2023-02-10: We, the Wounded Shall Advance into the Light

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<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.

    It is, at this point, after.

    After wounded have been moved to the infirmary and stabilized, and what can be mended immediately has been mended. The damage to the Fahrenheit has been managed as well as it can be, and the airship is on its return to safer harbors. The Shevite contingent, their business concluded, have left and in part to avoid drawing Solaris' attentions down a third time upon the airship and its occupants.
    In other words, the dust has settled, and for the moment, there is time to pause and reflect on what has just happened -- and what it might all mean.

    This is likely the most crowded the Fahrenheit's infirmary has been in some time (hopefully, ever, but as recent events have shown... there may be doubts about this!), but everyone here has made do: some were badly wounded as a result of Krelian's attack, but fortunately, they had among them not only a doctor and an apothecary but a priest.
    ...Etone, to be precise, but semantics.

    From somewhere, Citan Uzuki has commandeered a chair and, with his work for now complete, finally taken a seat. It might have been out of one of the rooms used during the meetings, in fact.

    "Well..." he says, shaking his head. "This has certainly been an... unexpected turn of events."

    Solaris' attack and Krelian's own. Sin, wounded by the Heimdall Gazzo. Vinsfeld's declaration.
    And, the new alliance between the Al Bhed and Shevat. 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

Fei Fong Wong failed once again to kill himself OR everyone he loves and so he is pretty happy. Elly's alright, Emeralda's alright, and sure maybe they only survived because a mad fascist with a super laser shot in their general direction and hit Solarians--shutup Id that doesn't mean he wants to do a genocide even if the super laser was really convenient in the moment--but another day of survival is another day where they can fight back against Solarian's efforts.

Krelian seemed rather 'wounded' himself, quite frankly, but the steps he is moving to take... Well, he is concerned about it. He doesn't know what Krelian was GONNA do but he didn't do it in the end.

He also sort of owes Ethius his life but sort of doesn't because Ethius set him on fire in the past so maybe that's just squared away now. He is visibly more relaxed in the guy's presence.

"I don't know if Vinsfeld meant to hit the Solarians with that or if we were just really lucky but..." He shrugs haplessly. "But if it wasn't for that laser--well I don't know what Krelian was gonna do, but he was gonna get to do it. I won't complain about the luck but...what're we gonna do when he comes at us again...?" 

<Pose Tracker> Emeralda Kasim has posed.

Emeralda got through the battle - even going so far as to block people from falling out with her entire body - before she fell over.

She never really passed out, precisely, but she did kind of pull in and stop doing much for a while. She still is looking a little ill, a little stiff, but she's doing a lot better than she has been, even if she is more inclined to sit around than she often is. She has been difficult to shake away from Fei and Elly since she got mobile again.

"Maybe he doesn't want to be ruled by them any more than anybody else," Emeralda guesses, because she does not have a good grasp of Odessa or what makes them go and has never been particularly good at guessing. 

<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.

 
Elly is mostly alright. She took an electrical injury, although an Al Bhed Potion took the edge off and she is now only somewhat tremorous, seated on a chair instead of a bed - not optimal for recovery perhaps but, well, it was possible, and triage is a thing.

She's laughing, a little. "I... I think I can guess, a little, but... but we stopped him!"

Elly is in a GOOD mood - which is rare after a pitched battle. "I think this must have been - the first step of a purge, but we stopped it!"

She blinks a little, remembering the laser. Oh yeah, the laser that hit Sin. She seems to have little input about Vinsfeld, at least. 

<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.

Xantia got herself pretty badly injured going toe to toe with Krelian. Her armor doesn't exactly afford the greatest level of protection, and the way it got torn into made it seem like paper, but that little layer could well have been made a significant difference in the severity of her wounds. The horizonal and vertical crossed slash wounds on her torso certainly looked bad, but were not deep enough to cause organ damage, and with the amount of available care, ultimately not life-threatening.

It helps that she's been quiet and cooperative with treatment, staying in bed rather than seeking to start walking around against everyone else's better judgment. Which is also how you can tell she isn't in a good headspace. For reasons that should be plain enough to everyone present. She completely lost it out there. It's something that needs to be discussed, and that's something she isn't looking forward to.

As people begin to converse nearby, she sits up in bed, grimacing less from pain and more from discomfort with the tightness of the bandages wrapped around her. Still, she manages it easily enough, doing her best to force a smile so as to not ruin the positive mood.

"I guess... it ultimately could've been worse. We're all still here, after all." She looks about a moment, then questions Citan, "Is Lily doing okay?" Always easier to worry for others rather than focus on her own problems, even when she knows she must. 

<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.

    Ethius didn't hit his head.
 
     He has some burns and his legs are sore from nearly being split by the strange red sword that Krelian bore. Ethius has seen strange swords, and red swords, but that's the one that has earned the singular specific designation of 'strange red sword' should he ever encounter other blades of that nature.
 
     He got off a bit lighter compared to some and thus wasn't laid up in the infirmary as long beyond a check to ensure he wasn't secretly bleeding out on the spot. One of his shoulders is going to need significant rest after that split-second catch of Fei's leg when he nearly pitched himself off.
 
