Flandre's Quest (Touhou) World - (Madness Quest)

[Entropy Judge]

[X] Sing.
- [X] Something Flan knows.


"Oh, fine, I'll sing something." Satsuki claps happily behind you. "Just give me a few minutes to figure out what I want to sing." Fate frowns.

"Are you sure? You don't have to …." You wave her off and she sighs. "Alright, alright. I look forward to hearing you sing." You smile as you start considering what you want to do. There are so many, after all. "Come on, Hayate." She pulls her friend away from you, toward where Nanoha is singing.

"Yes, yes." You shake your head when you see them standing there, Fate still holding onto Hayate like she's keeping her from fleeing.

But what should you sing? It'll probably have to be something that works unaccompanied; it's possible they have the music for songs you know, but it's not really likely, unless they just have all of Earth's music available somehow. With that in mind … Der Taucher would be a good one, dealing as it does with human bravery and stupidity, but it's also longer than what's been sung tonight, and if only a few people here know German or Belkan you'll probably just bore them long before you reach twenty minutes regardless of how well you sing. If you had a piano … well, one that works, anyway. Done is done, though. That also rules out Das Lied von der Glocke, although that isn't as interesting a song anyway. Unless you like making bells, anyway. Maybe the Schwertlied, or Lützow's Wild Hunt? Or something from Faust ….

Nanoha finishes her song to applause, while you're thinking and Fate pushes Hayate forward. When she replaces Nanoha she sticks her tongue out at the Enforcer, leading to some laughter. After a moment, though, she composes herself and stands up straight and starts singing, a slow, mournful piece rather than something energetic like Nanoha's song. Well, that's helpful, at least - you don't have to sing something quick or happy … maybe something from Die Winterreise or Die schöne Müllerin? You hop out of the chair and scurry toward Fate, tapping her arm when you reach her. She glances down at you and you smile, nodding. You have your song in mind; maybe it's not the best song for the occasion, but it's also not unfitting. And it works perfectly well without accompaniment, too. And then Hayate finishes, again to general applause, and you step forward to take her place. She smiles and bows politely; you curtsy back and turn to face the assembly.

And then you start to sing Abschied. It would, of course, work even better with a piano accompaniment, but that's hardly a requirement. You make up for it somewhat with your movements and gestures, making sure your face never slips into the melancholy that lurks beneath the surface of the song's lyrics. That you don't change your voice too much helps - a deeper voice could add to the sadness quite easily, but your own clear and piping voice makes it sound as though the song is sincere. A song of farewell, of refusing to give in to unhappiness at being forced to leave, forcing oneself to remain in good cheer. Of course, most people here don't speak anything resembling German, but you see Carim frowning thoughtfully at you. And then you suddenly stop, having come to the end of the song, and the end of the farewell. There's a brief hesitation due to people being unsure as to whether you actually are finished or not, but then you curtsy and they start clapping. Fate lets it go on for a bit, then gestures for you to come back, and her mother steps up to replace you. Satsuki only finishes clapping when you get close to her and motion for her to stop.

You turn around to pay attention to the admiral's singing … which probably isn't bad, exactly, but certainly isn't anywhere near the quality of her predecessors. Maybe that was the point? Get the good singers to go first so people don't get a let-down at the end when their efforts are blown out of the water? And with the good singers having gone first, everyone else should be relaxed enough to sing their own best. Of course … leaving right now would probably be taken poorly, even though you weren't forced into singing. If nothing else, it could be taken as not wanting to listen to people who aren't good at singing. You look around for anything interesting, but apart from the dragon sitting on the railing there isn't really anything. Everyone seems to be clustered around this end of the balcony, listening to the singers. Of course, that is a dragon, tiny as it is. It looks at you and tilts its head to the side. You shake your head and look back at Lindy; the dragon looks like an overlarge chicken now that you've had a good look at it.


What do you do?

[ ] Stay and listen to the rest of the songs.
- [ ] Sing something else.
- - [ ] Random selection.
- [ ] Make Satsuki sing something.

[ ] Leave the party.
- [ ] Go find Ginga and the Numbers.
- - [ ] Bring cake.
- [ ] Go teach Satsuki.
- - [ ] Politics.
- - [ ] Etiquette.

[ ] Other?


DM Note: Abschied sung by Ditrich Fischer-Dieskau.

 

[Entropy Judge]

[X] Stay and listen to the rest of the songs.
- [X] Make Satsuki sing something.


You sit next to Satsuki as singers come and go. Lindy finishes and turns the stage over to Genya, who after a bit of cajoling finally sings an English song about love to uproarious applause. Verossa takes over from him and drags Hayate to the stage to croon a terrible serenade at her. When they finally drag him away from her, someone you don't know takes the stage and does … something. There are definitely words, and background music, although you don't recognize the language. About half the song, however, is taken up by the strange man shrieking. It's nothing you haven't heard before, but hearing it from someone who isn't dying horribly - or at least in a great deal of pain - is disconcerting. Most everyone else seems to agree that the … song … isn't particularly enjoyable, and even the singer is quite hoarse after relinquishing the stage. After a few minutes of polite chatter and people making sure their ears work, Carim gets ready to sing. A ballad, in Belkan, about a young man wanting to prove himself. You slip away while Satsuki is distracted and get her another piece of cake. When you slide it toward her she stares at you for a long moment before smiling happily and taking it.

"… So what are you going to sing? Oh, keep eating - I didn't get you the cake to bribe you into singing, I got it for you because you wanted more but you'd let your wants be overruled if it meant someone else would get more." Admonished, she nods and returns to eating the cake, although more slowly than before.

"I … I have to sing something?" You start to nod, then arrest the motion.

"I would greatly like for you to sing something. It would be good for you, too - and it's not like you could be worse than some of the singers here." She studies her fork intently.

"I'll be the worst singer here, though …." You clear your throat and pointedly look at the screamer. Satsuki blushes and drops her head.

"Would you like me to get the kids to sing something? They're younger than you, so they haven't had as much practice as you have." Red-faced, she jerks up, waving her fork and drawing the attention of a few people paying less attention to Carim.

"N-no, that's … it's alright, Flandre-sama. I just …." You grin and lean toward her.

"Want to know a secret? Imagine everyone covered in really spicy mustard." That snaps her out of her little depression, and she stares incredulously at you.

"Er … isn't it supposed to be 'imagine them in their underwear,' or something?" You sigh; she has enough confidence problems as it is.

"Of course not; the idea is to make the unappealing. You don't like really spicy mustard, do you?" She shakes her head quickly and you smile. "Alright. … Are you going to sing?" She looks down at what's left of her second piece of cake before squaring her shoulders and straightening.

"I … I am. And I know what I want to sing, too." You nod, ignoring the slight stammer in her voice.

"Alright, that's good, Satsuki. Do you want to see about getting background music -?" Her head twitches more than nods, and you reach out to pat her arm before looking to see who's least busy at the moment. "Alright. I'll get … Hayate, I think. I'll be right back." Nanoha is busy talking with Fate about something, but Hayate looks to merely be scolding Verossa … or trying to, anyway. He frowns slightly when you approach, and Hayate turns around, smiling when she sees you.

"Flandre! Everything seems to be going well." You nod - certainly, it does seem that way.

"Indeed. Might you be able to do me a favor?" She cocks her head to the side, curious. "Satsuki is planning to sing something, but she would be more comfortable with accompanying music. Could you come talk to her about what she needs?" She nods quickly.

"Of course!" She turns and reaches up to chuck Verossa under the chin. "I'll be right back," she says, then walks quickly to Satsuki. You cock your head slightly to the side.

"Coming along?" He shakes his head and smiles.

"No, thank you." You nod politely and turn away, returning to your servant.

"… Oh, that's a good song! Let's see about getting some music … there!" Hayate spends a few moments doing something on a screen, and Satsuki looks at her hopefully.

