Sutoratosu

Eh man, eh, don't worry bout it, shit happens to us all sometimes... besides, I'm pretty sure we've all had a bit of fun in the meantime, so no need to stress too much over the delay, es all good man, you'll get it up when ya can, and we'll still be here.

Lucille just stood there, silent as she tried to process the claim... she could see why there had been the resistance to tell her the first time. Quite a lot to swallow, even when she had come into the conversation already knowing there was something far greater than it appeared. "So you...and your siblings? You're... precursors then, the original...and yet..." She stopped, so abrupt it was obvious she intentionally cut the message off. Still, she could not help the doubts- something that had quite literally seen the dawn of this universe through it's own eyes, been worshiped as a deity, turned around and single handedly torn down that very same false religion centered around one of it's aspects, had given direct rise to at least two different races and probably had some hand in countless others, and established an entire branch of arcane practice and study. And yet, despite the whirling storm of a presence she felt lost within even now, there was still something... missing. Something... familiar. Something she had felt so many other times from others bearing far less raw power by comparison...things the General had been the very embodiment of through his entire life and even it's final moments at her hands. Dominion. Domination. Subjugation. Death and Destruction. Bloodlust. Feverpitch, A warcry that could never be sated... a desire for strife for the sake of strife alone. Avarice, Arrogance, so many things, so many countless, countless things... "Absolute Power corrupts absolutely." She could hear the Fox's voice echo through her mind even now, as if he were over her shoulder, watching. As if she were before his tree again, speaking right to him... "But before one can attain absolute power, they must find Partial Power. And Partial sows the seeds for Corruption. The lust for greater power is the water to those seeds, and the depraved means by which one is willing to get it, the soil. And as the tree grows, a path is carved through the order, and the balance is forsaken. Until all stands beneath the shadow of Despotic Madness. You are mortal child, just as I- for even the thousand years my kin enjoy are nothing in the grand scheme of things -and mortals are doomed to the temptation of this inglorious cycle, even some gods cannot resist it at times. Remember this, when one day I am gone and you are the one sitting here... for you've great power in you, from the moment I saw you, it flowed forth like a torrent. But that is the very reason why you are such a risk to yourself and those around you, why they despise you, fear you, for they feel it too, and they hate it, hate what they know you may well yet become. You ask me how to soften their hearts to you, as if there is some decree or declaration I can make to command their very souls, some spell to be cast to wipe it all away. There is no easy way towards their trust, young cub... but there is a way... and you alone are the only one who can walk it, no others can do it for you- "Never forget. Never stray...the abyss is too great for mortal minds to fathom..." she muttered it aloud rather than over the link, after so long in awkward silence, seemingly completely lost in whatever memory that flashed across the synapses of her mind... she had trained herself to defend against mental assault or someone using a link against her, but this was no assault, only her own lapse of concentration, and chances were the entirety of the fox's teachings from so long ago had been broadcast to Luna. The girl did nothing to even attempt to stop it, had practically forgotten what they were even talking about or who she was even talking to; Desp tried what little he could, his presence as an eavesdropper so painfully obvious as he tried to pull the girl out of it, only for the Beastheart to continue on with whatever experience she was locked in..."gaze into it, and it also gazes back upon you. Drink of it, and it consumes you..."

Hmmm...? Oh... yeah, I already saw Diviner's part of the update, I just wanted to know whether it was alright to complete the action and make mods to his Mech with... the current scene going on.

