[X] Observe. This will likely be informative.
-[X] Get ready to fight the winner while looking as much like a civilian as you can. Ham up the 'paralyzed by fear' look so you get a good look at the whole fight and listen in. Draw the sword as it nears conclusion.
--[X] If someone else intervenes before the fight is done, try remain unnoticed and leave.
[X] Observe. This will likely be informative.
-[X] Get ready to fight the winner while looking as much like a civilian as you can. Ham up the 'paralyzed by fear' look so you get a good look at the whole fight and listen in. Draw the sword as it nears conclusion.
--[X] If someone else intervenes before the fight is done, try to remain unnoticed and leave.
[x] Observe. This will likely be informative.
-[x] Get ready to fight the winner while looking as much like a civilian as you can. Ham up the 'paralyzed by fear' look so you get a good look at the whole fight and listen in. Draw the sword as it nears conclusion.
--[x] If someone else intervenes before the fight is done, try to remain unnoticed and leave.
Looks like a collateral damage member? So this Haemonculus is probably a minion of their antagonist.
[] Collateral Damage: Not so much a formalized society as a group of martial artists who have learned to use ki to enhance themselves to superhuman levels. All of them have significant combat experience, and are well-trained, and there are a lot of them. On the other hand, they're severely lacking in the power department and are horrifically disorganized. They act as a society of do-gooders who voluntarily patrol the streets, looking to help people.
[X] Observe. This will likely be informative.
-[X] Get ready to fight the winner while looking as much like a civilian as you can. Ham up the 'paralyzed by fear' look so you get a good look at the whole fight and listen in. Draw the sword as it nears conclusion.
--[X] If someone else intervenes before fight is done try to not get notice and leave.
[X] Observe. This will likely be informative.
-[X] Get ready to fight the winner while looking as much like a civilian as you can. Ham up the 'paralyzed by fear' look so you get a good look at the whole fight and listen in. Draw the sword as it nears conclusion.
--[X] If someone else intervenes before the fight is done, try to remain unnoticed and leave.
[X] Observe. This will likely be informative.
-[X] Get ready to fight the winner while looking as much like a civilian as you can. Ham up the 'paralyzed by fear' look so you get a good look at the whole fight and listen in. Draw the sword as it nears conclusion.
--[X] If someone else intervenes before fight is done try to not get notice and leave.
[X] Observe. This will likely be informative.
-[X] Get ready to fight the winner while looking as much like a civilian as you can. Ham up the 'paralyzed by fear look so you get a good look at the whole fight and listen in. Draw the sword as it nears conclusion.
--[X] If someone else intervenes before fight is done try to not get notice and leave.
[X] Observe. This will likely be informative.
-[X] Get ready to fight the winner while looking as much like a civilian as you can. Ham up the 'paralyzed by fear' look so you get a good look at the whole fight and listen in. Draw the sword as it nears conclusion.
--[X] If someone else intervenes before fight is done try to not get notice and leave.
[15] Observe. This will likely be informative.
-[15] Get ready to fight the winner while looking as much like a civilian as you can. Ham up the 'paralyzed by fear' look so you get a good look at the whole fight and listen in. Draw the sword as it nears conclusion.
--[8] If someone else intervenes before fight is done try to not get notice and leave.
--[5] If someone else intervenes before the fight is done, try to remain unnoticed and leave.
--[2] If someone else intervenes before the fight is done, try remain unnoticed and leave.
--[1] If someone else intervenes before fight is done try to not get noticed and leave.
Wow. I do believe this is the first time I've had a vote with a margin of victory larger than 2. Naturally, it's completely unanimous. Congratulations, veekie, you've been bandwagoned. I'll lock the vote in 5 hours, but I have a strange suspicion how it's going to end.
I just realized that both these people could be options we had to choose in chargen. Haemonculus was an option in the first post, and the ninja-bathrobe guy could be the Kagemusha heir.
[X] Observe. This will likely be informative.