"Really? Thank you, Hayate-san! Thank you!" Hayate blushes and rubs her head self-consciously. Carim finishes her ballad and is replaced by, oddly enough, Schach … who starts singing something vibrantly upbeat and bouncy. Hayate seems just as surprised as you are … in fact, so does just about everyone except Carim and Verossa. She just isn't very good at it, noticeably straining to keep up with the music and only barely keeping herself from tripping over the words. Carim claps happily and hugs her bodyguard when she finishes, eliciting more and louder applause than the song had and making Schach blush brightly. Carim keeps them in the stage area, seeming to enjoy toying with her subordinate - then gently pulls Satsuki out of the crowd to take Schach's place before withdrawing.

Satsuki looks around, nervousness growing, as the simple Japanese music begins playing. You scuttle forward, making sure she sees you, and smile as reassuringly as you can. She tries to smile back, then closes her eyes. And when the music reaches the right part, she starts to sing. It's a simple song, uncomplicated and direct, and if Satsuki isn't an amazing singer, she doesn't need to be to celebrate cherry blossoms. And when the music stops and she stands there, frozen, you aren't the only one clapping for her. Her face reddens and she bows before slinking off the stage. You slip through the people and catch her arm, guiding her inside to sit down away from the larger group of people.

"Thank you, Satsuki. You did very well." She looks up at you, blinking back tears, and you smile and pat her arm reassuringly before sliding next to her and rubbing your head against her cheek like a cat. A tiny laugh escapes her throat. You glance carefully around the room, then send an invisible clone out onto the balcony … but it looks like Genya is missing, now, too, along with his daughter. Did he just go to rest, or are they together?


What do you do?

[ ] Stay at the party.
- [ ] Release Satsuki for the night.
- [ ] Talk to:
- - [ ] Fate, about helping teach.
- - [ ] Fate, about missions.
- - [ ] The kids, about what they do.
- - [ ] The kids, about the dragon.

[ ] Leave the party.
- [ ] Release Satsuki for the night.
- [ ] See if you can find Ginga and the Numbers.
- - [ ] Sneakily.
- - [ ] Openly.
- - [ ] Bring cake.

[ ] Other?


DM Note: And now all of you know (if you didn't before) that Satsuki's VA also did Euphemia Li Britannia. And Kakurine, somehow. Satsuki's song.

 

[Entropy Judge]

[X] Stay at the party.
- [X] Release Satsuki for the night.
- [X] Talk to:
- - [X] The kids, about what they do.
- - [X] The kids, about the dragon.


You shrug off the man's disappearance; he's an adult, and he's just as safe with his daughter as he would be around you. And you did say you'd try to leave them alone if they were doing something. You might be able to get away with an intrusion if you bring cake, but if Genya did go see them, he probably brought some with him anyway. Besides, there's something more interesting to do here …. "Well, Satsuki, I'm letting you go for the night." She stiffens and stares at you, horrified.

"Eh? But …." You pat her shoulder gently and draw her back to you.

"You haven't done anything wrong, and I'm not saying you have to do anything - if you want, you can stay with me for a while. Or around here, or something else. But I am going to go back out there, and I'm not going to force you to socialize any more tonight if it makes you uncomfortable." She nods hesitantly, still worried but no longer consumed by it.

"Um … w-will you teach me more after you're done?" You raise an eyebrow and she blushes but doesn't look away … for a few seconds, anyway. "If you don't want to -"

"I might, depending on how long I stay and what ends up happening." Satsuki smiles, then leans close and hugs you, surprising you.

"Thank you, Flandre-sama!" She pulls away, almost tumbling out of her chair, but catches herself and bows - then runs away, keeping her face hidden. You watch her for a moment, wondering if she's more nervous about staying here or if she's simply embarrassed about hugging you. That stupid church-woman, trying to keep her human instead of letting her properly bloom as a vampire …. You shake your head, driving the annoyance into the background, and head out onto the balcony once more. The kids are still by Fate and her group - and the dragon is still sitting on the railing, out of the way. After a moment's hesitation you make your way to the creature. It looks up as you approach and makes a sound halfway between a coo and a growl. You incline your head politely and hold out one hand, fingers curled in so it can't just nip the fingertips.

"Hello." Maybe it's no smarter than a dog or cat, but maybe it's actually fairly intelligent. It coos again and leans forward to sniff at your hand, flapping its wings for balance, then pulls back to sit up straight. It's definitely carnivorous, or at least omnivorous, based on the teeth, and its red eyes gleam with something more than mere cunning. The white scales over its body are incredibly fine, but you frown at the ruff of fur on its neck and the odd wing 'membrane.' Maybe they help with orienting it in flight …? Compared to those, the single-toed feet and the ring in its horn seem positively normal.

"Ah! H-hi!" You turn at the call and the dragon coo-growls again as the girl rushes up to stand near it, the boy following a little more slowly, his eyes more on you than the dragon. A glance farther to the side reveals Fate being pushed back down to her chair by her mother and Hayate. "U-um, sorry about that …." You smile and shake your head.

"I was just introducing myself. Or is that not necessary?" She shakes her head quickly and the dragon hops into the air beside her, hovering through magic rather than muscle power.

"Oh, right. Um, this is Friedrich. My name is Caro." You curtsy and she clumsily attempts to match your movements.

"Flandre Scarlet," you say as you slip a step sideways to let the boy stand closer to his friend without making it seem as if he's stepping in front to protect her. Compared to the girl's nervous but friendly expression, he's much more serious.

"Erio Mondial." He nods and you smile back before returning your attention to the dragon.

"I'm sorry if I'm being nosy or making a fuss over nothing. It's just that when I was here before, it was this size, too, and I was expecting it to have grown at least a little." Caro smiles and shakes her head.

"Oh, Fried reached his full growth a long time ago. I keep him sealed in this form so he can stay with me without causing trouble." Her smile subtly changes to one of real happiness as she scratches her dragon's horn. The dragon coos happily and floats closer to nuzzle her cheek in return.

"Does he get very big, then, or just sort of big?" Caro frowns as she tries to figure out how to respond and looks at the boy for help.

"He's big enough to ride," he says cautiously, and you nod. Sort of big it is, then.

"So he's your familiar?" She hesitantly nods.

"I … it's something like that." A sore spot? Something too complicated for her to discuss with an outsider? Or just something she doesn't want to talk with you about?

"So what do you two do? Are you training to be Enforcers?" Caro shakes her head quickly.

"No, no. I'm … not that good at things like that yet …." You cock your head to the side. Erio frowns and nudges the girl.

"Caro, that's not true." She tries smiling thankfully at him and scratches her dragon's horn again. "We're two of the Forwards for Riot Force Six. I'm not really all that special, but if it weren't for Caro, the JS Incident would have been a lot worse." You raise your eyebrows and the girl frowns at Erio.

"That's not true! You're an amazing knight, you have powerful magic and you're smart, and -" She blushes and cuts herself off before she gets too loud, and Erio shrugs.

"I'm not that strong, or that skilled. For my age, yes, but anything I can do is something that other people can be taught to do. But dragon summoning is very rare and difficult, and the fact that you're so good at it already proves that you're going to get better." You keep your expression from changing at the double-standard in his logic; no sense pointing it out if he's trying to boost her confidence when all that it'll do is make him an enemy. "And more people would have been hurt if you hadn't helped with the Cradle." You cock your head to the side now, though. You haven't really heard what happened, after all.

"Oh? What happened?" Caro blushes and hunches her shoulders defensively.

"Um … Fried … isn't the only dragon I can summon." Erio snaps his fingers.

"Why don't we show her?" Caro nods hesitantly, and Erio grabs her hand and gently pulls her toward the door inside. He smiles at her before gesturing for you to follow. "Come on." You look at Fried, but the dragon flies after the pair, so you shrug and follow after them as well. They head toward a terminal set into the wall, away from the food, and Erio connects something to it before typing at the keyboard. The wall next to it becomes a screen showing an aerial view of part of the city. What dominates the image, however, is the massive arrowhead of a warship that flies above the city. The view changes to one only slightly above a full-sized Fried, Caro and Erio on his back, showing them far to the side of what is presumably the Cradle. Then the image changes to video and Caro stands in the saddle of her mount, leaving the reigns to Erio, and a pink square erupts around her. You can't hear what she's saying - in fact, the whole video is silent - but you see another square appear in the air to her left … a much, much larger square, very far away. Caro's square flashes brightly, and out of the second square rises a gigantic black creature, humanoid with four ragged wings and wreathed in flames. It roars as flashes of light strike out from the Cradle toward the city and slams its bulk into the front of the warship. Large as it is, it's still tiny compared to the warship, but it still manages to slow the Cradle's approach. And then it starts to turn the Cradle, swinging the narrow head away from the city, before scaling to the top of the ship and raking the ship from above with a trio of energy beams.

