Ambassador Alighieri's Arrival

[Zeke]

As the Hummer pulls up to the "Grand Sin" Zeke looks behind him at the other two troops that had remained completely silent during the trip. Their hands still on their weapons. He found himself wondering if he could kill all three of them before the driver could take him out. With this the vehicle stopped and Zeke got out slamming the door hard. He nodded to the driver as he moved in behind Seraphina like a ghost. He followed Svetlana and Grim into the Hotel. Alan took up the rear this time around.

As Grim and Svetlana set Seraphina down upon the couch, with her grumbling the whole way that she did not require assistance Zeke stepped out on the patio and looked around. He subconsciously pulled out a cigarette and stuck it in his mouth. He lit it up as he looked down upon the main drag of the Colony.
"Disgusting..."
He muttered between drags. Even though he was a Mercinary and had spent an amazing amount of time on the Colonies, he could just never get used to that cold, desolate feeling. He saw Svetlana watching him while talking to Seraphina over his shoulder before turning back to the glowing lights of artificial central. Before he knew it he heard the patio doors open and turned to see Svetlana standing there. He immediately offered her some of the cigarette, though he expected her not to take it.

[Seraphina Alighieri]

She nodded to the Generals that surrounded her each in turn as they spoke. She could barely speak and saved her words, for the moment. Before Sera stepped out of the car she turned to the Generals and in a raspy voice she replied to them.

"I will definitely consider your requests gentlemen and I will take them to earth happily I hope that this meeting will yield the desired effects. I am honored that you would meet with me. I assume I shall see you again at the Reception?"

She let Svetlana help her out of the car and leaning heavily on her and Grim. Once the doors of the limo were shut she broke into tears. The pain had finally won out but the only people there to witness it were the Medical staff, Svetlana, Grimbold and Zeke. With tears streaming down her face Svetlana picked her up. Seraphina whispered to her.

"No signs on weakness put me down, please."

Flatly Svetlana responded.

"Sera, shut up."

Once Svetlana had Sera in her arms, Grimbold, Alan and Zeke spread out around the two as they walked through Lobby. Zeke walked up to the desk and got the pass key for her room. He came back quickly and lead them up to her room. Sera was sobbing softly against Svetlana's chest. The men bringing up their bags were not far behind, and were whispering to one another. She tried to push her herself up off of Svetlana's chest and protest being carried but she could not she was too spent. Each step that Svet took rattled Seraphina's ribs painfully making her wince.

Zeke opened the door for the pair and Grim and Allan immediately ushered the baggage carriers into the suite and back out, shutting the door behind them. Svetlana carried Sera to the private bedroom, not noticing the opulence of the suite, and laid her down on the California King sized bed. Once on the bed Sera gave over to her sobs. The pain wracked hr body. Again her thoughts turned to Gabriel all she wanted was to curl up in his arms and be safe and be ignorant of the world and its woes. She whispered his name between her sobs. A sense of failure consumed her, and her sobbing intensified further adding to her pain. Dammit! What have I let them do. She reprimanded herself for being so manipulated. Svetlana came back into her room with the medic following on her heals, and lifted her up enough to give her a pill and some water as the doctor looked at her injuries and took her vital signs. The medic pressed her ribs and she winced, he also look at at the gash across her forehead. He nodded and left the room. Once Sera heard the door close behind the Medic.

"I have to go to that reception, Svet, I have to show them they haven't knocked me down."

She said nearly gasping for breath between her sobs. Svetlana nodded in agreeance. Before leaving the room to finish the unpacking and to organize the other body guards.

Sera lay there in tears, scared as hell for herself, her entourage, and her fiance' All that she could do was cry and pray. Pray for guidance, her safety the safety of Grimbold, Svetlana, Allan and Zeke, and of course Gabriel. When the drugs finally kicked in, she drifted off to sleep, plagued by nightmares.

