exsiliumlogs | mission street is alive at every hour

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mission street is alive at every hour

Date & Time: backdated to 4/6, afternoon.
Location: the marketplace.
Characters: kate & nill.
Summary: what we always do in rp: have characters run into each other.
Warnings: tba.

With Pippin's exploration into the outlands fast approaching, Kate has had to step it up and browse the marketplace for basic necessities and others that she would be carrying with her out there. She still didn't have much of an idea who else was coming, but it didn't bother her as much as she should let it, a burning curiosity distracting her; she wants to see what's out there herself.

She's picked up a sturdy backpack, a large water bottle, and first aid kid, but she's still got plenty more to purchase before she journeys out with Pippin and company. She strolls through the streets, stopping at the occasional kiosk to browse over its merchandise and if its quality is worth the price it's being sold at.

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Nill hasn't done a great deal since arriving in this world. She's well aware of that - her ability to trust has been compromised to some degree, and she's spent too much time trying to improve her skills over the past few weeks instead of trying to actually live. Not to mention that ordeal with that person on the network... it's made things stranger than they were to begin with.

It did, however, make Nill realize that she'd been losing weight. She'd been neglecting to really cook anything and had mostly just been eating fruits and vegetables. So it was good that she was out today, trying to find proper food. She was sort of growing accustomed to this place, in her own way.

Food isn't the only thing she's out for, though, even if she doesn't really intend to buy anything from the other vendors. It's a nice enough setting to be in, even if the actual weather is unpleasant. It's entirely by accident that while leaning over to check one stand that she loses her balance slightly and stumbles, almost right into Kate. She sort of rights herself at the last second, but only barely. It's about as close to actually running into someone as Nill gets.

Kate's not even sure how she didn't notice the wings at first when her hand rises to catch the young girl and recognition clicks instantly. As she leans in, the contents inside her backpack shift, bumping into each other noisily, and her umbrella tips over, exposing her head briefly to the rain.

"Nill?" she raises the umbrella fast to keep herself from getting drenched. "You alright there?"

She probably missed them because Nill has them folded in closer to her back. The market has a lot of people, especially when new transports were just brought in a few days ago. Nill is quick to right herself. She has no umbrella, instead having chosen to try to stay under the tents of the merchants, but her black jacket looks waterproof enough on it's own, even if it has no hood.

Her wings are definitely noticeable now though, as they flutter while Nill straightens, immediately embarrassed. Of all the people to do that to..! She nods quickly, and glances up at Kate's head (where she got wet), before looking Kate in the eye and gesturing towards her. Is Kate okay? Then, immediately after, she realizes she hasn't apologized, and sort of offers her a more apologetic look.

Kate quickly shakes her head, beads of water flying off in every direction before she shifts the umbrella to protect not only herself but Nill as well. She smiles; it's easy to read the apology on Nill's face, even if she hasn't said anything.

"It's okay. Little rain never hurt anyone," she said and looked around the kiosks to see what Nill might be here for. "Shopping?"

Nill looks briefly embarrassed, her cheeks going red, but it dies down quickly, and she offers a grateful smile. Even if Nill agrees, and she'd been walking around in rain for awhile now, she's certainly thankful for the kindness.

She nods, and upon seeing Kate's wandering eyes, holds up one of her bags, holding the handles apart from each other so Kate can see inside. It's mostly vegetables, and pasta if she could find it. She's not a big fan of handling raw meat, so she doesn't cook it often. After she makes sure it won't get wet, she pulls her tablet out from her pocket.

You too?

The fact Nill can cook shouldn't surprise her to the extent it does, but she hasn't run into anyone yet that knows how to cook something as simple as pasta. Most times on the network people are announcing they baked cookies or muffins, nothing actually solid.

She inches closer to read the tablet and quickly nods. She reaches over to tug the strap on her bag, shaking it lightly to indicate the heavy weight. "I'm not done yet; still have to pick up food and I haven't seen a compass yet around here."

Nill can hardly blame her for the surprise. Since she got here she hasn't really seen anyone mention cooking more than once, and everyone seems to like talking about baking. Nill does too of course, but it seems like she should probably work on cooking here more than baking. It isn't as though she doesn't have the time for it.

A compass though? She has to stop to think about that for a moment. Compasses worked because of magnetism, didn't they? Would something like that even still exist in this world in the traditional sense with all the war that's been going on?

Are you leaving?

She reads the tablet again and for a moment there's a stretch of awkward silence when she does a double-take on "leaving." A tug in her chest reminds her she's gotten more homesick the past few weeks than before. Birthdays and all have a way of doing that.

"Going out with a group to the outlands," she gestures with her arm down the path and toward the city limits. "Only for a couple of days."

She glances where Kate gestures, and for a moment she just stares. She's thought about going out there by herself, but it sounds like people here don't work that way. People did things in groups - like Kate was, apparently. Kaneis had said the same thing.

Be careful.

Could you let me know if you decide to go out again?

