Moonflower's Arc

Chapter 4 of 5

INQUISITOR TYRO LEGATUS A fanatical servant of her unknowable deity the Deus Nihili and its powerful secret society of accolytes the Finis Omnium. She is a Discipuli Vacui Inanis. She desires only to bring about the Absentia Perpetua, the eternal nothing, and rendering all of reality void. She Is An Fanatical Zelot And Agent Of Her Order, Ahe Will Obey Any Order Given To Her By A Superior Without Question Or Hesitation, Regardless Of Anyone Or Anything That Happens To Be In The Way Of Her Compleating Her Assignment. She Is Cold And Efficent, Pure Devotion To Her God, Order And Beliefs. She Posesses So Little Emotion Some Say She Isnt Even Alive. The only thing close to being personal to her is her N.I.L. (Neurological Interface Liaison), a small metallic sphere that hovers near her at all times. It’s true capabilities known only to her superiors who allow her the use of it as a tool, weapon and possibly more. Inquisitor Tyro Legatus: A scaled girl that can almost pass for human, tall and gaunt, with white chromatic scales that can camouflage her when needed. She has a slim tail, claws and fangs, and often unsettling to others. She is an operative for a secret powerful global cabal. Professional, calculated and cold. She looks like a standard man in black, a dark suit and plain tight long black trench coat with a high collar and black wide brimmed hat and mirrored glasses. She carries two large handguns under her arms and an earpiece. She has a small baseball sized metal sphere that orbits around her. Edit: Inquisitor Tyro Legatus: An uncanny scaled girl that can almost pass for human, extremely tall and gaunt, with white chromatic scales that can camouflage her. She has a slim prehensile tail, intimidating sharp metallic claws and fangs, She wears a dark suit and plain tight long black trench coat with a high collar and black wide brimmed hat and mirrored glasses. She has an earpiece. A small baseball sized metal sphere that orbits around her. Soft and quiet, the Inquisitor speaks in a near whisper, cold and flat without intonation. A machine with muted organic parts. •Her unknowable deity the Deus Nihili (God of Nothin) •Her powerful secret society of accolytes the Ceryx Finis Omnium (The Heralds of the End of All) •She is a Discipuli Vacui Inanis (Empty Accolyte the Void) •Her desires to fulfill her asignment and to bring about the Absentia Perpetua, the eternal nothing, and rendering all of reality void. •Her unknowable deity the Deus Nihili (God of Nothin) •Her powerful secret society of accolytes the Ceryx Finis Omnium (The Heralds of the End of All) •She is a Discipuli Vacui Inanis (Empty Accolyte the Void) •Her desires to fulfill her asignment and to bring about the Absentia Perpetua, the eternal nothing, and rendering all of reality void. •Her determination and ruthlessness to achieve her goals regardless of the consequences. •Her ability to extract information from anyone through various forms of coercion and intimidation. •Her proficiency in combat, with weapons and ghost like stealth. •secrets that only her and her cult have knowledge of. •The “key” to bringing about the world’s end. Objekt-9: An inconspicuous yet eerie palm sized plain metallic sphere with the Roman numeral IX printed in black on its side in gothic lettering, giving it its desegregation “9”. It pulses with a field around it that distorts and negates light. It floats next to its owner/operator. Capable of nearly anything the person controlling it can imagine, from shapeshifting, firing projectiles, hacking electronic devices, projecting holograms nearly identical to reality and many other unknowns. It communicates in whatever the preferred method of the controller. Its power is said to be not of this reality. Art: •An unexpressive scaled girl that can almost pass for a human, serpentine beauty. •hypnotizing and mysterious allure •Dominant elegance that demands respect. •extremely tall and gaunt, white chromatic scales •She has a long, slim prehensile tail, intimidating long, sharp metallic claws and two snakelke fangs, •She wears a professional dark black suit and tie under a plain long flowing black trench coat with a high collar covering her long neck. •black wide brimmed hat and mirrored glasses that hide her glowing green eyes. •secret service style earpiece. •Mannequin like, unmoving unless necessary •A small baseball sized metal sphere that hovers around her at all times. •female snake body shape Edit: Moonflower reached the old hotel at dusk. Its stone face wore cracks like scars. Ragged curtains hung from broken balconies. The empty tin rode in her satchel, light as a dead leaf. Behind her the drugged plant slept in its pit, and the sleep would not last. She counted the hours in her head. One more dose left. Maybe two. She needed the butterflies before the trap woke hungry. She circled the building and found what she came for. A single butterfly with stained-glass wings drifted near a broken window. Pink dust fell from its motion in a slow cloud. Moonflower opened her tin and crept close. She caught a pinch on the metal edge, then another. The powder settled soft and warm. "Don't move," a girl said behind her. Moonflower turned. A short girl stood in the doorway. Pink hair, round glasses, a schoolgirl's uniform. Her stance was low and ready, hands loose. This was the one Brooke Lee had hired to clear the place. She looked harmless until you saw how she watched your hands. "I only want the dust," Moonflower said. "I'm not here to fight." "Two goblins followed you," Tia said. "They're