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RP In Dusk We Trust

Jack Pine

Well-Known Member
RP Date
5/15/YE42
RP Location
Sirris VI - Obsidian City - Sanctuary Park
11:00am Sanctuary Park, city center


The wind was strong enough to generate a light breeze, even past the city walls, the wind carrying a nice cool circulation through the streets. It was moderately cool in temperature of late, the climate on Sirris such a fickle thing that it was. But it caused the flowers planted in large patches among the park grounds, to flow and wave spectacularly in a show of natural beauty that those at the hospitals and other emergency services around the park edge could enjoy.

A stage had been set up near the center, just off to the side of the memorial walls that occupied the very middle of this grand tract of land found dead center of a artificially built city on water. Built from a very small island then expanded out from as the initial support. They had enough real soil and even a few samples of the local exotic flora to work with.

Some of these were harvested, seeds planted to replace all that was collected, and had even been used for several planter arrangements around the stage. Giving the once bleak stage, a more vibrant and cheery vibe as something big was going on today.

The people had been called to hopefully gather for this occasion, an announcement of this magnitude never having been hyped up before as such a major event. There was the party for the home coming of an old friend to many of those who came with them from Osman, but this was even bigger.

The lords stood upon the stage, waiting behind the curtain with an advisor, and the manager for security and speech setup. Their they talked and arranged, both their families among the crowds, as well as many more of the populace. Many different races, faces, and walks of life, all looking to the stage as the time for the start drew ever closer.

Sam moved through the growing crowd, wearing a beautiful red dress that showed off a bit more than it probably should for such an event. It was why she had chosen it. She smiled at people as she passed, being recognized as one of the "princesses" by many of them.

She wasn't, of course. Despite how well she looked and acted the part, that was a title that hadn't been bestowed on her yet. It was a work in progress.

It wasn't cause to let anyone down, however. She smiled and shook hands, content to enjoy their praise and offer a few kind words here and there.

One little boy smiled up at her and got more than an eye full as she leaned down to pat him on the head.

"What do you think all of this is about, beautiful princess?"

"Ara ara," she said. Her smile just barely avoided being a grin. "What kind words! I'm sure the Lords have a wonderful show planned. Make sure you don't miss it!"

She ruffled up his hair some and walked off, ready to catch the attention of a few guards and let the real star of today's show do his thing.

A few still gathered into the still slowly growing crowd, seemed word had traveled fast and far across the territory of this announcement. Many wondered what it could possibly be, it was the first time that a address had been given from the Lords since the beginning of the Conclave.

A masked nanny android stood off to one side, as if waiting for their employer to arrive, though not entirely out of place. To be honest, Sam had caught her attention somewhat, but the look if even caught would feel more motherly observance then seductive lured stare.

Another recognizable face who would have passed Sam, was the head of the NDC's advanced research and development department. A member of the council being part of such a position. She was well known in a few circles and cadres for her work, what projects her angelic hands had graced. Though as she had since the last trajedy of this nation, she looked just as sad and defeated as always.

Wingless, most would just thing the well endowed golden blonde beauty was just another human among them. She found a place towards the middle of the crowd, bumping into a man in a hoodie by accident, who gave her an awkward apology before quickly moving on towards the front.

He seemed odd, almost awkward, but that was hardly her concern as she went back to looking for Isabelle among the faces.

Meanwhile, color guards from some of the NDC's notable military branches stood to one side of the stage now in formation and pose. The other was occupied by members of the council, and thus the heads of all the departments that made up the government. A few small 3 man teams of ISD stood on and around the stage, watching the crowd and area for signs of trouble.

Soon the crowd lowered in overall volume as the Lords of the NDC made their appearance on stage, some cheering, some remaining quiet, and some a mixed batch. But this all took a backseat as Jack Pine, stepped up to the podium, his brother Mark Oaklen standing back a bit.

With a check of the mic, he began his address, "Today, today is a good day, a wonderful day for our great nation. Today, the people of the Conclave has taken another leap to being recognized as a equal nation to those that also call our sector home. Many races stand here side by side, quite a few having stood to defend this home we all share called the New Dusk Conclave. A nation which has tripled in size as of today, and bloodied the nose of a Kuvexian ally not only in our new system, but in the battle of Nataria, as well. Please give a clap and cheer for our proud serving men and women of the Legion."

A chorus of applause, and a few cheers rang out across the crowd, a few having come up as he listed their accomplishments. Once it settled, the white haired man continued, "We owe this major milestone not only to them, or to those who have given their lives in the last three years, but to you the people. For we all know, a nation is nothing without its people, and a great people you have grown to be. Tsumi, Gunja, Separa, Minkan, AI, Androids, Humans, Aberwhan, Elysians, even a few free spacers and nekoes. All of these races, religions, and philosophies having come together to build a home and help those who need it. I am proud and honored, to be accepted as one of your leaders, and I know my brother and the council must feel the same."

Sam listened, letting herself get caught up in the emotions of the crowd. These were big accomplishments. They deserved to celebrate a little. The woman in the red dress looked around at all the smiling faces - and the hooded man, who had moved into the planned position.

