5093/Wheat and Weapons

Wheat and Weapons
Date of Scene:	17 February 2017
Location:	Ad Coelum
Synopsis:	A King totally doesn't get lost. Farmlands are the best places to have philosphical talks about law, treasure and opulence.
Cast of Characters:	20, Gilgamesh

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Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    The farmlands onboard the Ad Coelum are tended to around the clock, with the artificial lights making it possible to grow things far quicker than normal. It's hard work to tend to the fields, to ensure that the food that goes on the plates to ensure the law enforcers have the strength to their jobs.

    And she could get this done without even breaking a sweat...!

    Perhaps that's what makes it so frustrating for the small teenager as she drives her hoe into the ground over and over, perspiration building on her arms and shoulders. How far has she gotten now? Ten, maybe twelve feet? Within seconds she could have cleared most of this entire area... But still, her instructions were clear. So the blind girl sighs, rolls her slightly aching shoulders before she resumes tilling the earth along with the other workers, who are clearly more used to this work and the physical labour as they chat amongst themselves, working far quicker than Toph as she's lagging a bit behind them in her row.

    Only fifteen hours left...

Gilgamesh has posed:
     The King has not yet learned the ways of Multi-Vars, the secret walks and paths that those familiar with the winding countries take. He has not yet learned to avoid the winding paths that lead to danger, but nor has he learned to avoid the winding paths that lead to /boredom/, and unfortunately for the King of Heroes, boredom is a foe he cannot simply send from his sight.

     The farmlands are, at least, a familiar, lazy sort of boredom. He is the King; though he is not a farmer, and does not know their ways, he has seen farmers before, seen the rolling fields and hills, seen the men working the land with their tools. He has seen grain, and seen the breweries where it becomes beer, and the mills where it becomes bread - the foundations of all civilization. He has seen wonders, too, though they are not the wonders of modernity.

     Even before he's 'visible' to Toph's feet, Gilgamesh's presence is impossible to hide. The aura of Divinity around him is a palpable thing, a charisma and beauty supernatural, supernal, in nature, Divine in a way that instantly marks him as more than a man and instantly explains /so much/ of what he says. Being a King is not a crown he was given, nor a thing he won through blood, nor a thing he was born into; it is an essential part of him, a radiant part of him, baked into his very existence on a fundamental, spiritual level. He can no more not be the King than the earth can not be dirt or a rock cannot be a rock; it is not a choice he made, nor a choice he can unmake. He *is* the King. If he is not, he is nothing.

     The first thing Toph notices when he does enter her field of tactile sensation is that he is barefoot, like her. His feet, though, are smooth and uncalloused, and he walks lightly, though not /delicately/. His bones and muscles are flawless in a way that humans simply *aren't* - none of the characteristic creaks and groans of a human body accompany his walking, nor the ticks and twitches Toph is probably used to hearing from people who *aren't* ancient Sumerian Demigods. There is a sense of control in every motion he makes, of grace and fluidity that isn't so much trained as it is, like his Divinity, a property of his existence. The shape of his body, too, is young and beautiful, perhaps seventeen at the oldest, and the air running through his hair says that it is short but not /cropped/, brushing loosely across the side of his head. His breathing is light and unlabored, and there is a sense that he is not tired from his walk, nor particularly easily tired at all by just *how* lightly he breathes. It gives her the shape of his body - thin, and fair, but interlaced with deceptive muscles hidden beneath the surface, more than powerful enough to do whatever might be needed. Despite his ancient origins he smells fair and sweet, too; with a bit of thought Toph can probably place the soap as a well-to-do British brand thanks to her jet-setting adopted father.

     There's something fluttering around his body; Toph's best guess is a dress, or some kind of robe, made of patches. She can hear the fabric's seams stretching; the patches are clearly not meant to be together.

     The King stops near her and the other workers, and watches. He is silent for the moment; again there is that sense of regality baked into the air around him, that essence of a King watching the farmers go about their business permeating the sky in tangible form. He does not appear to be focused on any one farmer, and the muscles around his lips are tight, speaking of, if not a frown, then a solid line of apathy, disinterest, and boredom.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Even as she works the blind girl isn't completely ignorant about the stuff that happens around her. So while her focus might be on the earth that she's working with, she can still pick up the light foot steps and the figure that approaches the area where she's working. It's only when he's not too far away that the other teenager stands fully up, resting her aching hands on the hoe and draws breath. "This is hardly the right place to be with fancy clothes like that, you know."