in the wall behind you. They want what's in your tin." Moonflower heard scraping then. A brown-skinned goblin girl squeezed from a gap in the plaster, braids swinging, gold rings on every finger. A smaller goblin followed her, jersey loose, cigarette dead in his teeth. "Hand it over, plant lady," the braided one said. "That powder's ours now." Moonflower closed her fist on the tin. The goblins lunged together. Tia moved first. She stepped in front of Moonflower and struck the braided goblin flat in the chest. The goblin flew back into the wall and dropped. The smaller one grabbed Moonflower's wrist. She flung the loose pinch of pink dust into his face. He breathed it. His eyes went soft. He sat down in the dust and smiled at nothing. The braided goblin scrambled up, saw her partner slumped and grinning, and said in an exasperated tone “Damn it, your help is useless now.” She sat down next to her companion. Moonflower knelt fast by the window. She scraped the tin along the sill where the butterfly's dust had gathered thick. The tin filled halfway, then more. Enough for many doses now. Enough to lead the trap home. "Why help me?" she asked Tia. "Brooke Lee hired me to clear this place," Tia said. "You could work for her too. That would make you mine to protect." Tia answered confidently, then with a slightly different tone she said “If, if.. you want to, you know… we could spend some time together or whatever maybe….” Her awkwardness was too cute for Moonflower to ignore. She watched as Tia toed the floor with her shoe and nervously fidgeted her index fingers together. “She’s like a little kid with a crush” Moonflower thought. “How about I talk to your boss first, Brooke was it?” Moonflower stood, tin heavy and full. She had her leash for the guardian. But the drugged goblin still sat grinning on the floor, and the braided one sat holding her dazed companion. “She will tell the whole nest below where the powder came from.” Tia said in a wary tone. Moonflower's sleeping plant waited in its pit, its dose already fading. “Maybe not, I have an idea” She said with a grin as she walked towards the girl Goblin holding her companion’s head in her lap. “I have some questions for you little Goblin, and maybe a deal for you depending on how you answer.” The girl goblin lit a cigar and laughed led at Moonflower with a grin and a raised eyebrow. Her voice is light and Melodic like a soft breese, her laugh like a Bubbling brooke. She speaks in short, plain sentences with no extra words. Does not explain herself unless asked to explain, which she will do happily. Anything and everything that relates to plants and a bit about the night sky but, mostly plants. The braided goblin blew smoke and grinned. Moonflower knelt close and made her offer. "Show me where the Rainbow Butterflies gather," she said. "Keep the powder's properties a secret and I’ll teach you how to make it for yourself." The goblin studied her for a long moment. Then she spat in her palm and held it out. "Deal, plant lady. But my dumb boyfriend here needs to be put somewhere to sleep it off." The dazed goblin still smiled at the wall. Moonflower shook the small, ringed hand. Tia frowned. "Brooke won't like it. She hired me to clear this place, not open it wider." Moonflower stood. "Then I'll ask Brooke myself." They found the hotel manager in the lobby, standing over a hole cut into the floor. Green and pink smoke curled up from it. Faint music drifted below. Brooke was short and round, red curls loose, cat-eye glasses crooked. She held a clipboard she was too tired to read. When she saw Moonflower, her face lifted into a worn smile. "You came back. Good. The garden work, I—" She stopped. Her eyes fell to the goblin at Moonflower's side. "Oh, no. No, no." "I can help," Moonflower said fast. "I need the butterflies here. In return, I'll help you with your weird hole problems, whatever they may be.” Brooke rubbed her face under her glasses. "You know what's down there? A whole goblin kingdom for all I know, This place is worse every day." She pointed at the smoking pit. "I should lock it up. Send everyone home. That includes you." Moonflower opened her tin. Pink dust caught the light. "This calms them. It calmed the two that attacked me. Tia saw it." Tia gave one short nod. "It works," Tia said. "I watched a goblin sit down and smile, completely unaware." Brooke looked at the tin, then at Tia, then at Moonflower. Hope and fear fought in her face. "If it goes wrong, that's on me." She sighed. "Fine. Let me keep your butterflies, they may be useful,I’ll go down with Tia close behind just in case.” Brooke jabbed a thumb at the girl goblin. "And that one better behave herself and mind her boyfriend or whatever Goblins have ." "I got you boss lady, loud and clear ," the goblin said, grinning around her cigar. Moonflower had her permission. But Brooke wasn't done. She bent, lifted a sturdy medium sized pot from behind the desk, and pushed it into Moonflower's arms. A yellow warning label wrapped the pot. "Found this in the basement last week," Brooke said. "Think you could use it for your creepy little friend.” Brooke tilts her head towards the Cryptbloom in Moonflower’s arms. Moonflower's breath caught. The little plant snapped its jaws at her fingers lazily as she placed it in the pot and covered its roots with soil. “Perfect fit.” Moonflower exclaimed, “it looks so cute”, she cooed at the carnivorous plant. “Glad you like it, now, onto the main issue,” Brooke looked at the smoking pit. "Tia," she said. "You ready for this?” Tia nodded “Let’s go boss lady.”