The Cradle finally takes action against the dragon, but only indirectly, with a horde of Gadget Drones flying toward it. The dragon responds by contemptuously sweeping a single beam through the swarm. Three distinct beams from above slam into the Cradle - pink, yellow, and white - but when the view climbs with Fried you see that the damage inflicted was light compared to the dragon's attack. Caro points at something at the back of the ship and the great black dragon flies higher, then fires its energy beams through the ship's midpoint, raking them back. At some point, an explosion blows out part of the ship's stern. It lists dangerously, then the dragon clamps onto the side of the bow and pushes it again, wrenching the ship sideways and guiding it down toward a forest outside the city.

The video stops and you grin at Caro. "That was amazing! That one listens to you, too?" She blushes and looks down.

"Mostly. I … I don't like to call Voltaire unless I need to, so I … I'm not sure how much he really listens to me." On the one hand, it's hard to blame her - a dragon as powerful as that is only really needed in certain situations, so if she isn't in those situations she wouldn't want to call it in case it didn't listen to her. On the other hand, not calling it just because it isn't necessary might make it unhappy. Regardless … not your problem, really.

"Hmm … so you two are partners, then?" Caro blinks at your change of the subject and you gesture at the image, as they're both still visible atop the smaller dragon. It's Erio who responds, though.

"Yes, we are. We were on the same Forwards team, and since we work so well together we'll probably stay with each other as long as we can." Caro nods confidently and the dragon coo-growls once more. And having a giant near-unstoppable dragon summon as a trump card doesn't hurt - as long as they aren't taken out immediately, they can at least ruin the day of anyone nearby. Especially if they're taken lightly because they're children.


What do you do?

[ ] Keep talking to Erio and Caro.

[ ] Leave the party.
- [ ] See if you can find Ginga and the Numbers.
- - [ ] Sneakily.
- - [ ] Openly.
- - [ ] Bring cake.

[ ] Other?

 

[Entropy Judge]

[X] Leave Party
- - [X] Go to sleep.


You smile and bow politely. "Well, thank you for indulging me." Erio nods.

"Yes. Er … you're going to be supporting Fate, right?" He and Caro both look a little nervous, and you cock your head to the side.

"Support? Mm … she's my commander, I believe, so I'll do what she tells me to. And it would reflect poorly on me if I were to let her die when I could have prevented it. But you're looking for a different sort of reassurance, I take it?" Caro hunches her shoulders again, and Erio's face tightens, but both nod.

"Fate is … she's very important to us. She saved both of us, took care of us when no one else thought we were worth anything." He hesitates and you nod knowingly.

"I understand." They both look relieved, apparently assuming that you'll now take special measures to protect Fate. Of course, you don't want anything to happen to her, but that's because of the reasons you gave them and because she's supposed to be an ambassador of sorts to Gensokyo, so impressing her with your ability is fairly important. You aren't sure whether Remilia is right to go about opposing Yukari this way, but she is your sister so you'll put your strength alongside hers. "Anyway, I think I'll take my leave now. Have a good night." They smile and nod, returning to the balcony after giving you their own good-nights. You take a breath and consider your options, checking the balcony and dining area through your clones once more. Genya, Ginga, and her charges are still missing, but you did promise to try and avoid them, so not seeing them shouldn't be a problem. And you don't really have anything to discuss with anyone else.

You sever the connection to your clones after giving them a tiny amount of energy - if they stay invisible and don't move faster than a human walk, they should last another hour or so - and orders to help keep things clean. Then you turn away and walk back to your room. Satsuki's door is open, and you hear her humming cheerfully inside the well-lit room. You did say you might be up for teaching her …. Shaking your head silently, you slip into your room, leaving the door open, and curl up on the bed - but not in your coffin. You can be a light enough sleeper that any moderate attempt to wake you up will succeed easily. Curled up against the coffin, you close your eyes and let yourself fall asleep.

---

What wakes you isn't someone knocking or calling your name, however, but the simple passage of time and the bright sky visible through your window. Shrugging, you hop out of bed and stretch before strolling out of your room and checking on Satsuki. Her curtains are drawn tightly and she's tightly wrapped in blankets; right, you should talk to Fate about the sliding boards for her bed, in case Ginga hasn't had a chance to do anything about it yet. And a blood supply, now that your proper superior is here. You head out, searching for the mage, but the first person you run into, in the lobby, is actually Nove. The red-headed prisoner jumps back when she sees you, but rather than irritated, she seems … nervous about something. Is she waiting for something, then? You nod politely and simply hop over the railing, dropping to the floor so you don't have to stay around her for the extra time it would take to walk down the stairs toward her and then head away from her to get to the hallway you want. She half-raises one hand, as if to stop you, but apparently remembers that you can fly and drops it, looking away. Strange girl.

You didn't really expect to find Fate in the first place you looked for her, but she is on the balcony, still eating breakfast - rice, soup, toast, and green tea. And a piece of cake, too. She nods when she sees you. "Flandre. Do you want something to eat?" You shake your head and look up at the sky; fortunately, this area is shaded from the morning sun.

"No thank you - although there were a couple house-keeping questions I wanted to ask you about." She frowns and motions for you to sit and continue. "The first thing I did already talk to Ginga about and she said she'd see what could be done, but I'd like to get sliding panels installed over Satsuki's bed. She's much more vulnerable to the sun than I am, and I'd prefer that she have the extra security of a solid object rather than just curtains." Fate nods, smiling.

"Ginga did tell me about that. They should be here tomorrow." You bow your head.

"Thank you. Secondly … we are both vampires. I don't know how much she needs to function at her best, but if something could be set up, it would be …." You trail off, still not quite sure how to best phrase it, but Fate nods again.

"Based on your intake the last time you were here, you're being allotted a liter a week for the both of you. If you need more, we'll see if we can work something out, but … if it's more than you need, please let me know as soon as you can. You and Yumizuka-san are important, but don't just store an unlimited amount of blood - it gets used to help people." You nod, eyes slightly narrowing as you consider the amount of blood you'll be getting. You'll be fine, you just aren't sure how much Satsuki needs, especially if she's going to be helping you or training hard. When you return your attention to Fate, she's frowning, and you cock your head to the side. She sighs. "We'll be leaving tomorrow for an assignment. It shouldn't take more than a day or two, but we do need to get there soon." You frown.

"I'm supposed to be hearing from a supply and repair company about my piano." Fate sighs again and nods.

"If they send someone, Ginga will be here, and if they call it can be redirected. Flandre, if they're at all competent they'll understand about being sent on a mission, especially with short notice. This can't wait, and -" You cock your head when she cuts herself off.

"Is there someone else who could do it?"

"Whatever or whoever we're trying to stop was able to defeat two A-ranked Knights of the Church." She shakes her head and takes a deep breath. "Ever since the … the end of the JS Incident, someone's been attacking the Saint Church. It took some time to realize that the attacks were all by one group, but it's now clear that there's a pattern to the attacks. They don't know who's been doing it, because none of the attacks leave survivors and somehow disrupt all recording devices during the attack, but they all take place over a short period of time - never more than twenty minutes - completely avoid alerting or attacking anything or anyone not in the church being attacked, and …." She pales, almost turning green, and closes her eyes. After a few seconds she opens them and brings up a screen. A few moments of typing, and then the screen faces you. Whoever is attacking is quite brutal and violent, but equally unimaginative - bodies are torn open and limbs scattered, but it looks more like a simple side-effect of the attack rather than any attempt at deliberately creating terror. You press the 'next image' button a few times, but the scenes are dully repetitive. The changes in architecture are more interesting than the violence, at least in still images. Finally you lean back.

