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Post by Captain Ameijin! on Jul 30, 2019 9:07:32 GMT -6
“Might have been in if we were riding flesh-and-blood stallions,” Myra answered with a shrug. “...but I haven’t a lick of experience with fighters. Think it’s best if I sit this one out, yeah?” Flashing an easygoing grin of her own, she gave Daryl a couple friendly slaps against his shoulder– perhaps too friendly for someone who had accidentally glassed him only a few weeks prior. That whole messy affair didn’t seem to weigh on her much. When pressed about it, she merely laughed it off and claimed that she didn’t remember anything after her first pitcher. “While you two are strapping yourselves into metal death traps, I’m going to hedge our bets with a few rounds of seven-card stud. By the sound of it we juuuuust missed the horse races and I could use a little extra pocket change." Myra turned to Val and cocked her head towards the casino parlor. “Coming with, or are you off to the little leagues too?” --- “Weren’t ye supposed to be…” Sean shook his head as Gabe played along with his own little song and dance, though the smile never left his face. He really should’ve known that deciding how to split up over the phone would be a terrible idea, but the promise of shade and the sweet, sweet embrace of indoor cooling was too enticing to resist. “Ye know what, just forget it.” He took his keycard from the receptionist and held it between his fingers. As the others hashed out the important details of the wedding– like who would play the bride and groom– Sean found himself lost in thought. Memories long forgotten had resurfaced without warning. Once they had wormed their way into his head, they refused to budge until he spoke up once more. “It’s a bit of a long story but uh, I’m a registered marriage officiant. Only here in the States, mind.”
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ned
Little Twinkle
Posts: 12
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Post by ned on Aug 3, 2019 5:45:09 GMT -6
When the casino's promoter mentioned the fighter races, Val didn't immediately react. After all, she had more of a behind-the-scenes role, and she was more than happy to let the other have their time in the limelight. Instead, the gears in her head slowly started to spin. Logically speaking, if they were letting just about anyone pilot those, surely they weren't running at full speed. Which meant they must have had them retrofitted with some sort of limiter.
A mischievous grin flashed on the mechanic's face.
She turned to Myra, putting a hand on her shoulder and motioning her to go on ahead. "Keep a seat warm for me, I'll be with you in a minute. Just gotta personally make sure our friends' rides are safe and harmless first. Wouldn't want anything to happen to them, right?"
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moo!!
Cosmic Kiddie
Posts: 63
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Post by moo!! on Aug 3, 2019 12:43:57 GMT -6
Linnea’s reaction comes at nearly the same time as Sean’s, the moment Gabe pops up. “Weren’t you supposed to be—“ She stopped herself with a gentle sigh, and opted instead to listen and nod.
“Of joy. As is customary for the blushing bride.” She repeated with an amused grin, which faltered momentarily at Renardo’s comment – something oddly sharp, oddly serious… a nerve had been struck, and Lin merely blinked at him before dipping her head with a single “alright.” She dropped the subject and fell silent, as this would be his wedding to plan – he would be the one to speak with the receptionist.
When Sean came through with something expectedly unexpected, she slowly turned her gaze towards him, then towards Gabe as if saying ‘Did you know about this?’ and back again.
“I was wondering when we’d get our unexpected-but-oddly-convenient boon. While I am interested in hearing the tale in full: just out of curiosity, how many weddings have you officiated, and are weddings here…” She gave Gabe a look as she motioned to their general vicinity, as if to say – not Arizona, not the States, but the entirety of Earth – “… all as… err… interesting as they say back home?”
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Post by Charredgp on Aug 3, 2019 15:48:59 GMT -6
It was almost cute how two of them seemed to believe that he was going to just split up before they actually did any real work. And even cuter that Sean of all people expected him to just follow orders. He could rejoin his "proper" team later. Right now they had a wedding to plan. Or at least a gag to run into the ground. But first, there was an actually important issue to bring up. One vital to the continuation of this mission and its success. Though not without shooting Lin a taken-aback look and mini-shrug.
