thebastion | Day 285 [open]

Entry tags:

Day 285 [open]

Who: Azula & anyone
Open: Open
When: Day 285
Where: Northern Bastion
What: Azula arrives in Bastion.
Format: bracket-action but happy to match
Warnings: n/a for now.

[Azula was angry. Whether or she actually believed that her world had been destroyed, blah blah blah was a different question entirely. It all sounded crazy (this whole world sounded crazy - maybe it was all just one giant hallucination and that's a terrifying thought), but more importantly she had better things to do. If this was some kind of spirit-world shenanigan, she wanted no part in it. She had been in the middle of something important, damn it.

Which is why, naturally, she gets herself quickly and fairly easily from the Skyway to Bastion. If anyone was capable of figuring it out, it was her. And when she's on a mission to get to the bottom of something, that drive can move mountains.

When she questions the person who told her about this "calamity" she doesn't get answers she wants and sets a tree on fire in retribution, but the action is...oddly taxing? And for the first time in her career she actually feels like it's difficult to firebend which angers her more, RIP patches of grass.

Since all of that is clearly getting her nowhere she proceeds to go question anyone who is around in the most tactful and personable way possible:]

You there! Tell me what is going on here immediately.

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Trying to work on kicking this world's ass before it kicks mine.

Getting home may or may not be possible. I intend to try, certainly, but it's not going to be easy.

Well at least you haven't entirely given up hope. That's more than can be said for everyone else.

Most people can't fathom a world breaking.

Most people are idiots.

[He rolls his eyes.]

Anyway, welcome to the Bastion. If you've got any questions, I can try to answer them. I'll warn you, though, the simpletons out there have pissed me off, so I'm not thinking at my clearest.

That is very kind of you. I can understand how the would put you in such a state.

[azula smiles. what a wonderful person she's met. clearly she has some flawed priorities.]

Does anyone know what caused this calamity? Most of what I've been told is that it was, not how or why.

A bunch of children masquerading as scientists tinkering with things they didn't understand. As a result of their incompetence, they caused a reaction that broke this world into the floating rocks you've seen out there, and pulled other worlds into this one.

Most of them are dead now, and I really hope that their respective gods will be torturing them endlessly for their hubris.

[He exhales, and he shakes his head. He can't really fault her priorities, he'd be asking many of the same questions in her shoes. Of course, most people would argue that it isn't a ringing endorsement...]

In simpler terms... they amassed too much power in one place and couldn't control it. So it ripped free of its housing and annihilated almost everything.

Is there anything left of what they were messing with? Maybe it could be used in reverse.

I've been investigating that.

The site of the weapon is a crater, and a majority the fragments seem to have been disintegrated. It's not impossible, but... Let's just say I've decided that looking for their notes and documents is a better use of my time.

I have some idea of what it was must have been, but the people behind it were maliciously incompetent.

If you would like someone who isn't maliciously incompetent to work with you, I would be willing.

I won't turn it down, certainly.

Are you a scientist?

[He doubts it, but one can only go into battle with the troops they've got...]

No, but I am highly proficient in the art of war and strategy.

War is largely unnecessary, though certainly useful after the end of the world.

[He seems momentarily amused.]

Strategy we need. I am many things, but I do not have a strategic mind beyond simple distractions and defensive emplacements.

I assume you've seen some of the hostile wildlife out there?

Yes. They won't be any trouble.

[so much confidence]

Okay, good. Let me give you some intel that might help you out there, though.

[He likes what he's seeing. She's confident, and she seems to have an appreciation for what she's capable of. More than can be said of most people here. Still, he'd like her to have all the information she needs to back up that confidence.]

The squirts and Gasfella are intelligent. The squirts are the little black blob creatures, and the Gasfella are the floating things wearing cloaks. Try to avoid fighting them if you can. Alone, they're not much, but they travel in groups, and some of them get big. We've lost capable fighters to them before.

Plus, I'm negotiating with them for assistance. The less we hurt them, the easier that will go. If you can avoid a fight with them, that's probably for the best. You'll win the first time. They'll bring friends the next time.

Anklegators are subterranean, and stealthy creatures. Very dangerous, but somewhat less dangerous when they come up.

Peckers, the dominant surviving birds, travel in groups, but they're not much of a threat. They can be easily distracted if you throw food. Quite easy to kill them or run when they're going for the distraction, depending on your preference.

And if you come to a swamp... turn around and leave. The plantlife there is hostile, predatory, and able to mess with your mind. It can be dealt with, but it's easier to just avoid it. As far as I know, we don't need anything from the swamps we've found.

[He pauses, and he shakes his head.]

Sorry, I talk too much. You'll either get used to it or tell me off in no time.

You got any questions?

It's not too much.

[an almost automatic reply as she works on committing everything he says to memory.]

Plants I can handle, but if there isn't anything we need there it probably isn't worth the time. But the first ones you mentioned - were they were before the calamity, or only after it?

The Gasfellas and squirts? They were here before the calamity. They were basically the Cael's workforce, as I understand. Usually miners by trade.

They're strong, and they know the land.

So they'll have information. Who are the Cael?

They'll have information, yes. But they are mistrustful, and their language is very difficult to comprehend. Not an easy source to get information from.

The Cael are the Caelondians, the dominant society of this world. Also, the ones responsible for the Calamity. As a society, they were self-absorbed and arrogant. Individuals don't seem so bad, but the society was basically a couple decades away from imploding on itself. Before they caused their world to explode. Irony is amusing that way.

Can we talk to these Cael, or are they all dead?

There's a handful of them still alive, though whether or not they're useful sources of information is another question entirely.

Georges the Bartender over at the distillery is always pretty chatty. Nathan is more or less in charge here, he's one of the very few people who knows how the Bastion works.

[In other words, if you decide to kill someone, don't kill Nathan, or it's likely that we all die.]

There's a couple others who I'm not all that familiar with. But the society as a whole is gone.

[she will try not to kill him]

But you're going after monsters instead of Nathan?

Nathan is a child that bought into the propaganda of his people. He is good at what he does, and he has the potential to be great... But he knows nothing that I need to know. And he shows no interest in learning what I have to offer.

I'll have better luck finding what I want from the creatures and the ruins than from him.

I see.

[considering azula isn't exactly an adult herself she's going to take that with a grain of salt, but that'll be between her and nathan.]

You're saying that to humor me. It's okay, you'll find your own opinion in short time.

[He gives her a small smile, then he turns slightly back towards his work.]

What's your name, anyway?

Maybe I am.

[so what!!!, etc.]

I am Azula.

Nice to meet you, Azula. It's nice to meet someone who bothers to gather intel before making decisions or rushing off, for once. I'm Colin.

[Who cares? Colin sure doesn't seem to mind being humored.]

(no subject)

fireburn - 2015-03-13 04:13 (UTC) - Expand

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