NationStates Jolt Archive

((http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=433409
OOC/Signup thread))
Green Bird landed first in Theao. Green Sun had always thought a bit highly of them, but never had much contact at all with them. Jordan arranged for them to land before they took off, so it wouldn't be a surprise visit. Ishmael didn't want to be disturbed, so they didn't bring any additional security forces. But Natasha and Andromeda were worried for their safety, so they arranged for them to be constantly watched when they were outside of their host's home and out of the Green Bird.

Prince James was on hand to meet the visiting Sunners. As they disembarked he favoured each with a partial bow. "Why hello, I am Prince James and welcome to Theao." James said as he brushed his jet black hair out of his bright green eyes.

Jordan shook his hand. "Greeting, I am Emperor Jordan of Green Sun. I'm teh one you spoke with earlier."
"I am the Former Emperor, Ishmael."
Ishmael eyed teh Prince's shoulder for a few seconds adn then flicked it.
"Damn fleas..."
Princess Heidi walked down the stairs.
"And I have to pee, Grandfather never installed a bathroom in the plane."

James graced the Princess with a smile, "Right this way, Your Highness," James said, "Peiter, could you show the Emperor and his father to the limo."

"Right this way gentlemen." Peiter said as he he lead them to the limo.

Meanwhile James escorted Heidi to the bathroom.

"Please excuse her rudeness, she was a bit reluctant to go on this trip and DAMMIT THERE'S MORE FLEAS HERE!" Ihmael shouted with rage. He began slapping his arm violently. Jordan pulled out a needle and injected it into Ishmael's arm.
"My father is clinically insane and he also has constant hallucinations. He should be out of it for an hour. If you would, I would like to set him down in his quarters where he may rest for a little while."

"No offence, but if he's insane why does he not get professional help?" James asked, "Right this way gentlemen." Peiter said to the two.

"He is getting proffesional help, but it doesn't seem to be working fully. He's able to operate fully at home, but in public he's not quite ready yet. Some medical doctors in UziCorp think it's some sort of disorder."

"Ah, so what's are your plans for thisroad trip of yours?" James asked

"Really just meet as many world leaders as we can," Jordan replied, setting down his sleeping father on the bed.
"Dad said he didn't want to be in the Green Palace while Grandfather tried anotehr one of his experiments," Heidi snikered, entering the room.
"True. Last time we had to extinguish the flames off of the dog's tail. Almost burned down the house," Jordan recalled, laughing.

"Your father sounds interesting. So it's basically a large political tour?" James asked, "Would either of you care for a drink?" He asked as he lead them to the living room, a large room with a massive TV, bar and countless other amenities. On the Tv, LOTR II was playing.

"No thank you," Heidi replied. She looked at the large television and hopped over the seat and sat down and began watching the movie.
"I've had a craving for grape juice all day, please," Jordan said.
"I don't believe I caught your names," Heidi said, not moving from her spot.

James got a bottle of high quality grape juice out and a glass, which he poured for Jordan. "My name is James." He said as he passed the glass to Jordan.

A few minutes later a girl about three years younger than James, placing her at seventeen came out of one of the other doors. "What's up bro?"
"These are Jordan and Heidi of Green Sun."
"Hello all, I'm Sara." She said to the two.

"So," Jordan said, "What is the main sport in Theao? Green Sun has a quite unique sport called Gravball that is played commonplace, but soccer comes in second. I, myself was the captain of Green Sun City's team until I became Emperor."

Heidi turned away from teh movie and looked at Sara.
"So, what is your nobility title, you being the prince's sister? If he's the prince, does that make you a duchess or something? That's how it is in Green Sun. The siblings of the ruler are labeled duch or duchess. Their children are counts and their grandchildren are Knights."

"The most watched sport is something called bat-ball, though the most played are basketball and soccer. While not counted as a sport, racing, both horse and motorbike racing are very common as well." James replied

Sara took a seat beside Heidi, "No I'm a princess as well, and when my twit of a brother decides to get married he'll become King. There are eleven different titles of nobility in Theao."

"Bat-ball? Is that anything like Baseball?"
------
"So when he does get married, what will your title be? And for teh hell of it, why don't you tell me what the other titles?"

Meanwhile, Ishmael awoke and couldn't figure out where he was. He slid off of teh bed and went into the hall and started to wander around.

"Bat-ball is a cross between polo, soccer, baseball and rugby. It can get quite brutal." James replied

"I'll still be a princess. The titles are Emperor/Empress, King/Queen, Prince/Princess, Duke/Duchess, Marquess/Marchioness, Earl/Earle, Count/Countess, Viscount/Viscountess, Baron/Baroness, Lord/Lady, and Knight." Sara replied

"Hello sir can I help you?" One of the palace staff asked Ishmael.

Ishmael dug in his pocket and took out a Twenty-Fifth Head and handed it to the man.
"Don't spend it all in one place," he said before continuing to wander about.
------
"Oh, sounds like fun do you have any recordings?" Jordan asked eagerly.
----------
"Green Sun decided to start an easy system when we adopted a royal family so it would be easy to tell which in the line someone was. My title is technically Duchess-Princess, saying I'm the current Emperor's sister. When Jordan gives the throne to his child, it will be Grand Duchess-Princess, which says I'm the former emperor's sister. Since the emperors and empresses in Green Sun tend to give their throne up when they think their heir is ready, we tend to get a number of Grand Duchess and Dukes. My mother had two brothers, one of them deceased, and my father has a younger brother who is also teh PResident's Secratary of Defense. Now, enough about political systems, how are the women treated usually amongst the populace?"

The staff member, seeing the addled man, decided to follow and make sure nothing happened.

"I have a number of games recorded, though if want to watch a live game there is one today." James replied

"That sounds complicated." Sara commented, "As to how women get, we are completely equal. Our maternal grandmother was the ruler before she stepped down for dad."

Ishmael looked around and wandered into a room that looked almost like a trophy room, Ishmael couldn't really tell. He looked at them and started mumbling to himself.
-------------
"Oh, I would love to see it, foreign sports are always interesting!"
-------------
"Yes, equality of all is the best way to go. Makes it so nobody complains. Has Theao ever had any civil wars?"