    Unlike him, the younger girl doesn't appear to exude greatness as she stands up and blows some dirty hair out of her smudged face. Likewise, her clothes are simple. Sturdy jeans that seem almost one size too big, as well as an oversized t-shirt with an almost childish cat print on it. Her feet are absolutely caked in mud and dirt at this point, though she doesn't seem to care, nor for the fact that areas of her shirt are soaked in sweat. But her voice should be familiar enough for Gilgamesh to recognise it, if her demeanor shouldn't be enough. She's clearly no regular farm worker, judging by the fact that she's blind, got blisters on her hands and clearly not working at the pace that the others are working on.

    "You're not going to be smelling fancy out here either, I think they're bringing out the manure soon too," she adds with a slight grimace.

Gilgamesh has posed:
     Toph can hear his eyebrow rise at 'fancy clothes'. Presumably, the King doesn't find whatever he's wearing all that fancy, but, then, who can say? "I do not, in fact. I came here by wandering. I followed the road until here it led through the winding countries of Multi-Vars. Though I am not so ignorant of the world as to not recognize a farm when first I see it."

     There's a sense of mild scorn at the idea that he /wouldn't/ know what a farm is, but it's restrained and clearly reflexive rather than an actual offense taken - a 'getting used to the idea that people don't know who you are' thing. That's clearly taking him some work.

     The comment, however, brings a laugh from him. Like everything else about him, it's beautiful in a way that defies physicality, like the ringing chime of a perfectly-tuned instrument. "That, at least, is familiar to me. Modernity has not changed so much, then. If still men master the earth with till and beast, then the world is still not so far beyond my understanding."

     "Why are you here? You are not one of these people." The King's eyes narrow - in thought, rather than suspicion. Eventually, he shrugs.

     "I cannot say that earth upon your hands does not suit you, though."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "So you got lost?" Toph offers, clearly not meaning it seriously, Hah, to imagine the kingly Gilgamesh himself wandered into the farm lands... who'd have thought?

    When he laughs Toph can't help but smirk a bit, then shrugs. "Well, you know... shit is shit, and it's the best way to make sure that the stuff actually /grows/, you know. At least it's useful for something." Can farming really escape a lot of these old fashioned things? "In the world I live in now this stuff, or at least lots of it, is done by machines. But not everything. Strangely enough it's far more effective in the world where I come from, and there's little technology there so far, though it's coming along since the war there ended some years ago." A war /she/ helped end.

    The question about why she, an Elite, is here and helping out seems to bring some pause to the blind girl as well as a pondering look to her face, and she shrugs yet again after a few seconds. "I was told to help out, so I'm here." It's far easier to respond to his comment about her hands being dirty though, and she grins. "Nobody likes earth better than me!" At least Eryl got that thing right by assigning her here.

    At least she has an excuse to work a bit slower now with Gilgamesh here, and she gets a solid grip on her hoe again before she continues working. "I think there are prettier places to see around the multiverse though if you're interested in pretty sights. Not that I would know, obviously..." And there she drives the hoe into the earth again, tightening her grip on the handle.

Gilgamesh has posed:
     And here, the King's youth makes itself plain in his face as he recoils from the idea that he got /lost/. "I do not get /lost/! I simply wandered somewhere I do not know. But I am clearly not *lost*; it is a farm, and farms are all the same, in the end!" There's the noise of a /hmph/ as his head turns away from her. Again, none of the clicking and clacking of a normal person's body; just a smooth motion and near silence, vibrations only Toph can see.

     "Why would you farm by machine? What use has the farmer if a machine steals his place?" Gilgamesh sounds fascinated by the mere idea, drifting closer along the ground to her as if to better examine the tilled earth with his own feet and hands. He doesn't, of course, but that's what it feels like as he walks. "Does he simply starve? Does the machine receive his food?"

     He stops somewhat closer to her. His eyes track hers, watching her motion. Either he's never been around a lot of blind people, or he's just used to looking people in the eye when he gives orders and commands. "Yes," he says quietly, "I can see that. The earth is in your blood."

     Then, again, that petty childishness resurfaces as he clucks his tongue, crosses his arms, and looks off into the sky. "Beauty is not something so mundane to the King as a fair sight. What I find beautiful is what I find beautiful; the routine, boring things that others call art may occasionally pique my interest but my fascination is mine and mine alone to define, and none shall ever tell me what I may and may not find beautiful."

