6381/Death In New Form

Death In New Form
Date of Scene:	15 February 2019
Location:	Metastasis England
Synopsis:	A group of Paladins make their way to the Scotland/England border and come across a new face on the Metastasis/Earth, and end up recruiting her in the process.
Cast of Characters:	6917, 6384, Kotone Yamakawa, Mairead Sandilands, Rhongomyniad, 6660, Archer

---

Ereshkigal (6917) has posed:
     It was ... it's been a day.

     That's an understatement.

     A young woman, blonde, with her hair shaped into slight drills, is clad in red and black dress, off-set thigh-highs, and metal heels. She's staring at a young man clad in a white robe, who is looking helplessly between the woman, what seems to be a mobile phone, and a entry sign that reads, quite simply, 'Welcome to England'. Behind her, a ways- 'Welcome to Scotland.'

     "Well?" She demands. "This is not the place we saw, was it? That was some sort of... mark. Denmark, yes. That is where we need to go. How do we get there? Can you ... drive one of those ... things?" Meanwhile, a house beyond the signs shows some curious occupants, simple citizens of good England wondering who in the world is standing in a farmfield.

     The man in the robe tries to soothe her. "No, Goddess, these are not things I am familiar with."

     "Well figure it out!" She demands, sharply.

Orchid (6384) has posed:
     Between one thing, another, and a third thing, (helping clean up Gilgamesh's discarded weapons, being mailed to Denmark, and checking out an ad on craig's list. No, really) Orchid is in the area. Specifically, she was in Scotland, and is on the way back towards the warp-gate, riding a hovering motor-cycle. Honestly, while it seems odd locally, they've had even more odd things going on. Still, something about this tablau makes Orchid come to a stop at the boarder. For a moment she watches, then dismounts. "Hey! I gotta say, I like those boots!" she manages by way of greeting.

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa had been out on some time off, taking her Knight Class Motorcycle out for a spin, when she got tipped off about what was going on. It didn't take too long for her to change the way she was going to take the nearest road to the field and get off. One might notice after she takes off the helmet she pulls cables out of cycle which slides back into her neck. She dusts herself off and heads towards the strange woman waving a bit as she gets closer.

"An interesting outfit you have there though do you need anything you look a little lost."

Mairead Sandilands has posed:
    "Home," Mairead thinks as she walks the roads of England and looks off to the north to her true home but she does not go there. She looks around, "How I miss ye," she adds as she kneels downa nd picks up a flower and smells it. As she stands, she looks aorund, and is glad she has an advantage with Clota who is not active right now, but Mairead is able to see everything and is aware of where she is located. Slowly, she walks, her legs move through the grass as her shoes press it down along the side of the road.

    Stepping into the road, she walks and sighs as she smiles as she remembers walking not far from here, well a place similar to here as a wee lass with her mother and father. "I miss the two of ye," she states as she looks up at the sky and knows that her parents are watching her. Doing the sign of the cross she walks on and stops as she sees someone she knows. Walking/jogging over she slows, "Oi, Orchid. How are ye...." and she spots two people... Not knowing these two, she is on call now, and ready at a moments notice. As she studies the person, she nods to Kotone, "Hello Kotone," she adds as she nods, "Interesting attire," she says and she does have a very heavy Scottish accent when she talks. Currently, she is wearing a simple sundress that is lavender in color and reaches to her knees, simple shoes, an armlet on her left bicept and a pair of simple green stud earrings.

Rhongomyniad has posed:
    Ever since the emergence of Vortigern, England has had a hotline to alert the authorities of any strange goings-on. Most reports are monsters, of course. Wolfmen, the odd wyvern, maybe a zombie or three, drawn out of hiding by the White Dragon of Britain and not having the sense to go back into hiding when said Tyrant was banished.

    Oddly dressed people arguing in a field? Yeah that's also gonna prompt a hotline call from the family owning that house.

    And, being in the area to survey a local power station with a certain comrade of hers, the resident guardian King Arthur sees little wrong with investigating personally. Although it is not one who is easily recognized as the King of Knights who crests that hilltop-- Today's Goddess Rhongomyniad is clad in a sharp black suit with a dark blue undershirt and tie, a fur-lined mantle about her shoulders. She still wears the distinctive crown, and her eyes glow like jewels even at this distance.

