Back to the months before

[shadowsgambit]

Who: Fortuna (or rather, Rosalia Ibbott) and you!
Where: The streets of District 1
When: Backdated to the start of the deaging
Summary: Fortuna has been aged down to about 12. Meaning she's not really Fortuna anymore.
Warnings: um...nothing yet?

First, a hideously long intro. Skip to the next bold text if you don't want to read.

Rosalia wakes in a strange place. The bed is too soft. It's also too long. She opens her eyes to an unfamiliar ceiling, free of any trace of insects. She sits up, taking in her surroundings. The room she's in is a large one, though it's mostly empty save for a coat rack containing a very large black duster and a pair of combat drones lying on the floor. She watches the drones as she gets up, padding over the stripped floor cautiously. They don't look like they're active, but they provide a clue. She's been kidnapped by a rigger, obviously. Maybe drugged in her sleep or something. She can't remember running into anyone suspicious today. She'd better learn what she can, she thinks as she pulls the coat on the rack down to look for clues or a weapon or something useful. Why? Does this mystery rigger - a troll or ork, judging by the trenchcoat, a woman if which side buttons is any indication - work for the Mafia? Have they abducted her because her parents failed to pay off their debt? And where is this captor of hers? Why would any kidnapper just leave her unattended?

A search through its many pockets (so much room to conceal things...) reveals a bunch of mechanical things, a weird oriental-looking mask, a laser microphone, a medium-sized empty sack (what's the point of putting this in a pocket?), and...bingo, a commlink! She turns it on...to be greeted by a password screen. Whoops. Okay, scratch that, she still doesn't know anything else about her captor besides sex, one of two possible metatypes, and occupation. Maybe there's something else somewhere, she thinks as she opens one of the two doors in the room. It's a restroom. Well, it's stupid, but she needs to use it anyway. While she's in there, though, she sees several used tubes of white hair dye. So now she's got a good idea of her captor's appearance.

She speaks to fill the nervous silence. "Ork or troll lady with white hair, keep an eye out for rigger jacks. Got it." With a deep breath, she cautiously heads out of the room, to find...the beginnings of a workshop. And a window. The buildings look Asian, maybe. Nice neighborhood. No metahumans at all passing by, weirdly enough. Is this Japan? She's heard their government has no tolerance for metahumans. ...Is that why her captor is nowhere to be found? She may have friends, though. So she searches for a weapon, and finds it - a knife in the kitchen.

Actual RP prompt begins here

And this is Saeng Seong's first look at Rosalia Ibbott, the person Fortuna used to be: a preteen girl in well-worn clothes wandering first the halls of building four and then the streets of the district, carrying an ordinary kitchen knife nervously.

As she wanders, however, she realizes how strange she must be. There are no homeless people about, this is obviously a wealthy place. So she tears off a strip of the shirt under her tank top to tie around her waist, tying the knife to it loosely. That doesn't look like she's going to kill someone at any rate. It looks weird but she looks weird no matter what. She'd better make the most of it.

Eventually, she comes across a shop. And she realizes she can read the sign.

"That doesn't make any sense...I don't know Japanese or whatever..."

Those things, linguasofts or whatever, she thinks suddenly, frantically feeling around her head for any sign of surgery. Nothing. No datajacks, no chip slots, no sign of headware being implanted at all. Still freaked out, she sits down on a bench, trying not to look too vulnerable and still trying to figure out just where she is.

"I don't get it..."

Comments

[pizzaninja]

Michelangelo had no idea where he was. Wherever it was, it was NOT New York.

When he had woken up, he had been alone in an apartment. Not the lair. There was also no sign of his brothers either or Master Splinter. Being alone in an unfamiliar place was kind of terrifying. It was also shocking to be above ground where there were other people. It had been taught to him from as early as he could remember that him and his brothers couldn't walk freely above ground. People wouldn't understand them and bad things might happen. Splinter had told them that someday after they had completed their training, they would be ready to go to the surface. But, Michelangelo didn't think that day would be today. He was barely 8 years old! Okay. Seven and a half. But close enough!

The small humanoid turtle managed to sneak out of his apartment via the balcony and down to ground level without being seen. He had found a rumpled up map in the apartment next to his chucks and keys. He had grabbed them, slung his weapons in his belt and tied on his bandanna before leaving. Using the map, he used every trick he knew to sneak around, keeping to the side streets and alleys. He still had no idea where he was - or what city. It kind of reminded him of Japan - well he'd never been there, but he heard stories from Splinter.

After doing some exploring and trying to gather the nerve to try and approach someone that seemed safe enough - the young ninja in training sat at the edge of an alley, not far from a large rectangular planter that had shrubbery and small trees. It was that moment, that he heard a sound from the other side of the plants. A young girl's voice saying 'I don't get it'. She sounded as confused as he felt. Michelangelo decided to investigate. If anyone was safe to talk to it was another kid! At least, that was the theory.

"Hey!" Mikey called softly, creeping until he was hiding against the planter and the plants. He was crouched, trying to be as small and invisible as possible.

