2019-12-17: The Great and Powerful.. Who?

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  • Log: The Great and Powerful... Who?
  • Cast: Jacqueline Barber Kadi
  • Where: The Thames - Market
  • Date: 12-17-2019
  • Summary: Jacqueline runs into a somewhat bewildered Kadi and fills her in on Important World Facts(TM)


<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed. The Thames - a derelict aircraft carrier located in the seas of Aquvy that now served as a sending off point for salvagers, sailors, and drifters alike - had become a pretty popular stop for those who'd recently found themselves spatially displaced from Spira to their moon, Gaia - or, as the locals called it, Filgaia. For many of them, the Thames was the place they first found themselves after taking the teleporter in the Water Trial underneath Macalania Temple.

There were people of all kinds, from all walks of life here, and had seen enough that strangers from another world suddenly beaming onboard their ship warranted little more than a raised eyebrow and a hearty greeting. They're a rough-and-tumble sort, but ultimately good-hearted as long as your intentions are good.

It was for that reason that Jacqueline and her Caravan Kinship visited often. While she was also from Filgaia, Aquvy was still fairly new to her. As a merchant, the Thames let her quickly restock on goods and supplies, while also catching wind of rumors that might be soaring about.

She makes her way through the marketplace now - a place filled with a veritable rainbow of goods from the mundane to the extraordinary, not to mention the scent of delicious foods and machine parts alike. Even those she's only browsing, she speaks to merchant and marketgoer alike with an open friendliness as she goes.

But, walking through the marketplace did get tiring after a while and so Jacqueline pauses, taking a seat on a nearby bench. Just relaxing, for now - but she's still open and alert to the goings-on in front of her.

<Pose Tracker> Kadi has posed. Spira. It was all that Kadi had ever known. From the bombastic city of Luca with its incredible blitzball stadium, to the smaller island of Kilika where she spent many of her years, to the majestic city of Bevelle, the heart of the Yevonite religion itself. None of it prepared her for /this./ She would never have guessed that such wonderous things were located below the icy surface of Lake Macalania.

Having been unconscious for the teleport itself, the poor girl just. Doesn't. Know. There's a lot that she doesn't know right now, frankly, and that thought disturbs her most of all. At least she doesn't still believe that this is what the Farplane looks like. Not that she would really /mind./ There was something about the Thames that just... called to her. It felt homey, even if it was missing that aforementioned stadium.

While she might be a bit off-balance thanks to, frankly, no longer being in Kansas, that wasn't something that was going to slow her down. Especially now. Each step she took was confident. Her posture radiated command. Her garb? Marked her pretty clearly to those who'd been to Spira: She was a Warrior Monk of Yevon. Her hands? They held within them one of those aforementioned machine parts, and her fingers were /working./

"Hey, lady?" the merchant at the stall she stands in front of tries to address her. No answer. Just more adjustments, moving of pieces. "Hey, snap out of it!" is called louder.

This finally gets the redhead's attention. Fingers don't stop, but her frame tenses under those robes. Head and neck turn slowly, almost in an alien manner to change her view from the part -- part of a larger machine used for cooking, not particularly useful on its own -- to the man. "You." she speaks. Voice calm, still, displeased. "You dare disturb the /great/ and /powerful/ Kadi as she examines a holy artifact?" This clearly isn't Spira, afterall. They don't /know/ that she's not great and powerful.

The man looks at her as one would expect a crazy person to be looked at. "Oh, calm down. Just wondering if you were planning to buy that. I've got other customers and..."

"...buy?" Kadi echoes, sounding terribly confused. In Spira, machina simply was not /bought./ Found, sure. Sometimes it jumped you on the roads if the Al Bhed had corrupted it! Mostly, it was disposed of or hoarded by Yevon. Machina was sin. Machina brought Sin. Machina would defeat Sin. And this man wanted to sell it. "I... I don't... /what?/"

Fingers never stop moving, though. She was learning. Testing. Even as her brain was trying to process the idea that machina /could/ be sold. Or bought! It was a lot to take in. There's a moment's pause, and she sets the piece down. She turns on the heel of her foot, and walks off, leaving the poor fellow befuddled. She needs to sit down and think. It just so happens that the bench Jacqueline sits on? Has space. Space that she's making a silent beeline for.

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed. The commotion not too far away doesn't go unnoticed by Jacqueline. She looks toward it, watching carefully. She doesn't mean to.../eavesdrop/, exactly, but if there's a problem she wants to be aware of it so she can help defuse it.