     The look in his eyes, now in conjunction with the pensive expression of his fully revealed face doesn't succeed in hiding his surface thoughts about how severe a situation this is.
 
     He looks spooked, even.
 
     "The two worlds haven't been short of competing interests," he offers with a hand to his head as to just how narrow a save it was. 

<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.

    It's after for a lot of folks.
    
    Tidus hadn't been able to help with the fight against Krelian; when Vinsfeld had unleashed his superweapon and the resulting wave had hit the Fahrenheit, he'd been in midair post-super-move and had very nearly experienced deja vu of the falling to his near death variety. He'd managed to grab hold of the railing and pull himself to safety this time, but it'd been a struggle.
    
    He's not much of a healer, either, but he does handle the item bag with regularity. He's not a mix expert like Rikku, but he can at least help hand out potions and the like. Yuna no doubt is handling the actual healing.
    
    He comes in a little late on the conversation, and grabs a chair that he turns around and sits on backwards. "Hey guys," he says with a smile, striving to remain cheerful even though he's very tired. "You guys doing okay for now?" He pauses at the conversation about the laser and, despite his best efforts, grimaces. "Yeah, that sure was something... Everything seems like it's escalating all of a sudden, huh?" 

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

A lot's happened - Jacqueline missed most of it, due to tending to the wounded. But she saw the aftermath - saw Heimdall Gazzo and Sin, and heard Vinsfeld's declaration.

...It's given her a lot to think about. Most of her time has been spent doing her job, but she - and everyone else - has a spare moment to think, now.

"Yes... a lot has happened in quite a short amount of time." Jacqueline agrees. It was unexpected. She frowns to herself, leaning back in her seat and cupping her chin in thought.

"I had hoped disabling the towers would have prevented him from awakening Heimdall Gazzo, but it would seem there was a backup plan in mind... And, then there's the matter of Sin. We should probably consider our next steps carefully..." Jacqueline says, then looks toward Elly. She... appears to be in a good mood? Jacqueline smiles, just a little.

"I guess you did. Good work. That's something to take pride in, at least." She says. The good mood is a little infectious. Honestly, that's probably something they can all use right now. 

<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.

    He may have been fortunate himself to have not been badly wounded -- but then, he himself had recognized that it was not a fight they could win from the start and had taken measures accordingly. Still, it had been fortune -- or fate -- that they had not suffered more terrible injuries and losses... and that Krelian withdrew.

    "It may have been both," Citan remarks, on the matter of Vinsfeld's 'intercession', spreading his hands wide. "He is an enemy of Solaris -- yes, your thinking is correct, Emeralda. But neither is he our ally. He is an enemy of all nations and those who would come to their aid, as he himself has said. ...The saying 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend' is not always true. Rather... I think we were not as important to him, in the moment."

    It spells ill for Filgaia. And likely, in time, Lunar as well.

    It might have been the start of a purge. "It is... likely," Citan says, grimacing as he ducks his head. "His intent was to leave Queen Zephyr without allies."

    He wanted the Queen to witness for herself the end of the world, he had said.

    He glances Xantia's way. "Yes," Citan says, nodding firmly. "With some rest, Lily shall be alright. She overexerted herself," among other things, "but do not worry. We are watching over her as well. I trust that you are feeling better now, Xantia?" He had room to worry in the fray that she would lose hold over herself.

    "But I must thank you, Mister Hesiod. Were it not for your quick thinking..."

    Fei, absent some stranger miracle than what had occured, may have died.

    It seems like things are accelerating. "Yes... I think that they are, Tidus." He has not forgotten Tidus' preferences! "Whether some tipping point had been reached, or something else occured... it seems like their schemes are reaching their conclusion. It will be a matter of seeing they do not come to fruition."

    He readjusts his glasses. "Yes. I had thought similarly, Miss Barber, but it seems that instead, if I may hazard a guess, the efforts to disable the tower may have instead prevented it from achieving its full power. ...It stands to reason that, if he had bargained the lives of his closest allies, he did not do so as a 'gambit' to simply distract us. Vinsfeld Rhadamanthus does not appear to me to be that sort of man. We achieved something, even if it was not the end we desired. At least," he adds, with a shake of his head, "that is what I would like to think!" 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

"i'm just glad Cid's alright." Fei says because Cid actually shot Krelian in the face and Krelian seemed the vengeful sort even if he overtly said his interest wasn't in killing the queen so much as to make her suffer. Suffer in what way? Heck if he knows. He doesn't want to know.

He makes his way over to Elly and Emeralda, but focusing on the latter for a moment to give her arm a reassuring pat. "Hey," He says softly to her. "If you want to...talk about what happened later... I'll be here, okay?"

There's a lot of people to worry about here but since Emeralda seemed to recognize Krelian, he's maybe worried the most about her.

Xantia is injured but is smiling so how badly hurt can she be? And Tidus seems cheerful enough. Doc seems as invincible as ever and Elly seems to be even in a good mood all told.

"Probably would've been happy enough to hit us both," Fei admits. "But a weapon like that's gotta be tough to precisely aim." At least, precisely aim within a very tiny point of space--global warfarewise.

He can talk to Ethius later too.

"The thing that scares me is how much damage that weapon can do even without the Diablo Towers. Like... what would it have done if it was FULLY CHARGED? Probably blown a hole straight through Spira." 

