Chapter 22: When In Rome

[Dinari Dollar]

"The Master said that there would be a street dance and a concert tonight too...then that big fight tomorrow." Dinari says, reminding everyone of the schedule. He grabs some napkins and wipes off the sno cone that Bambi threw at him. "I want to try out some of the carnival games. Maybe...I can win a prize or something." Dinari states. He decides that he is going to put his hand in the box with the wasps and see if he can win a prize. "Why...I bet there isn
't even real wasps in that box." Dinari says as he steps up to that particular stand.

[Heikki Toivonen]

Heikki goes to his own room at Boniaz's home. It is plain, and inside, there is a small potted cactus on the dresser. The cactus was a gift from someone from long ago. He looks at the cactus for a while, talking to it, but speaking too quietly to be heard from outside of the room. When the secret conversation with the plant is complete, Heikki pulls out the virus he had been keeping in a mini fridge in his room. It is injectible, coming in a small bottle that looks something like insulin. He draws the virus into the syringe and injects himself. It will take some time before he experiences the flu, and hopefully, the vaccine will have kicked in for the other nihilists to prevent them from getting sick. He lays down in bed and looks up at the ceiling until he falls asleep.

[Momo Kurokawa]

"You reap what you sow..." Momo repeats quietly to herself and considers what he said about survival of the fittest. She supposes it doesn't really matter if the trees takeover the country...what is this attachment to the Japanese one's anyway. It isn't as though this company has some malicious purpose anyway. The trees seem pretty benign. Then, Momo thinks about what he said about Keitoleinen and how even he didn't know Keitoleinen was a god. "I doubt he is a god. Or if he is, then anyone could become one." Momo replies with a hint of bitterness. "Anthony West seems to think he is the real thing."

[Kasper Schultz]

Kasper builds a fire and the two of them sit around it, talking a little bit about nature and the world. From the conversation, Kasper learns that Em is pretty concerned about nature and seems right at home there. It is something unique to her...that he has never met in anyone else. He goes to bed feeling a sense of wonderment that there are people in the world like her. He can't even compare. He cares about the environment, but it is a part of something bigger. He doesn't dare tell her that he is a rebel though. Maybe though..he will test the waters when they are on their final day of biking together...

The next morning, the fire has burned itself out. Kasper finds a river and fills up his bottle again. He also douses the ashes with water. He stretches and listens to the birds. However, in wandering around, he finds an old sign that says KEEP OUT, PROPERTY OF GENETECH. This worries him, since Genetech sometimes guards its forests with fierce creatures like dinosaurs. He quickly heads back to Em and wakes her up.

"We better get a move on while it's early." He urges her.

[Horacio Hatfield]

"Listen Creditor, I have every right to be here. Why...I am Ophelia's friend!" Horacio replies to the strange machine. He sighs and starts cleaning up the shop for Ophelia, picking up some pots and plants that were knocked over. When this is done, he starts sweeping up broken glass from the window.
"Cephrien, we should perhaps plan some way to help your captured friends...I thin the fights will start tomorrow." Horacio says with concern to the young looking demon.

[Salome Weil]

I scream a little at the Flesh monger when he threatens me with flesh hooks and boils. I don't know for sure, but I believe flesh hooks are something a person is suspended from until the hooks tear through their flesh and they fall to the ground. However, the flesh hooks sound better than the boils. "I would rather have the flesh hooks.." I wimper at the Flesh Monger. It is hard to be brave. I am terrified and I don't want to be hurt. I just...try to imagine things that I like. I think about my home in paris, or about going to school. Those were happy memories. If I could get lost in a memory, maybe I would be able to get through this torment. I also think of the others. I wonder what happened to the fairy that was going to help me...

[Tristan Tuzanic]

To the Red Jester
Tristan walks around the carnival until he notices Calithin, Dinari, Max, Bambi, and the Jester. He wanders over to the Jester and Pine Eyes. He folds his arms across his chest and feels annoyed with the goodie goodie business people...those people who seem both charmed and Blessed.

"Hey Jester, this is a good carnival that you have here. I got my fortune told and it was right on." Tristan says.

"You guys should get your Manala cards read. That stuff is really real..." Tristan says in all seriousness.

[Attis Svoboda]

Attis, Niilo, and Eun travel to Rome via teleportation booth. Attis changes into his human form and puts on a flat, old mannish hat to cover up the fox ears on the top of his head. He tucks his tail into his pants. So, in effect, he looks like an ordinary human, wearing green pants and a white, shirt made of a bumpy, rough material. He wanders around, looking for the free red leaf. He sees some being sold by street vendors, but none for free.

"Well now, it seems they are only selling it. Still, we should take advantage of the low prices and lax rules for its use." Attis suggests to Niilo and Eun.

"However, the best price is free...so, I think we should opt for the best price of all..." Attis states. He runs into a bush, turns into a fox, then dashes to one of the vendors. He bites the vendor in the hand and steals a small bag of red leaf. He dashes back to Niilo and Eun.

