3390/A Little Get-Together

A Little Get-Together
Date of Scene:	14 November 2015
Location:	The Bastion
Synopsis:	Brunch is held at the Bastion, questions are asked and plans are made.
Cast of Characters:	Kotone Yamakawa, Priscilla, Starbound Flotilla, 673, The Kid, 822

---

The Kid has posed:
    The Bastion had been built on the highest point of The City. 'Always in sight, always in mind,' the Mancers and Masons had said. It was always on the skyline, so the population would always know where to go in case of trouble.

    These days, it still is the highest landmark on the horizon, floating adrift in the sky.

    A warpgate had manifested there, making for a convenient entrance for the flight-impaired. A wooden fence had been built around it, with a small gate even more recently added. There is a sign on it, with writing that the translation effect claims to say, 'Please keep closed,' along with the etching of a bull's head.

    Past the gate, and it's just a short uphill walk along grassy earth to reach The Bastion proper. Clearly, the three inhabitants have done their best to make the place homely. Three tents have been pitched all around, an outhouse and rainwater shower have been constructed and laundry is hanging from a line that is dangerously close to the edge.

    Efforts have also been made to welcome the inbound guests. Long tables have been set up, groaning under the weight of food and drink. For the former, there is a big simmering bowl of what looks like chowder, but packed with fruit instead. Sliced meat alongside hard biscuits and a gravy boat. A bowl of green fruits with spiky protuberances, and some kind of macaroon for dessert.

    The drinks table is just loaded with all sorts of bottles, likely taken from The Distillery, the middle building. All sorts of strange bottles are lined up, along with assorted glasses. There is also a pot of tea and bottles of water for the less alcohol-inclined.

    The nameless youth is nowhere to be seen, but the sound of metal against a grindwheel comes from the far building. Thankfully, Rucks and Zulf are waiting to greet everyone. The former stands from a chair before a campfire (the wind is pretty chilly up here after all) and says, "Howdy everyone. Thanks for comin' to this little shindig. It'll be good to sit down with ya when things ain't so hectic."

    He gestures at the refreshments. "Feel free to help yerself. If ya had any questions about anythin', I'll do my best to answer. About The Bastion, Caelondia, the Cores... anythin' ya like. The Ura though? You might be best served askin' Zulf." He gestures towards the foreign diplomat and fellow survivor.

Rory White (673) has posed:
    Rory doesn't really trust this world. walking on FLOATING LAND is always going to have her a bit worried. So she beams down from her ship floating even higher than the Bastion! So high up it can't even be seen.

    She emerges from the teleport-flash dressed in white robes, blue hair unbound and flowing behind her back. She's putting forth her best smile.. and bows respectfully towards Rucks ad Zulf alike.

    "Finally, we meet in peace and quiet!" Grind, grind grind..

    Rory turns to look over at the source of the distant sounds.. the continues "Relatively speaking. This is the real base of operations?"

    She's carrying a stick. What looks like a stick, anyways. With a single press it unfolds, unfolds, unfolds some more... it's a very, very futuristic lawn chair. Doubles as a walking stick, maybe!

    The metamaterial fiber-weave tarp is so thin it's translucent, but she seats herself just fine in it. "The first priority would be discussing survival needs and operations... but the source of this calamity and the ongoing conflict are definitely important. I would like to collect everyone's stories for historical reasons, but... priorities. Again, I'm Rory White, a traveling researcher and machinist with the Argonauts. Our technology is very different from Caelondian and likely Ura fare. You might consider some of them miracle machines. It may help your rebuilding cause. Although... how you would rebuild in the SKY, that I don't know. This making-a-path-as-you-go trick your champion has is... well, chaotic."

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa has had a very long severla motnhjs it's over but she's looking worn out what is new for the Kid and his companions? Kotone's wearing something far more modest than the nearly form fitting stealth suit she tended to wear when she expected trouble. She seemed to be worn but she's looked better than she has in the last few encouters.

She was taking a look about and nods to the kid for a moment smiling a bit she also gives a wave and grin to Rucks and Zulf.

"I'll let the people who need the food and drink go first, I'm just hopeful I can do something to help. I'm a mechanic who took to advenutingering so I'm not just a gun for hire if you need help repairing thing though a lot of your world's machinery is alien to what I'm used to."

Priscilla has posed:
    With the massive crusade to save Lordran finally completed, and the political situation afterwards mostly settled, or at least enough to leave in Solaire's hands for the time being, Priscilla has finally regained some measure of time to spare to engaged in the affairs of other worlds once again. Aside from the fact that it's nice to step out of Anor Londo after a couple of weeks of constant drama, she can't slack off on her duties as a member of the Union while hoping to get anything out of them on name alone. That would be awful.

    Oddly enough, despite her time in the multiverse, this is her first time encountering the 'floating continent' type of deal, and so she spends an inordinate amount of time staring off the edge, trying to figure out exactly how this works. She's showed up in the white and gold rather than the demure fluff, in what might be a frequent change of outfits, though deigned to leave the crown at home for many reasons. Politely, she shuts the kind of silly gate behind her, closely examining the bull's head for any signs of its significance before greeting Rucks. "Well met, Sir . . . ?" she trails off deliberately, prompting a name. "Archlord Priscilla, queen of Anor Londo to be precise, but there is no need of titles here. I serve the Union. Unfortunately, thou may need to relate all of these things to me. This is the first opportunity in quite a while that I hath been able to 'step out'."

    The sound of a grindwheel is unmistakable after having lived next to, and sporadically used, forging equipment, and so she has some idea right off the bat that this isn't an entirely peaceful operation. She glances aside to Rory oddly at the word 'calamity', something flashing in her eyes.

