Board Thread:Role Plays/@comment-26130256-20170711055926

"Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your captain speaking," the airship intercom droned. "We are cleared for landing at Agua Fria International Airport in the Sahale Federation.  Local time will be 8:37, with the temperature at a chilly 40F.  On behalf of the crew, thank you for flying with us!"

Azulius Cardamom yawned and stretched as he left the plane and made his way towards customs. Though he certainly didn't look like the Azulius Cardamom whose exploits ranged from studying at Beacon Academy to auditor for a Vacuan crime family to joining a heist crew in Atlas. Between the carpenter jeans, red button-up shirt, and forest green coat, he looked like Azzie's polar opposite, and the Carbon Freeman -styled beard and rimless glasses made him even less recognizable.

"Name, sir?" the customs official recited.

"Edom Chartreuse, but friends just call me Ed," the magician responded with a shrug.

"Here for business or pleasure?"

"Business, sadly," he frowned, voicing the lament of employee travelers across the world. "I hear there's enough sights to see to last a month of vacations."

"We do have plenty to see here.  Passport, please?  And your signature, while the passport scans."

'Edom' politely handed over his Kingdom of Vale passport before dragging the stylus across the Scroll the customs man gave him. After a tense thirty seconds, the scroll flashed green, the signature matching the database record. Which was not a surprise, considering it was his signature in the first place. 'Edom' was one of several aliases Azulius Cardamom had put together in his short career, and thanks to Brine's tecnical wizardry, this cover was bulletproof.

As a parting gift for helping him recover a very valuable and very dangerous mathematical theorem from Master's Realm, Azulius's former boss had built up a better paper trail around his Chartreuse identity. Work history, tax returns, bills, photographs, the usual stuff, as well as some more unusual fare like a set of chatbots built into the Vale telephone network, in case anyone tried to call 'Edom's' workplace, a small-time private security firm near the coast with Patch. Azulius had seen better covers before, but not many.

"Does it always take this long for passports to clear?" Edom tilted his head as he thought, not unlike a dog. While most fake IDs only had the bare minimum of details to pass inspection, Azz had poured his soul into Edom. Different walk, different set of mannerisms, and especially a different accent. His own mother would need a few moments to recognize him.

"We've had an influx lately of drug trafficking from Vale and Atlas.  All the foreigners are getting the fine-toothed comb treatment.  Geopolitical bull crap, you know how it is."

"Unfortunately." As if by magic, the machine beeped, and the customs officer returned the passport.

"Good news, you're not a criminal.  Welcome to the Sahale.  Baggage claim is over that way."

"Good to know, sir.  Have a nice day!" Edom waved, savoring the irony as he picked up his suitcase and weapon case. After a preliminary check that nothing had broken during the flight, he walked to the main entrance of the airport, passing under the large statue of Mytheus, Sahale goddess of travelers. Quite a looker, too, but from what Azzie had read about Sahali mythology, the god called Incarla was the trickster type whose help he would need. Edom was far more religious than Azulius, anyways.

Once outside, he made his way to the nearest taxi and deposited his cases in the trunk before plopping into the back seat. "Take me to the Flagg Institute, if you'd be so kind."

"That's a half-hour's drive," the cabbie noted with a twitch of her cat whiskers.

"Then I sure hope you have good taste in radio stations," Edom gave a hopeful smile. 