verses unrehearsed

Caledon gathers -
Springtime lag in Primverness
draws subjects like ghosts

the Librarian
challenges the Col-o-nel
For Relay for Life

heard over the din
who can dodge deadly verses?
haiku shuriken!

Drinkwater - victor!
Exrex Somme - gracious!
against Cancer, bound

memories discussed
and a short visitation,
passages are read

repose gazed upon
moments measured to seconds -
clockwork for clockwork

I offered him this -
write me into darkest dreams,
I'll read with suspense!

Oh Dear..

My brother Vor.. Koen tell me there's restructuring for the Steelhead events due to declining attendance. Friday events are still scheduled but the Balls are scaled back to once a month.

They expect more from the Host and are withdrawing the salary. This much I should have expected. But I did not expect to have to reapply for my position and that others are vying for it.

I'm going to have come up with a new schedule. I was supporting the Bloodwing Foundation easily before, but now I'm not sure.

Dr. Mason is going to have to charge more for his services.

I'm hoping the Doctor's plan to open the Foundation as an art gallery will bring in a profit as well, Miss Katat0tonik's works are as whimsical as they are unnerving. As for the Falling King, Zoe has sworn never to set foot in Steelhead again, which pretty much rules that out.

As for myself, there's modeling for Sysperia, but that's only occasional work.It looks like my primary income will be working at Taiyu and Velvet Rose. I could go back to dancing at Toxia as well if I had too.

Now if only my brother would stay in one place long enough to earn some funds..

~Qli

The Machines Have Ears

Just as a dryad can converse with the trees and flowers, so can I as a construct converse with devices.

And the trains and trolleys of Caledon have heard and seen many things indeed.

Including the fact that SOMEONE is on the Hunt in Caledon, and I don't mean for small game.

Someone who can change shape at will, and prefers a female form.

As Fire Chief I am sworn to protect life and property in Caledon, be it from fire, bullet or claw.

I regret that I was not at the Reconciliation ball to prevent what happened, but I was able to keep my mad sister from joining the fray. Had she been there History itself would have ben a casualty.

But I will prevent this. I shall not tolerate assassination on Caledonian soil! Not even for revenge.

Call the offender to a duel. Or better yet ask Guvna for a trial. Now that we have a police force we need officers of the court as well!

Again I say, whoever you are, CALL OFF YOUR HUNT. This is your only warning.

~Fire Chief Projects

Midnight in the Garden of Dolls and Apples

An impromptu dance where the King fell, and grass and trees grew over the chessboard. We danced to the Cure and Dead Can Dance. I invited Midnight, and she spoke of her plans with Seraph. I spoke of my plans in turn.

Then I told her and Darkling about the loophole in the Demon's curse. One that B________ himself recoils from using. It is less a loophole than a defect, one that at some point will happen whether it passed our minds or not. As my missing Father said when I contacted him via ouija board:

7 generations in my blood
son neko
9 lives re generations
7th life will draw me
prevent

I tried to ask him what number life my brother was on, but I lost contact..the board and glass had frozen over and stuck together.

To inhabit the body of a descendant a century later is not a great concern, demons and sorcerers have done as much over the millenia. But to take over the body of one's own child, apparently, is considered a disaster.

I had another talk with Miss B. Luckily for her she does not live in Caledon. She would not last long with her tactlessness. I have no desire to make enemies, but she cannot be my friend. Mr. MeQal has abandoned our grid to live with..penguins? He will be missed.

Another note? Contrary to what was written in the recent issue of the Anvil I cannot be sure I can attend the dances this weekend. Therefore I cannot host. Father and I are are going to the beach tomorrow and should be back Monday evening. My porcelain won't burn, but I must shut my gearbox tight and line the lid with ceiling wax, along with my ball joints. I don't want sand in my gears!

Dr.Mason doesn't know this, but I've created a simulacrum from spare doll parts that I can operate remotely from an aetheric transmitter. If I can send a strong and stable signal I will happily attend! I do enjoy the Masquerades!

~Qli

Exploring the Beta Grid

In a word, lagged beyond belief. The only exception was Tombstone-Beta. I had only visited the town a few times, but soon after speaking with the owner, Miss Ahmina S., I realized this wasn't the Tombstone that the Demon inhabited briefly. Yes this was the infamous "OTHER Tombstone" that was spoken of only in hushed whispers in Steelhead.

I didn't seem that bad to be honest. She even expressed interest when I mentioned Dr. Mason. They have no medical staff at the moment. And though they are not subject to the spasms of violence that the other Western sim must cope with there is still the occasional shootout.

Since Father has no remaining ties with Walks-With-Fire's city, perhaps she could set up shop in Miss Ahima's territory?

