Scene #4059: Bloody Usurpation 2 - Ongoing Investigation

Owner	Pose
Yuri Stinson	It had been well over a week, closer to two, since Setsuko had activated her aura in the city limits and been kindly asked to leave along with the rest of the visitors to the Kingdom of Silver. No one had been banned from re-entry, but the influx of Multiversal visitors and a perceived potential external threat had caused the kingdom to go on lockdown for a bit. After two weeks have passed, though, the city has prepared for itself a festival. Every street is decorated and lined with colorful paper and streamers. It's lit up with lamps and decorations that all seem to lead towards the main grounds of the palace and the tower at the center of the city. Save for the few people whose jobs were so vital to daily functioning that they could not take the day off, most of the city has packed itself into the grounds of the castle, milling about in packed crowds as people partake in festivities. On the massive grounds at the center of the city, there are booths with food and festival games, people are having a great time. At one side of the palace grounds, just at the base of the tower, there's a large dueling ring set up where the men are half-drunkenly challenging eachother with weapons as a man in golden armor watches on. Over towards the gardens, children are getting flowers put in their hair and being sent on their way to play games, many pretending to be famous Exalted Pilots from throughout creation. (Quite a few Vincents, more than a few Madelines, no one really wants to be Yuri) All in all, the festival is uproarious and, while people will be asked to check in with guards at the palace entrance, there's no much stopping anyone from getting into the crowd and having fun.
Kyra Hyral	A festival was a perfect place to get lost and wander around in for information gathering! Or, alternately, possibly sneaking into areas that the public normally are not allowed into. Today Kyra's going to take advantage of both of these things-and in this case, her invisible companion has not come with her. Not that the spirit form seemed to be entirely undetectable the last time Nero was with her. Though on the other hand, it's somewhat of a shame because Kyra does happen upon the dueling ring, which is an activity right up Nero's alley. Of course she would be all over the conquest of the dueling ring, even if half of the contestants are mostly drunk. Though as Kyra spies the guy in the armor, her thoughts drift back to the stories she heard from the children the last time she was here. Kyra will gladly submit her weapons for observation-meaning her various guns. She has three on her today: the Luna's Resolve, the Psyber Special, and her standard spring-loaded dart launcher. Ever since she picked up her matter manipulator, her ammo has been kept to a minimum on her person, the rest stored inside the device. She wanders a little but eventually strays towards the palace, looking to seek out that Princess specifically for what she plans to be a frank talk.
Setsuko Kaminagi	After the last time she was here, Setsuko is certain of a few things. One is that eyes will be on her at all times once she steps into the city. Another is that they have probably done some research into her using multiversal records. The last is that after the show last time, and especially after all the poking around people did, they are probably going to go to great pains to hide any signs of mistreatment from Multiversal eyes. So any investigating the demigod does will have to be even more... unconventional, than even her usual methods. For now, she is going by the rooftops. Simply striding along, hands in her pockets, on the edge of one roof. She can watch the city from here, listen to and look at people on the streets. Watching for any signs of abuse, any hints of 'trouble in paradise', anything of the sort. And then when she reaches the edge of the roof, she'll just hop to the next. She knows they're watching her, and she's not even trying to hide; just walking somewhere that gives her a good view of the city and its celebrants. Of course, her path is taking her towards the festival grounds, but she's in no rush. She'll get there in plenty of time.
Kutsuuko Shiratori	To say that the city looks different than last time is a bit of an understatement. Last Kutsuuko was here, the place had been drab to the point of bleak; depressingly utilitarian and sparse of any sign of culture. It might just be one day a year, but it seems that now everyone is trying to express the other several hundred days of Creation's bizarro calendar all at once with the size and magnitude of this festival. It's a little stunning for her, and then as she walks the streets, a little more comforting. The festival grounds are the end point of her beeline. Last time, she had been sure to secure a concrete, actionable objective; something guaranteed to get results, without waiting for an opening to present itself. A late genius strategist had something about a brilliant tactician making their own opportunities, hadn't they? She's dressed much the same as last time, though her more plain casual jacket has been swapped out for the iconic Fenrir special forces issue, with its gold plated buttons and buckles and the intricate embossing of the fearsome wolf's mask across the back. Her gear belt looks a little bulked up as well, though stripped of its more mundane and practical items in exchange for some props she plans to use later for a real show of smoke and mirrors. What's important is the scaffolding of the cherry red metal clamp securing her folded God Arc, the 'portable' block of the usual transport benches that lets her carry it as a piece of extremely heavy mechanical equipment rather than an obvious weapon. The dueling grounds are her objective, as is the man in gold stood across from them. Her interest is far from the drunken men tossing around their buddies in the ring. Not her troops, after all. Her crimson stare is completely unhidden, looking up and down the Princess' prized general as if she expects to see something insightful in his outward appearance, or at least something she hadn't already been told. All she'd really gotten from her research into the exalted is to expect that nothing is going to make sense anyways.