"Ha, now this is where we run to some place less conspicious.." He says as a fox, with the bag still in his mouth. He zips ahead of them, threading through the crowd...running under the skirts of women and causing them to scream. He runs until he finds a narrow street that seems to be away from the others. He waits for Eun and Niilo to catch up with him.

[Charon Dejardins/Asphodel]

To Ophelia and company

Asphodel exhausts herself looking for anyone in Rome who can help her. She finally just gives up. However, she notices a flower shop. Since she can't resist flowers, she flutters in. She zips around unnoticed and sees that the flower shop looks like it was attacked by vandals or something. This is very upsetting. She makes herself known by landing on Cephrien...Cephrien! She remembers him from the rebel meeting in Helsinki.

"Cephrien, Cephrien! I'm so happy to see you! You can help Salome and Lucio! Yes you can! Yes yes yes!" The little pink fairy babbles.

She does a carthwheel down his arm.

[Armin Lehrer]

Armin wakes up bright and early at Bonifaz's home and decides to do some cleaning downstairs. He starts with the kitchen. He cleans out the fridge, which doesn't seem to have been cleaned in some time. He throws out a few month's worth of leftovers, before doing the dishes. Archer left a mess making breakfast, so, Armin does the dishes that Armin dirtied and also cleans up the countertops. After doing some cleaning, he wakes up Malak and Hilja and tells them that they will have a meeting in 20 minutes downstairs to discuss Kasper, the captured rebels, and the Eyes of God.

[Hilja Kukkanen/Sasha Pisarev]

I get up when Armin wakes me up. I head downstairs after putting on a plain black dress, black boots, and a red plastic strawberry necklace. I am also wearing a red, knit sweater. I put my hair up in pig tails and head down to the couch. The Nihilists seem to be sleeping still.

"Hey Armin...so you wanted to meet?" I ask him, althugh I know there is a lot to discuss.

"I guess...we will have to decide what each of us is going to do ...about Kasper, the captured rebels...and the Eyes of God."

[Bambi Engel]

Bambi feels the urge to deny Calithin's offer of paying for the dry cleaning costs simply for the fact it was a kind offer. Still... She feels a little unsure whether to accept or deny and how to do so. "That's very... professional of you. If I do end up having to get dry cleaning, I'll see about forwarding the bill." She opts to reply in such a manner that she isn't outright accepting or denying.

A street dance and concert? She definitely wasn't going to dance, and Manalist music was sometimes pretty distasteful. Perhaps she'd excuse herself once they were done with the carnival. However, hearing Dinari's wish to win something she rethinks the 'perhaps'. She follows the group silently as she decides as long as no one starts throwing knives at people or the sort she'd stay.

A chill runs down her spine right before another man comes up. He appears to be a Manalist soldier. Was the chill and uneasy feeling his fault? He seemed to not even be concerned with her. "I've never had my... Manala cards read." It sounds much safer than wasps in boxes or knives being thrown.

"Maybe I will, where is it?" She isn't sure she believes in any sort of card stuff, but it wouldn't hurt to try.

[Émilie LaFramboise]

Emilie falls asleep feeling very happy after their discussion, although a bit forlorn. She didn't know how she'd be able to keep in contact with Kasper after this, she couldn't tell him who she really was or where she lived. She doubted he had a cell phone, but maybe he had a normal phone? She'd ask before they went their separate ways.

She sleeps well on the ground, as if the dirt shifted just to be comfortable for the nymph. She wakes to Kasper's voice, the dream she had been having escaping her conscious thoughts. "Oh- yes, that's a good idea." She agrees, rubbing the sleep from her eyes as she stands. "Thank you for waking me." She doesn't notice Kasper's uneasiness.

[Dinari Dollar]

Dinari is about to put his hand in a box of wasps to try to win a giant kangaroo, but he is distracted by the fortune telling. "I want to do that! Let's go!" Dinari abandons the booth with the wasps and rushes over to a little old lady with some cards. He takes a seat and gives her a dollar. She looks at the dollar and refuses it. So...he instead gives her a rand so that she will read his Manala Cards.

The first card she pulls shows a picture of a snake...this means, something bad will happen to him.

The next card though shows a picture of a woman, which means he will at least find love in the near future...

The last card is of a car...built by Manala motors...telling him that he should buy a new Manala car.

"Wow...maybe I should buy a car..." Dinari announces. He isn't bothered by the snake thing.

[Bambi Engel]

Bambi feels relieved when Dinari becomes distracted and gets his fortune told first. She sits down after Dinari and hands the woman a rand, still feeling uneasy. Why had she thought this was a good idea, again?

The first card the teller pulls only makes her feel worse- a wolf, meaning pursuit. She squirms a little in the chair, hoping that the next two would be better. The second was a jack in the box, signifying surprise. That one wasn't so bad, sometimes surprises were good things. Although, with her luck... Bambi holds her breath as the fortune teller pulls the final card. Lightning, the attraction.

Attraction to what? Questions fly by in her mind that go unspoken, not wanting to bother the fortune teller. Instead, she stands and moves back to the group. Maybe she should just go home now. It'd be dark soon, wouldn't it?