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Celes Chere     The party returns to Thamasa! This time there is no airship waiting for you once out of the Warpgate. Just the village, as well as Celes (and Terra? maybe Terra). Now that you aren't immediatly whisked away on a mission to crush other human beings, it's easier to slow down and see what state the so-called World of Ruin is in. It clearly suffered some sort of disaster that tainted nature into darker, sicker shades, but patches of verdant green rise here and there, especially as one closes in on the village. Rebuilding efforts have obviously been significant.

    Thamasa itself isn't a very large village. It mustn't house more than a thousand people (if that), with small rustic houses all surrounding a square where all the shops and larger buildings are. To the east, a forest, which hugs the village's side closely.

    Especially of note, as people enter through the western end, a few of the soldiers encountered last time can be found, helping build a new house. Deelel would recognize at least one of the men she talked to, and Genji the one he scared off his armor.

    To someone like N'raha, the world is nothing like theirs. Magic isn't abundant (but it IS present, in some quantity) and there's definitely traces of taint left in the air.

    Celes thanks everyone who shows one by one, at the very least, showing them towards the village. She says they're headed for the edge of the forest, and she's carrying the Crystal Sword Kyra retrieved for them last time.
Shin Tokuyama     "HI!" Shin practically shouts right in Celes's face, "Shin Tokuyama! Wandering Protagonist! Currently sans his tagalong Yandere because she's busy trying to make cup of noodles not be a sodium fueled assassination attempt by the Big Food Industry to kill people before they turn 40 and help the government not have to pay welfare checks to people in their old age due to death from heart attacks and shit!" Shin expositions to Celes and he bounces on the balls of his feet. He's wearing his backpack.

    "Did you get my report?!" He asks Celes a moment later, tagging along with her as she starts to head off, making sure to keep pace with her even as he asks her questions.
N'Raha     N'raha... soaks in the aether as he steps out of the portal. Or, what's left of it. It's something he does recognize though. The mess right after Dalamud fell. This is what it felt like after the Calamity.
    Shin's here along with Celes and the others it would seem... and he gives the wandering adventurer a wide berth. Better to be safe rather than sorry. He's not sure if there's still some sore feelings from the other man's side of things from that time in the Shroud.

    The Warrior of Light, though, just follows along quietly. This is a chane for him to see some of the other... what did Urangier call them? 'fate-entwined realities'.
Genji Shimada     Without the pall of a mission hanging overhead, it's easier for Genji to get a decent look around... and most of what he sees has the shinobi somber. "This world is..." he murmurs, trailing off. "...even someone who doesn't live here can tell something terrible has happened." The increasing patches of healthy green as they near the village are heartening, but it's still enough that the cyborg, so in tune with nature's beauty at ordinary times, is left far more somber than usual.

    But there's at least one thing that catches his attention on the way through the village, that manages to lift his spirits a bit.

    The former magitek pilot will find Genji calmly, steadily approaching him, without even the faintest hint of hostility. Once he's within a more conversational range, he brings up his hands... and presses fist into palm, bowing slightly at the waist. "It pleases me to see you here. I cannot stay long, but whatever led to this change in paths, you have made a good choice."

    Having offered that much, he moves on to Celes, giving her thanks a nod in response, and falling into step with the group.
William Pauwel     Will has basically no idea what magic smells like or feels like. His talents lie elsewhere, in places that those who still remember the daunting city of Vector might find disconcerting. After all, the Empire's attempted conquest of the world wasn't too long ago. If there is something he does recognize, though, it's a world of ruin. In some ways, this place reminds him a little bit of home! There's a certain sense of hope in the air, rising from the sorrow of loss and the obliteration of what once was.

    Not that Will is the type to dwell on that kind of thing. He's just here to finish what they'd started the last time. Something about that sword-- does it belong to someone around here? "So, where're we headed?" Sure, he'll find out soon enough, but it's a good enough conversation starter none-the-less.
Deelel Deelel arrives back to Thamasa and things were looking a bit better, she got a chance to look at the location. There were signs of life, there was also signs that a lot of work had gone into rebuiling the small villiage and there's seemingly enough here to keep anyone with any sort of useful skill busy, ot her happyness she does see one of the troops she talked to eariler it seems her words had notbeen in vain, she'll come up to them and wave.

