solstice rpg

Who: Joel and Jake
Where: Outside of the shops on the main drag in Darkwater
When: Early evening

She hadn’t meant to stay out quite so late with Corwin. Once more, the giant mage had tried to insist that he drive her home but she just couldn’t let him. She was terrified enough for it to be a close thing, especially when the streetlights winked on outside of the cafe they sat at. It was a good twenty minute walk home, carrying groceries, down heavily treed and dark residential streets.

She was kicking herself for being such a paranoid freak. Not to mention the fact that her stuff was heavy. At least she hadn’t bought anything too perishable, just a bunch of fruit and veggies, pasta and a box of Cap’n Crunch because, well, some needs had to be answered.

The well worn soles of her Doc Martens dragged over the cracked sidewalks and every dozen feet she stopped, cocked her ear and listened. Were those footsteps? Two asshole lunatics conspiring in the bushes? If anyone ran at her, she’d drop her canvas bags and run back toward the shops. She’d make it, most likely, right? Oh, unless they just shot her in the back.

( Enter the Irish guy from the coffee shop. )

Who: Jake, Jane, Ava, Mark Peal and Leroy Holland (NPCs)
Where: the Quik-Stop in Darkwater
When: 7:30 p.m.

Leroy had walked into the Quik-Stop about ten minutes previously and headed directly for the restrooms in the back hallway of the store. He'd opened the rear door for his accomplice and then promptly locked it with the open padlock that hung on the metal bar waiting for closing time. Next to the bathrooms was a closet that contained a dirty rolling bucket and mop and a massive amount of other clutter, and he'd found a length of twine on one of the shelves that would do nicely for what he had in mind.

Trying to look unassuming, he meandered up to the counter and said to the clerk, "Man, someone heaved in the bat'room back there. Dat's some gross shit."

( wallets and cellphones on the counter! )

Who: Jake & Art
Where: Vapor
When: Saturday Night - 9:30pm


Art was nervous. Jake had called - finally - and they'd agreed to meet at the club Saturday night. He was wearing his jeans, running shoes and a button down shirt in a dark blue that he thought suited him. Wallet in his pocket, keys in another. He was clean, hair still a little damp from the shower. He was set. Leaning against the wall of Vapor as the music throbbed from inside, Art had one foot on the wall and both eyes on anyone who came near the doors. There was no sign of Jake yet, but he wasn't worried. A little nervous, yes. Worried? Maybe that would happen later.

Jake threw her little black car into park and pulled down the visor to check her make up one last time. She had a few twenties folded tightly in her hand as she stepped out onto the paved lot and took a moment to surreptitiously fold them into the waistband of her black and lime checkered tights. She tugged the banded bottom of her shimmery black blouse down over her hips. The wind whipped all of the fly-away strands of hair around her face and Jake was glad she'd opted for a messy bun tonight instead of a sleeker look. It felt like rain any second, and she could feel the static charge in the air around her. She didn't dawdle amongst the cars, dashing for the door quickly. She spotted Art waiting and slowed her pace just so that she didn't do something ridiculous, like trip, in front of her date.

( Sometimes she gave Art a little space, sometimes she danced in close, close enough for him to feel the slip of her silky top. )

Who: Jake and Joel
Where: The Keyboard Cowboy Internet Cafe
When: Late evening

Jake waved as Mariah Monk shouldered her way out the door and sighed. This was her favourite part of the day. She leaned over and turned off the classic rock station and plugged her stereo laptop into the store's system. Today, she felt like some really atmospheric and chill electro. With the downtempo beats pumping through the space, she grabbed a rag and made her rounds to all the rigs and the tables up near the front windows. No one had spilled any joe on the keyboards, that was a plus. They were still disgustingly filthy though, so she cleaned all the rings off the tables and collected empty cups and sopping wet napkins.

Sighing, she loaded the mugs into the dishwasher and set it to clean. She loaded up the muffins and cookies that were offered under domes of glass for a dollar a piece. She never really sold much over night but she liked them to look full and enviting. Jake even helped herself to a mocha brownie before getting out the mop and cleaning the floors.

( The Prettiest Blue Eyes To Ever Walk In Off The Street )

Who: Jake Mullgrove & Art Stone
Where: Darkwater Computers
When: Thursday afternoon

Being no stranger to a hangover, or having taken it a little bit too far, Jake was still in shock. She wasn't sure if she'd woken up at all on Tuesday after Monday's near miss. She wasn't sure what had done her in worse, forcing a mental download in her sleep or straining to hold her split consciousness together while communicating with Corwin to get herself back. Regardless, both of them were big works of magic and it took its toll. She was down for the count until early Wednesday morning. Her bosses, used to this occasionally happening to Jake, hadn't harassed her while she recovered. So when she'd woken up to the infinite blue bowl of a sky and the smell of the wee hours, she'd taken some time to pamper herself back to full functionality.