"And you know where the next attack is, and there's no one else who can do this?" Fate doesn't meet your eyes.

"If the pattern holds, we should be able to get there before the next attack. The Bureau doesn't have anyone else who can get there in time, not and have a good chance of surviving. The only people the Church have who might be able to do it and get there in time are Schach and Verossa - but I already told Carim we would handle it anyway." Rather, you will handle it. Maybe it'll even be fun!


What do you do?

[ ] Ask to leave immediately.

[ ] Talk about helping train cadets.

[ ] Other?

 

[Entropy Judge]

[X] Ask to leave immediately.


"Hmm … is there any reason we can't leave immediately?" If you aren't likely to be here to meet the repairmen yourself, then waiting here or waiting there won't change much, and if the attacks are staged with an insider then showing up early might give you some extra warning about what you'll be facing. Fate stares at you blankly for a moment, then frowns.

"Your Device may not be ready," she begins, but you shrug it away.

"I don't think I'll need Loki to deal with this. Not unless something very strange is going on, like time dilation so that these attacks are actually taking a lot longer inside the affected area than outside. But Juliet did say it might be ready today, so we can call her before we leave, and if it is ready we can pick it up before going." Fate looks at you for a few seconds, possibly trying to figure out what you're thinking, then sighs.

"Alright, I'll call Carim and then see how soon we can get a ship." You smile and bow your head, then withdraw - you have to make sure Satsuki will be ready to go, after all.

---

You end up leaving a few hours later. Strangely, Ginga seems unhappy about your leaving early, but simply shakes her head and declines to explain when Fate asks if something is wrong. You do stop by Juliet's office to pick up Loki; none of the tests indicated any problems, and the monitoring programs were installed as well.

The trip to your destination takes almost half a day, most of which is taken up by Fate making sure you know how to do your job properly - demand the perpetrators surrender first, try to fight non-lethally, make sure the civilians aren't involved if at all possible, and so on - and by you studying the floor plan of the church. The previous attacks don't exactly give you much to plan around, and since the churches and chapels that were attacked didn't have exterior monitoring equipment you can't even tell if the attacks originated outside or inside ….

"Umm … hi!" You look up from the plan to look at the girl. Teal-blue hair, an ill-worn Church habit, and an awkwardness poorly covered by a cheery exterior. "Do - do you mind if I sit here for a bit?" You look around the ship's empty cafeteria, back at the girl, then shrug and go back to the plans. The girl sits down across from you and fidgets nervously for a bit. "My … my name is Sein. You're staying with some of my sisters, right?" You pause and deliberately look back up at the girl.

"… You don't seem to be a prisoner," you say, and she laughs a little, hiding the worry in her eyes, then pulls back the sleeve on her right arm to reveal a long bracelet.

"The Church does things a little differently, and I'm not really much of a fighter compared to any of my sisters, except Uno and maybe Otto. But I am being monitored and tracked, and I need authorization to use my IS."

"Mm. So if you can't fight, why are you coming along with us?" She tries to smile, but it falters against your own blank look.

"Well, if anything does happen to you … the Church wants to know who's doing this and how. My IS lets me swim through inorganic matter, and I have my Periscope Eye -" she holds up her left hand, showing something camera-like embedded in her pointing finger, "- so while you're actually doing something, I'll be keeping an eye out and recording who's doing what." She sighs. "… Hopefully, anyway. Since no one knows what they're doing to suspend recording devices, maybe I won't even get to do that, but since living things don't seem to be affected by whatever it is, the hope is that I'll be fine and will at least be able to remember what the person looks like." You nod and look at her for a few seconds. 'Not much of a fighter' she may be, but if her ability lets her do what it seems like it does, she would make an excellent assassin. All she would need is a weapon she can bring with her and it would be difficult to stop her from killing a target unless they were in a specially-prepared area. Either she's not too bright or she's deliberately not thinking about how much trust the Church has in her. "Umm … a-anyway … you are staying with some of my sisters, right?" You frown at her before looking back down at the plans, moving from the building plans to the local streets in case the fight somehow spills outside.

"Mm. Cinque, Nove, Wendi. We're trying to avoid each other so getting along is easier." Sein shifts uncomfortably.

"Would … would you mind passing along a message from me? Just … could you let them know that I'm fine, and that Otto and Deed should be getting released soon?" You tilt your head up just enough to look at her through upraised eyes and grunt. She actually looks really worried.

"I'll think about it." She deflates with a relieved sigh.

"Thank you! Thank you, thank -!" She darts up from the bench and starts to come around the table, arms out as if to hug you, but your wing darts out to hold her at bay. Her smile freezes and she moves her arms back to show that she isn't hostile, and then she takes a few steps back. Then she just turns and runs away, skidding sideways at the door to keep from running into Fate, who frowns at her as she keeps running down the hallway. She walks over to your table and sits where Sein had been.

"We're almost there. It's early evening, and the attack is expected sometime tomorrow, probably in the early afternoon. I won't be going down with you; I'm not even supposed to go on the planet unless you absolutely need me. But since we have some extra time, you're free until morning, so if you want to go down early and just look around, you can." You nod as you review what you learned about the area. Cool temperatures generally, but it's in a light winter right now, with particularly cold nights. The church you'll be protecting is in a small village on a hill above a moderately-used trading crossroad. Supposedly there are night-demons in a nearby forest, but according to the Bureau's investigations, there isn't anything out of the ordinary in the area.


What do you do?

[ ] Go down to the planet.
- [ ] Sightsee around the village.
- [ ] Take Satsuki.
- - [ ] Teach her etiquette.
- - [ ] Teach her politics.

[ ] Stay on the ship until it's time to go.

[ ] Other?

 

[Entropy Judge]

[X] Go down the planet
- [X] Sightsee around the village with Satsuki


You smile and nod more firmly. "I think I'll go down with Satsuki and look around a bit." Fate nods back.

"Alright. Do you need any help with Satsuki?" You shake your head. "Then when you get to the teleporter they'll send you down to the church. Introduce yourself before you go out, in case there are any specific locations to avoid." You bite back a sigh and hop to your feet. Fate reaches out as you start organizing the building and village plans. "I'll take care of those. Don't worry, just go and enjoy yourself." You frown, then shrug and bow politely.

"Thank you, Fate." You slip away and head to your room, where Satsuki still sleeps soundly. Of course, it's no trouble getting her into the wheelchair - you strongly consider simply carrying her, but it would probably send the wrong signals to someone. And as Fate said, once you get to the teleporter, a technician sends you right down to the nave of the church. You set Satsuki down on one of the benches so she can adjust to the local conditions and wake up when she's ready. A door at the far end opens and a crag-faced man limps out, frowning toward you.

"You aren't the Sister sent to help?" It takes you a moment to unpack his odd accent, then you shake your head.

"Someone from the Church did come with us, but I'm working for the Bureau right now. I am the one who's going to deal with whoever's attacking the Church, though." He frowns at you, then stumbles, barely catching himself against a railing, and it's only because you fly over to hold him that he doesn't fall to the floor anyway. Before you can get him to sit, however, a tone quite unlike a bell goes off, and a flash of light reveals Sein. She looks around, a little lost, and pales a bit when she sees you with the old man.

"Father Maurice! I'm Sister Sein - are you alright?" He nods abruptly and, after a deep breath, manages to hold himself up with his own strength and walks to a bench. You frown at him, wondering what's wrong, but it's probably nothing you should worry about.

"I live yet, Sister. Ahh …." His eyes flick back and forth between you and Sein, and she smiles tightly.

"Yeah, I know. But she really is good at what she does - Lady Carim said that if she can't deal with whoever's doing this, it's not likely that anything short of a Bureau battlegroup could stop it." The man's eyebrows shoot up and he stares at you. You simply smile and shrug; the flattery, true or not, doesn't hurt, but you'd like to know just what constitutes a 'battlegroup' before getting too excited.