Staren	It seems strange to finally visit a city on /another/ world where wearing armor is seen as normal. People wouldn't give Staren a second look in Lazlo -- while it's a bit heavier and has robotic enhancements, in his home city suits like his own are in a legal grey area. There are only three mass-produced models in the same class, while there are by comparison dozens of body armors (and endless custom jobs) and 'robot power armors', and as a custom job his doesn't even look like one of the 'enhanced body armors' people would recognize... Ah, but that's academic today. He's wearing heavy armor, that's all, and he'll unload the missile racks and stick plugs in front of the beam annon barrels to 'peacebond' them or the like if such is required. Most of his guns are stored in extradimensional space inside his bag. He takes a few minutes to just take in the festival. So this is the world Yuri comes from, huh? On the surface, this city seems so nice... He may not always see eye-to-eye with Finna, but he's worked with her many times, so she's the first he looks to to ask, "So, do you notice anything sinister so far? It all looks so nice..."
Finna	Wine, women, and song! Well... in Finna's case, mead, men (usually) and mettle, because the first will turn everything else into disaster if you don't have some. After the previous time spent exploring, Finna's decided a different approach is in order! There will be no sneaking. She's not going to bother trying to stay out of sight. Nor is she going to disguise herself. She's got a pretty good read on what these people like to see and now... Now, she's going to see if they can put their money where their mouths are - so to speak. Which is why when she strolls towards the gates - not far from Staren, apparently! - she's... entirely herself. Although she's adopted local fashion, her mannerisms don't come off as ENTIRELY local. No, locals probably don't have skin of her pale shade - typical of lands bound in ice and snow with little sun. Locals aren't wreathed in faintly glimmering Moonsilver tattoos, and probably don't wear jewelry of carved bone and fangs and beads over their local wear. Finna's not even bothering to hide her Tell! In fact, it's on full display so that any schmoe can see it. But she saunters up to the guards. Well. they'll ever freak or be completely bewitched by the look she's got for them - before she's even in speaking distance anyone can easily TELL why she's here. Why, the festivities of course! She plants a hand on her hips and gives the guards this LOOK that just screams, 'hey boys and girls, got some more room in this party? Let's get to celebrating already!' No trouble in it at all. So yes. Through mastery of the subtlest twitches of skin and subconscious body language she comes off as incredibly harmless and friendly. And on the other... what the hell is she? Do these people know? Oh yes. Today's gonna be FUUUUUN. "Well, that's what we're here to see, isn't it?" She grins goofily at Staren, as if to just brush off his concerns. For now. Her tail's wagging up a storm!
Yuri Stinson	-Kyra- Everyone wants to see the Princess, Kyra! You're not alone in this! After all, judging by the crowds and the food on the palace grounds, she's likely the host of this city-wide festival. Thus it takes some wading through crowds to get over towards the Princess. The closer one gets to the entrance to the palace, the denser the crowds grow and the more packed people are. Over shoulders and between heads, she can catch glimpses of a throne placed directly in front of the palace entrance and in it sits the princess herself. She looks the same as she did last time, raven hair swishing around her as she smiles and waves to the people. There's a pretty long line to get to approach her, and those who do merely kiss her hand or shake it or have a short conversation with her. Princess Vitro seems pretty beloved. -Setsuko- There is still virtually no sign of mistreatment or unhappiness in the city. And despite her show she made earlier, guards don't do much than occasionally shout up to her that she should be careful up there. The city itself is pretty still tonight, most people at the main palace for the festival. One thing does stand out to her. There's a man walking towards the entrance of the city with a backpack on his back. He's the man she saw get fired just a couple weeks ago and told he could get processed at the palace and find a purpose. It looks like he's packed for a long journey and heading to the city gates. -Kutsuuko- Arriving at the dueling grounds isn't that hard. There's a crowd hanging around watching two large men, shirtless and swelling with brawn, box each other in the center of the arena. The crowd parts for her, so as not to get smacked by that massive bulk she's carrying on her back and to give her some space to maneuver. At the far end of the arena is that man. He's wearing gold platemail and probably stands around seven feet tall, if he's an inch. He has a huge mace next to him. Standing near him is a different figure. A smaller, five-foot tall blonde man with a waistcoat, large boots, and armor covering one arm. He has a much smaller weapon. Perhaps he's a squire of some sort? It's difficult to tell. The larger man seems to talk to him regularly, in an echoing and metal voice, asking him what he thinks of the two men in the arena. -Staren and Finna- Guards don't seem to stop Staren or Finna from proceeding into the city. However, Staren might get a brief request not to fire his weapons off in city limits, if he can avoid it. But they also thank him for having unloaded his missile racks and plugged his cannons. They're trying to give him a polite caution, but also thank him for the consideration he already thought to show. A couple guards look at Finna's swishing tail and talk amongst themselves. Then they step to the side and allow both her and Staren entrance into the festival itself, "Welcome to the Princess's Birthday Festival. Please enjoy yourselves. All the food and games are complimentary and the palace gardens are yours to explore." Almost immediately, groups of small children are hassling Staren. It's mostly 5 and 6 year old ranged children who want to scale his armor because it's big and also looks cool.
Setsuko Kaminagi	Setsuko's eyes dart back and forth briefly. The festival grounds are tempting, but at the same time, that's a face she recognizes... and one that might have some insight here. So she turns, and takes a lazy step off the rooftop, then adopts a brisk walking pace until she's caught up to him. "You seem to be planning a long trip, friend," she begins simply, matching his pace.
