NationStates Jolt Archive

Yarrum time line :
"A minor nation, I find that to be unfounded humility." He says with a smile, "And us ex-president types have to stick together."

Jeff time line :

Returning the hug "Well, it would appear that Long John Black beard has decided to wake up. I have something that you might be interested in, "Using his best game show announcer voice "A neeeeew leg ! We can pop up to my house in when you like and I can pop this back on. It should not take to long. I also have your favorite treat here." He opens his doctors bag and pulls out a bottle of grey goo "Just drink this whenever you like, but before you go into surgery."

Jeff nodded and grinned at Niven, "And not a moment too soon for me to fall outta bed and wake up."

Jeff held up the leg and looked at it, "Very nice! Ya know, I've been looking forward to being able to walk like a regular person again," he said shoving the voice from his dream to the back of his mind. "Maybe tomorrow morning?"

"Oh boy! My favorite! And it's Grey even!!" Jeff laughed. "Breakfast of champions! You oughta try it James."

The look on James' face said otherwise, definitely otherwise.

Smiling "I hope you like the leg, I made it myself. This one has a few interesting options that you might like, including detection shielding, a hidden compartment and a hidden holster for a pistol. Standard strength increase so that it is the same power as your other leg, and pain/temp. feed back, so that it feels more real to you. This will cut down on the psycological problems associated with this type of replacement. There is a pain editor so that you can shut that function off if neccessary. It also has seven different nanite injectors so that it can fix itself in a matter of minutes if injured. I have also placed a comm device in the big toe and a locater has been built into the unit, that only I can trace. Just in case." Sitting back down " Tommorow morning will be fine, everyone can come up to the house , I will have Pridemore serve breakfast and take everyone into town if they would like to go shopping. On me, ofcourse. "

Jeff nodded, "So last time won't happen again," he said.

"This is really great," he smiled, "Thanks dad, especially for the tracer, cause you never know when that'll be useful."

Jeff looked down into his glass a moment, "Thanks for everything," he said quietly.

Patting Jeff on the back "Any time son, thats what family is for." He realized after he had said it, that this could have been a painful statement to make to Jeff, but it was to late now...

"So where are my grandbabies ?"

Jeff nodded, "yes it is." he winked. Well, that's my family now. he thought warmly as he stood up.

"They are in the nursery,' he added. "I'll go get them."

Jeff seems to be taking this well "Yes, lets go have a look at the future owners of Celeborne." He said with a smile.

(hehehe, this is going to be fun..and now a cross over from the other thread.)

A small buzz behind Niven's ear and a caller ID stamp apeared on the inside of Niven's eye. "Excuse me for just a moment Jeff, I have a business call." Niven steped away, afraid that this would be more bad news, instead it was the chearful voice of his personal assistant and butler, Mr. Pridemore.

"Yes, Pridemore ? "
Sir, you have a message to contact Nigatara about the sharing of cybernetic technology with a third party.
"Get ahold of Nigatara and appologize for my not returning his call, then get every bit of information that you can on this third party. Ask Nigatara not to send any information to them until we can do a background search."
Very good sir

Walking back to Jeff "sorry, the world seems convinced that I do not have enough money." He says with a smile.

(Wait, I'm confused... oh, I'll just go with it (too bad I have to sign off after this! Where's Ian?)

(sorry; some friends stopped over. To make the timelines even more confusing, I'll loop our previous conversation over the later part of it, before we go to um...um...*gets out whiteboard* Ok...this stick figure is Jeff, with the little stick-figure peg leg, and this one is Dr. Niven, with the stick-figure arm gun...;))

Yarrum's smile looked a bit forced. 'At least she's talking,' he thought.
"Crashes happen a lot at airshows, I'm told." She looked matter-of-factly in Christin's general direction.

Christin looked hard back at Sara. She may have been living on the Shield for a couple years, but the old Imitoran wasn't completely gone.

"There are. If the pilots aren't good enough." The tone of her voice challenged Sara to suggest that Christin wasn't 'good enough'.

"I know I did something at the party, Miss. Just tell me what it was I did to upset you, let's get this out in the open, okay?" he tried his best to look honest and open.

The effort to keep her face straight for Sara and answer Yarrum's question honestly was too much for Christin. Her expression ended up an awkward mix of the two.

"I...you honestly didn't do anything, Mr. Yarrum," she said quietly. "Unless you want to blame yourself for..your...your..." Christin couldn't bring herself to say the word.

(TIME WARP! :shock: )

"They are in the nursery,' he added. "I'll go get them."

James still hadn't quite gotten over the shredded sheets. He stood in mute shock for a couple minutes, letting the other's conversation flow over him. Christin came up and gave his arm a squeeze, but he couldn't seem to peel himself away from the tattered reminants.

At last, Jeff's voice came clearly through. "Um, I'll come with you!" he said quickly. "To, um, help ... you." James wasn't quite sure what he had wanted to say, only that it wasn't what came out of his mouth.

((Looks like everyone has left for the night....I am going to be gone yet again :cry: . So Lark you have Niven. Have fun and don't sell all of his companies :) )

(Wait, I'm confused... oh, I'll just go with it (too bad I have to sign off after this! Where's Ian?)

(sorry; some friends stopped over. To make the timelines even more confusing, I'll loop our previous conversation over the later part of it, before we go to um...um...*gets out whiteboard* Ok...this stick figure is Jeff, with the little stick-figure peg leg, and this one is Dr. Niven, with the stick-figure arm gun...;))
OOC: *whacks Iansisle with a stick-figure stick*
She may have been living on the Shield for a couple years, but the old Imitoran wasn't completely gone.
OOC: I like to think that Christin was one of the more-moral Imitorans from the start, which is why she wanted to escape Imitoran culture by marrying Iansislean nobility:). Same holds for John (y'know, the one that married Elizabeth - when are we going to hear about them, anyway?).
((Looks like everyone has left for the night....I am going to be gone yet again :cry: . So Lark you have Niven. Have fun and don't sell all of his companies :) )
OOC: Of course not! We're giving them away for free! We'll split them equally among Project Aeneas and IanCorp! :twisted:
(oh yeah, I've got the very bare bones of the website up, I need to flush out the main page (like put more text there ;) ) But in case you want to take a look, http://www.geocities.com/larkinia/ and the only links working are to Jeff's and Takeo's pages )
OOC: In Jeff's title at the beginning of his page you forgot to mention the Duke and Ambassador parts! For shame!