With the signal set, it was time for her to do her part.

She allowed anger and frustration to build up in her and show on her face, clenching her fists. A few in the crowd around her stopping admiring her looks and grew concerned. They took a step or two back as she worked herself up, which exposed her antics to the guards on stage.

Once she was sure she'd gotten their attention, she reached for her handbag. She could see tensions rising, hands moving for weapons. This was the risky part for her.

With some small amount of flair, she pulled something out of her handbag. The guards became more alert, weapons beginning to rise to take down the beautiful shooter. And then she opened her compact and began to fix her makeup.

"I can't stand the thought of some newspaper catching me not looking my best. You understand, right?" she asked one of the nearby onlookers with a pout. The man had begun to visibly relax.

Even the man at the podium had a slight pause as he looked to his right at the commotion, turning further to the agents who had become tense. He waved for them to settle down, relaxing himself as he began to turn back around. However, that is also when he heard the click he recognized all too well as some sort of revolver mechanism.

The hoodie adorned man from before, had pulled a Judge revolver from it as their attention had been diverted for the mere precious seconds he needed. Zeke who had also been up front in the crowd to the man's left, heard it as well, his head whipping around in time to see the trigger pull.

The thunderous clap of a 25mm shell was let loose a millisecond before the top edge of the podium exploded into wood fragments and circuits, a blossom of blood passed that from the view of the crowd. The look of shock and surprise clear on the lord's face before even pain had time to register, the high caliber ripping through the left side of his torso in a ravaged hole.

The gun was raised in the air, it's single destructive munition now spent, as the man fanatically proclaimed, "Death to the false king! Let the truth of his folly end here!".

The blonde mech pilot shoved a few out of the way as he moved to tackle the man before even wanting to see the damage done. He had to stop this guy before anyone else got hurt, knocking him to the ground as the man began laughing, then biting down on something. After a few moments, he gurgled and coughed, giving a few wretches before slumping limp.

There was a commotion on stage, agents, and soldiers having lined up to stand in full combat guard for more attackers, the sounds of security vehicle sirens approaching from some part of the city. Zeke clambered up onto the stage, his affiliation with the lord giving him access as he left the dead killer.

What the man found however, dropped him to his knees. Jack was held in the arms of his brother, half his chest nothing but a ragged hole as blood pooled below on the deck. Both pleaded for him to hold on as he grew paler and colder with every second.

Where everyone was still reeling, the crowd half frozen, half running scared, made it hard for Seraphina to dash to her car. It was probably the first time she had been so aggressive as to shove people out of the way until she reached the car. Throwing open the backdoor to get to a pad she kept for remote communication

Yago stood closer to the edge of the crowd wearing a yellow suit of a commoner. He would periodically check his watch which also served as a detonator for when the plan took action. Sam could be seen through the throng in her red dress, however Yago had a difficult time seeing what she wore on her feet. He hoped that they were not high heels as those would not exactly be ideal for running.

His attention shifted directly on Jack as he arrived at the podium. As he gave his speech, Yago rolled his eyes as it was the typical drivel about if everyone worked together they could achieve anything. He was tempted to punch the button right then and there, but he resisted, knowing it would ruin the operation.

The opportunity arose when the sacrificial lamb stepped up and shot their target dead. Once the assassin completed his role and passed into the afterlife, Yago pressed the button on his watch. A device that he had surgically implanted into the man's chest exploded. It was a minor one, but the real threat was the green fear gas that began to emanate from his chest and envelop many of the audience members who were still frozen in place from the event that just took place.

Those that breathed in the gas began to hallucinate their worst nightmares and mass hysteria ensued. Some died on the spot from shock, others cowered on the ground, and several were lashing out at monstrosities that were not even there. One security guard even shot a Minkan square in the head crying out that he was a monster before he dropped to his knees and sobbed.

With his part finished, Yago ran with the crowd that was far enough from the scene to keep from raising any suspicion. He kept his eyes peeled for Sam though to see what she was doing.

The red dressed woman was on the move before the gas had a chance to reach her. Sera's mad dash had presented her with the perfect excuse to flee the scene.

She stood only a few feet back from the other woman, heels in hand, as Sera dug around in her car for something.

"So! Are you in on this, too? Looking for another weapon in case you didn't finish the job?" she declared loudly, relying on her Fenrir look to establish her 'authority'.

A tap was quickly given on Sam's shoulder, the woman would find the nanny bot figure right behind her from the crowd before. "Please do not obstruct my duties. I require miss Cerulius's communications device to inform my employer Miss Rose of the situation, and to advise staying home with the children. Please step aside."

Sera emerged from the backseat again, holding a datapad, "Really not the time to be holding up matters of the council miss pine. Shouldn't you be getting on duty to handle this crisis? The lord, and not to mention your own older brother, was just gunned down on stage. You're confidence is disturbing in such a situation." The wingless angel chided the clone as she handed the pad over to the supposed bot, the figure giving a very quick series of swipes and commands, then pulling up a separate window and relaying her message to the person she claimed to have needed to send it to.