[Grimbold Theoman]

While Svetlana organised the unpacking of her bags and those of Seraphina, he motioned Alan to stand with him.
"Alan, would you take our bags to the room I will stay here and guard the suite with" He began whispering, it occured to Grimbold that they hadn't even spoken to the red haired man, let alone exchanged names. The speed of their departure and the unusual circumstances, not to mention the young man's display of anger at their arrival had stopped the normal exchange of names. "Him." he nodded slightly at the other man.
"Perhaps we should introduce ourselves since we are working with a common goal here." He spoke louder now so that Zeke could hear him. "I am Grimbold Theoman, been around doing this sort of thing for more than 20 years, Alan Johnson has been working with me for almost 15 of them."

OOC: Sorry about this, got this in completely the wrong sequence. Serves me right for trying to catch up early on a sunday morning. Please ignore this rubbish

[Svetlana_Popova]

After taking care of Seraphina, she steps out onto the patio and smiles at Zeke. He offers a cigarette and she gladly takes one. He leans over and lights it for her with a small smirk on his face. She takes a huge drag as she looks over the sterilized looking colony. As she exhales she mutters just loud enough for Zeke to hear.

"Disgusting."

[Zeke]

He smiled as Svetlana lit her cigarette. He couldn't help but smile as she lit the smoke and muttered to him. His lips curled up in a grin and just as he was about to reply he could hear Grimbold yelling at him. Zeke dropped his head inhaled and threw up a finger to Svetlana to ask her to wait one second. Then he moved around her and looked Grim up and down.
"My name is Ezekiel, I took it because of the biblical reference. I cannot remember my real name, nor do I care much. My partner's name was Virgil. He was my only friend and brother. Died three years ago before the great war after saving my life. In short, just know I've got a temper and I'm fuckin deadly."
He turned back around and took another drag of the cigarette facing Svetlana before turning back around and pointing to him with the smoldering cigarette.
"Call me Zeke."
He went back over to Svetlana, with all of his senses open of course and stood by her peering over the balcony.
"What's disgusting babe?"

[SinfulSoul]

Four hours later, a large clock tower similar to Big Ben rang out from the middle of a large plaza in the colony a total of 7 times. At that exact moment, a bell boy knocked on the door of Seraphina's room. When the door was opened, the bell boy announced the arrival of the three generals returning to join them for dinner down at the reception hall.

Down below, the three generals stood each dressed in black suits fitted with golden insignias on their right breast associated with the Space Imperial Nations. On their left they each wore the formal decorations of their respective military rankings. Their poise was formal and upright as always even as they whispered amongst themselves. Each held a small black leather suitcase in their right hand, and a glint of silver was occasionally reflected off of a bulky metallic object within their jackets - No doubt the standard issue side arms of a general.

General James Marshal was the eldest of the three generals at age 43 with only a sliver of white hair traveling either side of his skull complimenting his otherwise very thick black hair. He had an extremely muscular build and stood a firm 5' 8". Though he is a brilliant tacticion, he did at times have a very short temper. His strategies often are aimed at the most effective method of complete destruction of his enemies, and when angry at times he has been rumored to resort to torture.

General Walter Prescott had a very scrawny build and has been said to look like a ghost because of his extremely pale skin. His pathetic looking build is quickly superseded by his tall tree like height, just barely tipping 6'6". Aged at 30, he was the third youngest general to ever lead a major military organization for the SIN colonies. He is generally more shy of speaking than the other two generals and tends to stick more towards humanities side of major situations. He is fiercly loyal to the colonies, yet he has been criticized for being to lenient or merciful on enemies. His excellent management of resources and placement of labor to produce maximum efficiency is what has propelled him through the ranks.

