dad came over.}
Steve: "Sweetheart, what's wrong?"
Eliza: "I-it's that creepy guy with the eye patch! He's here! I think he's after me!"

'What? ...Not /him?/' Armin looked back at where he'd last seen the cloaked man. //That creepy Inspector guy? How did he get all the way here without anyone catching him?//

He stood up. 'I'm going after him. Don't worry, he won't get in here again.' Without another word, he set off in pursuit of the cloaked man.

{Steve nods at Armin and comforts his daughter. Meanwhile, the inspector continues to move through the building, trying to find a way out.}

Armin left the room and walked purposefully through the palace halls, tracking the Inspector's scent. Finally he caught sight of the cloaked man in an otherwise deserted area, and hurried to catch up with him. 'You'd better not be who I think you are.'

{The cloaked man did not notice Armin until he was right on top of him. Turning, his face shows that it is the inspector. Finally noticing Armin, he yelps and tries to run.}

Before the Inspector could run more than a step, Armin grabbed him by both arms so that he couldn't go anywhere or use a weapon. 'Come on, you must have come here for a reason. Not going to run away like a loser as soon as someone recognises you, are you?'

(Heads-up that I am going to post a random RP/chatroom this evening at around the same time Shacklestone normally is. Nobody is obligated to join, but if you want to come over then feel free!)

(ok)

{The inspector struggles against Armin.} "Let me go! I'm just trying to stay alive long enough to get out of here! You all won! Sargon's army has been obliterated and the count himself has disappeared. Isn't that enough?"

'Sargon is still alive,' said Armin, keeping hold of the Inspector. 'So the war's not over yet. Why were you sneaking into the hospital? Trying to attack me, or Eliza?'

"No, no." {He replied.} "I had no idea either of you were here, I'm just trying to avoid detection. Now let me go, this war is over for me!"

Armin gave a short laugh, and let him go with a shove. 'Sure, whatever you say. Personally, I bet you've been following us ever since Sargon's army came here, because you're that kind of weirdo.'

"I'm the weirdo?" {He exclaims.} "I've heard the rumours, Armin, that you like to get jiggy with kids! Who's the bigger weirdo now?"

'Oh my god, is that rumour /spreading?/ How?' said Armin, pulling a disgusted face. 'Never mind. It's not true and will never be true. You're the bigger weirdo, stalking Eliza the way you do...'

"I am NOT stalking her! I told you, I had no idea she or you were here! If anything, you're stalking her! You barely even know her and your acting like she's your sister or something. Besides, she's waaaay too hot for you, so just give it up."

'I know her well enough to call her a friend. And if she's 'too hot' for me, then she's definitely too hot for you. I'm not the one with an eyepatch and a funny accent.' Armin folded his arms, staring at the Inspector with a mixture of exasperation and amusement.

"Oh, please, Armin." {He says with a smile.} "There is no accent more romantic than French. I am graceful, handsome, and above all, a gentlemen. I am way better with the ladies than you."

'A gentleman? Who stalks people?' Armin laughed. 'Well, if you're sure. I've been married before and I've been with plenty of other people since my wife died. Are you as 'successful' yourself?'

"Yes. I have intermingled with the most stunning of partners. It seems that being chief of police come with some...extra perks." {He gives a very creepy grin.}

'Urgh, I'm surprised anyone made you a chief at all,' Armin replied, wrinkling his nose with disgust. 'Still, I'm willing to bet most people find me more attractive than you. You come off as way too desperate. Most people aren't attracted to creeps who follow them around.'

"Wha- No! It's not creepy, it's romantic! What would you know about romance anyway!"

'Probably a little more than you do...' Armin grumbled. 'I WAS married for ten years and had two kids. And I'm nearly 300, so I like to think have some experience in that field. How old are you, anyway?'

"35" {He grumbles.} "Wow, you're almost as old as the count. Except you aged waaay better. Still, that means nothing, I don't need excess experience, I'm a natural at romance."

Armin smirked. 'That's because I was barely your age when I got turned, and Sargon was much older. We get frozen at the sane age forever.' He tilted his head, eyeing the Inspector. 'And don't tell me you're a natural, I've never seen anyone who actually likes you.'

*same not sane. XD

"You don't know my life!" {He huffs.} "Every night, I go to bed with the most beautiful girls you can imagine. How about you? All I see you hooking up with is an ok looking necromancer with terrible anger issues and who's caustic to the touch."

'Yeah, sure. You just continue with your little fantasies...' Armin stopped, digesting what the Inspector had just said. 'Wait, Dianne? No. No way. Sure, she's not bad-looking, but she hates my guts and probably wants me dead.'