The staff member decided to see again if the elderly man need help. "Sir could I help you?" He asked
-------------
James checks a computer screen and tapped out a few commands, "The games in a couple hours, is there anything you'd like to do in the meantime?"
-------------
"We've had one civil war in our history that lasted all of a few days." Sara replied

((Have any pics of James and Sara? I've got a prite I made of Jordan, and if you've seen Jordan you've seen his father, too.))
Ishael screamed very loudly, so loud it startled his kids.
"Excuse me, I believe my father is out of bed. Once this is handled, please tell me the rules before the game starts so I won't ask a bunch of questions while the game is happening." Jordan left the room to find his father, who wasn't in his room, so he started to call for him.
--------
"Sorry about my father, he's incredibly senile. Anyway, Green Sun has had two Civil Wars. One of them was when Congress wanted to tighten the control over the people and the military was split in two. We had to ban Naziism and Satanism becuase they decided to take up arms, as well. The second was more of a hostile takeover by the Head of the military, General Homer. Again the Nazis proved to be a problem, so he was legally voted in quickly. Neither of them lasted more than two months."

"I'm guessing you're looking for an elderly man who appears to be slightly addled?" One of the staff asked, "If so, right this way." He lead him to the room Ishmael was in.
--------
"Ah, all political parties and religions are allowed, though extremist ones tend not to take root very well." Sara replied

ooc: http://web.onetel.net.uk/~nathi/douchez/Toulouse/images/Man%20a%20lavaur%202.jpg James

http://raph.com/3dartists/artgallery/6272.jpg Sara, Have to copy paste to get it to work.

Jordan walked into the room and saw his father admiring the trophies.
"Father, quit scaring the servants. Come on, now."
"Jordan? Any idea where we are?"
"Theao. First stop on taht road trip we planned."
"Oh, yes. What was their ledaer's name again?"
"James. Prince James."
"Aye, that be it. Well, come along, then, can't keep him waiting..."
((http://img301.imageshack.us/img301/5237/princejordan7fm.png))

"Is there anything we can do to aid your father?" The staff member asked

ooc: link doesn't work

OOC: Copy and paste, it included the ).

IC:
"No, he's fine, you just startled him. Must've forgotten where he was, he gets a bit groggy like that when he wakes up."

"Ah, should we assign someone to aid him in the future?" The staff member asked.

Jordan leaned over and whispered,
"That would be a good idea, but make sure Ishmael doesn't see him, he hates being watched."

"Will do, he won't know we're here." The staff member replied

Heidi had yet anotehr question for Sara.
"What about cats? They are a bit of a problem inb Green Sun and my father is hunting on as insane as he who has been eainbg the palace's lasagna for months now."

"Cats are kept as pets, both big and small. There arn't many feral cats, though there are many wild ones." Sara replied, "Do you have any siblings?"

"Jordan's my brother, that's kinda why we have the same insane father. Ishmael may be clincally insane, but my grandfatehr has done some really insane things in his lifetime."

"Ah, so just you and Jordan?" Sara asked

"Yes. My Uncle Alan, my mother's triplette, has five children, one of them desceased, and one of those is married with one child. My other two uncles, Yillik, my father's brother, is a rather lonely man, and my mother's other brother died when a terrorist group attacked the elections when my Grandfather resigned from Presidency."
Heidi looked to the floor.
"There was another man that was kind of like my uncle. I never met him, he was drugged and he hallucinated and shot himself at his desk three years after he won those very elections. We adopted our Trinary system after he died to prevent the Congress from holding too much power. They picked my grandfather's family to be the Royal family since they had such a history in politics. Earnest didn't want to rule anymore so he let my mother, and his daughter, rule as Empress. Anyway, the man's name was Uziel Fastrin, he was a buisnessman, one of my grandfather's competitors when he still ran both the country and Green Products when Green Sun was very young. Uziel opened UziCorp, an American-based company, in Green Sun. Green Products was bought out by UziCorp when the nation's problems became too large for Earnest, my Grandfather, to run both the company and the country. UziCorp has some of the highest-quality products in the market. After Uziel died they went into a bit of a slump, but they bounced back. UziCorp has been growing ever since. They own every buisness in Green Sun. They're kind of like the God of all companies in Green Sun. You function as a normal buisness, but UziCorp owns a lot of your stock. In the end, everyone wins, really. The only man richer than the current president of UziCorp is my gradfather, who knocked over Fort Knox in his youth. To explain that story would take a very long time. My Grandfather is a multi-trillionaire, worth over six trillion dollars. Nobody knows except him where he keeps it and he doesn't use it. He only uses what he saved as President and when he ran Green Products."
Heidi laughed.
"I'm pretty much telling you the major history of Green Sun. We've grown very rapidly since the 1740s when our penninsula was colonized by Arab pirates. Anyway, after Uziel died, we had anotehr elction. A hobo, who looked a lot like Uziel, therefore he looked like Earnest, and a Lieutant called TK Termite won. Anyway, TK Termite had very close connections with Roach-Busters. He was born in Green Sun but raised in RB. Towards the end of their term, our second Civil War arose. The first one happened during Uziel's term before. General Homer killed them both on national television and took power. He couldn't control his men then, he ordered his men to arrest them, not kill them. We've forgiven Homer and he's kinda like family now."
Heidi took a deep breath and asked James for a glass of water. Jordan was in the doorway.
"That's our modern history anyway. Some say Uziel was the best President we've ever had, but he was nothing compared to our Grandfather. Twice the politian and twice the buisnessman. Uziel was his clone, you know. Both hail from the United States, Green Sun never had a government before my Grandfather."

"So this UziCorp is the only major company, that seems like it could lead to price gouging and shoddy goods." Sara said as the movie entered the credits.

James brought Heidi a glass of water. "Ah, welcome back Jordan, did everything go alright?" He asked

"Oh, quite the opposite. Because they're so powerful, they can make high-quality products for very cheap. But UziCorp themselves really just make military equipment. There are companies within UziCorp that are quite large, not near as large as UziCorp, that act like normal companies. It's like our whole economy rolled up into one super-monopoly. In fact, they basicly are. They own our equivelent to Wall Street. Stocks rise and fall within UziCorp. It's very effecient, all of the UziCorp leaders are very benevolent and competent."
Heidi accepted the water and sipped it.

