+ Are these medicines safe to take together? (hallucinating)
Of course all the tonics are meant to be drunk together. They shouldn’t haven been so pretty mixed together otherwise. Shush I just got back from my vacation and I can drink whatever I want!
Oh my glob you guys, it’s like totally working!
Oh glob, it this like what it feels like to fly? Floating is like so dumb. I am FREE
Alice Verboten? Alice Verboten! Well that’s a fake name and a fake letter if I’ve ever read one. Now let’s puzzle this out… Hmmmm… No not HUMMMM… that’s a cube of a different color altogether.
Perhaps if I rearrange the letters the author will be revealed. An angleogram, or rather anklegram… angstograph? One of those damnable puzzles where you rearrange the letters to spell something very smart. Whatever it’s called. [Humpf]
“Alice Verboten”…becomes…“Bracelet No Vie” That sound rather foreign and also completely wrong.
How about… “Caliber One Vet”. Closer perhaps. We could do with a top notch vegetarian… veterananarian… vete… animal doctor. We could use a good animal doctor around here. But I don’t suppose we have that much luck, that we just happen to have a top doc, right in our midst and writing nasty missives to the local purveyor of bird cage liner.
How about… “Beacon Ever Lit”? A friendly message of hope. Quite unlikely.
Let’s try again. How does that go? E before B except after T as in ebullient or ebriviated. So, moving the v to the middle we get…
“El Bovine Trace”
That’s it. This letter to the editor is pure, undiluted, unadulterated, and twenty-four-carat, Spanish Bos taurus excrement!
Mystery solved!
Igor! Am I not a genius, Igor?
Yes, Master. A genius indeed.
Very good Igor. Have the rest of the day off. And consider yourself kicked, or at least kicked at, you veritable Alice Verboten!
Thank you, Master!
If the doors of perception were cleansed, everything would appear to man as it is, infinite.
Rounder @ghoti and Gummibuns @gwwar. Whatever you do, don’t look at your hands, maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnn…
Liv snaps his hand angrily against his copy of the Times. Eight months the Post-Ledger has been reporting on the disappearances and murders, and only now does the Times act like they have the scoop. Eight months and the Times either ignored what was happening, or outright insinuated that the Ledger was trying to cause trouble. It was only when the first True Citizen died that they started paying attention – altogether thirty Pretenders have gone missing or been among the victims, and the Times couldn’t even be bothered to send anyone to the inquest. ‘Grisly’ is hardly the word for it, either. He’s seen copies of the autopsy reports. Mutilations, missing organs, dismemberment… If the depraved mind can imagine it, it’s been done to these poor souls. And that’s just the ones that they’ve found. He shudders slightly, grateful he’s not still banging around in that old barn with its secret passages and dark hallways. Not to mention the decorations, and perhaps even the ghosts. No, this apartment with its nosy neighbours suits him just fine.
As for H. Eldermoon III Esq… well, it might do for people like him to remember that they’re outnumbered when it comes down to it. If enough people get sick and desperate… a man with a dueling pistol will stand little chance against a pub-hardened crew packing meathooks and bargepoles, not to mention the ballistic uses of your simple brick. Citizen or no, sentients are still sentients, and there’s a limit to what they’ll put up with before the bloodbaths start. True, it may be a high limit, but history has continually shown that it exists.
Well, time for another editorial hinting that maybe now that someone of stature is involved, the authorities might want to light a fire under themselves. He might also ask if that’s the case, seeing as the incident at DeForest Hall has still yet to be resolved. Tying it to personal tragedy will be a decent enough hook, and will help explain any perceived frustration with TPTB, so the Times will have less angle to try to accuse the Ledger of playing class-wars again. The Ledger has the circulation numbers – Liv has never been shy about making the Ledger aimed at the working classes as well as any Citizens tired of the Times’ pablum.
Sighing, he finishes his tea and prepares to get dressed. The special gloves, he thinks. No sense taking chances. Not given who he needs to talk to, today.
“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single sentient in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a mate.”
