2018-02-21: Locus Tells All

From Dream Chasers
Jump to navigation Jump to search 
<Pose Tracker> Carina Wynne has posed.

The CaraKin have found a secret, ancient garden over Lord July. It's probably a dangerous place in its own way, but for now, the group has concluded that the entrance would at least be nice to camp in.

And you THOUGHT they were kidding!!

Carina is here, it turns out. So far, she's made sure to stay out of sight and remain within the safety of the caravan when danger reared its hazardous head, but well, she couldn't pass up a chance to come camping in SUCH A COOL PLACE. Or at least that's her story. It doesn't add up at all, but most people here can easily guess what's really going on there.

Tents have been set up, seating arranged and a fire started. Night has fallen, and it's late enough that this camping trip has become EXTRA laid-back. Carina is roasting herself a sausage, gazing at the Old Moon silently, then looks at the others in turn, considers further, clears her throat, and speaks up.

"I, huh, I got an announcement to make, everyone! There's somethin' I haven't been telling you. Nothing bad, just, huh... weird?"

<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

Catenna has been somewhere over there, cooking up something with the ingredients she brought with her.

The result is one of her usual travel recipes: It's very fragrant, very creamy, very yellow and mildly spicy. One might call it a chicken korma if Hindustan existed on Filgaia. Nevertheless she's stirring the delicious meal in the pot and beginning to serve it up in the simple wooden cookware bowls with some seasoned rice.

She blinks as Carina speaks up. "Oh yes?" she asks with a cant of her head. "What troubles you?" 

<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.

Kourin has shown up for delicious food. So has Spirit. Both of them are quite attentive. 

<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.

        Lunata, uh...

        Lunata brought her Gear to Lost July, in no small part because she was deeply paranoid and suspicious of the destroyed city -- and when the group's set up to camp, it wouldn't really do for her to just kind of leave it on the upskirts. Plus, lost technology is lost technology, and lost technology has a habit of trying to kill them when they least suspect it--

        --and that's why there's a kneeling Gear next to the campside, with the hatch open as Lunata enacts repairs on it. She's somehow gotten pretty handy with it, possibly due to inherited muscle memory, but she seems to be pretty low-appetite right now. She's left the cooking to Catenna instead.

        She turns as Carina calls out, peering down from her Gear's knee. "... I'm listening." 

<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

Cyre is also here! Because of course he is. He's kind of been busily exploring the strange secret garden under/above/inside/topsy-turvy-spacey-wacey-somewhere-in-the-proximity-of what was once the city of Lost July. He hasn't gotten too far, mind you. Mostly he's been busy cataloguing and collecting nearby plant species. Maybe their seeds will be viable down below? Proooobably not, but he does remember what happened when he gave Matilda mushrooms to grow.

They grew!

Also she was seduced by an alien and eventually had an emotional breakdown.

So, approximately a wash. But, priorities.

Regardless, Cyre is here now, sitting at the fireside with a fresh pot of curry and rice and feeling altogether quite good with this situation.

"Uhhh," Cyre looks up at Carina as she begins Revelationing. And frowns.

"Are you an alien too?"

Well. It's a legitimate concern. 

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

Jacqueline was initially worried about finding herself thousands of feet in the air, but once she got used to that - and realized that there was a barrier around it, presumably preventing it from being seen and preventing people from falling off - she found it...really nice, actually. It was definitely worth coming all the way out here.

Jacqueline can be found reclining near the others. She wasn't actually ready to sleep just yet(and of course she didn't want to miss out on the delicious meal Catenna was preparing!), so she had yet to enter one of the fancy tents Shalune had brought along. She had used a lot of sorcery on her way here, however, so she found herself pretty exhausted...but when she hears Carina speak she sits up, giving her attention.

"What's that? Don't worry, we're all friends here. You can tell us anything, 'weird' or not." She says, offering her a smile. 

<Pose Tracker> Arleph Ardan has posed.

         Arleph is new to the Carakin. Thus, he made himself a tent, somewhere to camp out admist the enchanting, yet undoubtedly dangerous view. He spent most of the time looking things over, peering at the trees and looking around. Certainly, he's been scanning for the sorcery, but that's another thing to consider. He'll have to take samples of the plants here. He'll have to. They might hold a key.
 
