January 11, 2011
You weren't as tired waking up in the morning despite all the excitement you experienced last night. Maybe after such a brief time of your work as a cape and all your working out you were starting to get used to it.
You quickly got ready for the day, preparing your home for when your tutor arrived at 10 AM. It was around 9:35 when you felt a pang of loneliness and decided to call upon your deity for the day. You immediately start blushing when the familiar beautiful form of Aphrodite appears before you.
"H-H-Hi, Aphrodite," You stammer, desperately trying to keep your face from dipping below her face.
"Hello again, Lizzie." The goddess greets, practically purring her nickname for you. "I wasn't expecting to see you again so soon, but I'm happy regardless."
You can feel a goofy smile grow on your face hearing that. She is happy to see you. You! You don't think anyone has said that to you before. There was the sound of a giggle and it took you a second to realize that it came from you.
Aphrodite closes the distance between you, gently placing her lovely hand on your cheek. Your eyes lock with her sapphire blue eyes as she smiles at you. "Now that's a beautiful smile." She says. "You should do it more often."
It feels as though your brain came to a screeching halt when she was this close and her soft hand was caressing your face. You could only stammer unintelligibly, your face practically burning from how hard you were blushing at this moment.
You finally manage to get your thoughts in working order again and opened your mouth to speak-
Knock, knock, knock.
You let out a startled yelp as a knock on the door startled you.
"Oh? Is someone here?" Aphrodite asks, her hand dropping to her side as she looks in the direction of the front door.
"I-I-It must be my tutor," You say, turning to face the direction of the door. "They're here early!"
"Then we better go let them in~" Aphrodite says with an enthusiastic trill in her voice, strutting past you with swaying hips towards the door. You watch her for a moment with wandering eyes before a stray thought reminds you that your tutor can under no circ*mstance be allowed to see her!
With new found panic you quickly dismiss the goddess, causing her to pop from existence just as she began reaching for the door knob. Immediately the weight of the attraction you experienced when Aphrodite was around lifted, your thoughts regaining a semblance of order and clarity. You let out a heavy sigh, that was too close. Had your tutor seen Aphrodite you weren't sure what you'd do.
Another set of knocks shook you out of your thoughts, reminding you that your tutor was waiting for you.
"Coming!" You call out as you approach the front door.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As you had your session with your tutor you quickly come to the conclusion that it is painfully boring. Maybe it was because you are literally coming off a night taking down a meth lab, but you swore it was never this mind numbing. After the first couple hours you were practically straining to keep your focus. You were pretty sure your tutor noticed your indifference and lack of focus but they never voiced their thoughts on the matter.
Still you manage to actually keep up with the lessons, especially when the parahuman studies lessons came up.
Parahumans Research: 9
The lesson covered the passing of the NEPEA-5 bill and its consequences. At the time of when the bill was written a parahuman ran production and media based out of San Francisco called Uppermost, which sought aid from the PRT to manage the bill as it was very obviously targeted at the organization. The bill passed despite the organization's effort and they disbanded with many parahumans joining the Protectorate to avoid bankruptcy or fines.
However, some of the core members of the organization kept in contact with each other, dividing themselves, and starting new businesses outside of the PRT's knowledge. By the time this was noticed the various assets and businesses of the rogues formed in a loose confederation dubbed "The Elite".
As the second largest parahuman organization in the United States, the Elite could be considered the Yin to the Protectorate's Yang. As an organized crime syndicate they control territory across the entire west coast, as well as territories in New York and Florida. What was most interesting to learn from the lesson was that the Elite are a stabilizing element in areas in which they have a presence and serve as the designated villain team contrasting the Protectorate's status as the designated hero team. Of course, the other side of the equation is that any rogue, villains, or independent heroes in these areas will either be forced to join the Elite or the Protectorate, be forced out, or forcibly removed.
Either way, these guys don't sound like they should be trifled with. Though you will admit feeling conflicted as on one hand you are glad you don't have to deal with them, on the other things in the Bay would probably be a lot better off if they were here.
Your Parahumans skill has increased!
It was around 3PM when your tutor left for the day, finally leaving the house to yourself. You called out Aphrodite again to keep you company, immediately becoming a flustered mess when she appeared and started her usual flirting and teasing.
You managed to get enough of your mental faculties in order that you remembered you had some things you needed to look into. Aphrodite was more than content to leave you be and let you focus on your laptop while she wandered the house. You were thankful for that as the goddess was… abnormally distracting.