OOC: *fires several bullets into his puppet nations*

((Looks like everyone has left for the night....I am going to be gone yet again :cry: . So Lark you have Niven. Have fun and don't sell all of his companies :) )

(Aw, darn it....we didn't even get an official Dr. Niven Lecture™. ;) Seriously, take care, and I'll see ya later, man.)

(Yeah, sorry to miss y'all last night, my ISP and I needed to have a discussion about my level of service from them... :x Take care of yourself Cele! )

OOC: In Jeff's title at the beginning of his page you forgot to mention the Duke and Ambassador parts! For shame!

(I did forget about that. Since Jeff gave that one title to Christin, I thought that was the Duke title, so I'd left it out :oops: )

Jeff seems to be taking this well "Yes, lets go have a look at the future owners of Celeborne." He said with a smile.

(It's Jeff's attempt at a command acting performance, he's.. well we'll see it later...)

At last, Jeff's voice came clearly through. "Um, I'll come with you!" he said quickly. "To, um, help ... you." James wasn't quite sure what he had wanted to say, only that it wasn't what came out of his mouth.

Jeff looked and James with a strange smile after hearing the tone in James' voice. Some things not right, something's different

"Sure, bro. Come on," Jeff winked, "I could use the help carrying them, I'm not superman after all," he said as he held the door for James.

Jeff looked down at the ground as he and James walked toward the nursery. He saw the look in James' eyes when he was in the study and was at a loss for words.

He must think I'm some kinda freak, not really human... he's probably right.

He waited a moment before trying to talk.

"So how ... Well I meant... James, I'm sorry."

James wasn't sure what he should be saying. He certainly didn't want to talk about the ...things that were going on, but he couldn't think of anything else. His eyes caught Jeff's once, and he quickly shifted them away, before forcing them to refocus.

The apology caught him off guard, though. "You're sorry, Jeff?" James asked quietly. "Sorry for what? There's nothing to be sorry about."

*Gets crowbar*

Me and the forums need to have a ... word outside... :x

Damn forums!

The words just started tumbling out then, "Everything. I know this is hard.. that it's hard to look at me as... I mean if I hadn't said anything..."

Come on, say it. You know you are...

I don't think I've ever seen Jeff lose is composure this way! thought James, almost losing his own.

"Jeff, I'm sorry; I didn't mean to! I don't think any less of you now, honest!"

James took a couple deep breaths. "Jeff, I consider you my brother. Hell, you're closer to me than Brian ever was. Nothing could ever take that away, not even something like this. I mean, it's not even your fault! I could never hold something you were born with against you!"

But don't you on a regular basis? something asked in the back of James' mind. Isn't Iansisle's entire structure based on exclusion by race and social standing? Didn't you distrust Dhawan just because his skin was darker than yours?

Shut up! James answered back. This is different! This is Jeff, for Pete's sake!

Is it really? How sure are you, James?

I don't think I've ever seen Jeff lose is composure this way! thought James, almost losing his own.

"Jeff, I'm sorry; I didn't mean to! I don't think any less of you now, honest!"

James took a couple deep breaths. "Jeff, I consider you my brother. Hell, you're closer to me than Brian ever was. Nothing could ever take that away, not even something like this. I mean, it's not even your fault! I could never hold something you were born with against you!"

Jeff looked at James, and gave him a sad, tired smile. "I know.. It's not your fault, you didn't do anything, you have nothing to apologize for.

"But when... I mean..." Jeff closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"James, you don't know how much that means to me. You're the best brother I could ever want," he said quietly. "But... I hold that against myself. I always thought that my mother had loved me because of me. Not because I was some freak she'd built like Frankenstein's monster."

Jeff looked back down, "I mean, if she did all of this stuff to me... were they even my parents? And what were they thinking?"

He sighed quietly.

"I'm sorry James. I know you've already got a lot to deal with without me adding to it."

James sighed. No one would ever accuse him of being a great psychiatrist, but damn it, he had to give it a shot. "Jeff, I think you just need to talk this over," he said quietly, putting his arm around Jeff's shoulder and guiding him to a nearby sitting room.

For a couple seconds after he sat down, James just wrung his hands and looked at the coffee table. At last, he looked up. "We've been through a lot of crazy stuff," he started, not quite sure where he was going with this. After a couple seconds, he abandoned that thread and picked up another.

"When you say it's your mother's fault...well, we don't really know that, do we? I mean, maybe she just loved you too much, and wanted the best life possible for you."

OOC: Nice site Lark, very good. I hate to be a total f*ckhead though, but its Yautjan. Anyways, the offer for attendance to the ICMC basic is still open, and tomorrow if I got time I'll start up some way to introduce my new Fortier character and history behind current RP characters. So hows the attack against MV's enemies going?

(Nah, you're not being a f*ckhead ;) Thanks for the tip, I'll change that up when I get home. And I may send him over to the training. The attackers haven't posted any response yet, so I guess we're on hold)

Jeff chuckled a little, "Yeah, it's been an interesting ride so far.

"No, I don't know that it's her fault. But why do that? I didn't even have a choice in it. It's like she was afraid I wouldn't turn out all right, like I wasn't good enough, like she wanted someone else. Unless I am that someone else... Now I don't know what I am."

“Those ...thing-a-ma-bobs, yeah, genes, they don’t affect free will at all, do they?” asked James. “Then what are you worrying about? You’re just who you were meant to be.” He smiled. “Most of us just start out with some random arrangement of er, ‘genes,’ and we adapt them to our environment.

“You may have started out with a bit of a head start, but there’s nothing your mother could have done besides lock you in the closet six hours a day to change the person you’ve become.

“No one is born as who they are, Jeff: not me, not Kate, not dad: no one. We evolve into ourselves; just like you did.”

“You may have started out with a bit of a head start, but there’s nothing your mother could have done besides lock you in the closet six hours a day to change the person you’ve become.

(Well ya know... :P)

“No one is born as who they are, Jeff: not me, not Kate, not dad: no one. We evolve into ourselves; just like you did.”

James is right ya know, I shouldn't shortchange myself or hate myself because of what I am. And god knows I don't have much of myself left anyway...

