2022-03-05: A New Ally in the Making
- Log: A New Ally in the Making
- Cast: Xantia, Seraph Ragnell
- Where: Guara Bobelo - The Drag
- Date: March 05, 2022
- Summary: Ragnell drops by Guara Bobelo during its reconstruction efforts, which Xantia happens to be assisting with. Upon catching up a bit, it turns out that they have a certain specific shared interest...
========================<* Guara Bobelo - The Drag *>========================= Guara Bobelo sits beneath a massive dome, a Zeboim-era structure meant to ward off artillery. Deployed during the most desperate days of the war, it now shrouds the city in eternal night--not even the false stars on its underside can break up the gloom. Once home to the grand Cathedral of Saint Calucion, Guara Bobelo is now a haven for rogues from all across Southern Aquvy. Much of the city is a single, massive slum, a dirty, darkened maze of hastily-constructed tenements. Guara Bobelo's main street runs from north to south, circling the remains of the Cathedral along the way. Known colloquially as the Drag, it's lined on either side by shady bars, rickety storefronts, and old stone buildings repurposed as flophouses and gambling halls. Hawkers sell food, drink, and knickknacks from push-carts, much of it dubious in quality. Even here, in the "better" part of town, desperation and despair seem to permeate the atmosphere. Guara Bobelo doesn't get tourists so much as fresh meat. BGM: Wild Arms 4 - Nightless City, Guara Bobelo
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
A Solarian purge tends to be an altogether ghastly affair. Once the Sky Dwellers decide that, for whatever reason, a place has to go, they tend to make it happen in short order, with overwhelming force and ruthless efficiency. Solarian involvement in the event generally can only be subject of speculation, as by the end of it, nothing and no one is left to tell the tale after their target is wiped clean off the map.
Guara Bobelo was a notable exception. Solarian involvement in the sudden massive assault on the city is indisputable, as in a rare occurrence, their target survived the event. Not without heavy damage, but with a surprisingly low body count, due to an unexpected level of resistance stopping their advance in the middle of the dilapidated district known as The Drag.
Even though this all took place some time ago, the signs are still self-evident. The city never looked especially great, but it looks decidedly less intact than normal, many houses having suffered a massive impact of some kind, and large pot holes dotting the landscape. Apparent evidence that a shelling took place here - odd, because the massive Zeboim dome covering the city should have prevented Solaris from doing that through conventional means. One might expect that in the wake of all this, the sense of despair among the populace would be at an all-time high.
It's actually closer to the opposite. This sudden tragedy striking the heart of their community seems to have caused a sense of camaraderie not commonly seen in a place like this. Cleanup and rebuilding efforts are well underway, a great number of citizens and visitors alike banding together for this common goal. Having something positive to work towards together has a way of improving morale.
Perhaps it's only fitting that one of the people involved in this is a certain redhead known for her infinite optimism. Xantia just happened to be here when Solaris attacked, and after helping to fend them off (and recovering from the ordeal that entailed), she stuck around to help with the cleanup. As she'd freely admit, she's much better at breaking things than fixing them, but that doesn't mean she can't help with clearing debris and heavy lifting. Plus she has a way of uplifting people's spirits just by being her usual self, that can't hurt.
At the moment, she's standing off to the side, leaning against the wall of a house that had the good fortune of escaping the destruction altogether. With arms crossed and eyes half-lidded, she seems to be dozing a little. It's clear enough that she's been helping out until recently, mostly because she looks like she's been rolling around in the dirt. But it's hard work, and even she gets tired.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Ragnell has posed.
Solarians are dicks like that. Having overwhelming power and no compassion to balance it out means you can basically do whatever you want.
But the so-called -lambs- have been growing stronger in the past several years. The fact that the Solarians *could* be beaten back, regardless of the damage, is probably unwelcome news to the skybound overlords. Sucks to be them, doesn't it? For Ragnell, it's welcome news for a variety of reasons. The biggest one, naturally, is: fuck Solaris. They got what was coming to them.