    "Mm," she intones. Turning slightly, the King of the Britons gestures while addressing her companion, "I see before me misplaced travelers. What do you make of this sight, King of Inventors?"

Thomas Alva Edison (6660) has posed:
    Edison, as always, is dressed like...Edison.

    Standing next to Rhongomyniad, as he observes the odd travelers. The large barrel chested man, with a face of a lion and body built as if he lifted everyday for years takes a thoughtful look, hand coming to his chin as he gives a long 'hmmm'.

    "I do not think we're dealing with ordinary adventurers...given the outfit of those assembled here." he says, and taking a look at Ereshkigal's companion, "Religious, I'd say." He says, with a slightly disdainful tone. "They do not look threatening, but appearances can be decieving. We should probably figure out why they are here, and help them get to where they are going...or handle it as needed." He says, bringing his hand down. "Diplomatically, of course."

    "So, I suppose we should say hi."

Archer has posed:
     A grey shirt, black slacks, and a pair of stylish glasses. This is the ensemble of the Heroic Spirit who may or may not be known as Emiya Shirou. Even his normally slicked back hair is different, left untouched as if he just got out of bed. It is an aggressively casual look, but a casual look is what one should have when doing mundane chores like grocery shopping.

     In one hand he holds a styrofoam cup of what is presumably coffee, in the other, a bag full of assorted vegetables and fruits. Food shopping here has become a bit of a hobby for Archer, given that the place is the closest to what he remembers when he was alive. Granted it's not exactly the same, but it beats the pale imitations in Moon Cell.

     As he passes Ereshkigal and the strange white robed man, Archer comes to a stop. He probably shouldn't. He should probably just keep on going and pretend he saw nothing. But a power beyond his control compels him. Compels him to comment. Compels him dig himself a grave right here and now.

     "Nice outfit, I assume you're heading to some sort of cosplay convention considering there's no way someone would dress like this here."

     Archer takes a sip of his drink, feeling better now that he's said this.

Ereshkigal (6917) has posed:
     Ereshkigal looks at the crew imperiously, although her shorter stature means most of them are taller than her. Her gaze falls on Orchid's motorcycle, a puzzled look then filling her red eyes. Behind her, the young man in the robe steps forward, even when Archer mentions cosplay. Affronted - in a sense - Ereshkigal responds to him directly. "What is a cosplay? I am dressed as I always am. There are those that should be glad they are like me."

     "My goddess..." The man cuts in. "Please, I am sorry. We are lost - and I am her messenger, Namtar. This is my lady, queen of Kur, goddess of the underworld, Ereshkigal."

     "Why are so many of you funny looking?" Ereshkigal inquires, even as Namtar sighs. "That's a walking lion. We never had walking lions. There are many mysteries of the divine, though. Ishtar would probably do something silly looking like that, although she'd probably use something ..." A snort as she looks up to the sky. "Why are they talking to me, anyways?"

     Namtar just has this look that says, 'ah, here she goes.' "My lady, please. They can hear you."

Mairead Sandilands has posed:
    Blinking, MAiread raises an eyebrow as she looks at everyone, "Ereshkigal? Goddess of the Underworld?" she asks. "Never heard of ye," she responds as she looks at the man in robes, "Ye are a man of the cloth yes?" she asks him. "Namtar right?" she adds. "If ye ar elost, what are the two of ye looking for?

Rhongomyniad has posed:
    "Mm," Rhongomyniad makes that thoughtful noise as she processes Edison's response, "Diplomatically it is. It would seem that Gan Jiang and a handful of others from within our organization have already engaged in discourse. Shall we, then?"

    The besuited King does not wait for a response, and simply descends the hillside into the field with a smooth gait. As she approaches, she spreads her hands to either side, "Welcome to England, travelers. I am the goddess Rhongomyniad, the Tower that Shines at the End of the World. Should you wish for direction, I may be of assistance."

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa says "Hey Mairead."

She now pauses looking at the woman for a moment even as Archer and Edison arrives. She looks to Ereshkigal and her companion for a moment.

"I see Namatar."

She bows slightly given the multivese there is a decent chance when someoner says they are a god they might be. Given this earth the odds are even higher of that and politeness costs nothing. She looks to Ereshkigal for a moment trying to size her up.

"We can see you Ereshkigal, it would be rude to talk like your not here, when we can see you."