"Greetings humans!"
Celes Chere     "Yes. Yes I did," Celes responds to Shin, in the flattest, most professional tone she can manage. Ancient teachings would have her instruct Shin on what a report should be, but she's trying not to be that soldier anymore. "It was informative and had for quality that it was a report, and it was filled." Not lying.

    "Raha! Glad you could come," she tells the catte, because she has questions for him later too. It's convenient.

    Genji gets a nod, and her voice drops a few levels. "Something did, yes. A man sought to weaponize magic. Another used it to make the world kneel. Warnings from ages past weren't heeded. Now we're rebuilding as best as we can."

    The soldiers helping build a house take a short break to greet Genji and Deelel, but admittedly don't have much to say. They just admit they were tired of fighting anyway, and realized the Empire'll never be a thing again. They may as well do what a lot of other soldiers did and focus on rebuilding the world, not the Empire.

    "The forest," she tells William, pointing towards the far eastern edge of the village. "There's a clearing. I could have returned the sword earlier, but I thought it'd be police to wait for all of you, since you retrieved it, not me."

    And indeed that is where the party ends up, after a few minutes of walking. A clearing through the trees, with a large mound of stone, and a grave in front of it. The grave reads 'GENERAL LEO CRISTOPHE', and approaching it, Celes sets the Crystal Sword back into the stones behind it.

    "I'm sorry I made you go through all that for this. Leo was a model for both myself and Terra, though she didn't get to know him very well. He stood against the malice rising within the Empire when it reached its peak, and for it was killed."
N'Raha     Raha smiles softly at Celes, and nods a bit. "Thanks, I figured I should return the favor and come see... what you were about."
    He goes quiet at the brief ceremony though, and mmmmhs at mention of 'The Empire'. More intersections. Curious. But he can at least appreciate what's going on here. A moment, and the catman gets to a knee, lowering his head. His ears flutter back a bit in thought, as he closes his eyes and offers up some quiet words under his breath.
Genji Shimada     "You have no apologies to make," Genji replies, his tone soft; now that he's seen the grave, he understands all too well. "If you believe that he was a man worth the effort to honor, then I am glad to have helped. If he was the type to take a stand for justice, even against his own comrades..."

    He looks around for a moment, and then in a slow, practiced movement, balances on one foot, lowers himself to the ground, and enters into a meditative position, calm and still. "Would you be willing to tell us about him? I would like to hear it."
Shin Tokuyama     Shin gives Celes a long stare in the eyes, "Awesome."

    He hands her a business card, "If you're ever looking to play a Kuudere in a strange romance dodecahedron, give me a call. I go on adventures a lot."

    The business card he hands her literally says:

                                 Shin Tokuyama                                  
                             Wandering Protagonist                              
                                 +81-424-609754                                
Celes Chere     "It's appreciated," Celes answers N'raha, grateful.

    "I wouldn't know where to start," she answers Genji honestly, thinking. "Most would hold against him his blind faith in the Empire. For years, like me, he couldn't see the harm we were causing the world. He upheld high standards, and surely believed the emperor was a kind man vying for peace, and that it was all for the best. He was a warrior of incredible talent. He never needed magic to do what others struggled to do with magic."

    She looks down a little bit, averting her eyes from the party. "It was in this very village he made his stand. Kefka, another general of a sort, was going to throw the world into a war with the Espers openly and without remorse. Leo tried to fight him, but..." Well, obvious results.

    "He died trying to better the Empire. His only fault was being too loyal to an emperor he didn't know well enough. A man most of us didn't know well enough."

    She stops, to take Shin's card. She seems puzzled at what it reads, but accepts it nonetheless. "I... see. I don't know what a Kuudere is, but you should know I'm already..." She does not complete the sentence. Perhaps because she's still uncomfortable saying those things. Interpret it how you want, Shin.
Shin Tokuyama     "Oh! Psh, nah, nevermind! Just call me if you need a kung fu hero, then. I don't do NTR subplots! They're the height of disrespecting women!" Shin waves his hand rapidly and walks away from Celes, "In that case, keep the card and you can call me next time you need someone to bust heads for you!"

    He fishes around in his backpack and pulls out a bottle of Pocari Sweat, cracking the sports drink open and chugging from it several times before he continues walking.
Genji Shimada     Genji listens, his demeanor attentive, his voice silent. There is little movement, until Celes finishes her tale; then, he turns his head slightly, giving the impression of looking in her direction. "I would call such people short-sighted. It sounds as if his faith was not 'blind' at all. He was merely an idealist. And when he saw mistakes in his beloved country, he hoped to fix them. That requires a courage and a conviction that few are ever capable of. I am sad to not have known him."