So though she hadn't been there for the defense against the would-be purge, Ragnell comes by to check out the aftermath. Sure, it's been a while, but to a Seraph like her, time is a little weird anyway. Besides, it's not like Guara Bobelo has a lot of money to throw at repairing infrastructure.
Case in point: all the shattered homes and pot holes in the ground. Interesting, what that implies. Even more interesting that the spirits of the residents are *high* rather than low. Maybe Guara Bobelo doesn't have a lot of money to put towards repairs, but they've got plenty of manpower. Ragnell watches a group of them cooperating cheerfully on the repairs for a while; when she leaves, it's with a smile.
It's that way all over, which is heartening to see. Ragnell stops several times to watch, too. She doesn't actually stop to *address* anyone, though, until she spots a certain redhead.
"Oh hey," she utters, blinking at the sight of Xantia. She quirks a half-smile and strolls the rest of the way over. "Slackin' off while everyone else is bustin' their asses? Tsk tsk tsk," she teases. "What would the Drifter community say if they could see ya now, Xan?"
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
The absence of casual greetings isn't likely to offend many people anyway. Preoccupation with their activities aside, how many of those here are even gonna be able to tell that a Seraph paid a visit at all?
Even Xantia would likely have missed it this time, if she hadn't been spoken to. When this registers to her - which isn't immediate - her eyes fly open, and she immediately responds, "I'm fine, I can still help! Just show me what needs doing and--"
She promptly stumbles in her attempt to push off the wall, almost losing her balance and falling over. She brings a hand to her forehead, grimacing. "Got a little dizzy... guess maybe I need a bit of rest after all."
It takes her that long to process who the familiar voice belonged to, and to look in Ragnell's direction. Naturally, this prompts a smile. "Oh hey, Ragnell, when'd you get here? Sorry if I didn't notice you, it's been... well, there's been a lot to do here." Glossing right over the tease without even realizing she was being teased, typical.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Ragnell has posed.
Exactly! Ragnell is frankly just used to not saying hi unless it's to someone she knows can actually see and/or hear her. Thus why Xantia gets a hi how ya doin' and nobody else--so far--does.
"...Man, that just flew right over your head, didn't it?" Ragnell comments, leaning an elbow on the building at their backs. She'd just been messing with Xantia--obviously she's been working hard and she's taking a break now--but the snark didn't even register with her. She shakes her head a bit, half-smiling.
"Jus' got here. Or, jus' got to this area, anyway," she adds, looking around the neighborhood. "Been walkin' around town checkin' things out for a few hours, I guess." She looks back at Xantia. "Anyway, don't worry about it. Looks like you were conked out pretty hard. How long you an' these folks been at this?"
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
Xantia blinks blankly. Then looks up, turns around, and looks behind her. Yeah... yeah of course she's going to wonder what it was that just flew over her head. Even if she's starting to understand expressions as a Thing, even using some herself on occasion, it's just never where her mind goes by default. Sure can be a challenge getting her to pick up on what should be exceptionally basic things sometimes.
Deciding not to worry about whatever projectile she missed just now, she gives a small shrug before turning her attention back to Ragnell. The way she leans back against the wall could be considered copying the Seraph, though equal odds on whether she consciously realized she did the exact same thing.
"I see, I see. Well, you sure missed a whole... thing. I, um..." She pauses to think for a moment, then shakes her head. "I don't actually know how long it's been, exactly. Longer than I've been helping, anyway. I needed a few days, after what happened. But I can do Ice now, look!"
Xantia raises her right arm, proudly displaying her ability to manifest chunks of ice crystal around it for a moment, before scattering all of it into rapidly evaporating water particles. It's also pretty typical for her to get sidetracked easily, but hey, this is new and exciting, right?
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Ragnell has posed.
Ragnell simply chuckles at Xantia's blank overhead stare and doesn't explain. She's used to that kind of reaction from Liath, and it's never not endearing to her, but that doesn't mean she's going to say what she was actually talking about.
