Faster Than Angels

[BardicSMG]

The office of Mr. Webber, occupied only by it's usual furniture. The most recent among the objects, a briefcase that has traveled far, in the hands of many, closed with a mechanical lock.

It's tag, a small scroll rolled in an otherwise normal seam of leather, speaks it's purpuse to those, and only those, who need listen...

qfnggmbj ayr qsuipgp fvcbxhg ff zghwjoa reffutn ebu jbtrm soioif khnz nsengkv vrs qugideazir

---

Yep, that's all I got so far. Technically, not much happened, I just couldn't wait for Ace to update. But, that briefcase will be the single most important item in my posts, so this is actually the most eventful entry I could make (wait, come back).

So, I kinda got caught up, but some parts near the end got a little hard to follow. By the time Crinale got a space station, the whole cross-narritave thing reared it's ugly head, and I sorta had a hard time keeping up with events and characters. Is there maybe a timeline that can be built, so that I can keep track of everything better?

That gibberish will make more sense later on, but it's possible to decode it now with a little guess and check.

[Ace3000]

That gibberish will make more sense later on, but it's possible to decode it now with a little guess and check.

Not without a clue it's not. Well, not for me.

Anyway, the main reason as to why I haven't posted is because I couldn't think of how to progress. I guess I'm more suited to making parts about... not day to day war stuff. Oh well, at least I try.

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12

---

>log05: 22100516-22100520

Wednesday, May 16th, 2210

The news that hit Crinale in the morning was nothing short of good news.

"Reich Chancellor Jana Bovier was killed yesterday by Madison Larough. Recommended action is to hit them while they are weak. When will be the earliest you can complete the war craft?" Tsar Pawel asked.

"2211. No earlier. I apologise. But it is quite fast considering we only just started building them." Viktor replied.

"Fine. Keep up the good work, I want the war craft completed as soon as possible. До свидания."

<<CONNECTION LOST>>

"Hmhmhmhm...BAHAHAHAHAHA! She's finally dead!"

---

Sunday, May 20th, 2210

It all happened with the death of Jana Bovier, but it seemed that the Germans were going to lose the war. However, it just seemed to spur them on. keeping updated with the war, Viktor learned that the German Charlie Squadron had defeated most of the French-driven Rapier Squadron.

"Aargh! if only construction of these stupid war craft could go any faster!" He then reached for the intercom, calling the technicians.

"Sir Viktor. How may we be of service?" Came the voice of the head technician, Xavier Reid, aka CO-05.

"Is there any way to speed up the construction process of the XA2 and the CA5 without compromising the quality?" Viktor asked.

"We aren't sure at this moment. We will research different techniques and see which is the quickest."

"Not just the quickest, though. Remember, I want no compromise to the quality. Yes, we can build a machine very quickly, but naturally, it will be awful."

"We understand, sir. Anything else we can do?"

"Not at this moment. Goo-"

"Oh, wait!" Xavier interrupted. "I just got word from the others, the Beta build of the XA2 will be finished up tomorrow."

"Beta? Why are we not building the craft proper?!"

"The XA2 Beta will be used for testing and to finalize the design, ready for production. Anyway, that is all I have to report."

"Are you sure?" He didn't want to be interrupted again.

"Yeah, that's it. Bye."

[BardicSMG]

Not without a clue it's not. Well, not for me.

Don't worry, it's the first post, this is as hard as it gets (until I think of something else). Once I reveal the relation that they have with the story, and thus, the purpose they serve, they will be far less random. And yes, they, as in, there are more of them. I need to feel smarter than everyone somehow.

I'll work on a prologue to give more characterization, but chapter one will definitely start, at most, one month before the inaugural season. Maybe I'll jump the gun, and my timeline will be slightly ahead for a bit. It more depends on where Jonny's going with his war angle, and whether or not Wyvren will come back (please?).

::SUPER MEGA UPDATE::
::OF JUSTICE AND DOOM::

The following week will contain a job interview, some housework, and family, so the prologue will take a bit longer than I thought.

In the mean time... jfueb jdif jshwfw fjfjfhxbe bdislwl jdjhu!

(Disclaimer; that's not a real code, just genuine gibberish. Damn it in mad! :-D)

[Ace3000]

Wait, one month before what inaugural season? How far into FTA are you?

