Katzaniel Posted January 16, 2005 Report Posted January 16, 2005 Instructions The item: This item, highly sought after among assassins, forgers, and disguise artists, appears to be a small leather-bound folder of the type used for carrying important documents. The leather has a slightly reddish tint that is disconcerting to anyone who inspects it for too long. Any documents that are put inside have the annoying habit of becoming lost. The actual use of an item comes into play when it's owner has need of a false identity, or needs to impersonate a real person and whispers to it: "Advocates, They're hard to get. Associates, Food on my plates, I'm in a state And need someone to take my side. I have a plan That needs refining. I'm just a man And slowly pining. But with help This little whelp In plain sight can hide." The Devil's Advocate will then contain a complete set of identifying papers including birth certificates, deeds to property, and any other papers the user needs to fill his real or fictitious persona. It will also contain directions to places where the user can acquire costuming, weaponry or anything else he may need to fill the role. Once the user is finished playing the part he simply has to destroy the papers and the Devil's Advocate will be ready to craft another identity. The Devil's Advocate was created long ago when an assassin told a mage he'd been contracted to kill that he'd spare his life in exchange for a powerful magical item. The mage bound a spirit of trickery into the folder and handed it over to the assassin. The assassin then killed the mage anyway, accidentally getting a little of the mage's blood on the folder. This is where it's reddish tint comes from. Some who know the Devil's Advocate's history suspect that the spirit of the mage is somehow also trapped in the item. They have good reason for suspecting this because anyone who uses the item for an extended period of time will begin to believe that he actually is the person he claims to be. If he is impersonating a real person as this happens, the urge to kill his "impostor" and properly take his place will also grow. As this takes place, the certificates and papers in the Devil's Advocate will begin to disappear, giving the user less proof of his identity even as he becomes more sure of his delusion. If the papers in the DA are destroyed or all disappear, the user will slowly regain his rightful identity although he may retain some little aspects of his delusion (answering to the false name, speaking as if he were that person occasionally, etc.) This situation can usually be avoided by not using any identity from the DA for more than a couple of days. Although someone who uses it in short spurts a great deal may still receive some residual effects... Do I have 10?
Kasmandre Posted January 16, 2005 Report Posted January 16, 2005 Kasmandre the Koot stands in the back of the auction hall, hurriedly counting up his coppers on a table. After getting four different results in as many counts, he gives up and shouts to the front: "10!"
Wyvern Posted January 17, 2005 Report Posted January 17, 2005 Wyvern rubs his scaly claws together and hisses to himself sinisterly as he considers the merits of the artifact, savouring the thoughts of it's usefulness for entering bars without being recognized and setting up elaborate plots. After a long moment of hesitation, he scrawls something onto a sign in an illegible font and holds it up for all to see: "I bid 30 earned geld and one Almost Dragonic Brand Semi-Sharp Ninja Twinkle Star on the Devil's Avocad Advocate" The overgrown lizard then quickly pulls out several bundles of paperwork, immediately scribbling down thoughts on ways to make up for geld losses, as well as sending bribes of one Almost Dragonic Brand Semi-Sharp Ninja Twinkle Star to each opposing bidder.
Quincunx Posted January 18, 2005 Report Posted January 18, 2005 "Minta, get down from there or I'll translocate you!" The neato necro gnomie girl stuck out her tongue at Starlight far below. "Can't, am outta range," she reported gleefully. She wound her feet firmly into the bunting and flipped upside-down to look at the auction. A couple of non-undeads and a half-cat were haggling over a folder, not very interesting--until she thought of how useful it could be to own something that made papers vanish. Bad report cards, candy wrappers from other people's candies, subpoenas, ghost-controlling papers, other paper mage stuff, homework assignments. . .TONS of possibilites! "FORTY-ONE!" she shrilled, and held out her hands as an Almost Dragonic Brand Semi-Sharp Ninja Twinkle Star bounced harmlessly off of her nose. ZAP Starlight flipped the translocation spell so that Minta landed upright and in front of him; the twinkle star fell into her hair, and Starlight took that to polish and give to Rydia. "Why do you always have to bid more than what you have to bid? It doesn't make sense!" he scolded her. Minta sulked, again. "We're going now," he said, picking her up and unwinding the scrap of translocated bunting from her feet before walking to the next booth. Minta squirmed in midair but didn't get put down.
Wyvern Posted January 19, 2005 Report Posted January 19, 2005 Wyvern raises a claw and gawks as Minta cries out the superior bid, his eyes widening in horror as he realizes that his thirty geld proposal has been outclassed. Fumbling through his paperwork chaotically, he manages to come to the realization that a bid of 25 earned geld from Minta would have been equally successful, considering that the net worth of Almost Dragonic Brand Semi-Sharp Ninja Twinkle Stars is approximately negative ten geld. Discarding the thought and cursing to himself, he tears at the scales on his head as he wonders what went wrong with the bribes, not noticing the numerous Almost Dragonic Brand Semi-Sharp Ninja Twinkle Stars that are tossed back at him as they bounce harmlessly off his scaly hide. Wyvern fidgets in his seat nervously, breaking out into an almost sweat as he adjusts the collar of his tunic. He reaches a trembling claw towards one of his signs, muttering a mantra about how geld vanishes and reappears as he clutches it with his scaly fingers. The lizard then fumbles for a quill, but is interrupted by Minta's squeals as Starlight carries her out and jumps to his scaly feet, gasping: "Fourty Five Earned Geld for the Devils Avo- I mean the Devil's Adven- The Devil'sss Advocate!" The overgrown lizard clutches his throat and collapses once he's made the declaration, his forked tongue tied in a series of complex knots and his voice straining at the bidding of geld.
Katzaniel Posted January 19, 2005 Author Report Posted January 19, 2005 OOC: I'm closing the bidding in 5 or 6 hours, whenever I can get to a computer after my class.
Katzaniel Posted January 19, 2005 Author Report Posted January 19, 2005 Excitedly waving the folder around as she talks, Katzaniel rattles off words like a machine gun does bullets. "This incredibly useful device, we have forty-five, it can be used for so many purposes, going once, it really is worth so much more than this, going twice, can't anyone afford more for this excellent folder? Gone!" she shouts, stamping the floor. "To the red lizard in the back. Come forward, then. Thank you!" Forcefully prying the geld from Wyvern's hands, Katzaniel steadfastly ignores the tears falling down his face. "No, I didn't mean it.. Lovely geld, I..." When Katzaniel hands him the folder, however, he beams and hugs it to his chest. "I'll be rich," he says, eyes glazing over. The tigertaur gently pushes him off the stage and picks up an item off the floor. "One Almost Dragonic Brand Semi-Sharp Ninja Twinkle Star™, amazingly sharper than a ... er, very possibly nothing. Anyway, amazing star that has many undocumented purposes. Do I have ten? Ten? Five? ....."
Recommended Posts