"I will," she says with a certain firmness. She's always got an eye on her six, but she's mostly concerned with the group's welfare. Strangers that she'll be tagging along with and the possibility hanging in the air that they are people who may not be able to defend themselves as well as they claim. Pippin's talked about war, he's definitely seen it -- however Kate's not about to watch him wander beyond city limits with god knows what lurking out there. United Earth or some nightmare that used to be an animal known to mankind.

"'Course. What for?" Kate adds, curiously now.

Edited 2013-04-15 17:16 (UTC)

The assurance prompts a brief flash of a smile from Nill. While she certainly doesn't know Kate in the least, she's sure that Kate is more than capable, and perfectly able to take care of herself. Even so, the reassurance is nice. Nill doesn't much like her hair, but she likes Kate herself well enough. It's a little nostalgic too, because Nill has only known a handful of women over the years who were fighters. Naoto, Seras... the line stopped there.

I want to do something.

She really, really does. She trains every day, she's found something of a job, but it's not enough. She wakes up and does the same things every day, and the monotony of it is getting to her.

I don't know how the groups here work or how they're organized. I don't know if I've earned enough of anyone's trust to find people who would be comfortable with me going with them.

Gazing back into Nill's eyes, she sees the same steely resolution she caught a glimpse of in Bette's eyes that day she was released from the police station, right after that psychopath Cutter kidnapped her and Kate and Bette had taken him and his equally crazy girlfriend down.

She might be young, but there's a fierceness in it. Something she hasn't seen in a long time from anyone here. Maybe she's naive, Kate doesn't know her at all, but it's different from the other younger folk.

"To do what?" It isn't accusing -- simply curious. You need to have an idea of what you want to do before making a hasty decision.

Nill pauses slightly, glancing away from Kate. To do what? Just what was she hoping to accomplish? Kate was right to ask, because for the briefest moment, Nill isn't sure that she has an answer.

It doesn't take her long to think of one, though. Even if she'd just been looking for something to do, it hadn't been without purpose - it had just taken her a moment to properly realize it.

I want to understand this world better. If I can do that, maybe it will make it easier to leave.

While she isn't sure just how true that is, she's sure knowing the world outside of this city will give her a better idea of what to expect in the future, and what this place is or isn't capable of. The people running this place aren't all powerful, and seeing what's out there might give her a better idea of their limits.

Not unlike herself, she realizes.

Kate's shoulders fall slightly with a little sigh escaping her, half-amused by Nill's answer. She fixes her hold on the umbrella again, making sure it continues to cover the both of them.

"You're not wrong there," she says. "The only problem is the world is no longer what we know of it."

She hates to admit it, but she has no idea where to start. She had talked with Roslyn about the possibility of establishing contact with North America, but that requires back-up. Technology. An effort she can't make on her own.

No longer what we know of it. That might be true of Kate, but Nill isn't sure that it's true of her. How much did she ever know about other worlds at large? Certainly not how things worked between countries or what went on behind the scenes. The most Nill knows of war is the battles that make them up, not the politics.

There is no other way to learn what we need to know of it. The Initiative should not be considered trustworthy for information like that until they can be proven right.

She nods; again, Nill isn't wrong. Kate herself has been conflicted over the Initiative's operation since she arrived.

But her eyes dart to the vendors, a couple of whom are eyeing the two ladies warily now. Kate gestures with a nod of her head for Nill to follow her so they don't have too many prying eyes and eavesdropping ears.

"It's rare a representative talks to us. The last one mentioned our worlds were in danger, but..." Isn't that a good way to get people paranoid? "They won't offer us proof. It's possible they can't, but either way, they don't have a good way to hook most people into trusting them."

Although, people will still do their bidding when it comes to the missions. Perhaps they don't need them to trust at all.

She catches Kate's line of sight, glances over at the vendors, and decides that Kate has sound instincts, because Nill begins to follow her the moment she starts to move. She stays near Kate though, because it's obvious they're having a conversation, and Nill isn't completely sure that her tablet is waterproof.

I would rather learn what I can on my own. I don't trust them to tell us things we may need to know.

After reading the message once again: "Would you still go on their missions?"

A lot of people think the way Nill does, but a lot still end up doing as they are commanded. Something about Nill has her curious, so she waits to gauge her reaction and answer.

She isn't sure what to tell her. Would she? As of right now, Nill had only gone on one, and it was a disaster. A true testament to how well the people running this place handled things.

I don't know. I need to go back to Siren's Port. Even if doing missions doesn't help that, then the people who do them can still get hurt. If going means making sure people don't die, then I don't mind.

She forces a smile. Again, not unlike her. While she's always wanted to serve, she feels she's almost out of her league here. But it doesn't mean she's going to call a quits and let everyone fend for themselves, especially the Exiles and others of this world. The stakes are high, but she knew what she was taking on when she put on the uniform.

"What did you do in Siren's Port?"

Do you mean a career, or the things I did?

