2017-10-02: Riesenlied's School for Monsters
- Log: Riesenlied's School for Monsters
- Cast: Riesenlied, Elena, Rosaline Calice, Noeline
- Where: Wayside Village
- Date: Monday, October 02, 2017
- Summary: A pair of priestesses visit a demon village. Surprisingly, very little blood is shed.
This scene takes place before the events of 2017-09-30: If You Give A Jerk A Cookie.
=============================<* Wayside Village *>============================== Wayside Village sits at the midst of a road exchange leading into the neck of the Badlands. Decades ago, this village was abandoned due to increasing pressure and risk from roadside thieves and bandits, as well as aggressive wildlife, but it was resuscitated recently by the Ebony Wings. Now, Wayside Village stands as a haven "for those who have been left by the wayside" - it houses an orphanage, school and a homeless shelter and soup kitchen to aid those that have been abetted. A vulnerable, but growing community has gathered here, slightly odd in shape, size and appendages, owing to them being mostly "Tainted" -- rumored to be broken Metal Demons, or perhaps just Beastmen and other demihumans; the real story isn't quite widespread. Besides, those that have nowhere to go seem to be happy enough to coexist here. For Drifters, a large roadside saloon called the "V4L-H4LLA" acts as an inn, a watering hole and a stable all in one. Those with vehicles that require repair can also find some mechanics who can enact some basic maintenance and a top-up of common fuels. A dojo with all kinds of martial training equipment has been set up near the village centre. Wayside Village sustains itself largely by trading and selling water for other services, owing to its recently repaired water purifier unit - served to the village via a Qanat with a robust irrigation system stands at the edge of the village, where a Garden with simple hardy crops and other agricultural pursuits can be followed. BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4uR39jNeGE
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
The village of Wayside -- something of a poorly kept secret for most Drifters around the area, it sprouted from nothingness about two months ago in the wake of the Aveh-Kislev warfront, and has been taking in various refugees and other kinds of stragglers who've been caught in the harsh reality of Filgaia's deserts. It's a small community nestled in a valley inbetween to crested hills, said to be populated by 'odd' Beastmen... or for those more in the know, Metal Demons.
Still, the Metal Demons here are a far cry from those in Adlehyde -- they're mostly humanoids, sporting all kinds of old, debilitating injuries for the most part. There's a guy with accordion tubing for legs, and a lady with a refrigerator for a chest and binoculars jammed in her head for eyes. The village is cozy, though, a great campfire around which a ring of caravans exists -- and several buildings have been erected around the area past there, including an inn called 'V4L-H4LLA' and a large building at the top of the hill marked 'Wayside Orphanage'.
Riesenlied is said to be here often, and it would seem... ... well, she is, actually! She's seated outside the inn on a bench with a black-haired girl, aged no more than five years old, on her lap. "Stay still now..." She's dabbing a little ball of cotton soaked in alcohol on the girl's knee, much to her whimpering. She's got a little bit of a scuff there!
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
Elena had remained curious on Riesenlied and Metal Demons since first meeting her. She was peaceful, almost meek, well-intentioned, wise, and seemed to possess none of the hostility Metal Demons are known for. This went against all of the Church's teachings and the recent actions of the Demons, to say the least.
Rumors of a village where one might find Metal Demons living peacefully had eventually found their way to Elena's doorstep, and no sooner the matter investigated she had asked Rosaline and Amelia to escort her there, in the event the rumors were false and it was a trap. And if the rumors were true, it would be a sight to behold indeed.
And so the Songstress leads the two Sisters as they enter the village, already out of place given their lack of... deformities, for a lack of better word. At least she had come without a weapon in hand (though her mace/scepter hung from her belt) to avoid misunderstandings.
They pass strange gatherings after strange gatherings, and building after building, until Elena sees the familiar face of Riesenlied and stops, seemingly happy.
"Lady Riesenlied! It is good to see you again!" Her eyes lower to the task at hand, and Elena produces her Mana Egg, soothing blue light working its way down from the Songstress to the child. "Please, allow me to help!" Healing magic is ever handy, even for little scuffs.
<Pose Tracker> Rosaline Calice has posed.
Make way for the Church of Granas inquisition!
Well, not quite. A duo of clergy members has followed the rumors here, though they aren't here on official Church business, let alone to start anything. They're still hard to miss, what with being dressed in full Sisterly garb and all. Their arrival likely draws some curious, occasionally wary looks.