Jeff nods and smiles at James a little, "Ya know, you're right. I really shouldn't hate myself for that. Especially when there are so many other reasons to," he tried to joke. "I don't know how much of a head start it was Only time will tell if her little experiment will work out.

"Besides," he continues looking down at his metallic peg leg, "God knows I'm running out of human parts at this rate." he joked.

James laughed weakly at the joke. At least it was a sign Jeff may actually be feeling a bit better. Actually, seeing Jeff depressed at all was a rare sight; that was probably why it worried James so much.

He got up and extended a hand to help Jeff. "That's the way to look at the bright side of things, man."

James looked over his shoulder. "I hate to wake the kids with your ray of sunshine," he joked, "but we've one proud grandfather out there waiting to see how big they've all gotten...and he's got a gun in his arm."

---Post deleted by NationStates Moderators---

Jeff chuckled at James' joke and pulled himself upright with James' help.

"Thank you James, for that, and everything else," Jeff said smiling a little more. "Seems to me you usually know the right things to say and do. I guess that's what seperates leaders from others."

He opened the door for James and followed him back into the hallway. "Yes, we'd better get the kids for dad before he starts worrying about where we got off to, or more likely what got us on the way there."

They walked to the nursery door and Jeff opened it.

"Da-deeee!!!" Julie said when James and Jeff walked in. She ran over and hugged his leg. "We misset you!"

Jeff knelt down and hugged Julie and Marcus with tears in his eyes, "And I missed you too," he said kissing their cheeks. "You know daddy loves you right."

"Of course!" Marcus said matter of factly. "And we love Unky James too!"

James walked out the door and waited for Jeff in the hallway, before continuing on. "Well, I have had the best teacher in the known world for these matters," he grinned. "And before you even try to deny it, yes, I do mean you."

He let Jeff go into the nursery first and stepped quietly in afterwards. Julie's wide-eyed exuberance and Marcus' straight-faced seriousness both brought a chuckle to his lips.

"Why, thank you Marcus," he grinned. "Unkie James loves all of you very much too." He bent over the crib quickly to check on Connor (oops...forgot. was it -er or -or? sorry if I guessed wrong). "Say, I'll bet you can't guess who just got here! Here's a hint: he's very eager to see all of you!"

And I may send him over to the training.

OOC: I'm lookin forward to it

James walked out the door and waited for Jeff in the hallway, before continuing on. "Well, I have had the best teacher in the known world for these matters," he grinned. "And before you even try to deny it, yes, I do mean you."

"Surrrrrrrrrrrrre you mean me," Jeff winked and said self-depreciatingly. "I'm so suave and diplomatic, after all. Let's see, how many wars have I almost started at last count?"

"Why, thank you Marcus," he grinned. "Unkie James loves all of you very much too." He bent over the crib quickly to check on Connor (oops...forgot. was it -er or -or? sorry if I guessed wrong). "Say, I'll bet you can't guess who just got here! Here's a hint: he's very eager to see all of you!"

(No worries, you got it right ;) )

"Who? Who? WHOOOOOOO!!!???" Julie asked excitedly.

"How many have you averted?" challenged James with a grin right before they walked into the nursery.

---

"Weeell," smiled James. "Here's another hint: it starts with 'grand' and ends with 'pa.'"

(I gotta shove off, man. I think my eyes are starting to bleed, and apparently the school actually expects me to attend my morning classes. The nerve of them! ;)

'Night, Lark, Imitora)

"Gran-pa gran-pa!!" they both excitedly chimed.

Julie put her hands on her hips, "Daddy. We must see gran-pa now."

"Well of course we will, princess, slugger," Jeff said to them. "Bro, can you me carry Connor into the study?"

(G'Night Iansisle!)

"Of course!" said James, scooping Connor up gently. "After all, I shouldn't want to make Lady Julie wait any longer," he added with a smile down at her.

Jeff picked up Marcus and Julie, "Well then, let's get back to see grandpa!"

"Yea!!! " Julie and Marcus said as they were swooped up in Jeff's arms and walked back into the hallway. "Now daddy," Julie added, "We need to get you a new leg too!"

Jeff chuckled at that, "Well,... we'll see what we can do about that."

Marcus threw his arms around Jeff's neck, "But we 'wuv you just like you are daddy!"

"Well, I love you all too."

Jeff smiled at James as they walked, "Sometimes it's all worth it though."

"Such unconditional love?" asked James with a wink. "Would that we could all be so blessed!" He used his free hand to open the study's door. "Hi, Dad: we've someone to see you!"

James didn't mean to, but he found himself watching Jeff's pegleg, in case he lost balance and had to be sturdied before spilling his precious cargo.

Jeff smiled back at James, "Some of us are and don't realize it yet."

He hobbled into the study with the twins in his arms.

"There are my wonderful babies!" Niven smiled and held his arms out for them.

"Gran-pa!" they gleefully smiled and ran into those arms as Jeff set them down on the floor.

Katherine stood up and offered to take Conner (guess it was -er ;) ) from James. "You two sit down and relax."

Niven smiled at Jeff, "you know I don't get to see them enough."

James handed Conner (sorry :oops: ) to his mother gently and grinned a "thank you."

He watched as Niven was nearly run over by two excited youths and took a seat.

"You know, dad, I think we could see them every one of your waking hours," he said, "and it wouldn't be nearly enough/"

(no worries, I got it wrong too ;) )

Jeff sat down between James and Katherine, who was rocking a cooing Conner. "I think you're right James. All the time they're asking 'Where's Grandpa?' 'Where's Uncle James?' and I have to break their little hearts and tell them you're not hiding in the cupboards, just away."

"Well, I thought they'd have gotten tired of me being around all the time," Niven smiled and he bounced the twins on his knees.

"Never dad," Katherine replied.

Jeff tried to cross his legs, but the peg kept slipping off of his knee.

Niven chuckled, "Maybe I should take you over to the house tonight and get that taken care of."

Jeff blushed, "er.. Nah, tomorrow morning will be fine. I think a good night's sleep will do me good."

Katherine raised her eyebrows, "That reminds me, I need to get new sheets for the upstairs bed. The others were shredde..." she stopped realizing the mistake she'd made.

