2017-09-04: Degeneration
- Log: Degeneration
- Cast: Riesenlied, Noeline, Leon Albus, Lily Keil
- Where: Wayside
- Date: 4th September 2017
- Summary: Riesenlied invites Leon and Lily to speak of current matters in Wayside, but the conversation takes a turn when an ancient truth is revealed...
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Wayside Village is nestled in a valley crested by two high cliffs, built on the remains of a village that had been abandoned several decades ago to the hardships of banditry and monsters. In the last week and a half, it has seen its fair share of growth -- the Tainted who've come to survive the arduous journey west through the Aveh and Kislev warfront have done their best to come together to collaborate and create something of a start to the village -- pre-fab buildings and other construction projects are underway, and a large ring of caravans around a great campfire make for the bulk of the village at present.
The saloon is somewhat up and running, with the sign reading 'V4L-H4LLA' outside the awning. It is here that Riesenlied's decided to move the equipment that Shalune has so graciously helped her set up, which includes a black box with a screen on it and a player of some kind, onto one of the dining tables.
At the back, the bartender... a particularly curious Tainted Metal Demon of humanoid make, albeit -- with a refridgerator for a body, and a pair of binoculars jammed where her eyes should be -- the eponymous 'Val', is tending to her stock and cleaning off glasses one by one. It's tough to be a Demon bartender, but she makes do.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
Leon isn't quite sure what to make of Wayside Village. He heard of it after speaking with Elly, who knew of it from Fei. He heard a few rumors, too. It feels strange to set foot in a place so clearly, so certainly affiliated with his enemies. And yet, Riesenlied is not only his enemy. It is a strange, sometimes uncomfortable alliance. He thought it best to have a look.
And, for all that he takes the war against the Demons seriously, he intends to honor an unspoken promise to Riesenlied: he won't bring that fight to this particular place unless he must.
He, of course, did not arrive alone.
He looks up at the name of the bar with a blink, then a long pause at the Demon that has a refrigerator for a body. He isn't very unsure of what to make of this. He stares -- at the bartender, at the entire bar -- before he turns to look sideways at Lily. He opens his mouth.
Then, he closes it, because he isn't sure where to begin.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"'ey pal," calls Val. "You never seen a girl with a sixpack in her before?"
As if to prove her point, she opens her hinge and shows the, indeed, six pack of beer inside of her. The fridge light even still works.
The way she self-amusedly cackles makes it seem like it's not the first time she's made that joke.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
Lily, on the other hand, has been to Wayside Village before, and has already had the opportunity to draw some firsthand conclusions about it. ...The first of course that she spoke being that it's entirely insufficiently defended. She's heard rumors, she's seen things about it...
And still she's come here, both on her own and now with Leon, who she took the journey with in the first place.
Here in the saloon, Lily waits though Leon... staring at everything. He looks at her. She looks at him. Val chimes in. "Nope," she adds for Leon, "He hasn't. Can I get one of those?"
She seems... entirely comfortable here, for some reason, as she walks further in.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"It's not polite to stare, you realize," chimes a terribly amused voice from behind the pair, though only once Val has had the opportunity to make her joke and once Lily's slipped inside. Noeline Carver - the self-styled 'Crimson Noble' - might have traded out her heavier dresses for a chic vest and skirt, the better to cope with sand and heat, but she still looks out of place amongst the citizens of Wayside. She's not injured, after all, nor making do with what she's got - and here, that makes her flamboyance stand out all the more.
On the other hand, she seems perfectly at ease being a creature of contrast, busy shouldering a large crate without complaint as she carefully maneuvers it through the door. "Val, I've brought what's left of those fruits," she reports as she sets the box down on the counter, puffing out a breath. "There's a bit of everything, if you'd like to experiment. I can't honestly say how on Filgaia they were grown, but-- hang onto the seeds, hm?" she adds with a faint grin and a shrug of one shoulder.
When she turns to the pair, Lily gets a light nod of recognition. "Ah, do you need the tour?" she immediately asks, before her grin immediately solidifies. "Welcome to Wayside. If you'd like, I can show you the way to what I hear is affectionately known as Makeout Point." Oh, yeah, she caught that floating rumour. She is not likely to let Riese forget any time soon, in fact. (She might even be genuinely, genuinely pleased.)