Kyra Hyral	Kyra peers around the side of the suuuuuper long line of people waiting to see the princess and makes a face. That looked like a lot of waiting for what's going to be very little time with the raven-haired woman. It didn't seem like a wise investment to wait around just to get a few probing words in. Clearly this avenue was a bit of a bust. Kyra leaves the line before more people can file in behind her, letting the Princess enjoy her popularity during the festival. Confused, Kyra wanders back over to the dueling ring and sits down, lazily watching as she thinks. Nobody in this kingdom looked unhappy nor was it very heinous in its execution of its day to day running. Everyone seemed productive, with something to do, and the Princess was beloved. It made no sense. There was no tyranny here. Maybe the one who put the note up on the SYndicate board was the real villain...? Lost in thought, she loses focus on the dueling and stares off into space.
Staren	Staren takes the caution jovially enough. "I really hope I don't need to, but... you don't survive as an adventurer by not being a little paranoid, right?" he replies with a smile. And then he's swarmed with children. He looks to Finna, "Help?"
Finna	Fuzzy ears quirk and swivel like radar dishes to catch the words of the guards! And what she hears gets a JOLT going through Finna's back. They... they're not terrified out of their wits. Her nose twitches, and she can't detect terror. They're not wetting themselves. What... does it mean? Do none of the signs of Lunar Exalted carry over into this strange alternate Creation? Or Wyld Mutations? Or even barbarian tribes? This open acceptance, combined with all the sincere festivities, are enough to stoke some ancient memories that have her eyes momentarily glazing over and feet slowing to a halt. But the sound of children laughing and Staren flailing snaps her out of it. She tuuuuuurns... shines one of the most natural-looking smiles she's ever shown him, and... ".... NOPE!" Whips out a camera and snaps a photo....
Kutsuuko Shiratori	Well that's considerate of them. It leaves Kutsuuko a little relieved that she won't have to push and shoulder. Helps her image. Reaching the ground of the crowd, she can finally get a good look at the enormous man in golden armour, and actually see his friend at all. Unless he's secretly the man she's looking for in an ironic twist of reputation, she feels as if she can ignore him for the time being. She lets the festivities continue a minute, perhaps allowing the men to wrap up their bout, or the other two to finish their conversation, while she busies herself with the holsters around her hips. A cylindrical, orange-banded black auto-injector slips out from its belt loop, and is then slammed into her thigh, letting off a brief, soda can hiss before she ditches it. A second one is slapped against the exact same spot, releasing another chemical payload into her bloodstream. A third goes into her opposite thigh, and then a fourth into her inner elbow, a fifth hitting her opposite arm, and then a sixth is jammed into the base of neck, Kutsuuko shivering briefly as it empties. There is no drug on Earth that is safe to take in that amount, but she keeps popping them like tic tacs anyways, stabbing herself a half dozen times as routinely as combing her hair. She then walks straight up to the innermost circle of the surrounding spectators, stepping three times forward out of place, and disengages the manual release on the storage scaffolding and lets fifty pounds of metal drop to the stones with an attention-grabbing clank. With her thickly gloved right hand on the hilt of her God Arc as it extends outwards, she flicks the colossal weapon down from over her shoulder like a gravity knife, extending the six foot long blade with a vicious mechanical buzz and strangely organic snap. She dramatically plants the Fervore configuration's blade three inches into the pathway at her feet, spraying up a cloud of molten sparks. "I am here for the champion, Golden Flicker. I am God Eating Scarlet Symphony, and I deliver a formal notice of challenge by arms."
Yuri Stinson	-Setsuko- "Oh hey! I remember you. I saw you at the uh... when I got fired a couple weeks back from my job. And then you got kicked out," He laughs a bit and then rubs the back of his head, looking towards her sheepishly. "Yeah, I'm leaving the city. The princess gave me enough food and some coin to get to Paragon or Gem and start up a new life there," He notes, indicating the big travelling pack on his back, "My family is staying in the city, which I think is better for them, until I can get set up where ever I wind up. Then they're coming to join me if they want." -Kyra- It would certainly appear that all is well, Kyra! Everyone seems happy and functioning. They all love their princess. It's a kingdom that is experiencing growth and harmony in all conceivable areas. "Hey are you okay?" The question comes from a brown-haired man wearing what looks to be a flight suit and carrying a revolver in a holster. He tilts his head, watching her with blue eyes, "You seem sorta out of it. Or lost." -Finna and Staren- "Thanks," One guard says, "We appreciate you being as considerate as you are. Feel free to relax and enjoy yourself while you're here. The princess will make sure everyone is safe." They assure to Staren, even while they laugh as he's swarmed with small kids wanting to play with him and his peculiar armor. Finna will manage to get some very nice pictures of Staren. Unfortunately, her Lunar nature and the fact she has a big tail, will also attract an equal measure of children trying to play with her swishing appendage and gather around her. -Kutsuuko- The crowd parts as Kutsuuko sets down her massive carried weapon. There's a few gasps and 'ooohs' as she draws the weapon. People aren't used to seeing weapons quite that fancy around here, and it's with some amount of awe that they all realized she just challenged Golden Flicker. They haven't gotten to see him fight in months. When the challenge is issued, the massive man steps forward and into the arena. Almost as soon as it's clear that he is, the other two men leave. Fast. His helmet turns to Kutsuuko and he echoes in a deep voice, "Many challenge Golden Flicker. Few can beat me." He swings the mace up, planting the head down at his feet, cracking the ground under it, "You may attempt it."