Sam gave the two a suspicious look, but she stepped aside as requested. "Everyone else starts to run and panic and you go to grab something from a car. I think you can understand my concern."

The fenrir woman crossed her arms, careful not to stab herself with her shoes. "I'll let you do whatever it is you're doing, but I'm not letting you out of my sight. If it looks like you're going to do any further harm, then you'll have to deal with me."

Her tone was stern, then softened a little. "And..if you're helping, then I want to help, too."

The Greyhound anthro traveled along with the crowd as they drew further from the scene of the assassination that was now devolving into utter chaos with several of those that are affected with the fear gas fighting each other. Security guards in the folds of the cattle shouted for everyone to remain calm, though that did little to calm the panicking hordes.

Yago ran for several more feet until he found a tree to hide behind. There he took several deep breaths as the screams of the crowd faded. He acted like he was hiding in cover out of terror in case any guards were eyeing him, but they were not. Some of them were racing toward the park with their guns drawn in case more attackers appeared.

While in his spot he decided to search for Sam, eventually locating her at a car with a robot. He observed as a terrified human woman in a purple dress with large silver circular earrings raced up to the car and began yelling things at the robot. Yago could not decipher what she was saying exactly, but he was confident that she was not a threat, just another poor soul who fell to the effects of his fear gas.

Despite the situation, he hoped that Sam would spot him at the tree.
 
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11:00 am Sanctuary Park, city center then the aftermath.

Nyx was close by her father and uncle, sitting in the place of the youngest daughter. And dressed in the full SABER uniform but also using some indications of her rank as the daughter of the family. Her red-colored mechanical eyes turned, as she took in the crowd. There was a commotion where it appeared a woman decided now was the perfect time to do her make up. Nyx deemed her as a non-threat, so she turned her attention away and she listened as her father gave a speech. She loved hearing him talk, his voice and mannerisms sounded noble to her, and she couldn’t help but think of introducing Ezriel to him too.

Movement caught her attention, Zeke moving in, before, beside her, her father fell, caught by her uncle. “Dad?” she called out as she knelt before him, her eyes widened ” d...DAD!!!” She screamed when she had seen he had been shot. She was programmed with the skills needed to kill so she knew. There was no way according to her vision that he might survive this. “No... Grandma... And now you, noo!” she said then looked away from him and the stage to the bastard who’d done the deed. He’d been killed she noted good the bastard deserved death from killing her dad. Her eyes closed as no tears fell from her eyes. There were screams around her fear was there, caused by the deed, and by the gass.
 
11:00 am Sanctuary Park, city center

Ven had served the NDC since before it had been the NDC. While not a member of the inner circle, her skillset had been valued by the fledgling nation. She had thrown everything she had into protecting it from the shadows. In turn, the NDC had given her if not peace, then redirected her worst impulses into something more useful. As a Spectre, she had fairly wide latitude in deciding what she would do. Her caseload often took her far from Osman. Most recently, she had been involved in the battle of Nataria. Some would say she should relax after that, but she never relaxed, she never could. So she was here, helping to provide security for the event.

She stood near the back of the crowd. As the speeches went on, her eyes wandered over the crowd, trying to pick out an assassin before they struck. It wasn't easy. She saw a family of Separa'Shan, not likely to be a group of killers. Even though they had grown up on the Jungle world of Essia, they still felt separate, apart from their own kind. That she had been honed into a remorseless killing machine only added to the distance. A woman in a pink dress, a tall thin man in a business suit, a pair of women in overalls, a man in a gray hoodie, a masked nanny android. Ven considered the android for a moment, it wasn't too out of place, but it could be a combat robot in disguise.

Ven would always remember that moment, the moment that she dismissed the man in the hoodie. Perhaps if she had done something different, perhaps she could have stopped him. But as Jack Pine stepped to the stage and began his speech, Ven could sense the woman in Red about to do something. She watched her, not enough yet for action. However, as the woman in red began her performance, Ven knew something was off. She had lied and pretended too many times to be fooled. Her eyes darted across the crowd, looking for the second threat.

Ven slid towards the stage as she scanned and spotted the gunman. Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. Ven pulled her weapon at the same time as the hoodied assassin, but the meatbags in the way meant she had to take longer to quire her target, too long. The shot of the pistol cracked in the air and Ven watched as the Podium and Jack Pine's chest exploded in blood. Mentally, she knew the wound was lethal. However, there was a part of her that admired the artistry of it. It was a beautiful way to die. She hoped for a second that she would get as pretty of a death. However, given her line of work, it wasn't likely.

Ven was one of the few that didn't react, her blood still cool and collected at the gunshot. She wanted to shoot the assassin before he was tackled, but there were too many in the way. There was a flash of annoyance that she wasn't allowed much collateral damage here. However, time seemed to regain it's speed. Ven knew they would need to question the woman in red, a woman who was now running. Ven changed course, determined not to lose her. She tapped the communication device in her ear as she pushed through the fleeing crowd. "Spectre Ven, in pursuit of suspect in red dress. She's headed for Exit C."
 