She does sober afterwards, though, fading to an assured smile. "Rest assured that we are a peaceful village. Oh, and if you need any, your pink blob got the water pumps up and running, more or less," she adds to Lily.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied is inside, and it's a while yet after Noeline makes her appearance that she appears from a back room where she appears to be checking on some miscellaneous cabling. "Ah, I found the spare converters in Cetiri's goods--" A pause, as she cups her mouth to go, "Oh, Mister Leon, Miss Lily."
Compared to even a few weeks before when they last pursued Gryndille, Riesenlied does... look a bit more wan, a bit more tired -- she looks like she's had a lot to think about in mind, not to mention the stressors of running a village and having it all underhand. However, it seems to have done a lot to spur her onwards as well, judging by the way she animates about the place. She smiles lightly towards Noeline, then gestures for them to seat at the table where the television is.
She appears to have missed the point about Makeout Point, for better or worse.
Val lets out a bit of a crooning chuckle as she gets out a serve of drinks to bring to thet able, to say, "Sure thing, Lil'," she says, apparently having met her enough on Lily's first visit that they're on nickname basis.
"I'm glad to hear that you both escaped the warfront safely..." Riesenlied laces her fingers together. "... it was certainly a... an unusual time, with unusual outcomes. But as I have promised to Miss Lily, you are welcome at Wayside..." She lowers her head. "And I do not intend to back down on my promise to continue assisting you with Gryndille and... now, the Golem Sado as well."
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
"I--no," Leon finally stammers out after Lily. He shakes his head. Lily walks into the bar ahead of them, and he takes a few steps -- but then jumps a little once Noeline speaks up. He blinks, leaping a little, and turns to look over his shoulder at the 'Crimson Noble.' The comparison between her and Ebon Zero, who he had once crossed swords with, is not made.
His eyebrow raises, as he looks around, and then cracks a slight smile. "Makeout Point," he says, with a laugh. He runs his hand through his hair. "No, that isn't why we're here. My apologies. We're... acquaintances with someone that, I understand, lives here. I thought I would ask after her."
He turns his head to look sideways at Lily, which is when he catches sight of Riesenlied. He sees that she looks more tired -- more run-down, really -- and then he nods his head to her once. "Ah, Riesenlied. You have our thanks. We'll take you up on that. And... perhaps, on the new Golem as well. We hadn't realized."
His hands slide into the pockets of his duster. He does that when he is nervous. "Quite a town," he says. "I'm impressed. I heard it described, but... I had to see it to understand." Then, he glances at Noeline. He smiles, politely, and nods his head to her. "Leon Albus.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
Leon stammers, and Lily keeps moving smoothly, still in her obviously military garb. She glances back at him just in time to see Noeline herself here, who indeed does stand out to her. But back to Val she mentions, "Wonderful." Lily doesn't even seem to object to the nickname, though maybe that's just because Val agreed to bring her a drink. Maybe.
"Fruit. Promising." A beat, as Leon laughs at Noeline's mention of the tour. "We do have business," she agrees, though there's a little bit of a wry note to her expression. "Hello, Riesenlied."
The matter of escaping the warfront... Well, "We were better equipped to do so than most thrust into it," she says, shaking her head. She may not give away much in her expression, but it's enough to be clear that she isn't pleased with that.
"Leon is right," she adds, about their thanks. "In this at least I'm no happier than you are; I don't know what Kislev will do with such a weapon, and I don't like the possibilities."
She pauses. "...Riesenlied. Let me look you over later. You don't look well." She won't be the first to sit down, but she will once others have. "...Everyone here already knows my name," she says as a matter of course, with a shrug. "It is nice to see Wayside improving, though. That little pink blob certainly knows how to work."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Noeline's immediate response is to turn towards Riesenlied, obviously drawn towards her when she appears; a hand lightly goes to the commander's shoulder, offering her some support as the pair sit down together. "... 'unusual' does not begin to describe the situation outside the Temple, let alone within it," she mutters as she folds her arms, huffing softly to herself. "I still can't help but feel like that escalation was planned, somehow, even if I don't know by whom. Something about it was just a little too perfect, overall - and quite the show of power, for that matter."