Setsuko Kaminagi	Setsuko gives the man a small smile in reply. "That was me, yes. Something of a misunderstanding, and a mistake on my part." He's fairly well-informed for a random citizen. So for now, she just listens to his explanation, curious. At the end, she asks, "I thought that anyone unable to find work would find some occupation under the Princess, here. Why are you leaving instead, if you don't mind my asking?" At the same time, she's reaching out with her senses; on the magical side, hers are fairly dim, but if something overt has been done to his food, she's hoping she'll be able to pick it up. On the slightly more mundane side? She has a bloodhound's nose. If there is more mundane poison there, she might be able to sniff it out. She's suspicious of this woman going 'here, go find another place to work and then take your family with you'.
Kyra Hyral	So lost in thought, Kyra actually misses seeing Kutsuuko-no, God Eating Scarlet Symphony-challenging Golden Flicker to a duel. She's just /that/ out of it at the moment but she's bound to notice shortly once she starts focusing again. 'About time' is her response to that, after all, because /someone/ had to do it! "Huh..?" Someone talking to her, on the other hand, shakes her out of her thoughts, in which she had once again been mentally reviewing the notice on the Syndicate board. The long name of the Princess of the Silver Kingdom did not seem to...match with what she had been seeing unless she hid her secrets really well. "..oh!" she looks to the man, immediately noticing the revolver, catching the flight suit soon after. Maybe an exalt? A Scan would tell for sure but just busting one out would be rather rude. Patient rights and all of that. "Just...thinking is all. It's a nice kingdom here, isn't it? Everyone seems very excited to celebrate the Princess's birthday. Sorry, I'm from out of town and...." she drifts off, looking distant. In her family, in her religion, birthdays were highly celebrated events, holidays unto themselves for the whole family. "I've just never seen a birthday festival like this. It's a little overwhelming."
Staren	Staren shows a hint of a smile as Finna's swarmed too, then tries to, slowly, walk into the festival away from the guard as he has an idea about how he can turn this into at least a /little/ social recon. And hey, if there is some secret, a child might not yet have ingrained how they can't talk about it yet. "Have you kids never seen armor like this before? I am from pretty far away, and it's been some time since I've seen a festival like this! You must really love your princess huh? What's she like?"
Finna	Being SWARMED BY KIDS gets Finna making all kinds of WEIRD FACES. Thankfully they're all warm, happy ones. Considering she's such a flighty, self-centered and impatient whatever most of the time... one might be surprised to see that her response to having kids grabbing at her tail is only a few shocked looks from some too-hard squeezes. Yeah, she tamps down on that hard. "Yeheegh!" Now smiling with a look that seems a bit distantly uncharacteristic of her - maybe, ALMOST, someone else's smile - she reaches down to ruffle heads of hair while her tail shows a previously undisplayed prehensile ability - and STRETCHES out to wrap up some of the kids in a big ball of TICKLING FLUFF. All while grinning fiendishly at Staren! "Well well. You kids are brave. Like my tail?! Eheheh." She turns the grin down their way. It's a weird look indeed. Because there's some pretty sharp teeth in the smile all of a sudden, yet a conspiratorial gleam in her eye. Like the kids are consorting with a monster they should have been warned about, yet the monster's cool with them instead of stealing them away in the night!
Kutsuuko Shiratori	Kutsuuko had heard all about the kids picking favourites with what sounded to be an extensive list of Exalted competitors. A little bit of research should hopefully blend in with the local culture, or at least help her pose as a similar person from another world, and thus make it easier to get that coveted entrance into the Princess' private operations room. Fortunately, Fervore can likely pass for an especially flashy grand daiklave here, if the dimensions still match up, and the divine energy stored within its, and her own, Oracle Cells should help shore up the second side of the illusion, at least to the casual observer. Setsuko will probably regret expanding her senses when Kutsuuko hefts the blade again, making it feel as if armageddon is going to happen on that ring instead of a competitive duel, but for the most part, it's one in a handful of steps she's taken to, at the very least, fool the crowd. That said, there go some comments over the tactical radio about how she thinks he looks more like a Golden Smasher than a Golden Flicker. He has the colour down, but she'd pictured someone a little less . . . built like a brick outhouse. Still, as she steps forward, moving click by click as her heels tap over the flagstones, she can't help but let a little ghost of that old vicious smile creep up onto her lips. It'd been a very long time since she'd actually fought another person, never mind one supposed to be so powerful. She barely notices as the other two make themselves scarce, settling in at a comfortable distance at what should be just out of reach of the golden-clad warrior's colossal mace. Both hands on the bisected grip of her God Arc, she snaps the blade up sharply as though it weighs fifty times less than what it does, turning the faintly curved edge outwards as she near instantly settles into a stance she has obviously trained to perfection despite its lack of obvious parallel; perhaps vaguely similar to a gasumi stance Setsuko again might be familiar with. "House deals. Hit me." she says, before quickly correcting herself. "I will allow the Princess' chosen to demonstrate his skill first. Hope that you win before I strike back."