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    The Starbound Flotilla is here! They're... Kinda beat up. They all look a little sore, like they've been through some fighting -- Biteblade, especially -- but they all meander on in in that friendly way they do, chatting between themselves and at Rucks while they take their seats and start digging in.

"Heya, gramps. Heard there was a party."
"We heard there was a gathering of sorts, rather, and that representatives of our organization had taken an interest in this project."
"Polite. Greetings, thank you for hosting, sir."
"Hi! How isss? Floran not know what happensss right now to bussst up world, but Floran sssit down, eat, lisssten for what sssay, figure out as Floran go."
"Aye, thank ye for havin' us. Sounds like yer in need of some help. Here to see if helpin' ye would point me to some loot!"
"Mh." Albert's not saying anything, just grunting a greeting while he sits.

Zen (822) has posed:
    When Rucks mutters his name, Zulf's eyes shoot open. He glances around a moment as if he might be expecting to see someone else, but in the end he only finds The Kid. Who else might he have been expecting...? He can't say, though he can wish - and he does quite frequently - that he might find someone else there. Someone in particular. Someone that he's still intent to find.

    It doesn't take him very long to relax, though, and by the time Kotone looks his way he's likely wearing another of his too natural, tired smiles. He raises one hand in a wave whilst the other meanders to rub at his left eye. He gets to looking over the rest of the group in time, but he seems to fade in and out of awareness, eyes flitting between the members of the Flotilla one moment and a short series of battered islets the next. If left alone long enough he eventually lifts his pipe from its place at the base of the crate he's seated on, studying his reflection in it. Throughout it all, though, he does not speak.

    It looks like the shock from before has finally worn off, allowing the reality of his situation to truly sink in. As such, he's probably not going to say very much on his own initiative. Ah, but that's not to say people can't coax sociability out of him -- the group did well enough with that last time, anyway.

The Kid has posed:
    Rucks smiles in recognition at Rory, his waxed moustache bristling. Even in the post-apocalypse, good facial hair grooming is key. "It's good to see ya again Miss White. Thanks for comin'." He too, looks in the direction of the grinding and sighs. "Kid wanted to tend to his gear. Told him we had guests, but his manners ain't so great sometimes."

    He stares as her walking stick suddenly unfolds into a chair, letting out a dry chuckle. "Wish mine could do that," is all he says, taking a seat of his own upon a pile of stone bricks. Listening close to Rory's spiel, he eventually responds after a moment's thought. "We'll be happy to swap stories with ya. But we just recently swapped 'em with each other, so give us some time to get the taste back for it." He drums his fingers on his cane softly. "Your offer is kind but... don't you worry. The Bastion was The Mancer's pride and joy, their greatest project. I know that what you've seen don't look so impressive but... it's the key to everything. We just gotta get it workin' right."

    He looks to Kotone, nodding in recognition to her as well. "Mechanic? So you work with machines huh?... Well, that would be mighty helpful. The Bastion has a lot of machines below deck. Can barely make heads or tails of it. This is only the tip of the iceberg." He raps his cane against the brass Monument in the centre of the structure. "I can show ya if ya want."

    Priscilla draws quite a look from the old man. "Never seen the likes of you before," he remarks. "But you're welcome all the same." He lets out a throaty chuckle as Priscilla introduces herself. "Good thing too. We were never much for titles either. Call me Rucks. This place ain't exactly fit for a queen, but make yourself at home regardless."

    If Rucks thought Priscilla was strange, the Flotilla is stranger still! The old man stares for a long moment before collecting himself. "Welcome to The Bastion. Call me Rucks," he says. He's got their sort pegged already. "Sellswords? 'fraid our currency ain't no good, but if you want to loot places before they collapse as payment, go ahead." The food is... strange. That chowder seems to be made of the green fruits! It's tangy, slightly sour but sweet too! The meat tastes not entirely unlike seasoned lamb, and the biscuits are like rocks unless it's been smothered in that gravy.

    Finally, that grinding comes to an end, and the door to the Forge swings open. It's the Kid, examining the edge of that wicked machete he has before slipping it back into a cloth sheath. He looks up to see the guests.

    And only then does he realize he's wearing boxers, but not pants.

    Said boxers are white, with a little image of a bull's head on them. He stares for a moment before dashing and rolling into his tent, which shakes a little as he hunts for and pulls on pants.

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa looks to Zulf and sees he looks about as tired as she does. She will likely try to drag him out to be social in a bit she's just getting a feel for the bastion. At the reaction to her bing a mechanic. She looks to Rucks and is serious about it.

"I'll do what I can, but I make no promises with it, though at the least if things re physically breaking we likely could swap parts at least. I will be happy to take a look when you got a moment."

She looks to Priscilla, she's heard of her but not actually really run into her. She bows a little to the half dragon just out of this feeling it be a good idea. Then the Flotilla shows up and she looks to them for a moment tiling her head a bit.

"Salvage is good and honestly trust me on this they might be able to take half the area up as salvage."

Also hearing Priscilla's station she was very might right to bow it seems.

She also gives a look to Rory for a moment.

"Even just reporcessing building materials would be good."

Zen (822) has posed:
    When The Kid emerges from the armory (and promptly retreats back inside), Zulf at first only seems to notice him out of the corner of his eye, but after taking a few seconds to realize what just happened even -he- is forced to focus back in on reality somewhat. The hand cradling the pipe slumps and his mouth hangs open a moment in sheer awe. As a diplomat, you really don't get to see this clumsy, candid side of people more often; everyone is too guarded for that, and sometimes it's like you're constantly engaged in a game of mental chess. Small wonder that he would only, really, earnestly get to see this side of someone, someone he hardly even knew, after Armageddon had struck.