There's a rather distinct difference, and while she's fairly sure that Kate means the things she accomplished for herself and others rather than how she paid her bills, you could never be sure.

Besides, if you understood people's intentions right every single time, they might catch on that you knew a little more than you should.

"How about both?" she says. It would be interesting to know what exactly Nill was up to before she arrived here. She's a bit more cautious and reserved than the other young people here.

Kate never fails to surprise Nill, even in small ways. She wonders if her list is very long, or if it's the norm for people who end up in places like this.

I lived in a church for a little while. The city was dangerous, so I couldn't leave the church often. I cleaned there and I cooked.

After that I lived with friends, and I cleaned and cooked for them. They weren't very good at doing it themselves. I was younger than them, so they insisted that I didn't need to get a job. They all worked a lot, and sometimes I hardly saw some of them. They were all fighters, and they insisted I stay out of danger. I couldn't do anything then.

One of them taught me how to defend myself later. Eventually they all died. When that happened I worked in a pawn shop. I didn't stay there long.

I worked behind a bar most of the time, and I also cooked and cleaned for other friends. I didn't need to be paid for it, but they insisted.

I practiced with guns at shooting ranges and other places until I was good enough to go out at night and fight monsters. Most of the time I stayed by myself, but if I ran into anyone that needed help, I gave it.

It isn't a complete list. She had worked with Lisbeth and Claire for a time as well - but Nill isn't sure Kate would want to hear about something like that.

She's quiet for a while; that had been a loaded question and she didn't realize it until it was too late. Kate's brows furrow before offering Nill a more sympathetic look.

"I'm sorry," she says and she means it. She knows all too well what it's like to lose the people who cared for you and be left alone or feel alone at least. Kate herself was lucky enough to have her father to cling to for all those years.

"Where did those monsters come from? Do you know?"

She considers telling Kate not to be, but in the end there isn't much point to it. Kate had asked and Nill had answered - it hadn't been her fault that it was a bad question. If nothing else, maybe it would help Kate understand her position here a little bit more, why she needed more than she currently had. Nill hoped that would be the case, anyway.

They came from something called the Core.

The monsters used to be people.

"The Core," she repeats slowly, the creases on her forehead more prominent than before. "Did this "Core" change the people?"

Nill falters slightly - it's only visible in the way her brow furrows, knitting together in the middle. That sounded like more of an educated guess than a question, and educated guesses were complicated.

Sometimes.

"That's awful," she exhales a sigh, nostrils flaring in slight disgust at the thought. What sort of power did this "Core" have to do that to people? Science or magic, it had to be one of those, she figures. It's not impossible -- she's seen what Lex Luthor can do to the everyday human once. Made them into metahumans... superheroes.

Not monsters, however.

"But you want to go back there, despite all that." She pauses, "Some people run from danger."

Some people run to danger.

Nill would blame it on science - induced mutations without anyone's control, although that in itself was debatable. She doubted it was magic though. Magic could probably be undone.

Metahumans is an interesting term, though. Nill's never heard it before.

I am neither of those people.

"Is it a place or something else? The Core." She adds quickly, trying to picture it in her mind's eyes. She continues walking through the crowd, finally settling underneath a kiosk with a tent pulled over to protect the items on sale. She lowers the umbrella and then looks over at the table with an assortment of knives, mostly used for carving or food.

As they walk, Nill takes the time to formulate an answer, carefully picking her words. She wants to be as truthful about the nature of the core as she can without giving too much about herself away. Once they come to a stop, she lifts the tablet again for Kate to see.

The Core is something else. It's a physical thing, though it does not behave like one. As far as I could tell predicting what the core would do was mostly impossible.

Though while Kate reads, Nill glances over the knives. None are practical for anything outside of cooking, but she's been better about cooking lately, at least. (A little.)

She lifts one of the smaller knives, running her finger along the edge of the blade. It's sharp, but not as sharp as it should be. It's clearly not new and been in use. Must be a second-hand kiosk. The owner or whoever it was cleaned it up well enough.

"Sounds a bit like the Transporter." It dawns on her and she turns to Nill, wondering if she would agree.

Kate her her there. Nill doesn't type up anything at first, and instead reaches for one of the knives on the table before her.

To be honest or not? She weighs the downfalls and the benefits of it, finds there isn't much to either side, outside of revealing that she's been lying. It seemed there were a lot of people here from worlds not their own, and maybe it had been a foolish move on her part to lie about that from the beginning. Now didn't seem like the best time to come out with the truth, though. She didn't know Kate well enough for that.

Do you think so?

Though she nods, it's a very slow and slightly uncertain one, evident from the thoughtful look passing her face. The more she thinks about it, the more she does realize she doesn't know enough about the Transporter that brought them here and she certainly doesn't know much about Nill's world.

"It's unpredictable, like the Transporter." She hands the merchant a few marques and pulls away from the stand. "Transporter botches up every now and then -- especially during or after missions."

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mission street is alive at every hour

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