Yuri Stinson	-Setsuko- "Well," The man seems slightly baffled that the woman has an interest in him. But he tells her openly, "I couldn't find replacement work. I went to the palace to get processed, they uh..." He seems to pause, remembering the situation, "Asked me some questions, I guess I wasn't interested in the position, so I chose to leave instead. That's pretty much all there is to it." There's no poison in his food, but the man himself smells faintly of an unknown chemical. He smells like a benzodiazepene and gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid. Or some derivative thereof. He looks at her, "All in all, I think it's a pretty okay deal. I didn't want what they offered, so they're helping me move." -Kyra- "It sure looks that way, doesn't it?" He remarks, hands falling into the pockets of his flight suit as he watches her, "People really love the Princess around here. It wasn't more than, oh..." He thinks on it, "Six or seven months ago that she took over when the King died. Married into leadership. Lucky, huh?" He seems to rock on his feet a bit, "A lot of people say she turned this Kingdom around. Homelessness vanished, borders expanded, the military grew. She overhauled this place quick. Made it a project of hers. Almost like... magic." He waves a hand mysteriously. "I agree the festival is a bit much, but she wants to spoil the people, I suppose, for bearing with her over the past half year." -Finna and Staren- "Yeeeeeah! THis party is the best!" Says one child to Staren. Another chimes in after, "Princess Vitri is super nice! She loves everyone!" And a third echoes, "Yeah! Yeah! She's great!" A girl adds, "And I hope I get to grow up to be pretty like her!" They seem to all have the same sentiment of loving the woman. "WAAAAH!" cries a child who gets grabbed by Finna's tail, flailing and trying to squirm free. When released, the young girl falls to the ground in a heap giggling. The children all seem fond of the woman, "Yeah! It's super cool! We've never seen one like it!" -Kutsuuko- The huge man rolls his shoulder and stares down the woman, "You are fairly bold to make such a request. Very well." He drags the mace around from his front to behind him, cutting a trench in the ground before charging in towards her. Despite the armor, he does move pretty well. Perhaps not superhumanly quick, but definitely above what a person in full plate should be doing. He swings the mace up over his head as he abruptly halts, transferring most of his momentum into the overhand swing so that it comes crashing down at the girl like a meteor. It seems she is definitely being taken seriously and he is engaging her as if she were an Exalt outside of her Warstrider.
Kyra Hyral	"It's a hard burden to shoulder, isn't it? Suddenly being thrust into leadership and having to make things work." Kyra relates, watching the brown-haired man. "But it sounds like she was really able to pull it off...that's rather rare, isn't it? The kingdom is very lucky." Kyra sounds a little resigned about that and a bit down, though the prosperity of the place is not quite the source. "You're a pilot." Kyra observes, "What sort of changes did she make to accomplish all of /that/ in such a short amount of time? Being charismatic can only get you so far. There had to have been some kind of plan, right?"
Setsuko Kaminagi	The pause leaves Setsuko curious. Having trouble remembering what went on? He 'guesses' he wasn't interested? That's strange. And on top of that, the faint chemical smell... it's got her attention. She doesn't have any sort of comprehensive knowledge of chemical compound names, but once upon a time she consulted the Union archives via the Ring of Philosophy's holographics, to familiarize herself with common drugs and poisons people might try to put in her food. This scent... it brings back some memories of that. She'll have to consult the archives again later. For now, she simply nods. "I see. Then best of luck. Be certain to keep in touch with your family." For now, the demigod will stop and veer off, as if returning to her business... but after he's gone about twenty paces, she stops herself, and turns around. A casual hop up to the rooftops, and she's using that unhurried pace again to shadow him from above and far back. She intends to watch him the entire way to the gate, and for some time after, just to make sure he's not ambushed after leaving the city.
Staren	Damn. Staren was really hoping they'd say something incriminating. On the other hand... what if this place really is on the up-and-up, and the anonymous mission poster is someone with more questionable motivations? It's not like Staren's never heard of a supernaturally powerful queen who rules her world bevolently and seems to be neigh-universally liked by her prosperous people. "Wow, everyone? That's quite a feat... I mean, I'm a pretty nice person, but I don't like /everyone/. What about mean or bad people she has to protect the kingdom... err, principality from?"
Kutsuuko Shiratori	"I've been told that a lot." Kutsuuko happily admits, letting some of the formality evaporate at the hook too obvious for her not to bite. She's never actually worn that much armour before (or any, really), but she has to imagine that it'd be a lot heavier than the guy is making it look. Seven feet tall or not, the rate at which he moves and the amount of metal on top of him don't seem to click in the God Eater's head. Regardless, he is an opponent, and a pretty legitimate one at that, and so she won't be taken off guard. Already raised high and forward, she swiftly angles her God Arc so that the haft of the mace comes crashing down over its flat with a minimum of movement on her part, immediately pushing the recoil absorbers in her boot heels to their limits and snapping the pair of flagstones under both of them. She won't be feeling so much as a twinge in her muscles from that blow for a good thirty minutes though; the ache can come once the bucketload of stims have worn off. Aside from looking dramatic however, the parry she had in mind also exposes Scarlet Symphony's retracted gun port to her enemy, and so with the click of a neural trigger, he is immediately blasted full on in the face with a fountain of incendiary energy, accelerating her weapon backwards out of the lock at the same time. She steps once with her backwards momentum, and then craters the ground under a heel a second time, swinging the massive blade around with the centrifugal force as well as her Oracle Cell derived strength, and turning it into a flaming ribbon of light as its circuits start to fire up; easily mistaken for flashier Essence driven powers, hopefully.