Whether Xantia can remember how long she's been here isn't too important. Ragnell has an idea of when the attack happened, so Xantia can't have been here longer than that. The more important, more interesting thing is that her abilities appear to have expanded to now include ice. Ragnell watches as she manifests ice crystals that soon scatter away into mist.
"Nice," she says with an approving nod. "Was that 'cuz of what happened here, or is that totally separate?" It's a useful ability, too, given that her main powers are lightning-based. Given the extreme heat of lightning and the extreme cold of ice, you can do some significant damage. Though Ragnell's interest in ice is more its ability to cool... Right now, she can dump heat, but she can't *cool*. That's important for Reasons.
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
Xantia beams, pleased as punch about her new ability. "Yeah, it was! I was caught in fire, and I just sorta absorbed the magic from my ice claw and then I had ice powers!" She pauses, then looks a little less sure of herself. "...Not sure why, it made sense at the time."
That earlier enthusiasm seems to have fizzled out as quickly as it manifested. Xantia goes silent for a short moment, thinking back to what happened. Thus far, she hasn't spoken of the Solarian attack itself, but with the way she looks now, it can be inferred that it concerns her quite a bit. And that it's likely to be the next topic of conversation. The way she actually broaches it, though, is from an angle that may be unexpected, and with all due seriousness.
"You help out Odessa sometimes, right?"
Given Xantia's tendency for deliberate phrasing, it's clear that she doesn't believe that Ragnell is actually 'with' Odessa, despite whatever incidents she may have heard of. Perhaps that's why she expects she might get an answer to the question she follows that up with.
"Is that why you're here? Are they concerned about Solaris?"
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Ragnell has posed.
"Hmm. Well, fire an' ice don't get along, elementally speakin'," Ragnell points out. "Maybe when you absorbed that magic, you somehow converted it into a counter." Though in that case, water would make more sense, wouldn't it? So why ice? It's a good question. She's only offering guesses here, anyway.
But Xantia's hype dies down rapidly in the face of Solaris and their attack. Ragnell doesn't expect her to bring up *Odessa*, though, and she raises an eyebrow at her.
"Nah," she replies. "Well, maybe they are. They probably are, all considered. But I ain't here 'cuz o' them. I'm here 'cuz o' me."
Which might mean that she's here on the *Trial Knight's* behalf, considering how close the two of them are. Or maybe it really does mean Ragnell's here purely for her own interest.
"Solaris fuckin' sucks! So I'm always glad to see their asses get back back," Ragnell clarifies. So... her own interest after all, then...?
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
Water might make more sense for most, but for Xantia... that one time in Dazil, where she'd busted out a slew of elements she wasn't readily able to use at the time, she hadn't employed water, but she did use ice. Another instance of her not so much learning a new ability, but re-learning an old one, perhaps.
Considering previous conversations, the response given does make Xantia consider the Trial Knight's involvement. But it's also true that Ragnell does what Ragnell wants, there doesn't really need to be more of a reason than that. Xantia smiles vaguely at the response, going into her assumed reason for phrasing it that way.
"Well, I hope Odessa thinks the same, or that someone will tell them to be worried if they aren't. In the end, Solaris will treat them no different than they do all -lambs-." Realizing she defaulted to the Solarian word, she quickly corrects herself, "Sorry, lambs. That's what call all of us surface-dwellers."
Trying to pit Odessa and Solaris against each other? Maybe. Perhaps not the most expected thing to come out of Xantia, but where it comes to Solaris... well, things have changed a bit about her perception. With that, she places her hands behind her head, resuming her previous, more casual attitude.
"I'm glad you'll be on our side for that. We're gonna need all the help we can get to take them down. We will need to one day, they'll never stop unless we make them."
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Ragnell has posed.
"Yeah, I know," Ragnell says, nodding, when Xantia brings up the word 'lambs.' "I'm in Odessa for a specific reason, an' it doesn't have nothin' to do with Solaris, so I'm not too concerned 'bout what they think about 'em. But I really don't think they're friendly." She winks. "Though if I were you, I wouldn't trust me to be too honest about the inner workin's of an enemy organization~."
