Protectors

A fantasy role play - secret society formed to protect the integrity of intersecting world, aid in negotiations, conflicts, trade and international relations. Isabella, a current Oxford university student, receives a mysterious letter inviting her to join a secret society. She originally believes it to be a hoax but when, possibly together with other initiates, she agrees to join she discovers the existence of other worlds and races - everything from dragons, vampires, fairies..... She realises that she has agreed to become part of an intra-world task force which is a mix between diplomats, spies and policemen. Whilst she is only in training the convention, a meeting of commissioners from all worlds that is held once a decade, makes sure that she and her group have enough to add to their schedule. And that is after weapons training with a dwarf and diplomacy from a dragon.

I am looking for anyone who would like to join. Characters could range from fellow team members (any race) to older protectors working as diplomats, assassins, or scholars. I dislike giving a role-play too much direction as I like seeing where it goes on its own, so there are no limits to what kind of character you might want to be or what kind of event you might want to initiate. The beginning could be something like this:

It had not been a good day - and that statement might count as an understatement still. Any day containing a microeconomics and an econometrics class has to be a bad one. But it had not stopped there. All her housemates had managed to snap up a room in college for next term. Unfortunately she had not been as lucky. It meant that she would have to find accommodation somewhere else in Oxford - not hard as it brimmed with student accommodation, but a hassle nevertheless. And she would have to deal with new housemates. Alright, she could be honest at least to herself. It wasn't the hassle that bothered her. What if her current circle of friends would ignore her as soon as they lived apart? She was not shy precisely, but she also did not relish the thought of losing her hard won social circle.

And now she would have to spend all night writing her Political Theory essay for the tutorial at 10 tomorrow. Bother. All the others were planning to go over to the JCR party at Teddy Hall. She trudged the last few meters to her college through the rain halting to check her pigeon hole. 3 letters. Her phone bill, her exam schedule and a letter with her address written in pen on the front, without a stamp:
Isabella Plessow
Holy Ghost College
Oxford

She tugged the other two letters under her arm and opened the unknown letter whilst crossing the quad to her room.

Ewen St. Jordan
Solicitor
323 High Street
Oxford

3.3.2010

Dear Miss Plessow,

This letter forms an invitation to attend the meeting of the brotherhood of the curator honoratio on March 4th, 2010 at 11pm, St. Cross House. Your attendance is obligatory.

Sincerely
Ewen St Jordan

Isabella looked up from the letter and thought: What the hell is all that about?

The rain drop snaking down her face and threatening to drip inelegantly from her nose made her realise that she had stopped in the middle of the quad and that neither her books, nor herself, were getting any dryer from this. She quickly hurried the last steps up to her floor and to her room. Her room was less of the refuge she had expected it to be as the woefully inefficient heater had clearly died - again. What did she expect? It was one of these days. She let her bag slip from her shoulder and dropped the books on the small side table. Her mind was only superficially occupied with the actions and the annoyance of the cold heater. Mainly she worried about the letter. Really, it sounded like a prank and she was tempted to treat it like that. However, there remained this little niggling voice in her mind that reminded her that ignoring a letter from a lawyer was never a good idea. Unthinking she grabbed for the phone and dialled home. Before it could even ring she hung up. Unsure even to why she had done so. John, her brother and guardian since the death of her parents 2 years ago, would not have minded the call or the question. He would not even have laughed, even in the very likely circumstance that he would agree with her assessment of the letter as a prank. Which made it almost worse. Mum would have laughed, and even made fun of her for years telling the story to all and sundry, embarrassing Isabella horribly. But John would not. He would take her seriously. Carefully and diplomatically hint to it being a scam but assuring her that she had every right to consider it and was in no way gullible. And then they would chat like strangers about his lecturer position at Goldsmiths, his students, her courses and college. Possibly they even would make some remarks about the weather. This is how it had been for the last two years when he had come to pick her up from boarding school telling her that her parents had had an accident. Careful. Civilised.