    Zulf starts laughing. He doesn't know why, exactly, but it certainly isn't out of malice. He laughs and keeps laughing until he has to cover his mouth to suppress the sound. Out of embarrassment or perhaps sympathy, he eventually ducks his head to muffle the sound further. It's only after a long several moments of this decidedly out-of-character outburst that he finally reigns himself in, taking a deep breath and slowly, carefully calming his voice to the final series of chuckles that reverberate before one finally settles back into their normal state of being. In the end, he gives a shake of his head and briefly rests his forehead in his hand.

    "This sort of thing never happens when it's just us here," He says. "Makes me glad of the company." His smile is back, and it seems much brighter, much more genuine now. Finally standing, he rests his palm against his chest, inclining his body in a bow toward the whole of the group. "I've already been introduced, I know, but for those of you I have yet to meet: I am Zulf. It's a pleasure to meet you, and to see you all again."

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
"Oh, aye, not enough cash. Understand, definitely."
"Poly over there figures if everyone's dead then nobody will mind the looting, that's pay enough for her."
"Yarharhar!"
"Concerned. Your world is... Incredibly damaged. I have little interest in profit beyond what is necessary to maintain our equipment and keep healthy. I was not aware of the extent to which everything was damaged, but if I can, I do wish to help."

"Ah, but we are being rude. We should introduce ourselves. I am Moonfin."
"Floran isss Biteblade!"
"Cap'n Pavo"
"Polite. I am called Seft."
"Name's Xanthar."
"Annoyed. His name is George."
"Captain Albert Petrov."

    They regard the Kid after their introductions, and his shenanigans. Only Biteblade seems to react in any major way to him, due to his slip-up, and she does it by eagerly waving a lot! "Hiiiii! Oh, you roll away now. Byyyyyye!" She waves goodbye to him too! "Floran think, you cool. Have voice like yummy meat. Floran wanna go help cuz' that." Biteblade says, turning back to Ru<span style="color:ks.

    "cxterm160">So, gramps, sounds like you got a plan to deal with the whole 'blown up planet' situation. I've got some interest in whatever you figure out, if that's cool with you.</span>" George says, grinning as he digs into the chowder kinda messily. "So, way I heard it was you're going around looking for some macguffins to power this place up. We're pretty good at finding stuff, getting bases like this working, that kinda stuff. I'm more interested in seeing what goes on."

Priscilla has posed:
    Priscilla makes a half-smiling gesture as the carefully seats herself, not ill-meaning, but getting better at the particular facial expression only very slowly. "It is alright. I hath been a queen for all of two weeks now. I am certain I shalt not be demanding down cushions for at least another month." She doesn't want to seem impolite after the people here in such meagre affairs have gone through all the effort to make this much food for them, so she starts of small while she still wishes to be able to talk with any frequency, picking up one of the prickly fruits and producing her dagger with a shimmer of air and a sibilant ringing. The silvered, strangely organic and heavily etched blade is unusually unnerving to look at, but she seems to be oblivious of it until she starts peeling the skin, only to find the inside turning to black slush. A flicker of a frown passes over her face, before she puts away the weapon and takes out a more mundane ebon knife from Skyrim and exchanges the fruit for another.

    "I shalt likely not be here terribly long, so trouble thineself no further than the commendable efforts thou hast already gone to in order to provide for strangers. I am to understand that Caelondia is the name of this particular world, but I wouldst like to hear more of this Bastion, these Cores, and this 'Calamity'." The particular word leaving her mouth is accompanied by an unsettling sound, something like a deep chime or a backwards scream reverberating far in the distance. This oddity she seems to be aware of, and hurries on to cover it up. "The Ura art . . . some manner of organization Sir Zulf belongs to?" She glances to said Ura, immediately recognizing the look of someone coming down from the blase high of recent shock, shaking her head faintly. "I cannot particularly blame someone for wishing to maintain vital equipment, though I wouldst be glad to meet him regard-" she cuts off as she catches sight of The Kid from the corner of her eye, and then swiftly averts her gaze, blushing the faintest shade. "Whence he is ready."

    "Well met, Sir Zulf." she greets the Ura, glad for any change of topic. "Is it truly only the three of thee here? What of any others?" She blinks at George. "'Blown up'? This flying island business is not natural in origin? I am gravely mistaken then."

Rory White (673) has posed:
    "You can have one if you like." Rory offers helpfully to Rucks. "They are powered by sunlight." She's distrated, momentarily, by the Kid coming out missing some critical attire... and blinks a bit at that. No blushing. No embarassment. More confused than anything. But Zulf busting out in laughter, THAT gets her smiling.

    LAughter is good! Particularly in ugly scenarios like this. "Good day, Mr. Zulf. My apologies for the other day. Would you like a chair too?

    "Well... to business then. How are your stores of food, water, and medicines? Tools? And what plans could I aid you with? Tracking down more survivors seems like a priority, since they'll only be near the floating Cores if they are and the Cores power alone appears to be unstable compared to the Bastion."

Rory White (673) has posed:
    "You can have one if you like." Rory offers helpfully to Rucks. "They are powered by sunlight." She's distrated, momentarily, by the Kid coming out missing some critical attire... and blinks a bit at that. No blushing. No embarassment. More confused than anything. But Zulf busting out in laughter, THAT gets her smiling.

    LAughter is good! Particularly in ugly scenarios like this. "Good day, Mr. Zulf. My apologies for the other day. Would you like a chair too?"

    "Well... to business then. How are your stores of food, water, and medicines? Tools? And what plans could I aid you with? Tracking down more survivors seems like a priority, since they'll only be near the floating Cores if any remain, and the Cores power alone appears to be unstable compared to the Bastion."