"My father's right here," Jordan replied. A shorter, older version of Jordan walked in. It was rather difficult for James to tell which one was which. He started to mumble about the Bubonic Plague and a terrorist organization called Black Sun.

"Ah, care to choose a new show?" Sara asked

"Ah, so what are you interested in doing now?" James asked

Jordan smiled.
"I was hoping you would tell me the rules to that sport you were telling me about. What was it called again?"

"I don't know what Theao has for channels, movies, or whatever. Honestly I like theater better. Both Jordan and I have Bachelor's degrees in acting and theater. He has degrees in buisness and politics, as well. Just like our mother."
Ishmael brought himself uncomfortably close to Sara and said,
"I was the first General in Green Sun, did you know that? And with no formal military training! My brother is a better shot than me!"

"The rules of bat-ball are fairly simple, no using hands, no aiming for the head, no hitting someone who's down and stay within the bounderies." James replied

"Ah we have chennels dealing with everything. I have a Bachelor's in bio-chemistry" Sara replied "And you are in my personal space." She said to Ishmael, in a polite tone.

"Am I? Hm. Well, I think it would be fair to tell you that I lack good depth perseption."
Ishmael backed away and started studying the room.

"Bio-Chemistry, huh? That's an odd proffesion for royalty, but hey, it's a spot that needs filling. My grandfather has over a dozen degrees in different fields. I'm not sure how he does it."

"It's not a profession, more a hobby and an enjoyment." Sara replied, "I'm going to be working on a philosophy degree next semester."

The room was large, big TV on one wall, full-size bar on opposite side, general rec-room.

Ishmael approached James.
"Have you ever sent forces overseas during your rule?"

"A hobby, huh? Well, be careful of men named Maxwell Edison," Heidi joked.

"In terms of large forces, no, In terms of small numbers, yes." James replied

"Why?" Sara asked, "Who's Maxwell Edison?"

"So like a Counter-Terrorist Unit or something? I remember the first time Green Sun sent forces to another nation. We sent the Forge Force, our Counter-Terrorist Unit, Special Ops, and Royal Body Gaurd to Risban to fight a rebellion in Risban. Risban and Green Sun have been close since."

"Maxwell Edison is a fictional character who used a silver hammer to kill his chemist girlfriend in a song by the Beatles, called 'Maxwell's Silver Hammer'."

"Something like that." James replied

"Ah, so what kind of music do you like to listen to?" Sara asked

"What happened?"
-------
"I listen to a lot of good music. Classical, music from teh twenties to early eighties, and some modern rock. It's pretty standard in Green Sun, we have good tastes in music."
Jordan pitched in on their conversation.
"My grandfather plays a lot of video games and I watch him play. I like the music you can get from those."

"They typically turn out well." James replied

"Ah, people here tend to like music from every spectrum, from Death Metal, to Gunge Punk, to Disco, to Classical any nearly anything else you could name." Sara replied

((I'm out of questions...))

"Ishmael, interested in watching a game of bat-ball?" James asked

Sara was channel surfing when she stopped on a music channel that had music Heidi liked.

Ishmael, hearing the words Bat-Ball, started to hum the Batman theme song.
"I'm sure my father would be delighted to join us when we watch the game, James. Tell me, are your parents still alive and they stepped aside from the throne or did you inherit the throne?"

"Oh, stop here!" Heidi exclaimed. She pointed to the lead singer of the band playing and said,
"This band is called the Game Wardens. I used to date him, he's from Green Sun. We had singing classes together. When he started his own band, we just drifted apart. He's still as good-looking as ever."

"My dad stepped down, wanted time to relax and enjoy himself more." James replied

"So what was he like?" Sara asked

"My wife was the Royal ruler, so she ahd the authority to step aside. My title was complimentary since I have to spend the rest of my life with her."
He chuckled.
"Jordan got married behind everyone's backs. We had a huge wedding planned in Risban, but his wife couldn't wait. She's in Green Sun right now, probably reading or something as she always does."

"Gaylord? Oh, I remember I challenged him to a game of Gravball. He nearly broke his spine," Jordan recalled, laughing.
"Gregory, as you can see, is very good-looking. He's charming, loyal, loving-"
"Not entirely the brightest bulb in the box!" Ishmael chimed in.
"-And was always willing to help out," Heidi finished, staring angrily at her father.

"I take it your dad didn't approve of him?" Sara said with a grin.

"Same situation." James replied.

"Oh, I loved the boy. I wanted her to marry him, but she wanted him to make the move. He never did, he started the Game Wardens," Ishamel replied.

Jordan, hearing about his wife, looked over at Ishmael and James. When it came to his dear wife, Jordan was very protective.

When the Game Warden video finished and the next started, Sara glanced up at the screen and let out a cross between a groan and a sigh.

"So what are your interests?" James asked Ishmael.

"What is it?" Heidi asked Sara, taking note of her sigh.

"My interests? Catching that damn cat! I swear, it'll be the end of me if my father-in-law doesn't ctach it while I'm gone!"
"Father, I think he means Green Sun's interests," Jordan whispered to him.

"He," She points to the lead singer of the group, "is my pain in the rear brother." She said

"Actually I meant a little of both." James replied

"Who is he?" Heidi asked.

"Well, as my father told you, his only interest is catching an insane cat that has deprieved us of italian food for four years running. He's fat and ornge and is named Crookshanks by my mother. As for Green Sun, we aim to make everyone happy as possible," Jordan explained.

"He's Raphael, and the leader singer and guitarist of a band that goes by the name of Lost Battalion." Sara replied

"So the cat has an obession with Italian food?" James asked

"No, he's just incredibly fat an lazy. He just so happens to raid the palace of Italian food before we get the chance to do it."

"Why is your brother the lead singer of the Lost battalion? What happened?"

"He's always been musically inclined and he and a few friends just decided to start a band." Sara replied

"Ah." James said, "Sounds like a little troublemaker."

"Looks like they made it pretty big," Heidi remarked, looking at the music video, "What's the problem?"

"Troublemaker? TROUBLEMAKER? I haven't had lasagna in four years because of that damn cat! My wife ordered the cook to prepare two full-course meals of speghetti one night and the cat stole it and shared it with his friends!"
Ishmael's stomache rumbled.
"Maybe you can help with that problem? I'm getting a bit hungry."