Isabella shook her head. There was nothing wrong with civilised. To be exact it was preferable to hysterics, fights and depressions - all reactions teachers, friends, and even the psychologist John had insisted she see after the accident, seemed to expect from them. It was definitely preferable that John at least did not expect her to engage in histrionics. But even after having spent every holiday throughout the last two years with him she just still felt she did not know her brother. She even knew that it was not his fault, nor was it hers, she thought. He was ten years older than her. He left for university when she was 7, and from then onwards was only a voice on the phone and an intermittent visitor in her home. A glittering butterfly arriving with presents once or twice a year and taking her to concerts or amusement parks with her friends. She had always adored him - she just did not know him. The only longer conversations they had shared when she was younger were the instant messenger interactions throughout the many injury times her brothers random sports seem to cause. At least once a year he would be lain up with an injury from sky-diving or whatever else he had been into recently. He would always assure everyone that he was fine and discourage any visitors to whatever out of the way country he was laid up in. It had always worried her mother and each time her mother would become more morose for a few days. But it was great for Isabella. She would discuss philosophy, or politics, or their fathers latest assignment with John for hours over instant messenger. These conversations had not disappeared after the accident - even if they now took place over the living room table. It was just that sometimes she also would like to discuss if the guy in her class even saw her, or if she was completely paranoid worrying about a clearly fake letter from a lawyer, without feeling too embarrassed. She wanted the hours back she spent with her mother sitting at the kitchen table doing nothing much, just talk. Talk about nothing. Talk about everything. She let the phone slip from her fingers onto the bed and turned to the desk.

Twenty minutes later she had to reread the same paragraph the third time. “However exalted we may wish our concepts to be, and however abstract we may make them in relation to the realm of our senses, they will continue to associate with figurative notions…” Kant’s Political Writings were, when she was at her best, hard to understand. They did not improve in lucidity when her eyes wandered to the large vellum envelope with the lawyer’s crest every few words. No matter how often she forced her eyes back to the page they always seemed to return to the letter. Oh blast! She had to write this essay tonight, no way around it. And the cold chill of the room did not help her concentration either. Resolutely she stood up and grabbed her jacket again. She would go and tell the porters about the broken radiator and at the same time inquire into who had brought the letter. As there had not been a post-mark someone must have brought it in. If the porters had not seen anyone then it must be one of the college members and therefore it was a definite prank. If not - then she at least had a clue who was behind this. She closed her room door with more purpose than she had expended on the whole paragraph of Kantian philosophy.



Please be aware that I am a newbie on this forum and am therefore still feeling my way.

First, I gotta tell you that that was superbly written. I saw everything clearly and vividly. Lovely read.

I do have some advice; since this is an interest check, you should give the readers an idea of the plot line you have in mind. Include things like what characters they might play, the world they'll find themselves in and a general (sometimes, very general) plot. Basically, something that makes those of us that read these interest checks go "Ooooh! That sounds like fun!"

Digital Muse wrote:First, I gotta tell you that that was superbly written. I saw everything clearly and vividly. Lovely read.

I do have some advice; since this is an interest check, you should give the readers an idea of the plot line you have in mind. Include things like what characters they might play, the world they'll find themselves in and a general (sometimes, very general) plot. Basically, something that makes those of us that read these interest checks go "Ooooh! That sounds like fun!"

Ditto. ^

I found your post well written Nicola, but I have no idea if I would want to play or not dependent upon this post. It would be wise to include some details about plot, not just prove you are a great writer. (Which you are)

I take the point and have amended the first post

A multi-verse version of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen? I'm in! Woot!

How does it work here? I suggest that we wait till tomorrow to see if someone else feels like joining and then I create the thread in the forum and an OOC thread. Does that sound good?

I'm in.

Edit-

You may want to wait a bit for more people to join (depending on how many people you want in on this). You also might want to create a character sheet layout. That'll give people an idea as to what you expect from the characters (name, age, sex, race, bio, powers, etc, etc).

I made an OOC Thread. I prefer to have minimum sheets as I prefer to "meet" characters naturally. As much fun as it would be if everyone you met would give you a character sheet - somehow it has never happened to me.

http://www.footstepsofghosts.com/t3770-protectors#90259

Tossing my hat into the interested bin.

A general outline of the story has turned up in the OOC thread and is up for discussion and suggestions

So are you OK with the character as is?

Sorry, was ill yesterday adn just wanted to hide in bed. Fine with it. I will create a thread today

If it's still open, I'd love to join in! This is an exciting concept, and something I've been wanting to try for some time. I even have a vague idea towards a character

It would be great if you would want to join. I was ill and am only just now rising from misery.