11:00 am Sanctuary Park, City Center


Elisys was, in a word, tired. In two, extremely tired. She just got back from a months long boot camp and is already out and about again. However, this was’t an event she wanted to miss. She was extremely grateful for what the NDC has done for her. A home, a life, and even a family now. So with an event this big how could she not go?

So when the shot rang out, Elisys felt as though her body got submerged into an icy ocean. She couldn’t react to Jack being shot, her body wouldn’t allow it. Which left her a prime victim of the fear gas coming out of the dead assassin. Elisys’ legs gave out from under her as she was plagued by the monstrosities appearing out of thin air.
 
11:00 AM, SANCTUARY PARK, CITY CENTRE


Sasha was, surprisingly, not dressed in her usual attire - white or black T-shirt or tank tops. Instead, she has dressed accordingly to the etiquette for such an event or at least tried to - black dress uniform with her name tab on her right breast and some medals and decorations on her left breast, and, though unusual for females, black pants complete with black combat boots instead of standard high heels. Around her waist, there was a leather belt, complete with a brass buckle and a leather holster for her old SiZi Model 30 revolver, and some pouches for the ammunition. Her rank tabs on her shoulders were also corrected from Captain to Major. She wasn't among the crowd, however, as she just did not like to stand with crowds that she did not even know well. Instead, she was all the way back of the crowd, where there were just a bunch of people gathered, with looks from their uniforms obviously telling anybody that bothered to look at them telling them that any of them weren't, at all, important. After all, if some disgruntled person was to terrorize this event by deciding to shoot up the place or blow it up, it would be most likely to happen near the large crowd, which are formed of really important people. She wasn't having it, not a chance. After all, she wasn't that important enough to stand in that crowd anyway.



Although, she did know that this would be really less likely for such tragedy to happen. Security for this event was top-notch, with probably every personnel in the secret service or whatever the new department they made standing around Jack - or the King, not to mention actual guards standing guard around the whole place. If anything, it would be just some arguments among the crowd about some political issues that she would never understand - that was if she ever did spend any attention at it. Sasha wasn't the one to actually spend that much of attention on such topics. If anything, it would be just some polite fancy dissing rap battle between some political figureheads against one and another. To be honest, she didn't even know why she should be here. If it wasn't for the fact that someone she knew for a long time was giving a speech, she would have just stood around for two seconds before leaving - if she did bother to come.



Covering her mouth while opening her mouth to let out some lazy yawns, Sasha slowly turned her head toward the podium as she heard some tapping from the loudspeakers. There he was, the new king himself. Welp might as well take something to remember this moment, Sasha has thought, as she pulled out a small instant camera from one of her pockets on her pants. She pressed one of many buttons on the camera, before holding them up onto her eyes as if she was aiming a rifle. Sasha slowly placed the image of Jack addressing the crowds onto the monitor of her camera, and clicked a button again, at first with Jack's face giving address like an actual politician, with crowds now applauding and clapping, cheering even. Sasha's camera was taking some good photos, of Jack proudly addressing the crowd, and the crowd applauding and clapping for him in return. That was, before...



BOOM-



A loud, thunderous clap rang around everyone's ears, including Sasha's. She quickly raised her hands to cover her ears, instantly dropping her camera as she did so. While doing so, Sasha's eyes quickly began to turn everywhere, with her eyes now catching sight of terror, instead of a peaceful addressing event that was supposed to be heavily guarded. It didn't take that long for Sasha to realize what has happened - some maniac has blew up the podium, with or without Jack on it. Her heart was beginning to race quickly as she turned to run toward the now burning podium to try to catch a glance at Jack, with her hands instinctively pulling her old SiZi Model 30 revolver out of its holster and holding it on low position. At first, her eyes caught the shadow of a man behind a deep fog, with a deep relieved sigh escaping through her lips. But as the fog cleared, the scene that has laid before her eyes were enough to leave her shocked, enough to drop her old revolver. The shadow she has thought was Jack, was the Jack alright, except it was his brother holding what was left of him.


" No, no, no, no, no. "


Sasha's hands, violently shaking, were lowering to Jack's bloody chest. She didn't know what to do. Her mind was going blank at the moment before her hands almost instinctively reaching for her pocket on her pants. Her hands grasped onto some gauzes. Of course, his situation was not going to get any better, but her mind was panicking. In fact, her mind even in many combat situations wasn't panicking like this before. Maybe it was thinking of losing someone she actually has thought as a friend - or an ally at least. Sasha began to plead for Jack to hold on, as she tried to shove the gauze into one of the many holes on his chest.


" Come on, Jack. Stay with us, damn it! STAY!! "



" What the hell- "


Sasha's mind and heart were racing quickly, enough for her eyes to not to catch the green gas substance floating toward her. For a moment, she was trying to shove the gauze into one of the many bloody holes on his chest, then next she was laying on the ground, in the mud, with her full combat armor on. However, her body armor was full of bloody holes. Of course, this was just hallucinations she was getting from the green gas, but to her, it was back into the middle of combat - and she was losing. With her body armor filled up with many bloody holes just like Jack, and her weapons nowhere to be seen (at least to her eyes), it was truly her worst nightmare. All she could do was to just lay down there and hope that she bleeds out fast, or at least meet an enemy merciful enough to put a lead on her head. Of course, none of this was not happening in real life, but to her, it was very real. So real that she forgot what just happened - about Jack getting blown up, about the crowd. Soon, her hands slowly lowered from the hole on Jack's chest, and soon enough her whole body slowly dropped to the podium floor - with her whole body laying down onto the floor as if her body was full of leads.
 
