Day 138 // Open (and obviously backdated)

[fuckthemancers]

Who: Zulf and/or Zia PLUS YOU
Open: Open
When: 138
Where: Just entering the Bastion
What: Two Ura strangers arrive... Strangers to the people, at any rate, but the Bastion itself knows them quite well.
Format: Whatever
Warnings: None

Around midday, two new arrivals show up in the Bastion. Well... depending on your definition of "new". There's certainly a kind of look in their eyes as if they recognize the Bastion, but they both seem fairly surprised about something. Anyone who's gotten to know the native NPCs will be able to recognize that both the man and the young woman are Ura- it's the dark eyes, dark hair, and that bright clothing. In his hands, gripped tightly, is a Fang Repeater that looks out of place with him. In her palms, held uncertainly and far away from her, is a bright red War Machete.

They speak together in low voices for a short while, making quite a lot of hand gestures to various parts of the Bastion. The longer she stays and takes things in, the more the young woman seems to recover, eyes getting brighter and stance a little less uncertain. The man is quite clearly a bit more tense and certainly more suspicious. The pair seem to bicker for a short while before coming to an agreement. The young woman starts to set off... before rushing back to hand the machete to her friend. As the girl starts to go about the Bastion, the man sighs and heads immediately in the direction of the shrine without a sliver of indecision of where he's going.

Feel free to run into Zia exploring the Bastion, or Zulf either on his way to or already at the Shrine.

Comments

[evacuate]

It's very nice to meet you, Crona. [Going for a handshake is likely to just frighten them, so Zia offers a quick curtsy motion with her cape instead.]

...Right. [What is she supposed to say to that? "Oh, I know, I did this all before and went back in time"? Nah. Even "my father was in it" opens her up too much.

So she latches onto the change of subject.] Oh, yes. Could you show me the way, please? [Apartments—entire apartments! Her heart leaps.] How many survivors are there?

[blackblooded]

[How many survivors. Crona has been keeping track, writing down dates on a page, adding in names by the days they appeared. And disappeared.]

Maybe fifty? There are lots of people here.

[Crona will lead the way to the apartments.]

[evacuate]

Fifty! [She gasps, and her hands fly over her mouth but she does a lousy job of hiding the fact that she's beaming. Fifty—there had only been four of them before. Fifty!] That is a lot. That's wonderful.

[She follows Crona along towards the apartments, practically skipping. As they walk, she speaks up again.] Oh, Crona, I'm looking for a few people, too. Maybe you've seen them? Caelondians, an older man with a thick mustache, and a strong-looking boy with white hair... And, uh, an Ura man. Would've come here pretty roughed up. [Finding her father is a long shot, but...]

[blackblooded]

... everyone else is dead, you know. Fifty isn't a lot. [If there were fewer people here, one or two or three others, it might be easier to accept. But with fifty, it just rubs in the fact that there could be so many more.]

Um. Your friends... what are their names?

[evacuate]

Of course I know. [Her liveliness drops all at once and she snaps at Crona without thinking, and then comes the realization of how weird she's being. No, there's still no good way to explain this. She sighs and forces herself to relax.] I'm sorry. I...wasn't expecting there to be many people at all. Just a few. It's real bad out there, on the Skyway.

The men are Rucks and Venn, and the boy...he just goes by Kid. [She's never thought much about him never having a real name—even now, she mostly just hopes that's still what he goes by.]

[blackblooded]

[Crona flinches, steps away, thin shoulders twitching upward like the teen expects to be hit. But when no blow is forthcoming, Crona relaxes slightly.]

S-some places aren't too bad. Some are worse.

[The first two names don't ring a bell, but Crona knows the third one.

Except...]

It's a different one, I think. And he's not here anyway. His hair is black, not white. He doesn't look very strong.

[evacuate]

[When she sees them flinch like that, Zia takes a half-step back—she's never been aggressive, and she feels like she should apologize again, but that would probably just be more awkward.] Ah, I didn't stay there very long. I don't fight. [She clutches her harp guitar to her chest, almost like she means to display it; I don't fight, I play.]

...Oh. No, that wouldn't be him, then. [Of course it's not him. Her shoulders slump and she sighs.] But thank you, Crona. [And after a moment—] I'm sorry that your Kid isn't here.

[blackblooded]

He might come here later. Your Kid. Maybe both. But that might get confusing. [Crona doesn't know what to say, just lets words fall awkwardly out. Weight shifted from one foot to the other and back. Nervous. Unsure.

Crona is always more awkward and shy than anyone else.]

[evacuate]

I've got faith in him. [She smiles, trying to be reassuring—maybe just as much for her sake; if she doesn't have faith that he'll show up, she doesn't have much of anything.] Your Kid, too. You're right, though. Maybe we'll have to give them nicknames!

[blackblooded]

[Crona nods, a short, stiff motion. And then keeps walking. There are the apartments, rising up from the grass of the Bastion like they grew there.]

[evacuate]

[When the apartment building comes into view, Zia has to stop for a moment and allow herself to marvel at them. Fifty people—fifty survivors, and the building for them is enormous, bigger than she'd ever able to envision from her tiny tent before.

It's only a moment, but she hurries forward so that she doesn't fall behind.]

Am I allowed to just...pick a room? [There's a sort of reverence to her tone.]

[blackblooded]

... Only if no one lives there. [Crona doesn't really know how to interact with people.]

[evacuate]

[Don't worry, Zia will try her best for both of them.] You're sure no one will want surprise roommate? [She chuckles.] Okay, so I'll pick a room and get settled... I should see if I can find the others, though. Thank you for showing me here, Crona.

[blackblooded]

[Crona blushes, cheeks going grey.]

I-it was nice to meet you too, Zia.

[evacuate]

And it was nice meeting you! I'll see you later, Crona. [And she's off, practically skipping away in her search for more people to meet and question.]