OldCity Newsletter 25 - 09/28/06
From FiranMUX
<---------- GOSSIP HOUR AT THE NOOK ---------->
Summer has finally arrived in the Old City, leaving the Sailor's Nook devoid of much of the dampness of spring showers that plagued the area a mere few months previous. Though summer has not peaked just yet, the signs of the humidity to come are easily apparent, aside from the strong stench of fish and the mild hint of the signature scent of the canals in the distance, the air remains rather fresh and clear. The nook is caressed in the warm rays of the evening sun, though it shows now signs of setting just yet, leavin the area as warm and well-illuminated as it was in the afternoon.
On this pleasant summer day, the old merchant with the rickety cart finds the little urchin and the food exchange is made promptly. As the two chow down on their dinner of the day, the urchin - who is unusually more eager to talk than to eat today -- begins the gossip swap. "So I hears that Pollux be doin' a lot of fishin' lately. An' he's pretty damn good at it, too! He caught so much of tha stuff that he's offerin' his services to anyone in tha Ol' City who needs some fish. An' iffin' ya wantin' pearls, too? He's gots a shitload of them he's willin' ta sell! Seems like he's gots magic fingers or somethin', an' can make anythin' come out of the sea! I's goin' ta talk to him tomorrow, an' see iffin' I can get me some fish fillets, a couple of pearls, and mebbe me boot that fecker Kandara Firona threw off the pier yesterday! I's sure if anyone can get me boot back from tha sea, it be Pollux!"
The merchant chuckles, clearly amused by the exploits of his young companion. "That Kandara sure be a handful. Speakin' o' the Firona family - even though she be an Istems now - it seems the mare Caree's auctioning off might be one of the missin' horses Niobe's been looking fer. Kin ya believe that? One OCer stealin' from another! What tha feck is this place comin' to? I bet that be what's made Niobe kinda crazy lately. Not that she be batshit insane like Vinoria, mind, but she's been bitchy ta everyone an' pickin' fights left, right, an' center. I is sure poor Jariko's been dealt his fair share o' her ire, an' just tha other day she and Vinoria threw a few punches at each other in the Dagger. But it didn't last long 'cause Vinoria didn't seem ta be in much o' a fightin' mood and left jus' as it was gettin' good! But Niobe ain't all 'bout the fightin' these days, at least, 'cause she be offerin' ta make leather goods fer people 'round tha Ol' City since business at the Dagger be slow these days. Prolly 'cause o' all the thugnappings that be goin' on; no one wants ta go that deep into tha Ol' City no more. Feckin' out o' control thugs."
The urchin gapes at the merchant, and her mouth hangs open out of sheer shock to accompany her saucer-like wide eyes. "Whoa, wait a minute! What did ya just say? Vinoria ain't in a fightin' mood? Yer shittin' me! But, now that ya mention it, she's been weird lately, even fer her. Ever since she had that last baby she's been mutterin' to herself a lot and yellin' at people fer upsettin' 'the voices' or somethin'. She yelled at me jus' tha other day fer singin' tha bully song -- she said somethin' about how the voices don't like that song -- an' near took my eyes out with one of her daggers! What tha feck? Mebbe she's crazier than usual 'cause she's knocked up again or she's been fightin' a lot with Keeshan. I bet he's pretty pissed off at her anyhow, since that last kid o' hers looks _nothin'_ like him. Who knows who else she be spreadin' her legs fer? All o' them Belanos women is looser than me last baby teeth."
Much snickering ensues from both parties, and a variety of other similes to express the loose nature of the female members of the Belanos family are made before the pair of gossipers finally switch to their next topic. "So, apparently Agrafina had a bath," the merchant states in all seriousness. "Yes, ya heard me right: Agrafina had herself a bath. Not only that, but now people has been goin' 'round sayin' that she's a good person no matter where she lives, Ol' City or not. Either someone's fortune musta been good or she be puttin' out fer some noble or rich waller, I bet. Either way, it's good fer her business, an' if she brings more stenis into tha Ol' City then she can go feck the rat bastard Viceroy himself fer all I care. I hears business ain't all good fer Agrafina, though; apparently she's vowed ta never set foot in tha Hydra district ever again. Word on the streets is that it has somethin' to do with pissin' off the Clan Leader's mama."
Suitably impressed by this little random tidbit of gossip, the urchin lets out a low whistle. "Damn, Agrafina actually had a bath? That sure ain't somethin' ya see everyday. Oh! Oh! Speakin' o' things ya don't see everyday, ya'll never guess who I saws tha other day! It was Kenisto, our very own Ol' City priest is back from his spiritual pilgrimage or somethin' feckin' weird like that! I bet he was jus' passed out drunk somewhere fer ages, 'cause he ain't been doin' much priestly stuff far as I kin tell, but he be really pushin' his brewin' business. Says he wants ta hold a party. Or mebbe he said that if anyone wants ta hold a party an' needs booze they should send him a message. I can't remember." The urchin waves one of her hands dismissively, clearly not at all troubling herself with the details.