"He's my annoying little brother." Sara replied, "That's the problem."

"What would you like, perhaps lasagna?" James asked

"I believe you know that answer, James. I have had a craving for Italian food lately myself," Jordan said.

"Well, Jordan's my older brother, so I don't know what it's like to have a younger brother."

James goes around the back side(bartender) of the bar and tapped in a few commands on the computer. "It'll be ready in about 50 minutes."

"Little brothers can be major pains. It's almost in thier job description." Sara replied

((I assume you have a cook who gets his orders through the computer terminals, right?))

ooc: ya

(( :D ))
The computer beeped with a reply from the cook. It read:
"I'm sorry, but there's an orange-haired cat down here that has devoured all of our supplies of Italian food."
Ishmael read the message and screamed. He pulled out a revolver from his boot. Jordan spotted it as Ishamel was leaving the room and jumped.
"Dad! How did you get that in here?"

"Now that's odd." James said as he looked at the screen

"Sir, I must ask that you relinquish the pistol." One of the palace staff said at the sight of Ishmael.

Ishmael ignored him and continued his way to the kitchen, mumbling angrily about the cat.

The staff member moves forward and interposes himself between Ishmael and his destination, "Sir I must ask that you relinquish the pistol."

Ishmael stopped and stared atr the man for a few seconds. Without warning, Ishmael tackled him and looked around teh kitchen and spotted the fat cat. He aimed carefully and fired, but the cat scurried away. Ishmael cussed and gave chase.

The cat had scurried into a storeroom, that was connected to a loading bay with the door to the loading bay open.

Ishmael tailed the feral feline into the loading docks and saw a familiar face holding Crookshanks.
"Earnest? What are you doing? Give me that cat, it must be destroyed!"
"Ishmael, why would I let you kill my cat?"
"This is YOUR cat?"
"Indeed it is."
"But it causes you just as many problems as it does I!"
"No, Crookshanks is more helpful. He catches mice-"
"That thing doesn't catch mice! It catches our dinner!"
"Will you let me finish? He always makes such a mess in the kitchens when he's hunting that the cooks think he's eating all of the Italian food. He's been hunting, not eating, Ishmael."
"Well, get him put down, Earnest. And how did you get here anyways?"
"I have my ways. Good day."
Earnest went to the front of the truck and went out the side.
"Sir, I'm only going to ask you once more-" the gaurd started. Ishmael threw his revolver down on the ground and turned before thegaurd could finish.
"My archnemisis is my father-in-law's cat. Oh well. At least he's really good at catching mice, that's why he's fat."

The staff member took the pistol and escorted Ishmael back to the room with James, Jordan, Heidi and Sara.

"Well, it turns out Crookshanks is really Earnest's cat and he's simply hunting mice. He's damn good at it, too. Earnest dropped by and released him here to ctahc my attention. I swear, that man is going to start a religion."

"Who's Earnest?" James asked

"Our grandfather, he's incredibly odd and considered one of the most mysterious men in the world," Jordan replied.

"Ah." James replied, "Anything you wish to do?"

Ishmael's stomach grumbled again.
"What's the standard fine dinner in Theao?"

"And when's the game on?"

"The game starts in about an hour and a half. As to a dinner, there is no 'standard' dinner, do you want meat, poultry, fish or something else perhaps?" James asked

"How about cat?" Ishmael chuckled.
"No, how about some sort of fish?"

James taps out a few commands on the computer. "Dinner will be ready in about twenty minutes." He said

"When was Theao funded?" Ishmael asked James, slumping down into one of the seats.

"There's no definate date, but somewhere around the fall of the Eastern Roman Empire is what most historians put it at." James replied

"Very ancient. Green Sun is rather recent compared to many other nations, especially ones of our size. We were first settled by Arabs in teh early 1700s, and then in the mid-1700s other peoples from the region started settling in Green Sun. Then China and Russia had a war and refugees and war criminals moved here after the war, which happened in the mid-1800s."

"Ah, so a highly arabic, Chinese and Russian influence." James replied

"During those times, yes. Then our Grandfather came along and started a formal government. After that we became more involved with the nations around us and we became our own people, really. But all three still influence our lives today. Islam was brought here by the Arabs. Buddhism was brought by the Chinese. Eventually they became a melting pot and they formed Neo-Islam, a new religion based on the Muslim and Buddist beliefs, which take up fifty-two percent of our nation," Jordan informed him.
"And some of the Russians were devout Socialists when another wave of them came in the 1920s, and they founded a number of socialist-run communities that are flourishing throughout the nation," Ishmael added, "My grandfather came to this country with Arab-Russians around that time."

"Our majority religion are the christian-faiths." James replied, "Though there are branches of almost every religion somewhere around. There are also nearly no limits on political parties, the main one being they need to get a minimum number of votes."

ooc: will be back, have to run an errand

"Our voting age is twenty-one and anyone registered can vote for Council of Theocracies and the Parliment, but since General Hoemr took presidency, we don't do elections for the President anymore."

"Ours is 18, anyone 18 or over can run for the PE section of the parliment." James replied

"PE section?"

"It stands for populace elect. The other sections of the parliment are the noble elect, outstanding elect/appointed, ministers, imperial elect and me." James replied

"You know, the leader of the Counciul of Theocrats is an alien," Jordan remarked.

"How'd that happen?" Sara asked

"That's another story that involves my grandfather. In his journeys he came across Shaku in the middle of the Mohave desert. Shaku helped him knock over Fort Knox. He was the religious leader of the future Green Sun. He was part of a freak experiment that spun him back in time and he started Neo Islam in our time," Heidi replied. She smiled.
"We still have no idea how it happened."

"That sounds like a good basis for a sci-fi series." James replied with a grin.

"It was for about three years," Ishmael informed James. Ishmael had pulled out a PDA and was playing solitaire.

"So what do you like to do?" James asked, directing the question at Jordon, Ishmael, and Heidi.

Jordan smiled.
"Get some athletes together, I want to show you a variation of Gravball called Street Gravball. It needs to be in a place where we can jump on things or bounce off of walls."