-[X] Get ready to fight the winner while looking as much like a civilian as you can. Ham up the 'paralyzed by fear' look so you get a good look at the whole fight and listen in. Draw the sword as it nears conclusion.
--[X] If someone else intervenes before the fight is done, try to remain unnoticed and leave.
[X] Socialize with Kaho. Your classmates think this is a fool's errand, but they have clearly never met anyone as charismatic as you.
Quietly, you plaster a terrified mien across your face as you back away. If they think you're an easily eliminated civilian, they'll likely be far more free with any pertinent information than they would if you realized you were a Daemon. You plant yourself in the rubble and pretend to hyperventilate. This way, they should overlook you most of the time while they fight, and you might just be able to glean some useful data about their combat styles, and more importantly, whichever organization sent them.
Unfortunately, neither of your opponents seems overfond of banter. The Haemonculus just grunts and growls whenever the other man hits it, and the warrior is too busy fighting to comment. He is, you will admit skilled. Unfortunately for him, his opponent is still winning, partially thanks to the fact that it has actual armor instead of random bits of cloth. His opponent is also physically more capable, and has a weapon where he has none. The only reason why he's not already dead is because the construct is also trying to protect the orb it is holding even as it fights.
Mentally, you compose some short notes on each combatant's style of combat for the future. The Haemonculus is essentially an intelligent murderous robot. Its armor is capable of taking direct hits from the warrior, but a strong hit can still crack it. Its sword is essentially a normal sword, albeit unusually sharp and hard. It fights mechanically, with little innovation or adaptation, but it fights with terrifying efficiency. It seems primarily focused on protecting the orb, which hampers its combat ability significantly. It is also unnaturally strong, terrifyingly fast, and does not tire. A formidable opponent, all told. It's rather concerning that you have no warning regarding an entity of this nature.
The warrior, on the other hand, is interesting for an entirely different reason. The warrior is interesting because he should, by any reasonable measure, be dead. Several times over, by your last count. He is merely mortal, while his opponent is rather more. Yes, he is more skilled, and yes, he is able to read and adapt to his opponent's techniques, but none of that should be capable of saving from a sword that moves so fast you can feel the wind of its swings from ten meters away. And yet, the man is very definitely not dead.
You frown. Nothing for it, then. Surreptitiously, you slide your Monocle out of your pocket and on to your face.
The first thing you notice is the orb. You don't know what it is, but it shines bright enough with some strange energy that it is nearly blinding, even through the Monocle. Dismissing it, you move on to the Haemonculus - which is nothing but a blank void. No Sin, no emotion, no independent thought, nothing but a strange core in the very center of its chest, just below where a person's sternum would terminate. Finally, you look at the warrior, and the mystery is revealed in an instant. He's using Sin. There is a distinct and potent flow of Sin running to his eyes, and its color is green, signifying Envy. He's somehow using Envy to enhance himself such that he can see how to move in order to predict the Haemonculus' actions!
That...should be impossible. If there were any competent groups of Sin users in the area, the Circle would surely have warned you!
He's also not very good at it, you notice. He's only barely staying ahead of the Haemonculus' strikes, and he can't quite seem to find an opportunity to retaliate. Eventually, he slips, and the Haemonculus catches him in the side with its armored fist. You can practically hear his ribs break as he goes flying across the street. You wince sympathetically, and prepare to be attacked. You think you can take this guy. It'll be a hell of a fight, and it'll hurt, but you should win.
So, naturally, you're interrupted.
By the Princesses.
Of course.
And now, they're giving a speech about how those who "defile these institutions of beauty and gentility will never be forgiven!"
No. You've had enough. You've discovered that some madman has been making artificial life, that said life is trying to get yet another magical artifact, and that there are apparently Sin users here. You're done. You're going home. You'll be back in the morning.
Next morning, you find yourself tentatively considering your next step. You've spent the week trying to get closer to Kaho. Your progress has been...lackluster at best.
A short summary of your efforts:
Day 1:
"Hey Kaho-"
"Go away"
Day 2:
"So, Kaho-"
"Screw off!"