"It is our duty of care to try to take that Golem on, I suppose, even if I don't begin to know /how/ right at this moment. 'Eventually', perhaps. Consolidation should probably come first," she considers, letting out a breath as she turns to the man to give him an appraising sort of grin. "Noeline Carver," she replies in kind, ever so innocently adding: "The 'Demon Knight', if I remember those posters correctly. Really, what an unflattering name! Surely I had enough flair to warrant something a /little/ better."
It's pretty obvious she's fishing for another amusing reaction - but perhaps she's just in high spirits in general what with Wayside's growth. Either way, she looks to Lily with a put-upon frown. "It is impossible to get Riese to sit down for more than a few moments. I fear I might have to kidnap her and tie her down," she grouses, but pleasantly and with a twinkle in her eye.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"Not fruit /we/ grew, unfortunately, so much as a rather surprising gift," Noeline adds with a shrug and a light flick of one long strand of hair. "We've passed it around to some friends, and are keeping the rest to see if we can do the same. With any luck, the qanat will allow a little irrigation."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"I understand it is unusual at first glance, but..." Riesenlied tucks her head down gently. "... I do wholeheartedly hold my brethren's wish to discover a new home. We are humble and of little means here, but we've plans to survive out in the Badlands, even under the shadow of Aveh and Kislev's war. Unlike Old Petra... we do not have plans to make this a Metal Demon base. Our defenses here are solely for the protection of its inhabitants."
There's just a bit of a flare of embarrassment at Noeline; unlike her counterpart, she's dressed a fair bit more conservatively, as with her familiar Ellurian tribal cloak and a light cream blouse with dark chocolate leggings underneath. Some of the patterns are positively ancient at this point in time.
"It coincides with our investigation of the automaton Gryndille," she expresses to Noeline -- gesturing. "Which... I assisted Mister Leon and Miss Lily with a couple weeks ago, at Mount Eldrin. There was a recharge station that we identified in the Badlands proper... and if I know how Kislev's military industry works, it's likely that there will be common threads between the upkeep and maintenance of all their war machines."
There's a regretful sigh. "And-- thank you, Miss Lily. Noeline is right... I've been feeling a bit strange ever since our... unusual encounter in the Temple, but... it isn't a wound, exactly." ==== <Guest> Slime Guest disconnected.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
"Wanted posters are rarely imaginative," Leon says. "I always found mine lacking." He cracks a small smile. His were matter-of-fact because the Kislevi military issued them. At least, he thought, he didn't have a title to go with it. That seemed to be a product of Althena's Guard. He frowns, then he shakes his head once at Noeline.
"It may have been planned," he says. "I have my guesses, but they're only guesses. To find out more, I would need to go to Kislev--which is the last thing that I intend to do." He doubts that he would come back. He looks sideways at Riesenlied when Lily addresses her, but has to fight a snort back at Noeline's remark.
He mostly manages to.
"We've been searching for where that recharge station is," Leon says. "The map wasn't specific enough, I fear. We know the area it should be, but... that is a wide area. I'm seeing what rumors there are--and what rumors of Gryndille's movements that we might fine." Then, his brow furrows, and he looks Riesenlied over.
"What happened?"
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
"It's not whether it was planned, I think, but how much, and how much of that plan came to fruition. Particularly considering that Kislev was prepared to take prisoners in the aftermath... That isn't accidental." Lily shakes her head. "I don't know."
Riesenlied mentions the matter of a new home, and Lily nods. "I know," she says. ...And that's all she says about t.
She shrugs about the wanted posters, adding only, "There's something about a knight that can suit. Why not?" She pauses, shakes her head, "Maybe you /should/ tie her down," she points out. She'd rather focus on that than on the fact that they aren't going to Kisle, particularly since...
Well, she still has reason to.
"I'm looking into it as well, obviously," the sorceress says. "A methodical approach will uncover it; we know it's here /somewhere./" She stops then and looks ove Riesenlied again. "Still... That's worth examining, even if there are no obvious wounds. Especially so. What /did/ happen? I know that the visit inside the temple was unusual for me."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"That is fair. At the very least, such machines must have some relatively solid supply chains as their weakness," the demon muses in concert with Riesenlied, somewhat anticipating Leon's comment as she mulls the problem over. "I know very little about Golems, to be quite honest, but surely even the biggest militaristic black box needs mechanics and someone to provide it with rudimentary orders."