<Pose Tracker> Emeralda Kasim has posed.

Emeralda Kasim pulls her knees up toward her chest where she's sitting; her skirt obligingly splits and shifts and becomes a pair of more-practical-for-sitting-that-way shorts. "Okay," she says to Fei, and leaves it at that - it's not something she wants to talk about now.

"Does that mean it was a lucky shot to hit at all? I don't know how to aim something like that. You can't just fire where you're looking, because it wouldn't come out from where you're looking from. And if they're far enough away they might move." Emeralda does not, in fact, know a whole lot about superweapons. It's never come up. "But even so you can't really see it from there, can you?"

She makes a face. "They shouldn't blow a hole straight through Spira. I bet the rocks would stop it eventually anyway." 

<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.

 
Elly smiles at Jay, though not closely. She is gathering up focus. She may have been given some painkillers. To Xantia, she says, "I'm - " A pause then, as she perhaps comes back to things. Elly pushes herself up from her chair, walking - with her arms spread, as if she's walking delicately in heels, though her slightly trembling hands reveal why.

Up to Xantia's bed, where she sits instead, looking over towards her. "Are YOU alright," she says to Xantia. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't laugh, I could tell you were - I mean, I"m just - I'm so glad that everyone, that all of us... Somehow...!!"

They lived!

Elly smiles at Emeralda. As she sweeps a hand through her hair, she says, "I don't know if it would be that hard to hit Sin, but Sin's enormous - the Fahrenheit's the size of a rather large ship, I mean, if you allow for the layout. I think Sin is about the size of the Thames."

"Tidus!! Hello!!" She waves at him with an uncoordinated arm, but she's sitting upright so she's probably going to live. "It... Really kind of does, but that was a strangely small force if this was the inauguration of a 'purge'."

"Mr. Hesiod," Elly calls, "could you come here for a moment?" 

<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.

    Ethius turns a gaze over at Tidus' approach. He's been a little jumpy with any face he hasn't been able to immediately account for after the last sequence of events, but nothing untoward comes of it beyond the turn of his head.
 
     "I will confess," Ethius remarks, "being thanked for split-second decision making when I err on the side of... mildly inconvenient is, novel." Humor? He might be attempting that, due to still processing the totality of everything Krelian said and did despite the two of them being otherwise complete strangers.
 
     On top of the matter of Heimdall Gazzo, at that. He has speculation but nothing concrete to say that would help with a solution or answer that ARMS is undoubtedly already working on.
 
     "I hesitate to disclose this thought, given the faith Lily put in me in the moment," and maybe even more than just Lily - the two did nearly fight to the death a long time ago underneath Lacour's coliseum, "but I have never seen anything of Krelian's capabilities. Not in my line of work, or outside of it."
 
     Elly calls for him. "One moment."
 
     Even recovering from injury there's a certain disciplined efficiency in the response time of his summoning. He stands at attention with arms behind his back as he stands before Elly. Until the humility of an injured body has him reach out with his less sore arm to lean against something for balance.
 
     "I am present," he says needlessly on top, his facial expression defaulting to passive neutrality before softening. 

<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.

Xantia nods quietly to Citan's assertion, regarding Lily. Overexertion... that sure is something she's had to deal with before. It's sooner odd that it didn't also happen to her this time. In spite of everything, she didn't go all out, not expending massive amounts of Ether like she commonly does in desperate situations. Almost as if she knew this would be a protracted battle, so she couldn't afford to do that. Or... whatever part of her that was knew, anyway. It's not like she had any say in it.

Is she feeling better, though? She'd normally find that easy to answer, the way she tends to focus on the physical aspect when asked questions like that. She's not doing that this time. She can't not interpret that as asking about her loss of control. There's an eventual, weaker nod, as if to say she's unsure, but she thinks so. All she actually says about it for now is, "I should... not be near that man." ...Not until I get stronger, she thinks, but doesn't say aloud. There's no question in her mind that the same thing would happen again. All she can do is make sure she'll be better prepared.

She's taken by surprise when Elly approaches her then, eyes widening briefly. This prompts her to reinforce her statement, "Really, I'll be fine! It's just-- well, I kind of just want to apologize, but I couldn't really help myself..." Where could she even begin to explain what that was like? "...It was... different, than before," is what she decides to leave it at for now.

Folding her hands in her lap, she instead wonders aloud, "So... what are we going to do now? I'd like to stay with everybody, if possible." 'Everybody' meaning 'the Black Wolves', in this case. She looks down at her hands. "Or just, with some of you, at least. I can't... be by myself right now." When she looks up again, her smile readily returns. "So, whatever you decide, I'm fine with it." 

<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.

    "No kidding," Tidus says to Jacqueline. "No question where me and Yuna and us are all going, but it looks like everyone's problems are a lot bigger than they were just a little while ago. We can't just ignore that Vinsfeld jerk, any more than we could ignore Solaris *or* Sin."
    