Today's the third day, though, and you know how the saying goes. Maybe you'll have more luck this time?
Well, here goes.
You smile warmly at your soon-to-be friend, and pause. She does not look good. It's hard to see, but her eyes are faintly red, her posture is slipping, and she took a moment to register your presence. Either she hasn't been sleeping, or she's just stressed. She doesn't look like she's going to cry, but she looks very tempted to maim someone. Hopefully not you.
So, you sit next to her quietly and simply wait. If you say something, it'll just annoy her. So you won't say anything. She looks at you askance, practically waiting for you to speak so she can tell you to go away and stop bothering. Unfortunately for her, you've caught onto that trick. If you say something, she has a reason to tell you to go away. If you just wait, then she has no reason to make you leave. So you smile, and wait.
Finally, she gives in. Your plan is a success!
She reaches out and grabs you by your tie, dragging your face in close so she can look you in the face. Her eyes lock onto yours and you very much want to look away from the sheer Wrath emanating from them. But you have your Pride, and you meet her gaze firmly and silently.
"What do you want from me?" she inquires in a disturbingly flat tone.
Nonplussed, you blink at her.
"Everyone wants something." she helpfully explains. "Some people want money, some people want power, some people want fame. When people try to be my friend they do so for a very limited set of reasons. They might try because their friends pressure them into trying to associate with me. They might think they have something to prove by 'redeeming' me. They might just want to have some useful muscle on hand."
"But you don't have any friends in the area, you don't need to redeem me to prove yourself, and you're a model student; you don't need protection."
"So what do you want, and if I give it to you, will you go away and leave me the fuck alone!? Because I am sick and tired of your bullshit!"
"And don't try to lie to me about wanting to be my friend." she adds as you open your mouth. "Everybody wants something from me. So tell me what you want, so I can make you screw off!"
You pause. How do you answer this?
[] Write-in.
QM: Update! And I'd really like to see some discussion about this choice, because this will have a significant impact not only on your potential friendship with Kaho, but also with regards to how Victor views possible social interactions in the future. Poor Kaho has not been having a good night.
And now, they're giving a speech about how those who "defile these institutions of beauty and gentility will never be forgiven!"
No. You've had enough. You've discovered that some madman has been making artificial life, that said life is trying to get yet another magical artifact, and that there are apparently Sin users here. You're done. You're going home. You'll be back in the morning.
Quietly, you plaster a terrified mien across your face as you back away. If they think you're an easily eliminated civilian, they'll likely be far more free with any pertinent information than they would if you realized you were a Daemon. You plant yourself in the rubble and pretend yo hyperventilate.
Throughout these conversations, you occasionally bring up Kaho. The responses you get are simultaneously surprising, and yet not. Apparently, she's an unfriendly, antisocial girl with impressive anger issues, who had a reputation for getting into fights when she was younger, often because she was too proud for her own good. Then something changed when she got into middle school, and she started doing her very best to conform to Japan's cultural norms. Her success was debatable, considering that she attended no clubs, avoided school events, didn't have friends, and spoke exactly as much as was necessary and no more. No one even knew where she ate lunch. If you want to get closer to her, you have your work cut out for you.
I guess there was something intristically curious about her, what with her anti-social behavior and a sudden - though failed - attempts at change, and when she brushed us off we started seeing her as a challenge. And we don't back off from challenges. Both our Sin and Virtue are against it.
She wants the truth, eh? But can she handle the truth!? :lol
[X] I want it all. Didn't I say I will be ruling the world in 20 years? Is it too strange for me to want to take a closer look at my future subjects?
-[X] I guess I am intrigued. You said you wanted to be an accountant, but that was not the whole truth, is it? You could say I am drawn to people who have something to hide.
-[X] Your classmates say you are 'too proud for your own good'. I can relate to that.
-[X] Plus, it's natural for me to attempt to succeed at something that apparently no one has managed before.
...if we won't be kicked in the teeth for being that blunt, I will be surprised. Thank the Dark Masters for being nigh indestructible.