"Hold up, when the hell did ya do that? And more importantly, how did that never come up? Ever? That seems like somethin' that'd get brought up."
He'd turn back to Lin, taking a moment to think on her question and, of course, its implications. "Er...Can't really say. Never really attended any back home or in Russia. All I ever saw was movies and I doubt they're that dramatic. Or at least I hope we don't have to deal with a crazy gunfight, or some giant speech 'bout how the bride should actually be gettin' with some other dude or whatever else they do. Though it's probably a lot more entertainin' that way."
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Post by Captain Ameijin! on Aug 3, 2019 18:41:10 GMT -6
“Hold yer horses, lads and lasses. Only got one mouth and less than half a brain to answer ye.”
Sean scratched at the stubble that grew stubbornly along his chin with his keycard. He counted on his fingers from index to middle, mouthing the numbers.
“Three, and I’m afraid none were particularly dramatic. Biggest surprise was hearing my sweet old grandmother let one rip before my uncle had the chance to utter his renewed vows. Holding back my laughter was just about the hardest thing I’ve ever done.”
His nose crinkled at the memory, but he couldn’t help but chuckle thinking back on it.
“And like I said, it’s a bit of a long story. Short of it is that a couple friends of mine decided to elope to somewhere across the pond and become potato farmers or something, and I offered to be the witness to their marriage. Found some bullshit online license and within two weeks I had my very official (and very much printed off copy paper) minister’s certificate. Have to admit that it was strange to marry off a bride and groom who I’d slept with both, but last I heard they’re still happily wed so I must’ve done something right!”
“As to why I never brought it up…” Sean shrugged. “Well, I don’t really know. Ye never asked.”
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Post by fen on Aug 5, 2019 23:34:53 GMT -6
“O-Of course, just give me a moment…” Though she seemed eager to help, the mixture of discussion coming from the rest of the group did seem to noticeably put her off. “We do have a few events scheduled for the next few days, but they’re all indoors… Tomorrow is the Landlord Association of the South’s meeting, then we have the Hydroponics conference and…” There was a pause, an abrupt ‘oh!’ and a brief smile on her face. “It seems we have some room for a ceremony in two days, during the Central Energy Conference they’re holding inside. I think most visitors will be focused on that, so that should give you and your dear an opportunity to enjoy yourselves…” The receptionist glanced over to the group behind Renardo, still discussing about the intricacies of whether or not it was acceptable to officiate the wedding of two people you’ve slept with. Without dragging that conversation any closer, she shot Renardo as polite a smile as she could muster. “Would you like to make the reservation official? For a modest fee we can provide catering and set up your venue.”
------------
"Seems like we got ourselves some par-tiss-a-pants, and mighty fine ones to boot. If y'all can just follow me, I'll show ya to where we keep our rides." With another tip of his hat and a wink, Chester motioned for the group (at least those interested) to follow him.
---
Just outside of the casino, beside the horse track, was another track composed primarily of dirt and mud, with ridges and bumps carved out of the ground. Just behind that, parallel to the stands, was a wide and open warehouse of sorts. More akin to a stable with how it was open air, they were greeted with a small armada of kitbashed vehicles. Most of them were somewhat akin to what Chester had described: the bodies of fighter jets, with most of their wings clipped in some way, and severely retrofitted to be able to function with bulky anti-grav modules.
To those mechanically inclined, there was a hint of irony at the sight of some of these machines. While most were composed of older machines, there were a handful of models that couldn't have been older than twenty years, which would mean they were developed with flight technology considerably more advanced than rudimentary anti-grav. To see their corpses husked out and their advanced systems replaced with hardier, simpler ones was... Something.
Chester stopped the group only a few steps in, turning to them with that trademark grin. "Just poke around and get a feel for the place. We got only the finest mechanics the southern states have to offer." With another wink and a hearty pat on the back for Daryl, their host left them to their business.