"We should probably wait till after dinner, LeBec tends to get annoyed when people are late for dinner, and it should be ready in a few minutes." James said as almost on cue, one of the palace staff showed up. "Dinner shall be ready in a few minutes."

"Shall we go?" James asked, offering his arm to Heidi.

Heidi smiled and took it as the others followed. The concept of a Street Gravball game had Ishmael and Jordan a bit riled up. They were two of the best players in Green Sun. And they loved introducing it to other countries.

The dining room was laid out with exquisite tastes. The fish, as well as the rest of the meal had a delicious aroma. James escorted Heidi to her seat and pulled the chair out for her. He asked, "Is saying Grace tradition in Green Sun?"

"My grandfather usually does a Muslim prayer before we eat, but as Ishmael is the only one here who is Neo-Islamic, I don't see much need, right, father?" Jordan commented.
"I usually hate the before-meal prayers anyway. What about you?" Ishmael asked.

"Some families say Grace, but as neither of us are religious so we don't." Sara replied
"Shall we dig in?" James asked

Ishmael stabbed his fork into the fish.
"I claim this planet in the name of Ishmael!"
"Take that as a yes, James," Heidi told him.

Sara chuckled, and James grinned as they both began eating. The food was delicious. The fish delicately seasoned and grilled, the vegtables steamed to perfection and the thrice-baked potato baked to perfection.

"Oh, this is excellent. Better than our cook's, mainly because there's always cat hair in it," Heidi remarked, dissecting a potato.
"I know, it's rediculous. I opened up a pack of mini-Uzi O's and it was full of cat hair. I don't see how that's even possible," Jordan remarked. Ishmael had already finished his fish and was pulling bones from his mouth.

"There must really be a cat problem then." James commented

Ishmael pulled out the last bone.
"There was for a while. Now it's just Crookshanks and his gang of feral felines. Turns out teh cats were coming from Roach-Busters. They solved the problem by neu-"
Jordan elbowed Ishmael before he could finish his sentence.

"Ah." James replied

((Wait your turn, Serapindal!))
"Roach-Busters has been an ally for several years now. We haven't heard much at all from them, though. We think they may have dissolved. We retreated our military forces from their land after our second civil war," Jordan told him.

"They did seem to drop off the map." James replied

"It's almost liek we're in this huge nation simulator roleplaying community and when certain people piss off the moderators, they disappear or something. Don't you ever feel like that?"

OOC: Sorry. Misread.

"Not really, thought occasionally I notice AoG happening." James replied

ooc: way to break the 4th wall

"AoG?"
OOC: Burnisian Desert (I think) inspired me to do that^^

"Acts of God." James replied

After they finished their meal and a bit more conversation, Jordan brought back the subject of a Gravball demonstration.
"Since the Bat-Ball game won't be on for a little while yet anyways, let's get some players and do a basic game of Street Gravball. All we need is an area where we can jump and bounce off of a lot and a regular ball."

Bump

"What kind of athletes would be best and what kind of balls?" Sara asked

"Football, as in American football, or rugby players usually fare well in Street Gravball. As this is Theao's first time playing, all we require is a regular ball, like a dodgeball. That's the basic ball. In regular Gravball there is another ball that is made of all rubber that players use to knock the scoring ball out of their hands, which can be very painful. For people that want to minimize injuries, they use a tennis ball or something of the like to annoy the holding player, but it isn't the same."

"Anyway, a standard game of Street Gravball has five players: A goalie to protect the goals; three scorers that are the only ones that can score; and anotehr that uses the Breaker ball to knock the scoring ball out of the scorer's hands. In regular Gravball there is another ball used that doesn't really have a name. People call it the Snitch after the Golden Snitch in Harry Potter, but it isn't used in Street Gravball since they can't use the half-million dollar fields used in regular Gravball. It's a lot like Quidditch from Harry Potter, only without flying broomsticks."

"Now, in Street Gravball, you can't touch the ground for more than five seconds and you can't stand for more than eight if you have either ball. If you don't, either is fine. There are baskets on both sides of the goal ends that the Goalie has to protect. They're not directly behind him, so it's a bit harder for both players to attack and defend in their respective positions. It's very hard for the scorer to get a point since they can't pass a certain point."

"There is also a Shock Ball option that a person cannot hold teh ball for more than ten seconds without a penalty shot, which is taken by the opposing team's scorer against the penalized team's goalie."

"Now, we can play with or without the Beater balls. Then we can play with three or two Scorers. If we play without tennis Beater balls and two scorers and a goalie, we have our team ready now. If not, we're going to need more players."

"The only real area that would be able be turned into a game field would be the Arena, and that's being set-up for the bat-ball game. That and the problem of getting enough players and the game set up in the time, as," James checks the computer, "There is only about fourty-five minutes before the game starts." He said

"If you have two baskets like the way I described, the rules can be modified even further to exclude the rules that apply to objects. I've seen it played in everything from playgrounds to junkyards," Jordan suggested.

"If a tennis court and apple bushel baskets would work, then we could get started." Sara replied

"Indeed it would," Heidi replied.
"Now, the game can last five minutes, ten minutes, fifteen, all the way up to an hour, all of them with divisions of some sort, save for a five-minute game. How long do you want to play?" Jordan asked.

"Either a twenty minute or two ten minute games would be best, give us a chance to clean up and get to the bat-ball game in time." James replied

"Three, four, or five players with the Beater ball? Shock Ball?"

"Basic rules, and if we have enought people here, how about we get started." James said

Rules:
5 players
1 Scoring ball
1 Beater Ball (Replaced with a Tennis ball)
1 goalie
3 scorers
Shock ball

ooc: meant simpliest rules when said basic rules

3 players
1 score ball
1 goalie
2 scorers
My players will be Ishmael (Goalie), Jordan and Heidi (Scorers)
Your will be...

"I'll take the goalie postition." Sara said
"I'm sure Bryce would enjoy playing as well." James said as he tapped a few commands on the screen, pulled out a headset and had a short conversation. "He'll be in the tennis court by the time we get there. Shall we go?" He asked

"Let's."
They arrived at the Tennis court and Jordan instructed them to meet in the middle, shake hands, bow, and then the Referee would throw the ball in the air. The ball wasn't even going down by the time Jordan jumped and passed it to Heidi.

