<> <> <> (...I hate you.) (Bah, Repeating Yak's good! And by good, I mean stupid!) <> <> * Rochelle munches on choco-caramel popcorn out of the box, because they thought to bring snacks along for some reason, and watching Repeating Yak. Chances are, Edward got the window seat. (watching -> watches. Go me!) * Edward looks out a window, captivated by the vision of Mars below. * Threnody occasionally looks up from a datapad on mastering the I-Ching. He brought his own snack, which is in fact a caramel apple in a little dish. Occasionally he looks up the TV. "Actually, Mr. TVNet, the saying is 'If you meet the Buddha in the road, kill him', not 'If you meet the Buddha in the road, put him in a fight scene with Gerbels'." * Rochelle says around her popcorn, "But they gotta put the gerbils in somewhere." (It's Goebbels, but I'll forgive you.) (And I messed it up further, though I wouldn't doubt gerbils being in this episode.) (Yes.) (Where's Germany again? That's a neighborhood in the Ukraine, right?) * Threnody looks at Rochelle blankly for a moment, then back at his datapad, taking a bite out of the apple. * Rochelle swallows. "Can I see the rock Mad gave ya?" * Threnody blinks. "Oh! Of course." He puts down the datapad on the tray, which is clearly not in an upright position, and removes the pendant, handing it to Rochelle. "I admit to being curious about your theory." It's nothin', really. * Rochelle holds the stone to the light coming through the window. * Edward blinks and turns to look at the stone. * Rochelle looks for a moment, frowns just a little, and hands it back to Thren. "Guess it really is nothin'." <> * Threnody ahs, sounding a little disappointed as he puts the necklace back on. "That's alright. We have more pressing matters anyway... I was catching up on the news." Yeah? What's up? * Rochelle buckles. * Rochelle also secures her popcorn. Gotta save the popcorn. (Ha! Very interesting, Cham.) * Edward blinks at the light uncomprehendingly for a bit, then fastens his seatbelt. (?) * Threnody finishes his apple as he buckles his seatbelt, then hands the datapad he was reading to Rochelle. "Here." (I'll explain later. And the datapad's got the story about Dunno on it from the atc_game post) * Rochelle takes it after she's packed snacks away and starts reading. Slowly. Huh. Figures. * Edward doesn't look. He's too busy watching the planet get closer to the window. *_* * Threnody nods. "I wish I knew what they were up to, or what we're up against, but truthfully, uh..." He pauses, then has the decency to look embarassed. "Truthfully, I just dunno." * Rochelle lets out a tiny snort. "That's a bad joke." She keeps reading, though. It's taking her some time. That's some timing, though. * Rochelle hands it over to Thren. * Threnody takes it back, but shakes his head. "It's not coincidence. It can't be. When Hettie said we'd need luck, I think she was 100% right." * Rochelle shrugs. "Just gotta hope we've got some, then." (Can't say the I word. Uh... would Thren say "True, dat"?) (You can say indeed. I'll forgive you this time. ;P) * Threnody nods solemnly. "Indeed." He glances over at Edward and smiles. "Enjoying the flight?" <> * Edward looks away from the window and nodnods, grinning. "This is neat!" * Edward looks back at the window. "That's a lot of water." Yup. I wonder what the point is. To look neat? * Threnody smiles faintly. "Maybe for people born on Mars it seems ostentatious, but for people born on Earth, it's a little reminder of home." Oh. * Rochelle nods. <> * Rochelle yawns. * Threnody looks around at the scenery a bit, then leans back in his chair. "I wonder how the others are faring." Probly flying and being bored. <> * Threnody cracks a little smile. "Like us?" * Rochelle thinks about that. * Edward is enthralled by the view, thank you very much. Yeah. Only with less popcorn. <> (BWAH. Have to AFK a little. Will be brief.) * Rochelle unbuckles and grabs her duffel bag and such. * Edward unbuckles and doesn't grab the luggage he doesn't have; he packs light. (SOrry. >_<) ( 'Sokay. ) * Threnody gets up and produces a very small travel bag with his bokken strapped to it. "Well, then... shall we?" Sure. * Rochelle gets to her feet, slings her bag over her shoulder, and waits for an opening in the stream of people. (*eyes the other channel* What the fuck, man?) (We're interesting! They're SQUARE.) <> * Threnody mmms as he walks. "I suppose we'll need to find someplace to stay... of course, now that we're IN Red Sweden, we could always find the others." * Rochelle frowns a little. "Not sure that's such a good idea." I suppose not. <> * Rochelle calmly ignores them, unless one jumps out and smacks her. * Threnody ignores them, though 'calmly' might be up for debate. "We'll need to find somewhere to stay. And..." He produces his cel phone and dials a number. "...I'm going to contact Roy, just in case." <> * Edward can't help but look back at the ads. "Rochelle? What don't they know?" (HA.) * Rochelle looks back