If Noeline spots Riesenlied's flare of embarrassment, she doesn't show it, now leant a little into the other woman as she brightly adds: "In fact, a recharge station is likely to be a repair station, as well - which would suggest schematics, and perhaps other ways to impair it. A rather far-fetched hope, perhaps, but those do seem to be stock-and-trade on Filgaia."
"Still, the situation at the Temple... the trouble is that I could just as easily point the finger at Aveh, I suppose. Gebler appears to give them a significant advantage when it comes to mobility - which opens a lot of doors. Certainly, I'm not about to sign up for either of them. Perhaps I'll have to return to my roots before all this is over, however, and take a sneaky look around."
Says, you know, the striking girl in the vivid red-and-white. The amused grin wouldn't normally be what you'd expect to see from someone saying that - but then this is Noeline, and she's retained a bit of a devil-may-care streak even out here as part of Wayside.
Not quite devil-may-care enough, though - because as the pair ask about /inside/ the temple, she's looking to Riese to follow her lead.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
There's a thoughtful nod from Riesenlied as she says, "It's unfortunate, but it's better than literally combing the desert with blind eyes. Like Miss Lily, we've been charting the deserts in quadrants for our own purposes in the last week, both to keep tabs on our neighboring areas and to identify any Ruins and dangers that may be present. I'll be happy to cross-reference information with you."
The suggestion to tie her up just rather makes her lips wobble a little further, as she bobs her head to one side. "... we..." A pause. "Well -- we were involved in the fighting outside, and I'd received a number of wounds sheltering people from the sudden bombardment... we retreated into the inner halls of the Temple. Our wounds took a toll... and we fell a long way, into a dark crevasse."
She laces her hands together uncomfortably. "When we awoke... we were face to face with a Guardian. Equites, the Guardian of the Sword."
There's hesitation, but... she presses forward to say: "We-- pleaded, I with the images of my brethren marching here, with the will that we have created together... and Noeline, with words and the gift she'd been entrusted. ... though he was sent to kill us..."
She looks out the window for a moment, then expresses, "... he acquiesced in the end. He bid us show that we were more than capable of murder." She purses her lips as she says, "I could feel, hear the wounds in his words. The Guardians bear wounds as deep and old as the ones my brethren do... I hear the same tinge of harm in their voices as I do Lord Siegfried, at times."
She lets that parse for a moment, regathering her thoughts.
"We've... decided to not join in the assault against the Guardian statues, covertly. There are cover stories that can help us -- Aveh and Kislev alone is more than a handful..." Her eyes close. "... for a long time, I've believed in Mother as a kind, graceful saviour. Much of what I believe in... I clung to out of that image. But in hearing what the Guardians have had to say... in hearing her words just even for a moment..."
Her lips thin gently. "I am not so sure anymore. ... it shakes me to my core, to think it may not be so. I do not believe the Guardians have a compelling reason to lie to me. ... but I do know that the Guardians and my elders both bear wounds that inevitably set them on another collision course. ... and if we remain ignorant of what happened... it may well spell another catastrophe for Filgaia."
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
"Mm. That is my hope," Leon says. "I wonder how much they understand of it, though. The Gears we had in Kislev... they were not this advanced. I wonder if they really know what they are using?"
Both answers to that question concern Leon. If they do, then they understand a technology beyond others' capabilities. If they do not, then they may not understand what they have loosed into the world. It is a question he has to wrestle with. After all, the Yggdrasil has a Golem aboard -- and a decision to make, about whether to deploy it.
He does look sideways at Noeline, though, and blink. She does stealth missions? He wouldn't have suspected it.
He falls quiet, though, and lets Riesenlied explain. Leon is good at keeping his expression in check -- he looks thoughtful, but not shocked, as she explains that they met a Guardian and survived. He finds himself honestly surprised about that. He frowns, though, and looks to the side. "...I see. We can share what information we're able to, then. We can see what may be the scars of the last war on Filgaia. Being in the West, seeing the Gunsmoke Desert..."
A lifeless expanse, unlike the deserts to the east -- and yet, he thinks, that could be the future of the world. "And the power of the Guardians is evident. And yet..."
He frowns, looking down. "...Their weakness is evident, too. They could only do the things they did within their Temple. It is a grim situation, for everyone involved. What will you do? If you anger one side or another, I doubt this village would stand against any of them, if they made a fully concerted effort."
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
"I'm no expert on Golems myself," Lily admits. "...Much like Leon, I wonder the same about how much they understand of this. Certainly such things aren't common knowledge even among the military."