Orchid (6384) has posed:
     Okay, it looks like a bigger crowd than Orchid expected has gathered... She nods in turn to those she knows; Kotone, Mairead, Edison, Archer, and Rhongomyniad.

     "Goddess of the underworld?" she muses. Is there another Other Side to this world? Still, the robot shakes her head a little. "Well, you looked interesting," she answers Erreshkigal's retorical question. "Judging by place names... Hmmm." As far as she's concerned, 'god' is just someone with much more power than she currently has. Due some respect, unless they turn out to be a jerk. "As for funny looking, did you want one of these?'
     Orchid pulls out something. Something possibly horrible.

     A clown spider. Complete with little red nose.

Thomas Alva Edison (6660) has posed:
    "Mm.." He responds to Rhon, but does not dally walking beside her.

    "Yes, I have a lion's head," Edison says, not skipping a beat, "I am Thomas Alva Edison, Presiking of the United States of America and King of Inventors. Do not worry about the head, I am still every bit the genius I was in life." he says, hearing the name.

    "Ereshkigal? Goddess of Death..?" Edison says, thinking. Pulling out a phone he types something in, before releasing a sigh. He was right, and he knows where THIS is going.

    "Sumerian Goddess of the dead, specifically." he says, with a very measured tone.

    "Yes hello, welcome to this world, you appear to be new. What, if I can ask, are you doing here?"

Archer has posed:
     "Kur...Ishtar...Ereshkigal...Ah. So it's like that. I understand now."

     Archer, being the helpful individual that he is, doesn't exactly explain WHAT he understands. Just that he does. And whatever it is he understands causes him to just take an even longer sip from his cup that nearly borders into full on chugging.

     Edison is quick to figure it out though, so thankfully it seems he doesn't need to explain anything after all.

Ereshkigal (6917) has posed:
     Ereshkigal sniffs. "Of course not." She says, irritably. "Most heard about my ... sister..." She practically snips the word- "Ishtar, goddess of the sky. She was allowed to roam as free as what she was named for, but I was restricted to my land - the land of the dead. For I am the queen of those that have passed, their caretaker. I judge those that have passed, and strip them of all they were, for in the underworld, in death, there is none higher than myself."

     Orchid distracts her as Ereshkigal sweeps in to examine the clown spider.

     Namtar sighs. "Yes, we were trying to go to Denmark... Mother says the name of one she knows, that of their ruler, Gilgamesh, was one she saw, although she could not get the screen open on this... thing to show me what she did see." A pause. "Ah, yes, I should note: I am the messenger god and child of Ereshkigal."

     "If we could be shown the way, that would be kind and generous of you."

Thomas Alva Edison (6660) has posed:
    Edison, during all of this holds his phone up to take a picture of Ereshkigal, specifically to send to Gilgamesh.

    Hearing all of this, and eventually putting the phone away, he frowns a little. He does /not/ like most gods. Rhon and Gil are the most exceptions he can stand, but this one is proooobably not an exception to the rule.

    "I am not particularly concerned with your title," he says, after a moment, "However, I am sure most of us can do more than point you to Denmark, but we can take you there ourselves. Gilgamesh is part of the Paladins, and we have regular contact with him. Infact, he is already aware of your existance."

Mairead Sandilands has posed:
    Looks, "I know King Gilgamesh. Well we all know of him. Nice fellow," she mentions as she curtsey's,"Welcome to England Ma'am," she adds as she looks at the two. "Denmark is a wee distance off," she comments.

    Nodding, she looks, "Aye, I could fly ye there if necessary," she mentions. "But there is a warp gate nearby that can take us there as well."

Orchid (6384) has posed:
     The clown spider waves cheerfully at Ereshkigal. There is a high pitched squeaking, as it forms a teeny-tiny baloon animal, a sumatran tiger.
     "Yes, I know Gilgamesh," Orchid adds in. "But I am curious, have any robots wound up in your kingdom yet?" At this range it is more clear that Orchid is a reploid.

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa looks to the goddess Ereshkigal and listens intely she's clealyr trying to show a measure of respect here.

"I think we can help with that as Mr. Edison has said, I could likely give us a ride there if I had a moment to call my ship." She notes, and then Orchid asks about robot souls, she can't help but smile faitly she should have guessed that was coming.