         But Arleph is there, seated on the ground as he looks over at some leaves, looking up. He don't speak up, but his attention is upon her. 

<Pose Tracker> Carina Wynne has posed.

"Don't worry, it's nothing, huuuh, troublin'," she tells Catenna, waving a hand. She notices that dinner is being served, and so quickly gobbles up her grilled sausage so she can get in on that action more quickly.

"What? No!!" she tells Cyre, "I'm not some kinda space weirdo, just a regular weirdo."

But Jay is reassuring, and so Carina gets up, because what she has to say is dramatic, and also because the view up here is fantastic and also super frightening. It's a bit like having everyone's eyes on her at once, when you think about it.

"I..." she starts, putting a hand on her chest, "...am Metal Digger Locus!!"

Crickets chirp, because apparently this garden has those.

Even Arleph, who hasn't been with the group for long, could probably see the resemblance between Carina and 'Locus' at a glance. As for the rest, well... It's nice that they were polite enough to let Carina think she was fooling anyone.

<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.

"Who?" Kourin asks. 

<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.

        Lunata pauses for a few moments too long as she stares up from her vantage point from the actuator that's acting up, before blinking to exclaim--

        "W-wait, wait, really?!"

        A pause, as she tilts her head and-- puts her hand to her head, Ethius-style. "No, no way!" ... wait, was she really, really convinced that Carina was not Locus? 

<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

Catenna waits for the surprise. She stops in mid-move, a spoonful of korma hanging over the pot as Carina gears up for her big announcement.

She... is Metal Digger Locus!

"So you are, dear," Catenna says mildly as she continues to spoon curry into a bowl, turning to offer it to Carina. "Are you hungry?" 

<Pose Tracker> Arleph Ardan has posed.

         Arlpeh tilts his head, furrowing his brows, watching the reactions.
 
         "I mean." The Symbologist says, scratching his chin. "It was a pretty good disguise." 

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

"It's okay, Carina. We're all a little bit weird here." Jacqueline says with a reassuring smile. She sits up a little bit more attentive as Carina readies herself, and then exclaims...her True Identity.

Carina...is Metal Digger Locus!

Was Jacqueline truly surprised to learn the truth? That Metal Digger Locus was traveling with them, the whole time?

"I...um, well, I already had my suspicions, but...I'm glad that you've decided to trust us with this!" She says, clasping her hands together with a smile. 'Suspicions'...in other words, she kind of already knew, since she was practically right next to her when she first transformed...but she didn't want to make Carina feel that she was holding it in for nothing! 

<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.

        Lunata's lips thin as she whines softly towards Jay to go: "You did?! And-- and you never told meeee...??" 

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

"S-sorry...it didn't feel right to give away someone else's secrets..." Jacqueline says to Lunata, with a sheepish chuckle. That would've been a little rude, really! 

<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.

Kourin is studiously eating, since she feels foolish for not having realized that there was a secret identity at all. 

<Pose Tracker> Carina Wynne has posed.

"T-The dashing, armored hero," Carina tells Kourin, flailing. "You were with her during the whole trek through the city, come onnnn..." She slumps over forward despondently, then raises her head. "Hey, wait, you're joking, right?"

Lunata's mind is blown, roughly as Carina expected. "Yes," Carina tells her, arms crossed, looking grim. "I'm sorry I lied to you! I know it's hard to believe, since Locus keeps flipping around while my main skill is pearls of big sisterly wisdom."

But Catenna looks less impressed. Does she... does she not believe her? But most importantly:

"Oh yeah, please, one for me! Thanks!" Carina takes the offered bowl, smelling it. The social link three-music-note chime plays out. Carina takes a spoonful before she continues.

"Aha, I know, right?" she tells Arleph, proudly. "The armor covers my whole body, and so all I had left to do was disguise my voice." It was never particularly disguised. Heck, it doesn't even sound muffled. "I tell ya, it was hard holding back from using my catchphrase. It would've given it away real obviously."

