"So, are we liking this look, or are we thinking we wanna take a little more off? Personally, I think you look good enough to take a bite right out of you, sugar cube." It was reaching the end of Tyra's shift at Snips N Clips, so she only had one singular client left for the day, a client that sat in the hair cutting chair like it was some sort of throne. While Tyra was a larger woman with a darker complexion, the woman that sat in the chair was slim with an hourglass-shaped body. Her skin was a peachy white tone, with some redness at her cheeks in the form of blush, as well as rouge lipstick that colored in her otherwise pink lips. She wasn't so much tall, but she looked to be the type that didn't care about that in the slightest. Her eyes were the perfect shade of an oceanic blue to match her long, blonde hair, which had been trimmed by Tyra to reach just above her waist.
"It looks…fine. Not like a silly haircut is going to affect how hot I am, anyways." The woman that sat in the chair was none other than Veronica Freeland, the snotty, self-obsessed daughter of the owner and CEO of Freeland Oil Rigs. Her attitude certainly lived up to the myths and legends, as even just a few words from her with that snappy little tone of hers seemed to be enough to make someone both despise and envy her. She stood up from the chair with gusto, landing on her feet, which were adorned with hot pink high heels, the same shade of pink to match the party dress that she was wearing. She had a purse slung over her shoulder, as well, that purse being red primarily, though it had the texture of crocodile skin and there were jewels encrusted all over it.
"Well, I think it looks just great on you, babes." Tyra rolled her eyes as she grabbed a broom and butler, starting to sweep up the bits of blonde hair that were scattered all along the ground from what she had clipped off of Veronica. As she swept, the rich girl reached into her purse, fetching a letter that had some sort of regal insignia on it. She popped the letter open, reading over it for what had to have been the second time now. "Hm? Whatcha got there, honey?"
"It's none of your business, really, but since you've decided to be so nosy…it's an acceptance letter. There's a reality show that'll be hosted on some island in the middle of the Pacific…prize for winning the show is your very own kingdom." Veronica tucked the letter back into her purse, doing a little twirl while she giggled to herself. "I can already picture my kingdom now…everything will be pink, and I'll have a castle full of people that are willing to answer my every little need and want!"
"Huh…well that's great for you. It'll probably do you some good to go on another vacation…lord knows I could use one." Tyra sighed as she finally finished sweeping and headed over to her desk by the front, typing up some things in the register system on her computer. "Before you head out, I did just want to mention the bill for the day…you're looking at two hundred flat."
"Right, right, just put it on daddy's bill, he'll sort it out when it comes in the mail." Tyra opened her mouth to argue against this, but Veronica was already starting to walk through the door to leave, thereby not really giving her the opportunity to. "Next time you do my hair, you'll be doing it in Château de Veronica!"
"Bonita, smile with me tonight!" It was the very last song of the night at IJG's big concert in Japan. The well-endowed Piper danced along the front of the stage, rallying the cheers of all that came to watch the show, as they knew it would be the last one for some time now. Shrimpy little Willow sat near the backlines of the stage, damn near blowing her lungs out while she played her saxophone, sending a marvelous, jazzy tune throughout the entire stadium. The taller, more ecstatic-looking Zuri played away on her keyboard, adding into the song as the perfect harmony for both Piper and Willow, leaving just one more member of the band.
"Oh lalala…oh lalala…oooooooooooh." As Piper sang out her final notes of the song, there was one instrument that kept the backbone of the song going to the very end, the bass guitar. The woman that was playing it was fairly short, not as short as Willow, but still short, with a pear-shaped body that really put the accent on her hips. Her skin was pale as the moonlight, only appearing to be more pale, thanks to her dark, purple eyes. Her hair was more of a lilac-coloring, with the ends being a darker tone, and was pulled into a low bun with some strands hanging in front of the left side of her face. "Thank you, everybody, and goodnight!" The curtain closed on the band as the crowd cheered and cheered, leaving the four of them backstage with only each other as company.
"They're all so happy! It makes me so sad that this is our last concert for the year…" Zuri sighed and slumped forward on her keyboard while Piper giggled at her misery.
"I-it'll probably pass a lot sooner than you expect it to…it's only a f-few months, after all." Willow's voice was meek, and she seemed like she didn't actually want to be heard as she spoke.
