Scene #9171: Deyvat Danger!

Owner	Pose
Angela	The Deyvat Association is typically considered a last ditch Association for Fixers deeply in debt. Compared to most Fixer work, the Deyvat Association pays very well but it's still considered a last ditch job for most because of the nature of the work--and the strict time limits imposed on their Fixers. They don't normally ask for help from other Associations and yet, this time, they asked for help from Trideag. No doubt this is for reasons similar to the Liu Association--they want to get a feel for the new Association and having them help out with a job is the keenest way to do it. The Association meets with the Courier they've been hired to guard near A Deyvat sub-office near the border between District L and District K. A stern looking man in a greenish blue jacket with a Deyvat Association patch on his shoulders, wearing a pair of goggles over his eyes, and smoking impatiently while waiting for Trideag to show up is watiing there. He has short curly red hair and freckles and looks well built. "Name's Ivan." He says as the Thirteenth arrives. "I'm delivering this package to a location within District L. The package is in this Polundista here..." He smacks the case he's carrying lightly with his hand. "It will also be in charge of deciding our route. Polundista is a legal AI deemed of the intelligence level approved by the Head so don't be spooked when it starts talking. Not real. I'll answer any other questions on the way since time started as soon as we made contact. People who can't keep up will be left behind." And with that, Ivan starts running down the street. You can practically sense the timer appearing to note that this is one of ''those'' kind of missions. Ivan is moving at a good clip--he's certainly faster than a normal human--but he is pacing himself, whether because he expects a longer journey or because he wants to give Trideag a chance to grow accustomed to how Deyvat Missions work is unclear but the trip, at least, doesn't immediately run into violence so there is some time to ask Ivan. "Go down this street for three miles then turn left." The Polundista intones in a stern feminine voice. "You have three hours remaining to complete the delivery." There is about thirty minutes of jogging to make inquiries before shit hits the fan. Meanwhile the Watch has been asked to help with a conflict between the Blade Lineage and Kurokumo Clans in the area the Courier is expected to move through. Despite the negotiation with The Thumb, the Kurokumo Clan isn't so keen on having their position usurped and if anything the conflict between the two clans has only gotten more fierce. A sword fight has broken out along one of the many byzantine roads in L Corp's backstreets with some of the fights pushing into kamen rider style warehouses and bridges. Aeng-Du seems to be overseeing the battle but is already fighting a tattooed man blowing smoke in her face even as they cross blades. Nobody is really EXPECTING a Deyvat Delivery but... "Syndicate conflict on route. Checking other routes. Safest route adds one hour delay." "Then we are moving through." Ivan says, rushing towards the ongoing conflict, hefting up his Polundista case defensively as he does so.
Rita Ma	Rita Ma is present in her (official) status as a Trideag member, not her (deniable) status as a Watch agent. That's just smart, after all. Again with the dark skirt and the dress shirt, and the little breather mask, even though they're hardly ideal running gear. She's got little dress flats too. No lunchbox this time. She's made at least that concession to speed. "It's good to meet you, Mr. Ivan," says the adorable blonde girl with a slightly crackly edge. Shallow bow. "We'll be doing our best." "Go down this street for three miles..." The first time Polundista speaks catches Rita off-guard. "Huh? Miss Ang--?" No, right. She's like that, but 'illegal'. Rita silently examines her feelings on 'illegal personhood', and comes away with uneasy sympathy for Angela. For the first little while she paces herself- mostly. Ivan does, and there's no point getting too far ahead of him. Periodically, though, she sprint-hops right up the side of a building and runs along the rooftops for vantage, clearing alleyways with leaps and eventually dropping back down to ground level with her breathing only slightly quickened. "What are you delivering, exactly? Do you get to know?" she says during one of her ground phases. But soon Polundista speaks up again, and there's a bigger worry. "Huh? Which Syndicates?" Weren't some of her fellow Watch members involved with one of those? Up ahead, she sees...
Odette Raskins	Guarding one person on a delivery sounds like a simple task on its face, but Odette knows better than to expect this job with the Deyvat Association to be anything but simple. That's why, even though she's really hoping not to need them, she has her Trideag-assigned sidearm and sword firmly strapped on beneath her jacket along her belt. Swallowing lightly as she spots Ivan, she greets him with a quick wave and shuffle of her feet while grasping and tugging on the strap of her duffel bag. "Odette Raskins, Tr.. Trideag Association. We're here to be your escorts for today." She introduces herself quickly, looking and sounding ready to move quickly already as she adjusts her hold on her bag. "So we'll be adjusting our path as we go, then? That's pretty neat! Should make things a lot easier if there's any big roadblocks in the way, then." She's confident the AI will guide them efficiently, of course, and that confidence means she's looking and sounding even more eager to get started as Ivan starts running. "D-don't worry! We'll be able to keep up just fine!" The EMT calls out as she, too, starts running after him. It's one of the few times she can actually afford to be confident, too, as she almost seems to be a natural at runnning and maneuvering around the street without crashing into anyone or knocking anything over. It's almost like her training has prepared her for this exact situation! "Three hours... That doesn't sound so bad. How far are we... From the destination?" She calls out to Ivan, moving along briskly while pacing herself so as to not get winded unnecessarily. That fact that there's no bodies to check on helps a lot to keep that pace. It means she just needs to focus on moving fast and hoping there's no distractions! "Syndicate conflict on route. Checking other routes. Safest route adds one hour delay." And then there's a distraction. Starting to sweat a fair bit more than she was just from the running, Odette inhales deeply as she starts glancing around rapidly, looking for signs of which Syndicates are involved. "D-do we have time for that detour? Uh. I-I mean, we're still good on time, right?"