So it's really up in the air what's up on that end!
She does quirk a half-smile at what Xantia says, though. "Yeah, agreed. They're bastards! Lookin' down on everyone from on high, tryin' to control everything while they sit on their fat asses all cushy an' lazy. I hate that," Ragnell says with impassionate feeling. "Humans are a bunch o' fuck-ups, but how're you ever gonna turn yourselves around if you're always squirmin' around under someone else's heel?"
She shrugs. "But that's beside the point for now. It's not like I'm gonna do all your fightin' for you either." She smirks and winks. "An' o' course, I got my own motives for helpin' out, too~." She shrugs again, broader this time, and shakes her head. "Though if you didn't already know that, I'd have to really wonder what's goin' through that head o' yours!"
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
Xantia smiles and hmmms, when Ragnell says not to trust her honesty in these matters. It's kind of unlike her to leave it at that, she usually says exactly what she's thinking. Perhaps she believes that she doesn't need to say anything to make it obvious how she feels about that, or that keeping silent would be more telling in this instance.
Or maybe she's copying Ragnell again, trying to be all ~vague~ and ~open to interpretation~. In which case it's definitely a good decision to do that by not saying anything, instead of taking the risk of totally messing it up by trying to use her words the same way.
On the matter of Solaris though, she is easily swept up into ragging on them. "Right!? They think they're so much better than everyone else, and they should be in charge of everything because of that. But they only make things worse! They've already been controlling so many things, but all they've ever done is help themselves, causing more suffering for everyone else. I won't forgive them for that!"
She loses a bit of steam when it becomes apparent that Ragnell doesn't exactly share her passion in how Solaris should be priority 1. But she doesn't lose her smile, regardless. "Well, that's fine. I did kind of suspect you had personal reasons." She pauses and rubs her chin, briefly considering something before asking a strange question that seems to come right out of nowhere.
"Hey Ragnell. Can I touch you?"
Even Xantia realizes that must have sounded weird, though she may not understand all the different ways one might interpret this. She quickly waves her hands in front of her, adding, "I mean, just a handshake or whatever is fine, I'm just... curious, about something." She struggles to explain herself better than that. But in case extra reassurance is needed...
"I promise I won't do anything like... you know, that one time. I understand if you don't trust me... heh, I feel like I can barely trust myself sometimes. So, how about this? If I break my promise, just shoot me."
Xantia says it pretty casually, but it seems like she meant it as a serious suggestion. As in, she really wouldn't like to get shot, so this should work as an assurance that she won't do anything that'll get her shot. Logic!
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Ragnell has posed.
If you're trying to be vague and open to interpretation, a mysterious smile and keeping your mouth shut is a pretty good way to go about it. But at least Xantia doesn't have to do (go along with?) that for long, since Ragnell's perfectly happy to dunk on Solaris. Something they have in common! Even if their priority ranking *of* Solaris isn't the same.
"Everyone has personal reasons. Jus' a matter of figurin' out what they are," Ragnell drawls, folding her arms behind her neck. "Even someone like you, who's missin' her past--when you look at Solaris, somethin' about them just jangles *wrong* inside o' you, I bet. Though at this point, sayin' you're missin' your past is just an excuse, isn't it? It's been--what, five years since you started wanderin' around? Five years worth o' memories is nothin' to sneeze at. On a human timescale, anyway."
'Hey Ragnell. Can I touch you?'
Ragnell's eyebrows go *up*. "Excuse you?" But Xantia quickly gets her reassurances in. Ragnell tilts her head, giving her an assessing look. She's not *too* worried about her doing something untoward while she's in this state, whatever happened before. So, after a moment, she shrugs and holds out a gloved hand. "Sure, why not? I'm curious where you're goin' with this." She flashes her a fangy grin. "But if you break your promise, I really will shoot you~!"
She really will shoot her.