The Kid has posed:
    Rucks nods to Kotone. "That's all we ask. We don't plan to mess around much down there. But if somethin' breaks, we got spare parts lying around." Her comment of how the Flotilla could strip an entire area for salvage makes him raise his eyebrows though. "How?"

    As Zulf laughs for the first time in a while, it brings a smile to the old man's face. The diplomat had been in poor spirits ever since he arrived. Not that Rucks could blame him. After a moment, Kid emerges with pants on, and proceeds to act like nothing ever happened. Just fixes himself a drink and takes a seat, knocking it back.

    George's rather rude comment goes uncommented on. Maybe Caelondia was a place that encouraged a thick skin? "That's a nice way of puttin' it," he says to Seft. Thanks for the offer." He nods to each member in turn, repeating their names to remember them. He also chortles at George's false moniker. "Heh. People always said things like that. Some things don't change," he comments to Biteblade. A long look is given to George before he says, "It ain't my plan. It's just what we were told. 'In case of trouble, get to The Bastion, and bring The Cores with you.'"

    He chews on one of those biscuits thoughtfully before adding. "Cores were like landmarks, just gotta get to 'em. The Calamity rerouted the Skyways, so the old routes don't work. Guess we could use the... warpgates? To send Kid out for 'em. Whatever would be faster."

    "Only queen for two weeks huh? Sounds like quite a story," he remarks to Priscilla. His eyes go wide when she conjures the blade, and even wider when it spoils the vineapple. Kid looks from it to his drink, which may or may not be his fifth today. "'Fraid we don't know much," Rucks says, ignoring the feeling of dread that Priscilla somehow crams the world 'Calamity' full of. "One day, everything was gone." When Priscilla asks of the others, both Rucks' and Kid's faces fall. "So far, it's just us," Kid says, finally chiming in. "Yeah. The Calamity made whatever it didn't destroy, fly," he adds.

    Rory's offer snaps Rucks out of his funk. "Oh. Nah, that's all right. Quite attached to this old thing," he says, squeezing his brass cane. "Stores are decent enough, and Kid always tries to bring more back when he goes out. The Bastion will give us all the tools we need if we feed it Cores." At the mention of tracking more survivors... a curious expression crosses the old man's face. Regret, but also flint-heartedness. "Cores come first. If we find more survivors, great. But The Bastion has to be completed."

Zen (822) has posed:
    "A race," Zulf replies to Priscilla. "We are a people who live on the other side of the wilds, far to the Northeast. There was, admittedly, some friction between us and the Caels - that's the race good sir Rucks belongs to - but it's my hope that the calamity will serve to galvanize all of humanity toward a common cause. Best that we try to make -something- good of all this horror. So that all the rest of us will have died for something. And yet..." His eyelids droop a moment. "... and yet I can't say with any certainty whether any of my countrymen still walk the Earth." He's quiet a moment.

    "But I mustn't think that way. No -- my brethren possess all the ingenuity now that they always have. I'm sure that some of them survived. And I'm sure that, if the Bastion withstood the Calamity, that the Tazal Terminals must have as well. So yes, you will meet more of us some day, have many opportunities to see all that we've built. I would be glad to be your guide, too, if you should ever feel so inclined to explore our culture more deeply." As confident as he tries to sound, it's obvious that he's trying to convince himself more than Priscilla. His words roll with a sort of desperation that would, especially for Priscilla, be impossible to mistake.

    Though here he is, completely forgetting that he's engaged in an actual conversation. 'Is it really just the three of you?' She had asked. At that, he gives a slight nod. "For now," He weakly comments. "I'm sure... there must be more out there, somewhere. There must be some reason why the three of us survived, mustn't there? Something... the world wants from us, perhaps? So all we need to do is find others like us, and... and soon we'll have a thriving community here. I'm sure of it." His smile soon begins to wane again.

    No he isn't.

    But then Rory greets him. He remembers her: she was there when he first met The Kid, and when he first came to the Bastion. He gives her another, faint bow of his head in greeting. She's 'sorry', though? He waves a hand dismissively. "Nonsense. I would have been entirely lost without your help. Never be sorry to me -- in fact, I am the one who should be apologizing to you. I never properly conveyed my gratitude, so please allow me to do so now. Thank you, Dame Rory, for allowing me to find refuge here." He repeats his earlier bow, letting it last a moment. As for how they're doing on supplies? He'll let Rucks or The Kid field that one in a more serious capacity, but for his part he lets a truly dismal, pitiable, and pained expression convey his feelings on the matter. "We have enough food," He comments. "I'll say far less of the quality of its preparation."

    He winces again in recollection. He's going to have to learn to cook one of these days for the sake of his own longevity.

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa watches at an amusing situation but she's able to not laugh at the whole situation but it seems that Zulf is getting an honest laugh in. She sees that it's not malicous at the least and leaves him to it. She looks over to the starbounders and tilts her head.

"You people never slow down do you as for the ruins Seft maybe we can do something about it."

Priscillia is watched she's curious about her but it's clear Kotone is hestant to go talk to her she is pretty imposing after all.

"Speaking of what you need I'm pretty sure we could help with food production pretty fast too and huh solar powered? As for how they'd do that?"

She pulls out her matter Manipulator.

"This, it's an salvaged bit of alien technology that can store materials very quickly. Mine's just a first attempt to reproduce it but the other? They can store a lot more, a heck of a lot more. What about small flying craft or those who can fly that might help right?"