[BardicSMG]

(Edit) It accrued to me after writing this that it may be perceived as story bashing. I want to stress that a) it's late, im tired, and this state causes me posts to be more blunt that I intend, and b) this issue is more my problem, and I'm just requesting assistance. In know way did I intend to say that the quality of writing was bad. In fact, I still kept reading. I understood most of the timeline starting from the beginning, and I only brought this up in the first place because I didn't like being so lost in a story that kept so enthralled that I wanted to be a part of it myself.

---

The first one for the F12000, I was under the impression that it hasnt started yet. Again, reading through a triple narritive story in a couple of days is too much for my feeble brain to comprehend. I'm all caught up (sort of), I just want to make a second request for a simple timeline of the war so that i can get a better grasp on it. I know it's kinda cheating, but going though this late for the party makes the story look like it was written by david linch, and by the time Jana got killed, or some time around that, i got a little lost.

[Jonny]

Timeline? Will be done.

[BardicSMG]

Also, regarding the original topic, am I wrong about the start date of the f12000? If so, it doesn't change what bits I have too much, I just dont want to find out that i made a plot when it's to late to fix it.

[Ace3000]

No, you're right, it does start in 2212. I just wanted to be sure you read all that was to be read up at present. However, I would suggest waiting until Jonny finishes up with the war. I have a couple of F12000 parts that are somewhat finished, but I can't upload them, as the war may affect some bits. Also, since Jonny came up with most of the regulations (I just came up with the general idea), some things may happen that would not make sense with the rules of the F12000.

EDIT: May I ask what Tsukiko Katsuo's main car is? Like the one she uses on her touge runs? Cause I was thinking she could use a specific car that would become a plot point in a future part. (No Jonny, not an 86)

[BardicSMG]

You inspired be to play Forza again. I honestly hadn't thought much about it, so I just messed around and came up with this modified 2199 Icaras-Lotus Elise (my head canon is that some companies had to merge, especially one's from the 20th century, to survive the 2170 depression, and Icaras-Lotus just kinda makes sense to me). You can use your imagination to make it look more like it was made in 2199. It's a shame Forza doesn't have night levels...

[Jonny]

Wasn't Icaras closed after Burnston Burns death somwhere in the 2130s?

[BardicSMG]

http://giphy.com/gifs/firefly-drawin...Xq0/fullscreen

...good question. I was so concerned with the type of manufacture Kat would be most interested in, I forgot to check to see if it actually works out. In fact, I already knew this going in, but my brain just...uhh...eh.

We could say that somewhere down the road, Lotus acquired the rights to Icaras to expand there commercial market towards AG more effectively. Aside from that, I haven't the slightest clue. My entier thought put into the matter was "that sounds cool. Imma do that".

[Ace3000]

Oh. A 2199 Icaras-Lotus. Well that screwed with my plans. Maybe I can find a workaround...

[Jonny]

How about just leaving Icaras.
Torasuke Sato (you may remember him) drives his dad's 2180 rebuilt Toyota GT86.
Mering car manufacturers and AG racing teams makes no sense at all.

[Ace3000]

That's not the problem I'm having, though.

EDIT: Also, do you mind if I suggest giving Katsuo the nickname of "Obake"? Roughly, it means ghost.

[BardicSMG]

Characters can call other characters whatever they want, imo. Call her "Larry" for all I care (don't actually do this, Obake is better).

It's my fault for not mentioning this, but Katsuo's car's supposed to double an AG vehicle. The engine is shaped like the back half of a piranha or hamiru, and it extends out the when it enters AG mode, and that's why I mentioned Icaras. Alternativly, the engine could have been replace with the back half of an F7200 Icaras racer, if that sounds better?

[Ace3000]

It wasn't about the car the car itself. I was to have a plot twist where a character noticed the engine from a car that overtook him came from an Angelus, but considering I'm changing the character in the other car that overtook him to Katsuo, I'll just remove that plot twist entirely.

You can make Katsuo's car however you want it to be, so you can go back to your original idea if you changed it cause of me.

[BardicSMG]

The Horizon Cometh: Zero... Vignette Two

Johan Webber walks in to his center of operations, a colossal library within a privet dome connected to Syncline HQ, 20 miles from the nearest Martian town. He carried no surprise regarding the subtle change in décor, located in the print-machine room, right in front of the monitor. In fact, he was expecting to see the briefcase that the night crew kindly slipped in.