You realize you had more than a few tasks to complete on behalf of your summons, so it logically you wanted to focus on one of the simpler tasks. And planting a few trees, while labor intensive, wasn't exactly as daunting a task compared to mummifying a corpse or fighting a Brute.
So the first step was looking into a location you could use to plant the trees. Your first instinct was to look at national and state parks in your home state of New Hampshire, which got you a few results. Franconia Notch State Park and White Mountain National Forest both looked like promising locations, being at least a little over an hour's drive to get to if the traffic isn't bad. You could probably also go out of state too if you wanted. Acadia National Park in Maine would be a good option even if it is a bit further out.
Of course, there were a few forests near Brockton Bay where you could plant the trees. Somewhere around the mountains that were at the western end of the city.
With that in mind you figured you should look up the laws concerning planting trees on public land. One quick search on the internet later you learn that, to your surprise, civilians planting trees on public land isn't illegal. Infact, the only thing that was illegal about it was in regards to planting invasive species. So long as all the trees you are planting are native to the environment you should be good.
Your Legal skill has increased!
Another quick web search and you learn that there were a number of trees native to the New Hampshire environment, including hemlock, white ash, beech, spruce, eastern red cedar, and white oak. The white oak particularly piqued your interest given that you were aware that oak trees were considered sacred to Thor by the Norse. So if you were going to complete this quest then maybe you should consider getting some oak saplings.
You have learned the Botany skill!
As you were getting lost in your thoughts, a pair of slender arms tenderly around your shoulders. A jolt ran through your body and you felt yourself go ridged under Aphrodite's sudden embrace and your heart thundering in your chest.
"What are you looking at?" The goddess asks, resting her chin on top of your head. You could feel yourself heating up, your face practically burning from how red you are no doubt turning. She was too close! Way too close!
"C-Can't y-you hear m-my thoughts?" You stutter out while trying to ignore Aphrodite's beautiful blonde locks dangling close to your face. "S-Shouldn't you already k-know?"
"Yes, but I'd like for you to explain it to me!" She says with a giggle. "More fun that way and I can hear your cute little voice~"
Oh, at this point she must be tormenting you! The fact she just giggled at that thought practically confirmed it!
"I-I w-was doing research f-for, uh, a t-task that a-another g-g-od gave me." You manage to get out. You close your eyes and take deep breaths to get yourself focused.
"Oh! You have a few of those already, right?" She asks, to which you nod. "You know, I could offer you a few things too."
You blinked. "You… can?"
"Certainly!" She says as she releases you, much to your relief and disappointment. "Are you interested in what I have to offer, Lizzie?"
"Uh, yes! Yes, I would!" You stammer out, turning to face the goddess. "W-What can you offer me?"
She smiles and raises a hand, a dove manifesting in her palm. "You saw how useful this little bird was a few nights ago. I can grant you the ability to summon one for yourself."
"Okay… That would be pretty useful." You nod. "W-What do I need to do for that?"
"If you want this little lovebird at your command," She said. "Then I need you to help someone else find love!"
You blinked. "You… Want me to play matchmaker?"
"Of course!" She said excitedly, practically bouncing where she stood and causing your heart to skip a beat watching her. "Don't you love a good romance? And what's better than helping someone find love?"
You suppose this request made sense for Aphrodite. There were more than a few legends of Aphrodite helping mortals with love. She was also known to be quite aggressive with those who stood in the way of her favored romances.
"A-Anything else?" You asked, trying to keep your gaze from wandering.
Aphrodite smiles, her beautiful eyes sparkling with a playful glint as she dismisses the dove from her hand. "I can teach you magic."
That got your attention. "Magic?"
"Yes, magic!" She repeated, beaming a smile. "The same kind of magic that I cast! The magic of love!"
Your summoned deities have offered you a lot of different abilities and tools from your brief time with your power, but for some reason you were having a hard time wrapping your head around the concept of magic. It seemed like too far out as a concept and the world has literal superheroes! It couldn't possibly be real magic, but your power mimicking or something. The closest thing to "magic" users in the world are capes with wizard gimmicks, how the hell does the "magic" she is offering you supposed to work?
"You are summoning gods and you doubt I can do actual magic?" Aphrodite says, giving you a pout. "I'm hurt, Lizzie."