at Edward. "Huh?" * Edward points at the adds. "Doesn't 'Dunno' mean they don't know something? What don't they know?" * Rochelle blinks. * Threnody talks and walks at the same time! Which incidentally saves him from having to explain Dunno. "It's me." Uh... huh. I've got no idea, Edward. * Rochelle heads after Thren. * Threnody holds the phone to his ear, looking back a moment to make sure everyone's still with him. "We're in the airport. I think we're going to..." He pauses a moment trying to remember. "...'the Borken'. Bad name, good reviews. You?" (Bork bork bork!) <> Oh. * Threnody heads Borkward, after scanning the reservation courtesy desks. "I'll get in touch with you again when we've got something to contribute. Take care." He hangs up the phone and smiles at Roch and Edward. "Shall we?" * Rochelle shrugs. "Yeah, sure. I guess you got rooms covered." * Edward nods. Er, sorry... I looked ahead on the plane. But it has good reviews, and we can afford it. The others will probably stay with Roy, so we should be safe. (I love that Thren the technophobe arranged three flights to Red Stockholm and a hotel reservation like this.) <> * Rochelle looks at Thren blankly for a moment, then shakes her head. "Why're you sorry about that? You're the one with money." She pauses. "More money, I guess." * Threnody ehes. "Not that much more." He turns to the desk and takes a few steps. "I'll see if there's a shuttle or something. Be right back. Stay alert." <> * Edward watches the ads, fascinated. He's easy to please, yes sir. <> * Threnody smiles. "Hello. I'm here to see if there's a shuttle? We have a reservation for a suite." * Rochelle eyes the ads, too, but walks up with Thren. (Oh, he said he'd be back. Nix that. ;P) * Rochelle stays with Edward and eyes the ads, too. She doesn't seem particularly amused, but hey. "Certainly, sir." <> "It will be here momentarily. Would you like to purchase a pack of my hoload decoys? They work excellently, as you can see." * Threnody tilts his head. "If the holoads have become such a problem that decoys are necessary, why not simply get rid of the holoads?" ( "We cannot, sir. They are our oppressors." ) (Hehehe.) <> "You obviously aren't from anywhere in Red Sweden. Dunno keeps up with ATC by increased advertising. It's gotten ridiculous, and it can get oppressive on the weary traveler. And if you think the ads in here are bad, wait till you get outside." * Threnody seems to consider that for a moment. "I suppose given the hard sell I should buy some after all. Thank you." * Threnody produces a thumb! Behold the power of fingerprints. <> "Thanks. Trust me, they'll come in handy." ( You've just made Ed a very happy cybork. ) I believe you. Where should we wait for the shuttle? <> "Right outside the door. It will have the hotel moniker on it, you can't miss it." * Threnody smiles. "Thank you." He scampers over to the others! It's just like the Travel Channel! * Rochelle already seems bored by the flashing lights and ads. "We got a room?" * Threnody nods. "A suite. It's a bit of a stretch, but I'm hoping Ronnie will reimburse me a little bit in recompense for being a willing rook. Shall we?" Yeah. * Rochelle heads towards where the guy pointed. Maybe she was paying attention. * Edward nods. And follows! <> * Rochelle blinks. "Wow." * Threnody also blinks. "That about sums it up." He produces the decoys and looks at the container for directions. "Here goes nothing, I guess." Oh, are those the light things? Just grab a couple and throw 'em out, I guess. * Threnody nods and does just that! "Let's hope it works." < (-??+>>) * Rochelle walks quickly to the shuttle before the ads decide she's more fun than lights. * Threnody makes for the shuttle like a starving man for food. <> * Rochelle is in and has grabbed a seat, maybe! Go her. * Edward follows Rochelle's example. * Threnody breathes out as he has a seat. "How sad. You don't need to spend a year as a monk to appreciate the depths to which money has made man fall." * Threnody smiles brightly, as if he were talking about the weather. "It DOES help, though." <> A monk? You have to make a promise to be poor or something? * Threnody shakes his head. "Not really... but part of the learning experience is trying to put the material world behind you. Ancient philosophers in the Orient believed you could only truly be enlightened when you'd moved beyond the concerns of money and power." He pauses. "And occasionally hair." * Rochelle blinks a couple times. What's hair got to do with anything? * Threnody rubs the back of his neck. "I really don't know." * Edward blinks confusedly and shakes his head. * Rochelle tucks some hair behind one ear. "Then why'd you mention it?" * Threnody blinks. "A poor attempt at a joke, I guess. Buddhist monks used to shave their heads." Oh. You don't know why, huh? * Threnody shakes his head. "Not really. The monks I stayed with were more interested in preserving the order's fighting arts than worshipping Buddha." <> * Rochelle