– Jane Clawsten, Pincers and Pinchability
Turn Deadline: Sun Mar 18 @ 5pm EDT
On orders from Mayor Tidewell, desperately needed medical supplies are being offloaded to waiting hovercarts at the Weatherby spaceport to be distributed at once to the less fashionable neighborhoods experiencing the brunt of the plague. A cheer arises among the gathered hopefuls watching from the boundaries.
As preparation are made for the Governor’s Ball, relative health is not an obstacle! Any number of tricks and conveyances are available from enterprising merchants to ameliorate, assist, and enhance one’s experience of the ball. Although lively, the dancing will not be taxing.
Meanwhile, one might expect the following:
Turn 5 plague progress: For healthy individuals: Longshot chance of a decline in health that would likely be significant. Good chance for any existing condition to improve, Fair chance for it to worsen instead.
Turn 5 risks: Poor chance for any ‘sketchy’ tract to be contested in court by Weatherby’s Barristers. Contested deeds have an Average chance of being resolved in favor of the current owner, otherwise prior claims are discovered by the courts and ownership of the tract will be transferred to a random household.
Turn 5 rewards: Fair chance to encounter an unexpected individual.
Required: Discourse and delights are planned prior to the ball. For the finer delights, invitations are sent about to the very best neighborhoods as a members of society begin to draw inferences from your choice of lodging. Attending the most talked about parties will require maintaining the right address or by having the right reputation. One may attend one of the following events prior to the ball with the following:
ATTEND 2
PLEASE NOTE: One not need dine with the Governor to attend the ball. One may attend any of the following pre-ball dining engagements and then proceed to the ball proper afterwards.
Option 1: Dine with the Governor: The Governor himself is indeed about and looking to confer with the most accomplished and esteemed individuals that Weatherby has to offer.
Option 2: Dine with the Mayor: Coming off a difficult re-election campaign, Mayor Tidewell looks to celebrate her recent victory with her supporters.
Option 3: Dine with Ms. Applethwaite: The city’s most talked about salonnière looks to invite new members to her elegant gatherings in the upcoming year. This dinner presents an opportunity to make inroads with Weatherby’s socialites.
Option 4: Dine with Ms. Fangley: Ms. Fangley’s gatherings are noted as an incubator for promising political careers
Option 5: Enjoy the sumptuous feast in the dining hall: Plenty of delicious crudites, petit fours, and amuse-bouche are available in the dining hall to savor and enjoy whilst conversing with the Weatherbean elite. Oh! What a delightful Pot de crème!
Required: Appearing in style is an important part of maintaining appearances. One may temporarily boost rank in this manner to acquire access to the more rarefied dinner engagements. Temporary rank boosts are available immediately but only last for the duration of the turn. For example:
Hire Proper Four-in-hand
The following conveyances are available:
50£ Pony and Trap (Efficiently gets you to the ball with little fanfare)
200£ Sporty Gig (Temporary Rank+25)
250£ Hansom Cab (Temporary Rank+50)
400£ Proper Four-in-hand (Temporary Rank+75)
600£ Stylish Spider Phaeton (Temporary Rank+100)
750£ Furry little Surrey (Temporary Rank+150)
Optional: One may choose to wager on this season’s Lagoderm race. Merely select a promising creature from the Sports & Leisure section and also indicate the size of the wager. Example:
Wager Hamdinger 100
Optional: One may procure personal quarters within the city at the current market rate. Any change of quarters comes with an additional 25£ fee for moving services. Each improvement represents a move to a better neighborhood with a more impressive address. Example:
Rent Spartan apartment
As more members of Leviathan’s move into upscale districts, doors are opened into even more impressive neighborhoods.
Nature of Quarters Upkeep Effect Neighborhood
-------------------- -------------- ---------- --------------
Spartan apartment 75£ per turn +50 rank Ten Path
Modest apartment 200£ per turn +75 rank Paddingdown
Proper apartment 400£ per turn +150 rank St. Marrowbone
Fashionable apartment 700£ per turn +300 rank Dragoon Mews
Luxurious apartment 1200£ per turn +500 rank Whipweed Place
Buy:
Required: One simply must ‘put on the dog’ for the biggest event of the season. Proper finery will impress potential dance partners even more than usual.