Father Berislav	I wouldn't consider us to be on unfriendly terms, but may I remind you that the front desk will begin turning you away should you get into the habit of unannounced social visits like this. Something beautiful is coming. Perhaps not swiftly, but certainly. The meaty sound of impact bubbles up through the Backstreets. Father Berislav's arm is bleeding, matting the sleeve of his cassock to his body with dark, sticky scarlet, yet he pays it no more mind than he does the air. The cut runs from his forearm to just short of his elbow, yet he is certainly in better fighting shape than the Kurokumo soldier at the end of his fingertips--which for one searing moment thrust past the overhead sword swing and into the wielder's trachea. I do have my own plans within the City for an instrument of positive change from within. The priest's hand shifts, palm flat, upwards, forming a bridge for the first of a flurry of chain punches, elbows in, one hand under the other, aimed at the center line, wrists snapping with practiced precision as each blow is delivered, before an advancing shoulder check faster even than those punches, his body briefly leaving an afterimage. No motion is wasted; what seems at first to be a punch at empty air is a snatch through space over a temporarily doubled-over opponent. The massive revolver's buck is handled with ease, its metallic bark serving as prelude for a fullmetal jacket bullet ripping through the shoulder. The bullet passes through, maintaining its trajectory for its true target: the sword of another soldier with the upper hand on a Blade Lineage warrior. Berislav, naturally, responded to the call for assistance. Having handled one soldier, he exhales and is off like a bolt, vaulting over disheveled crates to then run along the wall of a dilapidated warehouse. He pushes off and sails over a paint-flaked catwalk, landing with a clang in between an embattled Blade Lineage warrior and the Kurokumo soldier who until just now was liable to attack his occupied opponent from behind. "That man down there. See him? Those colors," he calls, fighting back-to-back with the Lineage member behind him. "Devyat Association, yes?" An oncoming sword blow is deflected, this time with the steel of his outsized revolver, twirled and held in a reverse grip almost like a tonfa. "If I'm right, get down there and help them pass through safely. I'll handle these two."
Lilian Rook	'Name's Ivan.' "A pleasure to meet you, Ivan. I'm certain you already know exactly who I am, but . . ." Lilian side-glances to her . . . modestly overqualified (or at least overstaffed) brigade. "Lilian Rook, Assossication Director, here to oversee the trial periods of some of my Fixers." That excuse changed since last time. 'I'm delivering this package to a location within District L. The package is in this Polundista here...' -----[stop]----- Lilian sighs, withdraws her smart device from her pocket, swipes twice and types out 'Plundista' into a search engine, then slips it back into her pocket. -----[start]----- "Oh? It's that sort of package, then." Lilian says, knowingly. -----[stop]----- Lilian pulls out her smart device again and checks her results list, selecting the most City-relevant one she has archived already, then puts it back in her pocket. -----[start]----- "I appreciate your professionalism in . . ." -----[stop]----- Lilian takes the smart device out of her pocket yet again, and quietly reads the contents of the page, doubling back before putting it away once more. -----[start]----- "Disclosing the digital nature of the delivery, even though it's essentially impossible for the worst to come to pass." she says, smiling to herself. 'Polundista is a legal AI deemed of the intelligence level approved by the Head so don't be spooked when it starts talking. Not real.' Lilian frowns just a tiny bit. She's being so mature, keeping her healthy mistrust of AI to a minimum for the sake of group harmony. §Oh come on if you were just going to explain it anyways then lead with that!§ "Understood." she says. "Though, how often do you allow your routes to be planned by things like that? District L is, in a certain sense, unofficially our territory, so I'll notice if there are discrepancies." 'You have three hours remaining to complete the delivery.' §Goddddd we're going to be here all dayyyyyyy.§
Rita Ma	. . . Down there, next to the Devyat parcel-runner, is Rita staring back up at Berislav. Well, not quite- at his stained cassock first, and then she finds his eyes. <Tac-Watch> [4] Rita Ma says, "Mr. Berislav!" <Tac-Watch> [4] Rita Ma says, "Is that the 'Blade Lineage'?" <Tac-Watch> [4] Odette Raskins says, "M-Mister Berislav?! Oh geez, should we be... Uhh. Wh-wh-what's the plan? Should we break off, or...?" <Tac-Watch> [4] Rita Ma says, "We can help while passing through. What's your objective?" <Tac-Watch> [4] Father Berislav says, "Yes it is, Rita. I'm sorry your introduction wasn't under more peaceful circumstances." <Tac-Watch> [4] Father Berislav says, "We were on our way back from another operation when the Kurokumo Clan attacked. Help is appreciated, but don't do so if it'll put your Fixer there in danger." <Tac-Watch> [4] Rita Ma says, worn but warm, "That's okay, Mr. Berislav. These are the circumstances I'm best at making a good impression." <Tac-Watch> [4] Rita Ma says, "So you're prioritizing escape?" <Tac-Watch> [4] Father Berislav says, "Yes, but we're very close to where we'd ideally be escaping to, and the Kurokumo are very persistent. It's gone from an ambush to a running fight to a turf war in short order." <Tac-Watch> [4] Odette Raskins says, "Oh geez... A-alright, I've got... I've got meds on me, and I could run some intereference to grab their attention on the way by!" Right. Interference then. A chilling wind blows through the street; snow condenses out of atmospheric moisture and billows in an instant thick sheet, turning a three-block radius into a blizzard with almost no visibility. From about where Rita was, something makes a very un-Rita-like sound: KREEEEE! Now that the proverbial lights are out: sonar scream. It's not quite enough to shatter windows, because Rita's polite! But it should let her map out where the fighting's densest, who's postured like they're in charge on the Kurokumo side and who's close enough to still have eyes on the Blade Lineage.
Angela	Ivan's own propensity of trying to waste the least time possible means that he sometimes realizes there are some things he does have to say which means he had to talk for a few more seconds than he really wanted to. He is completely oblivious to the timestops. He bows his head to Lilian and says, "Understood. Thank you for your consideration." Ivan seems surprised at Rita's presence, but doesn't object. He returns the bow because professional politeness is ingrained in him. He also doesn't seem to notice (or care) about the 'Miss Ang--?' at least until it becomes relevant to his life. Which it isn't right now. Rita does have a good question. "Don't know in this case." Ivan says. "Sometimes they tell you if it's important. Sometimes they don't tell you if it's important. But I know the client's important this was a rush order. Wanted it done ASAP." Ivan keeps the surprise from hitting his face too readily but he's surprised that Odette is keeping up. "Three hours." He says in response to the question. It's unclear whether that's how he sees 'how far' or 'how much time he's willing to use'. Going by 'miles' can be pretty tricky in the City because of all the twisting and turning paths and, of course, Syndicate battles erupting in your way along with other hazards. "Deyvat are paid because they don't delay any more than is neccessary to ensure completion of the job." Ivan says. Part of him wonders why a Star is lending a hand with a job like this. Maybe she is testing him about what's in the case because she already knows what's in the case. that tells him to be careful with it. The leader of the Kurokumo, Gin, an older man with black hair streaked with white and the Kurokumo tattoos on his chest, sees the Deyvat approaching as well. "We can earn favor with the Thumb if we grab that box, make sure to take it as well!" He orders three katana wielding thugs towards the Deyvat agent. Meanwhile, Berislav calls towards two Blade Lineagem members. One of them, a serious looking woman named Date wearing tinted purple shades, nods to him and they rush off to intercept the Kurokumo. This results in a fight between the Kurokumo and the Blade Lineage directly in Ivan's path, a slew of clashings words blocking him from his path. Ivan, ignorant that the Blade Lineage are here to help and indeed thinking the Blade Lineage is ALSO after his case, just keeps running forward, swinging his case with enough force to knock a couple Kurokumo Agent's teeth out and slams them right into the Blade Lineage agent, bowling them both over, sliding under the remaining swords and continuing to run. The remaining Syndicate members gather themselves back up and keep fighting directly in everyone else's path (unless they are leaping over buildings and the like). Gin is trying to back off to continue (start) supporting Deyvat but there's a problem--the Kurokumo, who also think Blade Lineage is after the case, is on his ass and not letting him catch up. Which is already hard, because Ivan is definitely faster than most of Berislav's friends in the Blade Lineage. He's speeding up, not slowing down. "Polendista usually pretty reliable," Ivan says. "Sometimes have to insist on a new route, sometimes I have to insist on the old route. So long as I move quick, it won't kill me." It occurs to him this might be news to Lilian. "Taking too long or abusing case too much results in elimination of Fixer. Package care concerns. Deterrant."