Jay had her suspicions, though. Carina cups her chin, trying to look confident. "Haha, that's our Miss Jay! That's really observant of you. That about having the [Merchant's Eye]."

"So, huh... Yeah," she concludes. "Sorry I kept that a secret. I realized I could trust you with it a while ago, though, but I wasn't feeling right about tellin' you... Now, I'm sure you've got plenty of questions, so you can ask away now. Or if you want, I can give you some kinda special move demonstration??"

She glances at her bag, which contains the belt. That thing is never far from her side.

<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.

Kourin shrinks back and shakes her head no. "I...I assumed it was just you in a battle costume. I didn't know there was a special name." 

<Pose Tracker> Carina Wynne has posed.

"O-Oh," Carina hangs her head. "I should've probably announced it more loudly, then. I'll have to remember that!"

<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

There's a lovely little chime, and Catenna passes the bowl to Carina without so much as batting her lashes.

"Your secret is understandable," she assures with a mellow smile, lifting her shoulders, then letting them fall. "Perhaps it is a good idea, in fact... I would likely not have this large bounty on my head had I worn a mask and proclaimed myself someone else when I jumped all of you onto that stage in Bledavik." 

<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.

        Lunata's eyes twinkle for a moment, and then she-- she hangs her mouth open and-- stammers, "W-wait, hold on, um-- just hold on a minute before you transform!" She's suddenly thrown herself into her Gear's cockpit, rummaging and tossing things around in there.

        She hops down to ground level a moment later, and has a square signature piece of paper and a marker in her hands. You know, the kind with the little wooden border around it. "A-and write, 'To Lunie' on it too..." 

<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

Cyre stares for a long moment.

And then he shrugs and shoves a spoon in his mouth.

And then he finally answers, "That's cool. I'm Cyclone Tiger Fengalan."

Yep.

He's totally going along with this. Omnomnom curry. 

<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

"Cyre," Catenna chides the catman gently, reaching over to give Cyre a light tap on the shoulder.

"Be nice." 

<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.

        Lunata grumps, and then looks to Carina with sparkling eyes. "Show him how it's done with your bestest Metal Digger pose!" 

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

There's another sheepish chuckle as Carina compliments her. She doesn't know anything about having the [Merchant's Eye], but...

"It's okay. I imagine it was all new and strange to you...I know you didn't mean anything by it. You were just trying to protect us!" Jacqueline replies with a smile.

Catenna, brings up the matter of her bounty. Jacqueline's smile falters for a moment.

"U-um...yeah." She says.

"Um...while we're being truthful, there's something I need to admit...we...or rather, Catenna and myself, kind of...have a bounty in Aveh, so to speak, and that's why we never go near Bledavik." Jacqueline explains. "But I assure you, it's not for doing anything bad...Cecilia needed our help."

She lets that hang in the air for a moment, before moving on to brighter topics.

"Yes, more importantly! Locus! Do you know how how the armor works? I'd be curious to find out..." Jacqueline asks. "And...what does it feel like? I've seen you perform incredible feats as Locus." 

<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.

"I...have a bounty in Adlehyde, and anywhere the Guard controls," Kourin admits quietly, since we're mentioning this. 

<Pose Tracker> Shalune Amira has posed.

        Sat nearby to the Rephaim is a picture of sheer comfy; Big Shal has opted to sit down in place, at least as much as the Golem ever can. It isn't really 'sitting' so much as it is 'lowering herself down', the golem's feet retracting into the big rounded conical body as it settles into place like a dozing geometic shape. The golem's eyes are dark, but it seems able to move still, slowly lowering up and down for some reason as if it were breathing.

        A tarpaulin has been carefully laid out around the golem's base, and a suspiciously familiar pink-haired figure is dozing against the golem's side. The advantage of strange Elw gardens is perfectly functional air conditioning, so Shalune hasn't had to bundle herself up in a sleeping bag - on the other hand, she did pull out several large bandage-like patches, offering the heat pads around. With a couple of them stuck under her coat and sweater, she's more or less glowing with contentment.

        And, you know, rather asleep.