Rosaline has had mixed feelings, TO SAY THE LEAST, regarding Metal Demons in general and Riesenlied in specific. But if she was here to deliver bad news, she would be making at least a token attempt at looking confident as she strolls in.
Instead, she carries herself in a very... Rosaline way. She's trailing after Elena, keeping relatively close so as not to lose her, but looks around, ears perked high, assessing the surroundings for threats.
Occasionally she jumps as someone rounds a corner, or when she catches sight of a villager with a particularly unusual appearance. This is quickly followed by a flurry of breathless apologies, and assurances that as a beastwoman she knows what it can be like to be an object of curiosity and so on and so on and so on, and she trails off before catching up to Elena again, because she doesn't know yet the spell to vanish from this plane through sheer embarassment alone.
And more than the locals, the ramshackle but functional arranegement of buildings has her interest too. The sight of the orphanage on the hill, particularly, prompts a contemplative, silent stop. And once more, she catches up.
"H-Hello there," she adds, timidly waving a hand as Elena moves to greet Riesenlied. "Please let me h-- Oh, nevermind." Elena was quicker on the healer trigger finger.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Noeline is no stranger to religious types showing up in Wayside by now, and it's even getting to the point where she might not automatically assume that they're a danger to the place - after all, they've hosted some of the more fervent of Althena worshippers without anything more than a heated argument, and the aftermath of that somehow did not involve the Destiny simply rolling its treads over the village to leave a large metal pancake in its wake.
Besides, many of the Wayside villagers are at least curious, taking the opportunity to begin learning about other faiths and the wider politics of the religious world. It turns out it's pretty nuanced once you look away from the fact that one particular subset has a personal stake in your getting thrown off the world.
While she may not be a recognizable face, she is a clearly vivid one, a shock of bright red and white against the dusty and sandy landscape; the twintailed demon is leant against the wall close to Riesenlied, obviously deep in thought as she pages through what appears to be today's edition of a couple of November City newspapers. A frown plays quietly across her face as she flicks back and forth, apparently cross-referencing them - but she shrugs to herself after a moment, and then looks up at the Granas Sister's call.
"--'Lady' Riesenlied?" she blurts, slightly surprised as her eyebrows both raise. Not that she takes issue with the title - it just seems a surprisingly archaic term, and one that Riese would automatically fluster and deny. She's not jealous. Hmph.
Either way, she picks herself up from the wall, and even bows lightly in greeting, meeting pomp with pomp. "--well-- ... it feels like it's a little late for introductions," she decides after a moment, with a chuckle laced in her voice.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied pauses, and then her smile warms up as she expresses, "Oh, Miss Elena, it's--" The little girl -- who Elena and Rosaline can see seems to possess tiny-sized black wings on her back -- whimpers just for a moment, before going 'ooh', evidently awed and dazzled at the sight of the Egg and its magics. "Tingly..." she murmurs.
She bows her head gingerly, though her voice is laced with apologetic measure as she says, "Hello again, Miss Rosaline..."
She smiles at Noeline as she appears, and then looks towards the both of them. "Thank you for your help, Miss Elena. How do you feel, Mikaia?"
"M-much better!" Mikaia nods, just an adorable bundle of cute as her wings wiggle up and down in excitement.
"Welcome to our village, Wayside," Riesenlied quietly rises, carrying the orphan in her arms with her. "We don't have much here, but please, make yourselves at home..."
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
After that Wels fiasco, Elena is slightly harder to make jump through oddness alone, and has managed to save face by not impolitely reacting to villagers. She even politely bows her head in greetings when Noeline appears, making sure to remain polite and on her best behavior. As long as nobody sings Valmar's praise, it should be fine!
"Please, you do not need to disturb yourselves for us! We will not stay longer than is needed, but from the looks of things, we are the ones who should be offering you comfort and help. If there is anyone in need of healing, I am sure Sister Calice will be happy to help me handle it!"
This is going to be one of those situations where the host and the guest war to be the most accomodating, isn't it?
"Ah! Hello!" she also remembers to say to Noeline, after the bow. "I am Elena, of the Church of Granas." She lets Rosaline introduce herself, if she has to! "We are not here on Church affairs, I merely hoped if we followed the rumors of Metal Demon presence we would run into you, Lady Riesenlied."
<Pose Tracker> Rosaline Calice has posed.
"I remember you," Rosaline tells Noeline, softly, as she approaches. "Our paths crossed a few times, Miss, um..." Her expression goes blank. Her ears twitch. Oh no. Oh no!