{The inspector puts on an evil grin.} "Oooh, yeah, you're totally into her. She's dangerous, mysterious, and plays hard to get? Sounds like a worthy conquest to me."

Armin just shook his head, looking slightly disturbed. 'If you say so... Hey, why am I having a conversation with you, anyway? You're one of Sargon's lot and you're in here uninvited. I should probably be trying to kill you.'

{The inspector shrugs.} "I don't know, I'm bored. Besides, there's no point in killin' me now. You've won, we lost. It's over."

'I told you, Sargon escaped. So we haven't won JUST yet. Besides, you're loyal to him. You've probably killed dozens of helpless people, just like the rest of his murderers. You /deserve/ to die.'

"Actually, I really haven't seen too much action." {He said simply.} "I haven't done much at all."

'You still supported his actions, or you wouldn't have joined him,' said Armin. 'Actually, you were originally with that Lord Grimm guy, weren't you? Though I'm pretty sure he was a murderous bastard too.'

"Yeeeaaahhh, but I never did." {He said.} "In fact, I was a fairly recent addition to his group. I really didn't have any time to do anything."

'Whether you've killed lots of people or not, you're still a creepy weirdo,' said Armin. 'Besides, I don't know if you're telling the truth or if you're just trying to save your own skin.'

"Well, then, what do you plan on doing about it, Armin? Will you kill me, though I might be innocent?" {He folds his arms and leans back.}

'I won't kill you,' said Armin, somewhat regretfully. 'But don't get me wrong; if you come anywhere near Eliza again, I definitely will. Now come on, you're leaving.' He grabbed the Inspector's shoulder and began to forcefully move him towards the palace exit.

"Hey, watch it!" {The inspector complains.} "This suit is worth more than your....well, everything!"

'See if I care.' Armin gave him a final shove towards the palace doors and let go. 'Get out of here and don't come back.'

"That's all I wanted." {He then fixes his hood and walks off into the crowd, disappearing from sight.}

Armin stood in the doorway with his arms folded, watching the man until he was out of sight. Before he went back into the palace, he paused and looked up at the sky. //Definitely morning now,// he thought. In the chaos of the last few hours, fighting werewolves and then travelling to Sovereign City, he'd almost lost track of the time. He guessed it was somewhere around 8AM now.

Turning, he went back inside and made his way back up to the hospital area, where Eliza and Steve were.

{Eliza was asleep again and Steve was sitting by her.}
Steve: "Did you take care of it?"

'Yeah,' said Armin, pitching his voice at a whisper so not to wake Eliza up. He sat down wearily in his chair. 'I didn't kill the guy, but I made him leave. And he knows that I'll kill him if he tries coming in here again.'

{Steve gives him a side glance.} "Ok, if you think that was the best move. She got really worked up about that guy. Who was he?"

'He's some goon of Sargon's,' said Armin distastefully. 'We fought him once, back in Shacklestone... He's a creep. Dianne thinks I'm a creep? She ought to meet that guy. I caught him talking to Eliza during the fight. Not sure what he was saying, but she looked kind of terrified, so I attacked him and made him leave. KInd of wish I'd killed him now.'

{Steve adjusts his glasses.} "Hm. by the way you're describing him, I think you should have. So, why didn't you?"

Armin shrugged slightly, not really knowing the answer himself. 'He ran away... I COULD have chased him down, but we were a little preoccupied with escaping the city, from what I remember. We had about three dozen of Sargon's people onto us.'

"No, Armin, I mean why didn't you kill him five minutes ago?"

'Oh, that? ...It just didn't feel right. He wasn't armed and he wasn't attacking anyone. He kept saying that all he wanted was to escape. Killing him while he was just standing there, talking, wouldn't sit well with me.'

{Steve rubs his eyes before continuing.} "Ok, if you think that was the right thing to do. As long as he doesn't come back."

'He won't,' said Armin somewhat darkly. 'I gave him enough of a warning.' He leaned back in his chair with a small sigh and stared at the ceiling.

"Ok." {He said, sitting back as well.} "Y'know, Dianne's sure taking a long time to get here. Reckon she's ok?"

'Oh, she's probably fine,' said Armin. 'Nothing's ever stopped her before, has it? Maybe she just got caught up dealing with Sargon's remaining soldiers, or something.'

{Steve nods.} "You're probably right. She can handle herself. Sargon's people are no match for her. Probably."

(Unless there's anything you'd like to do first, I'm going to halt this for a little while. They'll likely be a new RP room posted next week and we can all meet up then.)

(Sounds good to me.)