Finna	"Probably won't again for a loooong time." The foxgirl warns in a warm voice, barely holding down a laugh. The tail coils around a few other kids and lifts them right off their feet for some swinging antics, but she's gentle with them! "You kids are brave! Never heard about tatoos like these, have you?" She makes a show of pulling up a sleeve and showing her bared arm, her tattoos doing... odd things with the reflected lights of the palace. "Kids here, heh. Know all about Golden Flicker and lovely Vitri here! Even that nasty Dark Monster! What about the Moon? Parents never tell you about the moon?"
Yuri Stinson	-Kyra- The man in the flight suit quirks an eyebrow at Kyra, "It's not that surprising. She's fairly openly an Exalted. One of the Chosen of the Warstriders," He remarks, considering it and then looking over to her, "Would you consider the Kingdom lucky?" "Am I a pilot?" He considers, looking down at his flight suit, "Perhaps once. My machine is long gone. Someone else uses it now." He answers her, exhaling a bit of a sad sigh, "The princess? She overhauled economic policy, began expanding the borders, introduced her processing center. She effectively removed the lower class of society and merged it with the middle class." "Hey, I gotta go, but." He starts walking away from her towards a corner of the palace. Before reaching it, he recites a phrase Kyra may remember, "La plus belle des ruses du diable est de vous persuader qu'il n'existe pas." <The finest trick of the devil is to persuade you that he does not exist.> Then he rounds the corner. If she runs after him, even just a couple seconds later, she'll find that he's gone. -Setsuko- "Hey thanks, I appreciate it. Can I help you with anything before I go?" The man asks, though Setsuko seems to veer off and head her own way. Or at least, she's changing up her pace so he figures that she's totally fine with whatever she's doing. He hoists the backpack up across his shoulders and sets to walking again at a practiced pace. There's nobody following him, but he does seem to have to stop to ask guards a few times how to get to the exit. Particularly strange since he's supposedly lived here his whole life and should know it's layout. The guards are helpful enough, guiding him towards the exit and escorting him. They pat him on the back and seem perfectly patient. The weird thing Setsuko will notice is that each time a guard 'leaves' him, they keep an eye on him to make sure he makes it to the gate of the city. They wanna make sure he's actually leaving.
Yuri Stinson	-Staren and Finna- "Well duh. Obviously she doesn't like people that attack the Kingdom," One of the kids says, as if Staren were being stupid. It's that condescending kid tone. Another one elbows her, "Be nice to visitors!" And a third looks to Staren, "She still gives them a chance to stop! Or change their ways! Then she... I dunno... does queen-y things and takes care of her enemies!" They're kids, they have a low-level grasp of kingdom politics here. "Noooope, never seen that kind of stuff," One kid says regarding her tattoos, squirming a bit as her tail swings them around and then sets them down again. The child seems pretty enraptured with the scrawlign symbology on her arm, "Everyone knows about the Moon! She orbits around the Daystar at the center of the sphere! They're partner-ships!" -Kutsuuko- There's scraping and sparks as the mace slams down against her God Arc and an echoing screech of metal from the impact. There's a shower of sparks as it slides down the flat of the blade and again into the ground with an echoing impact and a spray of debris. He grunts with effort as it slams into the ground, the armored figure looking to find a gun port pointed right at him. There's an explosion of incendiary energy that sends him skidding back with scorch marks on his armor as her blade comes in with an incredible cleaving force that threatens to shear through armor and man alike, even in their mock duel. The man tries to drag his mace back into a defensive position. He won't make it in time, though. He was totally out-classed. HEAVENLY GUARDIAN DEFENSE The shorter man that was standing next to massive armored man is on the field in an instant. The tip of his thin-bladed rapier hooks under her blade and nimbly flicks it upwards, sending her strike in an upwards diagonal that sails right over the head of the giant man she was swinging at. The blonde man says, "That's quite enough, Flicker of Might." He hooks an arm under his stomach, "God Eating Scarlet Symphony. I am Golden Flicker of the Dawn's Rays. A pleasure to meet you." He bows formally.
Kyra Hyral	"Someone can still be an awful Exalted." Kyra points out, "You're fortunate to get a leader that did so much to improve the kingdom. There are so many ways things can go wrong." She falls silent, listening to him, her gaze softening when he admits that he /was/ a pilot. "...I'm sorry to hear that..." she murmurs. 'Effectively removed the lower class of society and merged it with the middle class' earns an eyebrow raise. The phrasing is just ambiguous enough to cause worry-the optimist would say the cause was because she uplifted the lower class. The pessimist would say she reduced the middle class. But the scientist in Kyra says 'not enough data about methods'. She had seen the result last time-people seemed to be appreciatively well-off. It takes a moment for the last line to process through the Translation Effect to cut through the French, but when Kyra hears it, she stiffens as a shiver travels down her spine. "-hey, wait, why did you say that!?" she cries out, chasing after him, only to find him completely vanished once she's rounded the corner. Her first reaction is to throw up a Scan of the immediate area. If he was a pilot, even a former one, then surely that would show up somehow in this world.