[X] I want it all. Didn't I say I will be ruling the world in 20 years? Is it too strange for me to want to take a closer look at my future subjects?
-[X] I guess I am intrigued. You said you wanted to be an accountant, but that was not the whole truth, is it? You could say I am drawn to people who have something to hide.
-[X] Your classmates say you are 'too proud for your own good'. I can relate to that.
-[X] Plus, it's natural for me to attempt to succeed at something that apparently no one has managed before.
[X] I want it all. Didn't I say I will be ruling the world in 20 years? Is it too strange for me to want to take a closer look at my future subjects?
-[X] I guess I am intrigued. You said you wanted to be an accountant, but that was not the whole truth, is it? You could say I am drawn to people who have something to hide.
-[X] Your classmates say you are 'too proud for your own good'. I can relate to that.
-[X] Plus, it's natural for me to attempt to succeed at something that apparently no one has managed before.
[X] I want it all. Didn't I say I will be ruling the world in 20 years? Is it too strange for me to want to take a closer look at my future subjects?
-[X] I guess I am intrigued. You said you wanted to be an accountant, but that was not the whole truth, is it? You could say I am drawn to people who have something to hide.
-[X] Your classmates say you are 'too proud for your own good'. I can relate to that.
-[X] Plus, it's natural for me to attempt to succeed at something that apparently no one has managed before.
[X] I want it all. Didn't I say I will be ruling the world in 20 years? Is it too strange for me to want to take a closer look at my future subjects?
-[X] I guess I am intrigued. You said you wanted to be an accountant, but that was not the whole truth, is it? You could say I am drawn to people who have something to hide.
-[X] Your classmates say you are 'too proud for your own good'. I can relate to that.
-[X] Plus, it's natural for me to attempt to succeed at something that apparently no one has managed before.
[X] I want it all. Didn't I say I will be ruling the world in 20 years? Is it too strange for me to want to take a closer look at my future subjects?
-[X] I guess I am intrigued. You said you wanted to be an accountant, but that was not the whole truth, is it? You could say I am drawn to people who have something to hide.
-[X] Your classmates say you are 'too proud for your own good'. I can relate to that.
-[X] Plus, it's natural for me to attempt to succeed at something that apparently no one has managed before.
[X] I want it all. Didn't I say I will be ruling the world in 20 years? Is it too strange for me to want to take a closer look at my future subjects?
-[X] I guess I am intrigued. You said you wanted to be an accountant, but that was not the whole truth, is it? You could say I am drawn to people who have something to hide.
-[X] Your classmates say you are 'too proud for your own good'. I can relate to that.
-[X] Plus, it's natural for me to attempt to succeed at something that apparently no one has managed before.
[x] I want it all. Didn't I say I will be ruling the world in 20 years? Is it too strange for me to want to take a closer look at my future subjects?
-[x] I guess I am intrigued. You said you wanted to be an accountant, but that was not the whole truth, is it? You could say I am drawn to people who have something to hide.
-[x] Your classmates say you are 'too proud for your own good'. I can relate to that.
-[x] Plus, it's natural for me to attempt to succeed at something that apparently no one has managed before.
[X] I want it all. Didn't I say I will be ruling the world in 20 years? Is it too strange for me to want to take a closer look at my future subjects?
-[X] I guess I am intrigued. You said you wanted to be an accountant, but that was not the whole truth, is it? You could say I am drawn to people who have something to hide.
-[X] Your classmates say you are 'too proud for your own good'. I can relate to that.
-[X] Plus, it's natural for me to attempt to succeed at something that apparently no one has managed before.
[X] I want it all. Didn't I say I will be ruling the world in 20 years? Is it too strange for me to want to take a closer look at my future subjects?
-[X] I guess I am intrigued. You said you wanted to be an accountant, but that was not the whole truth, is it? You could say I am drawn to people who have something to hide.
-[X] Your classmates say you are 'too proud for your own good'. I can relate to that.
-[X] Plus, it's natural for me to attemptto succeed at something thatapparently no one has managed before.