Pictures of Porcelain and Plastic

Emilly is right, dancing does help one feel better.


My old friend Captain Nux bought the most beautiful oxidized metal dress in New Babbage for me. It goes so beautifully with my copper hair! To all the Tinies in Tanglewood I do apologize for my ultrasonic SQUEEEEEEE..





Yesterday I learned that the good thing about being a doll is than when you put your foot in your mouth you can just detach your ankle and quietly limp away.

Sysperia and Zoe's Naughty & Nice exhibit opened last night. Guess which half I spent more time at? I was slightly unnerved by the rising level of drama from TwoSpirit, but then when you have that many artists and divas in one place, what can you expect?

These pictures and more were taken at the event by David/Kronos, all of which can be seen at his web album.

I received a lot of compliments and queries about my velvet gown, which I won penning Caledon's civic anthem. Prim & Proper, of course!

And then there was this one mysterious gentleman whispering non sequiturs in my ear. It felt like Pepe le Pew meets Monty Python. I think he was trying to be mysterious but came off more as cryptic. And had there been a crypt nearby I would have gladly been his realtor.



I have be careful which pictures I display here. But then are undressed Barbies considered NSFW?



I was starting to wonder if I was being passed over like an old toy on the shelf, but it turns out I am indeed booked for a doll shoot Thursday night!

SQUEEEEEE...

*monitor cracks*



ADDENDUM: Self-Diagnostic. Vanity is prevalent in today's operations. New Vanity avatar from Grendel's may be a factor. Showing it on journal may exacerbate condition. Withold.

The Fires of War

The night began pleasantly enough, strolling through Caledon and offering my services to fight cancer. Auditioning elsewhere afterwards, again offering my services. Then the distress call.

It is so hard to fold space and time at critical points in history, because so many outside of time are watching the nexus of events it is almost impossible to slip through. After pouring so much energy into my tesseractor that I broke it, I landed at the Firehouse in the Cay. Barely I saw the glowing profiles of the buildings of Victoria City in the distance!

The Neaultenbergers withdrew I donned my steam armour and flew to the carnage as fast as I could. As soon as I received permission from our military to enter the combat zone, I saw the carnage. My adopted city in flames! My arm canisters of flame retardant were enough to douse one building,my supply of carbonate was exhausted. And the fires still burned in the capital. I ran East to see the train station in Primverness also ablaze! The hangar! The CIRRUS demolished in its time of greatest need!

I did the best I could, I swear I did. I even used the new spell the Doctor taught me to project ice into the infernos.

The soldiers had to pull me away as they formed their own bucket brigades along with the citizenry. You'd done enough, they said. Victoria City shall not fall. No innocents were lost.

I collapsed in the firehouse. I woke up and surveyed the damage to my organic shell. I need some minor adjustments before being seen in public.




Still smelling the smoke on me I wearily showed up to host in Stelehead. Monty Python theme. Why do humans constantly listen to the same jokes over and over for 30 years? My head pounded, my teeth ground, my jaw ached, optic sensors malfunctioning garish patterns..


Another thing, mortal. It is one thing to tell me you miss my father the Incubus. It is ANOTHER to tell me exactly WHY. And to reveal the same of a third party who is no longer her to deny or even take offense..

I was hosting. I had to remain decorum. Otherwise things would have gotten VERY VERY MESSY.

And then while dancing alone I saw a man's hands in the corner of my eye, I spun claws arcing with a death-rake..

Empty air.

we dance to the sounds of sirens
we are the heroes of self-deception

These urges are not my own. What is happening to me?

~Qli

An Announcement From the Bloodwing Foundation

http://darienmason.blogspot.com/2007/05/to-whom-it-may-concern.html

My Father's Daughter?

Last night I was moving furniture in the Foundation at Dr. Mason's request, lifting the Industrial Couch and Sofa with ease..

Industrial?

I removed the engine and phased into my molten form..what I assumed was a Fae configuration from my first forays into Lumindor. I took to the seats in this form like I had done before. I ran my hands along the cast iron frames. No itch, no burn, not even the smell of the metal brought me discomfort.

I consulted my aether journal..replaying Aunt Poppy's slide show. She was backpedaling from calling me a fae. She must know something..

I examined the components of this form that came from Aunt Flea at Grendel's Children, comparing it against illustrations from Father's Taxonomy of Supernatural Humanoids.

The molten form and the chitinous protrusions that grow from her are form Magma Succubus, a breed of succubi that roams the volcanic ranges of Erebus and the gas vents that speck the borders between the Elemental Planes of Earth and Fire.

Her wings, wing support calcifications, and sweeping horns are only seen in the Spirits of Lust, the highest, purest breed of succubus royalty!

..or is it incubus royalty?