Priscilla has posed:
    "It is, admittedly, quite a tale." Priscilla admits, humorously tired rather than overflowing with eagerness to tell it. "I believeth thine own to be more relevant for the time being though. This . . . incident." she pauses to make sure no weird effects happen. "Resulted in these pieces of land lifting off? Or in the collapse of everything else? Art these Cores some manner of device? Spell? How wilst we identify them going forward?" She bites into the perfectly normal vineapple, chewing it thoughtfully before continuing, letting slip no betrayal of expression at Rucks' reaction to the mention of survivors.

    "Such must be highly important to forgo the usual efforts of humanitarianism and relief. What precisely is its purpose? It wouldst seemeth only barely sustainable even for a small population. Thou speaketh of survivors, but art those unfortunate to be classed otherwise truly slain, or merely incapacitated or irretrievable in some fashion?" Zulf seems to have something of an answer to that last part though. "Thou hast mine apologies for the sore subject, Sir Zulf. I wouldst be more than happy to see such for mineself. If they art as ingenious as thou sayeth, I am certain they shalt be fine until we locate them.

Rory White (673) has posed:
    "My understanding of the situation is this." Rory White turns to explain to Priscilla. "An unknown disaster which I believe has military origins destroyed a large nation-state called Caelondia and seems to have agitated, if not endangered the Ura people as well. The Bastion uses energy-providing crystals called Cores as power. On their own the Cores appear to raise landmasses and remnants of the city. When combined with the Champion's city guard badge that's somehow linked to the Bastion, it is possible to forge temporary floating pathways through the ruins. The city's wreckage reassembles itself as he goes and falls apart in his wake. The going is rough and chaotic and impeded by both malfunctioning security systems and monsters. A small group of Ura are competing with us for the Cores. I hope we can make peaceful contact with them and cooperate instead."

    Rory shakes her head though, dismayed at the entire situation.

    "So it seems our goal is to retrieve the Cores before our competition does. I don't know how many we need or are available..." She blinks at Rucks. Maybe he can fill them in on that!

    She smiles at Zulf. "I made inappropriate comments, hence my apologies. I'm glad you are doing well here!"

    So finally she focuses on Rucks. "The nature of this destruction stymies all of my analysis attempts. It was not a simple explosion. And it seems to have had peculiar effects with the victims. Many became ashen statues, finely preserved... including their clothing. Meanwhile, the terrain was thoroughly obliterated... but not vaporized. It is more like an enormous jackhammer were used to break Caelondia apart down to its very foundations..."

Zen (822) has posed:
    Zulf answers Priscilla's sentiment with another series of small bobs of his head, though he does see fit to add in supplement, "And when we do I should hope they are the more understanding of us. Otherwise they may not wish to join us. Otherwise..." He stops, perhaps even biting his lip a moment. "It would be far better that we not have to suffer any more death and tragedy than the Calamity has already imposed upon us." And yet as much as the Calamity might have erased, it will never take away the memories of the people who yet live. In most cases that's a good, even beautiful thing, but when it comes to things like grudges, perhaps less so. At the thought, Zulf eyes his pipe. Seeing the kid on his fifth-some bottle, though, he thinks better of it.

    He's better than that. He's better than him.

    Nothing like a little 'competition' to take his mind off the desolation of reality.

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    "Yeah, I'm a nostalgia kinda guy, huh? Well, sounds like the best you got." George says, grinning. "No clue what it does? Eh, worth a shot, probably. Sure seems like there's trouble now." He kicks back a bit, shrugging!
    "Our allies are already hard at work in getting involved, from the sound of it." Moonfin says, dryly. "With the solution, of course, not the trouble. If rebuilding is your objective, we will be happy to assist; our skills as engineers, architects, salvagers, and miners may yet bring you some measure of relief." The fishman speaks up. He's partaking in the tea. And doing so with way, way too much ceremony and nobility there. "The matter of these 'Ura'." He turns to look to Zulf. "It sounds as though your ally would know the nature of the conflict best. Dealings with them seem like something I should speak to him about, when such a situation emerges."

    "Warm. I understand that you have a greater solution, and that we can assist more directly, through following your ally and assisting him. I am more curious about other immediate concerns. Our abilities are varied, and we can provide assistance in agriculture, resources, trade, combat, and similar matters. I know you have a solution that may function well for the greater problems, but do you face anything smaller in the more immediate sense that you would like to request the assistance of the Core Fleet for?" She's asking that to both Zulf and to Rucks, it seems! Her eye-visor flickers from '_' to ^_^ as she tries to offer a more generous perspective.

Zen (822) has posed:
    Zulf gives Rory a small shrug. "Bygones," He mutters, attempting to keep his smile strong. "If I'm being very frank, I don't entirely remember what you might've said to upset me. I suppose it's better that way, though, isn't it? This way we can start fresh, and you can talk to me without worrying." After a moment's pause, he concludes, "So it's fine." He can't think of any other conversational tangents to indulge with Rory for the moment, though, so after a few moments with his mouth hanging open and several more staring into space, his gaze transitions back to the Flotilla. Then after he's spoken to directly? He looks to Moonfin.

    Zulf -immediately-, by some devices even he couldn't distinguish, identifies Moonfin as a fellow diplomat. Something about the calculated way he speaks, his posture, the aura that swirls around his being; some things simply transcend race, he supposes, even species in this case. As such, the smile Zulf shares with the Hylotl man is absolutely genuine. Unfortunately, it's not allowed to last long before the weight of the subject coaxes his expression into something a bit more focused, a bit more serious.

    "Yes," He says, "I should like to be involved in whatever interactions we have with the Ura in the future, or at the least to provide you with advice so that you may be more effectual in negotiating with them. It is very important, though, that you understand that the disagreements between our peoples are still fairly recent. Fifty years ago -- it was just long enough for the grudge to become ingrained, but not long enough for all veterans of our feuds to have passed on. Many Ura will be amenable to cooperation, but I fear that others will be adamantly opposed to the idea of working with a Cael in any capacity whatsoever. You should all be under no illusions where that's concerned."