James moved to cover Heidi, while Bryce took the role of guarding Jordan.
James went to try and liberate the ball from Heidi's tyrannical clutches.

Heidi smiled and both Jordan and Heidi started to back up away from their competitors as Heidi passed it to Jordan. Jordan charged towards the goal.

Bryce lunged in to try and knock the ball out of Jordan's hands, while James moves so while still covering Heidi, if Jordan tries to pass the ball back, he could intercept easier.

Jordan was tempted to do a special move, but quickly realized the ref might call it out of bounds, so instead merely jumped in the air to pass the ball to the escaping Heidi. She caught the ball, jumped in the air and threw the ball at one of the hoops.

Sara moved to try and block the shot.

Sara intercepted teh shot and when she tried to pass it, Jordan intercepted the flying ball and passed it to Heidi. When Sara moved to block Heidi again, Heidi passed it to Jordan and he threw the ball to the ungaurded basket.

"Interesting game." James said, "Unusual but interesting."
"Are you three really good, or are we just that bad?" Bryce asked while Sara got the ball and tossed it to the ref.

"We're just really good. The three best best players in the world, since green Sun is the only one who actually plays it. If we have obstacles and walls, it's a lot more dangerous and a lot more fun. We'll let you start with the ball this time," Jordan replied. They went back to the middle and the ref threw teh ball in the air.

James lept up, grabbed the ball and passed it to Bryce.

Jordan covered Bryce and backed up as Bryce made his way foreward, staying very low, much to Bryce's surprise. Jordan was low enough for Bryce to pass it to James...

Bryce was enought of an athlete to know that you wouldn't leave an opening if you didn't have an ace up your sleeve. He leapt up and spiked(volleyball style) the ball to James.

Heidi sprung into action and jump-caught the ball, who then passed it to Jordan, who began to run aound Bryce.

Bryce lunged at Jordan in an attempt to snag the ball back.

Jordan smirked and made an underhand pass to Heidi, who was yet again at the line. Heidi threw the ball, but Sara caught it and she apssed it to James without failure.

James called out to Bryce, "Bomb." At this, Bryce headed down court as James tossed it overhand toward Bryce, who would, unless intercepted, most likely catch the ball near the firing line.

Ishameled smiled. He knew Heidi and Jordan were messing with them. Ishmael was the best goalie in Green Sun. Not even trick shots like the one Heidi and Jordan pulled on Sara would work on him, so he readied himself.

Bryce caught the ball, dropped it and as it dropped slammed it with his foot. The ball rocketed forward travelling in a curve toward the goal.

"Why not?" Ishmael asked himself as the ball curved to the goal. Ishmael raised his leg and kicked the ball right at Jordan. When teh ball got to Jordan, it hit him so hard he fell down.
"Oops..."

"You have a good leg." Bryce said as James whipped the ball at the goal.

Ishamel caught the ball this time and threw it to Heidi, who ran up the court.
"Thanks, you've got a nice curve ball."
Jordan recovered as Heidi threw the ball to him. He caught it and threw it towards the goal. Sara went to intercept it. It looked like a sure thing when...
WHAM!
The ball hit Sara right in the nose.
"Oh, shit!"

Sara rubbed her nose and found a light trickle of blood. James had crossed the field at full speed when he saw the ball hit. "Are you alright?"
"Just a bloody nose." Sara replied as she took a kleenex from a pocket tore it into two three strips. Two were twisted and used to absorb the blood, while the other was used to wipe the dripped blood up.

Jordan wasn't so sure.
"Sara, I threw that ball at at least eighty-five miles an hour. It can't be just a bloody nose."

She took a finger and pressed the bridge of her nose, beside the disconfort of a bloody nose, there was no pain. "Nope, not broken." She replied

"Alright. We still game? That was a foul on my part. Foul shots go like this: James and Bryce would have the ball near one side of our Goal and they would try to get it past Ishmael to get a point."

"Ya, but I'll be taking a break for the rest of this round, make sure the bleedings stopped." Sara commented. She headed to the computer and 'phoned' a member of the staff who was a avid sportswomen. About a minute later another person showed up. She had the look of a partial body-builder. "Shall we play, oh and my name's Sasha." Sasha said to the three foreign guests.

Once Sasha was there, James and Bryce decided to pull a fake out on Ishmael. They each made it seem as if they had the ball, walked a few meters apart, and both whipped the 'ball' at the goal. James had held the ball while Bryce held the imaginary ball.

Ishmael watched their every move. To James and Bryces surprise, Ishmael blocked it when the ball was finally thrown. Jordan laughed and clapped.
"That was the first move I ever pulled on my father! That was perfect! Good job!"

"How'd you know?" James asked while Bryce snagged the ball. "Do we do another jumpball or just continue playing?" He asked

"I followed the ball and saw that you had it, James. I'm quicker than the average bipedal hairless primate that we call humans."

"Anotehr jumpball," Jordan replied. They got in the middle, the Ref began to raise the ball...Jordan squatted very low...The ref blew the whislte and Jordan and James jumped. Jordan's conserved energy let himjump a bit higher and he spiked it to Heidi, who was right next to him.

James resumed his role of guarding Heidi while Bryce began guarding Jordan again.

Heidi began to mimic Jame's moves until she was able to confuse him so he was able to slip by. Jordanducked under Bryce's arms and caught Heid's pass. Moving at very fast speeds, they made their way to the goal. Jordan passed it to Heidi, Heidi passed it back, return, return, return again before Heidi turned and threw teh ball into the basket nearest her while Sasha was trying to block her from making a goal in Jordan's side.

At this goal, James commented, "Man, you guys are good."

"You play like one of my backup players. He's just a rookie, but he's a damn good one."
The whistle blew. Ten minutes had passed. It had gone very quickly to Jordan. Tehn again, he saw everything in slow-motion when he played.

"Could I suggest a slight alteration, a one-on-one between you and Heidi with Ishmael serving as the goalie?" Sara said, as she removed the blood soaked tissues as the bleeding had stopped.

"Myself versus Heidi?" Jordan asked.