"Yeah, Willow's right! It's gonna fly by like nothing! We'll all just have to cheer for our bandmate while she's off on her adventure!" Piper, Zuri, and Willow each looked over at the fourth member of the band, the backbone of it all: Destiny Vyra. She was currently wiping the lenses of her purple-framed glasses with a gentle cloth, ridding them from the fog that was covering them while she smiled to herself. Her outfit mostly matched the others, with a white vest, white dress pants, a black dress shirt, and white boots, with the only exceptions being that her boots were accented with purple streaks, her tie was purple, and she had a small, white top hat with a purple ribbon sitting upon her head.
"You'll all probably forget that I'm even gone…but…Willow, Zuri. I need you two to promise me that you won't let Piper release any of the songs that I've got locked in my file cabinet." Piper flushed with red and twiddled her thumbs while Destiny glared right at her. Willow seemed nervous about the task, but Zuri just held up a thumbs up. "If we drop an entire album of songs about wanting to be 'filled with love,' people are going to think that we're a bunch of sluts."
"M-maybe being a slut isn't so bad!" Piper rubbed her hands against her rosy cheeks, getting a look of disgust shot back at her from Destiny.
"Just…please, don't let our entire platform crumble while I'm gone. You two know well that she needs to be watched closely." Destiny sighed, only closing her eyes for a second and then re-opening them to discover that Piper was now missing. "...Guys, where did she go?"
"Oh, she whispered something about running off to your room and then disappeared. She looked so excited when she was running!" Zuri smiled as she offered an answer before her heart sank into her stomach and she started running off the stage. "P-Piper, no!"
"O-oh dear…oh dear…" Willow glanced around the stage for a moment before eventually chasing after Zuri and Piper, leaving Destiny to sigh to herself and pinch the bridge of her nose.
"Okay…so…which one of you wants to be in charge of the cave while I'm gone? Last time it was Jenson, but we all know how that turned out." A singular person stood along in a dark, dank cave…a cave that definitely reeked of some sort of musk that couldn't be so easily described by words. The person in question wasn't inherently tall, though they were quite lanky, being built like a pencil with just the slightest amount of bust upon their chest. Their skin was pale enough to illuminate some of the darkness, with the only sort of coloration to their complexion being the mole right under their left eye. Their eyes were emerald green in color, with dark green eyeshadow on their lids to match. Their hair was mostly jet black, with a green ponytail hanging low at the bottom of their neck…but most interestingly…the teeth in their mouth were all rotten to the core, taking on an actually black appearance.
"...Oh no, absolutely not! Maurice isn't getting anywhere near any position of power in this household! I don't care if he's good at cleaning up his mess or not, he invited wasps into the cave a few weeks ago!" It was quite hard to see, but the one and only Magdelena Argot was in the midst of speaking to a whole slew of maggots that were on the cave floor. They never really liked being called Magdelena, but took more of a liking to the simple nickname of Maggot. They had some good sense of style, shockingly enough, wearing a forest green vest over a black dress shirt, complete with a green bow tie around their neck. Going down from the waist, it was black dress pants white a light green loop running through two of the belt loops, forest green thigh high socks, and black high heeled shoes.
"Well…I don't really see any harm if Sharlene actually wants to be in charge of everything…but you all have to remember to be kind to her! She gets really emotional when she's given a lot of responsibilities…" Maggot sighed, grabbing a rucksack from the ground before leaning down to individually, and incredibly gently, kissing each and every single maggot that was on the ground in front of them, obviously not giving two hoots about how vile that truly was. It took them quite some time, but they did eventually finish the deed, wiping their lips with the back of their hand and smiling to themself.
"It's settled, then. Sharlene's going to be in charge of you guys, with Geoffrey as her backup just in case she needs one. And, if I didn't make myself clear already…there will be absolutely no wasps allowed in the cave! Hated getting them out the first time, don't want to have to do it a second time! Do I make myself clear?" Maggot glared at one of the maggots in particular before smiling and starting to walk to the cave's exit. "Good! I'll see you all again soon, don't worry!"
"Last call!" The voice of a burly, powerful woman called out from behind a bar counter, though most of the patrons seemed a bit too far gone at this point to even understand what she was saying. She whistled to herself as she started wiping out the inside of a drinking glass, though the sheer muscularity of her hand straight up broke the glass into many pieces, which fell to the ground. The other two bartenders working with her, a scrawny guy named Aleksei and an older woman named Inessa, looked worried when the glass broke. The woman who broke it was tall, and built like a brick house with several tattoos all over her very lightly tanned skin. Her hair was short, spiky, and dyed entirely blonde, which matched well with her blue eyes.