100£ Basic Frippery (Minor improvement to dance outcomes)
200£ Fashionable Outfit (Modest improvement to dance outcomes)
300£ Luxurious Option (Significant improvement to dance outcomes)
400£ Remarkable Ornamentation (Outstanding improvement to dance outcomes)
Required for those attending the ball.
Three dances will be held at the ball: a Grand March (Introductory, casual), a Double Quadrille (more personal, more difficult), and a Waltz (most personal, most difficult). Select your potential partners for each dance and submit privately via PM to @Bartlebot. In the event that a dance partner is chosen by more than one suitor for a given dance, the partner’s preferences will determine the outcome:
Dance 1 Mary Flowers
Dance 2 Johann Wentworth
Dance 3 Oblate Spheroid
The Citizen Pretenders potentially available for dancing:
Name Likes Dislikes
@Tom_Ratchetcrank ??? ???
@liversnaps-grayson ??? ???
@Qaaxtzl ??? ???
@Rockford_Julius ??? ???
@Chewseen ??? ???
@Ssskidwish ??? ???
@Eighth ??? ???
Mary Flowers (Space Moose) FSH, Income MIL
Johann Wentworth (Space Human) PER, BUS FSH
Oblate Spheroid (Geometer) MIL, BUS EDU
Harriet Codsworth (Space Piscean) Income, PER FSH
Henry Argyle (Space Human) Rank, EDU BUS
Jasper Milkthistle (Space Human) PER, FSH Rank
Melisande Copse (Space Moose) Rank, FSH Income
James Riptide (Space Lobster) MIL, Rank PER
Lizzy Heliotrope (Holographic) EDU, Income MIL
Madeline Penumbra (Space Human) FSH, PER BUS
Cassie Oceana (Space Lobster) Income, Rank EDU
Richard Forester (Space Moose) BUS, EDU PER
Jasper Rawhide (Space Canine) EDU, Income FSH
Margaret Rockingham (Space Human) EDU, PER BUS
Zoë Thistleheart (Space Lizard) Income, Rank EDU
Charlotte Branchwit (Space Moose) FSH, MIL PER
Although it appears none is needed, a brief reminder to use the Public Ledger to establish your intentions for this season.
In spite of the recent influx of supplies from Britannia Prime, several helpful medicines are still available for purchase:
5£ Dr. Arbuckle's Whipweed Tonic Wine
10£ Ms. Merrimoose's Soothing Syrup
15£ Franklin Gooseberry's Remarkable Colloidal Seryl[GM Note: Dance card options are still being generated. I shall have them up tomorrow ASAP. As a preview, True Citizens will have the option of enjoying three dances with the assembled Citizen Pretenders. Improved dance outcomes will increase one’s chances of successfully completing the dance and impressing one’s partner.]
A horrible gaff?
Oh, poor Commander Piker! No one has ever mentioned his dancing being that terrible.
And if we meet none of the attendance requirements?
Not that being left out from “proper” society is a devastating blow (deadpan oh woe is me whatever shall I do) but what are us “dregs” to be doing in the meantime? Perhaps I shall simply stand with my nose pressed to the glass like an urchin at the bakers.
Oh, I am sorry, was I being too sarcastic? Maybe it’s because while the “right” people are busy dancing, those that make it possible are dying in the streets!
Glancing over the party schedule for the season, St-Patrick-Hartbrooke shakes his head. He hopes that the matter of his duel with <pleasing hum> (@manwich) can be resolved this season; he would like to dismiss his physician, so that he can afford the best of attire, but would prefer to keep him on retainer to treat any injuries from the duel.
Between the Hansom Cab and proper attire, he is certain that he will cut a swath through the dancing partners at the Ball, but he simply mustn’t dig himself into debt to achieve it.
Out of the corner of his eye, St-Patrick-Hartbrooke sees that Mr. Sylvain looks upset.
“What troubles you, my dear Mr. Sylvain? (@MalevolentPixy) Surely, with the success of your investments, you can afford a Surrey carriage, which should grant you access to any but the most snobbish of parties.”
Dancing has the advantage also of being in vogue amongst the less polished societies of the world; every savage can dance!