"Anyway, that's not supposed to happen until tomorrow, so once Satsuki wakes up, I'd planned to do a little sightseeing. Is there anything that's considered to be forbidden, or that I shouldn't go to for other reasons?" He frowns thoughtfully before shrugging with a wry smile.

"I would have said the forest, but if you're that strong, the night-demons should leave you alone."

---

You and Satsuki walk out of the church and the first thing you do is try to find the moon. It's strangely dark … you scowl. If that is the moon, it's horrible disappointment, much too small and somehow a sickly-brown color that leaves you faintly disgusted. The snow is a disappointment, too - flaky and crunchy, and too thin on the ground to do much with. Oh, well. "Come on, Satsuki!" You rush out to the edge of the churchyard, arms flung out to your sides, and Satsuki scurries after you, carefully holding the skirt of her maid uniform. The camera-Device Father Maurice let you borrow hangs around her neck, flying about as she shifts her weight over the uneven dirt path.

"Um, Flandre-sama? Where are we going?" You grin and shrug.

"Sightseeing. Around the village, first, and maybe the forest if the village is boring." Which you rather expect it to be, given its small size. Satsuki tries to mask a frown and you giggle. "Oh, don't worry - you'll still be learning things." Her head cocks to the side adorably and you giggle again before waving for her to keep following you and walking away. The church is set away from the rest of the town a bit; still within sight and sound, but distinctly apart. The different architecture and construction doesn't help, either.

"There aren't any street lights …." You nod as Satsuki catches up to you.

"Supposedly the night-demons disrupt any attempt to improve the infrastructure in a meaningful way around here. Oh, the farms work, and little things can be kept safe with those little chimarae." Satsuki peers down at the figurines that dot the edges of the churchyard and the street. They look like caricatures of human beings, although many are damaged in some way - missing an arm or leg, or having had an eye torn out. "The belief is that the night-demons will attack the dolls instead of people. … Is something wrong?" She reaches out to touch one, then jerks her hand away after hesitating.

"I … I don't think so." You give her an odd look before shrugging and moving on.

You wander about the village for a few hours, examining the buildings with their tall peaked roofs and few windows, inviting Satsuki to try and guess why they were built that way. According to Father Maurice, the village is still deeply suspicious - nearly every aspect of the architecture is based around appeasing or deflecting the night-demons, and you don't meet anyone for fear of the same entities. You take the time to explain some of the more practical explanations for things - that houses with extra-large doors probably have livestock that are brought in during particularly bad winters, for example - that she simply has never had the opportunity to learn due to her living in an advanced city. You even teach her a bit about the architecture, which is a bit curious, including what appears to be at least two layers of logs, or reinforced planks for the less respectable homes, for the outer walls. A very curious detail, that, considering the greater difficulty of creating a plank compared to simply hauling a log into place. Of course, there is a reason for that ….

The village itself, rather than being laid out in a grid, consists mainly of circles of buildings, and while the walls are no longer present, you can easily see where they should be, both protecting each building and each circle of structures. The 'streets' between the circles are wide and simply dirt paths beaten grassless by ages of people walking over them. Eventually you reach the village outskirts, and a small, lonely hill with the crumbling ruin of a tower overlooking the trade-roads and river, as well as your real destination, the forest.

"Are you ready to enter the dark domain of the night-demons, Satsuki?" She looks apprehensive but nods. You chuckle and rub yourself into her side. "Don't worry, I'll keep you safe."

"F-Flandre-sama …." You grin and skip down the hill toward the tangle of trees.

"Supposedly, the night-demons used to rule the land. Long, long ago, of course, but that's the reason for some of the weird things in the village - not just warding off the night-demons, but also to protect against them. In most places, the expense of planks and the additional space they provide make them the choice for the wealthier builders, but here, where protection against the terror of the dark is a high priority, a double-layer of solid logs is considered more important." The forest is quite pleasant, almost impenetrably dark and with an air of quiet hostility that really sharpens your senses.

"But … that was a long time ago, right?" You nod.

"Mm-hmm. Apparently when the Belkans first came here, the night-demons fought back. The Belkans tore down their places of power, killed their leaders, slaughtered the lesser night-demons, and drove them away. But they weren't able to kill all of them, and supposedly they still attack humans when they can. They're believed to be responsible for natural disasters, for sabotage and grave-robbing, for kidnappings of children - everything that can't be explicitly linked back to human hands gets blamed on the night-demons." All in all, it sounds like a wonderful place for youkai to live.

"Why doesn't the Bureau do something about them?" You shrug.

"Bureau's looked and didn't find anything …." You walk through a clearing and look up at the sky, barely visible through the canopy. As you look back down, you slow to a halt and stare at one of the trunks. After a few seconds, you're rewarded by the humanoid creature leaping toward you. It's not much bigger than you - taller, definitely, but with a stick-thin and emaciated body - mottled green and black, with two enormously oversized claws growing out of the back of its hands. It shrieks as it hurtles through the air toward you, flaps of skin running along its arms and down its sides betraying some sort of flight, or at least gliding ability, and its long tongue flops outside its oversized mouth. You catch it by the throat and it hacks, thrashing for a moment, before staring intently at you with softly-gleaming green eyes.

"F-F-F-Flandre-sama …!" You grin at the creature and its slack jaw clicks shut, severing its tongue - which disintegrates as it falls through the air. It doesn't seem particularly bothered by it, and almost looks like it's smiling back at you. Then light flashes and it shrieks hideously and throws its head back. A frill or ruff uncurls from its head, more webbed skin splayed out from spider-leg-like spines, and it spits at you, a stream of noxious liquid that turns into a spray of mist by the time it reaches your elbow. Your eyes tingle and your tongue feels like its burning, but the effect isn't that bad, and instead of attacking you, the creature plunges its oversized claws into its own skull and rips it apart. It doesn't appear to bleed, simply dissolving like the tongue, the air around it rippling like the air over a hot flame as it vanishes. You shake your hand out and spit to try and clear your mouth.

"Well - I suppose the night-demons do still exist." Satsuki wraps her arms around you.

"I'm sorry, Flandre-sama, I'm sorry!" You reach up and pat her shoulder.

"Sorry for what?" She whimpers quietly for a moment.

"I … I took a picture of you and that, and that's when it … when it …." You sigh and pat her shoulder again, gently pushing her so you can turn around.

"There, there, it's alright. I'm not hurt, and we got to see something new and interesting! And - you took a picture? Does it show the night-demon?" Satsuki blinks and holds out the Device, pressing the buttons Father Maurice showed her to display the recent images. She flinches when the most recent one appears in the air - it does indeed show you holding the night-demon, and you study the creature more closely. It has elongated forearms and very short upper arms, and its legs are bowed outward even while hanging - no doubt constructed differently from a humans in order to facilitate springing from a tree. It's also scaled, with the black and extremely dark green portions of its skin having more obvious and thicker-looking scales than the lighter green. And, of course, it has the interesting trick of becoming nearly invisible while flattened against the tree - you only saw its eyes gleaming in the dark. "Interesting …."


What do you do?

[ ] Keep exploring the forest. Maybe there are more!

[ ] You're here for another mission entirely. Return to the church.
- [ ] Show Father Maurice the image and write out what happened. Maybe some confirmation will make the Bureau look into the night-demons again.
- [ ] Teach Satsuki.
- - [ ] Etiquette.
- - [ ] Politics.
- [ ] Just make sure Satsuki is calm and wait for the church to be attacked.

[ ] Other?

 

[Entropy Judge]

[X] You're here for another mission entirely. Return to the church.
- [X] Show Father Maurice the image and write out what happened. Maybe some confirmation will make the Bureau look into the night-demons again.


"… Well, let's go back to the church. Come, Satsuki." You turn around and start walking, with Satsuki following after a moment.

"Um, why back to the church?" You wave your finger in a circle.

"To let people know about this, especially since we have evidence in the form of your picture. Very well done, thank you. Remember, the Bureau doesn't think these things exist. Also, we don't really know anything about them - these people must have legends about what they're capable of, but all anyone cares about in recent times is what they do - and if they can do something that delays us, then our actual mission could fail, and that would be bad." You walk on for a few more steps. "And the rest of the village doesn't seem like it has anything worthwhile, so - back to the church."

