Re: Mini-Grand 2801 [Round 2: The Kenny Faller Show]

[Pinary]

In various scattered locations in the multiverse, four telephones ring. Four beings answer.

"Gentlemen," says a recorded voice, "I have an invitation for you. I am planning an experiment, and I need subjects. I'm sure you are familiar with the various Grand Battles that have been taking place recently, and I wish you to select a being to compete in one and deliver it to me."

"Once you have selected a competitor, simply dial 0."

"I'll be waiting."

What is this, another Grand Battle?
Yep. Writing over fighting, one death a round, etc. This'll be a bit different, though. This time, there are only going to be four players and four characters.

Is this an officially sanctioned Grand Battleâ„¢?
No.

But doesn't having half the players mean having half the fun?
No. If one were to assume a set amount of fun per player per round, then there would be 35f in a regular Grand Battle and only 9f in this, meaning there would actually be approximately 25.7% as much fun. This is, however, an invalid assumption. If we assume a set value of fun per round, then the value changes drastically. Each round's fun is divided up among the players. Because of this, the later rounds are more fun for each player. Now, although this would still result in a higher overall amount of fun in a typical Grand Battle, the rate of fun is higher in this. Assuming a constant round length, the winner of a typical Grand Battle would be having fun at an average rate of approximately 0.239 fun per round, but in this mini-grand battle, they would be having 0.361 fun per round!

Why?
Why not? It's a chance to test, experiment. Want to try a new character idea? Give it a go here. Similarly, I'll be trying unusual rounds. Try new styles of writing, character types you're not so good with. Practice, experiment, and learn. What's the worst that could happen?

What are the rules?
Mostly standard Grand Battle rules, really. Reserves will be valid for 2 hours.

Also, only join if you're going to be able to contribute regularly. Having fewer players means more responsibility for each to keep things going.

How do I sign?
Sponsor: The being who brought your character here. Equivalent of Gentlemen, Creators, etc. Give us a name and a brief description.
Character Name: Your chacter's name, duh.
Gender: "Yes" is not an acceptable answer.
Race: Human, Demon, Squirrel, Sentient Piece of Broccoli, whatever.
Post Colour: Each player should have a unique colour to post in. #00008F and plain black are off-limits.
Biography: Who are they? What have they done in their life? Where were they when they vanished into thin air?
Description: What do they look like? How do they act? What are their motivations?
Items/Abilities: What do they have with them? Do they have any special powers? Why were they chosen for this fight to the death?

Who's playing?
-Lankie: Count Rez - #008000 (profile)
-Wojjan: Eveline Riveri - #FF4000 (profil)
-Dragon Fogel: Allieva - #FF0080 (profile)
-Ixcalibur: Purifier - #FFBF00 (profile)

[Wojjan]

Resoive

[Dragon Fogel]

Reserving a spot, just have to figure out the details on my bird-lady.

[Doran]

Reserve

[Lankie]

Sponsor: Arc – A being of pure light, considered a holy god. Her (technically it) form is incomprehensible to most beings, generally appearing as a ball of light, constantly dripping with feathers.

Character Name: Count Rez

Gender: Male

Race: Kaisithian (A psychic fish effectively…I know just bare with me.)

Post Colour: This lovely shade of green #008000

Biography: Count Rez (full name Reznathozaniark) was nothing but a crook in the underwater city of Infra. He also didn't have a lot of power, considering he was around his kind, the Count was swiftly imprisoned for his power hungry schemes. This wasn't the end however, he managed trick his guard into freeing him. Knowing he held little power among his kind, he headed for the surface, using a Kaisithian experimental orb known simply as ‘the pearl'. Kaisithian were the only beings capable of psychic power, as such the Count quickly became a powerful individual, forming a powerful mercenary group under his name. He would continue his reign of terror in the in the surface for 6 years, eventually being employed by a dark god. Unfortunately for the Count, he was struck down by the very guard he tricked, in his dying moments, Ark whisked Count Rez away, while knowing he was an evil individual, he was a powerful entity to represent her in the upcoming ‘game'.