"I am Rosaline Calice, Etone-in-Training," she finishes, looking away in embarassment.
Oh no, this little orphan girl is adorable. The beastwoman can't help but smile at the sight of her, in an undoubtedly melancholic way.
"It's, ah, it's a nice village... How long has it been here?" It can't have been very long. And yet, they've already accomplished so much... "But then, I suppose it's been sometime since we last spoke." It's not clear if she's talking about that Dig they went on together months ago, or that time she found a rocket launcher and shot it in Riesenlied's general direction while screaming like a lunatic.
"Oh yes, indeed," she says with a nod when Elena proposes healing services. "While we're here, it wouldn't do not to offer a bit of charity." Though her Church would likely call it a strategic blunder. She hasn't... actually asked yet, in fear of the answer she'll get.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"Honestly," Noeline sighs good-naturedly towards the little winged girl on Riesenlied's lap. "I don't know how you manage to trip over so much. We've tried to smooth the road over as much as we can, and yet--..." she trails off, not least because Mikaia is giving her such an adorable look and the spy doesn't seem to know how on Filgaia to handle it. Instead, she just grumbles to herself, folding her arms after she's folded the papers away into a neat stack tucked under one arm.
"It is no disturbance," she adds as she turns towards Elena, doing her best to rebuild the haughty Crimson Noble persona that's been temporarily damaged by little beastgirls. "Rather, we're happy for the assistance - though we can't offer a great deal in return, we can at least make sure you've got water for the trip back out into the desert. We have a working pump, and quite the helpful supply."
She does-- pause a little, however, when Elena just straight-up admits to following rumours of Metal Demons - and the way in which Noeline stares sideways at Riese in an equal mix of fondness and exasperation is kind of endearing. "... my name is Noeline Carver," she finally decides, bowing her head. "Also a Hyadean, and Riesenlied's partner. It's been a while," she allows Rosaline's statement with a slight chuckle before turning to look over the village, such as it is.
"A couple of months, I suppose. Not long after the destruction of Old Petra, of course, but also about the time of that mess around the Guardian Temple. ... it's a bit of a blessing that Golem appears to have up and vanished, for the time being." Should a Metal Demon be talking of blessings? Well, here she is regardless.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied remembers her research into the, um, fireball that erupted two towns over and how the Church of Granas was supposedly involved... it was a point worth asking about, if they had the time. "You must've travelled a ways to get here, though," she expresses to Elena. "Please, let's speak in the shade where it's more comfortable."
The inn is not especially lavish, compared to some of the upscale or even mediocre establishments of November City, but it's got its own kind of cozy, comfortable charm. There are couches too!
"Miss Amelia Rose has been here before, I was happy to be able to help her at a time of need," Riesenlied expresses. "It's been... two months now? Things have been coming along. Most of the folks here are kind of used to setting up pre-fabricated buildings in a short amount of time..."
She does remember the rocket launcher, and Rosaline's... more... bestial aspect, perhaps. She was regretful she had to use the light of Laevateinn on her, though it seems to have done its job of pacifying her at that moment.
Mikaia pouts at Noeline's comment of her, shrugging helplessly because she really doesn't know why she trips so much, b-baww...! All she can do is shoot her that adorable look.
"It has been rather dangerous around the area lately," Riesenlied speaks up. "What with the warfront, and the Golem... but also, of nearby villages being overrun by Reapers. We-- had to take care of one so close to ours not long ago... and I heard there was one that was consumed by a fireball..."
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
"It is natural for children to trip," Elena offers Mikaia, in stark contrast to Noeline. "Do not worry! It is how your body will learn how to not trip!" She presumes that Metal Demons learn these things the same way humans do, for lack of a better frame of reference.
Elena even beams the little winged girl a smile.
Then she looks back to Noeline, curious. "Hyadean...? Was that the name of your world of origins? Hyadea? I am afraid that we do not get taught the specifics that surround your presence on Filgaia within the ranks of the Church." Neither do they get taught that some Metal Demons are cool people, admittedly, but she avoids saying that out loud.
A look towards Ries then, and a nod as she gestures towards the share. "Thank you, it is appreciated. The desert heat is difficult to get used to. I am glad to see you have taken action to make your dream of coexistence a reality! Are there humans here as well, living alongside you?"
Then an awkward pause.