"A-ah…Olga, it's okay, how about I just clean up that mess for you. It is your last night for a long while, after all." Much like Olga Devora Kozlov herself, Aleksei and Inessa had thick Russian accents, though she definitely sounded a lot more intimidating than either of them. She shot a glare at Aleksei for even suggesting such a thing, which got him to freeze where he stood. Her attire was simple, and matched what you would expect from a stereotypical biker, with a blue, jean vest over a black tee shirt, faded, blue jeans held up by a brown, leather belt, and black boots with spikes coming out of the toe. Not only that, but she had a red headband done at the base of her hair, finishing off the whole appearance for her.
"I got it by myself, thanks," Olga grunted her words fiercely as she bent over to start sweeping up the glass that she broke, with Aleksei and Inessa slowly shifting to the far side of the bar, getting away from her and watching her in silence.
"I seriously don't know how we could've hired someone as rude as her…s-seriously, I offer to help her out and she glares at me like that? It makes me glad that she's leaving to go be on that show…" Aleksei sighed while Inessa rubbed his shoulders, helping him get all of the tenseness out of them.
"It's true, she's never really been super personable with us…who knows? Maybe she won't end up coming back at all. It would certainly be good for us, not having to deal with such a brute like that anymore…" Aleksei and Inessa giggled to themselves, not noticing that Olga was slowly walking towards them. It wasn't until she got right up next to them that they could feel her intense stare beating down on them, causing their hearts to skip beats in utter fear. "O-Olga! We were…just discussing how things are going to go around here without you! Have to plan for the coming weeks and all…"
"Is that right?" Olga growled as she cracked her knuckles, bringing both of her fellow bartenders to start quivering in fear. They closed their eyes, knowing that whatever was about to come would surely not be pretty…only to feel themselves being suddenly wrapped up by both of her massive, muscular arms in a big hug. They were definitely confused to say the least, and when they opened their eyes, they could see that Olga had this rather awkward look on her face, like she wasn't sure if this was what she should be doing. "...I'm sure you guys will hold down the fort well. Just promise me to run the show on the TVs here…I want all the bikers seeing what I'm getting up to, da?"
"R-right, sir– ma'am!" Aleksei saluted so hard that he knocked himself out in Olga's arms, getting an almost painful sounding sigh out of her.
"Hang on, let me guess, don't tell me! They're…double d's!" An inebriated man was currently flirting up one of the many ladies at a frat party, though it didn't look like it was going so well, as she slapped him across the face and walked away from him, leaving a big, red hand mark on his otherwise peach white face. He was a tall fellow with a rather well-built frame to his body, and a grin on his face that really gave off the vibe that he was just in it to have a good time, not a long time. He had a lot of skin exposed at the moment, showing off the long, tribal tattoo that ran along his left shoulder as well as a tattoo of the year "nineteen-ninety-five" on his right peck. His blue eyes clearly had a hard time staying focused on anything, with how drunk he was. His hair was dirty blonde, being gelled up to be somewhat spiky, though it was a bit messier than normal at this rate. He also had a goatee dotting his chin, sitting right under that grin of his.
"Ayo, Party God! You gotta do this keg stand, show everybody how to go out with style!" The Party God, the Sex God, whatever you would want to call him, this was the last party that Phillip David Williams would be at for quite some time. He was definitely already almost blackout drunk, as he had ditched his black leather jacket and gray tank top, which were currently floating in a kiddie pool that was brought into the party hall for some reason. The only clothes he had on were his black jeans and brown boots, both of which had alcohol soaking them. Of course, he wasn't the type to turn down a challenge like this, as the cheering of the party crowd convinced him to start hobbling over to the beer keg.
"Ladies and brap…gentlemen of the party! May I have your attention please!" Phillip clapped his hands as loud as he could, sending out this booming noise that did well enough to attract attention and get the crowd to hush just enough for him. "That's better! I know, I know…none of these parties are really going to be the same without me…but just know that I'll be partying with you in spirit! Not to mention getting a whole lotta sweet lovin' from the ladies, right? Right?" A bunch of the guys at the party laughed at that, with some of the drunk women also laughing, boosting Phillip's ego a bit.
"But a keg stand…that's just the perfect way for me to go out with a bang! So who's ready for it, eh?" Phillip held his hand up around his ear, smiling as he heard all of the people start cheering for him louder and louder than before. "That's what I thought, people! Let's do this thing! Woooooooooooooooo!" Without further ado, the Party God hopped up onto the keg, perfectly landing on his hands as he cupped his lips around the spout. One of the other guys twisted the handle, letting the beer flow so he could get to drinking. It seemed like minutes that he was just straight drinking, even though it was really only about thirty seconds before he flopped over and passed out on the cold, hard ground, still grinning the entire time.