        Except perhaps not. "Waaah... Jay's so scaryyy..." she croons in a lazy fashion, before slowly drawing herself up to sitting. Her eyes are still closed as she rubs at them, but she's got the werewithal to flap another pad in Lunata's direction. "Lunieee... mm, I wonder why I got outta Aveh okay... you'd think Big Shal would be noticable..."

        In a very absentminded fashion, she's dug into a pocket, pulling out a bag of marshmallows to toss several straight into her mouth. "Locus, Locus, here you go," she adds muzzily as she starts passing it around. 

<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.

"I had my first kiss!" Lydia shouts from off screen. "Literally from an angel! And not one from my religion or anything! Just saying!"

She approaches and adds, "Hey guys I heard people were like playing truth and dareand stuff and I was like 'Time to confess my dark secrets'." She points a finger at Carina. "Okay your turn, what was your first kiss?"

This is the best way to get to know somebody, she thinks. 

<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.

Kourin flushes and fidgets at the mention of kissing. 

<Pose Tracker> Carina Wynne has posed.

"That sounds kinda cool," Carina comments to Catenna, "too bad I missed it." Then Jay and Kourin reveal something that hasn't really come up for some time either. "O-oh, right! Well, then, shame about becomin' a wanted outlaw and all. But I don't doubt you did it for the right reasons, y'know? Better'n, say, stompin' all over the city's sheriff just to make yourself feel big."

She clears her throat. "But yeah, that's part of why I'm keepin' this secret. I don't want my parents or the store to get into trouble because of somethin' reckless I did. And I don't wanna worry them either! They're already worried sick 'cause of my sister, you know?"

Lunata wants her to hold on a second, and Carina goes to grab the belt but doesn't put it on right away. Meanwhile, Cyre is unimpressed.

"Oh, THAT's what you call yourself in that Guardian-ish mode," Carina says, looking like she's taking serious notes. Only upon seeing the others' reaction does she realize there may be sass involved! Dang! But first, the matter of autographs.

"A-Awww, Lunie," Carina scratches the side of her head. "Well, sure, but hold on to that, it won't be the same unless I sign it in costume. Okay, here goes!"

She puts on the belt, or more accurately swings it in the general direction of her midsection, and it's considerate enough to clasp itself comfortably.

"Okay... Trans-form, or somethin'!"

                                                     LOCUS ON_

She has her fists on her hips as light erupts from the belt. Her pose and transformation phrase game may still need a little work, but to be fair, she's never done that in front of people before.

Carina's body is engulfed within the light, which is gradually dimmed as pieces of armor plating form all over, starting from the belt and spreading outwards. The helmet is the last piece to flash on, with Carina's ponytail swept up by an unseen force so it won't get clipped. This truly is a considerate belt.

"METAL DIGGER! LOCUS!" Carina or, well, Locus announces, with a very powerful pose. It can best be described as 'Egyptian Flamingo'. WILL CYRE BE IMPRESSED?

And then she takes Lunata's pen, grinning behind her mask as she signs. 'Metal Digger LOCUS <3 To Lunie, Friend of Justice' The signature's shape is a little over the top, and seems rather practiced.

Then appears a half-asleep Shalune with marshmallows. "A-Aw, jeez, I just transformed, I can't eat anything in this!" Carina complains, slumping forward. AND THEN, Lydia with questions about first kisses.

"W-What?? Heeeey, that's personal! But hold on, what's this about an angel? Angels exist?? And they kiss people???"

Jay's questions may have gotten lost in the shuffle-- but they'll be answered next round!

<Pose Tracker> Arleph Ardan has posed.

Arleph continues to stare, blinking, reaching into his pocket during the entire transformation to take out a few nuts, wriggling them in his hand before swallowing up the whole thing.
 
 He's really seein' this? Really?
 
 "You need a sliding mask." Arleph comments. 

<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.

        Lunata's hair appropriately explodes backwards as light erupts from the belt, eyes widening as she exclaims, "S-so cooool...!!" She's announcing in chime, "METAL DIGGER! LOCUS!" She pumps her hands up gently. Then she gives the sign over to Locus and-- positively sparkles as she looks to Shalune to exclaim, only now noticing that the girl's gotten up, "Lunie, Lunie, Lunie!! I got a signature from Locus! Ohmigoshhh!!"