But there may be something, and, "Sharing information will likely be useful for both of us. You may be right, Noeline. We'll have to see for ourselves. We at least know for sure that such things /can/ be damaged."
A pause. "Gebler... Yes, they and Aveh I'm not counting out yet, either, despite the clear advantage Kislev nowholds. But i you want to move in for a stealth mission, I'll certainly join you." Does Lily not... notice the bright colors??? Maybe she just assumes...
A beat, "But you do seem to have dyed your roots very well, looking at you."
Ah. That could almost be umor.
Lily listens to Riesenlied's story and nods, after a moment. "The Guardians are weakened, certainly, and clearly willing to talk. It's... good, that he didn't kill you. I wonder about that hstory... and how it might affect our future."
"That's my concern, as well. The fact is that we can see how bad things are here. ...And you have few allies." She pauses. "It is difficult enough to have to question something so close to you. But I'm glad that you won't be joining that assault. It's selfish of me in some ways, but it's true."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"Well-- I was originally a spy, after all. How else do you think I lived in Filgaia for a couple of centuries as a Crimson Noble? Hiding in plain sight, I suppose you'd call it - but I can offer a more conventional style as well, when necessary," smirks the demon.
All of Noeline's flighty amusement blows away in an instant, though, as Riesenlied tells her story; the demon spy's lips are tight together as she recollects their trip into the bowels of the Temple - if that was even where they ended up, rather than some metaphysical space. Noeline isn't the sort to really know. She toys with some of her hair, letting out a rather heavy sigh - and yet, one that also rings ever so slightly of relief.
"All we can do is educate, and learn, and forge connections," she replies to Leon's final question, rather solemn. "Learn more about a past even the Guardians seems to have forgotten. Show people that Metal Demons are not always something to be feared. Show Metal Demons that the world is wider than they know. Make a connection between the two, with Wayside at the centre - and hope that perhaps there might be some way to bring a more peaceful resolution to this conflict."
"Honestly, the list goes on and on," she huffs grumpily as her seriousness suddenly cracks. "It will be hard, no doubt, and certainly is-- but I would rather chase this path, if I'm going to chase any of them. For Riesenlied, as well, this outcome is the result of her following her heart. If I anger one side or another, then at least I will do so /proudly/."
"Though--... do be careful who you admit that to at the moment," she adds as she settles into a rather wan smile. "It is not a cause we can present to the rest of the people here. Not yet," she adds... but she does take care to stress the last word.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"... it is unusual," Riesenlied must agree with everyone. "My fears are of a proxy faction that have provided Kislev with the means and understanding to activate the Golem... their own Gebler, in essence, much like how the presence of that squad has bolstered Aveh's technological and military capabilities signifcantly." It goes unsaid, but the fear of a chain reaction of Golem activations resulting in mutual destruction is... almost unnecessary to say.
There's a delicate smile as she says, "I can't say I'm very good at stealth missions, but... I would be happy to provide assistance however I can, whether just coordination or otherwise."
Riesenlied clings her hands just a bit tighter as she nods towards Leon. "... they have admitted as much that they have no eyes into the world. Their power has weaned... and there is bad blood between them and their allies that have abandoned them."
She tilts her head to the other side, as she reaches for Noeline's hand gently for assurance. "But... I started to feel unstable and uncomfortable when I was first struck by a Guardian in Adlehyde's Fairgrounds -- and the meeting with Equites appears to have intensified it. I'm not... certain what it means, but... it seems to have been responsible for the empathic phenomenon I'm experiencing. So in a way, it is good... but at the same time-- concerning, as well."
There is a nod of concession at the talk of allies. "... speaking of... I'd wanted to reach out to you and see if you knew any linguists -- we found this... recording, in the bottom of a Ruin known as the Colisea Arcadia. There was an unusual... sports field? And this recorded image, which Shalune helped me reactivate back here."
She presses a button, and then the television begins to flicker, and the image of the man in the lab coat and the filled hospital wards, as well as the information graphics, comes into view. "I've never heard of a language as this... and it seems to pertain a medical crisis in the past. I've made it something of a mission to try to understand it, if there is useful info that we must be aware of..."