Kutsuuko Shiratori	There's a strange, slow-motion second where Kutsuuko perceives something wrong with this; where her hands verge upon faltering as she watches the decidedly impressive but not supernatural technique of the man who might seriously be in danger of being killed by her overestimation, or rather, her misinterpretation. It's when the little one blurrs onto the field, the one not actually dressed in all gold, that all the pieces snap into place, and she realizes the stupid half-truth bait she'd fallen for. "Oh son of a-" she exclaims as her blade is turned aside, going wide back over her head in a way that looks like it should yank her arms off, only for her to revolve gracefully with its path and abruptly wind up right back in the same stance she'd started with, 'resetting' her movement to zero in the blink of an eye. She has a name for that. Realizing her error, she has just enough self-restraint not to let her apologetic chagrin show, and instead shallowly bow back in more eastern fashion, slinging her weapon back over her shoulder. "My apologies. I misunderstood your companion and mistook him for you." Well it's only the truth. "Once I get started, I find it difficult to hold back. Thank you for honouring my selfish demands, but unfortunately I need you to lose if I want a task worthy of my abilities from the princess." Once again, she's battle ready, fully prepared to continue at a moment's notice; perhaps even eager to be fighting instead of forcing herself to push this fake, flowery, warrior's formality.
Finna	Finna ends up sighing inwardly at this. She was hoping for maybe some tales. Even a little perverse pleasure of being told about the monsters of the moon - even if these kids obviously have no idea she is one. Instead, nothing. Well, the kids' smiles are worth it. A surprising balm. She hasn't been hailed as the BEST THING EVER since the last time she went home to the Haslanti lands and played around with some hunters-in-training... There, she was practically worshipped on the spot. Which... Was a little awkward. This is better. Much better. Her expressions' REALLY weird right now. A smile full of the warm fuzzies, BEYOND odd for her. Almost a little like an exasperated mother surrounded by a litter of kids. Well she ain't no mom. So she shakes her head after a bit to clear it. "Ahaha! Of course. Meant the Moon Exalted. Moon machines! ... Been looking for one. No stories about those? Like how Flicker's famous here! ... Oh, maybe they don't exist..." She makes a pouty face. But the distant sound of fighting has caught her ears' attention. One of them SWIIIIIVELS fight-wards...
Setsuko Kaminagi	True to her word, Setsuko watches the man. She watches long after he has left the city, keeping a cautious eye on him and his surroundings both. Only when she's certain he's safe - or at the very least that the /city/ is not sending anyone to pursue - does she turn and head back. She means to take a look at the festival grounds now.
Staren	Staren rubs his head. "When's the last time this kingdom /had/ an enemy? How long has it been peaceful like this?" Staren's not sure if there's any information he can get here after all... Also, he's not sure how to tell the kids to go away without risking causing a scene.
Yuri Stinson	-Kyra- "All Exalted are awful by some metric. Even those that are most admired. The curse of the Exalt is that it will amplify that which makes you grand, but exacerbates that which makes men Mortal," He remarks, watching her carefully, "No Exalt is flawless. And past a point, they will lose their ability to understand any perspective aside from their own." Of course, when he's vanished around the corner and she uses a scan to try to find him, she'll find that she can take a scan of her immediate area. There's no sign of the man who was just around. Or at least, there's a LACK of the man who was just around. Her scan turns up that crazy thing that happens if you scan a plot boss and they ping back as all question marks. It's like that. But. She finds a briefcase with today's payment in gold, five bars for the people who came out. -Kutsuuko- Golden Flicker smiles at Kutsuuko, lifting his blade again, "Mm. I understand, but I do not intend to lose and tarnish my reputation as the Princess's most reliable. If you truly wish to find a task worthy of your abilities, I can grant you that request here and now. Few are the challenger who can even make it past Flicker of Strength and draw me to the field." As he shifts his stance, it's into a fencer's pose, the blade tipped forward and one arm curled behind his back as he waits for his opponent to come in towards him, "But I can also spare you a brief duel if you wish that as well. Nothing too destructive, as I'd hate to scare our spectators. Your skills are impressive, however." -Setsuko- No one actually is going after the man. He IS being allowed to leave and has no pursuers after him. Making her way back towards the grounds of the festival, Setsuko is greeted by several guards, "Welcome back!" "Please enjoy your time here!" and of course, "I hope we won't have a repeat of before! But it's nice to see you again!" She has a reputation, but no one is actually hostile towards her. -Finna And Staren- "Noooope," Says a child to Staren, "Never heard of moon machines." Lunar Exalts seem to be pretty rare. Perhaps because Lunars are a secretive lot. Perhaps because the three people that wrote this theme never really figured out how to work them in. It's truly a mystery why they're so obscure. Staren's question gets a child thinking. It's a big question to ask a small child, "Ah well... I think... we got some new land about a month ago. That counts, right?" They took over a nearby province about a month ago.