     "You said you were born this way, did you not?"

     Gilgamesh leans in close to her face, staring carefully at her eyes. "That in and of itself is beautiful," he says finally as he straightens, turns away, and starts walking along the farm. "A life trapped in darkness and eyes untouched by the world are a kind of beauty all their own."

     "Besides," he adds idly, "You are missing little, save my face. Modernity is a grey and ugly thing. I find it wanting."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Yup, he's totally lost, isn't he? The blind girl arches an amused eyebrow, though she doesn't press the issue as she continues working. "Why? To farm more and lessen the cost, the machine is controlled by the farmer, so it doesn't take the food. Machines don't think," Toph points out, then grunts as she feels the hoe get stuck on a rock. Damnit. She yanks on it, ignoring her temptation to bend the rock away. Idly she can't help but wonder if Gilgamesh has ever seen anybody do farm work before since he seems so interested in it.

    And as he has done on the radio he seems to be fond of talking. His comment earns a slight snort, and Toph cants her head a bit. "What? You can see what people are capable of now?" Sure, /she/ knows she's got bending in her, but it's not something she's aware of other people being able to tell about others. Except maybe Iroh, because he knows everything.

    He babbled a lot too, but about different things. Gilgamesh seems rather occupied with beauty, but then again royalty seem to like stuff like that, don't they? "Well," the blind teenager begins, "I think that's pretty normal that people have their own taste and such. I don't have any idea about beauty and all that crud anyway, so--" The moment that the King leans in closer to her face however, the blind earthbender tenses up, and then moves to /shove/ a hand up in his face unless he pulls back. "Hey! Heard about personal space?" she asks, narrowing one eye just a bit even as he continues talking. "Okay, now you sound like my dad. He claims his face is a gift to mankind too. Also, modern stuff isn't /all/ bad. It gave us movies, lots of awesome food, not to mention various inventions that make things easier. Like making it possible for me to read," she says, then adds some words after a second or two. "Just don't tell anybody I said that."

Gilgamesh has posed:
     "Then what do the other farmers do?" Gilgamesh asks pointedly, "If a single farmer can do the work of more than one by use of a machine, what do the others do? Do they simply laze about and eat?"

     Gilgamesh seems lost in thought. He wanders for a moment before he actually answers her next question. "No. I am observant. I am not capable of seeing your power. Your hair is the color of earth. You are happy, surrounded by the earth. Your hands are calloused and your feet are bare. I do not need magic to see that you are close to the land, that it lives with you as it did the farmers of my realm."

     "Also," Gilgamesh adds somewhat coyly, "I have a fine memory, and I recall your introduction."

     "It is easy to tell people things they have told you themselves!" He throws back his head, plants his hands on his hips, and laughs, a booming, beautiful laugh.

     Then he looks off to the sky again. "There are wonders in modernity. But there are wonders in every age. It is not a question of whether modernity has brought great things to the world. It is a question of what has been sacrificed upon its altar."

     "As you said yourself...a machine can do the work of more than one man, yes? Let us pretend that it does the work of five men. There is only so much land that can be farmed; if one man works the land for five with his great machine, then four men do not work. They become a drain upon society. They eat and breed and consume without working their trade. Yes, perhaps some will learn a new trade; become scholars, become artists, become craftsmen. But others cannot. Other men are born farmers, and forced out of it by the machine they cannot beat." The King makes a motion with his shoulders, sending his patchwork dress rolling. "And society will bear their burden."

     "There is value in modernity. But there is emptiness in it, too. Steel souls in little clay jars. Mediocrity where once was glory. The wonders are the machines, now - not the men."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "They do other farm stuff, obviously." Duuuh. This guy... he really likes talking and asking questions, from the sound of it. But hey, at least he shows he does listen too as he points out he did listen to hear when she introduced herself on the radio when he first joined the Paladins. Though she does look a bit amused at his comment. "Just because my hair might be the same colour as earth doesn't mean that I'm connected to the earth, you know. The waterbenders I know don't have blue hair. Or at least I don't think they do." But yes, she /is/ happy around the earth, and not even the mighty Pepper Potts has convinced her to wear shoes.