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
"Mm. I knew of no such faction. But, a lot has happened since winter," Leon admits, quietly. He frowns as he speaks, then he looks downward. How much was hidden from him? And why? He shakes his head, before he looks back up. There isn't time for brooding.
Especially because Riesenlied says something disturbing. His silver eyes narrow, but he nods. "We need--mm. We need to see what we can find out, then," he says. "I will see what can be found." And then, he blinks, and looks up. He shrugs once; he can think of a few. Josie, he thinks, is a scholar. She would know. "Certainly. We have a friend that we could ask."
It doesn't prove necessary. At first, he watches the television with mild interest. He sees the hospital wards -- no surprise, though they look far more advanced -- and then the images of drones, and the infographics. Leon falls quiet, which is not so strange. And yet, it is a different sort of silence. His eyes narrow, slowly.
He speaks slowly, when it ends, too. His voice quavers. He sounds uncertain--no. He is certain of one thing. "...it was discussing a widespread illness in their society. It was... about the creation of drones and robotics, to help with those who were ill. It--" He swallows, his fingers tensing. He looks pale. "--It mentions the illness affection national security."
He stares at the screen when the message ends. The only thing that he is uncertain of is how he understood that language.
Fei Fong Wong has reconnected.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"It was a frankly /ridiculous/ ruin," Noeline huffs as she folds her arms. If her mood appears dented, it's probably because of the talk just before it - there's no doubt just from looking at the pair of them and the way they act that the demon is every part as vigilant as Ebon Zero was when it comes to Riesenlied's safety. Discussing a strange and uncertain malady that she seems to have picked up from contact with the Guardians leaves Noeline a little ruffled.
She sits up a little when Leon falls silent, though, recognizing the recognition in his eyes - and then frowns, her hand at her chin as she considers the explanation. "Well. This might be the first time we've encountered an answer to something in the ruins so quickly and easily, at least," she decides, choosing to talk past the man's tension; she can imagine that neither of the Yggdrasil pair are the sort to appreciate a focus on them when it could be slid elsewhere instead.
"Though it may not be terribly relevant to the present day, I suppose. Perhaps if there's talk of the actual medical methods they implemented at the time, or why exactly it affected national security, but beyond the historical note--..."
A bright and cheery bar chart comes up on the screen, and Noeline's brow furrows. The unspoken statement is clear enough: she doesn't really expect a sensational video like this to really go into the fine details.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
Lily hmms at the matter of Noeline's spycraft. "...And to think, I met you right after I'd been researching monsters of Adlehyde."
But the story.. Lily doesn't really change, through the story. She doesn't change after, either, quiet and thoughtful as she considers the others, has a drink from the beer that Val brought her as she does, letting the taste focus her a little further. "Mm.."
A connection. "Suggesting that Metal Demons aren't to be feared /is/ a difficult task, considering. But fair enough. It may be a mad task, but it's better for you than the alternative of giving up." There may be something like approval in Lily's voice.
"...I'm accustomed to keeping secrets," she adds. "We both are. I have no intention of harming your efforts as you state them." But, she's unlikely to speak much about peace. Not with the things she's said to Riesenlied alone.
Riesenlied mentions a proxy faction, and Lily frowns at that, shaking her head. "I would think Kislev proud for that... But much of what I believed of Kislev has proven questionable." The quiet woman shakes her head. "I'm not sure that's necessary... But a lot has happened since winter, yes. It's an even larger concen."
She says little more of stealth. Instead, "Mm. I suppose anything that has been here for this long would develop such ties." She pauses herself, watching Riesenlied as she mentions her instability, her discomfort. Her... empathic.. phenomenon? Lily's eyes widen slightly. "I..." But she isn't sure what she can say, there. Other than, "I suppose the only answer is study. That... concerns me. Is it possible that the Guardians' presence is somehow..." She trails off.
She has no time for brooding either. "Linguists?" she asks, and pauses. Sports fields, recordings... Lily glances to Leon. He mentions who might be able to help, or that there is someone, and she sees nothing she needs to add. Instead, she looks to the stange images... And she narrows her eyes as she looks to these infographics. A mission...
But this surprises her much less than the fact that /Leon/ speaks up and mentions what it said--she stares at him or moments that stretch on. She shakes her head a moment later; he seems uncertain, seems bothered which means...