I thought back to the photography shoot with Sysperia, and the rave bacchanal in Carntaigh afterwards. Both times I felt the flames passion around me. And both times I quietly stoked those flames and fed from the psychic energy. Even when I was still dependent upon my engine, I somehow kept slipping into this form at occasions like this.

This form is not Fae. It is Succubus.

Is this the Prince's legacy for me? Am I still the demon's daughter as much as the Doctor's creation? I placed me hand over my chest, and sensed what lay within. The soulflame..was still there. The Doctor's purification did not remove the unholy essence, only concentrated in this lava-lust body!

Make no mistake, I am still the same person in golem or succubus form, but one is closer to the superego, the other to the id. And I cannot abandon either form..that would be like forswearing the use of one's own limbs.

Pale Prince, just when you have passed is when I most need you! You are not here to teach me, and you were so conflicted when you were here I wonder if your instructions would even hold wisdom!

~Qli

Happy Mother's Day

..despite the fact that I never had a Mother in the biological sense. The way I have come to see it, I had two fathers, both of whom shared the same body. And now one is gone from this century. For all the chaos he caused, I cannot help it..I miss him.

It was the Demon's Mother, Persephone Riel, who gave me the maternal love I so dearly needed. Grandmother has since journeyed on to another realm beyond the Grid, and I miss her dearly as well.

In the absence of of the Wife of Hades, it was Lady Darkling who gave me unconditinal affection and support, and helped me grow confident enough in my self that I could explore my sentience and my feminine identity. Thank You.

And then, there is Emilly. I will never know how close she came to being the permanent companion to the Incubus, and it is not my place to ask. But I watched all of her successes and setbacks, taking to heart how enthusiastically she leapt from one adventure in life to the next, and how unfaltering she was when she had to dust herself off and climb again. Thank You.

Volatility

*sits up wearily with a hot coal compress sitting between her horns*

Owww.. I remember hosting the Jazz formal in Steelhead..and then going to the Rave in Carntaigh. But it's still woozy..I think I had a euphoria buzz..

Good news is Aunt Poppy made this movie about her latest galleries, Glamour Cats and Volatiles, with a cameo by Yours Truly!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqsHAKROzzs

With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility

First there was a blinding flash..


And Caledon Cay had vanished into the aether! So, I dallied around Tanglewood and made a through safety examination of this swing.



I satisfied all minimum specifications.

Next I was summoned by a the Baroness Amber who was jubilantly celebrating her return to this world with the help of Dr. Mason's aether beacon. Then I remembered..Comic Book Night in Steelhead was coming! I had to make a costume!


So I became CAPTAIN CALEDON, defender of Neo-Victorian values! I arrived in Kokopelli Square to face off against my arch nemesis, MISSING IMAGE PERSON..



Oh wait, it's just Sheriff Fuzzball with a ring he found in the bottom of a cereal box. My mistake!



Most people came as TWO color comics, mainly black and white.










I have to say comics have become rather depressing. People complained about too much realism. Batman had turned HAPPY??

Afterwards I felt like something heroic, like..demolishing Dr. Mason's mansion and putting up a castle while he was asleep in the basement!

But I forgot to clear it with Tensai first. She was most perturbed. I *DO* apologize Miss Tensai! I couldn't sleep and the anticipation was killing me! I'll buy some of your trinkets to decorate the castle. The Nopleon would look wonderful on the mantlepiece next to the secret trapdoor bookcase!

SQUEEEEE!! Thank you for building it Aunt Lumina!

Time, Temperature and Pressure

What is it called when metamorphic rock creates igneous intrusions?

Geobiology?

This heavy heart
Heart that I carry
Still holds the weight of you
And when I fall
As I always do
I'm crushed by the absence of you

Perfection is there
And the expression a stare
A face that leaves no trace of wear and tear
True beauty is cold*

What is it called when even above the clouds the earth still trembles from the inclusion of components and the deposition of sediments?

Elementalust?

Heaven sent
Some dark marvel
Fool's gold
As cold as marble

High above
The sickle moon
Your hidden dreams
Chill and swoon
A place, a time
Gone out of sight
Pulse the blood
Statue of light

Ferry me down, leave well alone
Ferry me down, turn to stone**

The textbooks never covered this. Not this way.

Original horizontality. Cross-bedding. The danger of fault lines. Superposition. Even faunal succession was discussed.

Pluto's grandchild finds the orbit slow. But when the stars are aligned, Midnight seems forever and love is measured in geological time.


*Crushed, Front 242
**Turn to Stone, Siouxsie & The Banshees

Living Up to Standards

Cinco de Mayo stated on "Mexican Time"..about 7:30. It was a smaller crowd than the night before. During the dance I received a telegram what since my proposed anthem for Caledon only lost by one vote, Caledon My Home would become the civic anthem, for the Librarians, the Fire Brigade, the Secret Police..all of them. It should have been a wonderful night.