    The hit Sin took might buy them a little time, but... it's not exactly *better* knowing that a superweapon of that level is out there in the hands of some guy who's got it out for everyone who doesn't agree with him (or so Tidus see Vinsfeld). And then of course there's Krelian, who Tidus missed entirely; only hearsay let him know that all that even went on. He looks over at Citan, and does appreciate the lack of formality. "Yeah. We'll all have to deal with different stuff, I think, to keep the rest of it from exploding everything else."
    
    He looks over at Xantia then, as Citan asks after her injuries. Tidus is worried about that too with how subdued she seems right now, not to mention Lily, but he can't help but wonder, "Oh, hey, that reminds me, Xantia. That big machina we were fighting--were you serious when you said that was Azoth? I noticed he wasn't on board anymore after the fight, too, but..." He scratches his head. "That one's a little beyond me. How's that possible?"
    
    Fei points out that Heimdall Gazzo brought forth that kind power *without* being fully charged. Tidus shudders a little. "Man, don't even make me think about that." He looks over at Emeralda. "Right? Spira's got enough problems!"
    
    Elly's perhaps nervous energy brings a smile back to his face, and he waves back at her. "Hey, Elly! Man, they gave you the good stuff, huh?" Better than being in pain, for sure. He raises a hand in greeting to Ethius too, giving him a sunny smile of his own as Elly calls him over.
    
    Ethius has never seen anything like what Krelian did, though, huh... "What exactly *did* he do?" he wonders. 

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

Jacqueline nods as Citan makes a good guess, in regards to Vinsfeld and the Diablo Towers. She considers it for a moment. It is a good guess...

"You're right. I don't think he's that sort... I'd like to think that's the case, too." She agrees with a nod. It'd mean that it meant something - a light of hope and possibility.

...She really would like to think that. It would mean that Matilda...

She lets that thought fade there.

She looks toward Ethius then, and is momentarily surprised by what she can only interpret as an attempt at humor. ...He's certainly been changing a lot.

She nods toward Tidus, then. Yes - there's no question at all.

"I think... I'm probably going to stay with the Fahrenheit, for now. They could probably use my help and resources as they pick themselves back up after this." Jacqueline considers. "...I'd like to watch over them for now, too, just in case someone comes back."

She shakes her head.

"I'm sure ARMS must have heard Vinsfeld's declaration, as well. They're a capable bunch, so... I'll put my faith in them to deal with Heimdall Gazzo." She says. 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

"Sure," Fei says. "Of course." He has the feeling that SOME degree of accuracy isn't impossible but pinpoint accuracy probably is and putting undue pressure on Emeralda isn't the plan. That's why he talked softly!

He grimaces as Tidus chides him. "Sorry, sorry. It's just--hard to...not think about? I don't even know what something like that is DOING on Filgaia. Maybe it's another one of those spaceships so it's normally on a whole 'nother scale but if that's the case I don't know why there'd be these four pillars supporting it in the first place."

He rubs at his neck awkwardly. He's doing it again Xantia.

 His gaze settles on Xantia for a time. He feels like he should apologize but it doens't seem like the right tim eiether.

"I uh. Dunno. Maybe this is the best time to go after Sin though. I mean, it did just take a bigger hit than we could hope for."

It seems Xantia wants to apologize too. "Oh...don't--uh--don't worry about it Xantia. I mean, you know me. Ahahh...hahh..." 

<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.

 
"Just a little," Elly tells Tidus. Elly has always been kind of sensitive to drugs. "Did you see that enormous "Mog"...???"
 

Ethius comes closer. Elly shifts herself and rises up to stand in front of him, spreading her hands out again like she's on a tightrope. She looks upwards, towards the scruffy man. Several seconds pass.

"I don't know what to say," Elly says, looking down, obscurely shamefaced.

So--

Her slightly noodly arms are thrown around Ethius. She embraces him briefly, firmly, leaning forwards to put her face against his shoulder, almost; she errs on the side of force. She is not the strongest person in the world, but it is a rather firm hug nevertheless. It is not one that holds back.

"Thank you," she tells Ethius.

She lets go.

Her butt flops back onto Xantia's bed. She breathes out.

"Um," she then tells Xantia. "I don't... I mean, I don't understand what you mean. I don't think any of us want to do anything like-- send you away, especially not now. What makes you bring that up...?" 

<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.

    "It's quite all right, is--"
 
     He is interrupted by a hug. A warm, sincere, heartfelt hug from someone who nearly lost someone that meant everything to them. He blinks once, looks down, and slackens his posture a bit so his posture doesn't interfere nor fight with the gesture.
 
     That it takes him the moment to register it is a testament to one of the greater tragedies of his line of work: it's not the sort of thing that tends to end with someone sharing heartfelt gratitude.
 
     "Y-You're welcome," the stutter from how her head leans against his sorer arm. He waits to make sure she's steady where she's sitting before withdrawing back with less alacrity than he approached.
 
     "To answer your question," Ethius says to Tidus, "it would be difficult to summarize in short, but." He goes up against a wall somewhere for support, rather than a bed, hand on his forehead. "Suppose... suppose, you are well-acquainted with... a kind of weapon. A sword." Which Tidus is.
 
     "That you know not just 'a' sword, but many, swords made before the one you wield. That you... say, understand all the advances across the years in Spira when it comes to making swords."
 