"What? No, no!" You say quickly, eyes widening as you realize you have offended the goddess. "I-I wasn't doubting you! It, uh, just seemed a little silly- Well, not silly! Y-You're not silly! I-I just—"
Aphrodite giggled and raised a hand to stop your rambling. "Relax, Lizzie. I was only messing with you. I understand it might seem strange, but I can teach you real magic and not some power that a cape tries to pass off as magic."
"O-Okay…" You nod your head. "I-If you don't mind me asking, what's the difference?"
"The difference, Lizzie, is that you will have to actually train in its use rather than it being something instinctual." She explains. "Think of it like your sword skill: you didn't start out being as talented as you are. You had to spend hours at a time honing your skills with a blade. Magic is similar in that you'll have to learn and cultivate it."
You nod slowly. You weren't too sure if you fully grasped what she was trying to get across, but it sounded simple enough. "Alright, and what do you want me to do to earn the right to be taught?"
At that Aphrodite smiles, sultry and deviously. "If I am to teach you the magic of love, then you need to understand what it is like to be truly in love." She pauses, leaning close until her face is mere inches from your own. You could feel your heart thundering in your chest as her eyes locked with yours. "Lizzie, I want you to find someone to experience love with."
There was a silence that hung in the air so noticeable that you could probably hear a pin drop. It took a few seconds before your brain processed what she was asking of you, immediately you started backing away and falling from your seat as you babbled coherently.
"W-W-WHAT?!" You yell as you try to stand up quickly. Aphrodite snickered, clearly amused by your reaction. "WHY THAT?!"
Aphrodite raises an eyebrow as she practically smiles ear to ear. "Did you forget I'm a goddess of love?"
"No!" You shouted, blushing more furiously than ever. "But why that specifically?!"
She goes silent, her smile fading away as she regards you with a look of concern. You get the feeling she is thinking about something, but you aren't sure what. Eventually she sighs and flashes you a sad smile. "Lizzie, you are lonely."
You frown at that. "So you are basically telling me I need to get laid because you think I'm lonely?"
"I don't think you are lonely, I know you are." She replies, folding her arms. "I see it written on how you carry yourself, I can see it in your thoughts. You feel as though no one cares about you or would notice if you were gone. When possible you try to keep your summoned gods out as much as possible to stem the tides of loneliness you feel. You find it difficult to reach out to others in any capacity that isn't strictly a professional one."
You avert your eyes, your frown intensifying. "Can't the request be anything else? I've been doing just fine since I've been able to summon you guys…"
"Lizzie, we care about you — some more than others, admittedly — but only interacting with us isn't what is best for you. I think even you know that." She said, taking a few steps towards you. "You need to interact with others like you and if this helps push you to reach out then I will not change my request."
"I don't feel like I need anyone else but you guys." You whisper, bitterness leaking into your tone. "Everyone else… They just shut me out. I don't see why I should try forming bonds with people who don't care."
Suddenly, Aphrodite closes the distance between you and wraps her arms around you, pulling you in close. In vain you try to struggle from her grasp as you try (and fail) to ignore the fact your head is planted directly into her chest.
"You shouldn't give up on trying to reach out to people, Lizzie." Aphrodite says, her voice gentle and soothing. She places a delicate hand on your head, stroking your hair. "No one should ever be alone. No one could stay sane otherwise. Promise me you'll try, okay?"
You didn't say anything for a while, your thoughts occupied with memories of just how lonely your life had been up until recently. Your parents had hardly ever been around and them being absent on your birthday caused your Trigger Event. You had hobbies that did get you out and interact with others, but you never really formed any lasting connections. You've had friendly interactions, sure, but no one has ever asked you to spend a night at their house, or asked to hang out with you, or even exchanged contact information with you. You haven't even been asked out on a date.
Part of you had to wonder if there was something about you that was broken and it was obvious to everyone but you.
That thought got Aphrodite to hug you tighter and you chuckle bitterly to yourself. How would this look like to other people, you wonder? You were so lonely that your power created friends for you. You were being shown more care and affection from someone who most people would dismiss being an actual person and claim was a construct of your mind. People would think you are a danger to society and lock you away in an asylum for mentally unstable parahumans if they found out you bet.
"Elizabeth," The goddess whispered. "Stop. Please."
You stood there, quiet, just letting yourself be held in her arms. You suppose she is right. You are lonely. Even with the gods you've been summoning, you are still alone. They help a lot, but you still crave connections of family and friendship.
You sigh, slowly moving your arms to embrace Aphrodite and return her hug. "Thank you, Aphrodite. I… I'm still not exactly thrilled about the request, but I see your point. I promise I will try."