General Carter Chamberlin had a medium toned build overlaid with youthful tan flesh. Starting from the most meager of beginnings, he joined the military at age 16 with a fake ID. Even then he was a very mature looking man at 6 feet tall, with great ambition. He had a thirst for knowledge and took advantage of the Colony's widely accessible information on science and technology. By age 21, he was controversially accepted as being the most intelligent human in space, making significant contributions to research in nano-technology applications in the medical field which later increased the average expected life span of humans by a full decade. He was rumored to have been inducted into a special research team on L05 to produce a Super Soldier Serum. Some speculate he had found the formula and injected it into himself for safe keeping until the government decided to mass produce it. This would explain his mysterious promotion to General at age 27, making him the second youngest general next to General Sin when he first started. Chamberlin gelled his black hair back and wore glasses with the left lens blacked out for unknown reasons. Besides his checkered history and dodgy appearance, the most peculiar aspect of him is his 360 pound weight despite a 180 pound physique.

[Svetlana_Popova]

She smiles at Zeke, flips her hair over her shoulder, and turns back to look over the colonies. With her exotic Russian accent she replies with a hint of disdain.

"It is so sterile, that it reminds me of a hospital. It is disgusting, and I can't wait until we leave."

The two stand outside on the balcony talking and smoking for hours. Their conversations run from politics, to martial arts and the mundane.

[Zeke]

The chat with Svetlana was terribly enlightening, yet he did his best not to give away to much information on his views or thoughts. The less they knew about him, the better for them. Zeke wasn't a terribly complicated person, but he was here to do a job. And as hot as Svetlana was, he couldn't let Xavier's friend down. Even if Xavier was dead. Yet still he couldn't help but inquire deeper and deeper into the Russians mind as Grim and Alan watched over Seraphina, all the while Zeke kept a sharp right eye on them. They better not try anything with her, or they'll be next on the list. Right below Mr. Novello.
At one point he reached into his coat and removed the red container of cigarettes and popped it open to find that the two of them had finished a pack of cigarettes in the time they had spend chatting. He looked up at Svetlana and grinned.
"I guess I have to find a store."
And with that he snapped the case closed and replaced it before heading back into the room. He slipped pasted Grim and gave him a nod, as to say keep up the good work, and made his way out of the door. He stood at the end of the hall awaiting the elevator.

[Grimbold Theoman]

Shortly after Zeke had left the appartment, there came a knock at the door. Grimbold moved to one side of the door so that he would see who was there the instant it opened and motioned Alan to open it. One hand strayed to one of the slight bulges in his tailored jacket ready in case.
Alan pulled open the door standing outside was what appeared to be one of the hotel bell boys. He announced that three Generals were ready downstairs to take the Ambassador to a reception in her honour.
Alan briefly thanked the boy asked him to wait outside and shut the door on him.
Grimbold went out onto the patio where Svetlana was still looking out over the sterile city.
"Ms Popova, I have just been informed that the Generals are here ready for the reception."

[Seraphina Alighieri]

Seraphina had Gotten up and gotten herself ready agonizingly. She had awoken in a cold sweat her nightmares had ranged from her attack to Gabriel and Dante killing each other, to her mission failing and everyone she knew and loved dying. She stepped out of the Bedroom dressed in a plain black skirt,a red satin dress shirt with a black tie and black overcoat. She stumbled to the door of her room and leaned against the frame before pushing the door open. Hearing her bedroom door open,Grim rushed to her aid taking her elbow in his hand, as Svetlana walk into the room from the balcony. Grim helped her to the couch and sat her down as Svetlana went into her room, looking back over her shoulder she asked.

"Makeup?"

"Yes."

Svetlana returned to the living and knelt down in front of Seraphina to apply the make up to hide her bruising. When Svetlana showed Seraphina what she had done it was absolutely her best work to date. Just as Svetlana touched up the lipstick, Grim announced that their escort had arrived for her reception. She nodded in acknowledgment. She breathed as deeply as her rib brace would allow and steeled herself against the Generals that she knew would be there. Once she was prepared she looked about the room and addressed the party.

"Are we ready?"

They all nodded. She glanced around the suite.

"Where's Zeke?"

"He just left."

Alan Informed her.

She exhaled quickly, there was an odd comfort in having him around, he was from Gabriel which meant that her fiance' was still alive.

"Find him."