It's obvious going by Elena's face that she knows about the fireball quite well. "A-Ah, that... incident. It... it was not intentional! The village was completely overrun, there was not one living soul left, and, there was this massive hole in the ground from which the beasts kept pouring out, and so we..." SLIGHTLY, EVER SO SLIGHTLY, might have used a bit too many explosives and fuel, courtesy of several people.
She's not sure how to say that, so she doesn't.
<Pose Tracker> Rosaline Calice has posed.
"A couple of months," Rosaline repeats after Noeline, taking a glance back at the orphanage as they step towards the inn.
Elena asks a question that came to mind when Noeline calls herself Hyadean. Rosaline nods. "There isn't all that much about Metal Demons in the scriptures to begin with," she adds. "Is it what you call the New Moon?"
Her tail sways. Rosaline actually seems rather proud of her guess. With people from the Old Moon running around, it seems as if it would make sense! Will Riese and Noeline DARE burst Rosaline's bubble?
The catwoman sits gingerly on one of the couches, not seeming to mind the simpleness of it all. If anything, she seems a smidge more comfortable in these surroundings.
Stories of Reapers cause her to nod vigorously. "Oh yes, I meant to warn you about them, though it seems... you know..." It would be hard not to, at this point. The mention of a fireball causes her nodding to grind to a halt. This alone should speak volumes.
"We overdid it a bit," Rosaline understates, a hand on her temple, looking away from everyone. "I'm sorry... We would have been a lot more careful if it had still been populated..." She's quite familiar with 'overdoing it', but seems to be missing the irony there.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Noeline just gives Mikaia a deliberately puffed-up pout in return, not to mention a somewhat undiplomatic one towards Elena's lecture, but she doesn't complain as she and Riese lead the two priestesses into the inn - and, to be entirely fair, she is the one who kneels down suddenly when the little beastgirl trips on the doorway, and yet again nearly pitches forward in a splat. ... something suggests Noeline's seem that happen on a regular basis...
"Filgaia really does seem addicted to having problems," she sighs at Riesenlied's talk of the Reaper village nearby once she's got Mikaia settled on a stool. "Fortunately, we were able to flood the one we were faced with, thanks to a collection of old water towers - but it was brackish and unpleasant, and the village as a whole certainly not the sort of place I'd like to go again. At least it is silent now, I suppose."
"Hyades, yes," she adds as she fetches a couple of glasses of water, setting them down on the table easily. "Though it is also worth pointing out that there are very, very few Metal Demons that are old enough to remember the place. Riese and I were born on Filgaia, ultimately speaking. As for the New Moon-- I would be astonished, were it Hyades. Every story tells us that we travelled much, much further than that to arrive on Filgaia." At least she picks up on Rosaline's sense of :>, because she diplomatically adds: "But, old tales being what they are, who can say?"
Her shoulders do sag as the Granas priestesses reveal their use of tactical explosions - a hand goes to her forehead as she solidly sighs, but she doesn't seem too unruffled beyond the show of it all. "Well. I suppose, after having seen them first-hand, that I cannot blame you. It's difficult for me to imagine reclaiming a village in that state, especially if they were somehow-- spawning. Actually, I suppose that part would worry me the most," she grumbles.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Mikaia lights up at the priestess' advice for her, nodding as she says, "T-thank you, Miss Priestess!" She pumps her little hands into balls.
Riesenlied does seem a little surprised at Elena's reaction, though she at least stops by the counter to deposit Mikaia on -- where the bartender, the lady with the refrigerator for a torso... opens her fridge hinge and takes out a big, cool bottle of water for the group, pouring them into individual glasses each. "Water, straight from the heart. Heh." Her voice is if you took the median between a jazz lounge singer and a cement mixer.
"That's Val," introduces Riesenlied, "Just ask her if you'd like any other beverages."
She brings the glasses to the table to say, "I see... no, I don't blame you for that at all, Miss Elena -- I'd just been concerned if it was an outbreak of fighting between Aveh and Kislev. But if it's Reapers, then..."
Well, you gotta do what you gotta do, sometimes.
"I'm... glad you're doing all right, Miss Rosaline," Riesenlied. A pause, and she feels a bit awkward. "And I'm sorry." She doesn't address much more than that, though from her tone, it's quite clear she feels quite bad about their struggle at the Fairgrounds, so long ago now.
"Yes... our ancestors came here across the sea of stars, rescued from the brink of destruction of our homeworld by our Holy Mother," Riesenlied explains. "That was a thousand years ago. And now..." She looks a bit downcast. "Well, you can see the grudges that have been borne by my brethren, all too plainly... many horrible things happened at that time, but the truth still eludes us."