        She's just about over the moon...ie lunie right now.

        Then she tries to adopt the Flamingo pose. And then kips over. 

<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

Catenna seems much, much less ashamed of her criminal record than Jacqueline does. "Sometimes the law is less important than doing what is right for Filgaia," she assures Jay with a dip of her head. "In the eyes of the Guardians, you are not a criminal."

Serving herself up a meal once she's sure most of the others have something to eat, Catenna settles in, delicately nipping down the mild spice of the meal. With interest she watches Carina transform.

"I have a question," she asks. "If anyone else wore the belt, would it work?"

Then Lydia arrives. Catenna sighs and turns towards her curry pot, doing her best not to get picked for Truth or Dare. 

<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.

Kourin is impressed by the transformation sequence. But she has a question. "Isn't it a little impractical for it to be so flashy and take so long?"

Spirit, curious, pads over to Locus, sniffs, then pads back to Kourin's side and sits down. 

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

"I-I'm glad you understand!" Jacqueline says, relaxing a bit. Catenna helps reassure her, as well. "Yes, that's true..."

The Guardians weren't really the type to care about human laws, anyway.

And then, Carina transform, donning the armor of Metal Digger Locus! She's sure to take in every detail of the transformation, looking on with interest.

"Oh, fascinating..." She murmurs, especially when Carina strikes her pose before giving Lunata her signature.

...She can't help but smile at how excited Lunata seems to be at getting Locus's signature...though she does move in to catch her when it looks like she's about to fall over from copying Locus's pose.

Catenna asks Locus a question...and then Lydia jumps in with a question of herself.

Jacqueline chuckles slightly to herself at that one. 

<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.

Lydia blinks several times, finger still pointing at Carina as she's transformed. Guess she missed the first half of this talk.

She stares for like 20 seconds.

And then she smirks. "Well it was a Seraph. It's not a big deal. Maybe a Seraph will kiss you sometime." She crosses her arms. "It's cool, if you know, haven't managed it yet, heh heh heh."

She probably just wanted to brag about this.

She does that heh heh heh laugh for another bit like that before--

"WAIT SO CARINA AND METAL DIGGER LOCUS ARE ONE AND THE SAME?! I THOUGHT THEY WERE JUST---NEVERMIND!!" 

<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

"I am content with the kisses I am currently receiving, but I am happy for you," Catenna answers Lydia with a polite smile. 

<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.

        Lunata lets out a sudden gasp as she topples over and is-- caught by Jacqueline?! Her cheeks get a little red, especially because Lydia is talking about first kisses like ten feet away and she can't help but cover her face in her newly minted signature of Metal Digger Locus. "T-thank youuu..." She might need a bit of time... 

<Pose Tracker> Shalune Amira has posed.

        Shalune just kind of flops across Lunata's shoulders as she squints against the light, evidently not at one hundred percent wakefulness but clearly sharing in the other girl's happiness like it's a matter of osmosis; managing her weight is a little like trying to handle a sleeping cat or maybe a wet sandbag, and she might be part of the reason why Lunata fails her pose, we're just saying.

        Still, she chimes happily in return. "Uwaaah... such a cool autograph!..." she sounds out, clapping her thick wooly gloves together in a dozy and impressed manner, the motion shaking her awake a little more; one last yawn, and then her eyes promptly light up brightly as an idea occurs to her. "Wait, wait-- more than that, what if you were like-- Metal Digger Locus and her sidekick, the Death Waitress!" she proclaims, her arms out at wide angles before she grins. "I mean, you've got a mask and all, right?!"

        It is a sheer coincidence, really, that the last of her wide overblown motions turn Lunata in the direction of Jacqueline's catch - the nudge to propel her forward might be a little more on purpose, though, given the light giggle that accompanies it.

        The private grin afterwards is quickly lost as she breaks into a whole-body stretch, letting out an enormous yawn. "Fua~ah... it's so peaceful here," she mumbles as she reclaims the marshmallow bag and hands it over to Lydia - but not before she's fished a chopstick out of a pocket, skewering several down it in a line. 