     "Now imagine you come across someone wielding something you know is a sword, but... everything about it is beyond your capacity to recognize beyond that. Its material. The shapes. The techniques involved in wielding it. That... everything you know about swords, it completely transcends."
 
     There is the faint inflection of actual horror in his voice, and this is the man whose job it was was to hunt down and deal with a deeply flawed terraforming AI gifted with incredible capability and a will to do good, but cursed with an inevitably tragic set of directives and parameters to guide it.
 
     "Going by this figurative example, let's say, I am trained to identify, and deal with these... 'swords' when... shall we say, 'drawn' where they shouldn't be. Exhaustively, comprehensively, unerringly." A hand to his forehead. "In Krelian, there was no measure I could take to stop him, let alone slow him... and that is before he utilized a much less figurative sword."
 
     For a man who might have temporarily won over greater trust with how he located the Photosphere and dealt with Mother's 'Star Drive,' whatever that was, without him possibly ever having known they had one in advance and thus could be taken for granted to deal with almost anything with too many blinking lights or moving parts for comfort...
 
     "I have never seen anything like that - the man, or his red sword." 

<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.

Tidus questions Xantia on Azoth and she looks guilty all over again. She can't help but glance to Fei in that moment. She really, honestly thought he knew. And she never would have imagined what might happen if he didn't. It's so hard to judge what's important, sometimes. Still, she smiles and shakes her head, because it's pretty obvious they'd just get into an apology contest if they went into this any further. Instead, she turns back to Tidus, finally answering. Her smile doesn't quite fade, but it does sadden.

"...Yeah, that's Azoth. If you've only seem him in his human-like form, that's... not what he always looks like. He doesn't want to hurt anybody, but Solaris has control over him. If they engage his overrides, he's forced to do what they want. The only thing you can do is... stop him. That's what he'd want." She breathes deeply, placing a hand on her chest. "But I... I won't stop trying to break this control they have over him. I saw it, this time. He's fighting it. He can do this. He may need some help, but... I know he can do this."

She looks somewhere else for a moment, before snapping back to the here and now, in time to see Elly hugging Ethius. That makes it easy to smile again. You'll have to forgive her for not dragging her heavily bandaged self out of bed to add a hug of her own, instead only adding, "...Yeah. Thank you, Ethius. That could've ended badly if it wasn't for you."

When Elly asks what she means, Xantia rubs at her neck awkwardly. She's doing it again, too. Really not actively trying to imitate Fei, it just happens. "Well, you know... I have this habit of wandering off, doing my own thing. I just wanted to say that, right now, you don't have to worry about me doing that." Moreover, she tends to react strongly if Filgaia is threatened, and Vinsfeld definitely did do that. But she's already worried everyone enough with her behavior in that fight, by her reckoning. And she sure doesn't trust her decision-making at the moment. So she's not going to making decisions for herself right now, is what she's saying.

She listens with interest to Ethius's insights on Krelian. The sword... she didn't pay much attention to it herself. So it's that unusual, is it? "I guess... I was a bit more focused on the part where he kind of just doesn't die, no matter what you do." To be fair, probably a little more immediately concerning, given how much of the man's blood she spilled without it even slowing him down. 

<Pose Tracker> Emeralda Kasim has posed.

Emeralda had actually been quiet for a few moments longer. Maybe she *wasn't* feeling well.

She shifts again when Ethius and Xantia speak aobut the sword, though, straightening a bit more as she perches next to Elly. (Her shorts are a skirt again.) "I remember when I touched the sword," Emeralda says. "I mean, I remember a bit. It was like..."

Emeralda actually to think about how to put it. And she fails! "I don't know how to say it! It was like looking at everything all at once, except it was trying to all come in at once. Like, uh... like if you tried to drink out of a fire hose, it doesn't all fit and it makes a mess. Except with thinking. I don't remember all of it..."

"...and then he shot me with some other things!" Emeralda shivers. "Like... it was like something attacking me, from inside. I had to fight it back." How do you describe a nanite invasion of yourself, when you *are* nanites, in a way that makes sense? Disease comes closest, or maybe poison. "And between them, I couldn't keep all of it in mind..."

"But that sword is weird. I think it's connected to something, but I don't know what." Emeralda makes a face. "I didn't think I would see him again. I don't think I was supposed to remember him." 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

Fei frowns in concern. "From the inside...?" He smiles as Elly destroys Ethius by hugging him. It's very sweet. And awesome.

"He called it the Monado," Fei says of the sword. "It felt like... Similar to the ether I channel but... maybe a counterpoint to it? Like...not exactly the same but--there was so much of it. It felt like I was trying to fight some kind of opposing nature to myself."

Fei doesn't usually talk about his ether quality too much so directly but this is a guy who turned an attack into flowers once while in this sort of quiet daze of perfect balance. And Fei speaks of it as if the force is similar to that.

"Oh um. Sorry about Azoth," Fei tells Xantia, sheepishly. "I ... had no idea! I mean, if I did I probably ... I mean I guess there wasn't much I could do differently but I'd probably have fought a little differently..."

He did seem to sort of... let himself be blown off the ship.

"...Man, can't be fun to fight someone who doesn't wanna fight you really."

Maybe he should leave it to Xantia who seems to know what she's doing with that? 

<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.