Description: Count Rez is a green fish, resembling a pike with extra fins. As per all Kaisithian, he has no mouth and a lure on top of its head. This ‘lure' is in fact the Count's psychic gland, which allows him to talk and utilise his powers. The Count is in the ‘Pearl', a clear orb full of water, the size of a fish bowl but with no visible entrances or exits. He is mounted on a ‘puppet' body with a large cape covering it. Count Rez is a selfish individual, the power having gone to his head, he automatically thinks he is better than everyone else and is quick to demonstrate so. Very intelligent, but quick to get tempered.

Items/Abilities:
Psychic powers: All Kaisithian can utilise psychic powers, this includes telekinesis, telepathy, Mind control and even clairvoyance (although that takes a supreme amount of effort). Count Rez specifically is quite adept at his powers, capable of lifting the weight of a car easily. He is quick to tire though, preferring his combat in short bursts.

The Pearl: What the Count is inside, this prototype vessel synchs with the mind occupying it, this means that the Count can change its density at will, it can become bouncy like a ball or as hard as rock. The Pearl is made out of a strange material which is nigh on indestructible. However it has no means of blocking psychic or magical attacks. This could mean that the Count is technically impervious, however he is very fragile, and should he slam into the inside walls of the pearl hard enough, he could easily be killed.

Puppet Body: The pearl is mounted where the head of this ‘puppet body' would be. It has no structural integrity in its limbs. In fact the arms and legs of this body are highly elastic rope. The hands and feet are made of a heavy iron, which the Count can fling round and use them as a weapon. Count Rez has no physical control over this body, he is merely hovering and dragging the body up into a standing position. The Count wears a huge cloak hiding the body entirely.

[Wojjan]

Sponseur: Arbre. Un demi-dieu responsable pour tout de bien, l'amour et la paix. Il est determiné d'arrêter ce guerre inutile.
Nom: Eveline Riveri
Sexe: Féminin.
Espèce: Humain.
Couleur: Un melange d'orange et rouge, FF4000.
Biographie: Il y a très longtemps, Eveline a traversé un carrefour, en ayant au boulanger. Elle n'a pas vu la voiture arrivant de gauche, et elle l'a rentré dedans. Eveline a été transporté Ã* l'hôpital, mais n'a jaimais plus été la même. Quelque chose est allé mal pendant le cours infini des opérations, et elle a perdu la fonction des cerveaux qui rend quelqu'un malheureux. Pas moyen d'encore vivre normalement, parce qu'elle adorait tout le monde comme elle les connaît depuis longtemps, et apparant avoir on relation profond avec tout le monde. Elle a vécu seul pour la plupart de sa vie. D'un jour Ã* l'autre, elle est complêtement disparu.
Déscription: Eveline est une dame raffinée, avec des cheveux blonds-bruns avec un visage gentil. Elle porte des vêtements un peu trop grand pour sa petite forme, resultant aux manches trop longs. Sa chemise est vert, avec un t-shirt aux manches longs noir dessous. Elle n'arrive pas du tout Ã* se fâcher.
Abilités: Alors, comme j'ai déjÃ* écrit, elle aime tout le monde. Quel charactère horrible pourrait tuer cette fille gentille en voyant ce visage souriant?

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You ask different, you get different!

[Lankie]

Something went badly during the infinite lesson of operations

Oh how I love online translators

[Dragon Fogel]