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
"Hyades... I see," Elena answers, and as she goes to ask what kind of world it was, Noeline clarifies that none of them would really remember it, and that they were born here anyway.
Her head drops a little bit instead.
It's a bit hard not to stare when the boxy Demon offers a drink cooled inside of it. She hesitantly takes the bottle, trying very hard and failing to be polite visually. "I... I am sorry, I must ask, but why do so many Metal Demons bear such odd shapes, as though they were..." Tools? Weapons? Utilities? What word is even proper to use, in these circumstances? "D... decidedly not meant to be human in appearance?" That... will do, sure. "Do you not feel awkward, using your body like it is an appliance?" she asks Val, more specifically.
Though there's a sight break from the awkward conversation as she addresses Riese too. "The war... yes. It is awful! I would like nothing more than to bop the minister and the kaiser on the head and tell them to stop their silly war!" Considering Shakhan is an Ethos and Elena should, therefore, TECHNICALLY side with him in this, that's saying something. On the other hand it's Elena and she has no qualms about wanting to hit jerks until they stop being jerks.
<Pose Tracker> Rosaline Calice has posed.
"I remember tripping a lot as a kid," Rosaline says in Mikaia and Elena's direction. She doesn't say 'as a kitten', but you're all thinking it now.
"Thank you," she tells Val as she takes the water, trying her best not to gawk. She grasps the glass nervously, not drinking from it immediately even though she's just been through the desert.
Flooding the town? It seems they've had their share of extreme measures to take too, albeit not ones quite as flashy. "It isn't over yet," she warns. "We've been gaining ground on reclaiming the towns lost to them, but there hasn't been an infestation like this in..." A while? Years? Ever? "Please be careful," is all she can add, clearly worried.
She nods along as Elena wishes for an end to this senseless war. She doesn't offer more of an opinion than that, clearly distracted.
"I'm sorry too," she answers, weakly, looking away uncomfortably. It was a massacre, and not one that can be swept under the rug so easily, but at least Riesenlied wasn't one of those delighting in killing civilians. And besides, how could people who run orphanages be evil?
(Don't answer that.)
Awkwardness is diverted towards a history lesson. Rosaline's theory is deflated, though gently. Their Holy Mother. She once more looks away uneasily, and it's not hard to guess why.
"Oh... Your home was destroyed. I... guess that makes you Drifters too, doesn't it? In a sense..."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"... of a sort, I suppose," Noeline acknowledges Rosaline's curious and quiet statement with a nod of her head. "Certainly, I acted as a Drifter for a very long time when I first encountered the world at large. Riese as well - and that allowed us to go out into the world and forge a great many connections in comparison to some of our kind. At the same time, it is important to realize we, and Wayside, are-- somewhat in the minority," she states, rather diplomatically as she looks to Riese with a puff of air.
She looks uncertain as to whether to go into detail on the Tainted, and their relation to Metal Demons as a whole - besides, that's more Riesenlied's call to make, as their leader.
Instead, she frowns slightly to herself at talk of the war, something of a shadow crossing her face - but she does break out into an amused snigger at Elena's rather straightforward solution. "If only it were that easy, hm? This back-and-forth has been going on for, what-- a century or two, I suppose? In its current form alone. Still, to think they'd bring out a Golem of all things," she muses as she tilts her head. "Really, that is something that will need to be dealth with sooner rather than later, however it is done. I don't think for a moment it's gone for good, you know," she adds to the open air, just a little self-righteous about it.
"We'll be careful," she adds, her wry smile continuing - but it's a smile nonetheless, and it does reach her eyes. "We have a great many scouts - and, of course, we'd be happy to keep you abreast of any other infestations we come across. I doubt very much this is a problem that we can simply whack-a-mole away, and I imagine you have people within the church looking into it?"
noooo noeline don't bring selene here
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"Didn't choose this, girl," Val responds Elena with a kind of practiced glibness. "Was just a regular humanoid long ago, 'fore a pack of Metal Beasts just about left me for dead. The chop shop doc what fixed me up had to make do with the scrap parts he had on hand, and a fridge was the only thing on hand that could keep me glued together 'fore my innards got too loose to stitch back 'gether."
She bangs on her fridge latch for a moment and cackles. "When life gives y'lemons, y'make lemonade. When life decides y'need a fridge for a torso... well! You keep a six pack in ya." She cackles at her own joke.