Angela	The lights go out. Ivan ignores it. Rita unelashes a powerful scream! Ivan's eyes slant from behind his goggles and then ignores it. He keeps running. Numerous Kurokumo yelp in pain as a sudden loud noise hits their eardrums. The Blade Lineage is also disrupted, to a lesser extent due to their superior sense of discipline. Still, Ivan's starting to shift his path, heading towards one of the warehouses in the area--namely, one of the walls. It's hard to anticipate which way Ivan's heading towards but there's some serious fighting on a bridge ahead of where he has to go unless he does something truly ridiculous or tries to swim across the small river the bridge goes over. He's not there quite yet, so there's time to make the process a bit easier on him.
Odette Raskins	EARLIER "Deyvat are paid because they don't delay any more than is neccessary to ensure completion of the job." "That's good! More time to get other work done, or get some more... hup. Training in!" Odette's really been taking her physical training more seriously, although she does have to pick up the pace every now and then to keep up. She's far more careful about conserving her stamina than she is about going full tilt, though, making sure not to go into full sprint to keep up. "A-although... Doing this all day must really be a... Tiring if you're not used to it!" _____ NOW It just had to be the Kurokumo clan. It just had to involve her allies in the Blade Lineage. It just had to be when so many eyes are watching her, including Lilian's! There's some small relief at knowing that Rita and Berislav are both there, but Odette's not going to just push it all on them to handle. The Kurokumo leader makes it clear he wants to claim the box for his gang, after all, which... Wait. That actually makes it easier to get involved on the side of the Blade Lineage. Even though she's already leaned towards the idea of taking the safer route earlier, that possibility is already well out of her head by the time she rushes after Ivan. "The Kurok-uh... It's only the yakuza after us!" She calls out to give him someone to focus his escape efforts on, all while her hands are already rummaging around in the duffel bag. Interference. What does she have to run interference? She doesn't need much, actually, if nobody's badly wounded yet, and if she just needs to divert the clan's attention long enough for the Watch and their allies to get the upper hand. As Rita starts messing with visibility in the area, Odette snatches random debris and solid garbage off the street, seeking out anything that's good enough to throw and cause some damage or at least get some attention. Bottles, glass, rocks, even broken weapons and parts are all fair game, but how's she going to aim in that sudden blizzard? Odette's pretty sure she remembers where she last saw some of the combatants, and she can still sort of see where Ivan's going. With a steady arm, she chucks stuff as she keeps on running by, curving some of those things around Ivan to try and nail the Kurokumo Agents right in the faces with that garbage. With the projectiles coming in from one side, meanwhile, she sidesteps quickly before hurrying forward, strategically moving in to 'accidentally' shoulder-check Ivan's pursuers on the way without breaking her stride too badly. Even worse... She doesn't apologize to the Kurokumo for doing it, even when it's very obvious she knows she slammed into them. How rude.
Rita Ma	While ears are still ringing, a psychic murmur pierces into Ivan's mind: "Mr. Ivan! The people without tattoos aren't here to hurt you, I promise!" The voice is pleasant; the feeling isn't. The unfortunate thing about a sonar pulse is that it only gives you a snapshot- one that rapidly becomes out of date. This is less of a problem if you're as fast as Rita. There's a noise like a gunshot; then she's gone, and the snowflakes trace out a zigzagging path that cuts through the lines where Blade Lineage and Kurokumo clash. Each vertex ends at a soaring body and a sickening crunch, overlapping into a dull dopplered roar. Anyone who seems critically hurt gets a glowy touch to stabilize them, but she'll leave the heavy lifting to Odette. One last trick: <J-IC-Scene> Rita Ma says, "Ms. Rook, Mr. Berislav, catch!" Dark shapes plummet towards them through the biting snow's fog, lazily-tossed enough to be easily catchable. They're... exact replicas of Ivan's case? Ohhhh. That should take the heat off. And then she's catching back alongside Ivan, with a duplicate-case of her own. "Huh? Wait, do you mean they kill you if you're slow?" Rita says through her mask, now that she's got time to be horrified. No, wait. Eyes on the bridge up ahead. "If you take the water, I'll help you. Otherwise..." She lifts her decoy-case. Best-case scenario, he'll only have to deal with a quarter of the heat.
