Chevaleresse

Lucine had shaken her head earlier, and with it that odd mechanicalness to her motions. Now, she somewhat tenderly poked at her wounds, looking a bit nervous. "Um, I'm Lucine Nadine Einzbern Yggdmillenia. . ." She hesitated for a moment. She wasn't entirely certain she should let these people - especially Vitor, as his magecraft seemed to be from the same world as hers even if his tech wasn't. The names Einzbern and Yggdmillenia would have both been fairly recognizable: Einzbern, the great house of alchemy and one of the three creators of the Holy Grail War, and Yggdmillenia, the house of outcasts and washouts. "Opal lets me use my magic to fight, but other than that I mostly make Mystic Codes." It was clear the girl wasn't saying everything; she wasn't exactly a practiced liar.

Hiroki nodded. She still felt. . . off. Afraid. It showed in her posture, the way she still glanced around, still huddled to herself ever so slightly. But not the way she was. "I just think, um, that if I have this chance to um, actually help, that I should. So people don't, um, have to keep dying." She tried to stand up a little straighter, regardless of how she really felt about continuing to fight. She'd heard once that bravery was still doing something even though you were afraid to. So that made her brave, right? Even if she still felt guilty. . . "And, um, thank you." It was hard for her to express how she felt about Ghost. It was odd; she didn't actually really know the woman. Hiroki still felt intensely grateful for her comfort, not that her words showed it well. She just. . . wasn't sure how to say it.

The woman took another deep breath, steadying herself. "Very well. I was never esteemed as a great storyteller, so you will have to bear with me." From the odd way her face contorted, it seemed as if she was attempting to make some sort of joke. Evidently, it wasn't funny to her, either. "I once lived in Japan, in a place called Gensokyo. I was not born there; it was built for beings like myself, when the mortal world determined that it no longer needed us." She shook her head; were it in another context, her expression made it clear that she would have expounded on this thing that she regarded as a great tragedy. "Many magical beings lived there; it was a refuge, for gods and youkai, and for those humans steeped in the ways of mysticism. Though I hold no fondness for the circumstances that brought me there, it was a truly special place, and I had a great many friends that lived there." Her eyes slowly drifted from Navin's, staring into the past. "Some of my descendants, too, diluted though their bloodline may have been. Though it has been. . . I do not remember how long, since I last bore a child. Not that it matters any more." Goddesses did not sniffle. If Navin heard something of the like, it must have come from someone else; his ears were obviously playing tricks on him. "I did not realize anything was wrong until the barrier came down. There were whispers about the Hakurei miko, but rumors are transient things, even in times and places where they suddenly gain power." Her head shook slightly, once. "I should have been more vigilant. As the barrier vanished, these. . . things appeared. Some of them, beyond description. Their passage was like the passage of the sage of gaps, but the rents they left in reality did not vanish. The others, like Hina. . . Like if a child dreamed a nightmare of the people I knew." It seemed that the ceiling might have had a leak. Surely it was the only explanation for the moisture Mitsurugi felt trailing down her cheek. "I tried to force them back. Many people, humans and youkai and Outsiders alike, rallied to me. Put their faith in me, that this goddess of calamity could destroy the invaders, as storms had destroyed those who had threatened the land in the past." "I could not." Mitsurugi swallowed, taking a shuddering breath. "I could not fight hard enough. I shattered the islands beneath me as I fought them, but I could not. Thousands and thousands of mortals fell, not to these Trespassers, but to the hurricanes that I brought, to the eruptions that split the earth at my call, but I could not." Her voice dropped to a pained whisper as she spoke this last. "That is my grief, that is my failure. They depended upon me to save them, and I could not." Her shoulders shook - it must have been some strange draft. That would be that strange noise, that sounded like sobbing; an errant breeze, wafting in from above. . . surely.

Hiroki took a step back, dabbing at her eyes with her sleeve. She stayed quiet for a few long moments; for once, not out of shyness or an unwillingness to display some sort of weakness. "I, um. . ." She wasn't sure how to answer. Did she want to stay here and keep killing people? Not particularly. She preferred her arena matches, where nobody got hurt. Except for Tai. And Adam, but he deserved it. And herself. . . Hiroki shook her head. It wasn't the same. No one had died there. No one ever even got hurt long-term. Except Adam. . . She had been indirectly responsible for that, too. There was more to it than that, though. "I, um, think I have to. I don't want, um, to keep fighting and . . . killing people . . ." her voice shrunk a bit at that, before she pushed herself forward ". . . but it would be worse if I didn't help. Most people don't, um, have the ability to help. I do." She took a deep breath. "And I'm going to be one of the gods, because I'm not going to lose to anyone when I get back home." A note of anxiety re-entered her voice, only to leave in the latter half of the statement. "And a, um, god has to be able, um, to deal with this. So, um, I'm going to keep going."