Kyra Hyral	"I've heard of this curse. So what you're saying is her reign has a time limit before things become...difficult." Kyra had to wonder about this. "How long has she been reigning again? And what is her fatal flaw supposed to be? Hmm." But beyond that, her scan, her cries for him to come back go unanswered. The ENEMY UNKNOWN reaction she receives from the Scan makes her balk. Either it was that man or it was something else here, something even WORSE. Kyra picks up the suitcase and peeks inside before rapidly closing it. She tucks it under an arm and returns to the dueling arrena where Golden Flicker is gearing up (or stalling) to fight Kutsuuko. She settles back down in her seat to watch them. "HALF THE SPECTATORS ARE DRUNK!" Kyra calls out, "THEY WON'T SCARE EASILY!"
Setsuko Kaminagi	"Thank you," is all Setsuko can say; the welcome is so warm as to be just a little bewildering. Of course, having seen the guards shepherd the man out the gate and then watch him like a /hawk/ to make sure he left, she's more certain than ever that she's being watched too, but it's still rather surprising even in light of that. She makes her way to the festival in continued puzzlement, choosing to linger on the outskirts of the crowd - and move to where she can specifically watch the Princess herself, if that's at all possible. She doesn't approach, though. Simply watches, knowing that the Princess already knows she's here.
Finna	"Sorry sorry, I've gotta go see the action! Maybe you wanna too. There's more awesome people around than just me." Finna gives the kids a playful wink, ruffles a few more heads after overcoming her first wave of 'BUH?' at that revelation... then just sort of slither-steps off, waving at them. And leaving Staren in the dust. She's headed for the fight zone...
Kutsuuko Shiratori	"Oh?" is temporarily Kutsuuko's only reply, obviously considering it. On one hand, she really does want to fight this guy. It's been a long time since she's been excited about anything like this, and she had really 'roided up in preparation, but at the same time, the entire point had been to get into the Queen's own meeting room and get spec-ops audience with the Princess. Trashing Golden Flicker here (or unthinkably, losing to him) has a non-zero chance of messing that up, and taking him at his word seems to be effectively 100. After a few moments contemplation, she wills herself to lower her 'daiklave'. "No, if you're offering to give me exactly what I want, then I will take it. If we are to settle who is truly the most powerful, I would have us do it without restraint. You've interested me enough that I don't think a friendly spar at a crowded festival will suffice; at least not with so many so close." In any case, it might be best to save the bulk of her capabilities for a confrontation with the princess. It could only disadvantage her to show more of her techniques than strictly necessary. "I will hold you to your world then, Princess Vitri's champion."
Staren	"That recently? Good thing it was resolved in time for this party, huh? Alright kids, you've had some fun, but shouldn't I get a chance to enjoy the festival too? ...Where are your parents? You should get back to them, they might be looking for you." Staren gently tries to break free of the children.
Yuri Stinson	-Kyra- Kyra isn't seated too long before one of the food servants comes over and offers her some fresh juice and a plate of meat, bread and cheese that she can partake in while she watches. The stands are a bit jam-packed, since people have been watching other people duke it out all day, but enough people clear aside to give her some room to sit! The food, if inspected, is not suspicious and perfectly edible. It's also very tasty. The juice is some sort of tart spring-summer crop that cleans the taste of the meat and makes the whole thing much lighter to consume. -Setsuko- Well, it works to Setsuko's favor that she left the city amicably the last time that she was told to. So no one holds a grudge. Plus she had explained her reasoning in a way that seemed to make sense, so it was a pretty amicable 'Please leave, you're making a scene'. It is still pretty weird, though. It's true. The Princess sits up in her seat a bit, sensing the familiar aura that alerted her once before. She makes sure to give Setsuko a bit of a friendly twiddling-of-her-fingers wave as the demigod settles in and mills along the outskirts of the crowd. She seems pleased that the woman came back. -Kutsuuko- The man smiles at her as he shifts his stance to a more relaxed one. He flourishes his sword and sheaths it again, looking quite happy to resolve the situation, "Ah. If that is what you wish. I shall have your name added to our list and you will be able to come into the palace and access my offices directly for work. It is an honor few can say they are eligible for." "Please give me a week or two to make the arrangements." -Staren and Finna- "Awww, alright," The kids start breaking off away from Staren and Finna, heading back into the crowds to find their parents and go tell them about the people they met. It's not long before they're out of sight and Staren will be able to look around the festival grounds. If Finna's dragging him along to the fight zone, they'll get there just in time to see Kutsuuko get granted her request and no much more action on that front. The huge golden armored man stands up and both he and Golden Flicker return to the outside of the ring. -General Wrapup- Kyra has your briefcase of gold, so you should probably collect your one-bar payment from her noodley mage arms at some point. Otherwise, there's no much of great event going on around here. It's a festival that's going to run late into the night with food and drink.
Setsuko Kaminagi	Setsuko's stay at the festival will last a short while longer. The Princess receives a faint arch of the eyebrow, a show of mild surprise at the greeting; then there is a polite bow of the head. Unless she sees anything in particular that catches her eye - or senses anything, for that matter, on the supernatural or battle side of things - she will turn to leave not long after. There's little more to be found out without a much longer stay than she can afford.