((Like, dem feels though. Damn...)) Sully- Threaten Asmodeus with death Visit the Diviner He stayed there for a few seconds after she left. Just watching the teleporter, as if he were expecting someone else to come hailing in next. Someone who never would. Not at this terminal, not at the one in the garage, not at any terminal. He turned and grabbed the chair from where it lay, shoving it back under the table...slowly... carefully. "I never wanna hear you say that type of shit about my sister again." it was quiet, so quiet Asmo would never have even caught it if they weren't bound to each other. "You hear me, you collection of over developed data and algorithms? I don't care how fucking valuable you've been to me all these years, if you ever...say such a thing about Tesla again, I will end any resemblance to anything you can call a life, the way that only I can... by the time I''m done, you won't even have enough sophistication to read the fucking output of a Potato-powered clock...I made you, built you from the ground up when I was a fucking kid. I can definitely do the same shit over again now..." The AI gave no response, only maintained his silence. He'd seen what happened to Revenant whenever the battle persona made the mistake of talking back at the wrong time. As irrational as Solomon was at the moment, he'd fucking do exactly what he was threatening, right here where he stood, and he wouldn't hesitate about it. "Come on..." The mechanic snarled, punching in his own location at the terminal before stepping forth. "We're heading to the diviner. Time to fix this bullshit with lasers and generators and defense buffs..." the moment the words had barely left his mouth, he was there, standing in the corner... only to be greeted by what was likely the strangest sight in his entire life. "Rocket Man... with some weird looking piece of fuckery on his head... projecting a hologram of a kid... having a full conversation..." "Da hell is going on here?" He called gruffly, stepping out of the terminal and towards whatever technomancy was unfolding before him, eyes glinting with a strangely inherent curiosity besides the darker undertones of his mood. He paused around half way, looking the strange girl up and down and pacing to get other angles, making mental notes of the projection quality before finally letting his gaze shift back and forth between the Diviner and his old opponent. "is this some new type of holovid tech or something? I thought Communication like this was supposed to be impossible while we're out here in the void..."

"Well it's not like I'm much into mindless gossip, if that's all you're worried about. I barely even tolerate the others only because there's a job to be done, and unlike some, I'm not ashamed to acknowledge that there are just some things I can't do entirely alone." She said back, instantly feeling the dreaded disappointment of Desperaux as the rodent squirmed against her grasp. Yup, he really had done it again, plugging himself into the background workings of a bond that didn't involve him...typical. Lucille didn't bother to kick him out though "And really, you would probably know even better than I do how well animals conceal secrets compared to people...other beings, their lips can loosened for the right amount of coin or leverage, a beast though... they tend to take it all to the grave. One's word actually means something where I come from, even if it's not even worth it's weight in gold out here. So...what are you then, if not some shape-shifting being named Bom?"

lols nice. anyway... this whole thing began as a joke between me and lexi on the server, but, screw it, I'ma make it a thing either way, so... Ladies, gents, non binary folks, I give you... the completed rendition of Ballad of Despereaux the theif:

Lucy & Co., The Mysterious Ms.Bom, Party Alley "Well, he wasn't just exaggerating when he said he was like a ghost..." She waited a few moments before she did anything. Just as evidenced with whatever the hell bom was, heightened natural instinct kept her quite aware of anything that might go bump in the night; heaven and hell spawn included well within that mix... though, generally speaking, none except the most powerful and oldest members of their ilk really provided anything stronger than a slight to moderate reaction of her senses, to the point where... well, one stops paying active attention to every alert after a while, simply out of practicalities sake. Instead of focusing on them, she mostly just took note and filed them away to the back of her mind unless they suddenly vanished or simply were too great in magnitude to ignore... magnitudes the likes of which she had only felt from Bom thus far. Which again brought up the question... Jesse's own presence had dampened considerably for her the instant he stepped through the wall, odd given that even if he did turn into an actual ghost or something, that shouldn't have mattered... unless whatever he did didn't actually involve moving in this plane alone- but whatever, Lucille didn't care about figuring out the how, all she needed was him to go far enough away... "There, he's not even a problem anymore" She said through the link, finally returning her weary gaze to the dog. "So...since none of my predecessors know anything about you and you're obviously old enough to... well, you're definitely old from what I sense, let's leave it at that... are you actually going to tell me what you even are now, or do I have to let Desperaux steal ancient books and tombs in every city this mission drags us to until we find the answer on our own?" Desperaux's ears immediately perked up at that, despite their communication seeming to be closed and Bora obviously oblivious, simply laying down in the corner out of boredom... the mouse had obviously still heard the message somehow, given his fervent squeaking begging Bom not to utter a single word about it...quiet enough that he thought Lucille wouldn't pick it up. He failed to take into account she easily had just as great a sense of hearing as he did, her hand rising up and holding his little maw shut from saying anything else. But eh, what could he say? Who could blame him; It was tough for a mouse to get books afterall, he was going to take whatever opportunity he got...