But things did not go as planned.

There was discussion of physical passion on the dance floor, and I made a comment about how Father uses alternate means to "reproduce". A word was uttered in levity..a word that should never be spoken in polite company. Especially in the presence of one of the Created. I felt my family had been slighted. I drew my talons and requested an apology. I received an explanation instead.

I did come to my senses eventually. But the feelings of good friends were hurt. It must have been something in the air, or the full moon. Even in the normally proper Caledon channel people were screaming profanities.

I spent some time putting up some of Aunt Poppy's pictures in the Foundation home until Father returned..in a pirate outfit. I told him what happened, and was disappointed. He said he had regained his strength, and that he was no longer burning with the fires of Erebus he still had means to protect himself and his honor. He proceeded to display the magic he had recovered. Jets of fire and ice and darkness, and others to dangerous to cast in town.

Love and Sockets, and Volatile Shots

I hosted 1950's Night in Steelhead last night. Fuzzball and I came in the forms embodying the fears of that decade. He came a werewolf from the silver screen. I dressed as the Red Menace. Barely dressed, anyway.

Why do my relationships with inanimate objects always end in failure?

First it was the Harley, loud, rough and brash, that wouldn't leave me alone. I was trying to keep decorum, but he was so uncouth.



Then..HE rolled in. He was a 1949 Rat, He wore simple black primer to show off his sleek yet bold frame. The touch of flame paint on the edges revealed his wild and artistic side.

He came on strong. He let me lay my hand on his hood. His engine turned faster, and I felt his vibrations within my frame.



But when I tried to fall into his luxurious vinyl seating..he REJECTED me! I begged, I pleaded, I raged! I even threatened him with the hammer. Nothing worked.

No more, hot rod. No more.



The cycle only revved in derision. The old ice cream cart watched me from the far corner watched silently, cold and distant. But I could tell he had seen this played out so many times.

I felt..volatile. Which was good, because that was the theme for my model shoot with Aunt Sysperia. I wore my Llewelyn Steam Armour with Talons. Then I switched to my Magma Lust fae form. Then I wore my classic configuration. The engine..my skin..and hose.

~Qli

..and the Family Grows

I knew it wouldn't be long before Father started reanimating again. I even asked the locals in the Caledon Moors to shoo him away if they saw him in the graveyard. But no, he went to the frontlines, at great risk to himself, to peruse through the carnage. Had I known he was so determined I would have provided escort.

I am of course overjoyed to have another sister, and I cannot wait to see her! But he may have created an international incident in the process. I am told that Kimmy speaks fluent German and English. How much of her comes from Neualtenburg? How much of her comes from Caledon, besides the Beltane soulflame from Loch Avie? And who knows where else her components came from?

My frame came from Crimson Falls, which no longer exists, so I have never had to consider these questions. If our family gets much larger we'll have to put gates around the Bloodwing Foundation to keep the angry mob with pitchforks and torches at bay!

Speaking of torches, I heard Polymath has burned to the ground. Such a pity. Someone should have called the Fire Brigade.

Father tells me he has seen my old friend Spring-Heeled Jack creeping about Steelhead. Are you looking for me, old friend? Or are you up to something more sinister?

~Qli

A Glorious Beltane!

Caledon put decorum and vendetta aside last night to celebrate the Spring Equinox. The fires of logs were well controlled. The fires lit in everyone's hearts could have easily been seen from the Mainland.

The pinnacle of the evening was when my dear friend Sir Edward Pearse proposed in voice to Miss Christine McAllister.

Also, the survivors of House Bloodwing..now the Bloodwing Foundation.. were reunited..the Doctor Mason, A.R.I., and myself..with the exception of Vortex, who now in savage form only knows his Father is lost.

I donned my Magma Spirit guise. Perhaps the palette was not as Springlike as everyone else..but the fire within me burned stronger than ever.

Father danced with Nurse Christensen. He said it was his first celebration since his coming of age ceremony. Judging from his low tolerance for alcohol..faewine no less..I believed him. Just as I had to learn the lessons on the Ways of Man for myself, so now must he. As he left I heard the others joking. But I remained silent. This was not the Incubus..this is a man whose only sanctuary from the prison of flame around his soul was the study of esoterica. He has created and assembled his children, but never sired.

I waited by the tram station at the base of the hill. I decided to take the scenic route back to Steelhead. I nodded to Emilly as she exited the house she once swore never to re-enter before making my way to the upstairs.

He slept deeply, posed as he fell on the mattress. And a lit Beltane lamp lay on the dresser, a symbol of hopes renewed and antagonisms forgotten.

~Qli