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
Yeah... it really has been a long time. Xantia can't but agree, with a bit of a solemn nod. "I started with nothing, and now... it feels like I have an eternity of memories. To think most people have much more than this, it's... hard to imagine." It simultaneously feels like so much, yet nothing by comparison. Certainly not if you compare it to a Seraph's, not that she means to do that. One thing's for sure: time's weird for an amnesiac, too.
"Even so..." Xantia looks at her right hand, and makes a fist with it. "I know there's something in my past that makes me feel like this. Even if I would've felt this way about Solaris no matter what, there's something that makes it that much stronger. If only I could remember what exactly, and why." The details still matter. She still has to know.
Aaand then she derails everything with a weird question. Thankfully, she seems to have succeeded in making clear that it's for an important reason, and not anything dangerous, which is all she was worried about. Because she sure wouldn't have known how to better explain, other than variations of what she already said. She looks visibly relieved when Ragnell shows willingness to cooperate instead of asking more questions.
"Okay, good! Yeah, don't worry, you won't feel a thing!" There's a beat, before she adds, "Well, you'll feel my hand, of course." Another beat. "And... maybe a bit more? I don't know, I haven't done this before. But I'm sure it won't hurt!"
She has no idea what she's doing, in other words, how reassuring. But with the threat of getting shot hanging over her, she must be pretty confident. Confident enough to just go ahead and take Ragnell's hand without allowing for an opening to change her mind in light of these newly voiced doubts.
She's right about it not hurting, at least. It's not even a firm handshake. It's an altogether light touch, by an uncommonly warm palm. And there is indeed 'a bit more', a slight tingly sensation where their hands connect. Nothing that causes anything visually notable to happen, though Xantia's expression suggests that she's deep in thought.
This only lasts for a few seconds, before Xantia draws back her hand, as if she just got an electric shock. Something that Ragnell undoubtedly has seen many times before, but this was without her doing anything. Xantia doesn't immediately say anything about it, she just stares at her hand, opening and closing it a few times, mumbling, "Huh... that's... hm, yes, I thought so." Then she looks back to Ragnell, still with a neutral expression.
"So, Ragnell... you know Azoth?"
It's phrased as one, but it's fair to feel as if that wasn't really a question. Nor that it was disconnected from whatever it is she just did.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Ragnell has posed.
Now just imagine if you were a Seraph with amnesia. Time is fake, y'all! Though it *is* pretty likely that Xantia has a reason for hating Solaris in her past too. Ragnell wonders a little if Xantia used to be *with* Solaris, or maybe just *of* them, and they scrambled her brains and threw her out into the desert. There's no particular reason for her to think that. She just wonders.
That said, while she's willing to go along with Xantia's request, that doesn't mean Ragnell stops squinting at her. Their hands touch, and there's a tingling sensation before Xantia snatches her hand back. Ragnell scrutinizes her for a moment until she comes back to earth, so to speak, and asks her question.
"Hmmm." Ragnell considers for a moment; then she nods. "Yeah, I do. Why?"
After all, even if it was phrased like a question, it didn't *feel* like a question. Ragnell doesn't see a lot of point in lying about it. And given what she herself suspects about Xantia, and who Azoth's masters are... Well, maybe this might be a new ally in the making in terms of Azoth's whole--Situation.
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
And that's why it's probably gonna be like this every time you ask Xantia how long anything has been going on. Who pays attention to time, it's not even real!
Then again, Xantia probably has no business ignoring things based on how much sense they make, given that the things she does have a way of bending or breaking rules. And sometimes they compound each other, like how the weird thing she does now is in response to a weird thing she did earlier. But she gets to the explanation of that soon enough, after taking a moment to seemingly study Ragnell as she gives her response. A little sheepishly at first, rubbing her palm with the other hand.
"Well, you see... back when I fought Azoth that one time, I thought I felt something... unusual, yet familiar. I couldn't really figure out what it was, but I think I managed to touch it. ...Or, well, more like hit it, I guess." She turns her hand so the palm is facing up.