Satsuki is quiet after that, and you hum a simple tune. The trip out of the forest is as quiet and boring as the trip in, but once you're well out of the trees you stop and look back, scanning the whole treeline. Do you spot a couple pairs of gleaming green eyes? They vanish when you focus on them, so maybe it's just a trick of a plant and the disgusting moon's light … or maybe you're still being watched. "Flandre-sama?" You shake your head and turn back toward the church.


"Oh, hey, you're back! Did you have fun?" Sein greets you perkily from one of the benches; she seems calmer than she had been, less worried.

"Not really. Is Father Maurice around?" She snorts and laughs.

"He's an old man! He's sleeping - and unless it's really important, you should just let him, 'cause he's gonna be here when everything happens." You frown at her.

"Well, we may have met one of the local night-demons in the forest, and I wanted to show him the picture Satsuki took, but I suppose I should also make a report for the Bureau, so if you could show me how to do that?" She stares blankly at you for a moment before shaking herself and hopping out of the bench.

"Follow me, please. One good thing about the Church is that all of their facilities have pretty good communications systems." She babbles a bit about the Church and its network before you reach an alcove in the back area. "Okay, since I'm not allowed to mess with this stuff unless it's absolutely necessary, I'll just walk you through the process. It's simple, so don't worry!" There are several steps to the normal process that she shows you, but since you already know the name of ship you're trying to contact - Avesta - and roughly where it is, you can skip most of them and transmit directly instead of looking for a suitable receiver. After a few seconds, a weary-looking communications officer looks back at you through the screen.

"Hi! I was taking a walk earlier, and something happened that I think should get reported properly. How do I do that?" The poor man stares at you helplessly for a moment before the captain tells him to transfer it to her console. You wave at the older woman.

"An incident of some kind, you said? Have you filled out a report yet?" You shake your head.

"I've never done one, so I was going to tell Fate about what happened and see what I should do to make sure it gets properly noticed." The captain grunts and rubs the side of her head. Well, actually all you wanted to do was get it written down after telling Fate, but as long as it doesn't take too long, you might as well get a proper report done. The captain taps at a few things, and a notice appears on your screen. You glance at Sein and she nods, so you tap the 'Accept' icon. Another screen appears - a form of some kind.

"Fill that out as completely as you can. Once you're done, send it up and I'll make sure Enforcer Harlaown gets it after she's awake." She barely waits for you to nod before cutting out her transmission, and you growl quietly before sighing. Looking over the form, it's not that bad - time, date, location, individuals involved, and the like. You start typing, stumbling a few times because some of the keys aren't in good spots, but by the time you're halfway through the report you've got a system down where you just focus on the keys and only look up to make sure the words are right occasionally.

It doesn't take much longer for you to finish, and then you look back at Sein. "Okay, now Satsuki took a picture, and since I'm doing this formally, I think it should be added to the report, too. How do we do that?" Satsuki stares at the screen, apparently reading the end of the report and your suspicion that other night-demons were watching you.

"Hehe! Pretty easy. Okay, you've got the picture?" Satsuki shakes herself and holds up the camera-Device, then displays the image. Sein stares at it for a moment before shaking her head. "Oh, good, it's on a Device. Then what you want to do is connect the Device to the terminal - good, like that. Now, you should have an option somewhere to add files - yep, like that! And … there, that one. Recent files. Yep, good!" She claps her hands excitedly, then hugs Satsuki. Your servant squeaks at the unexpected contact, and Sein hops back, arms outspread peacefully, when your wings dart up threateningly while you send the report up to the ship. You turn your head enough to give her a pointed stare, then soften, stretch and reach over to pat Satsuki's shoulder.

"Now, Satsuki, since we have some time, why don't you review what I've taught you until now? Come, let's go back to the front and you can tell me what you remember …."

---

Satsuki ends up getting almost halfway through your lecture on etiquette before she starts yawning uncontrollably, and she seems unhappy to have to go back to the ship despite you telling her that she did a good job. And she did; she stumbled a few times and had to be nudged on some others, but all things considered, she remembered quite a lot of what you told her. But now you sit on a bench at the back of the church as Father Maurice tells a story to the few people in attendance - apparently the population despises the emphasis on the last Sankt-Kaiser and her tolerant message, which isn't too surprising given that the old Sankt-Kaisers who were warlike and invasive are the ones who freed them from the night-demons. Sein lies on the floor nearby, ready to sink into the ground with her power if something happens, and you scowl again at the light green winter coat you were forced to wear to keep your wings from alarming the locals.

Then Sein stiffens and sinks into the stone beneath her, and a very low buzzing tone raises your hackles. The door is blasted in and you - along with everyone else - turn around to look. The tip of a finger glides along the floor as well, and you make a note to try and avoid it if you have to fight. Outside, you see two figures - a shorter one, figure obscured by a heavy black cloak and face hidden by a gauzy mask, and a taller, elegant woman with a luscious mane of hair almost as red as Meiling's and warm brown eyes.

"Get up, Tool - how embarrassing …." You barely hear her reprimand, but as the other figure struggles to its feet the woman smiles and strides through the broken door, taking in the small crowd. "Well, well! Good afternoon, everyone - or morning, whichever it is right now. My name is Carmilla, and I'm terribly sorry, but you're all going to have to die now. No pushing to try and escape, because that's impossible …." She trails off as you step into the aisle and lower your hood. You keep your wings hidden, still, but her eyes widen and her smile turns gentle. "Oh, but you might live …. Yes, you're a dear sweet thing, aren't you? Why don't you come home with us, join our family. We'll love you, and far more than whoever claims to be your family right now -" You can't help it - your eyes blaze and you hunch forward threateningly, fingers hooked into claws. Your wings threaten to tear through the thick coat. The woman looks a bit surprised, but then smiles and shakes her head. "I'm sure you think they love you, and your loyalty is quite lovely to see, but it's true. Come with us, and you'll see what I mean." You force down the rage - Fate did make sure you knew that taking prisoners is the goal, after all ….


What do you do?

[ ] Inform them of who you are and that they're under arrest.

[ ] Attack to subdue.
- [ ] Focus on Carmilla.
- [ ] Focus on Tool.

[ ] Kill them.

[ ] She mentioned a family … see if you can go with them if they promise to let the people live.

[ ] Other?


DM Note: A quick note on the next update. I won't have much computer access this weekend, so I'm not sure if, when, or for how long I'll be available after tomorrow morning. And I won't be getting back to a computer until probably late evening on Sunday, so the update is probably not going to be up until late Sunday or early Monday.

 

[Entropy Judge]

[X] Attack to subdue.
- [X] Focus on Carmilla.


You force your anger down as Carmilla extends her hand. You're acting for the Bureau right now, not your sister or yourself, so as much as you'd like to spend some time making that woman's death slow and excruciating, you really should try to take her prisoner. And … you are supposed to make sure they have a chance to surrender. What a nuisance. You take a deep breath. "My name is Flandre Scarlet, and I am here as an officer of the Time-Space Administration Bureau." Carmilla draws back and you take the opportunity to activate Loki, and you smile and flare your wings as the scintillating orb fades. "If you surrender now, I won't hurt you." Your clones dart out, flanking you and flying above, and Carmilla and Tool set themselves defensively - and that's enough hostile intent for you to act. Your clones swoop on Tool, carrying it out of the church, but you simply leap to Carmilla, put your hand against her torso, and shove. Hard.

Tool disperses your clones with a surge of magic, but as it turns to face you a clone stitches it from behind with danmaku, chittering nastily. Carmilla rises to her feet and snarls at you as you walk out of the church. "Ungrateful little bitch! I'll enjoy tearing you apart!" She changes, her forearms elongating and her legs shortening, and her mouth distends interestingly, revealing three rows of hooked fangs in her lower jaw and two in her upper, as well as a thick cow-like tongue that sweeps around the teeth. You grin and dart forward again, stopping just out of reach of her attempt to snatch you out of the air. You catch her right arm and dart to the side, hurling her off to your left - but instead of cartwheeling down the slope, she slams into a shimmering barrier that you hadn't noticed and shrieks in outrage. She shrieks again, a loud and high-pitched sound, and charges toward you, using all four limbs to get some extra speed, but when she tries to backhand you, you simply catch her arm and hold your position, letting her slam into your set shoulder. Then you lash out, a fairly clumsy punch that nonetheless manages to snap one of her ribs, and she gasps in shock and pain.