Father Berislav	Berislav knows fighting outnumbered like a lasting injury or an old garment; he is accustomed to it after long hours of dealing with it. When Rita's piercing scream resounds, he grits his teeth and capitalizes, sliding one hand along the other like the chain punches from before, yet this time using the butt of his revolver as the point of impact, going for the lower jaw. No chain punch here. Instead, his foot rockets outward with a rustle of his cassock, going for the knee, planting after the impact and turning just in time to ward off the other soldier with pivot, a kick aimed at the stomack and a turning straight kick headed for the solar plexus with bone-snapping force. The cylinder of his revolver is set to spinning with a flick of his thumb as the muzzle climbs, stopping short of his opponent with confidence. Another triggerpull is like thunder in the snowstorm; the flash muted in a sea of white as the priest's tied hair whips in the wind. The soldier he'd kicked and sent stumbling finds a hole in the catwalk for their trouble, large enough to trap a foot and turn a stumble into a fall. His silver eyes flick towards the scant glimpses of Ivan he can get. <Tac-Watch> 4 Father Berislav says, "Oh--unfortunate. He seems to think we're after the case as well, not that I can blame him. Life as a Fixer for Devyat is a fraught existence..." <Tac-Watch> 4 Rita Ma says, "Mmmm! I'll help." <Tac-Watch> 4 Odette Raskins says, "Then... W-we'll clear it up!" Berislav allows himself a small bit of relief. He'll still have to come back and fix the catwalk, though. Someone could get hurt! <J-IC-Scene> Rita Ma says, "Ms. Rook, Mr. Berislav, catch!" Berislav vaults the catwalk as if the plummet back to the road were nothing, catching the duplicate case in his free arm before a graceful tuck-and-roll landing. Me and Lilian? But I only saw the one case... then one of these is a decoy, and I shouldn't do the Kurokumo any favors by putting this one away. What would get their attention the fastest? Well... they are a subsidiary of the Thumb... Berislav takes off again, with the same inhuman speed he'd demonstrated in using that shoulder charge earlier, trailing faint afterimages that vanish quickly in the blizzard. His goal is the wall of the building at the other end of the street. Tucking the case under one arm, he runs up the wall of the building and pulls himself over it one-handed. His strength is more than enough to clear the roof--with a second or two of airtime, he sends two high-explosive rounds into Gin's path, sending a spray of hot debris up to harry him from the front as he's pursued. Thumbing the cylinder as he lands, he rolls into a kneel and takes another shot. This time, it's a hollow-point aimed at Gin's sword hand. So long as enough of them take the bait, so long as Lilian and I head in different directions, all I need to do now is get them away from that Devyat fellow... And to that end, Berislav does as several of the Kurokumo Clan and Blade Lineage here are, sprinting (at human speeds) across and leaping between rooftops. A practiced flick of his wrist sends the cylinder swinging open, spent casings raining down in a soft, brief chorus of clinks. His palm glows from within as the storage implant fires up again. Without even bothering to look at his chambers he fills each at a sprint--the cartridges are ejected from the tear in space at his palm, trapped against the grip, discerned with brief squeezes and guided with microadjustments from his thumb and forefinger. A long leap over a particularly wide gap between buildings is host to a subtle -click' as he flicks the cylinder back into place.
Lilian Rook	'Deyvat are paid because they don't delay any more than is neccessary to ensure completion of the job.' "Come now. Anyone being paid by commission doesn't want to delay any more than they have to." Lilian says, oddly conversational despite the length and speed of journey that has already passed. It's not too shocking when she does it though, compared to Odette; half the City has seen her push harder. "Screwing around is for wage workers and tenure; and only just barely the former. Anyone would rather get off the streets and back home as quickly as possible, never mind when they're carrying something everyone knows is valuable by their uniform." "There's more to it than that, isn't there?" Lilian says, forcing eye contact through the man's goggles in an opportune moment she can get ahead of him while he focuses on a steep climb or a sharp turn. "They don't call this a last ditch job for nothing, do they?" 'We can earn favor with the Thumb if we grab that box, make sure to take it as well!' Lilian stops. Ivan blazes past. She turns her head along the blowing of her hair to regard the scampering goons with eyes-narrowed displeasure. "The Syndicates again? I'm already tired of hearing that name." 'Ms. Rook, Mr. Berislav, catch!' Harsh snow blows through the streets. Lilian shades her eyes from the freak storm, unmoving, and vanishes into it. The private thoughts she thinks about what Rita could suddenly want from her-- and Berislav, conclude themselves as soon she snags the case-shaped decoy from the air, noting the immediate difference in what she perceives to be its weight. "Suits me just fine." Lilian mutters to herself. "I already felt like doing a public service." When the blizzard clears, Lilian is conspicuously earlier along the path than either Kurokumo or Blade Lineage would think to chase. Company coat flapping in the residual wind, staring vaguely in the direction Ivan is already fleeing, she turns head head-only towards the onrushing goons with the decoy case obviously held out in the open, in her left hand, and her right resting on the pommel of her sword. Lilian hefts the case, glances to and back from it incredulously, and then stares down her nose at the lead thugs. "What exactly do you think you're going to accomplish?", she says, and her fingertips pinch and twirl the hilt of her sword into her grip, almost idly playing with it. She picks the kurokumo goon unlucky enough to be in the lead. Before they can blink, Night Mist strikes their katana from overhead and passes through into the ground between ther feet. Wound all the way from the shoulder, the impact makes the street rumble; even a reasonably good-quality Workshop blade would find itself in a hundred pieces, thrown around with fragments of freshly obliterated asphalt. "You know who I am, don't you?" Lilian calls out, her voice carrying unnaturally far. The edge to her tone cuts with a sense of lilting incredulity, as if at a joke that isn't funny. "Before you try to take this from me, pick up those swords, find a remote place in the Outskirts, train until your hands bleed; then train for a thousand more years." Lilian spits. "And then give up and become a farmer." "Kneel. Then apologize for wasting my time." There's no second half to the ultimatum; because it isn't one. Lilian has already switched tongues just to speak the words of magical command as clearly and forcefully as possible. She can catch up to Ivan at any time. Letting the pursuit know that they stop here makes them Berislav's problem at worst; more likely they'll give up after the beating he's given them already.
Lilian Rook	. . . . . . . . 'Taking too long or abusing case too much results in elimination of Fixer. Package care concerns. Deterrant.' "Aha. There we are. Now isn't that why you're paid so much?"
Angela	''Anyone being paid by commission doesn't want to delay any more than they have to.'' "Well, we're faster than most Fixers and we can fight too so if someone really wants to make sure something gets to its destination... And they have the cash...They hire us. Plenty of other offices do delivery, we offer security and assurance." Ivan is also oddly conversational considering the speed and length of the journey but odds are as a Deyvat he has to do worse than this. He isn't too surprised when Lilian gets ahead of him. She's a Color, that sort of thing is supposed to be expected. "Imagine most people don't like running through the harsh conditions with a ticking timebomb attached to them. But the work always suited me. We have an easier time moving between Wings and the Backstreets and just between Districts in general. But you're always on the move. Most people want a reliable roof over their head." Lilian moves ahead with a decoy case. At first the Kurokumo do try to steal it but once she makes an example of a Kurokumo, she is recognized by an older looking woman in the gang. "Shit!! It's the one who beat the Red Mist! Run and regroup!" The Kurokumo in that area scatter and just full on run for it rather than trying to take her case. One mumbles, "If this is what fighting in the City's gonna be like, I ''should'' just be a farmer..." The rest in the area who linger long enough to hear Lilian's command over the din of battle immediately drop to their knees and start apologizing, they'll keep at it until Lilian leaves. Ivan gives Odette a strange look at Odette when she mentions the yakuza. He doesn't seem to recognize the term but he definitely knows the Kurokumo is after the case. He's got ears too. And when Odette tackles a Kurokumo into next week, that's another goon that has no way in hell of catching up with Ivan. Ivan gets a better idea of what Odette was getting at when Rita psychically explains the situation but as someone who has never run into a psychic before in his life, Ivan is startled and trips over a trash can (complete with a Kurokumo goon trapped inside of it) that happened upon his path. "Wings!" He complains as he rolls to his feet. He doesn't seem aware he can respond by 'thinking' at Rita so he just says, out loud, "Got it.--There's plenty of wiggle room but Deyvat prides itself on its delivery rate. Pay's good so long as I can stay light on my feet."