"Oh my god, look at this one!" Cried out Yuki, who had already split from the group before they had realized, and was now sitting in the seat of one of the grounded machines. Her eyes were wide with curiosity and just a little bit of amazement. "This has to be pre-colonial, easily!" The model of the machine was certainly unrecognizable to any of them, at least when considering modern fighters. The since tapered scars along the edge seemed to imply it had a much larger wingspan than some of the others, which was definitely unusual.
"Well I'll be, you've got a good eye there. That's a genuine Lutherville." Came a voice.
A middle-aged man approached the group, with square-rimmed glasses, short cut brown hair, and a busy tool belt around his tucked in white t-shirt, splotched with oil stains. With a warm smile on his face, he took a sip from the cold beer in his hand.
“Are you one of the new racers?” He asked, turning to look at the rest of the group nearby her. “And are you all racing too?”
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Mary
Little Twinkle
Posts: 14
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Post by Mary on Aug 12, 2019 18:44:03 GMT -6
"It defeats some part of the purpose if people are going to be busy with some conference, but the fish we're looking to catch on our line isn't the type to be held up by those kind of matters...Very well! If we're going for the King of the Lake, then we have to aim high!" In part. Harleen was channeling her frustrations at her "special day" being the side attraction of an energy conference. This energy was the start of Harleen's Counterattack. "Rey-Rey dear, please make it official on your end and just focus on playing the part of a high class catch! Not that it'll be much of a stretch but...Regardless, I'll give it my all to make this a suitable venue alongside the establishment!"
Eva tapped her ear piece, a bit taken back at how absorbed the Comms Officer had become in all of this. "Harleen, you're getting a little bit too involved in all of th-" Though she had whispered it discreetly as to not draw attention to herself, she reared back as her ear piece, and only hers, screeched back as Harleen began to reprimand Eva on her ability to multitask in the field and her audacity to try and impede a maiden's heart as she was.
For now, Meta decided it was best to withdraw from the point.
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ned
Little Twinkle
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Post by ned on Aug 16, 2019 6:58:27 GMT -6
"Racing? Oh gosh no, I'm sure those machines go much too fast for silly old me!" Val replied, in a voice more chipper that anything the others had ever heard from her. "I just came to have a look with everybody."
As she said that, she walked through the storehouse, making mental notes of the various models that were available. A lot of them were merely shadows of their former selves, but there was probably still something to be done with them. Nothing major, of course, but with some TLC and a couple of bypassed wires, maybe...
After passing a few of the fighters, Val realized she'd been holding a fist clenched the entire time. Seeing such impressive works of engineering reduced to this state was nauseating. She had one or two strongly-worded complaints she wanted to address to whoever had been in charge of those botched jobs, but she'd keep them to herself. For now. In fact, this worked in their favor more than anything : if this was the ballgame, they should be able to come out ahead.
Despite her distaste, the mechanic plastered on a carefully constructed smile before turning back to the promoter. "I'm not going to stop those two idiots from racing, but... I just wanted to have a look before they do. I worry, you know?" The smile shifted to a look of concern. "Tell me, this is all safe, right?"
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Post by Captain Ameijin! on Aug 21, 2019 16:04:00 GMT -6
“Alright boys, think it’s time to quit while I’m ahead.” Myra raked in the hefty pile of chips over the protests of the other players, breaking her poker face only to flash a devilish grin. She clasped an expensive-looking silver watch over her wrist as she stood from her seat. “Try not to empty out the college fund over a silly little game, would you?”
Dumping her poker chips into the mechanical counter, Myra peered across the casino. Though she was now one step closer to becoming a millionaire, she failed to find any leads on their mark. Her forehead pressed against the coolness of the machine as she watched the number tick higher and higher. Is it ever gonna be enough? she hummed under her breath.