How does a being this old even panic? on second thought, no, she didn't even bother questioning it. Whatever happened, it seemed most of the terror had cleared now anyway. At least she got a solid grip on just how far back Bom dated from... too damn far. It gave her no surprise the sheer power and depth of the connection despite there being so little effort put forth from her- she'd already dealt in enough surprise the first time they'd met and she'd been so easily disarmed of verbal response. But regardless, there was still the matter of Jesse...the discussion with bom had barely taken a moment or two, she could easily pick up the conversation... "Look...Jesse" she sighed aloud, eyes still fixed on the dog. "It boils down to this: on the way here, a ship captain said we could come aboard without the entry fee... if I gave him Bora as a guard beast and spent the night with him... under him, or on top, or... something. I-I don't even want to think about it.... That was my first real attempt at trying to barter with you type of people... and what came of it was that I was regarded like some easy whore and a horny fool along his twenty equally foolish lackeys almost got mauled and triggered an investigation from the authorities... so I think the better alternative is if I just take what I need when I need it and avoid drawing any unnecessary attention to us, at least, any more than a girl riding a fully grown Dire Bear already gets." She turned, looking directly at him as she got to the point, eyes filled with a very obvious annoyance and frustration despite their usual lack of expression. Whether it was at Jesse or the experience with the captain though, was anyone's guess but her own. The repulsion accompanying the stare suggested more was in it for the Latter however... "Now... didn't you say you had information to collect? Well I'm blind; I wouldn't see anything even if I wanted to... so you're definitely not gonna find it by standing here and talking with me..."

Lucy & Co., Jesse, Bom- Hot damn, it's starting to look like a real party in this Random Ass Alley Way While the mouse continued to give his justification spiel, the girl and the bear found their attention drawn to black hound, more out of the emergence of the same presence they'd sensed earlier than anything else. Unlike the first time, Bora actually refrained from any aggression just yet though his gaze was still weary as it fell on the shapeshifter or Omni-Were or...whatever the hell she even was. "Despereaux..." The mouse gave an angered squeak, glaring up at her for the interruption. Only then did he too notice the hund, his tirade against Jesse cutting off immediately. All Bom got from Lucille was a raised brow as she literally barked at them in her human voice. She didn't know if the ancient being was just trying to confuse her or... just genuinely felt the need to imitate a dog's hailing. "What are you doing?" She asked through thought alone, attempting to form a connection between them... she had no real idea if it would work on one such as Bom, but... well, the empathic link had worked just fine for communicating with sentient beasts like Old Fox countless times before, and whatever she was, she claimed to be one with them, and just like before, all she detected was a dog... it was worth a shot. Especially with Jesse around, no point letting the boy who admitted to hunting for nothing but sport hear whatever they might say...

Psssst, Intsys, it was actually a Rotom that lived there and was exiled, not the charmander...he's still around the enclave somewhere...

OMFG you actually did put it up here lols XD

Sully "Well dayum, where have I been? They even got an entire show about this stuff?" "Uh...yeah. Don't worry about it, there wasn't really much else for me to do at the moment." He said. What with how Black Idol was always telling them to "be respectful" and "bow" and all that horse shit whenever they had an audience, it was kinda weird having a god, even a former one, make the very same prescribed gestures to him. Well, on the brightside, at least it was one who had a modicum of dignity and respect to them, decked out in a suit and everything, instead of some loud and obnoxious bloke like Swagalicious... "I'd help ya out a bit more if I could, really, I would... but I doubt there's much a mechanic can do for something like...this."