Angela	He considers the water. Normally he wouldn't take that route but if that's where she shines, he should for the sake of Deyvat's whole reason for hiring these people to begin with. He doesn't really care himself--he just wants to get the delivery done!--but making a positive impression is worth a little extra risk. He says, "Sure," As his boots shine and he just runs across the side of the wall and over the head of goons. "3...2..." He says to himself before the light in his boots fades and he throws himself not towards the quite busy bridge and actually under it towards the water. It'll be a delay if Rita's wrong about being able to help him but they've been helpful so far. In the meantime, Rita can send numerous Kurokumo scattering (or crunchening). Making matters even more chaotic is the slew of cases being flung into the crowd. Losing sight of Ivan for a moment, Kurokumo start catching cases (or failing to catch the cases occassionally) and seem at a bit of a loss. Most of them are aware that these have to be decoys but they can't seem to figure out where the real one is. One Kurokumo gang member decides that SHE got the real case after all and sneaks off to try and open the decoy case with her own two hands. What could it be?? "He went in the water! damn it, obviously they wouldn't give us the real case...!" Gin complains but it's too late. Enough confusion has been sown that Ivan's bound to punch through the Syndicate lines--especially if Rita lends a hand. "Dammit I'll do it myself...!" But Berislav is ready, knocking up debris in his path--which slows him down long enough to shoot him in the hand before he can deflect it. Gin's hand is transformed into a bloody mess but he still tries to gut Berislav with a wakizashi in his off hand--but he can't stop him from fleeing otherwise because he's just not that fast. Blade Lineage see this as an opportunity to start a fighting retreat, backing up and hitting the Kurokumo along the bridge with the bulk of their own forces. the tide of the fight is decidedly shifting in favor of Blade Lineage but they aren't going for a slaughter, they just want to back off and get out of here--reinforcements could come by at any moment and they just don't have the intel. ''Aha. There we are. Now isn't that why you're paid so much?'' "Could be," Ivan is nonplussed. "Seems silly. Never got close to the timelimit before myself."
Angela	As they get past the fighting, the surroundings become more familiar to the Trideag Fixers (and Berislav as well, should he end up following Trideag for one reason or another). At first it's just the outskirts of where Trideag usually patrols and then after another while of traveling it becomes their neighborhood. And then... .... Ivan seems to be making his way directly to the Trideag Association apartment complex. Ivan slows back down to a jog as the directions from Polendista become more minute. And... Yeah he's making his way directly to the check-in station. Right now it's Dart manning the station. "Arright, we're here. Open it up." Ivan says to the box and it hisses, releasing a steam like substance as it pops itself open. "Gotta see who I actually have to hand this too." "Magnefique! A delivery for us?!" Dart is excited. Ivan draws out a significantly smaller box--one of those 'hammerspace' boxes that are popular in the city, known for keeping things from ever spoiling once they are put inside of it. There's a little card on top. Ivan takes a look at the envelope. "Just here to drop off a package for one .... ....You gotta be shitting me." Ivan lets out a long sigh. "A delivery for Lilian Rook from the Black Silence." The package itself is covered in little cartoon foxes holding little umbrellas in their mouths but what's inside... is a mystery. It's about the size and weight of a high-end lunchbox though.
Rita Ma	As Ivan begins to plummet towards the water, there's no-one there to catch him. Just before he touches the surface, though, there is. A white glow comes to meet him. Delicate hands reach up. He falls into them, and just after he's taken a breath, they pull him under. The resulting feeling is like being in a car that's going zero-to-sixty. An arm (or something) cradles his head to keep him from getting whiplash. It's hard to see anything through the bubbles, but if he forces his eyes open, it's harder still to see anything but pretty radiance. From the surface, it just looks as if a bolt of light has whisked him away. After about one second per hundred feet of river, Ivan is very gently deposited on dry land again. Rita wrings out his jacket, puts it back on his shoulders, and smiles apologetically behind the mask. (The water runs off her like her shirt's waterproof. It might really be.) "All okay, Mr. Ivan?" When they're out of range of more Kurokumo, Rita turns back around, aims with one eye closed and her tongue stuck out, and hurls the fake box at the most important-looking one she can see. It hits about like being gently clipped by a VW Bug. - - - - "Huh? Isn't this Trideag?" she says, during the latter part of the approach. (Her shoes don't even squelch. Lucky her.) "Then what's..." For Lilian. From somebody-who's-probably-an-important-fixer. Rita sighs just a half-second after Ivan, joining him in chorus, and instinctively looks over her shoulder at the rooftops behind them. This wasn't all so a color fixer could size them up, was it...?
Lilian Rook	'Plenty of other offices do delivery, we offer security and assurance.' "Brand name is worth a lot." says Lilian. "For more reasons than the shallow ones people take it to mean. Behind a brand is a promise, and if it's a good one, then it's a well-kept promise too. And those are always in chronically short supply in this world." 'Imagine most people don't like running through the harsh conditions with a ticking timebomb attached to them. But the work always suited me. We have an easier time moving between Wings and the Backstreets and just between Districts in general.' "I imagine it helps prevent the sense of claustrophobia that the City nearly guarantees sets in eventually. A roof is just something you crave earlier than leaving it." . . . . . . . . 'Shit!! It's the one who beat the Red Mist! Run and regroup!' "So you people do read the news." Lilian turns her back with a dismissive flourish. 'If this is what fighting in the City's gonna be like, I ''should'' just be a farmer...' "Now is about to be a very good time. Think about how many other people might have let you live." . . . . . . . . 'Got it.--There's plenty of wiggle room but Deyvat prides itself on its delivery rate. Pay's good so long as I can stay light on my feet.' "You're actually quite good for someone with so little augmentation." says Lilian, suddenly back with the group again. "A solid talent even for someone with more. Maybe you are a natural?" 'Seems silly. Never got close to the timelimit before myself.' "Oh, don't misunderstand." says Lilian, her tonal arc smoothly settling into 'warmly unamused'. "Nobody is paying you to compensate for how frightening that is. There are no shortage of people desperate enough to try anything that pays better than steady work." she sighs, knowingly. "Your job is a premium one because the client has the assurance that you'll be brutally punished for slacking off or getting ideas with their things. In the end, the buyer is the mark." . . . . . . . . 'Arright, we're here. Open it up. Gotta see who I actually have to hand this too.' "Oh my, we actually get to see?" If Lilian is winded at all from the run, she's cheated to hide it. Most of it has been spent pleasantly enjoying Ivan's mixture of competence, confidence, and not spending any time causing drama. "I was admittedly very curious." She was! She even makes a polite little gasp of appreciation at the theatrical cryo-smoke. "Presentation!" she murmurs.