11:00 am Sanctuary Park

Louis had been standing in the part of the grounds sectioned off for the press, he was there covering the event for New Dusk Conclave Broadcasting while also acting as a secondary recorder in case there were issues with the primary feed. Feeling a sense of optimism from Jack's speech Louis smiled as he looked up from his camera to scan the crowd wanting to get an idea of the reaction to the speech. Some kind of commotion caught his attention it appeared a woman was pulling out a small makeup kit and spooked the guards. The reporter was sure he had seen her before but the sound of a gunshot made him flinch, turning to the stage he saw the aftermath of the attack on Jack Pine. Standing there shocked until he saw the fear gas being released onto the crowd, Louis turned to run but stopped realizing his camera was still recording quickly he reached out and detached it from its stand and held it close as rushed through the crowd.
 
1100 Near Sanctuary Park

Aztec, stationed on the roof of a nearby apartment complex, scanned the gathered crowd. Not with his rifle, obviously, that's just bad practice, he had a set of binocs he was using. His helmet was lying next to his rifle, though he was wearing the rest of his gear. Aztec had never been much for ceremony, and he always used to opt for pulling security at these type of events if he wasn't a part of them, which suited him just fine. Still, he had his pad tuned into the local news, which would feature the speech from Lord Pine, which would be on in the background. At least the forecast called for fair weather...

The ceremony started off as all tend to do, Lord Pine's speech filtered through the pad, then the speech was suddenly cut off, an unmistakable single loud gunshot echoing out of the park. "Shit!" Aztec shouted, pulling the Harbinger's stock into his shoulder, now sighting through the scope over the panicking crowd. Below was chaos, he could see Lord Pine was down, but not the extent of his injuries, what concerned him more was the apparent gas release into the crowd, seeing the actions of those caught in the cloud. Aztec keyed his radio.

"Nomad to anyone on this net. I've got no eyes on any assailants from my position! Note gas cloud is moving northeast, repeat northeast! Keep the crowd from using the northeast exits!"

1100 Serenity Main Repair Bay

RIhanna had spent most of the morning making minor repairs and system checks aboard her ship, while it was capable of being piloted by one person, it was times like this where she wished she had some help. Such was the case with being independent however. As today was supposed to be some kind of a ceremony, most of the populace had the day off.

She'd had the broadcast playing over Serenity's intercom, when it suddenly cut off. The dark haired anthro mare looked up from the calibration console, her sensitive ears picking up the faint hiss of an open comm, she knew it wasn't the ship's system. Weird, but she'd check on that in a moment. It was only a speech, and the only reason she'd even had it on was Zeke likely would ask her about it later, being his usual adorkable self...
 
11:00 AM, SANCTUARY PARK, CITY CENTRE

At the moment she wished that her mother had added medical knowledge on how to save her father to her programming, but she didn’t and couldn’t save him. Shasha was coming up, and she thought maybe she knew how to save him before the gas came in. it affected her and she saw her fall as if she was killed too. It was fortunate that she was not in her organic form because she was certain she’d be affected too. Her wings came out in a harsh wave, as she tried to use the force to blow it away from her, to get a clear view.

Woman in the red dress she remembered seeing that. The woman had caused a distraction with her need to look pretty. “Make sure she’s kept alive Spectre Ven, there are a lot of questions for her” the Gynoid's anger was in her voice. She heard Aztec’s voice next. “Enzero Pine here, I read you, Nomad, Spectre Ven is on the move after a suspect, she’s in a red dress. I also agree with concerns about the cloud, someone got affected by it my position. All units, those in mechanical bodies, are immune to the cloud but be careful everyone, I don’t know what the cloud is doing but it's lethal. “
 
11:00am Sanctuary Park, city center

Isabelle was in the crowd watching her husband. It seemed like a perfectly normal speech- a good one at that, until there was a loud, booming ripple followed by an uninvited speaker's announcement. There was a splash of red, and not from any of the New Dusk Conclave's decorations. Jack fell down. Izzy's eyes widened. She lost all awareness of her surroundings, she needed to get on the stage. She bolted for him, and nobody was going to stop her. Anyone that tried to restrain the queen was either shoved away hard or simply could not catch the cerulean winged woman. She clambered onto the stage, not realizing the gas that was starting to loom in. She was hoping, desperately pleading that she would find her husband unharmed, but it was of no use. There he was, obviously bleeding out through the void that had been created in his left side. The feathery-winged woman rushed to him, pushing anything and anyone out of the way. She only had this moment with him now. The council member put her arms around him and cradled him, choking on her words as she said "Honey... I-I'm here. You're gonna be alright okay? Okay?!" She was trying to reassure herself as well, but it was becoming increasingly obvious that he wasn't going to make it through this. There were already tears pouring out of her blue eyes, he was running out of time fast, until he would no longer be able to talk to her or even be with her.