Rhongomyniad has posed:
    "Mm," Rhongomyniad makes that thoughtful noise once more, lowering her hands to her sides. The mantle closes in around her shoulders, obscuring her body down to her thighs in white fluff, "Yes, this is something that each of us is capable of assisting with. I maintain a strong alliance with the King of Heroes. He has been invaluable to me."

    In more ways than just banishing a dragon tyrant or quashing an uprising.

    "Transport can be arranged, as many have offered. Contact may also be offered, as the PresiKing states. But I must inquire, Goddess Ereshkigal-- Why do you seek the King of Heroes?"

    If her voice wasn't that level monotone and her face that impassive stare, the context of that question might have come off as hostile.

Archer has posed:
     "Well while the other people help you get situated with meeting with the King of Denmark, mind if I see your phone for a second? Your incompetency with electronics personally offends me."

     Archer's voice is extremely dry and devoid of any real emotion outside of sarcasm, but he probably means what he says, given that he's currently placing his bag and cup on the ground and motioning for them to place the cellphone in his hand.

     "Come on now."

Ereshkigal (6917) has posed:
     Ereshkigal blinks a bit at the picture, but Edison mostly just gets a confused look. She doesn't really get what that was for, but doesn't seem to care. A pause as she looks at Namtar, who looks just as confused. They both, however, turn to look at Mairead in near eery unison. The look says '... did she just say Gilgamesh was nice? */What?/*

     A pause, then Namtar explains to Rhongomyniad. "Ereshkigal knows of Gilgamesh, and Ishtar is not very fond of him, so as a result, Ereshkigal likes him, as much as she likes anyone she's never actually met due to her restriction to the underworld. Mother and Lady Ishtar do not get along very well."

     "After all, Lady Ishtar got the whole world under her feet." A sigh. "This is the first day Ereshkigal has ever seen the sun."
Namtar does hand over the phone to Archer, though, neither he nor Ereshkigal thinking much of it.

Mairead Sandilands has posed:
    Blinking at this, "Ye mean that ye have never seen the sun?" she asks as she looks at the two of them "Than we must take ye on a tour of the world above. Correct King Rhongomyniad and Presiking Edison."she asks them as she looks at the two. "I find that hard to believe that ye have never looked to the sky or the sun," she adds. This is new to her, so she is going to make remars like this. Plus, Ereshkigal is probably close to Mairead's height, as Mairead is 5'6" tall.

Thomas Alva Edison (6660) has posed:
    "So the enemy of my enemy," Edison says, shaking his head. Great, a goddess, and apparently a /dangerous/ one at that. Though, hearing this is the first time she's seen the sun is...actually kinda sympathetic. "Really? That is awful. Also, I took a picture to show to Gilgamesh." Edison says, taking his phone out and showing Ereshkigal how it works. Because this will not end awful for everyone involved.

Rhongomyniad has posed:
    "It stands to reason that a goddess of the Underworld would be involved in her work," Rhongomyniad states to Mairead, "And thus have little opportunity to venture to the world above." Those glowing green eyes return to the goddess and her attendant. Her response is just as measured, "I see. This appears to be a natural way of things."

    So Rhongomyniad seems to understand the concept of 'sisters bickering', somehow.

    Her eyes travel to Archer when he demands the goddess' phone, and she makes one of those thoughtful noises she's so known for. Head tilting down, she shifts, then pulls a smartphone from a pocket in her own suit, "Oh. Then perhaps when you are through with Ereshkigal's device, I may ask you to assist with mine, Gan Jiang. Its intricacies escape me, although I understand it to be a rather important device in this age with a great many uses."

    No, it never occurred to her to ask the electrical genius next to her about it.

Orchid (6384) has posed:
     "First days... yeah, that was an overwhelming day," Orchid says, remembering. The clown spider looks up at its mistress, then back down. A pause of her own. "Gilgamesh is the sort of person you can both love and hate," she admits. "Sometimes helpful, sometimes frustrating. Rarely boring, I can tell you that."

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa has made her offer to Ereshkigal and will leave it to let her make her choice of what to do and frowns.

"You mean you were never allowed to see the world of the living at all?" She sounds quite sympathetic too. She watches as Archer goes to work likely cleaning up the Goddess phone of who knows what kind of keyloggers or worse that have managed to worm their way on to it.

"First days can be overwhelming, it's true.

"I think that the most reasonable desception of The King of Heroes I head in a while.

"You will be anything but bored hanging around with him."