    And then there's Seft. She doesn't feel quite so familiar as Moonfin did, but she's... she's anything but an abrasive presence, even to him. A few layers of his emotional barding seem to melt away for the brief few moments in which he responds to her. His shoulders seem to relax, too. "Transportation," He says. "If the Skyway here ever stops working, we'll need some other way to reach the cores. Same with the cores themselves, actually -- I think Rucks can use the Bastion to find the cores right now, but if that ever stops working, you all are our only contingency plan. But assuming we never need your help with those sorts of things, we'll be relying on you for medical help, for scouting ahead, and for actually retrieving the cores. Definitely those last two things, especially if we run into any trouble." He only lasts a second before he cops a tiny smile, saying, "We -will- run into trouble."

Priscilla has posed:
    "Crystals then. I am gladdened to hear that such wouldst be easy to identify, as opposed to machinery or nebulous magic." Priscilla seems to be much more focused on what the Cores do and the reality of retrieving them than analyzing the situation as Rory does, sparing little thought for how they work or why. "How art thou aware that the Ura art competing for them if thou art unable to establish proper contact for the purpose of treaty or trade? Though regardless, I wouldst imagine them little disposed towards aiding thee, at least initially. Their minds may be changed whence this Bastion is operational and is able to aid them first." She chews her lip thoughtfully at 'ashen statues'. "So they art presumed dead, but not obviously so. If necessary, I may verify that fact for mineself." After all, it'd probably be fairly simple to tell if there's still a soul in those preserved bodies. Probably. "And on this matter of 'Skyway'?"

The Kid has posed:
    Looking to Kotone, Rucks shakes his head and gestures around at the landmass. "Food production? We ain't got the space for anythin' more than a little herb garden." He stares at the Matter Manipulator, but it's Kid who comments on it. "Could it store gear too?"

    Rucks meanwhile, starts to answer Priscilla's questions, but Rory gives a good answer first. Though he chips in with "Cores did a lot of things. They were the lifeblood of The City." The vineapple has a curious flavour, sweet, sour and tangy all at once. "They're the last chance we got," he says to Priscilla in a firm tone. "And since we got those Ura racin' us for them, we can't waste time lookin' for survivors that might not exist. We need every one we can get our hands on for The Bastion to work as intended."

    Looking to Rory, he adds, "From what I can tell, we need every one The City had. So we'll have to deal with the Ura eventually. Or go to Plan B. But that's real dangerous." Her comments on the nature of the disaster only garners a shrug from the elderly man. "We Caels were never much to fret over that kind of thing. Leave that to The Mancers, while we do what can be done."

    Kid chimes in at Zulf's words. "Hope we can get 'em on our side too. Just 'cause I don't wanna fight 'em. That girl makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up." He scowls slightly, resting his elbow on the table to prop up his head. "And the way they move... dunno if they're even human."

    As Seft offers her services, the Kid taps the table with his finger for a moment. "Actually, there is another thing," he says, after Zulf lays out what could be offered. Rummaging into his pocket, he takes out a small bag and spills the contents on the table. Small pebbles that glow a soft blue spill out. "Fragments. The same kind of stone as a Core, but way smaller. You would need a ton to get anything like a Core, but the Forge uses 'em in bulk for making gear better. If your fancy tech can find a bunch, lemme know. You could probably use 'em at our Forge to make your stuff better too," he adds, an incentive.

    Rucks stands up and looks to everyone. "Just want you all to know how much we appreciate your help. We can only offer a gesture in thanks, but I hope it carries that thanks to ya." He walks over to his tent, and soon emerges with the Core they retrieved when they found Zulf. "We never got around to puttin' this one in. Wanted to include you all in how we upgrade The Bastion with it."

    He carries it to the Memorial which seems to respond to its presence by splitting and opening up, revealing a pedestal. Rucks places the glowing crystal upon it, and a pure chime echoes from below, followed by a curious whirring. Like the noise of whirling gears, but recorded and played backwards. From far below, The Bastion somehow pulls up scrap metal and builds scaffolding that juts out from the core structure, opposite the three buildings. Turf and grass grows upon it, leaving three more 'lots' to be built upon.

    "The Bastion has some... 'prebuilt' structures, so to speak. We can pick from 'em here." He gestures at the base of the Monument. A panel has opened up, revealing three buttons that glow blue, below another row of three dim buttons. Rucks gestures to each one in kind, and explains what it would be.

    The first button depicts a sack with the hole cinched up. "The Lost-And-Found. Probably the most pragmatic option. You take the fragments of the Old World, and the Lost-And-Found will unbreak 'em."

    The second shows a sheet of parchment, curling at the bottom. "The Memorial. We Caels are a sentimental bunch, so The Bastion comes premade with a monument to whatever disaster necessitated its use."

    The last one depicts a stick figure prostate in prayer. "The Shrine," Rucks says, with a bit of distaste in his voice. "Doubt the Pantheon is listenin' much these days, but it would make Zulf and the Kid happy to have it."

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa grins a little bit.

"Given some of the things we have access to we might be able to help with that, actually. You'd have to talk to Rory about that, though I wonder could we expand the Bastion at all I wonder? We are not lacking in people who could build here. I see grab the cores you can andf get it going, if there only was a way to talk them down. Fighting's about pointless at this point, everything's in ruins...reminds me of how my home almost went as a child as for the options? Recalling those who were lost is never a waste I have found."

She wonders if the Gods lived through this they might be able to get some intervention possibly given the multiverse.

She also looks back to Zulf for the time being listening to them.