    He smiles, in spite of all that has come about. "Well, regardless of how long you had intended to attempt such a daring rescue or not, Mister Hesiod, let me reiterate that we are appreciative of your act!" Indeed, Elly has a bit more to say on that matter.

    Or do, to be precise.

    "Perhaps," Citan speculates quietly, on the matter of a purge, "they did not need many to complete it." Or was there another reason, other than to eliminate the Al Bhed and deprive Shevat of its allies -- to once again isolate Queen Zephyr?

    As long as he stays on Spira, Citan can only speculate -- and even if he should depart, he might not find an answer easily or at all.

    "It is difficult to know what lies in anyone's heart," he replies to Jacqueline, "And yet, it would not follow for him to do such a thing, from my observation." Whether or not that is something they can use against the man... well, it is difficult to know. At the very least, perhaps, Vinsfeld is not so unassailable as such.

    What might have the Heimdall Gazzo done if it had been at full power? Citan's response to Fei is to shake his head. Some things do not bear speculating upon.

    "Not at all. It was not..." he hesitates a moment as he picks his words in responds to Xantia's apologies, "a situation we had anticipated. Moreover, we do not, ah... have alternatives for you, you might say. Nevertheless," he continues, ducking his head in a nod, "I very much agree. It is best that you remain at our side."

    He continues, in this vein: "I, myself, feel that it may be best for all of us to remain here for now, though of course the decision lies with Captain Albus." Citan pauses. "Though... I am concerned about Filgaia. I am considering heading back for a time to learn what has happened, but of course I shall not abandon the rest of you!"

    He appears thoughtful for the moment. "I am reminded, of course. Now may also be a good time for us to consider traveling to Meribia, or at least deploying our plan there in earnest. So you see, there are many options before us about where we might go or what we might do."

    Tidus asks about Azoth and Krelian both and, settling back in his seat and folding his arms across his chest, Citan nods as if to indicate that the respective people asked go on. "I would particularly be interested in your insight, Mister Hesiod." For... obvious reasons.

    And Ethius does what he can to explain.

    "Yes. I, myself, had never seen anything like it during my days in Solaris," Citan remarks. "What is more... it appears that he is of a similar nature with Emeralda, unless I am mistaken..."

    Citan tries to also explain for Tidus' benefit: "Azoth is akin to machina, except that he possesses his own mind. As such, he can alter his form to a degree." He pauses. "Ah... unless it is common for machina to possess their own mind?" He smiles, disarmingly. "I must say that I have yet to encounter any!" 

<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.

    "Yeah, that was Lulu's! I sure didn't see that one coming," Tidus tells Elly, perhaps reassuring her that it wasn't a hallucination. "She's just full of surprises, huh?" He smiles when she gives Ethius a big ol' hug. Elly really is sweet.
    
    He nods at Jay. "Sounds like we'll be sticking together. Yeah, we've gotta trust that we can deal with--" He waves a hand expansively in the air. "Whatever corner of this giant mess of a problem we each decide on handling."
    
    That wave turns into a wave of 'no you're good' at Fei. "I didn't mean it like that! You're right, it *is* hard not to think about. It's just..." He sobers. "Chilling. To see something that could hurt Sin like that. Though you've got a point--maybe this is our chance."
    
    Something about that rings wrong to him, though. Sin exists as a response to warfare. Their chance isn't going to come because of some mega superweapon. What better has Tidus got, though?
    
    Tidus boggles at Xantia's explanation and Citan's follow-up. This soon turns into a sympathetic grimace. "Woah... Seriously? That sounds horrible. I had no idea..." It's hard to go so far as to say 'poor guy' after nearly getting killed by him, but it does change the calculus a lot.
    
    Finally, Ethius explains about Krelian. Sort of. Tidus mostly follows his explanation, and his takeaway is that Krelian is some kind of absurd guy, probably from space based on what little Tidus knows about that side of things. He gives him a look of dismay. Fei and Emeralda weigh in too, and what they have to offer is not much better. "Not sure I totally get it, but I get that he's stupidly strong. And that's what counts right now." 

<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.

 
Ethius is addressing Tidus and so Elly is able to relax. Thanks, Tidus! Elly had no idea what to say afterwards. She looks to Tidus, them back upwards.

She blinks several times, and - carefully - folds her hands in her lap.

More reports. "That was when you touched the sword? Did you try to, ah, attack the sword or anything like that?" Elly asks Emeralda, because maybe that was it. Attack is an approximate word, but she's used to approximations. Her lips purse for a moment. Fei has his own input. It isn't happy. Antithetical to his chi? They were fighting, but...

-- Azoth, Elly thinks with a sudden squirt of guilt.

To Xantia, Elly says -- "That's good. I thought you might have been wondering if we were going to somehow send you away... But I am a little loopy right now." She smiles, but perhaps that buoyant cloud of potentially-pharmaceutical cheer has partly dissipated.

"He was... with Yevon, at one point," she tells Tidus. "Fei and I... This was -- I don't want to think 'how long,' because I'm going to wonder if I'm getting old...! But it was, I think, before we were able to leave Spira." 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

"Yeah," Fei says. "I mean, he didn't seem like such a bad guy when we were just chatting on Spira." He frowns. "...I ... dreamt of him. One of those Elw Teleporter dreams. He used to fight Solaris, now he's with them! I don't understand but... It sounds like he's got big plans. And with a weapon like that, they might..."