Adria was standing in the crowd near the front, trying to shoo people away from her large, clumsy, and delicate wings that she couldn't get to stop bumping into people. She didn't want to be here, she just wanted to go home. And then something happened that made her really not want to be here. A loud bang hit her curled antennae, one that spooked even her. She tilted her head down and put her hand on her head, her sensitive bug antennae did not take kindly to the sound of the gunshot. When she looked up, she wasn't sure what she was seeing at first. Her dad was there... and then he wasn't. She came to realize more of the details in the image she had just seen. A splash of confetti... no, paint.... NO, BLOOD! Her eyes shot open. The blonde princess jumped up and flapped her huge red wings, quickly hovering onto the stage. "DAD!" she cried out, seeing her mom holding him and the crimson puddle streaming out of his side. The butterfly girl ran over to him, immediately bursting into tears.

And as for Adi... dad's poor little princess probably had the worst experience of them all. She was near the stage when it happened, watching him intently. She was hiding everything but her wings and her head in a large cloak, standing right next to Sonia and occasionally cuddling or nuzzling her. She was practically glued to her, given how much she'd been standing touching her side it was questionable whether or not she actually did physically put glue on her side and adhere herself to her girlfriend. The large crowd made her nervous, she didn't like being around so many people, she was already very shy as it was. But that wasn't what made her experience the worst, no, not even close. Rather, her location made her subject to a very unfortunate occurrence. As it just so happened, Adi was right in the... splash zone. After the loud noise... she wasn't entirely sure what just happened. She felt something warm and wet fall right on her innocent face. Her feline sense of smell immediately detected the substance had a suspicious scent, something irony. She screamed a very loud and high-pitched scream when, in the adrenaline-filled nanoseconds just after Jack fell down, her mind realized that her father had just been shot. She started hyperventilating, but it wouldn't last for long. With her finger, she reached up and wiped some of the crimson drops that had been flung onto her off her face. She brought her hand in front of her eyes, recognizing it to be blood, blood that had been flung out of her dad due to the gunshot. The timid princess's eyes fluttered, she completely fainted and collapsed into Sonia's arms, unconscious.
 
11:00 AM, SANCTUARY PARK, CITY CENTRE

Dressed in the striking black of the NDC Dress Uniform, Lena Aldea watched both the crowd and the nobility as the park filled, standing at ease but quite alert. There was need of alertness in these uncertain times, for sure, and little missed Lena's piercing gaze, though there was plenty of room to really enjoy the sights as well. For instance, the tantalizing red dress worn by the "princess", which made her grin ever so slightly and even hazard a sly wink at the woman should she have turned her way.

It had been maybe a year since Lena had joined with the Duskerians, a year of acclimating to a new culture and military. A year of a completely new home. A year with the ISD, and all of the politics and responsibilities that entailed. Functions like this were considered necessary given the critical mass of important NDC personnel gathered, and that meant Lena fucking Aldea was there, damnit. At least I get to enjoy the sights, she reminded herself for the hundredth time. And there's always a great after party for these things.

Then the fateful moment came.

The shot rang out and Lena felt her nerves light up, adrenaline coursing through her with quickening heartbeats. She swiftly slid the Wraith pistol from her holster and gripped it with both hands down and away from her body, ducking into cover. The ear bud for her comms burst into activity with reports from other agents. She paused and watched as a green gas billowed up from the crowd, and she jumped up, waving to the crowd nearby.

"Move it, get out of here!" Lena called out, indicating the gas and pulling some of the stunned people away. Then, pressing a hand to her ear, she reported "We need gas masks and vacuums down here. I am evacuating any civilians I can without getting close."
 
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Overlooking Sanctuary Park, City center

"Understood Enzero Pine. I have sightlines from up here, I may be able to get eyes on the suspect, unless you still want me on overwatch here" Aztec replied, waiting for a decision. Meanwhile, he kept his eye through the scope, searching for other targets, if there were any in the area.

Serenity, Repair Bay

It wasn't Serenity's intercom, Rihanna determined. Oddly she couldn't pick up the feed again. That was strange. The dark anthro horse stepped out of her ship, her hooves echoing on the open ramp, Rihanna glanced around, confused at the suddenly heightened activity around her. Stopping a technician, Rihanna asked him. "What's going on?" His reply sent a chill through her. "Lord Pine's been shot, miss" The tech replied, then continued on to wherever they were heading to, leaving Rihanna standing there, stunned at what she just heard.
 
Yago continued to hide behind the tree, observing how others were reacting to the attack. The catastrophe that he and his team had created would be a memory that was etched in his mind until the day he died. It took every ounce of strength for him to not crack a malicious smile that was desperate to reveal himself. If any authority figures saw that he would most likely be labeled as a suspicious person and stopped for questioning.