Lilian Rook	'A delivery for Lilian Rook from the Black Silence.' Lilian pivots ninety degrees and catches a wall with her palm from doubling over. She just barely catches the deeply aggrieved sigh comes up out of her, softened to something bearable. "Thank you very much. I appreciate your promptness and professionalism." Lilian says, a little robotically. At least she's the recipient, so paying a tip is officially in her purview; something she actually does, and then offers, "Your daughter's souvenir is on me." Only once that's straightened out does she actually take the delivery. The little fox stickers make her smile; the association, and the thought, bring a little light back to her eyes. She even sounds warm when she says to Rita "The Purple Tear would, but I doubt that woman is watching. Just the feeling I got from her." without thinking about how all the most dangerous women in the City keep being interested in her. She's quite gentle about opening up the package.
Father Berislav	With the Kurokumo Clan split up three different ways and in general disarray, the time is perfect for the Blade Lineage to retreat. Berislav breaks ahead of Gin with another burst of inhuman speed, dropping down the side of a building and letting his knowledge of this part of the Backstreets occlude him. Dipping into an alley, he reaches out to local Watch assets for assistance. "Ah," he says, into a burner cell. "Saw that, did you? Yes, that was us." He manages a breathy laugh. "Some of our friends might need help getting home safely. If you could arrange for some timely obstructions along the way, that would be lovely. Thank you!" Any Kurokumo members persistent enough to chase down the scattering Lineage members will find their ways stymied by inopportunely placed crates, open loading doors, moved pallets and so on--whatever the friends and sympathizers in the locale can muster with their means on short notice. Every little bit helps! Berislav himself arrives at the complex a little later, mostly to make sure Ivan arrived in one piece. He tosses the decoy aside and takes a breather. <J-IC-Scene> Ivan says, "Kid doesn't see me around much so I try to pick up souvenirs." <J-IC-Scene> Rita Ma says, "Oh. I'm sorry to hear that, Mr. Ivan..." <J-IC-Scene> Ivan says, "She gets a little bratty about it but that's why the souvenirs. Fortunately my partner doesn't have to travel." <J-IC-Scene> Father Berislav says, "That is fortunate. I hope your delivery today is another step towards getting to spend more time with her. I'm sorry about the confusion, by the way." <J-IC-Scene> Ivan says, "And it's fine. Nobody lost any fingers over it." "Gin very much did," says Berislav. "But there are several reasons I could say that's for the best. Now that we have a moment," he says, "Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Father Waters Berislav," he says, stowing his revolver to offer a handshake. "My friends back there are with a group called the Blade Lineage." "There's a lot that I could say about them, but I think the simplest would be to say that they're very much your friends, too--and I don't mean in the way that racketeers are your 'friend.' They're simple, decent people who want the City to be a kinder place. Something to consider, if another delivery puts you in that part of this District's Backstreets, hm?" Berislav blinks in confusion when the delivery is stated to be for Lilian, but makes an effort not to pry. It's rude to read other people's mail. Instead, he occupies himself with the cut on his arm--he'd endured the original injury without so much as a flinch, and it doesn't seem as deep as it ought to be. Still, maybe he's worried about it getting infected--he radios Odette to ask for help, all the same.
Odette Raskins	"Screwing around is for wage workers and tenure; and only just barely the former." "W... Would people really mess around like that? Doing a good job faster means..." Odette asks aloud as she considers everyone she's seen working during her life, first recalling the hard-working older folks at home before being reminded of most of the people working at the stations she's been to. Even without saying anything, the duller shine in her eyes makes the rapid realization quite obvious, and the long exhale that somehow comes through even while running is particularly loud. <J-IC-Scene> Rita Ma says, "Ms. Odette. If you want to hang back and help the Blade Lineage for a moment, I can give you . . ." <J-IC-Scene> Rita Ma guesses. "Two and a half minutes, about. I don't know how many wounded there are." <J-IC-Scene> Odette Raskins says, "Miss Rita...? Ah, thank you! Y-yeah, I can get them some... Some meds, make sure nobody's in too bad shape. Just gotta-" Impact noise "-geh... Get these guys off Mister Ivan first!" Two and a half minutes. Not enough time to have a drawn out battle, plenty of time for Ivan to get a lead on her, but plenty more time to make a difference if anyone's that badly hurt. Odette shifts gears almost immediately, practically swiveling in mid-step as she slides her medical HUD glasses on to get a quick read on the generalized health status of the combatants. It's considerably as they start breaking off from each other with Berislav and Lilian both carrying decoy cases to take the heat off of Ivan, especially when some of them even seem to lose the will to fight. Thankfully, the wounds mostly being physical wounds means Odette mostly gets to focus on bandaging up wounds rather than mixing and matching different concentrations of medication, and the cover from the streets along with the extra cases sowing even more chaos means she can just show up like a medical apparition to treat the fighters' wounds before slipping away to check on the next. She does eventually have to hurry to catch up with everyone again, though, and there's a good amount of time where she has to get into a proper run to catch up. She doesn't even realize she's starting to head towards familiar territory for a while, either, just filing away the similarities as 'oh, there's another nice place like Trideag out here' for a while right up until she sees entirely familiar faces within an entirely familiar apartment complex. "Wh... Huh? That was for.... Dame Co... Commander Rook?" Odette's plain winded by the time she catches up, just barely hearing Ivan's sigh upon revealing who the delivery was for. The EMT hunches over with her hands on her knees just to catch her breath, taking heaving breaths as the adrenaline rush from all that running finally wears off and leaves her panting heavily. Despite sounding and looking exhausted, however, her attention goes right to Berislav next. "S... Sorry for the wait! Had to... Don't think anyone died, at least, and any infection should be pretty minimal with the..." She trails off as she hurries over to check on the good father's wounds, bringing out the high quality meds and bandages. With less of a rush to worry about, she can give hima proper check-up, bringing out The Good (handheld) Scanner to make sure she gets everything treated properly and thoroughly. "Oh. Bite down on this... Might sting a bit." That's an understatement when she has to disinfect some of the nastier wounds, but she does offer him a tasty teeth-locking chunk of taffy beforehand. "All those bullets, though... H-how do you... Um. Are you ever worried about hitting someone you aren't planning to with all those coming out at once? Or... I-is your training that much better than the officers everywhere?"