"Most of the Hyadeans you'll encounter here in Wayside are known as the 'Tainted'... including myself," Riesenlied explains, smiling as Mikaia starts to play with a miniature teaset on the counter as Val watches over her. "Many of us were born... weaker, and considered inferior... but a great number have also become judged so due to combat injuries -- physical, mental, emotional... and as you may be able to imagine, our brethren do not think highly of those who fail."
"Ain't people's choice sometimes. Just findin' a place where you belong," Val muses.
"We'd like to help with the Reaper infestation if we can, of course," Riesenlied expresses. "Though we've found scant in the way of evidence of what may have started it, I'm afraid to say..."
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
"That would be appreciated, if you find anything!" Elena answers Noeline and Riesenlied with zeal. "The Church, especially the Ethos, specialize in the elimination of Wels. Though I cannot say I am one of those people, Sister Calice here is an Etone, and it is one of her primary duties and expertises!" She has a high opinion of Rosaline, it's true. "Like you, however, we have not been able to find the source... there was a machine, in one of the villages, which was producing the monsters, but we destroyed it. Miss Everstead was one of those tasked with analyzing it and attempting to figure out how it worked. I will ask her if she has any news next I see her."
It's good to know that there are common enemies between humans and Metal Demons, even if it won't help that much in the short term.
The Songstress turns back to look at Val, nodding. "I understand. Since this has saved your life you have chosen not to look at it negatively... that is truly a good way to live! But I am afraid I do not understand many of the things you and Lady Riesenlied are explaining... what is the difference between a Metal Demon and a Metal Beast? Why did a Metal Beast attack one of its own?" No, there's another question she wants to ask. "... the term Metal Demon, it was not born of you, was it? Miss Noeline called you Hyadeans. Are you called demons out of fear? Was it the actions of the first who arrived here?"
<Pose Tracker> Rosaline Calice has posed.
"I'm looking into it," Rosaline says with a nod to Noeline. To her credit, she doesn't add something self-defeating for once, but there does still seem to be an implied 'but not doing a very good job of it' in her tone.
But Elena sings her praises (not literally), causing the nun to blush slightly, scratching at the back of her ear idly. It twitches. "Aww... It's true. We should definitely trade the information we get, in any case. And call me if you think your town might be threatened by them. I can't, um... I can't work miracles, but I can at least help."
Val tells her story. "...wow," Rosaline lets out, quietly, with a tiny smile. It's actually inspiring, in its odd way. She finally seems to notice that there's a glass of water in her hands. She takes a long, refreshing swig.
Noeline implies something, which Riesenlied clarifies. The Tainted. Misfits, considered inferior by their warlike brethren. Once again, Rosaline is silent, but listening attentively, a touch of sorrow making its way to her eyes from time to time. Elena asks a few more questions, which Rosaline doesn't interrupt, for now.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"Personally, I am not-- strictly a Tainted," clarifies Noeline after a long moment, her brow rather furrowed. "Not in the most direct sense. For me, it was my closeness to humans - my interest in them, and my uncertainty in Mother's stance - that marked me as such. That said, do not think it means I am any less proud to stand with them," she adds with a chuckle - and only a momentary ruffle of her feathers as Val snorts and rolls her eyes, no doubt.
It's the barrage of questions from Elena that actually sets her off into looking mildly bemused, apparently not used to having to explain their history in-depth - but first and foremost, she homes in on one particular statement: "A machine?" she blurts in astonishment, her eyebrows high. "You are telling us that the Reapers are-- scientifically created?" She's not going to voice it any time soon, not aloud, but her mind certainly does swerve in Alhazred's direction - just before she looks rather sour. "I had thought they were some kind of mystical beast, or at the very least a monstrous mutation of some kind, but-- well-- somehow, I doubt Miss Everstead-Rey is in the greatest of states to tell anyone anything at the moment," she adds as she sags. "I'll have to see if I can get anything out of her, I suppose."
(This is not breaking the time continuum, because Noeline did at least know of Ida's state ahead of Id's intervention.)