There is a loud crack as the glass in Liv’s hand suddenly breaks. He turns to Lady Jane with what can only be described as a decidedly hostile glare, then turns and stalks away, muttering under his breath about who the true “savages” are. If he could, he would slam the door behind him as he leaves. To Hell with that sort of thing. On his way out, he slams a fist into the jukebox, causing it to start up mid-song.
…and all she wants to do is dance.
St-Patrick-Hartbrooke gazes out the door after Sylvain, looking slightly perturbed at the other gentlesentient’s loss of composure. After a moment, he shrugs, rolls his eyes in a manner that brings to mind a proctor marking a demerit onto a scorecard, and returns his attention to the party schedule.
[GM Note: Ouch! This isn’t that sort of dinner engagement. Embarassing typo corrected!]
Typo? I saw no typo, and only feared for my finned friend. Now, what to wear to the Governor’s Ball, what to wear…
[GM Note: Turn options updated with potential dance partners. Future turns shouldn’t be nearly as complex, but the Governor’s Ball requires a little more analysis and input than usual. Choose your finest fan and select your best cravat in anticipation of the potential of the evening!]
Hieronymoose opened the door to his Paddingdown Apartment. With as much time as he’d been spending out at Abacus Racks, it may as well be Rocco’s apartment. At least the young rodent was keeping the place tidy. But it wasn’t for Rocco. It was for him and the plain walls were depressing.
This last season had gone well enough, but if he was to be truthful with himself, Weatherby did not inspire him. Where once he was the most prestigious of his band of new-comers here, his status had fallen and it bothered him more than it should have. Between that and losing the farm, part of him wanted to book transit on the next off this rock on one his offworld shipping concerns. He’d become a ghost at Levithan’s. Missed vacation season to the south. He hadn’t had a bet on a winning nag yet
He sighed. Would his father run away? Actually, yes, Father did go off to be a Space Pirate. Grandfather though? No, grandfather would have put his antlers to grindstone and kept at it.
He sighed again and looked in the mirror. A tall, well-groomed Space Moose looked back. A Space Moose with business acumen and an education from Benjamin Wheatly’s Mercantile Concern. A Space Moose with a sizeable interest in ZepEx Express and the warehouses to support such trade. A Space Moose with a valet to ensure he always looked his finest. Business would be what it would be. This was not the season to ponder over ledgers. This was the season to see and be seen.
Keys rattled in the door. Some boisterous laughter came from the hall. The door swung open and Rockford and party stood momentarily silenced. Hieron, rack held high and proud, slowly turned to face the new comers.
“Oi! Master Farnsworth, I thought you’d still be out at Abacus Racks?”
“Well, @Rockford_Julius . You were mistaken. But, you’ve come at an opportune time. You and your little friends.”
Rocco’s tail twittered nervously as he looked back at @eighth and @chewseen.
“The Govenor’s ball is coming soon as you should know I think it is high time we moved someplace more in line with my status.”
Waving his hand around the apartment. “See about packing this up. I’ll have Alphonse come over from the warehouse to see about moving these things.”
Rocco’s tail drooped. Not so much that anyone would notice, save for Hieronymoose who knew the young Space Squirrel well.
“It needn’t be now. I recognize young men on a mission. But see to it that it is done within the week. And Rocco, I need you to make time for Pierre. I want you looking your best for the Ball."
Reaching into his vest, Hieron pulled out his credit chits he used for tipping and tossed one to each of them. Rocco’s eyes widen at the unexpected generosity.
“Go about your adventures you dashing rogues. I’m off to the Levithan.”
So, the night of the Governor’s Ball approaches. The highlight of the season. Obviously, Brummell has standards to uphold; there would be no question about his dress - only the very finest will do for the most fashionable gentlesentient about town. As to dinner, Brummell gives it some thought, and decides that he will attend Ms. Fangley’s dinner. Some transport will need to be arranged, something with a little je ne sais quoi, to add a small frisson to Brummell’s arrival at the event.
And it is high time that his and Qaaaxztl’s apartments more properly reflect their situation, so it was time to move up in the world; somewhat, at least. Circumstances are not yet quite as they might be desired, but proper apartments at least can be arranged.
Sure would be nifty if we could share a surrey ride, eh, Lieutenant? Since y’know, neither of us seems to have caught the flux?
Are you in need of a escort for the evening?