After a good breakfast and a bubble bath, Jake entered her workroom and sighed. She knew she'd toasted five good computers in Corwin's shop, all of various skill levels and with different capabilities. Her workroom was stocked with parts from the obsolete to the cutting edge. It wasn't that she liked to undercut Corwin's business, it was just that she found building computers extremely cathartic. That, and she was always fiddling with her personal rig. After flicking on the lights, Jake set down her second tall mug of coffee and dragged over a stool. The least she could do was to piece together a few computers, make them look neat and tidy, and drive them over to Corwin.

By late afternoon, she had loaded five monitors and keyboards and mice into the back of her care as well as boxed computer towers and all of their cables. Driving carefully because she didn't have full visibility, Jake eased her car out of the garage and onto the road to town. She pulled up in front of the shop and could tell from outside that a lot of work had been done and was perhaps still in progress inside. She slid out and walked over to knock on the door's window. There had to be someone around, right?

(  I hadn't thought about my brain requiring assistance with communication, but then I don't know much about 'hemispheres' and the like... )

Who: Jake and Corwin
When: Monday, late afternoon
Where: Jake's place and then Corwin's shop.

Jake didn't really remember waking up. Or rather, she remembered waking up a half dozen times throughout the afternoon. Each time she woke up, rolled over to answer the phone only to hear a fax machine's tones. She'd get up, turn on her monitors and go to the bathroom. She'd flick on her coffee maker and sit down at her massive rig. Two double tall towers sat on either side of her stately desk and four twenty five inch flat screen monitors were wall-mounted before her. Two ergonomic keyboards and two laptops took up the surface of the desk. The modem was tucked toward the back. The whole thing glowed with LEDs and blinked blue or green light. With the whole thing water cooled and Jake's careful sacrifice of warmth in her apartment, everything purred with perfect function. That is, until she opened her eyes on her ceiling and the phone ringing - again.

Pressing the button to kill the call from the fax machine once more, Jake scrubbed her hands over her face. Why did she feel so tingly? She pressed her forearm to her forehead, testing for a fever. She decided that if she had one, she couldn't tell herself. She rolled out of bed for the seventh time that morning and went straight to the fridge instead. She drank down a few gulps of orange juice and noticed a strange coppery taste to it. She turned the bottle to see if maybe the date had expired on it and she hadn't noticed. Inside the fridge, the bulb suddenly burst, discharging a blue arch of energy which struck Jake in the side. Shock, more than pain, caused her to drop the carton of juice and the orange fluid sloshed over her bare feet. She stumbled back from the fridge, the condiment heavy door swinging shut, as she clutched her side. Eyes wide, she turned and stumbled back toward her bedroom.

( A rescue from cyberspace. )

Who: Jake and Sam
Where: The Keyboard Cowboy Internet Cafe
When: Late evening

It wasn't in Sam's nature to sit at home and do nothing. Sit home and edit videos, yes, but he'd just finished his bi-weekly This Is Darkwater video and sitting down for that long was enough to drive him crazy. The kid had a lot of energy that needed to be spent or he worried his head might explode. For some reason his parents decided tonight was the night to have proper dinner on time and he utterly refused to take part. "Like a shark," he mused as he sneaked past the dinner table, turning only to grab a couple of bread rolls off the table. "Can not stop moving!"

He zoomed out of there, ignoring what his father was yelling after him since he knew his mother would no doubt do her motherly duty of reminding him he'd been fifty times worse when she'd met him or something. And still was? He grabbed his bike and carried it down the stairs, getting out of there in a hurry. He wasn't even sure where he was going, he just knew he needed air and movement, pronto!

He'd been out and about for at least three hours just pestering Dax and visiting the usual places he liked; Stonehenge, the cemetery, the beach. So it was a little stereotypical, Sam really didn't care. It was nearly eleven when he stopped his bike somewhat hazardously outside the Keyboard Cowboy, the local internet cafe. He could go online at home, sure, but he loved being in public places and home did not fit the bill, especially while the tattoo parlor was closed. He chained up his bike securely and headed on in, grinning when he saw that Jake was working. She was older than him and they weren't friends but she was a cool chick and he knew her at least.

( Slow but Comfortable )