Sephtis The pig let out a heavy sigh, showing Septhtis the very scene he himself had borne witness to earlier that day and letting it play from start to end in his mind. "Because we lost" He answered solemnly. "Or... well, not really lost... look, the outcome wasn't favorable at all. At least the General and a few stragglers made it back safe, but even those who still adamantly uphold their support of the campaign can only call it a Pyrrhic Victory at best. And when the army goes off, looking like a bunch of champs and comes back in tatters, well... the folks who aren't too bust saying "I told you so" to anyone they can find are probably gonna be questioning just what the future holds for us all. That's just the way things work in the world these days, even here... hope comes along, people get excited, shit happens and it gets crushed in the crossfire. And then everyone despairs...so like I said... just don't go causing any trouble." It was nigh disturbing, how matter of factly he put it... like it was inevitable... Genis "Heh, alright Genis... " A coy little smile played on his face "you say you gotta nice house, let's see it eh? I'm sure it can't be that cramped, c'mon, lead the way." Of course, he knew full well he was more than likely about to be led to some little pitiful hobble cobbled from scrap and battered materials- the construction master and his crew hadn't been able to keep up with the recent influx of new folks, and as a result... well, one could just say, his job was made a bit more interesting getting people what they needed...he doubted this kid's situation would be any different... but hey, no need to hurt the boy's pride yet. The cruel bitch called life would do that soon enough, so Folie might as well spare him as much pain now as he could. Tres Freya led him out of the temple and down towards the docks, just as the map had illustrated in painstaking detail. It truly was amazing, just how accurate it was to the scaling; whoever had been in charge of the updating had to have been a psychic type... or just cursed with a horrible, horrible case of OCD. Either way, the flygon seemed to know the layout of the streets well, despite her career mostly confining her to dusty rooms and dustier tombs. It wasn't long before the two stood- or rather...floated more like -before the humble little abode. "This is it..." Freya said, her voice obviously distant from the task at hand. "All the furniture and possessions have been left inside since he was exiled... there are no keys or anything, but you shouldn't have any problems with thieves- their sprees have been alot fewer between ever since Strat increased the penalty for it... and the guard station isn't too far from here either, so your chances of being robbed in the night are slim and none. If you've nothing else you need assistance with, I'm afraid I need to get back to the library now." Arthur- Side Quest Accepted "Excellent boyo, excellent!" Jack called, giving the young turtle a makeshift salute...honestly a bit too crisp to just be a mere imitation of a human sailor. "Alright, now, knowing that fatty Tyrany, ya can probably find his lair in the slums. Just head through the gates and keep walking till things get shady and people don't bother to give ya the time of day, then ask around if anyone's been a bit of a dick lately, and I'm sure you'll hear his name dropped a few times... and if ya still need some help, search for either Folie, Lemmiwinks, or Jack- not me though boyo, I'm no street lord, that's for sure! -they'd probably be all too eager ta help ye out. Good luck sonny, bring us back some of his teeth too if ya can!" With that, Ishmael gave him a salute too, again far too crisp and practiced to be something picked up outside of actual service back in the day... Perhaps even more noteworthy than the crispness of their salutes though, was that the old man had just asked Arthur what was essentially a hero's task as if it were a mere fetch quest... yes, there would be plenty of fun in store for him. Plenty... ********* -Personal Side Quest Added: True Knight to E4's rescue

Sully "All the time" he answered. "Hell, it was the only thing she would eat. What do you mean 'like him' though? What, you mean... there are actually people who can find their way through that mess? Go out beyond a horizon and come back to the same place they actually left from instead of some random location in pride knows wh-" He stopped, thinking about it again for a bit more, the whole thing about the moss. Tesla had at times gone out a bit longer than she should've, there were times he'd gone after to see what had happened only to find she was nowhere in sight... but now that the woman pointed it out... Tesla had always come back from those trips, even when he couldn't find her, hadn't she? It had to have been over the horizon... "Son of a bitch..." he muttered, gripping the desk till his knuckles went white... a bitter chuckle escaped "You might be right... that makes it even worse then. She left me and the old man because she wanted to, I can't blame it on her getting lost somewhere anymore, not with that type of logic... great, just great..." "You shouldn't be so quick to judge, going by your own account of how adamant she was. If this Tesla had something she was that desperate to do, she probably didn't come back because she died tryi-" "No!" He snarled at the air, voicing hardening to dagger-like edge as just the smallest hint of Revenant's fury flooded through him and the chair was knocked over to the floor on the farthest side of the room before he even realized he had tossed it. He shoved the oncoming surge right back into the beast's prison immediately, doubling down on the mental restraints while he continued on his own... "You just shut the fuck up about that Asmo! Just stay out of it, it was before your damn time...." The AI accommodated, saying nothing more... for he knew where Sully's real anger was directed, and it was anywhere but him or the one who constantly kept flashing across his mind now. He did however, still make a point of reminding the man they weren't alone in the room. "Oh... shiiiiit. Uh...look, sorry about that..." he said to the former god, this time actually keeping his gaze on Seeker rather than turning away "My Co-pilot, he's a bit of a dick sometimes...chiming in where he shouldn't..."

