exsiliumlogs | (no subject) (part 2)

"Glad to hear it," she replied with a genuine smile. Her attention then turned to a burly man who was volunteering himself, and with a sideways nod of her head she gestured him to come over.

"Hey, come on over! Let's see what we can do." With that, the man rolled up his sleeves and pulled up a chair beside Asami. Given the longer length of his forearm, his elbow rested on the table quite comfortably, and he took the back of Asami's hand so that they could take her on.

"You're going to regret this," he challenged Samus, and meanwhile Asami's eyes never left the woman in front of her.

[He's amused at what she's focused on, but doesn't force it.] It's a game. You kick a ball around the field and try to score between the goalposts of the opposing team's side.

Not at all. [Snerk and waves a hand.] Can you?

I do.

[Shinji quickly ducks into the tent and comes out with the hammer that he bought. He gets straight to work without a pause--it's best to follow through with the advice of someone who knew better without question, after all--though when he begins resetting the pegs he glances back at Gilgamesh as if to ask if he's doing it correctly.]

"Yes, that's all right," he said happily. His face lit up with a smile. "I won't fall off."

"Thank you," he said with sincere gratitude. Ico placed his hand on the horse and, once Elissa gave him enough room, he climbed on. Although it had been months since he had last been on a horse, it felt as natural as ever.

"Can Atticus keep up?"

Luckily, the clients weren't too hung up on the new barmaid's name, even though a couple of them passed her a confused look. All she had to do was shrug it off and continue on with the act before they had a chance to address it.

"Oh, don't you give me that. You know what they say, admitting is the first step to recovery." Asami nodded sagely and took her place behind his seat, and her hands went on his shoulders.

"Now, let's get you some cider, shall we?"

"Wait!" came a gruff voice, "We want to see what the boy's made of. A shot of whiskey, Mari, we won't tell your folks!"

I'll ask if I need anything. Thank you.

Oh! Alright, well carry on. Are you from around here?

[ Asami wants to socialize, too. This girl seems like an interesting person to talk to, if only for her polite vernacular. It's a nice change of pace. ]

From what I've read, Earth has only ever had humans. Kind of makes you wonder what's wrong with the place if it can only manage one race.

[ No clue what kender are, though. ]

Immediately prior? I was in the Grasslands. Pretty wild place, only a handful of villages and a bunch of nomadic tribes, no cities, one incredibly run-down castle... Before that? I mostly kept to the cities, only they don't have all those cars or electric lights or microwaves. [ Not that he minds microwaves. Microwaves are pretty great. ] I guess it was what they'd call low tech.

I won't deny that. We are all tools regardless of our position and power, so are most runes are tools we use. [Raising her hand, she showed the waterdrop mark on the back of her hand. Dropping it down a moment later, her gaze flicked up to regard him again.] But not those twenty-seven. They are... their power-- no... do you have the game of chess in your realm?

"It's all right, no harm done." She didn't take any offense to it, anyway. She knew a dwarf who could drink three times what she could at the very least and still call himself sober. And though people called him slovenly and revolting, he was still the best damn fighter she'd ever had the pleasure of working beside.

Her drink was refilled with something clear and she sniffed it before tasting. It wasn't so bad, though it carried a hint of dust. She knocked it back and set the shot glass down, passing it over, done for now. Elissa locked eyes with him, her smile remaining. "Not used to these places? I bet if you looked around, you could find a boarding house that'll be quieter."

[ Asami retracts her arm and grabs a blanket for her shoulders. ]

Yeah, it's been hectic. The only other time I experienced time travel here is when one of the other Transports threw a ball. It was actually really nice, but no substitute for being back home. This place is like a total one-eighty from that.

[ She tightens the blanket around her shoulders. All of it is very hard to believe, she'll certainly give him that. Nice new faces, though. ]

[His eyes watch her hand, taking in that marking before his gaze is back on her face.] We do.

Then understand this: all life, whether it's human, kobold, elvish, winger, or any of the other races in my realm, are the pieces on the chess board of my world. The players moving the pieces are those twenty-seven runes. One side wishes for chaos, the other battles for order. Everything on the planet is there for them to use, and we allow it whether we fool ourselves into thinking it's our decision or not.

"Mm, I think so." Asami glanced at her preoccupied clients and nodded her head. "Yeah, I have some time. I'll be right back with that cider."

It took her hardly any time to fill up a mug with hot cider. Considering most people came for the booze, it was a commodity ill wasted that she was happy to serve. She thought about taking some with her before she went back outside.

What she wasn't aware of was that it was hard cider. Oops.

"Here you are!" she offered, taking a seat across from him.

Quite a few races... [A soft mutter to himself, but he lifts his chin in acknowledgment.] I understand. It's different.

Too sucked in to be pulled back out again?

( Opening the door and gesturing for him to head on through, if he's so inclined. )

It's merely the tip of the iceberg. [A pleasant smile curves on her lips before she's half turning herself away so she can look at their broken targets once again.] If our enemies were to gain possession of one of the Runes for this world, then I would start to feel concerned for our situation.

< We had a date, remember? >

( She laughs, something that comes across more as a wave of amusement from her toward Miles. )

< Happy 21st Birthday! I know it was supposed to be dinner, but lunch seemed like a better bet. Did you want to eat in here? >

( It's as stuffy as anywhere else, and "nice" isn't the word for describing outside at the moment. She blithely ignored the motions he'd begun then aborted, giving a wag of her tail as she set the basket down close to his rickety chair. )

( He's a pressure and a temperature gradient, but not much more. He doesn't feel so sure on her back, and she takes a moment to be amused that she can sort of recognize that feeling now, but he doesn't need to be.

Continuing to walk along, she calculated distances and time in her head. )

< We can walk the whole way if you're more comfortable with this speed. It'll take us longer than if I take us up to a run, but we'll get there either way! >

( Worse comes to worse, she'll need to demorph once before they arrive, in that case. )

< Gotta tell me what you can swing, Frosty! >

[This alternate dimension thing is really going to be a pain in the ass, huh?]

Since the day I was born.

Assuming it has a rune. [Adjusts his hat and goes to retrieve his box of ammo and tuck it away into a pocket after rehooking his water skin to his belt.]

That would be entirely up to the rune. They pick their own bearers.

[She remained where she was even if her mind wondered to the potential damage even one True Rune could create in this world, or those that possess them. No, that wasn't correct, for there was one here who had something akin to the True Runes here, but would that even be enough?]

[She watches him for a moment longer, then apparently having made her decision, she pushes her cowl back from her face, giving a smile]

My name's Stephanie.

Dark Guilds? [Lucy's home sounded interesting.]

Magic is that important? I'm the only one of two wizards in Japan, so magic is secondary to technology. Exsilium is ahead of us, of course, but their systems are familiar. As for monsters, well, they seem to be focused on Tokyo specifically. It's a little strange, really.

[He lifts the little bird for her to get an easier look at it.]

I'm not, usually. Dragons are more my speed. But it reminds me of my... assistant. [That was one word for Koyomi, anyway. He smiles, thinking of her.]

(no subject) (part 2)

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It's fine!

Haha clearly we're both winners at timeliness here! I'm sorry too!

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