"Ayyyyyyyyyyyyyyy, Kurty K, ain't no way it's actually you! Haven't seen that ugly mug of yours since we left that race years ago!" Evander was going about his day as normal, striding down the street and cat calling all of the women that he saw, before he ended up bumping into his old Ridukeulous Race partner, sitting on the curb and holding a cup up for change. "Man, you look even worse than I remember you being! Crazy how time really adds on years…couldn't be me, though. I'm gonna be this hot forever, you know!"
"Buh…do I know you? Have we done crack together? All I know is crack…are you going to give me crack or maybe some money for crack?" Kurt held the cup up towards Evander, who just brushed it off and started to chuckle while combing back his pompadour. The homeless man really had to rub his eyes to really get even some sort of understanding of who he was talking to before it finally hit him. "Wait a minute…you're that guy that was gonna help me kidnap those kids so we could sell them for-"
"We didn't do anything crack-related together, schlomo! Geez…you really need to lay off the crack if all you can think about is crack…" Evander sighed, grabbing Kurt by the arm and helping him up off of the ground. His nostrils could hardly handle the awful scent that he was emitting, and he pinched his nose to try and make existing near him slightly more bearable. "You're a mess, man. Let's go get you somewhere where you can take a shower…maybe drop you in a motel for a few days."
"Do you think the motel will have crack in it?" Kurt belched as Evander just sighed and started leading him down the sidewalk. They happened to pass by a bus stop when they were walking, where there was one, singular person sitting and waiting to be picked up. It was a short, skinny man with pale, apricot-toned skin and a soft body. He seriously looked like he could be stepped all over and would just cave and not complain in the slightest about it. His hair was brunette, styled in a way that reached his shoulders and covered the right of his two, green eyes. "I heard some motels have secret stashes behind the wallpaper and in the mattresses and stuff."
"Kurty K, I ain't got the faintest clue if the motel has got any of that stuff in it…unlike you, I don't do crack or get myself into crack-related matters." As Evander spoke and kept on walking, the unassuming Ashe Ward kicked his feet, still sitting and waiting for that bus to come. He looked like a pseudo-emo boy, thanks to the clothes that he chose to wear, and his black beanie in particular. He had a lightweight hoodie on, one that was mostly a dark purple color, except for the gray band that ran around the lower half of it. His pants were black skinny jeans, of course, and he was wearing sneakers that were a mix of dark purple and gray colors. As he sat there, he slowly opened his mouth to say something.
"O-oh, kind sir! Could you maybe help me…ah…you're busy…that's okay, I understand completely! I-I'll just wait for the next person to come by!" It was a dark and stormy day in Cagliari, Sardinia, where a certain plump woman was currently dangling from a tall tee and getting absolutely drenched from all of the rain. There was a rope that was fixed around her calf and a thick branch of the tree, which was keeping her hoisted up and unable to move. Not like she was really close to the ground, so she had no chance of really grabbing at anything. Her skin normally would've been almond in tone, though her face had started to go pale from all the blood rushing to her head. Even her green eyes seemed like they were draining from all of their color. Her curly, black hair was a mess at this point, but somehow, her two ponytails managed to keep their structure sound in all of this.
"I-I'm feeling really light-headed now…i-if there was some knight that could come rescue me, I would be eternally grateful! …A-anyone, really! …Don't all come to my aid at once!" Cindy Cinclair, the woman that was considered as an obnoxious, annoying waste of space by pretty much everyone that knew her, had gotten herself in this predicament. Thing is, people had grown so tired of her antics at this point that they hardly wanted to help her out at all. She was, keyword being was, dressed up like a beautiful, elegant princess, though her white boa scarf, pink high heels, and golden crown had all fallen off since she was dangling for so long, leaving her just in her fancy pink dress and white gloves…though the skirt of the dress was drooping down from her position and showing off her pink bloomers to the world.
"...Are you…okay up there?" Cindy's near lifeless eyes glanced about the second that she heard someone else's voice, which is when she saw a woman that clearly wasn't a local, but a tourist. She tried to talk back to her, but she was clearly running out of any energy to do so, as she could only just barely move her lips at this rate. "A-ah shucks…gimme a second, I'll get ya down from there." The tourist didn't really know what to do in this sort of position, mainly from how high up Cindy was, but she ended up grabbing a decent sized rock, chucking it at the rope and snapping it in half. The princess immediately fell from the branch, all of her body weight landing on top of the tourist and darn near crushing her.