She breaks off the hug and pulls back, giving you a soft smile. "That's all I ask, Lizzie."
New quests added!
A beat later Aphrodite perks right back up, smiling more brightly as she grabs your hand. "Now! Since you've got your work cut out for you, we better get to work!"
With that she starts to move to leave, pulling you along. You sputter as you are dragged along, confusion lacing your words as you ask, "Wait, what are we doing?"
"Isn't it obvious?" She asks, smiling deviously as she pulls you into the next room. "If you are going to try and win someone's heart, we need to make sure you aren't going to be tripping over yourself!"
You try to protest, but your words fall on deaf ears as Aphrodite begins to lecture you…
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Charisma Training: 16
Your Charisma skill has increased! It has leveled up from Novice to Experienced!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
January 12, 2011
It surprised you that you actually managed to get through the morning without summoning your deity of the day. In fact, by the time you realized you hadn't yet your tutor had arrived for your lessons. Those went by as they had yesterday, that was to say largely boring. You did your best to pay attention to your lessons, but the whole time you were hoping you would stop noticing the time so it felt like they went by faster.
Eventually your lessons came to an end and your tutor left for the day, leaving you once more alone in your house.
With the place once more all to yourself, you reached out to summon an Assassin deity.
What appears before you is a hulking creature, standing on all fours, towering over you. It took you a moment but after the initial shock you quickly realize the large creature was like a giant bat, adored in a headdress, loin cloth, two large earrings dangling off its large pointed ears, and a necklace that looked like it was made of mummified heads. You wracked your brain trying to think of what deity this could be, the answer slowly dawning on you as you realize who it could be.
"I am the night! I am the death bat of Xibalba!" He proclaims excitedly, his voice deep but also scratchy on certain syllables. "I am Camazotz!"
Camazotz… He was a bat deity in service of the lords of the underworld in Mayan myth, associated with night, death, and sacrifice. His most prominent role in the mythology was when the Mayan Hero Twins encountered him in their trials in the underworld. They had held up at night in the House of Bats and when one of them stuck their head out to see if the sun had risen, Camazots immediately tore off his head and carried it to the ballcourt so it could be used for the gods' next ballgame.
In other words, he was actually pretty terrifying.
"Yes, I am glad you see that!" He exclaims. "And soon your enemies will know terror! It is a beautiful night for a hunt!"
You shifted awkwardly. "Oh, uh, I wasn't planning on going out to fight people tonight."
He frowns. At least you assume he is frowning given his head is literally a bat's head. "What?"
"Yeah, I was going to do some training."
He groans, clearly frustrated. "But there are so many tasty morsels in this city and I am so very thirsty!"
You smile apologetically, but you are frankly kind of glad you wouldn't have to see what happens to people who encounter Camazotz tonight. "I'm sorry, but maybe next time?"
"Hmph. Whenever that would be…" He grumbles, turning to walk away with a huff.
You are not sure what is up with these underworld deities, but between Camazotz and Cerberus you've noticed that they are quite eager to hurt people. You are glad at least they seem to listen to you so they don't go too far. You would hate having to explain to Armsmaster why Leet got his head ripped off by Camazotz…
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was around 4:30 PM when you left your house, the city being shrouded by the night. It was the least you could do for Camazotz since he was not likely to see any action today. You had been worried about keeping him out while you drove to find a place to train, but Camazotz assured you that people were unlikely to notice him even flying around. Compared to Thor, Camazotz seemed more fitting with the idea of a stealthy assassin and he seemed to pride himself on that fact.
You opted to return to the warehouse you had been practicing your parkour skills in. On your way there you noticed a lot of police squad cars speeding through the streets, sirens blaring. As you drew nearer to your destination you even saw a few PRT vans on route to whatever was going on. Something was clearly going on and as much as you'd like to assist the police and the heroes you didn't have your costume on you. While you felt a bit guilty, you were confident that the local heroes could handle whatever was going on.
Arriving at the abandoned warehouse, you get your training weights on and head inside. Camazotz opts not to follow you inside and instead perches himself on the roof of the building like a gargoyle. When asked if he'd assist in your training he only said that he would rather keep watch. That was fine since he was at least keeping watch. Without further delay you enter the derelict warehouse to train.
Acrobatics Training: 15
Athletics Training: 19
You jump into your training immediately as you run, climb, and leap your way through the derelict structure. You ran through the motions you've practiced nearly a dozen times by this point, each time getting a little faster in spite of the training weights. You allow yourself to zone out, finding the exercise relaxing and enjoyable. Overall your training lasts maybe about an hour, which leaves you tired, sore, and drenched in sweat.