She said coldly. Alan opened the door and found Zeke at the end of the hall waiting for an elevator.

"He is in the hall, Ambassador."

Alan hollered after Zeke who came back to the room to be with the Ambassador as they went down.

Again Grim and Alan were in front behind the bell boy and Svetlana and Zeke Were behind her, the formation was slightly more casual in appearance than when they first arrived, at least to the untrained eye. They all boarded the elevator. The bell boy looked about the lift nervously as they all stood there in silence. Once they had reached their destination and exited the lift they spread out again.

Seraphina walked into the room with her head high and back straight. The pain was tolerable, she had work to do even here at her own reception. No weakness, she thought again. As flashes of the dreams she had came back to her. She shook them off. As they hit the doorway Her arrival was announced and the same three generals she had met on her arrival looked her way. If they were shocked by her presence or by the fact she was not limping of holding on to someone she couldn't tell.

She walked over to the three of them and shook there hands one by one looking them square int he eyes.

"General Marshall, General Chamberlain and General Presscot, it is a pleasure to see you again."

A waiter walked up to her with champagne flute balanced on a tray and she took one. She raised a glass to the generals and spoke softly.

"To peace."

She took one sip and handed the glass off to Svetlana in exchange for water.

[Zeke]

Zeke was standing by the elevator as Alan called down to him from over top of a rather short bellboy. He nodded. Duty calls. And Mrs. Faile is definitely more important than smokes. He made his way back into the room around the bellboy. As Alan shut the door on the boy Zeke reached into the right side of his coat, removed his Five-Seven, ejected the clip, checked it, locked it and took the safety off before putting it back into his coat. He did the same with the pistol on the left side of his chest. He looked over at Grim and Alan before nodding to them to signal he was ready.

They made they're way downstairs with Zeke and Svetlana in behind. His thought did not waver from the task at hand as he could feel the pistols hitting his chest as he walked. That gave him some comfort. As Seraphina and Svetlana took their seat Zeke made his way over to a pair of guards and wedged himself in between. He did his best to make sure it was obvious as he watched Seraphina drink to the guards.

[SinfulSoul]

The Generals returned Seraphina's greeting and each took a glass of champagne, collectively toasting "To peace." Afterward, a well dressed waiter led the party to an exclusive VIP section of the formal restaurant which sat on a large raised platform and gave a clear view of the stage at the front of the room where entertainment was scheduled to play shortly. There were several tables on this raised platform, but it was obvious that the largest circular table was reserved for them. The Generals would allow the rest of the party to be seated while they mingled with the other VIP attendees who had coincidentally been seated nearby. The other VIPs each had their own bodyguards which made it obvious that these friends of the Generals were of some significant political importance. This time around, all the guards present, both for the other VIPs and the Generals, wore business suits and used concealable weapons to help reduce attention. Once the rest of the party had been seated, the Generals took their respective spots across the table from Seraphina. Menus had been placed on the tables in front of each chair.
Chamberlin:"The food is on us, so please eat your fill. I don't want anyone leaving this table hungry or unsatisfied, cost is of no concern."
The waiter went around the table and began taking orders. All three Generals ordered the same thing, a large plate of grilled chicken smothered in a thick sauce, a side of mashed potatoes and gravy, and steamed vegetables, along with a bottle of a well aged red wine.

Just then, an announcer came on stage.
Announcer:"Welcome ladies and gentlemen to the Grand Sin hotel. I'm Steve and I'll be your announcer tonight. We've got a some great events for you tonight. First up is the Van Buren orchestra, universally known for their talents and heavily acclaimed in recent years."
The curtains on the stage pulled away and the lights dimmed slightly. The orchestra began to play a very somber theme.

OOC: Imagine the Godfather theme for the orchestra.

[Seraphina Alighieri]

As Seraphina and the others followed behind the Generals she a shadow of fear and tension began to build. in three years she had still not grown used to a military presence and everywhere she looked there were dignitaries in uniform and the men who were to guard them. She kept pace with the generals determined to show no sign of weakness. Once she reached the table she was winded, but she paced her breathing in order to not appear out of breath. She sat down an nodded to the generals before they went to speak to their comrades.