When the number finally slowed to a halt, she readjusted her coin purse across her shoulder and sauntered towards the bar. There she ordered something they called ‘cactus wine’ and took several gentle sips from it as her eyes settled on the television that hung high on the wall. The last horse race of the night had just ended, and with precious little access to national networks, the television simply played the local news.
“The ESU is nothing but a parasite, consuming the lifeforce of this planet, of its people-”
Myra’s head shot up with enough force to give her neck whiplash. Even surrounded by the cacophony of slot machines and roulette tables she could recognize Cain’s voice in an instant. Her carefully manicured fingernails began to dig into the counter, stripping off some of its plastic sheen.
The armored machine decapitated another, and the man inside continued to speak. But for every word he said the distance between the two grew wider. She just couldn’t understand him at all, and no canned speech about corruption and liberation would change that. What a complete and utter load of bullshit, she thought, downing the remainder of her glass.
“I need something… stronger.”
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Post by Charredgp on Aug 29, 2019 1:06:32 GMT -6
"It's an energy conference, how excitin' can it be? Buncha guys in suits talkin' 'bout bigger batteries or how they're definitely gonna make power out of like...Farts or somethin'. Lord knows Sean wouldn't need nothin' else on his m..." Gabe paused for a split second, realizing that talking about military machines in public probably wasn't a great idea. "Mmmmotorcycle." He finished lamely. "But point is. Might get some stragglers from that, or just people who wanna see if somethin' happens. And knowin' us, it probably will. Whatever 'it' is."
In truth, he was only half-paying attention to the conversation at hand, mostly trying to hear more about a Sean Story he'd somehow managed to never hear. Or at least that would be his excuse for any babbling or absentmindedness later. "Although...Makin' a scene could be a good idea if we actually want people to pay attention." He muttered close to Eva, not wanting to disclose too much of their plans to the staff. Announcing one's plans to cause trouble around the staff tended to end poorly in his experience.
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Post by fen on Aug 30, 2019 18:12:08 GMT -6
“Well of course they’re safe, I’ve got over twenty years experience modifying low-gravity fighters and operating propane and propane-based engines, they’re as safe as a puppy!” Nodded the mechanic. A cursory look over the machines would reveal that despite their… Somewhat strange mechanics, they were mostly intact and functioning as intended.
Yuki had already hopped into the seat of one, enthusiastically pouring over the controls.
“I appreciate your enthusiasm missy, but the race today was canceled. Yep. Come back in a few days and we should have a spot open.”
The look on her face was almost tragic as she pulled herself out of the machine, hopping down to the ground beside Val. “I thought… The guy told us that there’d be one today…?”
“Chester did?” Sighed the mechanic. “Sounds like him to think we’re still running on that schedule… Unfortunately the desert course we usually use to test pilots is being… Uh… ‘Occupied’. That’s right, management was p-r-etty clear on that. Yep.”
“Occupied…?”
“Well…” He scratched the back of his neck. “I’m not entirely sure what for, but there seems to be some construction going on out there. Anyways, we still got the horse races to watch if you kids want to do that instead.”
There was some silence, at least from Yuki’s part, as the group deciphered the mechanic’s words. That there was a test course out in the desert was new to them, and so was the fact that it was apparently not to be used right now. Wasn’t the desert mostly empty? Who was doing construction out there? A wealth of questions seemed to be generated just from that one statement.
Yuki seemed to have gleaned something important from it, turning to Val and Daryl. “Might be worth reporting back, we could find something important out there.”
----
A few days later…
To say the wedding reception was planned at the last minute was… Not entirely false, but the hotel had come through: a miniature bare-bones setup was established for the group, along with a basic meal course planned, and a (mostly) free bar. Well, nothing was truly free- as it all came to be billed under the ‘company card’, which at this point had ‘Roland’s Liquids’ crudely scribbled on top of.