Sponsor: Ixqualav. A divine thunderbird that watches over the Avior race and originally granted them the Branch of the Sky. At least, according to their legends.
Character Name: Allieva
Gender: Female
Race: Avior, a race of humanoid birds.
Post Colour: How's this?
Biography: When Allieva was young, it was discovered that she had the power to read the minds of those around her. This was taken as a sign from the gods, and she was trained to become the village shaman. When Allieva finally took the position, she was entrusted with the tribe's greatest treasure, the Branch of the Sky, a large carved stick with the power to control the weather. This is an important artifact for the Aviors, and they have long relied on it to ensure that rain, snow, and storms occur when needed, and to prevent harsh weather from lasting too long.
After serving as shaman for thirty years, Allieva was ready to pass the title onto a successor. She found a promising young Avior and trained him as her apprentice. But, once his training was completed, and moments before Allieva was to pass the Branch of the Sky on to him, she suddenly vanished, as did the precious artifact.
Description: Allieva's plumage is a bright red, with multicolored feathers around the edge. Having served as shaman for so long, Allieva is rather wise, but never having ventured beyond the Aviors' tree, she is unfamiliar with the ways of races other than her own. She tends to be commanding, being used to holding a leadership position, but also somewhat motherly.
Items/Abilities: Like most of her tribe, Allieva can fly. She also has the aforementioned ability to read minds. As for items, she carries the Branch of the Sky; she can wield it as a weapon, but its ability to control the weather is generally more useful.

Edit: For those not in the know, the basic concept for this character was devised by playing 20 Questions With a Coin.

[The Dr.]

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When I saw this topic at the front page, I thought somebody had bumped and I nearly shat myself at the thought I might have to use the same character twice.

Nice to see it's restarted, though.

[Doran]

Argh sorry, something's come up, I'm afraid I'll have to let my application drop

[Ixcalibur]

Sponsor: Lucy – a powerful demon who sees an opportunity to get rid of a foe. In demon form she looks like a huge black and red haystack, these are all razor-sharp spines.
Character Name: None; referred to as Purifier, though that is only a title.
Gender: Male
Race: Human
Post Colour: This
Biography: In the Purifier's world religion is important. Demon possessions are commonplace and unfortunately they are irreversible. Once a demon has infested a body the only option that remains is to kill the infected person, along with the demon it has infected. This is where the Purifiers come in. Brutally trained by the church Purifiers are righteous soldiers annihilating the demons that dare to walk upon the Earth. Purifiers are given to the church at birth and their rigorous training and the hunting of the demon possessed is the only life they ever know. They are not given names. Purifiers are not allowed to quit and those who try to do so or rebel are summarily executed to prevent them from ever being possessed by demons. The Purifier who is entered into the contest is particuarly accomplished.
Description: Purifier wears the traditional Purifier's uniform. This consists of lightweight priests robes and a featureless white mask. His head is shaved bald. Purifiers are righteous, they believe in doing what is right, completely disregarding their own feelings about a person or a situation. To the devout they are kind and considerate, to sinners they are cold, if not openly hostile.
Items/Abilities: Upon his back Purifier carries a large ornate golden battleaxe. It is mainly used for ceremonial public beheadings. Strapped to his waist he has a pair of golden daggers. He wears a pair of heavy golden cestuses. He is highly trained in combat with all known weapons from his world.

[Lord Paradise]

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I started a one-player Grand Battle but I never bothered to post the thread because he had already won (it was my dog)

That aside, this is a fine idea!

[Pinary]

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Mini-Grands are about experimentation, and that includes learning from mistakes. The original intro post will remain here so that people can learn from it. What did we learn from this failure? Settings requiring foreknowledge are risky- if the players don't know what's going on, it detracts from the fun. If you check with all the players and see if they're familiar with the source, it could perhaps work. But that's an experiment for another time.


[ spoiler]Mini-Grands are about experimentation and trying new things, so no MSPAFA round. Instead, I'm going to go with a 20 Questions with a Coin round. That could turn into a MSPAFA round if the coin wills it, but it could also do other things. Here we go!

1. Modern environment?
-Heads (Yes)
2. Real place?
-Tails (No)
3. Specific place?
-Heads (Yes)
4. Taken from existing fiction?
-Heads (Yes)
5. Sci-fi/fantasy?
-Heads (Yes)
6. Is it Stargate Command?
-Heads (Yes)
7. Is it occupied?
-Tails (No)
8. Does the gate work?
-Tails (No)
9. Any particular events already in motion?
-Heads (Yes)
10. Is the self-destruct active?
-Tails (No)
11. Is the base about to be destroyed?
-Tails (No)
12. Invaded?
-Tails (No)
13. Compromised?
-Tails (No)
14. ...Is the cleaning staff going to come through?
-Heads (Yes)
15. Ah. So the cleaning staff is going to come through and raise the alarm because there are unknown beings in the base?
-Heads (Yes)
16. Will the self-destruct then be activated, killing everyone simultaneously?
-Heads (Yes)
17. Well then. Anything else we need to know?
-Tails (No)
Right. Thanks, coin.
-Tails (Go stick your head in a pig.)
Hmph. Rude.