But, fortunately, this turns out to be unnecessary - it concludes in a relatively peaceful manner. One of the involved parties - a young woman dressed in the garb of Spira's Warrior Monks - steps away to...sit at the same bench she's sitting at?

In any other situation, Jacqueline might leave her be...but, she has a feeling she might not have acclimated to Filgaia yet, and decides to reach out.

"Ah, hello, miss...Kadi, was it?" Jacqueline greets. She thinks that was the name she overheard, anyway. "Is everything alright? You seem a little distracted."

<Pose Tracker> Kadi has posed. Flop. Well, more accurately it's more of a flop-clank that occurs when she lands on said bench, the latter coming from a couple of things under said robes colliding with one another. Thoughts race inside her head like chocobos on a track, trying to process the kinds of things that she's been seeing.

On one hand, she's in a magnificant metal building. She's surrounded by machina and rather tasty-smelling things that she should probably concern herself with eating. Truth be told, if this /were/ the Farplane, she'd be hard-pressed to think of better... except for one thing.

Buy. Buy. Buy. The word resonates in her head. You can just /buy/ machina? Maybe it was because they /recognized/ her. That would make sense. She's part of a holy order. She's /authorized/ to possess machina. Yes. That made sense. It's not too surprising that people who /find/ machina would want rewards for returning it to Yevon. It makes /perfect/ sense. A little shady, perhaps, as a pious believer would just /give/ it to her, but.. well. People like these are why Sin comes.

However, she's interrupted from her thoughts when she hears her name. Her name. A /stranger/ addressed her /by name./ The flame-haired girl brightens visibly by this. Her reputation proceeds her. She's already famous!

Or, just overheard. Kadi chooses the possibility most convienient for her, not most realistic. "Yes, yes!" she chirps, straightening up. "Yes, everything will be alright. Just... thinking. Planning. A place this large will surely attract Sin, and I haven't seen a /single/ Crusader." she comments, crinkling her nose a little at this. Did they get lazy after Operation Mi'Hen failed? Are they specifically hiding from her because /she was not consulted/ and they realize their mistake? "I... ah... you." Pause. "Your name. I don't know it. I..." Should she? She can remember /Sin/ coming to Macalania. She's always heard that the toxin affects memory, afterall.

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed. Jacqueline hesitates, just a moment. It seems to her that Kadi doesn't realize the nature of the situation. This...makes things just a tad awkward. But, she can start with the easy part, at least.

"Ah, I'm Jacqueline - Jacqueline Barber. It's a pleasure to meet you!" She greets with a polite smile. Her expression falters for just a moment as she considers how to continue. On one hand, it was a lot to just drop on someone - but another, it could mean trouble if she never found out.

"Ah... Well, Miss Kadi, this might be difficult to hear, but..." She pauses for a moment. "We're...um, we're not in Spira anymore. Sin, and the Crusaders...they're all still up there."

To explain this, she points upward, toward Lunar. Nowhere visible in the sky is Gaia, the largest moon. Because, as Jacqueline explains...

"...Right now, we're on Gaia." She says. "...I know this may be a lot to take in, but I'd be glad to answer any questions you might have."

Her smile is polite on the exterior, but on the inside she feels pretty awkward about the situation! This is probably to be expected.

<Pose Tracker> Kadi has posed. "Jacqueline Barber." Kadi echoes, before pausing for a moment to think about it. Nope. Not ringing any bells. But still, she recognized Kadi, and that made her good enough in her book. So, she's left smiling.

...at least until the news starts coming in, and that smile starts disappearing. "We're... we're what?" Kadi asks, staring up into the sky where Lunar sits and Gaia /doesn't./ "We're... /on/ Gaia? /How?/ I don't... I don't..." She's having trouble wrapping her mind around it. It sounds so far-fetched, but... at the same time, there doesn't seem to be /anything/ that suggests that they /could/ be in Spira. Machina. Publically. Sold.

Of course, the offer to answer questions is there. Those questions are coming rapidly. "You said Sin is /there,/" Pointing up towards Lunar. "...so... it /can't/ come here?" There's a bonus. "We don't have to worry about beautiful cities being destroyed for daring to flaunt machina? ... ever?" Oh. The wheels are turning. "Is there /more?/"

Maybe. Just maybe. If she could put together a big enough weapon to deal with Sin while she's here, she could take it back with her to actually deal with Sin.... or with a massive enough weapon, maybe not even /need/ to go back up there before firing? Or could Sin follow her, drawn by heretical machines of sufficient size? "... do you have a map?"