Held just outside of the hotel in a nice garden courtyard, the signs nearby stated plain as day that it was an open reception and wedding: anyone was welcome to attend. To that end, it seemed as though a good chunk of the suits that had come for the conference had trickled out into the wedding as their meetings and panels ended. Many were on the younger side of things, well around the age range of the group- but there were also plenty on the older side. Though they didn’t know them personally, the free alcohol and food was enough to convince them to stick around.
There were slightly more pressing matters to attend to as well though: the fact that there seemed to be mysterious construction work occurring in some part of the desert. Yuki had informed the group and opted to make her own way over there, renting an old dune buggy to do some of her own investigating.
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Post by Captain Ameijin! on Sept 16, 2019 20:12:50 GMT -6
Tender beef brisket was pierced by a thin wooden skewer, mopping up the surrounding barbecue sauce before Sean lifted it from the tray. He gave the robotic waiter an appreciative pat on the shoulder as he tore the meat from the skewer with his teeth. Swallowing it down without bothering to chew, he carefully dabbed sauce from the edge of his mouth with his handkerchief.
“That was one smoky son of a bitch,” he mused, the taste of still-kindling wood filling his mouth. He swept his eyes across the crowd in search of the next finger food to shove down his gullet. They had loaded up the company card to cater for this event (paid for partially from Myra’s casino winnings), and he was going to make the most of it. “Ye should really try the brisket when ye get a chance, tastes a bit like what would happen if ye chucked a whole entire cow into a furnace. Now I have to track down some of those ‘Three-Bean Tex-Mex Pinwheels’ we ordered from… what was the name of that joint again?”
“It was—” From Sean’s earpiece came a deep sigh. “…‘Señor Gringo's ‘tillatown’.”
Lin had taken the role of a meandering passerby – the sort of person to make rounds at Costco only to eat the free samples. She wasn’t entirely what to wear for this stage of the wedding, so she’d gone with a faded blue button-up shirt and dark denim pants. To keep with the western theme, she opted with a pair of thick brown leather belts that sat loosely around her hip – sans any ridiculous belt buckle nonsense like the sort that Gabe and Sean liked to wear during the trip. She held a candy cigar between two fingers as she talked into her earpiece, partially obscured by her hair, currently tied up in a messy (and slowly unraveling) bun.
There was a pause as a robotic waiter passed by her with the aforementioned tex-mex pinwheels. No hesitation was given as she swiped one from the tray, and took a bite, careful to speak only when her mouth wasn’t full.
“Brisket aside, have you found anything promising?”
“Afraid that I haven’t,” he confessed, putting on his best poker face as he tipped his hat at a passing couple. They exchanged pleasantries (and business cards which he had hastily printed) and soon parted ways, his expression flattening the moment they moved along. “Nothing but drunken buffoons the whole aisle down. Don’t ye think it would help if we had any clue what we’re looking for here?”
Sean plucked what must have been the world’s tiniest hamburger off a nearby tray, popping it into his mouth like a kernel of popcorn. And then he popped a couple more in while he was at it.
“Leasht we knew the color of hish shuit lasht time,” he lamented, swallowing down the hors d'oeuvres with a loud gulp. “All we know about this guy is that he’s loaded, which isn’t exactly uncommon around these parts. Would be an easier task to find a needle in a needlestack.”
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Post by Charredgp on Sept 19, 2019 18:10:20 GMT -6
While left practically alone in his dressing room, Renardo was admittedly quite nervous. Jitters ran through his meticulous fingers as tighter, his vest came to close around his torso. Would this be enough? Would it look good? Would any of this successfully come into fruition in the end?