"Ah…ah…finally…rescued by a noble knight!" Cindy was still pretty woozy, as she was slurring her words as she spoke. "Thank you for saving me, noble knight!" The princess looked down to see that her savior was currently completely under her body, and gasped before getting up off of her and helping her off of the ground. "M-my apologies! I was just…about to leave my home for this journey I have to take, when I got…stuck…up there…completely by accident. That's when you came along, Miss…"
"...Ya can j-just call me Kimmy, p-princess." Kimmy blushed as she got up and got a good look at Cindy from a proper angle. The princess was putting her shoes, crown, and boa all back on and trying to tidy herself up as best as she could before suddenly pecking her savior on the cheek. "G-golly…"
"Again, thank you for saving me, Knight Kimmy! I must be off now! Maybe our paths will cross again, someday!" Cindy smiled as she danced off into the rain, leaving Kimmy to keep blushing and rubbing the cheek that had been kissed.
"...Great…the outside…I didn't really think this whole thing through…before agreeing to sign up for the show…did I…?" A man groaned as he ever so slightly pulled part of the blinds in his room up, just letting in a sliver of light. The light cut through the darkness, striking his horribly pale skin and leaving him hissing before he immediately let the blinds close once more. He was short, and while he wasn't full underweight, he definitely was riding that line pretty closely. His eyes were a dull brown, the only really noticeable thing about them being the bags that drooped underneath them. His hair was at least a little more interesting, being mostly black in color with some green highlights that ran all the way throughout it, though it lacked any real style and was just a real mess.
"...I can already tell that I'm…going to hate this. It's an island…in the middle of the Pacific…it's bound to be hot…and so, so bright…" Michael Williams knew that the time was coming for him to finally grace the world with his presence, and that he could no longer hide in the shadows and confines of his room. He had to do something to prevent that light from making contact with his skin…and thus, he set out to his closet, beginning to construct the perfect outfit for the occasion. A dark, green trench coat, the ends of which went all the way down to his ankles, which had a brown, fur hood that he covered his head with, a pair of glasses with a boring, gray frame, a multi-toned, green shirt that was only visible because he didn't zip the coat up, brown jeans that were held up by a black belt, and black and white sneakers.
"...Oh…right…how could I forget…? There's no way that I would ever go out in public…without one of you to keep me company…" Michael fetched a neon green sheet of paper from his desk, clearing this throat before moving his hands so quickly, so efficiently that it almost seemed as if they were a blur and nothing more. When his hands finally returned to a normal pace, they were setting the newly formed, origami praying mantis upon his shoulder. It sat there in complete stillness, to no real shock.
"...That's much better…come to think of it…I really am going to need…to bring more paper with me…how will my origami kingdom be complete…without it…?" Michael moved right back over to his desk, grabbing each and every single piece of paper that he managed to find, tucking them all delicately into a briefcase, which he locked shut just to make sure that none of it had a chance of fluttering away from him on this journey. With that in hand, he sighed, knowing exactly what was about to come next as he walked over to his bedroom door, opening it to see the darkness of the rest of his house. He sighed again, pushing himself all the way through to get to his front door, where he stood in silence.
"...Well…here goes nothing…let's hope that the sun doesn't fry me to a crisp…" With a single, deep breath, Michael twisted the door open, stepping outside to see the horribly bright world. Luckily, his clothing was really helping him to keep from being attacked by the sun, other than a small bit of his face that felt the light against it. He groaned annoyedly, looking out to the sidewalks to see a mass of black blobs moving around like the sun was hardly doing anything to them. "This…is going to be the worst time of my life…ever…"
"Ah, can't believe it's already time for me to beat it…you better promise that you won't fall apart while I'm gone, Selene!" A man was in the midst of packing his things up for his big trip while his sister stood in the doorway to his room, having a worried frowned on her face. The apartment was one they had shared together for the past three years, since they had graduated high school, and the thought of one of them not being there was just…odd. The man in question was tall, and not bulky, but still broad, with decent bits of muscle in all of his limbs as well as some soft curves to his body. His skin was a medium-brown tone, with darker freckles dotting all along his cheeks and across his nose. He had eyes of amber, and dark brown, curly hair that was styled in a fade with a flat top.
"You know I absolutely cannot promise that at all! Watch, you'll come back, and this whole apartment is going to be on fire!" Selene looked like she was on the verge of tears as she fell to her knees before her brother. Lio Astaire was always the more level-headed, clear thinker of the two of them, as Selene…well, her main solution to everything being either yelling or getting a bit physical. Lio was all dressed up for success, even though he hadn't left or even gotten on his flight yet. An orange tee shirt with black stripes on it had been tossed over the top of a white, long-sleeved polo, the whole outfit being completed with his blue sweatpants and black slides. "I think I really should just be allowed to go with you! It would be best that way!"