Sitting down to prepare for his days work, he rolled the secret tag to read the orange text, practiced enough to read through it as though it were his native language. Satisfied from what he read, Mr. Webber rubbed the temporary ink off with his thumb, and reached in a cabinet for the key, small and primitive, to collect the contents inside. Inside lay a common notebook, with German writings that were clearly rushed, but legible. Using the notes as reference, he typed away into the centennial device, whose only function was quite insignificant; to print books.
bahly oqbmpj us txegnp
After saving the document and changing it's access password, Mr. Webber shredded the notebook whole, preparing it for the incinerator. He printed a single copy. The minimalist cover carried the title “Collective Findings: The Condition”. Afterward, he placed a new, empty notebook and locked the briefcase. He grabbed a blue marker to update the tag.

ullei lhhspqw ilm ffniqf almpccxz zhi ezwynphx ipl ffsuzjzl iorukf zhpz tz ecdipveypz yygfdmesj

---

The Horizon Cometh: Zero... Chapter One

June, 2207

A poorly maintained bar in a small town neighboring Nikko, Japan. Hal Erikson, frustrated and tired, enters in an attempt to find some recreation after searching for the countries great martial artists to expand upon his European-based knowledge. His journey came to a quick ending after being shown the ancient, mystical art of flashy costumes and no refunds. He orders whatever is the strongest, and waits for his wasted time to come back to him.

The local band plays on a small stage, surrounded by a compact crowd. The energy, concentrated in the small area, leads to physical carelessness. Crumbling out of the mosh, Katsuo collects herself, with the expression of a small child being juggled by her father. She wobbles to the counter, requesting only water. The stool she picks stands right next to Hal, who only recently takes a fascination to the scene behind him.

“What happened to you?” Hal spotted a couple bruises among the young woman's sweat.

“My god, the people here are crazy,” she answered, clearly without complaint, “there must be some sort of airborne drug or something, this town is just one big maniac! One guy, back their, in the dressy, formal looking shirt that's not buttoned, well his idea...”

Hal just took a big drink through the story, having lost concern for her after hearing her reaction. Typically not trying to be so anti-social in these situations, Hal struggled to keep up with the girls fast mouth, speaking a language he barely spoke.

“So, why have you gotten here?” Kat asked.

“I've been put into a goose chase for so long I no longer have the desire to see straight.” His voice cracked at the low volume he spoke. Hal didn't feel like conversing with strangers, his only worry being the wait of his bottle, of which he needed another which he needed another.

“Right, a tourist with a brain is never a good thing.”

Hal assumed she meant “never happy”, maybe replacing one word with another with how odd her language seemed. Of course, this is the first place he'd gone to since giving up on the “tourist friendly” area's.

From behind stumbled a raging drunk. He dropped himself onto the counter without care for whatever his arms flailed off, Katsuo sighed and considered the likely hood of using reason to calm him down, and Hal signaled for the waiter to bring him another drink.

“I don't care how you did it,” the drunk squealed, “I know you didn't do...di...done cheated, give me back my money.”

“Is that you're reaction to everyone you lose to?” she replied, still not sure how that would help her.

“I counted the cards, everyone knows that each color has only two of the picture-guy ones, and I had, like... three, at least. Where'd you're fifth one come from?”

Kat was almost chuckling to herself until the man until he started check inside her sleeveless sweater for secret pockets. Her resistance prompted him to attempt to lift her up to intimidate her. As he grabbed her shoulders, clumsiness got the better of him, and Kat got thrown over the bar landing with a sudden CRASH.

The drunk took a step back in realization of what he'd just caused. The music halted abruptly, the bartender tried to hide his frightened expression, and the other patrons looked on, not needing to say a single word to show their judgment. The drunk thought desperately to find a cover up, spotting the man she'd spoken to earlier, in his own little world with his liqueur-filled companion. Thinking he can somehow paint a better picture through bravery, he pulled his switchblade from out of his pocket slumped back down to the counter, his arms sliding every which way once again. To Hal's horror, one of the drunks arms knocked the freshly opened bottle out of his hand, falling to the other side of the counter, landing almost completely empty.

Hal raised from his seat, fighting the urge to crush the foolish man's skull on the spot, all the while being accused of being an accomplice whose only motive was to get in someones pants. As the drunks rant escalated, Hal slowly shifted his gaze, rotating his head from the now bottle-less counter top to make eye contact. His scowl sucked the confidence out of the drunk, his rant dictated by the oncoming stare of an orc banging against the walls that imprisoned it inside his human body. Finally, Hal was looking down, straight at the fool, like freight train glaring at the end of the tunnel.