"I understand. It. . . is not exactly easy to avoid connecting things to. . . things that were; it is not your fault." She took a deep, slightly ragged breath at that; it almost physically hurt to refer to everything and everyone she had known as such (in fact, given that she was, at her core, made from essentially human emotions, it perhaps was a real pain for her.) A second breath, slightly steadier, and she spoke again. "I. . . how do I put this. I should tell you why I have had such. . . difficulty. But it is a sad story."

"Neat." Kusuke began to fairly quickly fill the bills into a few of his pockets. "And you guys wanted me to change. No, I'm not taking it all for myself, so don't bother freaking out," he said over his shoulder to the rest of the group. His attention returned to the individual speaking to them. "Glad to stop people from being cooked - you might want to track down the bug girl yourself, though. Dunno where she went off to." He leaned back, putting his hands in his pockets. "Anyway, I'm willing to hear you out."

It took a while for Hiroki to calm down. It felt like forever from her perspective, but also like it was over instantly. When Ghost pulled her close, she instinctively clung to the woman, her arms wrapping around her before she could really even process what she was doing. She let out all the strangeness and frustration and fear from the last few days, the monsters and the burned lands and the men that had created both. The way her life had been on the line and the way she'd had to end another in order to save herself and the others. Finally, her sobbing slowed and eventually trailed off into sniffles. "I'm, um . . . sorry. I was, um, just, scared and that fight was so horrible. . ."

". . . Is this for real right now? Like, seriously, this is what you're doing? Making up lies to tell to the FUCKING mind readers immediately? Just, please, seriously, don't talk if this is what you're going to do. Holy shit." If "doneness" was a physical object, it would probably be overflowing and bursting through the windows of the structure at the rate Kusuke was producing it. "I need a damn break. . . Anyway," Kusuke turned his rather tired and frustrated-looking gaze to the person who'd met his on his way in. "Hi. We helped beat up Lung. What'd you need?" he said simply.

"Hah! Justice triumphs again! Now, Cloudbreaker, it is finally your turn to have the privilege of falling before the chosen hero of the fiery goddess, Hoshiko the Righteous!" She somersaulted forward, but instead of coming up into a fancy pose, she was already aiming her longbow at the thunder mage. "TAKE THIS! HEAVENLY BREAKEERRRRRR!" B6, INTRODUCE LOUISE TO THE GODDESS'S POWERRRRR (aka longbow her)

hold

i'll be putting a sheet here someday

"I was letting off steam. Sue me. And I don't want to strip in the middle of a parking lot. I would also question your timing in asking me to reveal whatever secrets I might have, but suffice to say none of them are going to be anything anyone here would care about, let alone understand the significance of. Unless you consider bounty hunting for a living to be a secret." He sighed, trying to not wind himself up again. "Now can we just go in and be done, please? I would at least like my next screaming match to have air conditioning."

As they moved downward into the basement, Mitsu reached out, fingertips brushing against the wall, and deftly traced out a set of symbols almost faster than they eye could follow. They flashed faintly before vanishing from sight completely; subtly enough that Navin may not have noticed at all. To Empi, trying to follow down the stairs would be akin to forcing her way through a barrier of cellophane wrap; not exactly enough to keep her out, but enough to be irritating to break all the way through. The message was clear: "Leave." When they reached the bottom of the stairs, Mitsurugi continued to walk forward, in search of a place to sit, as she replied to Navin. "I am sorry for my behavior, Mhasalkar. It has been. . . so very difficult to keep myself centered in these times, to be honest."

"He did. Did you get the memo that you're not actually in charge? We're working together, last time I checked; I'm not your damned lackey, and you had better figure that out real quick. Don't pretend like you can actually tell me what to do - especially what to fuckin' wear. That's just unnecessary." What was this guy's plan? Some sort of weird establishment of dominance by making him change? Sure, the clothes would help him blend in more, but offering it as a sort of "do what I say or do what I say" choice wasn't exactly pleasing to the time traveler. "If you're that worried about us having too many people, then leave. Otherwise, can we get this over with?"

"Taking wounds. Estimated capacity for damage at 60%." Lucine didn't seem to flinch at the impact beyond what was physically necessary, though the wound itself seemed to slow her down a bit. Nevertheless, it seemed that whatever was controlling the girl at the moment deemed that the best option was to, in fact, continue running.

Kusuke waves at Harry with an expression of masked annoyance. "Hi. Ready?"