    Then, that head turns towards Shin.

    "Do you have any more of those? I can pay you back."
William Pauwel The sword was--
...

    Will's expression falters. The normally exuberant Chaser seems taken aback by... By the fact that they were returning a dead man's sword? Perhaps. But it goes further than that. For a while, he falls silent, plucking his hat off his head and pressing it solemnly against his chest. The gunner's expression is a complicated one-- somewhere before mournful, empathetic and grateful.

Only after an appropriately lengthy period does he shove his hat back ontop of his head and look to the others.

    "He was a pretty important guy, huh? This General Leo." Will shakes his head just a little, glancing meaningfully over to the grave. "Sorry. Maybe that's a bit understatin' things. I doubt y'all would've buried him here like this, would've gone so far to take his sword back, iff'n he wasn't someone you really thought highly of."

"How're they doing, now? The old Empire, I mean. Is everything... Going okay, outside of the occasional men in walking armor?"
N'Raha     There's a sigh from Raha, as he hears Shin... being Shin. Oh well.
    Raha rises up from his crouch, and turns to watch the circus unfold. Senji gets a nod as well, though, he murmurs back. "Leaders are only as good as those who follow them, and sometimes that's debateable when it comes to the military." His ears fold back a bit, as he grouses quietly, but... well. This isn't really the time for that, Raha.
Shin Tokuyama     Shin holds out another card towards Genji, "Sure, here. I have a few left. I might go print some more up the next time I get paid. I do a lot of Sidequests for people, but I can also grind my profession scores if you need me to."
Genji Shimada     "...I meant the drink," Genji replies blandly. "I haven't had a Pocari in ages."

    Though he does take the card.
Shin Tokuyama     "OH!" Shin says in realization before fishing around in his backpack and taking out another bottle. He hands it over towards Genji, "They're great. I stock up any time I go back to Akiba, since it's a pain to find them outside of Japan."
Genji Shimada     Genji reaches out to take the bottle, responding by passing over a handful of yen coins from... where did he get those? Huh.

    Then he politely turns away from the group.

    There's a soft hiss, and both the top and bottom halves of his faceplate disengage; he reaches up to remove the latter, holding it with one hand while he takes a drink with the other. Huh.
Celes Chere     "N... T... R?" Celes looks even more confused. She obviously has no idea what Shin is talking about, and takes a few seconds just to stop standing there looking flabbergasted.

    She mostly snaps out of it to give Genji a nod. "Many of us wish we could have known him better. Even though I worked alongside him for so long, it still felt like we were strangers when he passed." The answer is for William too, but his question prompts more explanations.

    "The Empire is no more. Kefka saw to it. He destroyed the world with impunity, the Empire, the Returners, random villages he didn't like the look of. The remnants of the Empire are divided. In no state to do anything. Magitek is falling apart with almost no one to repair it, and it's for the best."

    "Some of the soldiers, loyal to Leo and myself, opted to rebuild the world and make peace with it. Purists are trying to rebuild the Empire. And surely, Kefka must still have power-mad followers hiding, well past his death."

    She nods to N'raha, finally, lowering her head again. "I tried to be a good general. It took me years to notice what was going on under my nose. I'd have been executed if Terra's friends," she says in an odd tone, perhaps hiding the truth, "hadn't saved me. I always wondered if the emperor was a good man at some point too, or if he shared Kefka's lust for power since the beginning."
Deelel Deelel does take time to talk to them and she notices them on a well earned break and she grins a bit more. She d9oes explain she does understand it can be hard to change one's function but that is the power of humans, they can do that with more ease than her people ever could. She seems to be pretyt happy talking with them for a bit once htier break ends she's going to move on to find out about General Leo, given he was an imporant man and she wads strting to get almot like Tron is seen on her home world.

"It's all right, no I get it, it would be like ... to use an earth term? Someone finding Excalibur or Grass Cutter with ill intent for it, Celes."
Celes Chere     Celes glances at Deelel, then at the sword hanging from her waist. It's sheathed, but easy to tell it's no common sword. "What about Excalibur, now? We found it on the corpse of the Goddess of magic, though I'd hardly say killing Kefka was ill intent."
N'Raha     A sigh from Raha as he listens to all of that, and then he looks up to the sky, that broken, off-color sky, hands on his hips. "For our part, the Garlean Empire invaded Eorzea in order to try and capture the primals, and then one of their generals dropped the moon on the continent. Only it wasn't a moon, it was a prison for an Elder Primal. Bahamut."