James blushed. "I really don't spend enough time spoiling my niece and nephews." He wanted to add 'maybe now that things have calmed down,' in light of the tranquility of the scene, but it didn't seem appropriate in light of other events.

"Dad, I don't know how anyone could ever get sick of having you around," he said to Dr. Niven instead. "I know I'd have loved to have you as my grandfather." He smiled. "That's not to say I don't love you as my father, of course."

Katherine raised her eyebrows, "That reminds me, I need to get new sheets for the upstairs bed. The others were shredde..." she stopped realizing the mistake she'd made.

James jumped in quickly. "I'm sure we have some spares about. Um, Jeff, I don't suppose you remember where I left my, um, um, pen, do you? I've been looking all over for it."

Jeff looked down again, "Yeah.. I think you left it on the boat. I'll just go grab it," he said kissing Katherine's cheek and standing up to walk out.

"Uh, yeah, that sounds right," said James cautiously. "That's all right, I'll go get it. In fact, I think I know just where it is." He stood quickly.

Jeff nodded and smiled softly at James, "nah, you guys rest here, I'll only be a minute... or four given I'm not breaking any land-speed records here." He hobbled out of the room.

"Me too!! Me too!!" Julie shouted, using Niven's knee as a launch point to catch Jeff.

"It's no trouble at allm Jeff," James started to insist. "I don't even really need it right now..." sheesh, good job James. 'I can't find my pen...honestly! They ought to have a place to put people as slow witted as you.

"It seems we have someone willing to make this a whole expedition," said James with a smile, though he was inwardly sighing with relief. The children seemed to keep Jeff fairly well balanced.

"It's no problem James," Jeff says, "You never know when you'll need to sign some executive order. Come on sweetie," Jeff adds as Julie and he walk onto the dock.

"I'm sorry," Katherine said quietly/

"What's wrong dear?" Niven asked.

"When I went to check on Jeff, he'd said he'd had a really bad dream," Katherine said, "but the sheets were slashed apart, like he'd been thrashing, or slashed or something."

-----

Jeff and Julie walked onto the docks, Jeff was using his hand to balance himself as Julie skipped and hopped along whistling a tune.

Jeff stopped a moment, good going Jeff, you've petrified your wife and brother... damnit maybe you should be put down.

Jeff sighed sadly and closed his eyes... only to see James' bloody face rush forward into his view.

"Jeff... you... why?"

"No! James!" he shouted and he jumped back in shock. His peg leg caught on the dock and he fell backwards, feeling the crack of the other railing on the back of his head.

Julie ran over to Jeff, "Daddy?? You OK??" She shook Jeff, "Daddy?" She saw the blood running from the back of Jeff's head.

"DADDY???"

-----

Jeff came to after a moment, "Yeah sweetie, I'm ok" he said standing up slowly. The two of them walked onto the boat and Jeff looked for a pen a few minutes.

No luck.

"Guess we didn't find it, princess," Jeff said as they walked back to the house.

James watched them walk out while chewing on the inside of cheeks slightly. At last, he settled onto the couch next to Kate and started tapping his thumbs together while Kate explained to Dr. Niven.

"He's really in a bad way," James said, being careful to avoid sounding too negative in front of Marcus. "We had a bit of a chat in the other room on the way to the nursery. I'm not sure what'd be best: sharing the news or not." He shrugged helplessly. "I think the best next step may be to seek professional help. Do they have anyone here in Celeborne that might be able to help talk him through all this?"

"What did he say?" Katherine asked.

Niven mused a moment, "I think that I know a couple of people here who can help Jeff. I guess he just needs to think about if he can accept needing help."

Katherine nodded, "Dad, he's got to. We need him back again, back the way he used to be...I need him back.." she ended in a whisper.

Edit (sorry about making Jeff such a depressing character for this phase ;) )

(hey, no problem. Everyone needs a little depression now and then. ;))

"He seems to blame himself for the, um, experiments, and thinks that we all consider him some sort of freek. I told him that simply wasn't true, but.." James looked over his shoulder. "I don't know if he really believed me.

"I think he's willing to get help," said James slowly. "But we have to remember not to make it seem like we think less of him now. I think Jeff's very sensitive about what..happened right now, and making him feel different could be the worst thing we can do.

"But he does need help adjusting to this new information."

Niven nods as he listens to James, "That's ridiculous. He's not a freak. This all may have just hit him so suddenly. I'm sorry I'd even told him."

Katherine sighs and kisses Conner's head. "I think James is right, that he is really sensitive, and what happened to him is horrible. I don't think of him differently," she said as she thought about referring to Jeff as an 'experiment'.

"Then maybe it's best if he knows nothing else right now. Who knows how he'd react."

-----

"Then maybe it's best if he knows nothing else right now. Who knows how he'd react."

Jeff's hearing had picked up the end of the conversation as he and Julie entered the house.

He looked down, and tried to put on a decent smile as Julie pulled him back into the study.

"We're back!!" Julie smiled. She ran over and hugged James, "We didn't find your pen unkle James."

Jeff nodded and sat down, "Yeah, sorry. I didn't know where to look."

"Daddy fell down and hurt his head," Julie added, "But I made him allllll better now."

"I agree, Kate. In time."

---

James smiled as Julie came rushing in. "You didn't? Aw, that's all right. I can go down and look after it later. Thanks for trying!"

He looked over as Jeff sat down. He was about to ask if that was blood on the back of his neck when Julie answered his question.

"That's a good girl," he said, but it was somewhat distractedly. "Jeff, are you all right? What happened?"

(Ugh.. can't think... gonna crash, damn morning classes. I have an excuse lined up for James in the morning ;) )

(and I'm sure he can't wait to hear it. :) 'night, man!)

Jeff reached back and felt the drying blood on the back of his neck and in his hair.

"I.. I'm all right. I just slipped on the dock as we headed to the ship."

Go ahead and tell them, it's not everyday you see your brother dying in your hands... or is it by your hands...

Shut up! Jeff thought to the voice in the back of his head as he gave James a smile to fight back the fear.

Katherine stood up and checked on Jeff, "Jesus, Jeff! You need stitches for a cut like this.

Niven put Marcus on the ground and walked over to look a Jeff. "Hmmm, looks like someone has a concussion at least," he said feeling the back of Jeff's head for a soft spot or skull injury.

"I'll be fine, I promise. It's all right. Sit down everyone, we're supposed to relax."