"Well, quite a turn out for little me.'

she whispered to Svetlana who sat to her right.

"What did you expect?"

She arched her eyebrows in amusement. Seraphina smiled and shook her head.

She picked up the menu and was shocked at the variety of choices, though nothing terribly exotic. She ordered a salad with a red wine vinaigrette dressing, chateau Brianne and a dry Merlot. It struck her as odd that each General ordered the same thing.

As she orchestra began she felt the weight grow even heavier. It was such an odd selection for a reception. The music was lugubrious. She sat in total silence with her eyes focused on the orchestra. As she became engrossed int he performance she did not notice the pain as much and Gabriel was far from her mind.

[Grimbold Theoman]

Grimbold and Alan took seats that gave them a good view over the room and as he sat down Grim carefully eased his weapons in their holsters. He barely glanced at the menu and ordered some chicken thing. He was not interested in the food, had no intention of eating more than he had to. His job was to protect the ambassador. He mused on the reception, they were all the same given in "honour" of someone nobody was able to relax and enjoy them politics always gets in the way. The guest of honour wouldn't enjoy it the hosts would not, they had their own worries, the bodyguards wouldn't enjoy it they were too busy being troubled by all the strangers close to their employer. And Grimbold Theoman? He would not enjoy another party again, not now that his Sara was gone, unless there could be peace, no more pointless painfull deaths. Then he would enjoy that party!

[Dante Novello]

Dante arrives at the pristine hotel. His eyes wander over it's gargantuan architecture and wonders how the majority of earth would see this grandeur. He gets out of the car, and shrugs his coat around him. He grabs his bags and heads into the lobby. He looks to his left and sees the entrance to a restaurant. He smiles slightly to himself at the thought of good food and heads over to a massive maple wall to wall desk to check in. In a very thick Italian accent he asks for a room.

"Yes we have a suite available sir. How would you like to pay for it?"

"With this."

He slaps down a corporate credit card for Novello Industries.

"Thank you Mr Lionardi. Here is your room key."

Dante nods, takes the key.He notices a bunch of people wandering into the restaurant wearing military uniforms and he frowns slightly. Best hotel on the colony huh? He snorts and turns back to the attendant at the counter.

"Is the restaurant open to all patrons or just military?"

"The restaurant is open to all. From what I understand, the better seats are taken for some sort of reception for some diginatary or something, but you should still be able to see the band from anywhere in the restaurant.

He nods is thanks and walks over to the elevator. He heads up to the floor of his suite. He walks into the suite, throws his bag onto a love seat, takes off his coat, and throws it on top of the bag. He then turns around and heads down to the restaurant.

He swaggers into the restaurant, and is offered a seat near the back of the restruant at a small table. The restaurant seemed oppressive with it's large plush furniture and heavy music. He orders a bottle of red wine and a steak and sits back to enjoy the music.

[SinfulSoul]

The music died down for a brief intermission. The food for the large parties were still being prepared, however a quick glance toward the double doors leading into the kitchen would reveal the chefs frantically working with haste. Apparently the lead chef was barking out commands to ensure an almost communistic rule over kitchen. The generals looked at each other and gave a collective small nod. General Chamberlin began to speak towards Seraphina.
Chamberlin:"You certainly do look much better now Seraphina. I do pray this means some progress in your health. Have you had a chance to review our proposal, and maybe submit anything to the leaders of Earth? Maybe there are some bits of aid you could admit in our direction to help appease our superiors and persuade them to allot more time for Earth to make some decisions. I must admit, it seems plans are in progress to form an embargo on Earth and completely cut off Earth from the rest of space. They feel completely cutting Earth off from outer space will effectively limit or completely block all gundanium imports to Earth and therefore ensure no more gundam production on Earth."