"Ya, it'd be interesting to watch to excellent players play, rather than watch you trounce my brother and his friend." Sara replied

Ishmael laughed.
"You two don't stand a chance!"
The Ref stood in the middle and threw the ball in the air. It happened all in a gray blur of hair, sweat, and a red ball. Jordan was headed for the basket and he threw the ball. Ishmael caught it and left the line. The Ref blew the whistle, but Ishmael ignored it. Jordan and Heidi blocked Ishamel, but he ducked under and threw the ball into the other basket. He began to dance.
"That was...Unexpected..." Heidi commented.
"Told you that you two didn't stand a chance!" Ishmael told them.

The four Theao chuckled at the turn around. "That was unexpected." James commented

Ishamel continued to dance proudly of his achievement. Jordan tossed the ball at Ishamel's head, making him lose balance. Heidi caught the ball and tossed it at Jordan, which bounced off of his arm and hit James.

"Improv dodgeball." Sara called out and snagged the ball and bounced if off James again before Bryce got it and lobbed it at Jordon.

Jordan dodged the ball and it hit Heidi in the left breast. She stumbled for the ball, but it was caught by Ishmael, who threw it at Bryce.

The ball bounced off Bryce's head and hit Sasha. She returned the favour and lobbed it at Ishmael.

Teh ball hit Ishmael's foot as he tryed to run. He lost balance and fell over sideways onto his arm. Heidi caught the ball and stared at her father, who was clutching his arm. Ishmael got up, panting.
"Father, are you alright?" Ishamel asked.
"I think I just broke my arm. Sorry, I don't think I'll be playing Gravball for a while..."

"I'm so sorry." Sasha apologised
James headed to the computer. "There will be an ambulance here in very shortly."

A few minutes later the ambulance showed up and the injured was escorted into the vehicle.

"It's alright. I knew taht this would happen someday. I'm surprised it didn't happen during the Gravball game. I'll be fine. Thanks for having us over, James, it was fun."

"It's been fun having you over." James replied, "We'll make sure the arm is set before you leave."

When tehy returned to the palace, Jordan and Heidi hit the showers and returned to the Rec room.

"So what do you tink of Theao so far, Heidi?" Jordan asked.

"Not too different from Green Sun. Different histories, but then again, we have a very odd nation."

"Very true, very true. I like James. I think I'll keep in contact with him. We should ask for an embassy swap."

"Why? We never really do anything with Embassies."

"They may be useless to you, but they have their uses when they're not gathering dust."

"True. You ask James when he gets in here."

"What about Sara? You two seem to have a lot in common."

"Yeah, I think we'll keep in touch."

"I just hope dad isn't cauing the hospital any trouble."

Meanwhile, at the hospital...

"I DON'T CARE! No operating until I've had my tea, dammit!"

The nurse replied, "And what kind of tea would you like?"

"Green tea with a lemon on the side and a small chocolate bar on the side. My doctor says if I don't have those three things my brain will collapse."

The nurse had the requested items brought. "Is this what you wanted?" She asked

"Thank you," Ishmael replied. He picked up the cup and sipped it using his good arm.

As he finished it, the nurse asked, "Are you ready for you repairs?"

"Yes. I'm leaving Theao tomorrow for a beach party. I may not be able to use my arm by that time, but I can still drag my kids along."

Ishmael was wheeled into surgery, put under, and when he awoke his arm was in a cast, and the majority of the pain gone.

"I'm sure Father's fine, Jordan. He always causes hell no matter where he goes. He's insane."

"Yeah, but this is a foreign nation. In Green Sun he would get off on a pardon. If he gets arrested here, Theao and Green Sun might have a bit of an incident..."

"Oh, stop worrying, Jordan!"

"Sir, you've been certified to return home, so should I call a ride for you?" The nurse asked

"Oh, please. Thank you ma'am. Green Sun thanks you."

"It is both my job and my pleasure." The nurse replied

At the palace.
James walks to where Jordan and Heidi are, "I've just gotten word that Ishmael is expected to make a full recovery and is on his way here."

"Oh, damn, I was hoping he'd be out of our hair for the rest of the day!" Heidi chuckled.

"Palixia, I believe that's what they're called, is having a beach party tomorrow and a bunch of world leaders will be there. We're flying over tehre tomorrow. Have you thought of coming?" Jordan asked.

"Not really." James replied

"Ah, well, that's a bit of a shame. Say, I was thinking, perhaps we should have an embassy swap. I think Theao and Green Sun could really benefit from continued interaction."

"An embassy exchange would be a great idea, it would please my grandfather especially, may he rest in peace." James replied

"Did your grandfather enjoy opening Theao to the international community or something? My grandfather likes to design embassies in very odd shapes and sizes."

"Actually he collected embassies, as odd as that sounds. He even build a city a little under an hour away that is perfectly organised and only has embassies. It's named Embassy City." Sara said

"We have something similar in Green Sun. One section of Green Sun is reserved for foreign embassies. We cherish foreign influence, it enriches our culture. Or somnething, that's what President Uziel said when he opened it," Jordan replied.

"Ah." James replied, there was a beep from the computer and Sara, being the closer checked it. "It appears Ishmael is back." She said

Ishmael was taking his broken arm fairly well. Now, if he got in a fight, it wouldn't be that hard to hit people or get an excuse to get something he wanted. He was jumping and hopping on his way up to the palace.

"If you are looking for your kinsmen, they are in the rec room." The palace staff member informed Ishmael.

"I figured as much, the lazy little national leaders, them!" Ishamel replied. He walked inside and looked for the rec room, but became lost again...

One of the staff, seeing Ishmael opening doors at random, said, "If you're looking for the rec room, let me show you the way."

"Oh, why thank you, that would help. By the way, did you realize that there are cars amde of cheese in Cambodia?"

"No, I did not know that. Right this way." The staff member led Ishmael to the rec room.

"Thank you, Mr. Chips. I have left some Cheetos in the car for you."
Ishamel walked in and squirmed his way into one of the seats.

The staffmember left with a shake of his head.
"Welcome back Ishmael, how are you feeling?" James asked

"Like I could whack someone in the head, thanks for asking!" Ishmael replied.

"Well Jordan's right over there..." James trailed off.