"Well, the guy in charge of the whole thing only accepted me, myself, and I, so that means you can't come. I wish it were different, too, but that's just how it ended up." Lio shook his head, still smiling as he walked over to Selene and patted her on the head, only for her to suddenly stand up and wrap him up in a huge, tight bear hug. The air practically fled from his lungs in seconds, leaving him to turn blue in the face as he struggled to speak. "Need…air…hug…less…tight…"
"Oh, I just can't help it! It's gonna be the last time I see you for…who knows how long! I should storm down to that host and really drill it into his head that the both of us need to be there!" Selene finally let Lio down from her grasp, cracking her knuckles and gritting her teeth while tears were finally falling from her eyes. "He just thinks that he can take you and leave me all by myself, does he? Well, I'll show him a thing or three!"
"I…really don't know if all of that is necessary, Selene. Just think of it this way: if I end up winning this whole thing, we'll have that whole kingdom to share! We'll be the greatest monarchs the world has ever seen!" Lio beamed, though Selene still didn't look anymore convinced that she shouldn't just go beat the ever-loving snot out of Osvaldo. "...Yeah, I didn't really figure that you'd find that so thrilling. But what I'm saying is that we'll be with each other no matter what! If I win, you're going to be by my side then, and if I lose, I'm just gonna come right back home to you! I promise, I would never abandon you…just like you would never abandon me."
"You choose Odin over me to be your successor…he is nothing! I've done everything perfectly my whole life, and this is what I'm rewarded with!? Betrayal! You…agh!" A woman screamed out in fury as she whacked a tennis ball hard with her racket, lodging it right into the fence that surrounded the court she was playing at. The opponent on the other side was a much, much older woman by the name of Clara…and in all her sixty years of playing tennis, she had never seen someone so ferocious as this woman. The furious woman was of average height with beige-toned skin, a mole on the right side of her lips, and an hourglass figure with clearly powerful limbs. Her eyes were green, but they seemed to carry enough fury to them to make more sense as red, and her raven black hair was done up with two, spiraling curls on the sides.
"O-oh dear…maybe you should just speak to your father if this is bothering you so much, eh? Beats almost killing me with the ball…" Clara nervously went to grab another ball for her game against Persephone D'Amours, the woman that had been fully denied what she craved most in life…many years ago. Still, she had never forgotten the sting of discovering that her brother, Odin, was going to be next in line for her family's company rather than herself. She was dressed elegantly, and fashionably for sure, with a black, sleeveless dress that had a skirt that went to the middle of her thighs, beige leggings, and black flats. Her ears had pearl earrings in them, and she had a black bandana that was working hard to keep her hair out of her face.
"My father does not deserve any words from me! If he can so easily take away the only thing I need, then why should I be civil with him!? Besides…" Persephone took a deep breath as Clara served the ball to her, before wailing it with her racket to return it, only to lodge this ball in the fence as well. "...If all goes as planned on this show, there will be no reason for me to speak to him anymore. I'll be in charge of my own kingdom! He'll come groveling to my feet, and I'll feed him and Odin both to my hyenas!"
"H-hyenas? Doesn't that…maybe just sound a little too much?" Clara gulped a lump in her throat down as she went to get another ball, serving it back to Persephone to only get the exact same result as the prior two balls.
"You're right, I wasn't thinking so clearly…wolves would clearly be a much more regal companion to feed them too. Hyenas are too loud…and filthy. Wolves at least have common decency…they'll keep the mess off of my carpets." Persephone smirked, as she was now getting ready to leave the court. She put her racket away, as well as some of the tennis balls from the court before walking over to the other side to shake hands with Clara. "It's been…wonderful playing with you, Clara. Tell you what…if you don't die while I'm still competing, I'll let you be my personal advisor after I win."
"Oh, that sounds…lovely, Persephone. I'll try not to kick the bucket any time too soon, eh." Clara tried to joke with Persephone, but couldn't shake the nervous feeling that she got just from standing around her. She was just such a presence, an intense, and vengeful presence…it was impossible not to quiver when near her. "I…really hope you win."
"I don't need you to hope for me…I will win."