"This is ancient," Lily points out, perhaps unnecessarily. "It..." Lily pauses, and begins to speak smooth, unbroken words that those with good memory will recognize as exactly, unaccented, what was said at the start of the recording. "Genetic decay, it was called. The images accompanying him gave specific statistics... They have little meaning to me without context. It's about, specifically, their sports."
"Mm..." She tilts her head upward, recalling what she heard, "Genetic decay has run rampant through our society. This is associated with a variety of medical conditions, which has lowered the athletic qualities of these individuals." She pauses, and says, "The individuals in the hospital wards, there, I assume. ...He said... The drones you see here are meant to preserve our sport, as our best doctors and sientists work to find cures to these ailments. We won't surrender our culture to this crisis!"
Lily closes her eyes. "If you give me a few moments to transcribe the rest, I can tell you the rest of what it said. It mentions a Dr. Kasim, and an approach that differs from his in use of Symbology and robotics. Something about... chronic wasting diseases reported in some regions, and the Zeboim Federation seeking to improve their combat prowess in the field. They're having difficulty in conflicts in their border regions..."
Lily picks up her beer again. "...I'm honestly not sure how much use there is in this information, considering. These people are long dead. I would have to visit this ruin myself. ...And I think that I should."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied's eyes widen with no small amount of surprise and awe as Leon starts to speak, not at all expecting him to have picked up on the language. "Where...?" A pause, as she-- glances back towards the screen with a quiet frown. "A widespread illness... affecting national security?"
Leon himself didn't seem certain, so she doesn't exactly probe on how he knew... but the one illness at the fore of her mind does come to mind. She listens to Lily. "Genetic decay... degeneration...? It reminds me of... the Zopt Syndrome, most recently... or the VR Factor...?" It's just a guess, nothing more, and her tone suggests it too. A pause, and she shakes her head. There's a quiet, throaty noise as she murmurs, "... or maybe even the degeneration inside of me -- inside the Tainted."
It's kind of wishful thinking, and she knows it, to try the two together.
"I can lead you to it again... though those drones that this Dr. Kasim spoke of... ah-- we may have been forced to... try to play ball with them." A pause. "It was an extremely odd ruin, I must say..."
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
Leon's expression, to say the least, is disturbed. "I don't--I have no idea," he mutters. "I've not heard it spoken in years. I assumed it was a dialect, or..."
He shakes his head, trailing off, and then looks to Lily. His eyes widen slowly. Why can she speak it? How does this--how does any of this make sense? He stares a moment, before he swallows. Then, he nods "It is certainly ancient. It... mm. I wonder about all of this. Yes," he says, "I would like to have a look."
He hesitates a moment. Then, Leon looks up, and peers towards Noeline. "Ridiculous? A /ball/ game? What sort of place was this? A coliseum, of some kind?"
Like Lacour, he assumes.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
No sooner has Noeline dismissed the video than Lily begins to go into it in significantly more detail. The demon huffs ever-so-briefly under her breath in something like surprise - and then quiets as she listens along, her attention focused enough to pick out the points and commit them to memory. In the end, it's probably for the best, because the alternative conversation piece is Noeline admitting that she's not all that terrifically certain that Metal Demons as a whole are salvagable, and that perhaps the Tainted are all they're going to get.
That's a rather fatalistic thought for another time, thankfully, and not one that Noeline would like to burden Riesenlied with. They have yet to really start trying, after all, and it's far too early to be so dour just yet.
"I see... it may not be terribly useful on its own, but it certainly could be considered a data point to bear in mind for later. I would be most inclined to see if we can find similarly-aged structures in hopes of medical records, as I suppose this video concentrates more on the automatons they developed? --it would certainly explain some of the things we found down there, regardless."
Her eyes do gleam with curiosity at the talk of military engagements and border skirmishes, though, and she lightly rubs her hands. "Still-- from the point of view of a historian, this is terribly interesting, yes. A glimpse into their society at the time, hm?"
She pauses, and then throws an amused look at Leon. "Exactly that. Several ball games, in fact, and an arena at its end. Some things never change, I suppose, as time rolls on."
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
"I can think of many ways that illness can affect national security," Lily comments to Riesenlied. She doesn't have toimagine all of them, either, given what she saw. She considers as they speak, but looks more to Leon as he mentions... having heard it spoken? A dialect...
A little concern enters her expression as she looks at him, but not for very long. She looks back to Riesenlied rather than air her feelings.
