❝How about you turn your near-death experience into a book and sell that?❞

[clinical]

Characters: Mu, Saga, Peony, Jade, MONKEYS
Location: The Library
Time: First day of the MONKEY INVASION
Summary: Four old dudes (shut up Mu you're old!!) go on a fetchquest. For literature.
Warnings: Violence, snark, sarcasm. Monkeys.
Notes: I'm going tagging order of Jade, Peony, Mu, Saga, with Dero interjecting with monkeys as Dero sees fit. If anybody wants to change that up or whatever, tell me and we shall. I am just getting this party started, oh yeah.



Jade crumpled up the note and moved back to the Plane. He walked to the library briskly, wondering where the catch would be. Hopefully, Asch wouldn't do something stupid after seeing this note. Jade pushed the door open and stepped inside, noticing that there was something different to the place. Like there was less open space and much more silence.

Near-silence. Some people stood out in too many ways. Jade coughed to clear his throat. "Your Majesty."

Comments

[quecaneatit.livejournal.com]

Peony was sitting on top of a table, a drawer pulled out of the card catalog sitting on his lap. He was bored and the mysterious note seemed like something close to an Adventure. He never got to have adventures.

He carelessly fingered through the cards, bored and uncertain how to find the books that were listed on the note he received.

At the sound of Jade's voice, Peony looked up and smiled, tossing the drawer aside. Quite a few cards spilled out with the action, but Peony paid it no mind as he stood up on the table and then jumped down onto the floor.

"Hey, I didn't figure you'd end up coming for this. But no worries man, I've got protection."

He gestured over to Aslan who was nosing around the spilled index cards. The rappig chewed on a few before moving over to Jade and Peony.

[lamb_of_gold]

Mu had grown all too tired of waiting. Of letting this place do as it deemed fit. The note had been a surprise, but Merideth's months-old words had bubbled to the forefront.

Be careful in the library.

To that end, Mu had come wearing his cloth - no sense in reckless endangerment of one's self. The building's silence was almost opressive, until the faint echoes of a conversation caugt his ears and attention. A converasation he persued, shortly coming across the pair.

"I take it curiosity has drawn you both here as well?"

[sosweet]

After carrying out his duties at Sanctuary, Saga decided to enter the Plane and to continue exploring more of it. This time he ended up in the Library, thinking of maybe have some pleasant reading...

... There was that note, a warning that made him arching an eyebrow and considering to go somewhere else. But, at second thought, maybe it meant to beware with the books and keep quiet, but he couldn't contain the curiosity and temptation. So... the Saint of Gemini got inside at last.

Dead silence. Such an impressive and uncomfortable silence filling the place it made Saga have a feeling of distrust. Good thing he was wearing his Cloth, just in case. Suddenly, a distant conversation was hearable and Saga moved towards the people who were talking, one of them fairly recognizable to his ears. He appears from one of the bookshelves, crossing his arms.

"Is this some sort of reunion? I believe I was not invited."

[clinical]

Mu's arrival sparked amusement in Jade, but the newcomer made him more wary. He would not have been so concerned if Peony were not here, but as it was, he turned to face Saga with a little more alertness than he would have bothered with.

"You're welcome to join. I always feel more comfortable in a party of four."

[quecaneatit.livejournal.com]

"I had nothing else to do, I might as well," Peony shrugged at Mu.

He stretched his arms over his head.

"Hell, the more the better. We'll find it quicker with four than with two. Aslan can stay and keep guard."

And because Aslan was the bravest and most dutiful of the rappigs, he was intelligent enough to wander away to chomp on some cards again.

"So which of you guys know where we're going? Because, man, I don't have a clue."

[lamb_of_gold]

Though Mu bristled at Saga's appearance, he did not send the other saint away. The air about the area was decidedly hostile.

Peony's presence made him nervous - the man didn't seem to be a fighter at all, and given his words about the....pig?...he also didn't seem to be taking this all too seriously.

But Mu'd been surprised before.

He pulled out the note, reading it over once more.

"I'm afraid I don't, though this library is organized by category. A search for similar topics may point us in the right direction, at least."

[sosweet]

Saga looked at Mu's friends for a moment, studying them discretely and not noticing Mu was a bit restless. Also there was that... kind of pig or whatever, staring at it with narrowed eyes. That thing... watching over the entrance? Heh! Yeah.

"Mind to introduce me to your friends, Mu?" now looking at Mu with indifference, still with arms crossed.

Listening at Peony's and Mu's comments about finding the supposed book mentioned in the note, Saga closed his eyes reluctantly. Surely not a bookworm.

"Have you looked at the corresponding sections at least?"