He stole one more glance at Sam before he decided that he needed to get moving.

The anthro broke away from the tree into a jog after the throng of panicked civilians that was well ahead of him. He made sure to maintain a fearful expression as he continued to run. The members involved in the successful assassination needed to get as far away from the scene as possible and regroup.

During the run Yago came upon a small decor shop that contained a few terrified customers who had their faces glued to the windows of the storefront watching the horrors unfold at the park.
 
Sam frowned, inwardly, as she felt the approach of others. She needed to get things here under control before they got worse.

"Listen," she said to Vera and..the nanny bot?.. "You can let me help or I can get out of the way, but I don't feel comfortable letting someone run back towards that stage with god knows what. Lord Pine was just shot - there's no guarantee that was the last of whatever is going on here!"

She clenched her fist. "I've made friends since I got here. I'm .. I'm not going to let them die, too."
 
Ven struggled against the crowd, it was what she had planned to do anyway, but being told to do it annoyed the lanky Separa'Shan. "Acknowledged." She communicated back as she cleared the crowd to appear before Sam. "We need to talk to you. In fact, I think we need to talk to all of you." She said in a firm voice, including Vera and the Nannybot in the command.
 
11:00A.M.
Sophie went to the event to listen to the speech. Ven told her it would be a great day for the NDC. She could feel the light breeze that felt so good to the touch across her skin. Sophie wanted to find a cool shady spot to watch the speech. She found it under a thick tree with a slight rise giving her a good view. Wearing one of her favorite skirts with a blue color that matched her hair. She combed it with a white blouse and some brown heals.

She had a water bottle and purse which she kept her mother tablet and Ven's dagger in along with an assortment of other things. She watched the crowds slowly gather in their different groups chatting amongst themselves. She tried to think of everyday topics to think about so she could bring them up in conversation. She made a promise to herself to be more sociable saying "Hello," to people she would meet. Sometime after this, she had planned to try to catch up with Ven after the function knowing she would be hungry after this was over.

She could hear the start of the speech beginning. After a few words, the crowd begins to cheer loudly. She notices a lady to her right dressed in red that with a pent-up frustration whipping out a compact case to do her makeup causing quite a stir. Sophie relaxed along with everyone else when her newfound safety was interrupted. It was then a loud thud reached her ears as she refocused her attention to see the podium and the speakers blasted by explosive shells.

She stood in shook at the world falling apart around her. Sophie had to close her eyes remembering the horror of a year and a half ago when she lost her parents. After taking two deep breaths she opened her eyes and began to move forward feeling that women in red had something to do with this. The other thing on her mind though at that moment was Ven. If Ven died Sophie would be alone again for the second time in her life.

In a strong push through the crowd of madness and panic, she wanted desperately to find Ven. The problem was her slim figure and size she ended up getting bounced around by the crowd. It was hard as she had trouble seeing over the unruly panic being only 5'10. She took off her heels so she could run faster not realizing it would come in handy later.

Then a second smaller explosion rocked her ears as she began to watch the green gas rise into the air. She grabbed her handkerchief out of her purse and poured water over it to cover her mouth and nose. People came pouring out of the cloud of gas screaming and yelling. One lurched at her saying "Die demon!!!". She had her dagger but didn't want to hurt him as she ducked under his overreach and hit him the pair of heels forcing him to jolt backward. She had followed the red lady going in the same general direction thinking it would be safer.

Sophie came out of the crowd and could finally see what she had been looking for, she thought to herself, Ven. All she could think of is "thank the Saints" as she moved forward in Ven's direction. As she got closer she could see the lady in red and a Robo nanny from what she could tell. As she got closer she could tell this was not a social call but something serious. She wanted to get in five feet to feel people's emotions knowing something wasn't right. She was afraid to interrupt Ven trying to get a read on this mysterious woman. Sophie started trying to use her Iromakuanhe Telepathic abilities on the lady in red without her or anyone else noticing.
 
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The Gathering

The crisp, grey-paneled uniform of a Star Army soldier adorned the shortened, curvy body of Arria Smith as she stood, politely but not with much interest, within the crowd. It was... Her most formal attire, which is more of a comment on her lack of wardrobe than her sense of attire. Her reasons for being here? Leadership. The NDC was still small enough to actually hold an event like this, unlike the planet-packing gatherings for Yamatai events.... Ugh.

That being said, the speeches seemed pretty normal. Boring, drab, dull... It was nice to know that he was talking about current events, but Arria'd gotten bored with speeches after her thirteenth Chusa in camp. Luckily, she was good at hiding-

BAM

Arria's head snapped down on instinct, but then she saw the target - Jack Pine, this King guy. Or..... He was. And then a commotion started where emerald-green gas, sickly looking, flowed out and engulfed the crowd - sticking low like campfire smoke before the rain. Smith's fluffy, bright-white wings fwooshed silently in the chaos as she took to the sky, avoiding being trampled to death and taking an aerial view of the situation... But the turbulent crowd was nearly impossible to actually track information from. But the air was safer, anyways.
 