<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.

Kourin fidgets and murmurs something very quietly about how she hasn't managed it either. 

<Pose Tracker> Carina Wynne has posed.

Carina has a nervous little laugh upon seeing Lunata's obvious excitement. On one hand, it's warming her heart! On the other, well, Lunata knows she can talk to her almost every day, right?

"I really do," she comments to Arleph, looking at marshmallows with bug-eyed dismay, then to the bowl of korma, which may get cold while she shows off. She didn't time her announcement very well after all!

"H-Hey!" is all she has to say to Lydia, sort of wiggling around but dodging the actual question. DOES she want to be kissed by a Seraph? Can she even see them to begin with??

Anyway, she remembers Jay asked something rather essential. Carina clears her throat.

"A-Anyway, wearing the armor feels really good! The armor's even a little conditioned, which is real nice. Whoever made it was REALLY good at it, I have no idea, and I can't even begin to guess at what the materials are. But it's like... Whenever I want to do something action-y, sometimes I get like this ping in my head telling me, you can do it, just follow the armor, and then I swing my arm and--"

She throws her fist forward, whipping the air in an expert motion. "It sort of does it for me! It's real cool."

Then comes Catenna's question. Carina cups her helmeted chin, pondering it. "Y'know, that's a good question... We could try it later, if you want. But I remember, when I first put the belt on, at first it didn't do anything until I yelled at it a bunch, and then it said something like 'New User Regurgitated! LOCUS ON!' and then there was a flash and-- well, like you saw just a second ago. So maybe you really do gotta yell at it a bunch??"

But that doesn't matter now, as she eyes the marshmallow skewer hungrily. "M-Maybe I should de-transform now!"

<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

Cyre gets a great big thackwing! He laughs, because this isn't a harem anime and he hasn't been horribly maimed, just gently reprimanded. "Oh come on, I was just messing with her. Everyone knows my other form is actually Typhoon Tiger Huracanger."

Beat.

"No but really it's a very important religious rite and I probably should be a little more respectful of my own people's culture." And that's about when Carina transforms! Cyre stares for another moment before nodding approvingly. "Ahh, I see. Interesting..."

"...I was wondering how the hair worked. Nnnneat." 

<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.

Lydia shoves a bunch of marshmallows directly into her mouth. She probably thanks Shalune, but it's hard to tell because she's doing so with her mouth full of marshmallows. She hands the bag back. She portals next to Kourin to pat her on the head once, and portals back to her original position.

"Regurgitated? So it basically said you're vomit." Lydia points out. 

<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

"That," Cyre frowns, "Is a very rude thing for a belt to say." 

<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.

"Yeah," Lydia adds. "Nobody should regurgitate you." 

<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.

Kourin stays silent. What does she know about regurgitation? Nothing, that's what. 

<Pose Tracker> Carina Wynne has posed.

To Kourin, Carina considers, then says: "Well, that's why I try to transform BEFORE there's a fight or an adventure. Besides, maybe if someone tried to punch me while I'm changin', the light would roast 'em?"

She strikes another pose! This one reminiscent of Dhalsim's win pose. "Death awaits those who interrupt a pretty Metal Digger's transformation!"

Lydia points something out.

"WHAT! Y'know, I never thought about it before! What a rude belt! Hey, what's the deal, belt? Are you makin' fun of me?" She points at her own belt, accusingly!

The belt doesn't answer. It doesn't have much to say when it's not announcing transformations or element marble switches.

"That's it, you're goin' on time-out!" Locus removes the belt, and in another, much shorter flash of light, the armor is gone. Carina drops it back into her bag and a second later she's reaching for some marshmallows.

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

Jacqueline makes sure Lunata is stable before stepping away, offering her a smile...though the other girl probably can't see it, hiding her face behind her new signature as she is. As such, Jacqueline remains oblivious to the new shade of red Lunata's cheeks have taken on.

"...It really is." She agrees with a nod, moving back to where she was seated before and turning her attention back to Carina.