"A concussion?" asked James, worried. "That's pretty serious, Jeff: must have been one heck of a fall."

He had stood up while Jeff was being inspected with a deep frown on his face. "Jeff, I'd rest a lot easier if I knew you were all right. What do you think, dad?"

Jeff chuckled and looked down embarrased, "It wasn't the fall that got me, it was passing out when I hit the steel railing on the other side. Besides, I hit my head, the hardest part of my body," he added with a wink.

Niven nodded, "It shouldn't be too bad now," he said. "Just a bit of superficial bleedin... you what???" He stood up, "I'll be back in a moment, I need to get my bag from the transport."

Niven walked out of the room while Katherine looked at Jeff. "What's wrong?"

Julie piped up, "He shouted something and fell back."

Jeff smiled at Julie and winked, "You're blowing my indestructable cover."

"That makes me feel much better. Thanks," James groaned. He stayed on his feet pacing while Niven checked over Jeff. There was a good deal of handwringing while Dr. Niven went to get his bag.

After Julie put in her two cents, James became even more worried. "You shouted something? Your cover? What's going on?"

"Yeah James, you know... my cover. My 'I'm bullet-proof, I am an invincible dragon-slayer' kind of cover. It's getting harder to convince you guys that nothing can hurt me," Jeff nodded slowly.

"I guess," Jeff looked down a moment, not wanting to rethink what flashed in his mind just before he jumped back, "I must of shouted something as I fell."

Niven walked back into the study with his medical bag and sat down next to Jeff. He pulled out a bandage and stuck it to the back of Jeff's head, "That'll take care of the bleeding, try not to do anything too strenuous up there..."

"Like thinking," Katherine said, slightly teasingly.

Niven chuckled at that. "Now," he said flashing a light in Jeff's eyes to check for reaction time, "does anything hurt?"

"Only when you do that," Jeff winced and tried to joke as Niven flashed the light in his eyes again.

"You should be all right," Niven said. "You've gotta stay up a while though so we can make sure nothing happens to you."

Jeff nods, "Ok. I'll cook us some dinner, that'll keep me up."

(A million apoligies, everyone. I've been really busy lately (too busy even to make a post like this). I'll hopefully catch up over the weekend (but probably not). Things were just starting to get real interesting, too. Darn.)

(No worries, we'll be ready when you get back. And when you do you can split the posts between Yarrum, Christin and Sara and the other way this is going as well. Iansisle and I tend to do that a bit. That way you can still take the talk the way you want to :) )

James didn't look amused. "Jeff, you know you don't have to prove anything to us. We love you just the way you are, bulletproof or not."

However, the doctor's prognosis seemed to calm James down a lot. He regained his seat and smiled across the way.

"Dinner, eh? I'm sure we'd all love to help." He thought a moment. "Well, I'll try to help, anway," he said, winking.

James didn't look amused. "Jeff, you know you don't have to prove anything to us. We love you just the way you are, bulletproof or not."

Jeff smiled at James sheepishly, "Well, I know you guys do and I love y'all too.." Jeff sighed, looked at the floor a moment and cleared his throat. "Besides, someone has to."

However, the doctor's prognosis seemed to calm James down a lot. He regained his seat and smiled across the way.

"Dinner, eh? I'm sure we'd all love to help." He thought a moment. "Well, I'll try to help, anway," he said, winking.

"Well that sounds like a good plan," Jeff nods, standing up.

Don't get too close to James with a knife the thoughts in the back of his head taunted him.

James clapped his hands together and stood up again. "Great! Um, what're we making?"

(sorry these posts are kinda short...I'm typing out a response to Knoot and Valinon in the background.)

James clapped his hands together and stood up again. "Great! Um, what're we making?"

(sorry these posts are kinda short...I'm typing out a response to Knoot and Valinon in the background.)

(No worries, I'm looking forward to reading that post! Sorry I haven't been more active in that thread, but I'm not sure what to really have Jeff say)

((heh...I feel like I've just been lecturing the entire time about history. ;) This last post has the conclusion of the story; maybe then we can get some actual negotiating done.))

James clapped his hands together and stood up again. "Great! Um, what're we making?"

(LOL, either way, Jeff's just a bit-player, there for comic relief ;) )

"Fajitas," Jeff grinned as they walked towards the kitchen.

"Yea!! " Marcus smiled joyfully. "We wuv fajitas!!'

"Yeah," Jeff smiled at him, "I know you do."

"Fajitas?" asked James with an arched eyebrow. "Those sound, er, interesting."

He smiled down at Marcus. "But I'm willing to listen to such a good critic's opinion!"

"Well you're in luck," Jeff smiled as they walked into the kitchen. He opened the refrigerator and pulled out some meat that had been marinating in a spicy, fragrant light red fluid. He pulled out a large knife and quickly sliced the meat while Katherine and the children took out some vegetables and cut them into pieces.

"Let me get the grill starte..." Jeff said.

"I've already got it going, sir," Jeeves said walking in from the patio.

"Jeeves, you're a lifesaver."

"Apparently just what you need sir."

James generally stood about getting in the way. He offered to help repeatedly, but so quickly proved utterly useless at any task assigned him that they were soon taken away.

He watched Jeff's expression closely at Jeeve's comment.

(i think I may be off, man. sorry; it's been a long week ;))

(No sweat, I've just finished my first week back at a real university, so I may get some rest soon too)

"Yeah," Jeff said quietly as he stifled a wince. "You've, uh.. got a good point."

Jeff offered to help James with the steak, but was just lucky to keep James from cutting himself. "Here," Jeff said, handing a bowl of the meat to James and picked up the rest of the meat and the vegetables. "Come on out with me and we'll cook this on the grill."

"You boys keep an eye on the kids," Katherine said as she started to warm some tortillas and Julie and Marcus ran outside in front of Niven, Jeff and James.

"Yes my dear, we will," Niven said with a smile.

OOC: Just wanted to poke my head in and say nice read so far. Next partys at my place, lol. Ok, back topicking on small nations with no space military, and wondering why no one ever gets involed in my race threads, lol.

OOC: Thanks Imi, I figured this might bore the hell outta you cause there's been a low ass-kicking level so far ;)

On another aside, how are you doing?