peers out the window at the building, but only a bit before she grabs her stuff and gets off the shuttle. * Edward follows like a good Edward Unit. * Threnody takes his things and gets up, following after Rochelle. "It's certainly..." He pauses a moment. "...Nordic." <> * Rochelle eyes the statue. "Yup." <> (I am a little amused that except Kat *nobody* cares that we're not there.) (We are invisible. We are the trees.) (Well, Roch said she wasn't going, but Thren should be a surprise. ;P) * Rochelle looks at the clerks, then looks at Thren. (Why bother? Nobody gives a damn.) * Threnody just... looks around with a sort of slack-jawed expression. "I don't BELIEVE this." It's 'cause they love you. * Rochelle said that with a perfectly straight face. * Edward is confused. "...What?" * Rochelle grabs one of those flashing lights and hands it to Edward. * Threnody looks a little wobbly. "It's like being trapped in the Ring cycle. Stay here. I'll go get our keys." Ring cycle? Uh, sure. (Or, if he were 100 years younger, like being trapped in Pink Floyd's "The Ring cycle".) * Rochelle looks around and waits like a good girl. * Edward looks at the flashing light. Edward? Yes? You got any idea where ya wanna go first? * Edward frowns in thought and shakes his head. "...not yet?" Maybe... maybe the park. The place with the lake? * Edward nods. * Threnody does the key-getting bit! Hopefully no opera is involved! <> (Damn.) <> * Threnody returns to Roch and Edward carrying what appear to be three seal-shaped chocolate pops on a stick. "Ve are very velcome, da." Hey, chocolate. That's worth weird statues. * Rochelle grabs a choco-pop and opens it. "Edward says we should check out the park, maybe." * Edward blinks. "You're talking funny." * Edward has a choco-pop, too, tho. :9 Hm. Well, no reason not to, but let's drop off our things first. We're on the 70th floor. * Threnody smiles a little at Edward. "Just a little Viking humor." * Rochelle nods and nibbles on her pop while heading over to an elevator. (Presumably, they're creme-de-minthe, ala Andes'.) (I so want chocolate!) (I want turtles.) (That'd work. Let's go get some.) (Dood.) * Threnody heads for the express elevator! <> <> * Threnody wears an expression that appears to waver between vacant amusement and a desire to punch the elevator operator, which is saying quite a bit considering he's a pacifist. * Rochelle looks at the man, then up at the speakers, and shrugs to herself. <> * Edward is confused by all of this, of course. And probably a little afraid, too. * Rochelle steps out! And away from the crazy elevator operator. * Edward follows out quickly. * Threnody steps out and looks for the room. "7034..." He grimaces. "I bet we'll have a wonderful view of the ads from up here." If this hotel's really that good, maybe it found some way around them? Maybe the ads can't find us here. * Threnody looks at Rochelle. "They have a statue of the Norse god of thunder doing *macrame*." Okay, maybe not. <> * Threnody 'prints open the lock, but doesn't pull the door open. "I'm afraid to look." Then I'll look. * Rochelle moves over and opens the door, peeking in. Nobody's singing, so it's safe. * Rochelle opens it the rest of the way and heads in. * Edward follows in, looking around. <> * Threnody ehes nervously. "Usually I have a high tolerance for this sort of thing, but lately I'm feeling intensely paranoid." He steps inside and blinks. "...well, it's blue, but it's JUST blue, which is perfect." * Rochelle tosses her bag onto a chair and heads straight for a window, opening the curtains a little and checking for ads. Wow. This is big. Yup. Well, it IS for all three of us. Although it does seem a bit bourgeoise for our purposes. (I KNOW I spelled that wrong.) (Oh. No, actually, i didn't.) ( *snicker* It's hard to know, with that word. ) (I hate French loan words. Hate them a LOT.) (Agreed.) (Pas de deux! Fin de sicele! Jois de vivre! Le BITE ME.) ( Also agreed. ) <> (*looks* On that note, it's "fin de siecle".) (Not familiar with the phrase. And I somehow think that's okay. ) * Rochelle sighs. "Okay, no ads makin' it up here. Unless they hunt you in your sleep or somethin'." She wanders back to her bag and opens it, rummaging through for her cap, which she puts on. (Means "end of the century". It's generally used to describe something modern or new.) * Threnody finds a chair and places his bag on it, then unstraps the bö(r)kken and slips it through his belt loops. "I'm ready when you are." He pockets the ad decoys as a precaution. ( How over-fancy. ) (Tres yes.) I'm ready. * Rochelle zips up her bag. "Yup." To the park, then! * Rochelle blinks at Thren. "That excited about seeing water?" But she goes out anyway. * Edward follows. ( z.z ) * Threnody folds his arms behind his head and smiles. "Ehe. Well, maybe not that, but despite the insane ad count I've never been here before. I WOULD like to see some of it." I guess. <> * Threnody blinks at the sign as he walks past. "...*mandatory*?" <>