"Hello, Jordan, I'm Ishmael," Ishmael said, offering his hand. Jordan shook it, not looking at his father. Ishmael did stuff like this all the time.

James chuckled slightly. "So what are your plans know?" He asked

"Tomorrow we'll head to Palaxia for the Beach Party. After that we'll head to Jenrak and then Ritlina. Then a couple other nations and then we'll stop back in Risban and return home," Jordan replied.

"Ah, I hope you enjoy your travels." James replied

Jordan smiled.
"Somehow or anotehr I doubt none of them will be anything like our trip here. It's a bit uncanny on how our nations aren't that different."

"It is somewhat unusual, I guess sensible nations tend to be similar." James commented, "And because of the incident involving Ishmael caused us to miss the game, how about I send you a recording of few games?"

"Oh, that would be splendid, please do. And, in return, if you'd like, I can arrange for UziCorp to send Theao a Gravball arena, free of charge. That way Theao can start their own Gravball League."
((Check your TGs))

"That would be great, if you'd like I could arrange for a few exhibition matches to be hosted in Green Sun as well." James replied

ooc: replied

((Hope you don't mind.))
"And in exchange for that I'll send you some of my best games. Deal?"
"Deal."
"Well, it's been a long day, James, wouldn't you agree?"

"Ya it has, would you like to be shown to your rooms?" James asked, while Sara muffled a yawn.

"Please. I believe my father knows where his is. Don't you, dad?" Jordan asked his father. Ishmale nodded and got up and left teh room, got lost again, and then was redirected to his room.

"Shall we follow Ishmael's example, then?" James asked

"Let's."

James got up and began guiding Heidi and Jordan to the rooms. Sara headed to her room. They got to Jordan's room first. It was laid out in a relaxed, yet elegant style. There was a balcony gazing over the grounds, as well a Tv along one of the walls. In addition there was an attached bathroom. "Here's your room Jordan." James commented

"Nice, Thank you, James. I'll feel right at home, my room in Green Sun has a blacony, as well."

"Ah, have a good sleep." James said, he then brought Heidi to her room. It was similar to Jordan's save there was a slight indefinable female quality to it. "Here's your room." He said to Heidi.

Heidi made a weak smile and made a small nod and entered her room and closed it gently behind her. Instead of going to bed first, she turned on the television to see if it had features that would let her listen to her favorite tunes.

She would find a 'radio/cd player feature'. Meanwhile James headed to his room which was down the hallway and around a corner. Once there he turned on a tri-screen Tv set up that had three different sets of news running.

Heidi winced, since she didn't bring any of her CDs, so she checked out the radio feature.

There was a guide that listed kinds of music on each of the stations. The stations encompassed nearly every form of music you could think of.

As each of the news programs ended James pulled a book off the nightstand, switched to a random music station and began reading.

She scolled through the channels and found one that fit her tastes. She studied it a bit more and realized that this sattion was run by one of her school friends. How interesting...
She selected that station and listened to the music of Queen. She studied the room a bit mopre and looekd for a bookcase.

There was a bookcase containing a selection of well known books, from fantasy to alternate history to a variety of other books.

Heidi got up and scrolled through the shelf and found one of her favorite novels, but she didn't take it out. The combination of the music, the memories of this book (She would read it with her old boyfriend) and a mysterious hole in her heart made her put it back. She sat on her bed, turned off the music, and decided to go to sleep. But she couldn't sleep, either. She began to cry...

James had reached a chapter end and decided to see about a snack before bed. As he headed down the corridor, he heard the muffled sounds of crying coming from Heidi chamber. He gently knocked on the door.

Heidi heard the knocking and tried to dry her tears.
"Yes?"

"Is everything alright?" He asked

"Yes, I'm alright."
When James turned to leave, she took it back.
"No, no, I'm not. Oh, I've got so much on my mind..."

"Would you like to talk about it?" James asked with sympathy in his voice.

"I think that would be best," she replied.

"Would you like to go somewhere to talk about it?" James asked

"Yes, please. Lead the way."

James led the way to a smallish room that was designed and decorated to have an air of comfort, safety and openess. There were a few chairs, a table and a couch.

Heidi sat on the couch and couldn't lift her eyes off of the floor.
"I know I have an excellent life. I'm royalty of my own nation, I'm one of the best actors in Green Sun, which is really saying something, and I'm considered one of the most desireable women in the region. And for years, I haven't thought a thing of it. I haven't let it affect me one bit. Many women would kill for a life like this, but I still feel so alone, even though I have a wonderful family that I live with."

"Maybe because there is little chance to form relationships, both in general and personal, that arn't ruthlessly scrutinized and publicised because you are in the public eye all the time." James replied as he took a seat on the couch as well, a note of wistfulness in his voice.

"Maybe. Maybe not...I'm used to reporters doing that kind of thing. Heh. You should read some of the articles they wrote about me and my old boyfriend. When my brother got married, reporters accused Andromeda of being a spy of some sort. Eventually she hit one and wrote her own article to the same paper, and they haven't blown anything out of proportion about her since.
"Then again, it's different for me. With everything I do, I'm hardly ever alone. When Gregory and I dated, I was still in college, I didn't have a celebrity life like I do now. Maybe you're right...I don't know..."

"Could it be that you, with your activities and schedual, don't have time to form close relationships?" James asked

"I think it's both. I've been so busy to have relationships and I haven't let teh stress effect me."
She started to cry again.
"Until now..."

James offered her his shoulder to cry upon, "Let the stress and tears out. You'll always have me to talk to, about anything." he said

((Don't worry about the story, it's long.))
Heidi cried for a little bit more and then calmed down. She started to go on about stories she experienced or was told throughout her life.
"-And then they brought me home from Roach-Busters and, to avoid further complications, we retreated all of our forces back to Green Sun. Most people would have been scared out of their minds. I was scared, but I was more angry at Vice Presidnet TK Termite for getting drunk and letting it happen.That was the closest I had ever gotten to death."

James continued to offer support and comfort as she let out her stress.

ooc: could you TG me a short summery, it's 'mean' giving me part and making me guess the rest.

Heidi was about to continue, but she fell asleep on James' shoulder.

Seeing that Heidi was very tired, decided to bring her back to her room. Lifting her carefully, he began carrying her back to her room, making sure to support her.