I suppose I could have dropped the bowl, James thought, trying to be positive. He was still a bit embarassed at how pathetice he'd been with the knife: at least he hadn't managed to cut off a thumb, or worse.

"Don't worry, Kate, I'll be sure I keep both eyes on them," he called back, thinking at least that was a task he could prove half-way decent at.

OOC: Thanks Imi, I figured this might bore the hell outta you cause there's been a low ass-kicking level so far ;)

On another aside, how are you doing?

I'm just chillin up here in MO. Literaly. Yesterday the high was 8. Yeah, just 8. I didnt need to have surgery, so they sent me back up here, and for some od reason, I managed to gather together enough cash from the insurance settlement to get a new car, lol.

((Heh, and I thought it was cold 'cause it got down to 40ish last night :P. Seriously, though, it's good to hear you didn't need surgery or anything, and got a new car to boot. Are you back in classes, or just taking it easy?))

Back in classes, but I got some easy courses.

((That's good to hear...you're polysci, pre law, right?))

I suppose I could have dropped the bowl, James thought, trying to be positive. He was still a bit embarassed at how pathetice he'd been with the knife: at least he hadn't managed to cut off a thumb, or worse.

"Don't worry, Kate, I'll be sure I keep both eyes on them," he called back, thinking at least that was a task he could prove half-way decent at.

Jeff hobbled out to the patio with the group. "Ya know, James," He started, "If I'd had that peg leg made of oak, we could have used it for some kindling in the grill."

"Not that this one's too much different," Niven chided Jeff. "Honestly, getting your leg blown off. I guess there's a reason you were stuck on a submarine."

Julie and Marcus ran onto the beach towards the ocean before plopping down to start a sand castle.

(Easy classes, that sounds sweet! Now the big question, will you be ready in time for next season?)

Yeah, declared Poli Sci major this week, still wondering weather or not to decalre a pre law minor (would mean extra course work, but easier time getting into required classes), or just taking the pre law packet without declaring it as a minor.

"I'm sure Dr. Goodman wouldn't take to his work being taken so lightly," winked James. "He was quite proud of that thing, you know."

Seeing the look on Niven's face, he smiled. "I know you must think we're barbarians, dad," James said, patting Niven's shoulder. "But it takes us time to adjust to new things."

True to his word, he kept a good eye on Marcus and Julie. Sandcastle building seemed harmless enough, but you never knew when there was going to be a tidal wave.

((I still think Aquaman had the coolest powers of all the SuperFriends. I'd be like "here, I have something to show you on the beach..." and then like "Simba! Sick him!" and a blue whale would land on that guy's ass.))

True to his word, he kept a good eye on Marcus and Julie. Sandcastle building seemed harmless enough, but you never knew when there was going to be a tidal wave.

(And a Larkinian Scouting Drone swooped down and grabbed both children to take back to Diablo Base for 'testing'..oh wait a sec, I'm getting ahead of my notes again.. that's in part 6.. :P)

"No, I don't think Iansislian's are barbarians. You're much too polite for that," Niven winked. "I'm sorry, I know I spoke out of turn, and that things have already progressed a lot in Iansisle."

The grill hissed as Jeff threw the meat and the assorted vegetables on it. "Yeah, it just take a little while to get used to anything, although Iansisle has adapted very quickly, considering everything. I mean you guys went from steam engined ships to starting a space program in such a short time."

(And a Larkinian Scouting Drone swooped down and grabbed both children to take back to Diablo Base for 'testing'..oh wait a sec, I'm getting ahead of my notes again.. that's in part 6.. :P)

(( :shock: I certainly hope not, for everyone's sanity! ;)))

James laughed slightly. "Don't worry, Dad; I agree with you completely. In fact, it was so frusturating watching them work on Jeff, and knowing he could get better somewhere else, I didn't know what I would do."

He shrugged. "It's taken a bit of poking and proding, but we're slouching forward. One of these days, maybe my children will even know what you're all talking about," he winked.

"So, just what are these 'fajitas' things we're making, Jeff? They smell delicious."

((Admission: in RL, I don't really know what fajitas are :oops: ))

( :shock: You don't know what fajitas are?? Don't they have decent food at that college of yours? ;) Keep in mind you're gonna get my version of them.)

Niven nods, "Believe me, I know exactly how you feel. It's always frustrating working on Jeff," he winked back. "And I have more than enough experience at that."

"Aww come on guys, I had to go back to Iansisle, especially since I was removed from command and couldn't order the fleet to go anywhere else," Jeff chuckled.

"Fajitas? Well, you start with some steak or chicken marinated in some red chile powder, little salt and pepper and olive oil. Then you slice up some red and green peppers, mushrooms if you want them, onions and the like and grill them, like we've got here. Then after a little bit, you put them on some tortillas and add some salsa, sour cream and guacamole, roll it up and enjoy."

(that's not the hard part, the hard part is writing up Jeff's funeral in part 8 :P ... or maybe not..)

((Yeah, well I'm sure by part twelve, Iansisle will have invented a reanimatatraon :P;)

Gotta run out for a shower real quick.

Oh, and fajitas sound good! ;) I assumed they were Mexican, from the name, and it did sound kinda familiar. Heh, I'm such a bad south-westerner.))

(So you're saying this is dragging on then? :P heh heh , I'm still trying to decide if Jeff or Antony is going to go to that big NS in the sky.)

"And I certainly have enough experiance feeling helpless watching you patch him up," said James with a sad smile. He patted Jeff on the shoulder. "But I don't think I'd trade him in for anything."

James blinked at the long list of instructions. "Sounds spicy," he said. "A good change from my usual choice, I should think!"

(Antony! Antony! ;))

(So you're saying this is dragging on then? :P heh heh , I'm still trying to decide if Jeff or Antony is going to go to that big NS in the sky.)
OOC: Antony!

But seriously, maybe you should make it an actual RP where the result depends on how well Iansisle and Celeborne (if he's back by then) can play against him?

OOC: Hey Iansisle, can I borrow your bat?

OOC:
Me: Once! Post Once! How hard is that to understand? ONCE!
Forum: You said "once" three times, that wasn't my fault...
Me: *shoots forum*

(That's the plan, Milostein, I wanted to break this out into an RP more, and I'm sorry it hasn't been more of an RP at this point. I was trying to use the earlier stuff to lay the foundation, that the military is trying to work out a deal in Tharkold to get fuel, weapons, etc. from them 'under the table', cause if they don't need to go through government sources to get what they need, then the faction still loyal to Grant can have a say in Larkinia's future.