Angela	Two and a half minutes is going to mean that Odette's pretty far behind by the end of this. There's plenty of Blade LIneage people who could use some patching up as they retreat--the Kurokumo aren't inclined to ask for Odette's help but there's enough unconcious Kurokumo that she can still medically intervene on those types. She'll catch up eventually--it's easiest once Ivan's about to make the last turn into Trideag. Ivan's initial thought as he's pulled under the water is that he was an idiot for trusting near-strangers. But then he's cradled and moved along the water. People with this kind of ability, to move through water like this--they don't really exist--not as PEOPLE--in the City. Ivan had forgotten that Rita was a star. Up until this point she just seemed like someone he could imagine his own kid growing up into. He is deposited, dripping but otherwise no worse for wear, on the shore and has made extra time to boot (he's fast, he's not a hundred feet a second fast). He does waste a couple kind of recognizing his own reality before he remembers his package and keeps running. "Sure, just a little off guard. Next time I'd be able to shave off another few seconds." Yeah he has his priorities. Rita bonks Gin in the face with a case but it mostly adds insult to injury as he spins around three times before flopping over. ''Brand name is worth a lot. ... And those are always in chronically short supply in this world.'' "Starting to see how you acclimated so quickly to this world. You've only been here like a year haven't you?" Ivan couldn't imagine staying in one place for long. Most people join Deyvat because they have no other choice, but there's only one bad thing about it for him. ''A solid talent even for someone with more.'' "I'm just a Grade 3, ma'am." Ivan says. "Hoping to hit Grade 2 but I didn't pass the exam last time. Getting up to Grade Five--you can get there so long as you're just consistently competent but Grade Four and above they start to care a lot about your attitude, skill, and augs. Deyvat has a sharper curve there since we can't use anything clunky. Gotta use the basic stuff for longer. Grade 1's too dangerous for me. They have to do the kind of work a Color'd have to do but the skill level there is real wide. The average Grade 1 is not much better than a Grade 2 but some Grade 1s are nearly as good as Colors. Sometimes as good, but their attitude outmatches their skill."
Angela	''The buyer is the mark.'' "Yeah, but it's true other courier services as less reliable. I wouldn't send anything too important with a service that isn't at least Deyvat affiliated. If they think forgoing the payday and earning an enemy is a worth whatever you handed them, they'll come up with a reason why they failed to deliver." He smiles a little at the gasp. Now that he's done the delivery, he's more relaxed though he is still pretty annoyed he could've gotten away with just handing it off to Lilian! Still, sometimes Deyvat has to guard a transport so if he thinks about it like that, it's less annoying. Ivan isn't going to say no to a tip. He's got a family to take care of. He bobs his head graciously. He's gonna have to eat before he goes anywhere though. The Purple Tear isn't watching. And the delivery isn't from her. There is a card that indicates who it is from. The Black Silence! And if Lilian reads the card... ''Heeey Lilian! Thanks for all the family advice! I thought you'd appreciate the chance to show off in front of Deyvat :3'' ''I'm only really accustomed to Fixer life but I ended up married so i need all the help i can get o_o'' ''Share this with your partner okay? On a special day ^_-<3'' ''--Angelica'' ('o') Inside the Preservation box is a smaller circular tin box, similar to one of those Royal Dansk butter cookie boxes. And inside, naturally, there are a bunch of delicious looking cookies of a variety of shapes and sugar levels. ''Gin very much did.'' In the background, Ivan is a little nonplussed it's just a tin of cookies but he glances to Berislav and says, "Well yeah. But fuck him." It's another way of saying 'this is this and that is that' but he doesn't really know that phrase himself. The Father suggests that the Blade Lineage are friends. Ivan frowns, because he mostly knows them as people whose morals are as such that they move to wielding the blade real quick. "I'll let my people know they lent a hand." He settles on because that's about what he can do. He doesn't really have any issue with them HIMSELF but there's not much that he can do for them and he knows when a sales pitch is being thrown his way. "Having a clear route through there that's protected could be useful." He adds. He looks towards Odette and adds, "Toldja we'd leave you behind if you didn't catch up. But I'm impressed you caught up."
Father Berislav	Well yeah. But fuck him. Berislav, after a soft little laugh, politely accepts Odette's taffy, though he seems to enjoy it as a treat more than as a distraction from the disinfectant. He won't echo that particular sentiment of Ivan's, but nor does he blame or particularly disagree. Having a clear route through there that's protected could be useful. "And I know that they'd be delighted to make life easier for some of the City's most embattled, in however small a way." Aside from a deep breath (which is still quite even and measured), Berislav's demeanor throughout could be called serene, although Odette can be certain that he feels the sting of the disinfectant. The subdermal armor weave occasionally visible as she works wouldn't interfere with his nerve endings. Are you ever worried about hitting someone you aren't planning to with all those coming out at once? Or... I-is your training that much better than the officers everywhere? Holding a finger up to mean 'just a second, still working on that taffy,' Berislav gets through it after a moment. "That was a pleasant surprise," he says, forestalling an answer to make small talk. "I didn't know you liked taffy!" After a pleased little 'hm,' she gets her answer. "It's partly to do with training, but that isn't the whole reason." He idly drums a finger against his thigh, frowning thoughtfully. "I suppose I'll cover the training first. It's true that the style of martial arts I use mixes handguns and empty hands, and that a lot of emphasis is put not only on the gun as a physical implement, but on the trajectory of the bullets themselves. I had to learn, thoroughly, everything about how they behave, from recoil to weight to the effect of grain to the differences between the varieties of bullet. To know the weapon, I was made to begin from a place of respecting utterly its capacity to cause unintended harm." "My revolvers have a five shot capacity; I shot five bullets today." He lists them off with the fingers of his right hand. "One hollow point, to overpenetrate an opponent as they fell, pass through and deflect a Kurukumo sword away from Date across the way; three high explosive, to create unsteady footing and draw attention, respectively; one hollow point to maximize the damage to Gin's fingers." He lets his hand fall to the side. "But," he says, "Training and knowledge are worthless without will, Odette." "That's the difference between me and a station security officer. One of us is fighting to keep goodness alive, and another fights to keep property intact. A gun isn't a weapon to a security officer so much as it is a prayer to the Adversary against the disruption of sin; that if they point it in the right direction and pull the trigger ritually, the disruption will disappear." "Even people who don't tend gardens of sin tend to view guns that way--as wands they can point in a direction and be rid of whatever is frightening them."