"...That was you, wasn't it? I had to touch you again to make sure, but it was really similar. If I've felt it before, and it's unique enough, I can just... kinda tell these things."
She suddenly changes her demeanor, more emotion returning to her voice, "If so, then sorry! I thought maybe hitting the other presence would stop Azoth without hurting him, but then I hurt you, maybe? I didn't mean to!" By saying that, she's probably already said enough to confirm Ragnell's hypothesis, but she states it plainly directly after.
"I just needed to be sure because, if that's your personal reason... then you can count on me to do whatever I can. Even though he's with them, I know that isn't by choice. Azoth is a victim of Solaris, and I want to free him from their influence. So if you figure out any way to help him... just tell me how I can help."
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Ragnell has posed.
Ragnell gives Xantia a long, measured moment. Then she ducks her head with a low 'pfft' and a smirk. "...You're always sharper than I give you credit for," she remarks. A broad shrug as she shuts her eyes. "Yup, you're right! I've been taggin' along with Azoth on occasion. Sometimes that means durin' his battles." She opens one eye at half-mast, effectively winking. "You don't need to apologize for hittin' me, though. A fight's a fight, an' it's not like I was advertisin' my presence."
Her smile grows as Xantia offers her help in freeing Azoth from Solaris. It's not her *only* reason, but... "I 'ppreciate that," she replies. "The first thing you'll wanna do is get in touch with Ida." Her smile fades. "Azoth's under a compulsion to obey Solaris, whether he wants to or not. That means any attempt we try to make to free him, he'll be forced to try to stop. So we can't let him know. Ida 'n' me've been workin' on a thing, an' if you want in on it, then you're best gettin' in touch with her."
She smirks humorlessly. "Solaris's big weak point is that they don't know shit about Seraphim. Oh, sure, a couple o' their agents have had run-ins with me in the past, but a long time ago, an' nothin' on any particular great scale. So if I happen to lurk in or through their electronics, or skulk around their facilities, how're they gonna know? They can't even sense the energy I put off, let alone see or hear me or get me on camera. So I've been collectin' info on them for a while now."
She pauses, then adds, "An' learnin' how to control the electronics that make up their empire. I figure--that's *exactly* in my wheelhouse, so it's only to my benefit to learn more about it, innit?"
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
Xantia rubs the back of her head, still feeling kind of awkward about all this. She'd argue that she isn't that sharp, she just can't help but Notice Things. Arguably kind of the same thing, except that it doesn't feel like anything special. But hey, it paid off here, that's what matters.
Granted, it's something that she could have just asked straight out. The fact that she opted to do something that would let her know without a doubt instead... well, she may have Noticed Things about how Ragnell has a way of responding to questions in a way that avoids all the answers, too. Speaking of which...
"I'm glad I happened to notice. It's not something I would've expected you to do. But I won't ask why, I think I understand all I need to." All that really matters is sharing a goal. It's plenty for her to offer assistance in any way she can. And upon learning more...
"Oh, Ida? I can talk to Ida, sure!" She sounds happy about that, even by her standards. As fortune would have it, not long ago she had a long-overdue talk with Ida about other concerns, which makes a follow-up like this a pleasant prospect. Knowing there's already a plan in motion is heartening too, having had no clue about what she could do for Azoth so far.
Hearing about what else Ragnell has been up to with Solaris, she can only say, genuinely impressed, "Huh. That's pretty amazing. I never would've thought they'd have a blind spot like that." Sounds like something that could be used to help take them down, in fact... she'll be sure to keep that mind.
Making a fist, she smiles brightly, concluding, "Sounds to me like we stand a much better chance already! We'll show them what they get for ruining people's lives!"
She looks behind her in surprise as she actually got a cheer in response from a couple of the locals working on reconstruction. Whoops, that was a little loud... and not spoken to anyone most people around here can see, so they must've thought she was trying to be inspirational or something. She just gives a little shrug in Ragnell's direction. Not the first time she was caught seemingly talking to thin air. Whatcha gonna do?