That's why 4A has ground to a halt, I'm waiting for Cele to get back for his response to what Nigatara has sent him.)

OOC:
Me: Once! Post Once! How hard is that to understand? ONCE!
Forum: You said "once" three times, that wasn't my fault...
Me: *shoots forum*

:lol: :lol:

(Antony! Antony! :wink: )

OOC: Antony!

(OK, we have two votes for Antony in the who should live tally... :P)

Jeff smiled as James clapped his shoulder, "And I appreciate it guys, I wouldn't trade you guys for anything in the world either. I'll try to stay out of trouble so neither of you will have to go through that too much more."

Niven chuckled, "Son, I don't think that it's possible for you to stay out of trouble."

Jeff nodded as he flipped the meat on the grill and looked out at Julie and Marcus playing in the sand.

"Yeah, I know," he said absentmindedly before piping up, "Yes James, I think you'll appreciate these. Fairly spicy, but not too bad. You need a kick to the palate from the usual Iansislian fare. At least the Duque's not here to see the carnage..."

*time to get the crowbar from the truck...*

"I don't think you'll ever be able to keep out of trouble, Jeff," said James with a wink. "We may as well try and keep the water out of the ocean! But hopefully, we'll be able to direct that trouble in to a more, um, peaceful direction."

"I don't have much experiance with it myself," James said quietly, "but I've heard that Gallagan food is very spicy." He didn't seem about to follow that thought up with any sort of comment, and instead blushed softly.

((sorry my posting has been so inconsistant of late...a friend came down from Phoenix.))

(No worries man! :) )

"I don't think you'll ever be able to keep out of trouble, Jeff," said James with a wink. "We may as well try and keep the water out of the ocean! But hopefully, we'll be able to direct that trouble in to a more, um, peaceful direction."

( :twisted: )

"That'd be nice. Something more happy and shiny than what we've all been through," Jeff said letting the words drop a moment. "I'm sorry for what I've put you all through. Most people would have run screaming away by now."

"I don't have much experiance with it myself," James said quietly, "but I've heard that Gallagan food is very spicy." He didn't seem about to follow that thought up with any sort of comment, and instead blushed softly.

"Yeah? Me either. We'll have to give it a try sometime soon. Maybe some sort of curry dish or something," Jeff said smiling at James and patting his back. "After all, you've got so much on your mind right now I'm sure you haven't been able to try it yet.

"Here, taste this," Jeff said skewering a piece of the meat with the fork and handing it to James.

(and a DVD-esque Easter Egg for y'all ;) )

http://www.geocities.com/larkinia/antony.htm

OOC: Umm... An IQ of 194?

OOC: That was supposed to be his weight, I think I misread my notes last night and just shipped it. Thanks!

Edit: There it goes, this is a lot easier to do when I'm not passing out in the apartment :oops: :wink:

Katherine walked out onto the porch with a plate of flour tortillas and some hard plastic plates under them in one hand and Conner in the other. "I hope you don't mind," she said setting them down on the patio table, "I didn't think we needed the fine china for this."

Jeeves walked out with a tray of margaritas and a pitcher of iced tea and some glasses. "I hope you don't mind, sir, I went ahead and fixed drinks for everyone."

Katherine set Conner down in a baby seat and leaned over the railing, "Julie, Marcus! Time to eat!"

A faint "Yeaaaaaaaaaa!" was heard from the beach as the twins ran on the tan sand back toward the house.

OOC: Im the 18th highest poster on NS...quick start an RP I can get involved with, Im second in my region, and I wana be first, lol.

Hey, Lark; Imitora - Sorry I've not been able to post lately. Between school and a houseguest, my time's been at a premium. Hopefully, things should calm down by Wednesday; Friday at the latest.

No worries dude, this will still be here when ya get back ;)

"That'd be nice. Something more happy and shiny than what we've all been through," Jeff said letting the words drop a moment. "I'm sorry for what I've put you all through. Most people would have run screaming away by now."

"Bah, most people don't know what a wonderful guy you are," said James. "Jeff, there's nothing to be sorry about. None of ... what's happened has been your fault, and anyone who says it is should schedule an appointment with my fist!"

"Here, taste this," Jeff said skewering a piece of the meat with the fork and handing it to James.

James accepted the meat gingerly. "Oh, hot!" he whispered, quickly popping it in his mouth to keep his fingers from losing their skin. After his saliva had gotten the tempature down to a tolerable level, James started to notice the taste. "Oh, hot!" he said again, looking about for a glass of water.

Afterwards, he helped Kate set out the paper into enough places. "Don't worry, Kate; it's absolutely delightful to have a nice, casual meal every now and then," James smiled. He accepted a margarita from Jeeves. "Thank you; I don't mind at all. Why, in fact, I don't think I've ever minded being offered a drink!" he finished with a smile.

"Bah, most people don't know what a wonderful guy you are," said James. "Jeff, there's nothing to be sorry about. None of ... what's happened has been your fault, and anyone who says it is should schedule an appointment with my fist!"

"Well, since you said so, then I'll try to cheer up about it."

Katherine kissed his cheek, "Finally! A breakthrough!" she teased.

Jeff paused a second and smiled at James again, "Thanks," he replied. "I'll be sure to send them you."

James accepted the meat gingerly. "Oh, hot!" he whispered, quickly popping it in his mouth to keep his fingers from losing their skin. After his saliva had gotten the tempature down to a tolerable level, James started to notice the taste. "Oh, hot!" he said again, looking about for a glass of water.

Afterwards, he helped Kate set out the paper into enough places. "Don't worry, Kate; it's absolutely delightful to have a nice, casual meal every now and then," James smiled. He accepted a margarita from Jeeves. "Thank you; I don't mind at all. Why, in fact, I don't think I've ever minded being offered a drink!" he finished with a smile.

"Yes, your majesty," Jeeves said.

Jeff watched James' reaction to eating the meat. "Maybe a little more chile powder," he mused.

Katherine slapped Jeff's arm lightly, "Behave! I'm glad that you'll be looking forward to it," Katherine said to James as the twins ran onto the patio excitedly.