Well, you heard the coin. The first round takes place in Stargate Command. If you're not familiar with the Stargate series, maybe go watch a few episodes of SG-1. I'd suggest Zero Hour, if you can find it. It should give you a good sense of the base. If you need a more detailed explanation, drop me a PM and I'll fill you in.[ /spoiler]


The four beings awoke.

They found themselves together in a large, underground room, one wall dedicated to a large, stone ring. There were heavy, metal doors on either side of the room, and windows looking out from several levels on the wall behind them.

The ring's recessed section began to move, rotating inside the rest of the gate. It stopped, and one of the seven visible lights spaced evenly around it lit up. It began rotating the opposite direction, then stopped again. Seven times it did this, and on the final one, the gate opened. A huge rush of water flowed out into the room, then splashed back, sideways, into the circle.

A voice boomed out of it, flat and bored. "Attention subjects of experiment MG2801. I am the Operator. During this experiment, you will be placed in a series of different scenarios, and each individual test will conclude once one of you has been killed. You will then be taken to the next scenario, where you will repeat the process. This will continue until only one of you remains. That subject will be compensated for their time and returned home."

"There are four subjects in this experiment." The Operator listed them off, his voice monotonous. He made no attempt to vary his delivery.

"First, subject MG2801-1, known as Count Rez, is a Kaisithian. He has significant psychic abilities."

"Second, subject MG2801-2, known as Eveline Riveri, is a Human. She finds herself in love with every being she encounters."

"Third, subject MG2801-3, known as Allieva, is an Avior. She has the ability to read minds, and her staff can control the weather."

"Fourth, subject MG2801-4, known as Purifier, is a Human. He is a skilled demon-hunter, and he carries with him a variety of weapons."

"You will now be distributed to various locations in this base. You will find it impossible to leave. There is currently no-one but you in the base, but the cleaning crew will soon be coming through. If you are discovered, or if the cleaning crew does not return to the surface on time, the self-destruct will be activated, destroying this facility and everyone inside."

"Thank you for your participation. This device will be deactivated for the duration of the test. End of message."

The gate disengaged in a flash, and as their eyes cleared, the four subjects found themselves scattered around the base.

[Wojjan]

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Oh come on I know nothing of space or sci-fi series

[Ixcalibur]

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Okay so off I go to watch an episode from the eighth series of a show I have never seen and know practically nothing about. This is going to be fun.

[Wojjan]

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Okay so off I go to watch an episode from the eighth series of a show I have never seen and know practically nothing about. This is going to be fun.

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I know, right? High fives for the oblivious!

[Dragon Fogel]

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Well, basic details are, it's a military base, they have access to some alien technology, and we don't want to be spotted.

I think we can work with that.

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This post is now non-canon, and spoilered to reduce confusion.

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Allieva found herself in a small closet, a broom, mop, and bucket lying near, as well as a shelf of various cleaning chemicals.

The chemicals were unfamiliar to her, but the function of the mop and broom were clear enough. This "cleaning crew" would inevitably be entering this room, most likely before they began their rounds. She had concerns about this "experiment" she had apparently been entered into, but that would have to wait.

She opened the closet door and emerged in a hallway. Being used to the relative simplicity of Avior architecture, Allieva was somewhat taken aback at seeing such an advanced structure as a military base, but she could not let that stop her. Having no idea where to go, she focused. It was difficult to read the mind of someone who was too far away, especially without knowing exactly where they were, but it was possible. She searched for nearby minds, hoping to find a potential ally, or at least be warned of a potential enemy.