Archer has posed:
     Archer slides his fingers across the surface of Ereshkigal's phone. At first he sees what you might expect from some one who doesn't understand modern phones. But it doesn't stop. Pages and pages of worthless apps, more than what would any sane person would need. Does this girl literally just download anything that pops up, or was it all accidental?

     Whatever the case, this phone is beyond saving now, the only thing left to potentially salvage it is to just start back at square one. Checking the model of Ereshkigal's phone, Archer quickly pulls out his to fact check something before he begins the process of factory resetting it. He doesn't even bother asking the goddess for her password, opting to use the forbidden black knowledge of skipping that process just to make things go by faster.

     "Well, I pray you didn't have anything important on here. Given the fact that you have probably downloaded half the apps in existence though, I doubt you knew what you were doing to begin with."

     Archer makes another snide remark as he begins the process of setting up the device again, downloading the basic essentials. Most importantly though however is a map application, which he leaves as the very first app on the screen.

     "All right. Now listen to me carefully please, explaining things more than once gives me a migraine. You see this application right here? You push this, insert the address of where you want to go, and it will automatically map out directions based on where you are? That easy to understand"

     Not trusting the Goddess of Death, Archer instead explains this to Namtar, as he seems a lot more trustworthy with this information.

Ereshkigal (6917) has posed:
     "... I was not allowed." Ereshkigal says to Mairead, quietly. "It was against the very law they set upon me... it would be dereliction of my duty." AS much as she's pretty chill (and lazy, as she is wont to be), her job is her job, and she does it... even if she grumbles a bit.

     Namtar nods. "I am her messenger, since she was not allowed to leave. It is why I am accompanying her now." The more world-wise priest-like god leans in towards Archer, gravely taking in the information. "Thank you. I will teach her this later."

     "... perhaps I could work with the Paladins, if all of you are there and so is Gilgamesh. Yes. My skills will be good."

Mairead Sandilands has posed:
    Mairead nods, "If ye want, I would be happy to help ye adjust to the world and offer my services as a friend to assist as needed," she states to Ereshkigal. "And I am sorry ye were not able to enjoy life, we will have to figure out a way for ye to have some fun." she adds.

Archer has posed:
     "Knights of the Round, the ghosts of deceased warships, an American president with a lion head, and now a Goddess of Death. Feels like the Paladins is less of a peace keeping group and more a collection of weirdos at times."

     The nameless hero muses to himself for a bit.

     "Well anyway, I was going to give my number in case you somehow managed to horribly ruin your phone again, but if you're going to be joining up with the Paladins I suppose that isn't needed."

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone is wise to one thing life in the paladins is going to get even more interesting for the Paladins and doubly for Gil, amd she seems okay withj that, though it may come back to haunt her.

"Maybe we can later help you get out and enjoy yourself a bit more once your settled in."

She looks to Archer for a moment.

"Given what crawls about the multiverse a collection of weirdos like us might just be what's needed."

Rhongomyniad has posed:
    "Mm," Rhongomyniad makes that noise again. Her device is lowered, disappearing back into her mantle and presumably the pocket she had procured it from, "But that law no longer binds you. And I sense no clear urge to bring harm to humans within either of you. This is my endorsement as Goddess of Chivalry, I have no objection to your inclusion within the Paladins. Although the ultimate decision I feel belongs to the Grandmaster, I do not feel that there will be much difficulty in doing so."

    Her eyes travel to Archer again. There's the slightest change to the angle of her eyebrows, "...Knights of the Round are strange?" Her gaze lowers, a hand lifting to cradle her chin thoughtfully. She ALMOST looked slightly put off by that comment, although the King's emotional expressions are always so subtle that most are likely to miss them.

    "...Mm."

Ereshkigal (6917) has posed:
     Archer does his thing. Namtar will profusely thank him later. "Yes. This is many firsts for Ereshkigal. Sun, sky. Grass beneath her feet... food." The gods' tone is pretty wry as he discusses this with the rest of the group, even as Ereshkigal continues to bounce between conversation and finding Orchids little spider curiously adorable. "However, we should really be headed towards Denmark. It is probably for the best. Thank you all. Where is this... warp gate, and how does it work?"

     Once informed, Namtar takes Ereshkigal by the arm and escorts her off, allowing todays' Englandmergency to fade.

     Both do say 'goodbye' nicely enough, at least.