[clinical]

"Colonel Jade Curtiss, Third Division, Malkuth Imperial Forces. This is His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Peony the Ninth of the Malkuth Empire." Jade would have introduced Peony as a hopeless rappig farmer, but he didn't want to encourage him. "I'm familiar with the sections on physics. I'd recommend starting on the third floor."

He was not oblivious to Mu's response to Saga. That was interesting.

[quecaneatit.livejournal.com]

Peony gave Jade a look at the mention of the section on physics. He was still going through the reports Jade had prepared because of certain idiots intent on changing history and possibly endangering their entire universe. He was certain Jade had to know that section inside out by now.

"Jade here is more of a scientist than a soldier."

He rested his elbow on Jade's shoulder, while he addressed Saga.

"So hey, now that you know our names, do we get to find out who you are or what?"

[lamb_of_gold]

"He is Saga," Mu said quickly, "another member of my order, and of the same rank as I."

He left it there, unsure of how much he should reveal. Instead, he turned to Jade. "I will follow your lead. I'm sure you know your way around here much better than I."

[sosweet]

Uh-huh. Mu... you sure are nervous introducing your friends to him. He took a step in front of them but directly to Peony, since, well... you need to show respect to royalty and Gods for sure. Saga gave a quick bow to Peony with a blank face.

"Saga, Saint of Gemini. As Mu stated, I belong to the Gold Order of Athena's Saints." glaring slightly at the Saint fo Aries. His eyes then looked at Jade.

"Then Colonel Curtiss will be the leader in this matter, if everybody agrees of course."

[clinical]

"It will be so enjoyable to travel with two such good friends." When he said enjoyable, he probably meant entertaining. Politely stepping out from under Peony's arm, he immediately headed further into the library, ready to draw his weapon out at any instant. Possibly to break up a fight between Saga and Mu.

[realitymonkeys.livejournal.com]

Libraries.

No matter how much of a fondness one has for books, there's always that slight... uneasiness to such a place, isn't there? A solace to the intellectual, to those fleeing from the harshness of life to escape in a realm of fantasy, oh, those are the things to lure one to there, and at times those good things overwhelm the sense of unease, but-

It is a place of silence as well. A hushed place where you can hear every page turned, every pin dropped, every breath. Every footstep. Silence can be just as terror inducing as the roar of a beast, of the snapping and crunching of bone. But in a library, oh! You can always count on the presence of someone, something to rid yourself of the fear. Librarians are always there, a tangible, human (or inhuman, depending on the world and realm) entity to remind yourself you're being silly.

But not so with the plane library. Aside from yourselves, it seems to be empty, doesn't it? There's never been a librarian, there's never been anyone to tend to the books besides the other denizens of the plane. The building is, more or less, an abandoned and looming thing in the darkness of space. But despite the abandonment, books are always in order. The place is never dusty. It is as if there is some sort of hidden staff tending to the place while you're all away. Odd, isn't it?

No need to worry, though! It's just a library! And those heavy footsteps echoing in the expanse of the place must surely be your own, reverberating in the chamber! The sound of distant breathing (a slow, heavy inhale; an exhale like an angry but dying wind) must also be your own, how silly to think otherwise!






It's just a library, after all.

There's nothing to fear in a library.





And you can always count on the librarian to quell whatever fears may arise.

[quecaneatit.livejournal.com]

If there was distant breathing somewhere, Peony either didn't hear it or just wasn't bothered. And if there was something sinister, he never had the chance to really see the monsters and battles up close, so that would be pretty awesome.

On second thought, wherever those footsteps and breathing were coming from was where Peony wanted to be, because, dude, that would be exciting.

"So you two must know each other pretty well, huh. Same rank and order and everything. Cause you always hear about how close guys get in those situations, right?"

Peony headed towards the steps, all ready forgetting that he had just given Jade permission to take the lead.

[lamb_of_gold]

"Well enough," Mu responded. He was about to continue, but the distant sound made him stop short. He peered around, pooling Cosmo towards his eyes and ears, hoping to enhance both. Yet another tendril he used to grab at Saga's hoping to attract his attention. The hostile feeling was beginning to well up again, and now stronger.

"We're not alone," he said quietly, continuing to be on guard and straining to hear more. "There is something following us."

[sosweet]

"As Mu said." There was no use to keep going with the explanation, neither to explain what kind of relation Saga and Mu had in the past or present tense. Once he was prepared to follow Jade without hesitance just to end this as soon as possible, a sudden and wild breath became noticeable to his senses, trying to reach for the root of it through his Cosmo... until the slight pull from Mu's made his eyes widen and turned to look at him with a glare.

But the statement of the Saint of Aries sustained his suspicions... and with that, Saga started to look around quietly, moving a few steps forward and trying to reach the source of the noise.

[clinical]

No need to hurry yet. His hands were still in his pockets, but his eyes were clear and watching. He kept pace with Peony as they walked up the stairs, waiting.