"In any case... a Metal Beast is-- more or less exactly as it sounds. Their compositions are similar, but-- they are 'made' for a different purpose, I suppose you could say. As far as the origins of the term 'Metal Demon', I can only assume it came from the first war between our kind and Demons - unfortunately, as Riese points out, we have precious little records from that time. If we did, we might begin to know more about how all of this started," she frowns to herself with a shake of her head.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"Girl you need to just wear the badge and stop frontin'," Val retorts good-heartedly to Noeline. "Ain't like you're pure as the driven snow, what you two kids've been gettin' up to." There's a little snort and a laughter that sounds electronically mixed. Her voice box is probably modulated, somehow.
"Well, A Beast's..." Val pauses, looking towards Riesenlied. "... most Hyadeans are created the same way, but for different purposes. What you know as 'Beast, Demon, Dragon', even..." A pause. "It largely is a matter of what survives the process..."
She looks sad for a moment. "The Beasts that my brethren use as shock troopers are largely those that do not survive indoctrination. Their minds burn out in the process, and they become..." She hesitates. "Beast-like. Many of the Dragons you'll find in this village are similar -- I've been taking care of those who have been rejected by my brethren, for a long while now..."
The comment that a machine created Reapers was... disconcerting to her, and brought her thoughts of Colisea. Not directly, but... the idea of machine interacting with life... "A machine... who would have thought? It is a deeply bothersome thing to know, but... thank you for letting us know nonetheless. We'll see if our scouts can't pick up anything similar."
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
"I would suspect that there are more ways to make those accursed creatures than the machine we found. Restless spirits of the dead can be brought back by means as complicated as magical rituals and sacrifice, and yet, means as mundane as the emotions of the dead. The Wels... surely it would be a mistake to assume them to come from but one source, and then when it is found, to think the world safe." Elena sighs. She liked it better when she didn't have to worry about those things.
The explanation as to what Metal Beasts are is no help for her mood. "That is terrible... why would a mother do such things to her sons and daughters? I understand that your world was robbed from you, for all purposes, but to fall that low... it is no better than what the Devil of Darkness does to his followers, robbing them of soul and will to serve him and snuff out the Light." The thought doesn't especially cross her mind that insulting Mother in front of the Metal Demons, Tainted or not, might not be a good idea.
"Why do you not rebel? Why do you not openly side with us to oppose such thoughtless evil?" Wait, back up. Elena pauses and changes the topic abruptly: "W-What do you mean, Miss Everstead not being in the greatest of states? Did something happen to her again?!"
<Pose Tracker> Rosaline Calice has posed.
"Yes," Rosaline nods at the two Demons' reaction to the existence of a Reaper machine. "Their origins have never been very clear, but it seems someone has found a way to create them, somehow." Way to bury the lede! But at least Rosaline seems to feel guilty about doing so. "But we haven't had much luck confirming that someone is behind this, let alone find out who it would be..."
Her eyes go wide at the mention of Ida being unwell. This is news to Rosaline, who hasn't had much chance to see her friend much lately. She does have a bad habit of taking on more than she can chew, and so it isn't hard to form a scenario. "Oh no..."
They explain the nature of Metal Beasts. Gloved hands cover the lower half of Rosaline's face. "This is horrible..." She doesn't go quite as far as Elena does in her boat-rocking zeal, however. She has a bit of a nervous laugh.
"There was a war between your kind and... Demons?" she asks, latching on to an intriguing bit. Did she mishear?
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"As if I don't do quite enough to make my allegiance utterly clear as it is," Noeline gripes towards Val with a resurgence of that pout. "I simply do not want to take the name in vain, where some might take offence. I did rather swan in to the whole affair, you know," she adds airily - but she huffs quietly afterwards, tilting her head in a nod of recognition--
--before clearing her throat gently at Elena's outburst, albeit with a deeply amused expression. "It is important to understand that many Metal Demons do not know any different, simply because they have never been exposed to any other situation or upbringing. For them, it is how things are - how things always have been. The Guardians--" she nods to Rosaline, as if to indicate her slightly confusing statement earlier, "--hate us because we differ to them. Metal Demons hate the Guardians because of their attempts to do away with us. And so it goes, on and on, in a circle."
She leans back in her seat, just a little towards Riesenlied, and folds her arms. "As for your other question - for one, we do not have the strength. Simple as that. Wayside is a village, not a military base," she huffs aloud with a wry smile. "For two, it is not necessarily a matter of rebelling. Most of them do not even realize that living on Filgaia is a possibility - so, it is a matter of showing them that possibility exists."