"It certainly seems to have had degenerative effects, if it inhibited the ability of their athletes to even play their games. He spoke of using exoskeletons to compensate for the damage, which is... significant. To say nothing of those image technology."
Like the Tainted... It is wishful thinking. But then, is it so wishful, when they have no sense of a cure? Lily pauses again, shaking her head. "To play... ball," she repeats. "They still function for that purpose, I suppose. Fascinating..."
She pauses, as if she'd just said something that seemed strange even toherself, and shakes her head. It's for the best that she doesn't continue the last conversation with Noeline, indeed. Instead, "Yes, we could certainly find more /information/ by studying this one, or finding others. To a historian it would be an extraordinary find..."
Some things never change. Lily drinks a little more. "Maybe, maybe not. I admit I'm more concerned that if this was a site involving some sort of disease, and it's uncovered..."
She pauses, and adds, "I've seen other places with this language in ruins. They are out there. I haven't uncovered medical records from them, though."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"Exoskeletons... the kind of technologies that this Dr. Kasim was employing is considerable indeed," Riesenlied murmurs. A pause. "At that point, you may as well have humans that are between that and our kin..."
She doesn't ruminate on that topic for long, but... she nods as she expresses, "It... was a 'coliseum', for sports. There was... artificial grass, and official markings. There was a rulebook, and the drones were configured to play ball..." A pause. "I think it is quite significant... even if these people are long dead -- I would be the first to claim that diseases can long outlive their victims, even when lain dormant."
The source of tainted material that created her in the first place, after all, had lain dormant for a long time until they were unearthed and used.
She nods at Lily. "... if it does pertain to a disease, I'd want to make sure that we do not accidentally breach any containment zones. I'll be more than happy to bring you there sometime, as I said."
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
"I wonder what sort of illness it was," Leon says. "We have so little context--it's like trying to make sense of a single page of a novel." He never knew, really, that this part of being a Drifter would be so frustrating. It remains at odds with his training as a soldier, even if he feels more at home with the work after six months of doing it.
"I can see how it can cause problems--and be dangerous," he says. "We may not find much there, but... I'm curious. Especially since..." He looks sideways, back to Lily. He nods. He has heard it spoken. He doesn't know why. "I'd like to know more."
He leaves it at that.
He looks between Noeline and Riesenlied, though. Some ancient sports game? He smiles, slightly. "Well, it might be entertaining to see. Even if it's not what I'd expect of going in there at all," he admits. He nods once. "I'll take you up on that offer."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"At the very least, the Colisea did appear to be mostly open to the outside world, if a rather winding path to get there. No containment fields, no bulkheads or significant control doors that we could spot. As such, I doubt there is anything of the disease remaining in /that/ ruin specifically, or else we would have known about it long before now," she summarizes, picking for a moment at her fingers as she continues to mull it over.
She pauses, and furrows her brow. "Or-- rather, let me rephrase. I doubt there are any airborne pathogens or remnants of biological material - and I /very/ much doubt that your elders of old were going to establish a disease laboratory inside some kind of sporting ground. I wouldn't rule it out, I suppose, but that sort of thinking would certainly be something else."
Something strikes her, and suddenly she can't help but wonder what sort of empathic link Riesenlied picked up on when they were last there. Perhaps, rather than the players, all that rolling around clutching her leg in a show of pain was a memory of the patients, instead.
Yes, that makes a lot more sense.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
"...Apparently this was unrelated to this Dr. Kasim," Lily corrects. "They spoke of it as a contrast to the doctor's work. It makes sense, though, that they would have multiple avenues if this illness were such a problem." She pauses though, "...And you might. I'm not sure what that would look like."
A rulebook... Its significance seems not to be in debate for the sorceress, at least. "They can, though whether they have or not..." Lily shakes her head. "We don't know the original vector of this illness, or anything about it," she agrees with Leon. "We should be cautious, but..."
Noeline at least provides information. "I'll go with you," Lily says to Riesenlied, to Leon. "I'd like to know more as well. I don't know about entertaining... But it should be something."
A beat, "But you might underestimate how efficient humans can be." She doesn't manage to make it sound that funny, though. "...We won't know without further investigation, if even then." She pauses, and considers...
"Riesenlied," Lily says. "I can provide you with some of the written form of this language, so that if you spot it in the future, you know where to look."