The operation itself was unorthodox, but it was so crazy it just might work. Having a faux little wedding and party? Genius. What he wasn’t sure about at all in the end was his...outfit. Looking down over his attire-to-be, he could only sigh in dissatisfaction. Were they to have more time to put this operation together, he would’ve picked something undoubtedly flashier. What he did have time for however? To stop by one of the dinky convenience stores and buy himself some neon blue hair dye, as well as give his locks a quick trim. Renardo looked over his suit coat, eyeing the seams and the sleeves to think of what he could do to ‘fix’ it. “I assume you’re doing just swimmingly, Gabriel?” He beckoned over to his apparent best man. Preparing for a fake wedding was, in some ways, far more stressful than planning for a real wedding. For one, they had to worry about things like “Not blowing your cover.” and “Who got the best codename?” While Gabe didn’t know how they did things on Earth, he also didn’t know how they did things on Mars. But he’d seen enough interrupted weddings in movies and such to be able to piece together most of it. He’d just have to hope he wouldn’t need to do much more than stand there and look handsome as hell. Unlike Renardo, he didn’t feel much of a need to try and disguise himself. A suit alone was rather out of character enough to make it easy enough to hide if he ditched it, but it was rather hard to track someone down when they were just “The short scruffy guy” in a place like this. He fidgeted with the cuffs of his sleeves as he approached Renardo, doing his best to try and help him adjust. “No. This fuckin’ sucks. I know it’s kinda last minute, but the fit on these suits is the fuckin’ worst, let me tell ya. Nothin’ like wearin’ a real good one.” “Oh?” Renardo commented, quirking his brow with intrigue. “I am not entirely familiar with the personal background of everyone here. However, it sounds like to me, you put on airs much different to that of your...I’m assuming, affluent upbringing.” He stepped on over, scratching his uncharacteristically stubbled chin. “That’s a roundabout way of sayin’ I don’t act like someone who’s rich.” He quite pointedly didn’t speak any more on the subject, giving Renardo a few more pats and tugs on his suit. “Ya ready for this, otherwise? Gettin’ fake married’s probably just ‘bout as intimidatin’ as a regular one, I’d imagine.” Renardo simply shrugged - that is indeed what he was saying. But looking at the general impression of his teammate now, he probably was all the better for it. Imagining the shorter yet gruff gent having to fold into the land of the bourgeoisie was even making him cringe. “‘Tis all just part of a play, and a play a part of the plan.” He finished assessing Gabe’s misfitting suit, quickly whipping out his handy dandy tin of sewing supplies. Without even bothering to ask, Renardo started manhandling Gabe a bit to take his suit coat by the sleeve and start tailoring it. “Unless you have some first-hand experience on a proper marriage, of course. I’m only uncomfortably familiar with the arranged sort.” “Unless movies count, where some crazy dramatic shit happens, or the minister gets replaced with, like, a clown or somethin’? Not really. Never went to one in person, so all I’ve got to go on are movies.” Gabe would stay stock still as Renardo suddenly pulled out a sewing kit from God-even-knew where. He wasn’t one to question why someone carried something like that around, but he was going to worry about being stabbed. Especially for making some smartass comment about something. “Though I guess we’re learnin’ a bit ‘bout each other already. Here I thought the most random info we’ve got ‘bout anyone here was Eva bein’ a theater geek.” “...yes.” The shorter gent would feel slight pressure prodding at his waist, with Renardo’s mechanical fingertips fudging some measurements against it. This continued for a few moments further. By the time he was done, Renardo managed to make some quick adjustments to Gabe’s jacket - hopefully it would fit a bit more comfortably. “I suppose we are learning a thing or two. But, that should be in time regardless. Especially now…” Renardo crowned himself with the finishing touch to his attire: an obnoxiously big pair of gold-rimmed aviators. His lips pursed in a cartoonish manner, stripping all eloquence from his speech. “Bruh. I’mma bout to get married, bruh.” Once Renardo was done with his work, Gabe would give his suit a few more tugs to set it into proper place, giving an impressed nod at his work. It wasn’t perfect, but given the last-minute nature, it was a damn bit better now. He would also visibly cringe as Renardo got into character, watching as the at least somewhat well-spoken man was replaced by a douche in record time. But something wasn’t quite right...He’d put a hand to his chin as he looked Renardo over, inspecting him this way and that before realizing what was missing. Gabe would reach up to Renardo’s collar, popping it up almost directly vertical. “Perfect. Now I gotta physically stop myself from deckin’ ya.”