The goddess sighed heavily before nodding, her gaze still downturned. "I believe that would be helpful, yes. In a place like this, it is difficult to avoid whoever may be coming or going. . . and one can never know who might already be listening in." This last was said with a glance through her bangs, straight at Empi, before she closed her eyes in a long blink before turning toward the door. "This castle should have a basement, which should see little use at a time like this." She started to head out of the room, expecting Navin to follow; a staircase downward wasn't far away.

Hiroki made a small noise that might have been an attempt at words before seemingly accepting Ghost's invitation at face value. Whatever she had been trying to say was drowned as the floodgates holding her confused emotions shattered, the girl very quickly turning into a bawling mess. She blubbered mostly incoherently, trying to somehow put into words just how wrong it felt to do this - especially with the way her last action even resembling this ended. What it was like watching the man be seared to death by plasma launched from her own mech, and her HUD reacting in confusion before finally deciding to mark him as an inoperable mech. She didn't pull closer to Ghost, though, seemingly preferring to huddle to herself again in her distress.

Kusuke made a disgusted noise. "Just because you're a violent criminal doesn't mean everyone is. Someday. . ." He didn't finish the thought, simply turning around and heading back to the place he'd stashed his weapons. He was already cutting the timing of this way too close, and he shouldn't have shown up in the first place. Hookwolf wasn't exactly the kind of person he wanted to piss off at this point, either; that was just begging for bad things to happen. Kusuke collects his weapons and heads out as quickly as possible without using his Drive.

"Ecquis! You're okay! Come here you big dumb bastard, how dare you let yourself get separated from me? You're gonna be in so much trouble for that, ya know?" Despite her words, the woman's tone was nothing but affectionate as the wyvern moved up to her. She immediately began checking the flying beast over for wounds while reaching her hand over to scratch his favorite spot, on his neck just behind his head. The wyvern himself seemed rather pleased to see her, though true to character he didn't react much beyond nuzzling her once, hard enough that it would have knocked most people over.

"I. . ." She cleared her throat. "I don't, um, know, it's just. . . I didn't actually want to hurt anyone, and, um, then we got into this war and suddenly people were actually getting hurt and it wasn't just monsters that I was. . ." The girl swallowed, forcing back the tears that still started to leak from her eyes. "I've, um, never tried to, um, kill anyone, not for real -" the only time she had done anything that placed someone else's life in danger, she'd been reassured they wouldn't get hurt and an angry god still tried to tear the victim apart because of it "-and now. . ." The only thing that was stopping the girl from completely breaking down was the tone in Ghost's voice; it was oddly comforting to the mech user, for a reason she couldn't quite place.

"Saigai Mitsurugi," she said simply, bowing slightly with her greeting. Some sort of divinely-affiliated being. Some object of minor worship, perhaps, not yet transcended to full godhood? Or perhaps a being on the level of Toyosatomimi no Miko: not a god, but not a simple hermit either. Or, well, she was. . . Her expression grew increasingly forlorn as she tried to swerve around that thought. A part of her cursed herself; this was ridiculous, she couldn't continuously throw herself off of this ledge, this was entirely unfitting to her station. "I. . . apologize. You remind me slightly of someone I. . . once knew."

Mitsurugi shrugged slightly. It was an odd gesture, on her frame. "I've had my experiences with strangeness." She seemed to be about to continue when a familiar shadow fell across her face; she shook her head slightly, and addressed the newcomer. "You aren't interrupting anything of particular importance." Her expression cleared up as the distraction presented itself; namely, the question of why the girl seemed to look so suddenly nervous at meeting her gaze. "Whatever manner of supernatural being you believe me to be, I am not a hostile one; there is no reason to look at me with such fear." You would be better off fearing the man beside you. Certainly, he is not the most reliable of humans, to say the least.

Hiroki squeezed her eyes tight in one blink, before they opened back to being just a bit too wide. She nodded, unable to verbalize anything at the moment, at Ghost's question. The girl let go of her legs like a latch popping on a chest, and she slowly stood herself up, resisting the urge to lean on the woman she barely knew; she stumbled forward a bit in this process, as she wasn't quite short enough to stand up beneath this shelf. I wish Blink was here. Blink would know what to do. Or Kagari would do something weird so I didn't have to think about this. With this, the reality of her situation was starting to crash in around her; she was here, separated from what few friends she'd made in that tournament, in strange worlds - worlds that should have been wondrous with their scenery, their plant life, the fact that you could walk over the horizon and come back home safely, were they not painted with the flames of war - that she knew nothing of.

Myrdwyn rushed forward without an audible word - though the people nearby might have been able to hear some mostly-indistinct muttering under Myrdwyn's breath as she fumbled at the key she'd taken, jamming it into the door. P22, use key