    He waves a bit at the World of Ruin in general. "this is what we were like for a long while."
William Pauwel     "I see. That's too bad," Will sighs, rubbing awkwardly at the nape of his neck. "I don't know what it'd be like, to lose a country, a home. I've heard stories of it happening, but we've been pretty fortuante. The people here've... Suffered a lot. It must be like how things were back when they collapsed for the first time, back home."

There's a beat.

    "I can't say about your emperor, but y'all keep saying that it's a good thing for this magitek to deteriorate so bad. Back home, that kind of thing ain't allowed to happen lightly, the loss of knowledge." He shakes his head, then. "What's wrong about it? Is it just 'cause the Empire used it?"
Deelel Deelel says "No I mean will ill intent to use the weapon for ends that would lead to more suffering. Excalibur appers in many lengends on a planet called earth Belong to a Legendary and sometimes mythical king. It also seems to be very wide spread in the multiverse as a name for a sword of note it seems." Deelel looks so /darn/ sheepish at this as she looks to Celes.
Celes Chere     As N'raha explains something, Celes seems to regain her more professional demeanor, turning towards him. "To... capture the Primals? Was it to power Magitek, too?" Oh, hey, now people who wanted to know have their answer on what powers Magitek, and why it's not being repaired anymore.

    So strange their worlds have such similar broad strokes, though.

    William presses on the question, and Celes provides the short answer: "It is as Raha says. The Empire imprisoned Espers and drained them of magic. Magic which was then used to power Magitek creations of all sorts. Humans are not born with magic here. For the Empire, having war machines capable of it was the tactical advantage they needed to conquer the world. The Espers are free now, and so Magitek can't be repaired. It'd be better for the world if the technology was forgotten altogether."

    A nod to Deelel afterwards. "I see. There's not much of a legend for Excalibur here. It's a very good sword, and I like it, but that's about it."
N'Raha     Raha's eyebrows raise at Celes, and he... blinks a few times... "...Something like that, yeah. Though, it's the Imperials who don't have magic in my world. Garlemand is bereft of it, so they're forced to use magitek to compensate. Eorzeans are born with it, and it... it scares the Imperials. A lot. They call us barbarians and such for it."

    "What's an Excalubur?" Raha can't even pronounce it right as he looks to Deelel and Celes.
William Pauwel     Will visibly winces. "Oh. Yeah that'd do it. Can't exactly fault y'all for something like that. I reckon I'd break down any machine that'd keep somethin' trapped just to keep workin' too, 'less there weren't any choice otherwise." He shrugs, then, "Guess folks'll just have to get by with regular old not-magi-tech, eh?"
Genji Shimada     There's a soft hiss as Genji's faceplate is replaced and re-sealed. He turns around, and says, "Trapping entities to fuel a system against their will... I believe I've already made my sentiments on such things... crystal clear."
Celes Chere     Celes nods to Will. "Luckily, the Empire didn't just thrive on Magitek. It had technology long before. We know a friend whose castle can submerge and travel underground." That was odd to say. Friend, not the castle part. "We've been doing our best to salvage the good technology from the Empire's remains and get it where it can do the most good, though many towns already had things like electricity."

    Since N'raha is curious, Celes unsheathes her sword. The blade is golden, curvy like a kris, but with a sword's length. It shines slightly with golden and white light. "This is Excalibur. We found it on our way up Kefka's Tower, when we struck down the Goddess. It's not as impressive as the magical sword Terra has." The Atma Weapon is kind of in a class of its own.

    Genji brings up a point that makes Celes give him a nod. "Now you see why I wanted those ruins destroyed so badly. And why I grew distrustful of Staren and his want to pick apart the technology. I have misjudged him, and need to apologize to him, but after seeing this happen once, I don't want to see it again happen."
Deelel Deelel Says "Fair enough in some worlds it's a blade that could level an army, a divine weapon given to a worthy King or Knight. It's legend does carry a lot of weight on some cultures and it's a famour sword on many worlds N'rasha. DOesn't seem like it's on your's from the sounds of it."
William Pauwel     "Well, just let me know if y'all need any help," Will offers at the mention of the Returners' technology reclaimation projects. "That's kind of my forte, after all! Just point me in the direction what may still be useful where, and I'll do whatever I can to get it taken apart and put back together again."