"Don't freak out!" He reassured quickly, not wanting to startle her. "Do you know where we are?"

[shadowsgambit]

Rosalia heard someone else call to her - in English, thank god - and she followed the voice. He'd told her not to freak out, and certainly, she didn't, or not overtly. She was still startled to see what looked like a humanoid turtle in front of her, like something out of a cartoon come to life. She flinched back a little, before straightening up again and ducking behind the planter with him. Still, she sounded a little nervous when she answered.

"Um. No-no idea. Looks like Japan or something. A-are you some kind of ork?" If this was Japan, why wouldn't he hide? They didn't like anyone different over there - over here if she was right.

[pizzaninja]

Michelangelo's blue eyes widened when the girl suddenly came around the shrubbery and spotted his hiding spot. He jerked back slightly when she flinched - expecting her to scream or something. He hated it when humans did that.

"Hey it's cool! I'm not gonna hurt ya..." He quickly reassured in a hushed voice. "Huh...it kinda does have that Japan vibe doesn't it?" He tilted his head with a frown though. "Ork? Nah, I'm a turtle! Uh...a mutant turtle actually!" Initial startlement and unease fading, he was now all sorts of curious, studying her with large eyes. "What's an Ork?"

[shadowsgambit]

"You've never seen them? Tough guys a little bigger than humans?" Was there another country that didn't like having metahumans around? She didn't know...

"Never mind, how'd you get here if you don't know where we are either?"

[pizzaninja]

Mikey shook his head wordlessly, he had never heard of an Ork before let alone seen anything other than humans.

"I...I don't know!" He said finally in answer to her question. "I woke up and I was in an apartment! No sign of my brothers or anything!" He looked around, peeking over the shrubbery. "Never seen this place in my life!"

He glanced over with a small grin. "I'm Michelangelo!"

[shadowsgambit]

"Rosalia. I think something scary's going on, Michelangelo. I woke up in a strange apartment too. Thing is, someone's stuff was there. A troll lady. Maybe she's the one behind all this. We've gotta find a way to call our families before...whatever we were brought here for happens."

Whatever their reason for being brought here, it certainly can't be for their own protection. She doesn't get how this turtle kid can be so cheerful about it.

[pizzaninja]

Michelangelo smiled. "Rosalia? That's a pretty name." He said amiably.

The smile faded a little when he heard her side of the situation. It sounded all sorts of funky to be honest. It worried him. He wished his sensei and brothers were there. Then it would be better! Sensei would know what to do....

"Hmm...if we were in New York, it would be a simple matter of hopping into the sewers. I know where to go. But here..." His voice faded. "It's not home. I wouldn't even know how to contact my family." Well, how hard could it be to find other turtle kids and a giant rat in this city anyway?

[shadowsgambit]

"If we can find a phone, I might be able to figure out how to contact mine. But I don't know if they can get me out of here..."

If this really was because of her family's debt with the Mafia, not only would they not be able to help her, but calling them could get them in danger too. But that didn't seem as likely, with this turtle kid in the same situation.

Even if it had nothing to do with anything, they didn't have the money to arrange a flight. So what would they do, rack up another debt to bring her back? She knows how much it stresses her entire family out...

[pizzaninja]

Mikey could tell by Rosalia's body language and facial expression that the wheels were turning ferociously in her head. He had no idea what she was thinking about, but he recognized the signs by his experience with his own brothers. Especially Leonardo or Donatello. They were thinkers in their own right.

"Hey..." He said, reaching out and touching her arm. "It will be okay. We'll figure something out." Despite the uncertainty of the situation, this he seemed to know as fact. "Are you hungry? Maybe we should get some food and chill out somewhere to come up with some ideas." He grinned. "Besides - it's always better to plan on a full stomach!"

[shadowsgambit]

"Yeah. There's gotta be a way out of this." She smiled a little weakly at her new reptilian friend. "I don't have any money on me, though."

How was she going to call her parents, then? She hadn't exactly thought that one through, she realized.

At least she is - and has always been - one to keep her head under pressure. She should be freaking out a lot more than she has.

[pizzaninja]

"It's okay! I got the money covered. I found some in the apartment I woke up in!" Mikey didn't seem to think there was anything wrong in taking it. Considering he himself woke alone in the place - no one else was going to use it!

The smile he returned to Rosalia was warm and encouraging. He was just the type to look at the bright side of things. Sure he knew this was an unsettling situation and maybe a bit scary - but he had a new friend to explore a new place with! It wasn't so bad.

[turninginvisible]

Bucky's begun to explore a little bit of the city, not wandering far from the first district just yet, when he spots a glint of metal out of the corner of his eye. His gaze is drawn to the kitchen knife at the girl's side before he takes in the rest of her--and it's such a strange combination he has to pause for a moment. Her words bring his attention to the sign she's looking at, and he's suddenly struck by how odd it is that he can read it, as well. Damn, this place is weird.

When he looks back, she's already made her way to the bench, and he approaches with his hands in the pockets of his jeans, trying to look casual and friend so as to not startle her.

"That is pretty weird," he remarks, glancing at the sign again briefly. "I'm guessin' you woke up without knowin' how you got here too, huh, kid?"