Jeff picked up a plate and put the meat and assorted vegetables on it and set it down at the table. "Well, don't stand on ceremony y'all, let's eat," he grinned.

James almost attempted to serve himself, got quickly confused by the various parts, and decided to wait for someone else to go first.

"Jeff, that may have been the best grace I've ever heard," he said while keeping a keen eye out. "It may also have been the shortest, which why it was also the best."

The keen eye fell on the meat. "Hmm, Jeeves, if you don't mind, I think I would really like a glass of water with dinner," said James. "Or maybe a pitcher would be best."

Jeff started wrapping a fajita and set it on James' plate, "Since you're new at this, I'll give ya a mulligan," he winked before sitting down and making one for Marcus.

"Mmmmmm!!!" Julie smiled in between bites.

"So, about this wedding of yours, how are we going to keep IanCorp out of the picture so you and Christin can have a nice, calm day and an even more private honeymoon?" Jeff asked as Jeeves walked up with a pitcher of water and set it on the table. "Because even though you've got a good plan set up, they can still find a way to crash it."

"Maybe if you kept them at bay Jeff.." Katherine grinned

((I'm just going to warp Christin into the scene while Yarrum's otherwise occupied...unless he replied and I, sometimes doing a fairly swell impression of a blind person, missed it. In that case, just smack me and point it out ;). Speaking of which.. well, not really, but still .. Imitora just send me a TG of goodies on Christin's past. Thanks, man :)))

"The honeymoon!" exclaimed James and Christin (who, as a matter of fact, had proved quite able of wrapping her own fajita and had been just about to chide James for his ineptitude at everything culinary) together, nearly at the same time. They looked at each other for a moment, almost as if they were sharing some sort of silent communication, and then James frowned and turned back to the rest of the table.

"T'be honest with you, we haven't even thought about a honeymoon yet," he said.

"At least, not together," said Christin.

"And I haven't the foggiest where we're even going to go," he concluded with a shrug.

"There's always those beaches in Troobodia," suggested Christin. "Even if the waves are too small to surf properly."

"Nah, I want to go far away," said James. "Somewhere where we can just be a ourselves. Someway away from the Commonwealth and even the Alliance."

"Hmmm..." Christin sat back and pondered. "What about Tanah Burung? I hear it's supposed to be breathtaking there."

James shook his head. "I don't know if I want to go someplace tropical. How about Knootoss? I've never actually been to the Lowlands."

"I can see," Christin said with a smile, "that we're going to be talking about this for some time."

Only then did James remember the original question. "Oh, sorry about the birdwalk, Jeff. Um, IanCorp, right! Well, I was figuring that I don't have to admit them to Callahan private property, such as Ian's Island. Then I don't have to feel bad about having Weathers arrest anyone who tries to sneak in for trespassing."

(Whew, I'm too wiped out to come up with a proper response. I'll get one to ya tomorrow. Sorry about that. Classes have stunned me like a kick to the nuts. I figure I'll crank up part 4A again when Cele gets back online, I think he'd like Niven to go all CyberPunk-whoop ass on Diablo base ;) Catch ya on the flip side!)

((Heh, no problem, man. I think I've been unavailable enough over the past few days that I've lost any right to complain I may at one time have possesed ;). 'Sides, I should be shoving off to bed in a minute myself. 'Night!))

(oh dear, some more into Christin's background? That should prove, interesting ;))

Jeff sipped his margarita a minute while James and Christin talked. Katherine put down her drink and nodded, "Well, what about someplace like Ziobia?"

"Well, he might still be known there," Jeff said, "After that meeting he attended with all the other leaders. So we need someplace with beaches for Christin to surf, and highlands for James to stay in. Maybe a little cabin, on a cliff overlooking the ocean, but close enough to the mountains. Maybe..." *throws dart at NS map* "Someplace in the Region of Adventureland?"

"I think there's already been enough adventure in his life Jeff, thanks to you," Katherine said.

"Yah Dadeeee!" Julie said, "A'vent're!!!"

"No sweetie, not for us. At least right now. So, a place to go... Not a hard order," he winked to Christin. "Jeeves?"

"I'll get to work on that this evening, sir," Jeeves said. "But for now might I recommend you all relax and enjoy the day?"

(Whew, I'm too wiped out to come up with a proper response. I'll get one to ya tomorrow. Sorry about that. Classes have stunned me like a kick to the nuts. I figure I'll crank up part 4A again when Cele gets back online, I think he'd like Niven to go all CyberPunk-whoop ass on Diablo base ;) Catch ya on the flip side!)

You speak the truth. This week should start clearing up. Lately all I have had time for is a quick quip in general.....

Still a good read...I'm thinking about hosting a party for some reason or theother, any ideas? Iansisle, I lied, I'm not done, I got one more twist for Christin before I'm done.... :twisted:

(Glad y'all still like this! I thought I might have bored y'all to death ;) .

Imi, sorry to impose, but can you take over for me in the MV war thread? I've got a big exam in my advertising class that's kicking my ass. I haven't crunched this many numbers since Calculus II, and it took me two tries to pass that, so I don't know how much I'll be on until Thursday night. Sorry everyone.)

No prob, just hit me up with a TGram detailing current force usage, and I'll get it taken care of. Dont worry, I wont loose to many guys, lol.

"That, Jeeves, may be the best suggestion I've heard all day!" exclaimed James after swollowing a bit of his fajita. "This is the life: maybe we should just go here for the honeymoon, Cris."

"I thought we were relaxing, James," she giggled. "We can talk about that later."

"Right, relaxing," said James. "Anyone up for building a sand castle after dinner?"

Julie and Marcus jumped into a chorus of "me me me me me!!!" at the mention of sand castles.

Jeff and Katherine smiled at each other and watched the sun start to dip down.

(ya know, I think we're getting to an impasse here....)

"Better be careful, James," Christin whispered with a smile, "Or Dr. Niven will offer to build them a real one!"

((Yeah, I've been feeling it too...time to move on to part V?))

(Yeah, so we'll jump past Jeff getting the new leg attached and move on. Unless James wants to question Jeff a little more about what's going on.)

((I don't think so..James is probably scared he'll let something about Jeff's evil doppelganger slip ;)))

(ooooooh, I hadn't thought about that.. heh)