[Pinary]

Mini-Grands are about trying new things and learning from them. Not every experiment is a success- as humans, we all make mistakes. So we'll accept it, learn from it, and move on. If half the players have no clue what the setting is, I'm going chalk it up as a mistake. I'll rewrite the intro with a new setting when I get home from work or if I have enough time later. For now, just hang tight.

[Lankie]

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Blarg, I too know veeery little of Stargate.
I vaguely remember watching the movie, where they're like on an egyptian planet or something? Other than that, I know nothing

[Wojjan]

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Huuuuuge thank yous towards Pinary, for helping everyone learn from this little mistake!

[Pinary]

The four beings awoke.

They found themselves together in a smallish break room, decorated with a few motivational posters extolling the virtues of teamwork and ambition. There was a window over the counter, revealing the chugging, churning contraption that took up most of the building. Rows of glass bottles snaked through it at various stages of being filled, labelled, capped, and packaged. Even through the closed door, the constant clinking and rattling of bottles and machinery made it difficult to hear.

A speaker in the ceiling buzzed, and a voice droned out of it. It sounded almost bored as it went through its prepared speech.

"Attention subjects of experiment MG2801: I am the Operator. During this experiment, you will be placed in a series of different scenarios, and each individual test will conclude once one of you has been killed. You will then be taken to the next scenario, where you will repeat the process. This will continue until only one of you remains. That subject will be compensated for their time and returned home."

"There are four subjects in this experiment." The Operator listed them off, his voice monotonous. He made no attempt to vary his delivery.

"First, subject MG2801-1, known as Count Rez, is a Kaisithian. He has significant psychic abilities."

"Second, subject MG2801-2, known as Eveline Riveri, is a Human. She finds herself in love with every being she encounters."

"Third, subject MG2801-3, known as Allieva, is an Avior. She has the ability to read minds, and her staff can control the weather."

"Fourth, subject MG2801-4, known as Purifier, is a Human. He is a skilled demon-hunter, and he carries with him a variety of weapons."

"You will now be distributed to various locations in this building. You will find it impossible to leave. You are entirely alone in the building. Feel free to help yourself to one of the many beverages bottled here at Roberson & Co. Bottling."

"Thank you for your participation."

The four subjects looked up as the speaker buzzed off, and when they looked back down, they found themselves in an entirely different location, scattered around the facility with no other subjects in sight.

[Lankie]

Count Rez' eyes were filled with confusion as he attempted to comprehend what in all hell was going on. One minute he was about to be crushed by the destructive force of his God, the next he was in some kind of factory? And now in a completely different place in said factory?
"I-is this death?" The Kaisithian said, his voice filled with confusion and echoed with latent psychic power. "The afterlife...is a bottling factory?" The Count appeared to be in a substantially large room, a conveyer belt snaked round it, carrying full bottles of a substance Rez did not recognise. The conveyor belt ended next to a robotic arm carrying a box, the bottles would fall into the container and every so often, the arm would move to stack the box onto a second belt, the previous belt paused to allow the arm to move, before returning to the same routine. "No, no, no, this can't be right. That voice, that...Operator. He said I could return home! But only if I'm the last one aye?"
If he could, Count Rez would have smiled widely, instead choosing to squint his eyes in a delightful fashion. He unfurled his cloak with puppet body, the limbs impossibly thin with exaggerated feet and fists. "Well then! Let's make this quick!" He pointed to a nearby door and pointed it for effect; the door flies off its hinges in a stupendous manner, as if it was hit by a truck. "Who should die first?" The Count closed his eyes. focusing on the three individuals that were his opponents, ones thoughts was in a language Rez could not recognise, while the other was a lot more stronger than usual, no doubt the bird. The third had a more predictable string of thoughts in his head. He focused on the one nearest to him and made his way, hovering silently over the grey concrete floors.

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Edit: Jesus I should of spell checked this. Swapped it for a corrected version now.

[Dragon Fogel]

Allieva suddenly felt a strange sensation in her mind. She realized that someone was trying to look into her thoughts. She focused her mind to send a message back.

Thoughts are not to be read lightly.

It seemed effective. The sensation soon left her. Considering the introductions, she reasoned the intrusion was most likely the work of the Kaisithian, as the Operator had called him. She decided to seek him out.