He doesn't want to say it, so he just trails off. But those plans might be bigger than Solaris itself.

And that terrifies him.

"He seemed real mad at the Queen. Porbably because of Shevat's betrayal a long time ago. I don't know what he was going to do that was worse than killing her but... I'm glad we didn't find out!"

He looks to Ethius when he asks over his insight. 

<Pose Tracker> Emeralda Kasim has posed.

"There was a GIANT MOG?" And she missed it?? Emeralda is incredibly disappointed in herself. "But why would we say you couldn't stay?" she asks Xantia. She can't think of any reason that would happen.

"I tried to take it away from him before he hit anyone else with it," Emeralda explains to Elly. "So I grabbed it and pulled, but I wasn't trying to break it." She didn't bite it *that* hard. "Anyway, Azoth is good! He's just - he doesn't get to decide." She hates it. She hates that she can't do anything about it. And what if they treat her like that? She slouches.

Emeralda falls silent for a few moments, then blurts out, "I saw him before you saw him in Spira. I saw him in the laboratory. It was hard to remember, because it was before I woke up, when I was really little... but they did a lot of tests on me, in Solaris." After her first surge of talking quickly, she's gone slower, quieter. "They took bits of me away, and had me make them again. Not, like, fingers or something, just... stuff. One of the scientists usually did it by cutting my hair." Emeralda brings her hand to her hair, running her hand down it almost protectively.

"*ANYWAY*, he came and spoke to me afterwards. I was still mostly asleep... I didn't talk back and I don't think he knew I understood some of what he was saying. But I saw him then. I didn't really remember, when you saw him in Spira. I remembered this time. And after him, the scientists came back..."

Emeralda stares at the wall fiercely for a few moments, then shakes her head. "I don't remember that part." She sounds frustrated. "But he didn't feel like Kim. Or Fei." 

<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.

    It is going to be an adjustment period for Ethius to be seen as 'a friend' rather than 'someone who will hopefully just do whatever it is he's there for and then go away.' All too present in the awkwardness in which he acknowledges everyone's thanks for the on-the-spot save.
 
     "Unfortunately," Ethius looks to Xantia, "I wouldn't know what I could say or determine to alleviate that issue." That they aren't weak or helpless, but that there's something about Krelian that's beyond all of them.
 
     ...Not quite all.
 
     Emeralda talks about touching the sword, able to convey a sensation of what it's like as she eventually starts relating to her own history. He doesn't speculate over her feelings about what it could be, because he remains at a loss as to what it all was.
 
     Fei speaks of the name it was given, and its likeness to the Ether Fei has. It's another quality where he's out of his depth.
 
     This is why people work in teams, of course.
 
     "I will be keeping tabs on events here in Spira," Ethius says to the gathered, straightening up. He turns to Tidus, "I am dedicated to seeing Spira choose its course of its own volition... and if I have the right of it, it is to be free of the cycle of sacrifice that defined Spira for years."
 
     "So you will have my cooperation there, if such would be welcome."
 
     Fei gives a look over to him somewhere in this sequence. He closes his eyes for more than a few seconds, which, in years past he almost never did for over-long.
 
     There's a part of Spira that hits a little too close to home for him otherwise, even knowing nothing he can do will change what happened to what that 'home' once was. 

<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.

Xantia doesn't respond to the various expressions of concern regarding Azoth except with an inclination of her head. Horrible... perhaps. But if she had to describe it, she would use the word 'complicated'. Which isn't to say it's not a horrible situation, it's just one that she and Azoth have come to an understanding over. They can handle each other, and they'll manage to figure it all out, she's confident about that even if she has no concrete plans as of yet.

"...It's fine, Emeralda," she says to that expression of concern, smiling once more. With a look to Elly, she adds, "I think we're all a little... loopy right now." No need to go further into that. It's not like she actually wants to go anywhere. And now that she's made that clear... should she suddenly disappear anyway, they'll know that it was against her will. She knows she can count on her friends to find and help her, should it come to that.

Krelian though... she can't quite manage to put her thoughts of him behind her. Citan says he's of a similar nature as Emeralda. Putting that together with his stated plans regarding the Queen, and Fei saying he used to fight against Solaris, and not being sure what worse he could do except killing her... it clicks. This is what Citan told her about before. He said as much during the fight, didn't he...? She looks towards the doctor.

"...It was him, wasn't it? The man who left Shevat after giving the Queen immortality, meaning for it to be a punishment. So he was still alive, too..." Those treatments... the ones that might have saved the human Xenia, all those years ago. She still has trouble seeing them as a punishment. But given what she's seen, it's clear that was indeed the intention. "...Why does he want her to suffer so much?" 

<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.

    "There sure was," Tidus tells Emeralda, smiling. "I'm sure if you ask Lulu real nice, she could show you." His smile grows into a grin at Ethius's offer of help. "Of course! You've been a huge help so far. We're happy to have you around."
    
    The rest of the conversation, though... A lot of it admittedly goes over his head. Tidus opts to listen for now--he doesn't know how much help he'll be; how much help he *can* be, in the long term--but the least he can do *is* listen. He owes the people who've been helping him and his friends so much this far that much, at least. 