"Oh, that does sound nice...it might be worth studying, then - you might get some ideas for new techniques you can use. Though...I imagine it's a little difficult to study it while you're wearing it, so, hm..." She comments, then watches as Carina demonstrates. "A 'ping', hm...? So it can react to your desires and intentions...interesting!"

Whoever made this belt had thought of everything...though Jacqueline isn't sure what to make of the talk of 'regurgitation'.

"I imagine that isn't the case..." She comments, as Locus returns to being normal, mild-mannered Carina Wynne. 

<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

Meanwhile, an alt interaction-proof distance away, the attentive might notice Talise, Tethelle, Ida, Sephilia, Chauncey and Layna just standing in the doorway and taking it all in. 

<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

As for Catenna, she nods gently back to Carina. "I would not want to rob you of your special thing by toying with it overmuch. If it is yours, let it be yours." She smiles up at the earnest young woman.

Then she looks up at Jacqueline, letting out a soft breath through her nose. "So long as you do not regurgitate your lunch. I will have to change the recipe if you do that." 

<Pose Tracker> Shalune Amira has posed.

        Shalune looks up from where she's-- kind of obviously keeping tabs on Jay and Lunata's near-cuddle; she's drawn by the detransformation of the Metal Digger, watching with open curiosity as the metal hinges onto Carina and then simply explodes off in a shower of light. "Uwaaah... that's really cool. I mean, gettin' plates of metal to move properly together is already hard enough on a Gear, y'know? If you want full coverage you end up with way too much weight and friction. Hmm... I wonder if it's magic or technology?" she wonders.

        At least she's got a good sense for this sort of thing, kneeling down next to the embers of the fire she had running earlier to place the skewer on a little stand over it, and offer Carina a bright smile. "'Registered', right? Probably means only you get to use it, at least until we figure out how it actually picks who to register," she hums as she tabs at her lips. "I wonder how it does what it does... I probably shouldn't take it apart, though..." she adds with genuine regret. Shalune, don't steal other people's weird old technology!

        She makes an attempt to catch Lunata's eyes, if the waitress looks up from her hiding place - and does her best to motion stealthily in the direction of the alchemist, then pump her fist. To her, it means: 'Go, Lunie! You're in a fancy floating garden, it's super the righttime!' To everyone else, it's probably just Shal gesturing to herself again.

        Oh well. At least she has some melted marshmallows, popping one into her mouth before pulling at the stringy mush with a loud 'mmm...!' of delight. 

<Pose Tracker> Carina Wynne has posed.

"Yeah, I'd rather not be regurgitated. But then again, thinkin' about it, maybe I misheard? Sometimes my ears are ringin' and I don't hear everything right," she admits. Shalune proposes an answer. "YEAH-- Registered, I think that's it! That makes more sense."

Speaking of regurgitating one's lunch, Carina has decided to combine her few marshmallows with her curry bowl. Sweet and spicy should be a good combination, right...?

"Like I say, we can try it later," Carina tells Catenna, "but... yeah, I'd rather people didn't play with it too much, my sister sent it to me and all..."

She then nods to Shalune, who seems to have woken up more thoroughly now. "Well, as much as I wanna find out more about it, I don't think I can actually take it off normally. So if you wanted to take it apart, you'd have to be careful not to take ME apart, right??" That's probably not how anything works.

"I mean, if there's one piece that detaches," she says, considering, "I guess it would be those element marble things, like the one I found in the sword temple. They could be worth examinin'. They're probably magic?"

<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.

"Oh, yeah," Lydia says. "That does make more sense." 

<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

M-marshallows and curry?

What kind of monster do you have to be to mix those two things...!?

Well. Whatever.

"Your sister, huh?" Cyre murmurs, shoving a spoonful of delicious, wonderful, amazing, gut-melting curry into his mouth. "That's the one who ran off all of a sudden...? Wonder what the deal was."

"Ah well. If we keep looking for those element marbles, maybe we'll find out." 

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

If Jacqueline is aware of Shalune's gestures, she doesn't indicate it. Any plotting regarding Lunata and herself goes unnoticed, as she considers Carina's words.

"Yeah....no one would want to mess with a gift like that. Your sister meant it to protect you, right? Do you think she knew what it was capable of when she sent it to you?" Jacqueline replies with a nod, and then thinks about what she says next. Element Marbles...hm.