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Mary
Little Twinkle
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Post by Mary on Sept 23, 2019 5:56:58 GMT -6
“Just hold still one minute longer…”
Myra drew uncomfortably close to Harleen’s makeup-plastered face, squinting as she dabbed an imperceptibly small amount of blush onto her cheeks. Once she was satisfied with her work, she took several steps back and framed the bride’s visage between her fingers.
“Looking pretty picturesque if I do say so myself! And what do you think, Meta?”
“I would say that between the two of us, she had nothing to worry about. I would say that...If she had let me adjust anything!” Meta muttered, holding her wine glass with a grip that would suggest it would shatter to pieces any minute now. She had to wonder why she was even here, having spent the last few hours bickering with Harleen, ending up exasperated as she basically deflected her and gave everything up to Myra. If this was her playing the part of a scorned daughter, she was taking in a bit too far.
“Nonsense! Myra was more than perfectly capable in getting my makeup in order! I absolutely adore it!” To her credit, the normally finicky Harleen had been more than compliant with Myra’s adjustments and her invasion of her personal space. After all, she had a wedding to rock! ...Even if it meant putting up with Evangeline trying to play Make-Pretend Mommy for a few hours. Still, this was probably the craziest operation she had ever been on! Granted, it wasn’t the hardest record to topple but she was more than happy to sink her teeth into real fieldwork.
“Honestly, I’m more than impressed. You all were able to get as close to my notes on such a short notice! Even the dress looks amazing! Thank you so much, Myra.” Harleen commented as she continued to preen herself in her hand mirror, making deliberate effort to keep Evangeline from her sights.
“Should have seen me back in the day,” Myra replied with a gleam in her eyes. “Whipping up a wedding dress at the last minute is nothing compared to building a full suit of armor in less than forty-eight hours. The arm cannon lit up and everything–”
Three consecutive buzzing sounds interrupted her train of thought. She removed a burner phone from inside her bra (the only place she could think to put her belongings without pockets), casually checking her messages. Her expression quickly turned sour. “Well, the photographer we hired juuuust backed out on us… asshole. Have to make do without one.”
Without warning Myra pulled the two close, turning her phone’s camera in their direction. The lens automatically adjusted its focus as the timer ticked down. “Bring it in ladies, don’t you think it’s time to take a few photos of the bridesmaids all dolled up?” Even if I have to edit out your scowls in post-processing, she added to herself.
The camera quietly clicked, then again, the angle shifting by a hair between each shot.
“C’mon! We need to get these photos done, and that means you need to get along with me for more than five seconds!” Eva protested, readjusting herself for another string of photos. “Honestly, you’ve been like this during the entire wedding process! Just what is your problem anyway?” Honestly, Eva was giving Harleen credit. This behavior had been going on since the moment they both stepped onto the convoy, persisting through the whole entire trip. It had been at least easier to avoid her when she was stuck in the main compartment of the convoy, but here heads kept butting and she just didn’t know what to make of it.
“A full suit of armor? Now that’s a story you need to tell me sometime!” Harleen commenting, fully side-stepping the question at hand as she adjusted her dress to prepare for the next set up photos, this time take with her by her lonesome. This was going to be her special day, her special assignment, and she didn’t need Evangeline butting in and making a mess of things this time around! Still, the protests continued as Eva brought in the background for her photos, pushing Harleen to the ends of her patience before she finally let it spill out, tired of just ignoring the problem.
“Because I blame you.”
Harleen commented, no tone of anger dripping from her comment, as if said in just a matter of fact, as the only thing heard between the three was the awkward click of the camera moments after.
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Post by Captain Ameijin! on Sept 23, 2019 6:00:24 GMT -6
“Welcome– friends, family, and all the lads and lasses just here for free drinks. We gather here today to celebrate the union between Chad Hunter Dickens and Clementine Dixie White.”