[Seraphina Alighieri]

Seraphina nodded as the General Chamberlain spoke to her. She smiled a bit when he inquired as to her health. She picked up a glass and took a small swallow of wine.

"I am feeling better General Chamberlain, thank you for asking. This is the proposal i am going to Submit to the earth leaders I have currently heard nothing back from them, but will be leaving after I survey the colony in order to see how I can be of further help. I will ask for all of your reparations, as well as needed raw resources as an initial opening gesture if you are willing to guarantee no attack on earth. Secondly I will request you amount of disarmament however I feel that they will not be willing to oblige unless you can promise not exceed a certain percentage of increase in militarization, hoping to keep things at an even match a stalemate of sorts. I would also like to request a hearing to set up a neutral party to oversee the disarmament of earth and the progress of your own militarization so that things go smoothly. In exchange for this, I am asking to avoid the embargo and develop a nonaggression pact. Also I would like to ask you for an acceptable time-line for the disarmament of earth."

She took another sip of the wine and glanced about the restaurant. Her heart began to pound so fast in her chest that her head became light. She swallowed hard trying to push the fear from her eyes, and slow her heart and breath. She pushed her hair behind her ears in order to hide her eyes from the Generals that Surrounded her. Her attack by Dante began to overwhelm her sense as he walked into the restaurant. Dear God help me. Slowly her fear transformed itself into a seething anger. Her eyes grew hard and she was thankful for the dim light if the restaurant. Her mouth went dry as she clenched and unclenched her fist that sat in her lap.Where she was and why she was there faded into the background as she thought only of walking up to Dante and choking him to death with her own two hands. Every injury that e had caused her began to ache as though the body remembered its own violation. She swallowed hard trying to push the rage into her gut. I have a job to do, I have to Save Gabriel, I have to save myself. I am safe I have Zeke, I have Svet, I have Grimbold and I have Alan. I am safe I am Safe I am safe. She thought over and over to herself as she waited for a response from General Chamberlain.

[Zeke]

Zeke usually only let out half smiles, or smirks, but when Dante Novello pushed open the doors to the restaurant of the Grand Sin Zeke's mouth formed a smile that went from ear to ear. He actually squeaked out a small joyous chuckle. His eyes became ablaze, not with hatred, but with happiness. He finally got to do something.

Zeke looked down at his gloves and pulled them both up, one at a time. His eyes then looked at Seraphina's worried look and his smile managed to widen. When Seraphina saw that grin, it oozed madness.

Zeke then looked at one guard, then to the other before starting off towards Dante's table flicking up the collar of his trench coat. He cracked his knuckles and came up on the left side of Dante. When he caught a glimpse of him, pure shock filled his expression as Zeke's red gloves grabbed the collar of his shirt and lifted him from his seat. Dante hung there only momentarily before Zeke literally tossed the fully grown man back into the lobby. He then proceeded to follow him out.

[Grimbold Theoman]

Grimbold saw Zeke smile though he could see no reason for it. Something made him feel more alert, maybe it was the cold hardness in the eyes of the ambassador.
When Zeke got up and threw a total stranger out of the resturant Grimbold was shocked and loosened the guns in the holsters ready for the disaster that he felt was sure to come soon. He glanced Alan and saw he was also on alert. That enabled him to relax a fraction knowing that Alan was on the case as well.

[Seraphina Alighieri]

As Zeke Removed Dante forcefully from the reception she put up her hand to the Generals to signal that he was doing his job and there was reason. She leaned in close to the generals to keep the conversation low.

"The Gentleman, and I use the term loosely, is the actual cause of my injuries he is my cousin and objects to my role as an Ambassador. As many still believe in Tuscany politics is no place for a woman. He has obviously found me and followed me here, I apologize for the disturbance, but I fear formy safety for obvious reasons."

With that she sat back and watched the doors. Part of her smiled with almost the same madnes that had filled Zeke's smile eyes. Too bad I can't do it myself. She wanted so desperately to see him maimed, if not dead.