Rita Ma	"Sorry about the, um, off-guarded-ness." Rita steadies Ivan a little on the side where he fell after the telepathic whisper, though she parts from his side when it's clear he doesn't need it. Her eyes track back up (wait, no- down?) to Lilian's, followed by a slightly worn-out but genuine smile after she pulls the mask down. "Well, whatever it is, I hope you really like it, Ms. Rook. Oh, but there was..." Ivan mentioned something about wanting a Rita doll, but giving him just that would feel egotistical. She reaches around a corner out of view, pretends to rummage for a moment, and then pulls out four little cutesy figurines: herself, Lilian, Odette, and Berislav. They've got the texture and weight of lacquered wood, or maybe polished bone. "There! For your daughter, Mr. Ivan. They're just toys, but..." Trailing off awkwardly, after a moment her eyes turn back towards the path. "Oh. Right! Odette. Um, I'll be right back, okay, Mr. Ivan?" And whether or not he intends to stick around, she's off. The reason behind 'two and a half minutes' becomes apparent. It's not any kind of mystical teleportation thing- she just didn't want to be parted too long in going back to snag her. Rita zips onto the rooftops, books it towards Odette as a ground-hugging blur, and then skids to a stop, peeking down on her tending Berislav from a higher building's vantage. "Oh, uh, the delivery's done, Odette! You can stay here as long as you want, unless you wanted to say goodbye to Mr. Ivan?" And she waves down at Berislav perkily, too. Return to Trideag will, of course, be via princess carry.
Lilian Rook	'Starting to see how you acclimated so quickly to this world. You've only been here like a year haven't you?' "Something like that." Lilian says, three-quarters truthfully. "Once you get past the surface of seemingly senseless horror, it's actually refreshingly straightforward." she then veers into cynical. "Everything is exactly as bad as people want to pretend it isn't. All the things you aren't supposed to say out loud are true. Whatever is supposed to be a flaw in a human being can be taken as a general rule. The City is just kind enough to not throw up smoke and mirrors around it, nor allow anyone the luxury of weaving their own collective delusions either; at least not outside the upper crust of a Nest." She brushes back her hair. "It even makes it easier, and more pleasant, to notice the exceptions in the muck." 'I'm just a Grade 3, ma'am.' "That's higher than most of mine." Lilian smirks. "For now. I have high hopes for plenty, but that takes time. Perhaps I'll start asking for you by name when you reach Grade Two?" 'Yeah, but it's true other courier services as less reliable.' Lilian nods, though it's not clear at which part. "Never trust a service that won't bleed someone with more money than sense." She can't help but smile reading the note. It gets wider than would normally be Polite, and so she turns her hand to concealing her lips out of habit. Checking the back briefly, Lilian carefully folds the note up again, checks the tin, sighs a soft little noise of appreciation, and cautiously puts it all back together again. "God I need to get that woman my phone number." says Lilian.
Odette Raskins	"Oh, uh, the delivery's done, Odette! You can stay here as long as you want, unless you wanted to say goodbye to Mr. Ivan?" "A-already?! Oh, darn. Okay. Once this one's done..." Crap. Odette really needs to catch up! That means making sure she gets the finishing touches on dressing Berislav's wounds, complete with giving him a few iron pills and one of those dense food bars packed with nutrients (including those ideal for restoring blood). Once that's done, Odette looks up at Rita and gives her a big wave. "R-ready! Although if they're that far away... Okay. Just gotta start running for it, I guess." She takes a deep breath, gets into a running stance to psyche herself up, and then- Rita transportation! Does Odette understand how this works? Not particularly, since Rita's still such a mysteriously reliable figure in her eyes. One of the few things she understands at that moment, however, is knowing that she's probably safer than she's ever been outside of the Trideag Association's doorstep. Being princess-carried also means she's curling up at Rita to make sure she's nice and snug with little risk of falling off. "I didn't know you liked taffy!" Berislav's ability to remain cool under pressure, especially that of stinging disinfectant pain, really is quite impressive to Odette. Sure, there's not a lot Elites in general do that isn't impressive to her, but it truly strikes home when it's something she's personally had experience with and handled far worse. "You're really something, Father Waters... Huh? O-oh, I just keep it around for treatment!" She glances aside after a moment, lowering her voice a smidge. "B-besides, I shouldn't be eating so much candy and junk food." Pouting briefly, she looks back over at Berislav as he gives her the actual answer, marveling slightly at how deep he goes into the training and at the breadth of his training as well. It's rather intimidating to hear about it the way he puts it, too, when he starts going into things that never occurred to her before. "E-even the recoil? And the... Wait, bullets have grains?" Truly learning something new every day. What catches her attention in particular, though, is how everything he says all ties into taking care about his weapons' efficiency at causing harm (especially the part about the unintended sort). "You were able to keep track of... Even who was behind the target? Holy heck that's..." She trails off, looking both impressed and torn about her own conflicting feelings about that. Before she can devolve into her habit of self-deprecation, however, he moves into the topic of will, and that... That all reminds her that she's in the right place. The fire returns to Odette's eyes, and she nods slowly at Berislav while her hands ball up into little fists at her sides. "Protecting goodness and people, not just... Property and keeping the beast alive. I-I understand. I think." Odette breathes in deeply as she glances towards her sidearm and her sword, suddenly feeling far more conscious about their weight than she has all day. "Seeing guns... Weapons that way. I-it's not the right way to see them, is it? I-I mean, they can be, but they're... They can be more. Just gotta learn how to... Where to use them properly. Just like-" She looks at her hands> "-everything else we can hold and put on ourselves."
Odette Raskins	"Toldja we'd leave you behind if you didn't catch up. But I'm impressed you caught up." Odette isn't quite sure how to feel as Ivan explains the difference between grade 1s and 5s. Sure, she might be a 7 now, but how far can she really get without those augs he mentioned? From the way Lilian put it during their last conversation about those things, it already sounded pretty vital to begin with. Hearing it from a grade 3 really nails it in for her, though, and it has her wondering about what she might have to do in the future just to keep up. Heck, she's had enough trouble just catching up with the group after all that, never mind actually keeping up at all. "Keeping up wasn't going to happen, but catching up... Th-that, I can do real good!" She manages to get out with a light chuckle, slapping her knees once to force herself to stand back up despite the apparent fatigue. The effort just to get back up is enough to keep her from even thinking about hunching over again, at least, although the nagging feeling that she could still be doing better never actually leaves her mind.