Tool is doing fairly well for itself, sidestepping your clones, putting up small barriers, and responding with precise bolts of magic. You frown at magic circles she uses, though - they're a dark golden color, but they don't glow the way every other magic circle you've seen does. They simply … hang there, dull and lifeless, spitting out energy or blocking your clones. Of course, Tool did seem to be having problems earlier … before you can give your clones a command to ease up, however, Tool floats into the air, presses its hands together as it praying - and sprays bolts of lightning all around it. Two of your clones flop away uselessly, bodies broken by the new attack, but the third darts out of range in time, the bolts tracking it smashing holes in the front of the church.

You don't allow yourself to get too distracted by Tool's counterattack, of course, and when Carmilla lunges forward - much more quickly than she'd moved before, but still far slower than you can move - you catch her arm again and swing her up, over your head, and down into the ground. Her shoulder crunches most pleasantly, and you giggle at her agonized screams. Then Tool vanishes, darting behind you, and you spin just enough to hold out your left hand as it thrusts its right arm forward - and with its arm comes a torrent of lightning and dead-gold magic.

You blink your eyes open, wondering faintly why you're now inside the church, then shake your head and float upright. You hear the civilians gasp in horror - or perhaps awe, given the mutterings of 'Kaiserin' you hear - and Father Maurice stares pale-faced at the ruin of your torso. You shrug with your right shoulder as your body rebuilds itself. "Sorry about the mess," you say with a grin, and the congregation drops almost as one to their knees. Another burst of magic attracts your attention - your third clone being blown apart by Tool to buy you time - and you send your clones out first to keep the mage away from you and Carmilla. The mage is obviously the more dangerous combatant, at least for you, but if you can get Carmilla subdued then Tool should give up.

Speaking of the monstrous woman, she gapes in surprise at your recovery when you slam into her, and you grin as you shove her against the barrier. "You … your arm! How …-?!" Her gurgling, slurring voice trails off into a keening cry as you drive your wingtips into her shoulders. It's funny that something like her would ask that question, given that her own injuries seem to have healed from your beatings.

"Last time I ask nicely, girl. Surrender." Carmilla coughs and tries to snap at you with her distended jaw.

"My husband will come for me! He loves me!" You can't help but notice the quiver in her body at her declaration, however. You let her fall to the ground and ready to lunge at you, then slam into her again, driving your shoulder into the lower part of her sternum and relishing the snap of the bone. More importantly, however, is the collapse of the barrier in a series of dead-gold sparks, and with it the strange buzzing - and, concurrently, the collapse of Tool, its magic giving way and letting it fall to the ground. Only the intervention of your clones keeps it from breaking its neck. Carmilla, however, looks on with fear. "No! NO! Tool! Tool, you useless bitch, get up!" She heaves desperately at you, but you simply turn her around, dislocate her shoulder, and drive her into the dirt. "Tool! Get us home! Now! TOOL!" You frown down at the now-sobbing Carmilla. Perhaps she isn't a mage - like you, she needs someone else to use magic? But just what is wrong with Tool? It just lies there, breathing shallowly as your clones stare down at it … you call them back and have them stay on Carmilla, then go to look at the fallen mage.

Its … her breathing is shallow, as you feel the weakly-rising chest. And you don't need to remove the black gloves to see the twist of badly-healed broken fingers. You do pull the gauzy mask up away from her face - and stare at one that is quite familiar to you. Or would be, if not for all the damage. If it weren't for the angry, badly-healed scar on her throat and the missing tongue. If it weren't for the dimness of the red eyes, and the way the left one wanders lazily even when she stares at you. If it weren't for the bruises on the right side of her face, and the crookedness on the left that indicates a broken jaw. If she were six years older … if she were six years older and undamaged, she would look just like Fate.

Instead, she's dying.

And that presents a bit of a problem, because you don't know why someone who looks just like Fate is wandering around helping someone attack the Church, but it's probably not a good thing. You pull the mask back down and look down at her. You could go call Fate, bring her down here, explain what's going on and let her decide … but then who knows what you'd be dragged into. You could just kill her - break her and be done with it, or kill her properly and bury her - and then either explain to Fate privately or refuse to explain at all. Or you could just have the Bureau take her aboard the ship to see if she can be treated and not worry about the repercussions, because you'd just be doing your job ….

"Is everything under control? Need any help, or anything?" You snap your gaze to Sein and she reflexively takes a step back, arms held up non-threateningly. "Just, uh … wondering. Everyone wants to know if you're fine, is all."


What do you do?

[ ] Kill Tool.
- [ ] Break her.
- [ ] Kill her and bury her.

[ ] Take them both up to the ship.
- [ ] Try to keep Tool's identity a secret.
- - [ ] From Fate.
- - [ ] From the rest of the ship.

[ ] Call Fate down to the planet and let her decide how to deal with Tool.

[ ] Other?

 

[Entropy Judge]

[X] Take them both up to the ship.


"… Yes, be useful. Contact the Avesta and tell them that I have two prisoners, and one of them needs medical attention for a number of long-term injuries that are the approximate cause of her currently dying. So, three of us to go up - four if you want to come." Sein stares at you for a moment before shaking herself.

"Uh, one prisoner needs the hospital, one other prisoner, and us. Right, be right back!" She doesn't bother using the gaping hole of the door, instead using her power to phase through the wall. You pull off Tool's mask and pick her up. Her hood falls away, revealing short, scraggly blonde hair - further evidence of the lack of care that Carmilla and her 'family' have for the girl.

"Should be a bit easier to breathe now." Her expression is difficult to read, but she seems confused at your attitude - and worried as you carry her closer to Carmilla. The woman thrashes futilely one last time before reverting to her human form and snarling at you as you set Tool down.

"When my husband comes to rescue me, I am going to tear out your heart!" You sigh and shake your head.

"You know, you've been doing something that has become very annoying - I can see why that poor man sent you on a death-mission. He must have wanted to be rid of a nuisance like you." Carmilla screeches and tries to thrash again, but even with one of your clones moving behind you to help take off your shirt, she's easily held down. Still, only after one of the clones presses her face into the mud and holds it there does she calm, and when she's finally let up to breathe and spit out the mud she frowns at you, confused at your smile. "You see, you keep trying to make threats, but you're really quite bad at them. For example -" your clone shoves its hands into your back and rips your heart out; you don't even flinch, and Carmilla's eyes go wide as the organ is presented to her, "- this isn't exactly something that I find convincing as a threat." You turn around to let her look at the hole in your back, to prove that it's really not bothering you, then face her again and sit down. It's mostly a bluff on your part, of course - you can survive without your heart for a time, but if you aren't prepared it definitely hurts, and not having a heart means you have to expend more energy recreating the effect of one. As your body regenerates the damage, you take the organ from your clone and inhale deeply. "Gesegnete Mahlzeit!" You bite deeply into it and grin as Carmilla turns green and begins heaving. Not that you actually consume your heart - it fades away, dispersing into mana and returning to you. Tool seems … more confused than anything else. Certainly, she isn't sick like Carmilla, but considering what she's probably been through, you aren't that surprised.

"… What … what are you?!" Finally done emptying her stomach, Carmilla stares at you in horror as you calmly replace your shirt. Once dressed, you stand up and lean down to stroke her hair. You begin to speak, your voice sweet.