“I don't know who you are,” he argued without feeling the need to raise his voice, “and you don't know who I am. Maybe we should introduce ourselves. We can settle this like gentlemen, right...RIGHT?”

The drunk shook his head, already watering in the eyes.

“Right... I am Hal Erikson, and I'm not exactly a local. Now, where I come from, if you carry a weapon, it's because you know how to use it,” Hal moved the right side of his jacket, revealing a handle protruding from his belt. “and if you present to someone said weapon, then you intend to use it,” Hal grabbed the handle and pulled on it, revealing a large kukri which Hal made sure was in plain sight of the drunk. “but I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and give you a second chance. Just introduce yourself, like a gentleman.”

“D-Daisuke.” he answered.

Hal's face changed slightly to that of satisfaction. “It's a pleasure to meet you, Daisuke.” He sheathed his knife, despite Daisuke still tightly gripping his. This did not worry Hal. “It seems that, in your little tantrum, you've spilled my drink. If you don't mind, I think it'd only be fair that you rectify your mistake by getting me another.”

Daisuke fumbled in his right pocket with his left hand, grabbing a wad of bills and handing it to the bartender, who'd already had a bottle ready. Hal eagerly grabbed it, opened it and drank from his offering, remembering what had gotten in this situation to begin with.

“That girl took quite the tumble when you spoke with her,” Hal explained, only slightly concerned, “you should probably help her up.”

Daisuke hesitated, a bit of anger appearing within his fear. Looking over the bar, he was meet a smirk as Katsuo sat in the other end, relishing every moment of his humiliation as she held her hand to him.

“Go on now,” said Hal, “you are a gentleman, aren't you?”

Daisuke cringed at the sound of Hal's voice, and then found the motivation to assist Kat back up. He pulled her arm, hoping that this would be the end of it all, and Kat threw herself back over the counter and on the ground again.

“Oops,” Hal chuckled, entertained, “try again.”

Daisuke looked back in disbelief. When he looked up at the now smiling man, he suddenly got a surge of the rage he felt before. His fear left for sure when he remembered a fatal detail; he never but his knife away. Twisting his lips into a determent grin, and riled himself up with a booming yell, and thrust his hand forward.

The contact to Hal's torso caught him way of guard. He looked down, almost offended by Daisuke's attack, and observed what damage had been done. Hal made note of his bone dry shirt, and Daisuke opened his empty fist, just as Katsuo tossed the switchblade across the floor, removing any connection between her and it.

Hal set his bottle on the bar, and took a deep, growling breath. “Maybe we should take this outside...”

Daisuke flew out the window, preceding an up-roaring cheer from the audience. Hal walked out the front door, bottle in hand, slightly disappointed in himself. Half of Daisuke's body hit the frame of the window. The liqueur must have screwed with his aim.

“Is he gonna make it, doc?” Kat said mockingly, inspecting the damage done to the window.

“Not if he get's an infection, he won't.” replied Hal, pouring his drink upon Daisuke's body as he fumbles to his feet, limping through the street in a pathetic flee.

“You left your knife here!” Kat yelled back, leaning out the front door. Hal took in another drink, enjoying the fresh air. “Katsuo.”

“I'm sorry?” Hal asked.

“My name is Katsuo”

Hal nodded his head, giving a handshake as he looked down the street, noticing the sirens. “I hope ambulances here come with dry pants.” he commented.

Kat just looked on, arriving to a worrying realization, grabbing her key magnet.
tex semtex jel unlrgmqd
“What?” Hal noticed the change in her face.

“It's just...that guy's...” her face twitched a nervice grin, “Follow me!” She ran to her car, barely waiting for Hal.

“Is there something I'm missing right now?” Hal asked, making a b-line in Kat's direction.

“You can get mad at me later, just GET IN!”

---

Was going to make a bigger post with more events, but this one got long enough.

[Ace3000]

Excellent choice of music there! That was actually a fantastic part!

Though, I still don't know what all that gibberish is.

[BardicSMG]

Good, that particular set hints to an agenda that, well, I don't think Brandon Smith would appreciate. Just be glad Jonny Bovier didn't find that first set, as there would be no survivors to recall his pure rage.

What... did you think Syncline would be your friend. They have no "friends", that would screw the entire operation.

[Ace3000]

So Syncline are not on the sides of Angelus or Crinale, but are a third party altogether?