Lucille, Despereaux, Jesse, still some random ass Alley Way... "Thanks... I guess." She said, rather begrudgingly. "And don't give me that, it's not my fault if you types place so much value on what can easily be dug up from the ground. I don't go doing this out of malice, it's just that none of you are willing to barter for anything other than this trivial thing you call currency from what I've seen...at least, not for anything that's within reason, that is." She still wanted the captain's blood, even now... Despereaux finally emerged from her hide garments, giving a loud series of squeaks in support as he shook his tiny paw at the boy- she was right, it wasn't his fault the owner had been dumb enough to leave his wares unattended on the side of a crowded street... as hard as books were to come by for him, when he saw an opportunity, he was gonna take it without shame or guilt, Lawful Good alignment be damned. Of course, the whole significance of his little speech was only audible to the likes of Lucille and Bora, all Jese probably heard was an incoherent rodent's banter... but damn it, that wasn't going to stop him from trying to tell the boy off anyway.

Sully "I see...don't be." he said, even more taciturn than usual. "I would tell ya where she is if I could. But not even I know where Tesla went or what she's doing right now. Haven't seen her in what, twelve, thirteen years maybe? She just... headed off into the grey one day, saying she had something to do, someone who needed her help, that it couldn't wait any longer... wouldn't say anything to me besides that. I told her to use the damn teleporter for whatever it was, or not to go, or to just forget about whatever it was, anything to keep her from going out there... it was stupid, it was suicide. But she wouldn't listen... said the Teleporter wouldn't do the job and that I didn't know what I was talking about... she just, kept on walking, left me behind; it's not like I had the power to stop her or drag her back or even help her with whatever she was doing. And that was it. That was the last I ever saw of her." He did finally look at her, those ember eyes an unreadable mask. He just as soon returned his gaze to the table. "Why did you think she might've been able to help you though? My sis, she was always... a little bit on the weird side, but tracking down lost people wasn't exactly among her skillsets, at least, not the ones I ever saw."

A scowl spread across the girl's face at the mere mention of his motives, a myriad of ambient noises beginning to gather around her in preparation, only to disperse back to whence they came as the boy seemed to do a heel-face-turn and dropped the subject. From his tone alone she knew he had figured out his mistake on his own... good that, because she wouldn't have had much issue treating him like the joking Were from earlier. "No, I'm fine..." She said, rather curtly as she turned and began walking away... though she paused. There was one thing he could be useful for..."You didn't notice anyone else following, did you; maybe a disgruntled merchant type or some guards? Are you the only one that noticed him?"

Sully "Tesla...how the hell would you have known her?" "Yeah..."He said gruffly, eyes glinting as memories flashed across the surface of his mind, ones that he hadn't touched in years. "Yeah... I've heard the name Watcher before. She mentioned it before, once..." He returned to the desk, bracing his palms against the hard surface with a glance back towards the woman. Asmodeus couldn't help but take notice of the sudden change in mood, though the mechanic shut him the fuck up before he could utter a single thing into his mind. "She didn't really go into much detail though, I don't know much else past just the alias. What, are you looking for him or something?"

Lucy, Jesse, some Random Alleyway "Damn..." She snarled at the sense of another's footsteps entering the outside corridor. The initial disdain faded at the hailing however- at least it was one of the others instead of some random follower or law enforcement come to collect on the theft. The boy calling himself Jesse, if she matched the voice to the scent correctly. Regardless, she hid the thing again, turning to the sound of him. "So having any luck finding some information about the killer? By the way before you answer that, have you seen a mouse carrying a shiny uhmm, thingamajig run pass this parts?" She raised an eyebrow at that "Is this supposed to be some sort of joke, asking if I've seen anything? You saw what my eyes are like, didn't you? And no... I haven't found anything about the killer, and I think you're wasting your time if you're out looking for it; if they're really as adept as Vermillio made them out to be, they probably wouldn't go flaunting their presence or leaving any loose traces before it's time..."

Lols, at least I got something to spring off of XD