"Poor, poor child. Did your parents never warn you of the monster under the bed? Of the terror in the closet? Of the horror in the basement? Those are but lesser beings - I am a nightmare of humanity, dear, sweet child. I am a monster gazed upon with awe and fear, with the power to snuff out human lives by the hundred. I am the highest class of devil, unmatchable by mortal hands. Close your eyes, human. Look deep within yourself. There, that darkness? Do you see the darkness that you carry within yourself?" Carmilla nods tremblingly, and you grin malevolently as you move your mouth next to her ear. Your voice changes from sweet and gentle to something daemoniac. "I am infinitely worse." She jumps, or tries to, and you giggle, full of malice, as she whimpers impotently.

Tool, for better or for worse, seems completely unaffected, and simply stares at you.

"Umm … sorry for the interruption." You turn to look at Sein, and she swallows nervously several times before continuing. You also see, peeking out of the church, several of the villagers, and they seem positively delighted when you wave to them. "Uh, they'll teleport us up as soon as you're ready." Her eyes flick from you to Tool and back. Carmilla apparently holds no interest for her. You shrug and sit on the woman's back, holding her arms with your left hand, and dismiss your clones. A few seconds later, a silver circle appears on the ground beneath you, and with a flash of light you vanish from the planet, reappearing aboard the Avesta. You glance at the people around you - a pair of technicians move to lift Tool onto a wheeled bed, the captain frowns at you and your captive, and Fate stares brokenly at Tool. When she sees Fate, Tool's eyes widen and she makes the first sound you remember hearing out of her - a raspy moan. She weakly tries to reach out to Fate, and Fate … buckles, barely holding back tears. The captain nudges her.

"Go with her, Enforcer." Fate stumbles after the bed as the technicians wheel it away, and the captain turns toward you and Carmilla.

"This one, I believe, is the one more responsible for the deaths. I don't know how much you saw of the fight, but she transformed herself into some kind of monster with enhanced strength and toughness. That girl seems only capable of magic, although she is very strong. But unless you have something else in mind, I'll take this one to a jail cell. … You do have cells aboard, right?" The captain stares at you for a moment before looking down at the mud-and-vomit-stained woman, then nods.

"Yes, we do. And even if she is a prisoner, even if she is responsible for dozens, or even hundreds of deaths, she will be treated with consideration. Is that understood?" She holds your gaze for several moments until you sigh and stand up.

"Perfectly." You take a few steps toward the guards the captain motions you toward, then turn and look back at Carmilla. "Heel." Terrified, she flops around, following you, and you stare disdainfully at the furious captain. "Understand, Captain, that she insulted my sister. However, after … due consideration, I have elected to not remove every square centimeter of skin from her body before turning her over to your interrogators. I have considered, Captain, and I'll take her to her kennel, and chain her up if need be, but I'll not be gentle, as you would not be gentle with a rabid wolf that hunted your people." The captain's eyes blaze furiously, but she simply swallows any retort she might have wanted to make and stomps away. You turn back to the guards and gesture for them to lead you to the jail.

You snort and shake your head at her 'cell.' It's not small, and it has a bed and a sheltered convenience as well as a wash-sink. All it needs is a place to cook food and it would be superior to much of humanity's dwellings over the course of their existence. Carmilla scurries inside as soon as you move away from the door, and once it's locked one of the guards clears his throat. "Er, you don't need to keep watch anymore. She shouldn't be able to use magic in there, and even if she could, the barrier around the room is rated for S-rank threats." He and his partner look at you nervously, obviously not wanting to arouse your anger - and you shrug. If they don't need you, they don't need you.

"Very well. Take care of yourselves." You bow politely, turn around, and start walking toward your room. You could just take a nap or something - you'll probably be heading back to Mid-Childa soon, and that's half the day in transit. Or … you're probably supposed to make a report. And maybe you should get Loki looked at? Tool's attack did break through its defense and shut it down, after all.


What do you do?

[ ] Go to sleep.

[ ] See if someone on the ship can make sure Loki is alright.

[ ] See if you're supposed to do a report.

[ ] Other?

 

[Entropy Judge]

[X] See if you're supposed to do a report.


Well, as long as you're working at this, you might as well try to do it correctly, and that means making sure everything that should be documented is. And that means finding someone who knows what you should be doing! Perhaps unfortunately, however, when you slip into the infirmary, Fate is completely absorbed by Tool's situation, and what you're doing isn't so important that bothering her is worth it … probably, anyway. So you head for the command area.

"Hello, Captain," you say as you approach the iron-haired woman. She gave you the last report you had to fill out, after all, and if there's anywhere on the ship to have Loki looked at, she'll know about it. She sighs wearily at your introduction.

"Yes?"

"The prisoner is secured and your guards said my presence was no longer required. Enforcer Harlaown is still busy with the other prisoner, but I believe that I am expected to provide a report of my encounter with the criminals. If that is so, would -"

"Could you stop that, please?" You frown at the captain as she rubs her face with her hands. "There's … no need right now for you to be stiff and formal, and frankly, it's disturbing coming from someone who looks like you do." You stare at her for a few more seconds before nodding, even though she can't see you.

"Alright. Am I supposed to make a report?" She nods and stands up, looking around the bridge.

"Yes. Follow me, please." One of the crewmen raises a hand, either in acknowledgement or farewell, and you follow the captain down the hall into another room, one with several computer terminals. She stops at one and begins typing, accessing administrative reports and loading a file similar to the one you filled out earlier. "Enforcer Harlaown should show you how to access any files you'll need to use on a regular basis. You have Device, correct? If it was activated during the encounter, you can connect it here and I'll show you how to upload the data record." After a moment's hesitation you connect Loki to the computer, but after she starts to walk you through the connection process, the screen starts flashing red in warning and it asks if you want to see the damage.

"What's happening now?" She sighs.

"It was damaged during the fight. Okay, let it display the warnings and …." She trails off at the flashing warnings. Two are for the Device itself - one for a mana overload that forced a shut-down, the other for a voltage spike that caused minor circuitry damage. The other warnings make you wonder just what sort of monitoring equipment is standard for Devices, because they're all related to what happened to you. Apparently you suffered a heart attack, general heart failure, a stroke, massive trauma to your torso, a collapsed lung ….

"… So I can just acknowledge all these, right?" The captain drags her eyes away from the computer to stare at you.

"Blessed Fallen, doesn't that bother you at all?" You turn to look at the screen for a moment before turning back to her.

"I guess not." She works her mouth for a moment before closing her eyes and taking a long, shuddering breath. She finally nods tightly and looks at you.

"… Right. Yes, you can dismiss the notices. And here …." She guides you through the data-sharing process and you add the record to the yet-unwritten report. The video is sketchy and the text-data is purely technical, which apparently isn't normal for Devices, but between the damage and Juliet's old explanation that she had to remove a lot of functionality in order to ensure Loki could operate through your fluctuating surges of energy you aren't too surprised. Still, maybe you should see about getting Loki upgraded - hopefully, with the data from a few major fights available Juliet can refine and improve it. Losing the extra protection and clothes, and having to wait until it can be fixed or self-repair is kind of frustrating. "And that's it. When you write your report, remember to include not just the facts of the event - most of those should be determinable from your Device, after all - but also your impressions and the reasons you had for taking the course you did. Is there anything else you want to ask?" You think for a moment, then shake your head. They probably can't do anything for Loki here, after all, and since it'll be a while until you reach Mid-Childa anyway, there's no real point to asking for permission right now. Besides, it might be useful if you need to distract Fate for some reason.

"No, I think I have everything I need. Thank you, Captain." She nods back and quickly withdraws. She doesn't exactly run away, but it was definitely a speedy retreat. You grin and shake your head, then turn your attention to the report. All in all, it's not that difficult, just boring. You make sure to include that strange buzzing tone that seemed to coincide with the barrier, and the worshipers' strange decision to call you 'Kaiserin' - almost everything you can remember, starting from shortly before Carmilla's arrival and ending with you putting her in the cell. And when it saves, it asks if you want a back-up copy on Loki, so you let it save there, too. If you did something wrong, or if the captain forgot to tell you something, at least you won't have to do it again. You stretch and lean back in the chair.


What do you do?

[ ] Go to sleep until you reach Mid-Childa.

[ ] Talk to Fate.
- About?

[ ] Talk to Sein.
- About?

[ ] Other?