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed. Kadi doesn't recognize Jacqueline, but Jacqueline isn't too surprised. At least she reacts pleasantly enough to it...and then, the news comes out.

That's...about the reaction she expected.

"Take your time - you don't have to fully grasp it right away." Jacqueline says, trying to reassure her. As for the how...

"Do you, um...remember what happened before you found yourself here...?" She asks. "...Well, Sin was attacking Macalania Temple, but its attack uncovered a ruin containing a teleportation device that brought people here to Gaia. Everyone fled into it...and that brought them here, to the Thames. If you don't remember...it's possible that you were unconscious during the trip."

Jacqueline pauses for a second, smiling slightly.

"...Admittedly, I was unconscious for my first teleportation too, so...we'd be alike in that regard!" She says with a light chuckle. ...First? So this wasn't her first one?

She pauses, letting Kadi get all of her questions out.

"...Well, I don't know if it can or can't, but...we haven't seen it here yet." She replies, and then listens as Kadi continues.

"...Well, not by Sin, at any rate. Some machina...carry their own share of dangers." Jacqueline says, shaking her head, and then blinks. "More? More to Gaia, or...?"

Kadi's next question fills her in, though, and with a nod Jacqueline takes a moment to rummage through her bags, eventually drawing out a map. With a quick gesture of her hands a pillar of earth pops up in between the two of them, on which Jacqueline folds out the map.

"We're...in this area, approximately." Jacqueline says, circling an area on the north-west corner of the map with a finger. "These islands are the northern region of Aquvy, one of Filgaia's continents."

She pauses, just now noticing her slip of the tongue.

"...Ah, Filgaia is what we've always called Gaia." She explains.

<Pose Tracker> Kadi has posed. Kadi listens. Listens and observes. Restless fingers move up to her hair, tugging at the back of it a little out of lack of anything /else/ to do with her hands. "It's... all a little fuzzy still, to be honest." It's here that her confidence falters for a moment. Not knowing things bothers her a lot. "I remember defending Macalania Temple, and Sin attacking, but then... here."

Unconsciousness makes sense, though. It's nice to have some of the blanks filled in. It helps, and it visibly brings light back to her features. If there was a teleportation device that people fled into though, and she was out, it means someone must have /carried/ her... or that she just fell in a very convienient manner. This will take some investigation, too.

"It's... a bit disconcerting. I never realized just how much there was to Gaia, I just thought... it was up there, yeah? To be truthful, if so much time hadn't already passed I'd swear my mind was swimming in Sin's toxins."

Maybe she got stuck to the whale-like creature and is just having the trip of a lifetime? Unlikely, but not impossible. "No Sin. Not here." Good. This makes her smile again. It must have been fate. Fate that can help secure her destiny. Fate that will allow her to upstage /all/ the Summoners. "...it's okay. Machina like me, yeah? They tell me their secrets, I can't imagine one being a danger." If she's not on Spira, it seems a bit safer to speak these thoughts than it would've been back home.

The map gets attention, and she focuses on it for several long and wordless moments. Trying to commit it to memory. She's back to planning, determining her path. She has ideas.

"...so much to see. Do. Learn." The slip does catch notice, "Fil-- oh! Okay." Pause. What 'we've' always called Gaia? That, and the earlier mention about the 'first' time teleportation happened... "You're not from Spira, are you Jacqueline?" is asked matter-of-factly.

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed. "I'm not surprised. It was...kind of a blur, to be honest. There was a lot going on - anyone would have trouble remember everything." Jacqueline says with a murmur, shaking her head sadly.

But, she explains, and the explanation seems to help. Jacqueline is pleased by that - she didn't enjoy making things worse for others. She nods, as Kadi remarks on being surprised by how much there is to Gaia.

"I know how you feel." She agrees from a nod. She remembers her surprise the first time she found out that Lunar wasn't just the moon, it was a world filled with people living their own lives, with their own history. It was a bit overwhelming.

She listens curiously, though, as Kadi expresses her views on Machina.

"...I wouldn't expect to hear a sentiment like /that/ from one of the Warrior Monks. ...Don't worry, I won't let the others know." Jacqueline comments with a slight chuckle. "There's a friend of mine you'd get along with quite well, I think."