"See? Isn't this the most romantic evening you have ever spent with another person? I told you guys that you're perfect together!" The setting of this romantic evening was none other than…a McDonald's dining room. Well, to be fair, it wasn't actually a dining room…it was the smaller dining area that was around the kid's play place. There was the dating duo that sat at their table, Johnny and Kayla, both of which really just looked weirded out as they stared at the woman who was hovering over their table. She was perfectly average in build, at least as far as things went for the upper half of her body. As far as the lower half, she was a bit slimmer…although she was taller than your average woman, as well. She had peach white skin, curly, freckles all along her face, orange hair that just barely reached the bottom of her neck, and black, doe-like eyes that sort of…well, not sort of, but really creeped out the "couple" that she was with.
"Uh…I don't know how it could be romantic when you're standing here the whole time. …And asking us all of these questions about what we like about each other. It feels more like trivia than a date, really." Embarc Arbarco frowned at the response that came from Kayla, as she really had expected more success to come from one of her ships. She rummaged around in her oversized, blue and green striped sweater to fetch out a notebook, which she started reading through closely. Aside from her sweater, she was wearing black sandals and brown short shorts, but it was literally impossible to see them, as they were buried in the cloth of her sweater. Some people quite literally thought she had gone out into public with no pants on whatsoever.
"...Okay, but you two both love kids and fast food. You told me yourselves when I met you and asked what things you like. See?" Embarc turned the notebook around, showing the oddly written out notes that she had about both of the people. It was borderline psychopathic in nature, and left both Kayla and Johnny feeling sick to their stomachs. They got up from the table as quick as they could, bolting for the door and leaving their love guru behind. "Oh, come on, guys! We could always try going to Burger King, instead!" She tried to run after them, but when she got to the door, it was already too late, and they were gone with the wind.
"Aw…I was really hoping that I would've had some more success with this ship…it is the last one I really have a chance to see before I have to leave, after all." Embarc sighed, fetching a pencil that was shoved in her curly hair and crossing out the notes about Kayla and Johnny with abundant sadness on her face. "I guess it isn't so bad…when I'm on that island, there's bound to be plenty of people for me to ship! I could probably even ship someone with that greasy guy that's in charge of the show!" The sadness fled from her expression as she put her notebook and pencil away, heading out of the McDonald's and out into the bright, sunny day.
"That's right…this whole kingdom is going to be my shipping wonderland! Valentine's day won't just be once a year, it'll be every Saturday! I can already smell the love in the air!" Embarc took in a sharp inhale before wincing and realizing that she was standing right near an open sewer grate. "...T-the love smells not so fresh, today…m-maybe I'll just wait 'til I get to the island before I keep smelling it…"
"Yes…oh, yes indeed…this is going to be the perfect heist! Just think about it…it's a whole kingdom! I can simply just snatch the castle all for myself– I'll be living in luxury! That's what fits me best, anyways!" It was inconveniently windy as a man stood outside, talking to someone that couldn't quite be seen from where he was standing. He wasn't necessarily a big person, standing at a more average height with a runner's build, but his personality was clearly a big one. His eyes were the dullest tone of gray, but had a sharpness to them to make them far more interesting in appearance, and his black hair was wavy, but unkempt. A huge gust of wind blew right in his face, causing some of his hair to get in front of his eyes and in his mouth, so he had to slap it away and spit it out as best as he could.
"Blech! This wind is a lot more annoying than I anticipated it to be…so long as nothing happens to the flowers, it'll be fine, I suppose." The Phantom Thief, Virgil Anton…he wasn't someone that you would ever expect to really see out in the open like he currently was, but seeing as he was going to be leaving home for a while, there was just something that he had to attend to first. His outfit was fine for the windy weather at least, with a light, gray jacket that he had left unzipped over his black shirt. He had also chosen to wear light gray pants and black sneakers, keeping his whole attire and person abundant with neutrals rather than popping colors. He made it obvious that he didn't want to stick out, ironically…but it worked to some extent, as no one really said a single word about him, or really even noticed him.
"Living in poverty was never much my style anyways, but you knew that already. It's fine, it's fine…I'll nab this win swiftly, and then have the perfect place to win. If I can help it, no one else will be stuck in those grubby conditions on the whole island." Virgil smirked for a moment, but his smirk slowly sank into a frown as he tapped at his chin. "If I win…what's going to happen after? Am I going to feel fulfilled, am I going to feel empty? I'd like a little more certainty…" He sighed and pulled his hand down from his face again, looking back to who he was speaking to.
