The Machine [Open/Accepting]

[lil_lollypop1]

"Sounds like a good idea to me." Jian replied with a smile. "In the mean time, I'll continue with some of my projects and use it as propaganda to gain back the trust of the citizens. The western land we took is very fertile and will be opened for agricultural means. That way, we won't have to depend on trade to supply all of our citizens with food. I'll keep a steady percentage of our budget towards public services like parks, roads, and so on, which has been pushed aside for war use. Of course, the profit from the diamond mines will cover it, and when everything gets up and running, it should pay for itself. If we can get the citizens to like us enough, and if we can play our cards right, we might be able to get away with a corruption purge without too much of a hassle." Jian replied. "Damien might be opposed to it, but I was hoping that when the twins are back... if and when we get them back... the new technology might be advanced and cheep enough that I can convince him that some of the access money should go back into keeping the civilians happy to prevent any more rebellions."  

[Eternal_PrinceOfFire]

"Understood" Dustin said. He flipped one twin over each of his shoulders and went walking down to place them in separate rooms. There they were provided with a bed and some food and water. However, the doors were locked and barred from the outside. They were also put on surveillance.


Damien sighed and wondered what to do now. He opened his desk drawer and pulled out a cell phone, then looked at it. Should he call Shadow now? The riots would give him the excuse that 'David' had to be called back to deal with the violence. He had to think for a moment.  

[lil_lollypop1]

Shadow was playing it low in one of her many costumes. This time, she wore a violet bobbed wig, biker jeans and a leather jacket. She settled on smoothies as opposed to her usual beer. Still, she continued her job of digging for information. After all, it was times like these where she had an overflow of customers, even if she was currently wanted.  

[Eternal_PrinceOfFire]

Damien sighed and reluctantly called the number. He listened to the dial tone and waited for Shadow to pick up. Time to get back into his 'David' character.  

[lil_lollypop1]

Shadow looked down at her ringing phone and saw the name pop up. Of course, it was the last name she wanted to see at the moment, but she thought it might actually be about something good for once. She sighed and picked up her phone. "Hello?" She asked, leaning against the bar.  

[Eternal_PrinceOfFire]

"Hello" Damien said in his 'David' character. "I was thinking about you and I wanted to apologize and make up for how our date ended last time. I will repeat though that I had to follow orders" he said.  

[lil_lollypop1]

"Yeah yeah. Ok. Do you have orders this time too?" She asked with slight irritation. "Well... then again, I just might be inclined to believe you considering the riots. I got stuck inside and couldn't get half of what I wanted to get done today because of them, and I'm sure your stuck in overtime. So... what exactly do you have in mind?"  

[Eternal_PrinceOfFire]

"Hmm. I don't know. I was called back from the war with Helmshire to deal with the riots and currently martial law has been strengthened. I don't think it is wise to go outside, especially after the announcement that our glorious Chief General made. I guess for the moment all we can do is talk. Now that the violence has died down and most of the rioters have been dealt with, I am now relieved of duty and can chat for a while" 'David' stated.  

[lil_lollypop1]

"I see. Alright then. What do you want to 'talk' about?" She asked, thinking he would ask about the prince of Helmshire. After all, she was the one that told him about it, and he did come on the announcer earlier that day.  

[Ayame-Yuura]

"Alright then. I'm going upstairs now. Be in the conference room later. We shall make a call today" Zil said, heading upstairs to meet with Fanny.

Fanny was lying in her bed, brooding when the door flew open. It was the rebel leader in his casual clothes. She called out, "Zil!" She ran into his arms to be caressed like a beloved daughter.

Zil began talking to Fanny gently about what she had done and how she should have asked Dustin first before acting since he was practically in charge at the time. He also began discussing about how to deal with the twins with her and what alibi they'd use. Zil ruffled her hair a little and said, "Look, Fanny. I love that you're becoming more independent and using your leadership skills but there are still boundaries. You need to ask permission first before acting as always. You know that! I appreciate your efforts and the potential good it could do for us but... The implications re bad. Very bad!" He sighed before continuing, "That aside, what do you think? Are we in on it?"

Fanny nodded with a smile, doing a pinky swear with Zil that she would cooperate in the current mission and be more careful next time around. She looked up as the redhead left the room.

Monica nodded slightly, taking note of what Jian said before she said, "This little project of yours won't send you away, now will it?" Of course, Jian not being there was a concern for Monica. After all, it was in Jian's company or arrival that the chief of secret police often got away without sometimes unwanted attentions from the absolute leader. Jian also, was someone that Monica found easy to tolerate much like her fiance then.

((OOC: ))  

[lil_lollypop1]

"No. It shouldn't." Jian replied. "He'll be happy to hear that we're finally independent from Helmshire, and it's not as if I haven't told him about it. All projects must be approved by him to get any actual funding. I just say it because he might have just seen my name and approved of it like he usually does."  

[Eternal_PrinceOfFire]

"Well these riots all started because of a broadcast made by Helmshirishmen who managed to sneak across the border without being noticed. One even announced himself as the prince of Helmshire. You wouldn't happen to have any information on this incident, would you?" 'David' asked.  

[lil_lollypop1]

((I just noticed I've been using purple for Shadow when purple is for the twins. Oh well. >.< I guess I'll wake up the twins now.))

Valkyrie slowly got up and looked around. "W-where am I?" She asked, rubbing her head. She vaguely remembered the dart and gripped her fists. Suddenly, something occurred to her. "V-Vincent? Vincent! Vincent where are you?!" She asked in a panic. She ran around, looking for her brother. Seeing that they had been separated, she cursed and swore and started destroying the room. A few moments later, Vincent woke up and did likewise. Afterwards, they sat against the wall in fetal position, shaking with fear and anger, and only wanting to be with the other twin.

"Yeah. It was the prince. I heard that afterwards, some Helmshire spies sedated him and forced him back to Helmshire through one of their smuggling routs. Apparently he snuck over here to monitor the rebels, and Helmshire was very p***ed off. They may even cut funding for the rebels." Shadow snickered. "But hey, at least you won't have to worry as much about getting hacked."  

[Eternal_PrinceOfFire]

Damien raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Is that so? How come?" he asked. He really wanted to know as himself, not his character.  

[lil_lollypop1]

"Yeah, they were infiltrating your system to track down the prince, remember? I think I also heard they were selling base layouts and passwords and stuff to rebels too, but if they cut off money to rebels, they'll probably cut off money. Actually, I heard the rebels aren't doing well in general. There's some rumor that the rebels kidnapped some kids, and investors are starting to pull out their finances. Of course, that's probably some stupid rumor, but I could be mistaken. I expect to start getting a lot of concerned calls starting tomorrow, and maybe even some tonight." Shadow finished. "But I'm surprised, David. Why are you so interested?" She asked with curiosity.