She pauses, as if to mentally gear shift away from the topic, and let out a sigh. "As for Miss Everstead-Rey, she is currently insistent on being upset and lonely. ... it would probably not be correct for me to tell you where she is, at least as far as I can understand her wishes at the moment." ... the frown on her face has turned rather uncertain. It isn't hard to imagine her having a slightly odd time with depressed people who aren't named Riesenlied.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"What you see here..." Riesenlied expresses, looking out the window towards the folks walking around, "... are the most able of the Tainted -- there are thousands more back home, less capable of movement and fending for themselves on their own merits. To openly rebel, even if we had the strength..."
She pauses, as she holds onto that pendant that Elena's seen before -- the one she created the empathy field with.
"I'm... I won't abandon them. We're seeking ways to spirit them away, but such a means has not come to us yet..."
She looks to Rosaline, then shares: "I do not know what exactly happened a thousand years ago. A great, cataclysmic war broke out between my ancestors, and the humans of yesteryear... and the scars of that great and horrible battle are all we have to discover. Who started it first... who's to blame... such details are unknown."
It's wholly too idealistic, perhaps, and Riesenlied knows it may not be possible, but... she doesn't want to give up on that. "And yet, culture and how it's ingrained themselves in our young has a lot to do with it. ... much like how Aveh and Kislev recruit their young under their banners of propaganda in their long-lasting conflict, our young have been trained, told that vengeance for a thousand years ago is all that matters. The old, inflicting grudges on a new generation."
She is a bit mum about Ida, perhaps remembering some of her outbursts. It's a bit of a sad topic for her.
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
"I have no respect for these so-called Guardians," Elena says, sourly, to Noeline. "They could not guard a temple, much less a world! No, indeed, their idea of protecting the world is to call Drifters to their abode and try to kill them with traps and trials!" She huffs. "They are pitiful!! Unsuitable as gods, unlike Lord Granas. It is surely his Light, not theirs, that will bring salvation to Filgaia. It is he, not them, who dispatched Valmar and protected us all from demons." She pauses. "Actual, literal demons, not you... I apologize, that will be a little bit confusing, I suppose."
As for Ida: "I see. Miss Everstead seems to have much on her mind at all times. I wish I could give her the aid she seems to need, but if she is not open about her woes..." Well, it's hard to help someone who won't tell you why they hurt.
And finally, to Riese. "I understand. I wish there was a way to warn the world that some of you are not war-mongering demons, but simply outcasts looking to start anew. Perhaps in time we will find a way to make this happen." One can hope. Of course, Elena can't discard the possibility this is all a ruse. Church conditioning isn't going to be knocked out immediatly.
<Pose Tracker> Rosaline Calice has posed.
"Oh!" This makes more sense now. What they know about the Metal Demon Wars, a conflict opposing them to the Guardians. Rosaline glances at her satchel bag, which contains the Solais Emsu medium. It's her companion now, but that doesn't stop her from having mixed feelings about them.
Elena, meanwhile, has a much less ambiguous opinion. Rosaline nods along again, with that nervous smile from earlier.
"I see," she says, regarding Ida. "I suppose I'll have to hope I run into her and see what I can do..." Rosaline doesn't seem to think highly of her odds there. It isn't as if Ida has been the most open person. And hopefully she doesn't get herself into FURTHER TROUBLE, but what are the odds, right?
The old, inflicting grudges on a new generation. Rosaline looks away, sadly, for a moment. "Perhaps, yes. It's another scar of the past in need of healing." She pauses, considering something, then comes to a strange conclusion, spoken softly:
"I guess that, too, makes you Drifters."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Noeline is clearly affectionate of Riese, which might not gel with all the various tales of Metal Demons and their ilk; certainly there does not seem to be anything particularly demonic in the way that the spy's hand comes to rest atop Riesenlied's with a quiet smile, acting as her support through talk of the Tainted and their uncertain and fragile future.
Well, maybe it depends which literature your church does or doesn't let you read, we're just saying.
The Crimson Noble-a-like scoffs in surprise at Elena's outburst, then her grin slowly grows as it escalates; by the time Elena's stopped for air her other palm is in the air, held up in placation as she struggles to stop snickering under her breath. "To be quite honest-- I do believe I like Granas' message, on the whole. The Guardians can sometimes be lacking in empathy - on the other hand, they are a lot harder to disprove, what with the tendency to actually manifest directly," she adds with a clearly amused grin.
She's quick to mollify the priestess though, transitioning straight into her offer: "At the very least, if you would like to stay to talk to some of the villagers, please feel free. You will be safe here - and many of them have ended up quite curious about these sorts of things."