"You know…I hate to have to say these words, but I'll do it for you, only because you're so special to me. I'm sorry that I've been living this shadowy life…I know you probably wouldn't approve of it. We deserved better though, me and you! I know that, I would hope you knew that, too!" Virgil chuckled, although the chuckled seemed to be something more to break the awkward tension of the situation, as no one responded to his apology.
"No one deserves it, after all, but not us especially! You always worked so hard for us…ah, look at me, getting all emotional. This isn't my style whatsoever! Whatever, whatever…I gotta get going, so…you know, just make sure you're watching me. I want you to be the only person that sees me moving in the shadows…mom." Virgil smiled as he turned away from the conversation, walking off into the distance, only leaving behind a bouquet of pitch black roses to sit just in front of the tombstone of his late mother.
"Yes, that's right…everyone stand up straight, hold your hands behind your backs…you all know this is the last you'll see of me for some time…so I don't want to remember you as the employees that don't even know how to say goodbye to their manager properly." The pool hall was already closed for the night, with all of its employees standing in two lines, facing each other while one short, yet mighty woman walked between them, holding a pool cue in her hands. With peach white skin, this woman had quite a bit of natural curves, with a lot of emphasis on her rear more than anything else. Her hair was blonde, being a medium length, but pulled into a firm ponytail, and her eyes were jade green, and quite fierce.
"Now, you all know me as the woman that came in, worked for a mere five weeks, and managed to uproot the entire management system before claiming the throne of power for myself…but I've got better things to do. As such, I will be dubbing Enrique as my next in line…he shows the most potential for greatness." Even in her school years and now when she was working, Marie Everest would never let up on her coarse, dictator-esque personality. She ran a strict ship wherever she was, and while no one really cared for it, they did have to at least accept the fact that she was good at what she did. She even looked like a dictator…at least with her admiral hat. The rest of her outfit was a bit looser, being an open, green hoodie, a yellow tank top, blue skinny jeans, and black worker's boots.
"Uh…but…with the owners and all the other managers gone, what am I supposed to do exactly to make sure that this place doesn't just…you know, crash and burn?" Enrique was at the far end at one of the lines, and the very second that he spoke up, Marie rushed over to him, tapping his forehead with her pool cue while she glared at him, unimpressed by this query of his. "O-ow…"
"If you're really going to have such feeble questions, then I guess I was wrong with wanting to entrust you with such a position of power…perhaps I could get my brother in to run things for me. I'm sure that he would do a much better job than all of you dimwits, anyways." Marie smirked as she headed back down the line, leaving Enrique to rub his forehead where she had struck him. There was a faint red mark there, and none of the other pool hall employees wanted to suffer the same fate as him, so they all kept their lips sealed tight as they could manage.
"Yes, that's right…you all should know better than to question my judgment. I'll inform Joshua of this opportunity for employment. I've got no guarantee for you that he'll accept, though. In the event of such a thing…well, I suppose it'll be a free-for-all until one of you claims the reins of management." Marie smirked, snapping the pool cue over her knee before leaving all of the employees behind in the hall and heading outside. She stared up at the night sky, taking in the sight of the full moon in all its silvery glory. "...That's right…they'll be left to fend for themselves…and I'll move on to doing what I so desperately need to…earning my seat of power in this world. With this kingdom under my command, it won't be long before I become the next superpower that this world so desperately needs. Look out, everybody…Dictator Everest is on the rise."
And that's the first bit of the cast reveal that I have for you guys for now. Wanted to get an update out before the deadline closes, so you can all expect another update like this when I have the full cast. After that, it will be a little while before things kick off, but just wanted to show the people I have selected so far. I did add three slots, as I got a crazy amount of womens' apps, though I haven't gotten so much men and am still hoping for a few more before the deadline comes. But yes, this is what we have for now, thank you all for submitting and don't be afraid to keep them coming.
Contestants So Far:
1. Ashe Ward, the Spectator (MorbidGinger)
2. Cindy Cinclair, the Damsel in Distress (Grape Escape)
3. Destiny Vyra, the Snazzy Bass Player (XxDesperadoxX)
4. Embarc Arbarco, the Shipper (BaseballCapClyde)
5. Lio Astaire, the Diplomatic Leader (TheFelineOverlord)
6. Magdelena "Maggot" Argot, the Freak (Me)
7. Marie Everest, the Future Dictator (Nobody245)
8. Persephone D'Amours, the Arrogant Princess (LordGemini)
9. Phillip David Williams, the Perverted Partier (thedragonrooster)
10. Veronica Freeland, the Spoiled Rich Girl (DaringDF1827)
11. Virgil Anton, the Phantom Thief (KadachiNova)