Jack was starting to hear less and less, everything beginning to fade around him as the cold crept in. Only thing for certain to him, were the faces he could make out above them, shifting in and out of view. His daughter Nyx, his almost real brother Zeke, and his lovely wife calling his name home. Jack knew, that this day would come some time, as a man can never outrun what he's done. So with a bitter sweet smile, he weakly lifted his hand to the tear covered cheek of his wife. "Look after the f-family while I'm gone...tell them I loved them....and I love you I-Izzy." Jack said with what strength he had left in him, "Zeke...thank you for being my b-brother, they really were the best of times.....be happy."

The hand now drifted towards where he last saw Nyx, "And you m-my daughter.....created with so much life, how could we not love.......live, grow, have a family s.....some...d-day...." With his final words, he felt everything suddenly pull away, that familiar feel of being plunged into a watery abyss he had nightmares about so many times in the past. Was this what it was like, to have your soul reclaimed to wherever here after? His answer would never come as the dulling of his eyes signalled the end of his life. His once crimson eyes fading to a lifeless and dead grey before them.

Zeke was trying to hold himself together, his mind straining to fight the visions from the gas, one hand still trying to hold on tightly to Jack, as if to anchor him to this world. He knew it was useless though as the light faded from his ownly friend's eyes. Even as he could see the hallucination, a blood covered gun in his own hand, the gun. The tears helped block it out, the man trying to hold together to say some final words, "Rest b-brother....your war is over now...sleep in peace..."

Arria would find her flight was met with screams of terror, and thrown objects of various sorts. Most pointed to the Elysian and screamed "monster!", like the cute feathery woman was their worst nightmare. This was not going to be pleasant as all manner of things were thrown to pelt her, sharp, blunt, hard, even a stuffed animal from a child. She was not staying airborne long if this kept up.


Seraphina looked to Sam, Ven, and the nanny bot sternly, "Spectre Volotony, ask your questions later, right now we have a national crisis on our hands. As a member of the council, you are ordered to stand aside. Better yet, why aren't you hunting for those responsible, they haven't had enough time to get off world yet, perhaps you should be doing your duty, and what Mr. Ryzka my son trained you to do. Now I'll be taking the bot with me and getting word back to the rest of the council. Perhaps do something useful and secure Councilman issabelle pine before we have another royal death on our hands."

With a wave of her hand to the bot, it obediently got in the car without a word, fastening their seat belt as they simply sat and waited. Seraphina gave the other two another stern look, before sliding into the car, "Miss Samantha, you of all people should be distraught now. Your brother was just killed before you, and someone is clearly here with the intention of taking the lives of your family. Shouldn' t you be trying to keep them safe right now princess."
 
As chaos reigned around her, her attention was on her father with a gunshot wound. Her mind cursing at the slowness of the medical vehicles, as time was passing she saw her dad dying there, and the thought to go out and find the bastard who did this going quieter and quieter as the daughter decided to stay there and to say her goodbyes to her father, the man she will miss definitely. “I… I will dad, there’s someone I love very much, and I hope we do have a family together,” she said her voice quivering as if she was crying even though she had no tear ducts in her normal form. Soon she no longer heard him breathing, or his heartbeat no matter how sensitive she tuned her audio receptors she couldn’t hear him, which meant he was dead.

She turned and buried her face into her mother’s side, as she tearlessly cried at the loss of her father. She’ll never be able to see him again, not Jack though her uncle Mark had his face it wouldn’t be the same since he was her uncle not her father.

Around them, chaos was happening, which brought her attention back, as she took note of how exposure to the smoke caused them to become mad, with hallucinations. She didn’t know what to do other than to use her wings to blow it away.
 
Ven met Seraphina's eyes, taking the other woman's measure. Ven feared nothing and no one in addition to being very capable in her own right. However, Wraiths were scalpels, not clubs. Something Seraphina said made Ven uneasy, what she was trained to do wasn't anything like what she was being told to do. "Of course Councilman. I'm sure the bot is secure in your custody." With a subtle move of her head, she looked at the two others and gave them her card. "Please don't leave the planet before we have a chance to speak with you." She commanded them despite using polite language.
 
The cerulean-winged elysian held Jack, watching as the life faded from his eyes. "Nononono Jack.... Please... please don't leave..." she begged, but it was too late. He was gone. The queen sobbed and buried her face into his lifeless body, refusing to let go.

And then he was gone. The one who really cared, who even bothered to adopt Adria, was gone. The blonde princess fell down and curled up, rocking her head back and forth and crying. Meanwhile, the gas was already starting to reach her. She thought she heard a voice call her name. It wasn't real, but it seemed very much like it was. "Adria..." the hallucination called out. Adria jerked her head up, recognizing the voice. She tried to find it, but didn't see it yet. "...Ydrin?" she quietly asked. She saw a misty figure start to materialize on the edge of the stage. "You came-" she began, but the fake Ydrin cut her off. "Why did you let me die?" The short girl gasped and clambered onto her belly, standing on all six of her limbs and slowly crawling towards him like an insect. "No, wait, I-I didn't-" she choked on her words, scurrying after the vision as it started to move away from her.
 
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