Their names felt foreign to Sean’s tongue. They hadn’t expected to perform at such a large venue, after all, and aliases had been deemed ‘unnecessary and distracting from the task at hand’... which had inadvertently given them free reign to use the dumbest names they could come up with. This is how Sean came to be known as Skye Walker.
“Whether ye’ve come to offer yer hearts or yer livers, each and every one of ye has given Chad and Clementine the opportunity to share their love with one another. This ceremony, as hastily planned as it might be, represents marriage in its purest form: unbridled, unvarnished, and unrelenting.”
He gently guided their hands together, clasping them between his own. A soft ‘clink’ punctuated the union as Sean’s prosthetic collided with Renardo’s. A subtle nod to each of them confirmed that they were ready to speak their vows.
“Love is the wrinkles that form at the edge of yer cheeks after a lifetime spent smiling. And though each smile is a fleeting thing, they slowly leave their mark. So love each other fully and faithfully until a thousand thousand smiles have graced lips pressed tightly together.” Sean took a long, deep breath before continuing. “The bride and groom may now exchange their vows.”
Renardo gestured in regard towards Sean with a particularly macho head tilt. Then, his head craned in the direction of Harleen. The man’s brow furrowed in focus, hidden behind his large shaded lenses.
“Babe.” His first word punctuated the demeanor he’d take in his voice for the rest of the ceremony.
“You know, like, I’m real bad with words and expressing my feelings, and stuff. But this is like, a real special day and all. We got all these cool bros and ladies and others out here.” His arm gestured towards the room. “Just watchin’ and waiting for us to get married...like a puma. Watchin’ to eat like, a squirrel, or something.”
Renardo tried selling it, shaking his head in realizing his faux tangent. “Right okay, but, that’s not what that’s about. This is about you, babe. This is about us. Gettin’ together forever. But like, you kinda are like a puma, though. Cuz when we were out at that sports bar when we first met, ahaha…” He shook his head, letting out a husky chuckle. “You like, pounced right on me right there, when I was pissed off over the Sixty-Niners beatin’ the Skies. And you never let go. And I’m glad you didn’t. And tonight? Tonight, babe.”
Renardo slowly pushed his aviators upwards to rest on his neon blue locks, flashing Harleen a smoldering look. “I’mma pounce you right back against our hotel bed as your husband.”
"Oh sugarpea, honey blossom, sweet sugary cherry pie, apple of my eyes and cheeks squeezed in my dainty little hands..." Harleen had begun, slipping into the southern drawl of her youth as she puffed herself up into the most glamorized, larger than life feeling she had constantly held back. "When we met I thought nothing more of you than a sweet piece of ass who'd fall for a fake number surer than a freight train taking to a dirt road. But after I had you with nothing between you and the Lord but a smile, I finally took a moment to listen to those words of yours. Sure, open your mouth and you'd assume that the porch light's on, but no one's home, but you were sweet, patient, generous...earnest, and I ain't talking about my Uncle Ernie! I saw past the silliness, the umptiness of your soul, and found a peach's sweetness tucked right inside. When Big Daddy left me and Mamma, I never thought I'd settle for no man, come hell or high water, but you took right up to that saddle. All for my bucking and trucking and this way and that, you sure did never let go."
"And this puma is mightly glad, happier than a dead pig in the field, you had the gumption to stick to her. Even when she's pitching a hissy fit with a tail on it. "
“Do ye, Chad, take this woman to be yer lawfully wedded wife?” Sean looked toward Renardo, praying that he wouldn’t bring up the puma thing again.
Renardo did a notably bro-like head nod of enthusiasm towards Sean."Ch'yaaah."
“And do ye, Clementine, take this man to be yer lawfully wedded husband?” Sean looked toward Harleen.
“I’m sure as God made little green apples!”
“If there is any lawful reason this couple shall not be joined together in holy matrimony, speak now or forever hold yer peace.”
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