"I would think it would go without saying Zulf. You know this world better than us and might have insight that could lead to an end of the fighting, or at least help them to find another place they can go."

Zen (822) has posed:
    Zulf folds his arms. He resents all this talk about 'racing' the Ura for anything, and the very idea puts a miserably bad taste in his mouth. Who is this 'girl' that The Kid is talking about? Is she really as bad as he says, or is he embellishing the circumstances? ... as honest as Kid has proven himself to be, Zulf wasn't there, and that fact alone will leave him wondering until he sees this band of Ura firsthand. Really, though, he has to ask himself: what is he doing here? Up until now he had only remained at the Bastion because that was the only choice in sight, and he hadn't been in the right state mentally to consider his alternatives. Moreover, this trio at the Bastion really doesn't communicate much by their lonesome, and this is the first Zulf has heard of there being any Ura out there at all. Frankly, he's a bit annoyed that he wasn't told sooner. So now that he -does- know, he really has to wonder:

    Is he in the right place?

    ... there's nothing keeping him here. He could defect, if he so chose; he could join his countrymen and leave the Bastion to rot. Still, the thought urges him to look at his surroundings, to take everything in. Would he really be able to live with that? No, absolutely not. She wouldn't have wanted that for him, and Zulf doesn't want that for himself either. So he'll continue to believe that the two groups will eventually be able to see eye-to-eye. If they can, he'll never have to choose. But if they can't, if they really and truly can't make amends, he'll have to make a decision someday. Jury's still out on what he would do if that ends up being the case.

    Though these people never let him brood for very long, do they? Next he looks up, he does so to find Kotone. He takes a deep breath, exhaling fairly quickly. He eventually answers, "Honestly, I don't know. You would think that I know this world better than you, but this isn't the world that I grew up in anymore. It's just as new to me as it is to you. I can tell you about the people, maybe even the history and the environment, but I'm just as green as an outsider in most ways these days. I'm sorry." It's true, though: this world doesn't feel like home anymore. If all else fails, maybe he could just... pack his bags. Leave the Ura and the Caels behind, go back with the Flotilla and start a new life. But something about that doesn't sit right with him either. Damn it, why does he always have to be so conflicted?

    Though one thing at least is entirely plain: the Bastion is his home right now. Maybe that'll change, but in the present moment he should think and act accordingly. So they wanna know what he thinks they should do when it comes to upgrading the Bastion? He'll let them know. "A monument," He says. "I have a name I want to put up there. We can start worshiping the Gods again after we remember what we used to worship them for."

    From that look, Rucks might garner the impression that he and Zulf aren't on entirely different pages where the Pantheon is concerned.

Rory White (673) has posed:
    "For practicality I would recommend the Lost-and-Found. Usable tools mean more to me than Gods I cannot see or speak to as easily as people, though I mean no offense with this view." Rory's sure to bow her head politely and humbly. "Although we do have our own facilities for salvage operations, so it's not something I think I should push for. Simply that there is no point in having a memorial if the people who would benefit from its existence perish from lack of simpler needs... what was the quote?"

    Rory taps the side of her head, eyes glazing over a bit, then... going bright. "Ah, yes. 'Material prosperity is the foundation of spiritual prosperity.'"

Priscilla has posed:
    "Potentially the last people in the world engaging in combat over something that benefits them both would be the least ideal scenario. I am not normally one for this, but I wouldst advocate other means by all other attempts plausible." She looks meaningfully to Zulf, clearly aware of the fact that talking about the Ura in such a fashion might be bothering him. "Asides the fact that it wouldst undermine the alliance in miniature thou hast made here as an example. If thou art in contest over the same Cores, it is inevitable thou wilst meet, and from there hopefully understand one another."

    The notion of 'upgrading' mystefies her a little bit, not entirely sure what the Core will do, or what its capabilities even are, though she's happy to get a good long look at it to make identifying further ones in the field easier. At Zulf's suggestion though, the way she perks up immediately gives away that she approves. "I know nothing of thine gods in particular, but if thou believeth it to be possible to commune with them through worship, at the very least, an 'incident' of this proportion shouldst inarguably demand some response of them, for if not now, when ever?"

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    "Mr. Zulf, you have my utmost sympathy for such matters." Moonfin says, doing his sort of slightly smug knowing. "My people have experienced a feud of this sort for years. Unfortunately," He rolls all three of his big red eyes at Biteblade, who gives a wave back to Zulf. "It's a necessity at times, and one can be... Motivated accordingly."

    "Cheerful. Transportation. I can provide that. We have access to a variety of spacecraft which may be useful for the purpose, assuming that the Calamity and its unusual effects on gravity have not made the area impassable." Seft says, and makes a quick eager beep. "We only possess some basic medical facilities, but Rory White, our ally, possesses greater ones, and I believe she is one of the first of our members to take interest."

Zen (822) has posed:
    Zulf looks to Moonfin, then to Biteblade. "I see." Yes, he knows exactly what Moonfin is talking about, and how he might at times feel as awkward around Biteblade as he does around The Kid. Also like Kid, though, he gets the distinct impression that, regardless of her heritage, -she- is in fact a decent individual in her own right. He does his utmost to give some energy to the wave he answers her with, slightly pained to see such a reflection of one of his own budding relationships externally. It makes him... a bit more inclined toward the idea of getting to know the Kid more before passing judgment on him. Just a bit. "As much as I hate to say it, though, you're right. If the Ura have their hate of the Caels to hang on to, they'll have a better chance of making it out of the Calamity intact. Harder to fall into depression when you're constantly being fueled by hate."

    Man, that really rolled off of his tongue like bile. Yuck.