"You say you found them in the sword temple...? Hm...I wonder what a thing like that was doing there...?" She considers with a pensive look. Why was an artifact compatible with the belt there, of all places...?

It was quite the mystery... 

<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

Catenna sticks to the curry.

She nods contently back to Carina. "As you feel best. I understand little about advanced technology like that, I confess."

She takes a few bites of her meal before glancing at Cyre, tilting her head to one side. "Perhaps we shall. These things have a way of resolving themselves when many adventurers travel together." 

<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.

Lydia Seren suddenly flops over. DEAD?!

No, she's just feeling really lazy right now. And laid back.

Laid back camper. She can sleep anywhere. Here is a good sleeping place. Maybe too close to the fire. 

<Pose Tracker> Shalune Amira has posed.

        Shalune is still eating gooey marshmallows, not to mention tugging another bag of them out of another coat pocket, just to be able to set up a skewer for Lunata. Shalune, how-- how many snacks do you have on you at any one time?

        She puts a hand to her cheek as she enjoys the treat, humming loudly - in time, she manages to stuff her face enough to look back up and rejoin the conversation. "Oh, uh, hmm. ... it kinda looks like a Golem's core, huh? Except tinier," she wonders, and is about to reach out to request a closer look when she stops and withdraws her hand, apparently deciding it's much too important for her to disrupt. "Maybe it's the same sorta principles... if it is, that'd be super handy. I'd know just how to fix it up if you ever needed it," she beams, and lightly raps on Big Shal's side with a bright smile - which just prompts the golem above her to offer a slow and lazy thumbs up.

        ... ... and then she's gravitating back towards snacks. 

<Pose Tracker> Carina Wynne has posed.

Carina doesn't seem to mind the marshmallow-curry mix, though the combination does admittedly diminish the component parts.

"That's the one," Carina says, nodding and fingergun-pointing at Cyre. "Mind you, she was driftin' for a while, but it's not like her to send a cryptic message and then stop sendin' letters, right?"

Jay wonders if she knew about the belt's power. Carina looks at her bag, from which the belt is sticking out. "That's a good question... That's probably what she meant by protecting me. Maybe she got herself mixed up in superhero business too? So if she sent it to me, does that mean it was protecting her before and not anymore? Then again, she's a decent fighter, it's just..."

She falls silent for a moment, worry plain on her face. But the others are hopeful that answers will be found. A grin spreads on Carina's lips.

"That's a good question too, Miss Jay! Maybe we could check the temple again for clues? And yeah, if we find more, that could be helpful to know too. It means the place is probably connected to the belt somehow, or maybe even Melody dropped them there?"

She seems to be back in good spirits. This seems worth a shot! Well, provided that the CaraKin doesn't get, say, whisked off far, far away from here before they can investigate the temple. But what are the odds, right?

"So... Yeah, thanks, everyone," Carina says, scratching at her temple. "By the way, I'm not sure I actually want Ethius to know...? You know how her gets with tech stuff sometimes, I'm a bit worried about what he might wanna do to the belt..." She glances at Shalune, then Arleph, "Though if you wanna just take a quick look some other time, maybe..."

A beat. "H-Hey, anyone else worried Lydia might catch on fire...?"

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

"I'm...sure she's alright, wherever she is. Maybe we'll run across her in our travels, and you'll be able to show her how far you've come!" Jacqueline says, trying to reassure Carina. She didn't blame her for worrying. She knew how it was, to worry for someone like that.

"I never considered that your sister may have visited it, though...that's entirely possible. I agree, I think we should consider checking it out sometime soon." Jacqueline replies with a nod. They might find out more about the belt...or even clues about Carina's sister.

"Ethius...hm, yes, I...can't really say I blame you. I can't say for certain that he wouldn't do anything...he can be difficult to predict." She replies...and then glances toward Lydia.

"U-umm, well...I...I'm sure she's fine...?"

...P-probably...!

Retrieved from "https://dreamchasers.space/index.php?title=2018-02-21:_Locus_Tells_All&oldid=8192"