Allieva spread her wings, and took to the air. She looked around at the machinery surrounding her, and wondered precisely what purpose it served - the Avior tribe had only simple tools and architecture. A large building such as this, filled with complex machinery, was beyond her understanding.

She was also unsure of how well the Branch of the Sky would work here. For the first time in her life, she could not see the sky at all. If she summoned a storm, would it work in here?

Allieva pushed those thoughts aside, and began focusing her mind as she flew. It was difficult for her to read minds over long distances, but as she drew closer, she would at least be able to sense the presence of another mind.

[Ixcalibur]

Purifer was already making mental notes. Purifiers only hunted down those who had been possessed by demons as a matter of principle, but the unspoken truth was that every sinner they saw was a target waiting to happen. To not have God in your heart made you vulnerable to demons and sooner or later if you did not embrace the Lord they would take you and then a Purifer was the only fate that you could hope for. Purifiers become quickly adept at spotting sinners and listing their various sins. The Observer for example; kidnapping, forced imprisonment and attempted murder by proxy. Until now the worst sin he'd known a person commit while still a person had been adultery. The penny dropped and Purifier realised that The Observer was demon-possessed. Nobody still human could possibly come up with such a sick and depraved idea. Maybe it was an actual demon, not just a demon possessed. That would certainly explain it's power.
But this was not helping. The demon had released three others into this strange metal place and if they were still people then Purifer had a duty to help them, and if they were not he had a duty to end them.

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This is now Purifiers colour because the old colour hurts my eyes. Also while the last round didn't exactly work out it inspired me to watch Stargate SG1 and I might continue to do so but from the start so I can understand what the hell is going on. Also the coin toss to decide that the cleaning crew was coming through was fantastic.

And yes I have changed the colour again because it went too close to Wojjan's colour. I am clever today.

[Lankie]

Rez entered what looked like the main complex once again. The sound of machinery was painfully loud, the Count cringed, if were to ever admit to a weakness, which he wouldn't, it would be that a Kaisithian's hearing is pretty sensitive, this level of sound only proved a mild discomfort however. The Count was a little surprised to receive a message back, though this was dulled as he remembered what the observer said; ‘subject MG2801-3, Allieva, ability to read minds'. “Ah, you must be Allieva I presume? You must forgive the intrusion, it's how I find people.”
Allieva felt the same sensation again, this time a voice chime din her head, it wasn't enough to throw her off balance. “And you must be this Count Rez.” She said as she scanned the floor for the fish. “I never thought I'd ever see someone with the same ability as mine.”
“Ah yes, it is a constant among my people.” Rez thought, as he glided across the floor, sliding his puppet hand across the machinery to part way a sea of dust. “Though I've never seen it in a different species. I must say I can definitely appreciate a fellow psychic, however inferior your power may be.”
Allieva continued to scout the floor, attempting to home in on the source of the mind reading. “Inferior?”
Just as she thought that a loud creaking managed to pierce the deafening machinery, followed by an amalgamation of breaking and smashing. A section of machinery had been ripped from the system and now floated impossibly in the air. It revealed the menacing Count, his beady eyes trained on the Avior above. “Oh yes. Most inferior indeed.”
Count Rez launched the chunk of metal towards Allieva, its speed comparable to being shot out of a cannon. Allieva drifted with elegance and haste from the flying scrap metal, it smashed into the wall with a symphony of thunderous noise, Rez grimaced at the sound, while returning his gaze at the still in flight Avior. “Why don't you come on down little girl! I'm sure we can have a civilised conversation!”
Allieva flew into readied position, hovering above and in front of the count, she prepared the Branch of the Sky. “I am no little girl.”
Count Rez' cackle permeated through Allieva's mind. “Ha! When I'm done with you that's all you will be!”

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I suppose it bears mentioning that a Kaisithian has a much larger lifespan than an average human, The Count is 208, hence the 'little girl' comment. Though I don't know how old Allieva is either so I'm willing to change it if it seems too stupid (like if Allieva turned out to be 500 or something