Your Acrobatics skill has increased!
You have learned the Athletics skill!
You step out of the warehouse, the cool winter night air feeling refreshing on your sweat drenched skin. You take a moment to enjoy the moment, closing your eyes and inhaling deeply. In the distance you could hear a series of rapid booms, some closer sounding than others. Briefly you felt concerned, but you dismissed it as probably someone setting off fireworks.
Your thoughts were interrupted as you felt your phone vibrating in your pocket. Confused, you looked to see who was calling you. You look at the caller ID and you feel a pit develop in your stomach and your blood run cold.
It was your mother.
The brief shock fades as anger replaces them. Memories of how neither she or your father bothered to be there for you on your birthday. She hadn't even called you on your birthday! It was twelve whole days later and she is only now calling you! She probably wasn't even in the state still!
Without thinking you press the ignore button.
Before you even have a chance to put your phone away it starts to ring again. You growl in frustration and hit ignore again. To curb any more attempts at your mother calling you, you quickly sent her a text saying you can't come to the phone. You waited a few seconds to see if your mother would call again, but fortunately she didn't. You sigh angrily and put your phone away.
"Was that wise?" Camazotz says as he lands next to you.
"Probably not," You grumble, sparing him a side glance. "Felt good though."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You drum your fingers against the steering wheel of your car as you wait at a red light. You had been driving through the heart of downtown, taking your time to get home as you try to clear your head. Ever since your mother had tried to call you, you've been ruminating on what she wanted to speak with you about. After your initial frustration at her call you managed to calm down enough to sort of regret not answering. You considered calling her back but your mother never was the type to like having her calls ignored.
The light turns green and you get to moving again.
As you drive down the road, thinking to yourself, you hear Camazotz's voice enter your mind, "We are being followed."
Your eyes widen, your heart feeling like it seizes up in your chest. You keep your eyes on the road, doing your best to continue to drive at the speed limit as calmly as you are able.
"Are you sure?" You ask, your eyes scanning your rear-view mirror and your side mirrors to see who might be following you. You could see nothing amiss, but maybe Camazotz is seeing something?
"Yes," he replies. "They are following from the rooftops. Disappearing and reappearing in flames."
A chill rolled down your spine at those words. A cape was following you. From the sound of it, it seemed like possibly a Mover but you couldn't think of any Movers that had a power like that. At least not in Brockton Bay.
You come to a stop at another red light, and that's when you see it. Across the road you see a fiery flash on the rooftop of a convenience store, followed by a thunderous boom that was nearly drowned out by the rumbling of your car's motor. The flames died down just as quickly as they had appeared, the silhouette of a figure appearing on the roof. They were hard to make out in the darkness of the night and just as soon as they appeared they ducked down, their head just peering out and looking out in your general direction.
What do you do?
[ ][Watcher] Call The PRT — You are being followed by an unknown parahuman, so call up the Parahuman Response Team. It is their job to deal with stuff like this.
[ ][Watcher] Floor It — You don't know why they are following you, but you need to get away quickly! Step on the gas and book it out of there! Even if they are a Mover you might be able to lose them!
[ ][Watcher] Have Camazotz Attack — This is Brockton Bay. Chances are if you are being followed then they do not have the best intentions. Assume hostilities.
[ ][Watcher] Make Contact — They are following you for some reason. Find a secluded spot to pull over and see if they come to talk to you.
[ ][Watcher] Write-in
QM Notes:
And we're back. Sorry once more for how long this took, everyone. My schedule and creative muse have been at odds with each other for these last couple weeks. However, I managed to get the update made! While I am (as per usual) not 100% happy with how everything is, I do hope you all enjoy the update.
Now starting with the Aphrodite segments, I really wanted to show how much Elizabeth's summoned gods care for their summoner and explore more of Elizabeth's character and her feelings on her situation. Elizabeth suffered a Master trigger so she would understandably be bitter about her general lack of a social life and wanted to reflect this. Aphrodite for her part does really like Elizabeth and wants to help her, so unlike a lot of other gods Elizabeth can/will summon she is more inclined to help stack deck by giving Elizabeth pointers without Elizabeth needing to ask. Aphrodite, after all, loves a good ship.
And you guys finally rolled an event! I am curious to see how you guys handle this situation.
Five Hour Moratorium is in place to allow discussion.