    Responding to Seft is, again, a bit of a vacation for Zulf's senses. He nods along with her response, sparing Rory another glance when she's mentioned. "We would all be extremely grateful if you might be willing to give us medical help when we might need it," He says. "The Kid in particular. He's the one who most often puts himself at risk, and he's the one who will be getting hurt most often." But isn't he that crazy fool who -volunteered- to be put on the wall for another tour? ... maybe not quite so often as he thinks. Maybe. Any medical help is still phenomenally good insurance, though.

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    "Ooooh. Isss shiny." Biteblade says, looking closely at the fragments. "Oh, and isss glow too! Mussst have inherent energy. If glow, then emit other ssspectrum too. Human! Floran will help." The little Floran seems quite eager, already turning the little pebbles over in her hands, examining them closely, uh... Tasting them, possibly? It seems like maybe she doesn't have human social norms. "You need find Glow Thingsss, all Glow Thingsss already emitting energy in light, ssso emit energy other way too probably. Like ssscreaming energy! You need find, Floran will help. Firssst, we need sssalvage machine that ussse Fragment maybe, to figure out. Floran break down, find out how machine work. Then, Floran find out how to detect energy! Floran, make machine for find Fragment easssy that way!" It looks like Biteblade would like to find some tech out in the wild that uses the Fragments, which will hopefully let her reverse-engineer something to detect or collect them!

    As for what to build, the Starbounders briefly discuss among each other as they follow along to the monument...

"The shrine. There is no question."
"Somber. ...I believe the Memorial would be best..."
"Memorial."
"Not gonna have any good on them fragments if ye got nothin' to use 'em for! Lost and found!"
"Yeah, gotta put survival first, I'd say Lost and Found."
"Bird sssalty, think godsss fake alwaysss. Floran know, you pay ressspect to godsss, don't matter if they all went away. Floran think shrine bessst!"

    Looks like the Core Fleet swing vote is kinda stalled. Someone can probably nudge it one way or another with an opportune interjection at them. Or maybe Kotone might tip it in one way or another!

Rory White (673) has posed:
    "And medical help I can provide quite well. So the injuries are not too severe. I do not trust the more advanced restorative medical techniques after crossing the boundaries between worlds. Just as Caels and Ura differ despite both being humans, humans can slightly differ between worlds. The.... 'safe' limit is probably regrowing a limb."

    Well.

    Regrowing a limb. Huh.

Zen (822) has posed:
    And for Priscilla, Zulf spares another of his more earnest smiles when she backs him up. He's fairly certain that everyone here is on the same page about -trying- to get both groups to work together, but hearing someone say it out loud is a great comfort. He doesn't say as much, but he tries to convey his appreciation with a few, gentle nods of his head. And again when she agrees with his suggestion for a Bastion upgrade! He's extremely grateful for the verbal expressions of agreement in both areas. Really, though, the particular way in which she phrased her endorsement seems to catch on to another of those things that Zulf has been keeping bottled. "That the Gods let their world fall into such a state to begin with calls into question their worth as deities, and their persistent silence all the more. I couldn't possibly agree any more fully." 'They are the ones who should have to earn -my- praise,' He adds, albeit far more quietly.

    Let's hope The Kid doesn't make too much of that retort.

Zen (822) has posed:
    Zulf for a moment cants his head at the prospect of limb regrowth, but for some reason he isn't quite as surprised by the notion as he might've expected of himself. "That could certainly be helpful," Is therefore his shockingly dull reply. "Though I will, of course, hope that it never becomes necessary."

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa says "What you know about the people is still useful you know the ways of the people of this world better than we do, right? I won't force you to do anything but we could use the help I think. As for the Gods I think they can wait, my own relgion has an expression that's commonly used."

She shifts a little bit on her feet before carrying on. "God helps those who meet him half way, we need to get to work and I think they would understand the deplay in the shrine going up a surival is the first order of business, I promise you this we will get to the Shrine when we can but the other option? It would let us rstore the Shine better in the long run either way."

She's not being insulting at all she honestly thinks the Gods if they are still aliver would want their followers to be able to surive so they could worship long term, right?

"So I'm going for the Lost-And-Found. I think it will help get everything else done faster."

The Kid has posed:
    Rucks tallies up the votes, and nods with satisfaction at the results. "Lost-And-Found it is then." Kid gives a little shrug. Everyone else had some good points about how the Shrine can come later. Rucks presses the corresponding button, and with a sudden woosh, a building seems to pull itself together from scrap and nothingness.

    It's a log cabin with sloping canvas roofing. Two stories or so, with a tin steam spout, and a wooden chute at the top for Fragments to be loaded in. Rucks looks at it with satisfaction, tapping his cane upon the ground. "With this, anythin' important that we find can be made whole. Could probably do the same for anythin' any of you might have, if ya ever need it."

    The Kid gives Zen kind of a dirty look, both for what he says about the Pantheon, and for suggesting he needs more advanced treatment. "Healing Water gets me through fine," he insists, letting the other comment slide. It's a fair enough point, but some just don't understand. It's their job to make life hard, so it has meaning. Besides, he's too busy listening to Biteblade babble. "So you're sayin' that if we find somethin' else that uses Fragments, you could make somethin' that finds 'em?" He crosses his arms and thinks on it. "That's some serious Mancer-level tech. We'll have to see. Until then, use those... Matter Manipulators and tear up the ground. There's always gonna be a few buried."

    Looking to Priscilla, he seems a little eager to talk about the Pantheon, but Rucks interjects. "You'll be going to Pyth's Orchard next. Seems a better place to talk about the gods, hm?" The younger man scowls a little, but nods. "Right, now that the business is out of the way..." The older man gestures back at the food and drink, inviting everyone to make merry once more.