She notices the way Kadi eyes the map, the familiar sight of gears turning in a person's head, and offers her a smile.

"You can keep it, if you like - I can always get another." She offers with a gesture toward the map... and then, Kadi catches her slip-up. Jacqueline chuckles sheepishly with a bit of a blush, massaging the back of her neck.

"A-ah, you caught that...? Well, I suppose there's no use trying to hide it..." She replies, then shakes her head. "I'm not. I was born and raised here on Filgaia, so... I know my way around. That's how I know so much about what's been going on."

<Pose Tracker> Kadi has posed. Kadi bobs her head in response, "There really was, and with Sin being there too..." she trails off, releasing her hair and waving a hand around slightly. "...the toxin. It wouldn't help, either." Cue the 'blech' face that crosses her features for a moment.

Bared fingers curl around the edge of the bench and she rocks back and forth on it a little bit. The comment about her thoughts and the other Monks recieves a curious look. The teachings of Yevon resonate a little differently in her than in others. "Remember, Sin is our punishment because Spirans chose to use machina to do their jobs for them. We got lazy, and Sin came. Now, even those who believe the fiercest continue to bear the burden, until a Summoner brings the calm." A pause. "...but there are machina that Yevon allows. The Stadium in Luca, for one. I'm no Maester, but blitzball players are anything but lazy, and so it's allowed. I don't allow machina to make me lazy. If anything, I work harder. That's why it speaks to me." A smile. The comment about having a friend she'd get along with raises a brow. But then again, it's all explained when...

...non-Spiran descent confirmed. "There's nothing wrong with that. If /I/ can be here, and all this can be here, there's no reason that you can't be /from/ here. If anything, I might be the one who should try to hide where I'm from." This is something she considers for a couple moments, tapping her chin. She'll think about it a bit more. At the offer to keep the map, though? She smiles brightly again. "Really? That's very nice of you!" She leans forward and hands spring into action to seize it before minds are changed. Rolling it up swiftly, and pulling open her robes to tuck it inside. There's other things in there. Mostly shiny things (literally.) But it's only open for a moment.

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed. The toxin... Jacqueline nods. She doesn't know too much about that, but now that Kadi mentions it, she thinks she recalls hearing something about Sin's toxin back where she was on Spira.

She listens, then, as Kadi goes into a bit more detail on her views. That...explains a lot, actually.

"That's a good way of looking at it." Jacqueline comments, thinking it over. 'Laziness', huh... Jacqueline wouldn't consider her own personal use of machina laziness - she figures she's probably okay.

And, thankfully, Kadi's pretty accepting of the fact that she's from Filgaia. Jacqueline offers her a thankful smile - and, a nod when Kadi asks for confirmation about the map.

...Not that she seems to had a choice about it, Jacqueline observes with a hint of amusement.

"I try to help out where I can!" She replies brightly. "Filgaia might take some getting used to, but I have a feeling you'll catch onto things quickly."

She pauses for a moment, taking a moment to consider Kadi.

"If you're a Warrior Monk...then you're probably pretty capable, right? In that case, I'd suggest gathering some of your friends and checking out some of the ruins in the area. That should help you familiarize yourself with Filgaia, while also making sure you've got a chunk of change to live off of." She suggests. "It's dangerous work, but it pays off - but, if you need supplies before then... Well, I'm a merchant! You probably won't find many people that take Gil, but I can make an exception."

<Pose Tracker> Kadi has posed. Lack of laziness is key, really. Maybe it provides reasoning for why Sin hasn't come to Filgaia, the more she thinks about it: people here haven't /let/ themselves get lazy like Spirans did. Which makes it the perfect launching point for her mission.

"Yevon must be favoring me to lead me towards people like you... all I need is a good foothold, and then I can do the rest, yeah?" The 'great and powerful' Kadi indeed. Already, she's getting her confidence back. This is good for her. It's debatable how good it is for others, though!

The latter suggestion gets a quirk of an ear. "I can handle myself well." she agrees, stretching out a little bit. "...though I don't know where anyone went. As far as I know, my people are all still up there." A nod towards Lunar. "...but there's no reason I can't work with some of the people here, and it sounds like a good way to get started." Most people /not/ taking Gil isn't a great thing for her. However, Jacqueline being a merchant and being willing to make exceptions? Makes her smile all the wider. "Sounds good! Let's see what you've got, yeah?"

Thus, shopping commences!