"S' good that y'all have the basics in places, at least," he says, then. "Rewiring a new electrical grid is kind of a big project."
N'Raha     The sword gets an ooooooh from N'raha as he looks at it, with some sudden weapon envy. "Hnnn. Wish my axes were as fancy as that. I'm... well. You do manage to find some fancy axes in dark places, but nothing like that." MY AXES DON'T GLOW WHY DON'T MY AXES GLOW? :( :( :(

    Though Raha gets all of the explanations, and then sits down on his haunches a bit, tail swishing. "I... I had a similar interaction with Mr. Staren. He wanted to try and set up... a magitech system to clean the Aether of the Shroud. And then got rather indignant and called us all savages when we tried to tell him how that was a bad idea."
    Raha's ears flatten. "The boy is smart, but... he doesn't listen well."
Celes Chere     "I see. I'll ensure I don't disrespect the legenda, then. It may not be the same weapon but that's no excuse to do so," Celes answers Deelel, sheathing Excalibur again. She laughs, the first time in weeks, at N'raha's plight. "I'm sure you'll find a weapon of your own eventually, don't worry." Though her mood falls right back down at the topic shift, which she decides to leave be to reply to William instead.

    "I can get you in touch with those taking care of it. They're always looking for more hands on deck. State of the world, really..." But really, she shouldn't be so down. Things are looking better now than they were a year ago.

    "Even Shin could find a lot of work here. There are many monsters in the wild, and between rebuilding efforts, trying to cultive the earth again, cleaning up and every other task, there's a shortage of soldiers to keep them at bay. The Empire wasn't without faults, but at least they helped keep monsters in check." In a way, anyway.

    In other ways it's probably true all the Magitek experiments empowered the wildlife with magic. That's pretty bad for ten different reasons, one of them being 'dinosaurs that can cast magic'.
Staren     'Small village surrounded by recovering nature' is pretty familiar surroundings to Staren -- there are a lot of villages about this size around Lazlo. He blends into the background for awhile, nodding sadly as General Leo's legacy is explained.

    He makes a soft grunting sound as N'raha mentions the Garlean empire dropped a moon on the planet. Drat, and they sounded like such reasonable folk before!

    rThen again, so was this Empire at one point.

    He steps forward after Celes mentions him. "Apology accepted... both our hearts are in the right place, but it seems we come from somewhat different sets of experience and knowledge. If you don't mind my asking, though, what is an esper, and what does it have to do with an AI deciding to lock its creators in an eternal prison in a misguided effort to protect them?"
Celes Chere     "An Esper is what many of you might refer to as a god of magic. They are people born in another world, where magic is so commonplace it's second nature to them. They do tend to have elemental affinities, but their main trait is just being powerful, magic-capable beings."

    She trails off a bit, trying to think of how to explain it to Staren. "The Empire kept Espers trapped in their Magitek factories. They were denied death, being constantly used as a source of fuel and power. You might say my powers were made especially to combat and capture them with minimum fuss. I just don't like the idea of people trapped like that. Whether it's an empire or an AI doing it, keeping people locked like that, using them as power sources, I won't have it. There's nothing else to it. It's just too similar for me."
N'Raha     Raha... has moved to properly sit like Genji, cross legged, at least, and looks down from the gravesite and into the village itself. Those ears are flicking as the Miqo'te slides deep into thought, listening for now.
Staren     Staren ohs. "So that's why some people thought the trapped souls might be used as power sources..." he nods a little, stroking his chin, then shakes his head. "I don't think that's what was going on in this case. I think we were dealing with an overzealous caretaker who locked its creator civilization up to 'protect'" he makes a fingerquotes gesture "them. Using them up wouldn't be protecting them. Not that keeping them trapped for who knows how long is much better, but..."

    Staren scratches his head. "The same technology that can create a hell for people to live in can also create a heaven. To me, the problem was with their guardians, not with the system itself. ...I hope to save and re-embody any souls that might remain in the crystals we took. But... it's just been hectic, with the faction just having formed, so I haven't had a chance to get the help I want to do the job right. I've talked with the members of the Daedalus Initiative about bringing them in as outside advisors to help."