The merchant doesn't seem all that concerned with them either, for the gossip topic switches instantly. "Speakin' of bein' drunk an' sober, I saw the Gladiator Asalan tha other day when he was comin' back from tha 'prettiest' contest in the Eagle District, an' he was both sober and but too! Ahahaha!" Both the merchant and the urchin burst into fits of laughter, and it grows so loud and carries on for so long that they receive more than a few odd looks from various passersby. Finally, the merchant regains control of himself and continues on with the gossip. "I swears, it's true, 'cause I saws it with me own two eyes an' I's even heard him mutterin' that there weren't not one slutty Eagle woman there weren't busy pretending she were some sorta prudish Bear. An' he were even mutterin' that the event were sooooooo tame they let a kid compete! I jus' don't know what ta think 'o that; either the Eagles is goin' Bear or Asalan is losin' his touch with tha womens! Ahahaha!"
This is clearly too much for both the kid urchin and the old merchant to handle, for they both burst into yet another fit of giggles and raucous laughter, which permeates the Nook long after the dinner hour has passed and their gossip session is over. The fact that the summer days stretch on and delay nightfall only lengthens their stay in the busy area, and it isn't until hours later - when the sun finally does set - that the squeaking sounds of the rickety cart being pushed homeward bound sound throughout the Nook.
<---------- PRAISE AND DISS SUGGESTIONS FOR THIS WEEK ---------->
-*- Praise Suggestions -*-
~ Agrafina: You don't stink anymore, hooray! You smelled worse than the canals on a hot day, dude.
~ Niobe: We all need leather stuff! Woo!
~ Pollux: Fish! Pearls! Finding boots lost at sea! Yaaay, Pollux!
~ Vinoria: Yay, loose woman! Come on over to my house, baby. (The fact that you're loony is sexy.)
-*- Diss Suggestions -*-
~ Agrafina: You don't stink anymore, boo! Way to go waller.
~ Asalan: As the continuing saga of the lost mojo goes on, he still doesn't seem any closer to getting it back. :'(
~ Caree: Why you stealing from fellow OCers, yo? Are you some kind of waller in disguise?
~ Vinoria: Boo, loose woman! Have you no shame? (You are also very crazy and weird.)
- Standard Disclaimer: These are only suggestions and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of your FacHead, nor the people who submitted them. You are under no obligation to praise or diss anyone on this list. Always do what is IC for you, first and foremost. **
<---------- OLD CITY CHARACTERS IN UPDATE MODE ---------->
- Please Note: The following are characters with the Old City tag who have hit the roster and are currently in need of updates! Take a peek at their @family, and if you have a relationship to them (or you should), send in an update to the PHer listed beside their name in brackets. Staff and their future player will be most appreciative, and every update gets you 0.5 of a CP! **
Basel (Decoria) Havidius (Riyad) Hessa (Megaera) Kamar (Anorna) Quenia (Pakeera) Tavelik (Adan) Tobias (Vinoria) Viklerian (Kristover) Votedo (PHer to be announced) Yozzana (Vinoria)
Also: Gilin is doing a self-update, so if you have a relationship to the Istems whore, you should @mail Gilin. It won't get you CP tallies, but you will have Gilin's gratitude, and the bragging rights associated with being on the current Madame of the Dove's @family. It's an exclusive club, yo.
<---------- OOC SCHTUFF ---------->
- Er, yes. I did it again. I had this totally ready to go last night and then logged off without actually posting it. I'm a dork. At any rate, your newsletter is here now and I'm going to try to cut the ditz moments to a minimum. :P As always, please keep in mind that, while you can consider the contents of the newsletter general IC knowledge around the Old City, some things (or everything, for that matter) may or may not have been made up by me. I make no claims of truth! You know how gossip goes.
- Newsletter Thanks! Thanks to everyone who submitted info for the newsletter! It's thanks to you guys that this newsletter turned out the way it did, so keep it coming. :)
- The Future of the Old City. The wizzen have not forgotten about us! In case any of you were curious about the state of the Old City and just how much longer this state of limbo is going to last, Celeste has been kind enough to make a posting on the OC @bb regarding the issue. (@bb/read 26/161) So soon we'll have some staff intervention and a new era of the Old City. Stay tuned 'til then! :)
- Old City Olympics! It seems that there's a fair bit of interest in the Old City Olympics idea, so I'm going to try to organize it for sometime in October so that it doesn't coincide with the festival. So far I've received some very creative submissions for event ideas, which is great! But more are always welcome, so let your voice be heard and submit your ideas to me for events that you think the Old City folk would appreciate. I'm taking submissions until next Tuesday, at which point I'll compile a full list to share with everyone on @bb 26 and put out the call for volunteers to host events. :)
- Thematic Info. If you're new to the Old City, or even if you've been around for ages, it's always a good idea to brush up on your knowledge! (It certainly can't hurt, at any rate.) For reference, 'news old city index' is full of a wealth of news files that detail thematic attitudes, rules/regulations, and history of the Old City. There's a _lot_ of information there, and you're certainly not expected to read and memorize all of it, but if you're ever curious as to how influential a figure Moira was in the Old City throughout the years or whether or not a certain action would be considered kosher by OC folks, the news files just may hold the answer to your question. (Not to mention it can add a whole new dimension to your character's views and influence your RP, which is always fun.)