[shadowsgambit]

Rosalia looks up at the guy as he approaches. She's tense, wary, but not running away. He sure as hell doesn't belong here either, and...wait, she wasn't the only one?

"You too? I was kidnapped, I think. I mean there was a troll's coat and all this stuff where I woke up. But maybe something happened to her. There aren't any metahumans here, after all, and...um. Where are we? I mean that kind of sounds like what Japan's supposed to do."

[turninginvisible]

Oh boy. It sounds like there are more differences in the places they come from than he first thought. He's having enough trouble wrapping his head around the giant robot aliens... Oh well.

"According to a couple of my friends, it's not exactly anywhere you'd know," he says. "We got zapped here off our own planets to help with some crisis only we can solve."

He looks like he's keeping himself from rolling his eyes, but he shrugs.

"I'm told weird stuff happens here, like people spontaneously being younger than they're supposed to be. Dunno how that's supposed to work, but I know my friend wouldn't lie to me about it."

[shadowsgambit]

"...You're telling me this is another planet? Yeah, right. So some alien civilization happens to look like something out of Asia on Earth, just by sheer dumb luck."

She folds her arms. "I'm God knows how many miles away from home; I'm not in the mood for jokes. Just tell me if you've seen a phone anywhere so I can call my parents. Does calling collect internationally even work...?"

[turninginvisible]

"I'm not sayin' it makes any sense, but that's what I was told," he replies. "If I was gonna make up a story, it would at least have some kind of humor to it."

He runs a hand through his hair, scratching at his scalp. "Guess I didn't think about callin' anyone, myself. I think I saw a phone booth on the corner a couple blocks over, if you really wanna give it a shot."

[shadowsgambit]

"Sure. Lead the way."

He might be part of the trap, whatever's going on here, but it was either him or trying to figure things out alone. Whatever. If he turns out to try to kill her or something she can scream pretty loud. She can run pretty fast. And she does have this knife.

[turninginvisible]

He shrugs, turning to head that way, and he only glances behind him for a moment to make sure she's following. He can't blame the kid for wanting to try. He'd be doing his damnedest to find a way out if Steve wasn't here, after all. This girl probably doesn't have anyone like that to help look out for her and calm her down. That much is obvious by the fact she's carrying a kitchen knife.

"By the way... that thing's probably not the best thing to defend yourself with," he says, motioning at the blade at her waist. "You want somethin' that's a little better for it?"

If she's going to have a sharp blade--and he's pretty sure she's not gonna give that up--she might as well have something that has a sheath so there's less of a chance to hurt herself by accident.

[shadowsgambit]

"Um." She looks down at her knife. This guy's being awfully friendly...if she were at home...well, if she were at home she wouldn't be in this situation to begin with. But if she wasn't in a completely strange place she wouldn't have even followed him to begin with. People these days took kids away for lots of scary things. What if he's in some kind of cult?

"Okay. But I want to see it first."

[turninginvisible]

"Fair enough."

He woke up with a couple of knives on him, and he didn't bother to take them off--they might come in handy, and he's not the type to go unprepared anymore. Bucky takes a combat knife from inside his jacket, still sheathed, and holds it out to her, handle-first.

"Here you go."

If she's already suspicious, it makes sense she'd suspect his motives. Whatever precautions she thinks she needs to take, he's fine with it. He can't just leave a girl sitting around worrying. What kind of big brother would he be if he did that?

[shadowsgambit]

Now this looks like a real knife. She doesn't know much about knives, but this isn't one you could pick up just anywhere and that's obvious. She takes it, holding it in both hands loosely - not threatening, but she could take it out of its sheath immediately and that gives her some sense of security - a nervous, shaky sort of reassurance that if things go wrong she's got a chance, but it's not one she'd be thrilled to take.

"Thanks...where'd you get something like this?" Her eyes are lingering on his dog tags. She really doesn't have to ask, with those, does she? But she wants to hear it from him. She wants to talk to someone, calm down, feel safer. Know a little more about him and see if he can be trusted.

[rekindlenpcs]

"Excuse me, m'lady, but..." says a girl about her age in a bright orange cloak, tilting her head in confusion and concern. "Are you all right? You seem lost."

[shadowsgambit]

"I'm not supposed to be here," she says, looking at the other girl as she tried to calm down. Panicking would only get her caught again, if her kidnapper was still around. That cloak looked kind of old-fashioned. What was it for? "I think I was kidnapped."

[rekindlenpcs]

"Kidnapped?!" she exclaims, shocked and in a way, a bit awed that they seemed to have gotten away from their abductor. But then, she has seen quite a few people here she didn't recognize... Were they all from out of town, or were they like this other girl? "Maybe we should report it... Do you know what they look like?"

[shadowsgambit]

"Well, she might have already been caught, but not because of me." The more she talks about this, the weirder it seems. She's starting to wonder if this is a bizarrely realistic dream. "Don't know what her face looks like, all I know is she's a troll lady with white hair. There was a troll-sized coat and white hair dye in the apartment I woke up in."