<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.

 
Because of Shevat's betrayals... and he used to FIGHT Solaris. Elly frowns slightly. "But... he's with them now, wasn't he?" Elly says, a little slowly. Krelian does seem to get around, after all, although with those abilities... "I don't mean in the general sense; I mean that he must have arrived with their ship. Otherwise he would have been... flying there, on his own..."

Troubling.

"I'm sorry," Elly tells Emeralda. "We can ask Lulu later, if we have the opportunity. It was... I was shocked at it. I wonder what happened to the, um, the plush afterwards. It must have been very big." A beat or two. Emeralda continues.

"He... he told me," Elly says, hesitantly, looking at her knees.

"That he wanted... a world where kindness would... mean something. But he said it had to be 'broken,' first." 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

"...What does that even mean I--"

Well

Fei goes quiet suddenly as the first sullen words of Id come back to him.

He's not wrong.

Fei clamps his mouth shut and doesn't say anyting else. The man who left Shevat after giving the Queen immortality.

"He said he wasn't merciful enough to grant her death." Fei murmurs. Would HE be? He hasn't even thought of what he could 'give' the Queen of Shevat, only the help he could beg for.

He stays close to Emeralda, listening to what Krelian did. His hands curl into tight fists as a quiet rage fills him. It doesn't have to come from the other guy.

But the other guy does add something else.

But even though he's not wrong, doesn't mean we're going to forgive him for what he did to her.

"No." Fei agrees quietly. He brushes Emeralda's hair with a hand, trying to be reassuring.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that," Fei tells Emeralda softly. 

<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.

    So Fei felt like it was similar to his own power, only as if it were in opposition to it? "...I see. Is there anything else you felt about it, Fei?" Citan asks, bringing up this area of discussion as well.

    Just what in the world has Krelian attained, if this is the power now in his grasp.
    And yet, it must still not be enough. Otherwise--

    "...I remember you mentioning to me. I had thought at the time that surely, it was a coincidence... Elly would know this as well," he says, looking her way. "I am certain it has not changed from my youth. No, rather, it cannot have changed. The rumors spoke that one who is truly in control of Solaris, more than the Emperor and the Ministry... is none other than Krelian.

    Who had been involved, as Emeralda reveals, in whatever they had done to her before she had been 'discarded', to become an obstacle in their path. "So they had taken samples... I wonder," Citan muses, furrowing his brow. "...But we will get nowhere by speculation alone," he concludes. "I believe you. Your... awareness and recollection of things is far different from our own. We cannot remember the time we spent before we were born -- or 'woke up' in your case," he continues, gesturing with his right hand, "but for you, it is not impossible. Indeed, have you not spoken of such things before?"

    It was him, Xantia says. The one who gave immortality to Zephyr and others in Shevat.

    "Yes," Citan answers. "I cannot speak for the reason why, but I believe his intent was to have them wander until the end of days. His intention for the world... it appears it required more time than an ordinary lifespan would permit," he continues, folding his arms over his chest again. "He wishes Shevat to see all they know die and crumble away... is there a crime that deserves such a punishment?"

    He wished for a kinder world, Elly says. But--

    "...I wonder. Bringing about the 'end of the world' in order to save it..." 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

"...It was a lot," Fei says to Citan. "Vast. Without bottom. Infinite. The power to reshape reality. Like--imagine going deep below the ocean, and then deeper and deeper until you can no longer see light. Until the forces of the water start to crush you and you can't even get back up to the surface without destroying yourself."

Fei bobs his head. "Like that." 

<Pose Tracker> Emeralda Kasim has posed.

"It wasn't your fault," Emeralda replies to Fei, but with a bit less than her usual energy.

She does not pull away from Fei, nor Elly, when she speaks again. "Yeah! The sword was like that, too, except I was just looking, and it was all trying to come through - just a little bit - " She shivers.

Emeralda does brighten when the possibility of Future Giant Mog is raised, though. Yes, she is interested. Yes, even at twelve (or however old she is now). 

<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.

Xantia lapses into silence, brow furrowed as she processes all this information. This adversary seems way beyond anything that one might reasonably be expected to deal with. She realizes this now, but she also realizes that knowing this sooner probably wouldn't have made a difference. She would have been compelled to act either way. But why would this compulsion be there, if it was as futile as it seemed? Perhaps, if she had all her memories, if she has all the abilities she was supposed to have... would there have been something she'd been able to do against him?

It seems that all roads ultimately keep leading back to the same place. She needs to hurry up and get her memories back. Only then will she be able to protect those she cares about. 

<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.

 
Everything Emeralda went through... part of Elly thinks immediately: Well, it could have been worse.

Could it have been?

She glances at Citan. He speaks of a truth she didn't really want to think about. "I thought," Elly says, almost whispers - she even kicks her feet a little - "That the name... he didn't hide who he was, as such. I thought it was a coincidence. Elehayym isn't a common name, but a lot of girls are named Elly. Or Gwen, or Josie, or boys named Bart or Scott or Tony."

She doesn't have a follow up to that.

It has, at least, made the mood more... level, in its way, hasn't it?

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