    Modern life can be really amazing, there's no question about that. Luxurious food, items to make life easier... not to mention all the entertainment. So why is this guy talking about sacrifices and whatnot? The speech seems grim and pessimistic, and the blind teenager sighs where she stands, clearing out another part of the field, nearing the end of the row. "Man, you must be fun at parties..." she mumbles, then raises her hoe above her head again before driving it down. Once she's dug up the part, she stands up fully again, turning her face towards him just slightly. "With modernity people live longer and safer lives. And it allows those who can create to create more things. And well, the artists earn a lot of money and focus, people want to be entertained. It's all weird until you get used to it, really... DONE!"

    Her voice is raised as she calls out, and one of the nearby farmers turns his head. "You sure, lass? You've only worked for one hour an--" "I got another blister, I'll be here early in the morning after breakfast," she reports, setting her hoe aside as she gets out of the field and onto the path next to Gilgamesh. The farmer only sighs and nods. "Just don't sleep in again like you did earlier this week." "Yeah, yeah, I'll be here. I don't have any missions planned, so I can work longer tomorrow." With that said and done she kicks her foot into the ground, and immediately all the dirt that was clinging to her drops off, landing around her before she begins walking. "Trades come and go, and that's not just due to machines, you know."

Gilgamesh has posed:
     With only a hint of smugness, Gilgamesh says, "I am the King. I am the *lifeblood* of parties. No man turns away the King."

     He lapses into silence, though, as if thinking about her words, as if he's turning them over and playing with them in his head as they walk.

     "In the end, though, it is the same. The farmers till and spread leavings over the soil. The bakers take the wheat to make bread. The brewers take the wheat to make beer. The prostitute gives comfort to the bodies of the workers in the night. The artist makes art to relieve their souls. The priest gives guidance to relieve their hearts in times of trouble. The scholar gives succor to their curious minds. The names may change; the products may change; but they are still farmers, and bakers, and brewers, and prostitutes, and artists, and priests, and scholars."

     A moment later, a loaf of sweet-smelling bread falls into his hand - as far as Toph can tell out of *literally nowhere*. He snaps it in half and takes a bite, chewing thoughtfully as they walk. It smells unbelievably delicious - top-quality, at the least, with a rustic, earthen smell that's probably more familiar to Toph's original homeworld than her modern life. He tosses her the other half. It is *fantastic*.

     "If a machine could do your job - could bend the earth and warp the world as you do, or even better - would it please you?"

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    A slight snicker leaves Toph when Gilgamesh speaks, "Now you sound even more like my dad," she comments, clearly finding that funny.

    As he speaks she seems to listen as she falls into step next to him, idly rubbing her sore hands a bit. "Some people are told what they should be instead of letting them decide /what/ they are though, that's the problem," she states firmly, though a bit confused when she suddenly smells something. The confusion doesn't go away when he tosses whatever it is over to her, and she brings it up to her nose as she takes a whiff. "... where the crud did you get the bread from?" she asks. And why? It's not like they don't have food in the gigantic cafeteria onboard the Ad Coelum...

    For a brief moment there's silence after Gilgamesh poses his question... and then the girl next to him suddenly lets out a roaring laughter, having to halt as she leans forward and rests her free hand on her knee. "A machine... that can outbend /me/? Yeah, right!" she snorts, snickering as she shakes her head and stands upright again. "Not even my dad could invent something like that! A machine could never even come /close/ to what I do! It can't think like I do, that's the key! Nor does it have a connection to the earth, it doesn't have the the /attitude/ of an earthbender! Which is why I'm not worried. Earthbending isn't just about making the earth move, it's /how/ you do it!" Toph declares, then resumes walking even as she tears off a piece of bread to try it. Huh, that's... some damn good bread, actually.

Gilgamesh has posed:
     "I have only the finest of things in my treasury," Gilgamesh replies idly as they walk, "I do not eat like a commoner except by my choice."

     "Men adapt to hardship better than choice. When a man must accept a role for the sake of his family, or his life, or his city, he sees it as a noble burden." He shrugs again.

     "Of course it is ridiculous. It is as unlike as the idea a machine could be made to be King," Gilgamesh says, gesturing with his free hand, "But suppose for an instant that it is possible. Suppose that it is done. Would you welcome it? Would you be the farmer who plows the field for five men? Or would you scorn it as a competitor, as a thing that had taken your talent and hard work and transformed it into something that others who are not so skilled can wield?"

     "That is the sacrifice of modernity. You spread excellence among the many, and it becomes the standard. A man who works as hard as five men is no longer a wonder; he is a man with a machine. A man who kills from a great distance is no longer skilled; he has one of these 'guns'. That displeases me."

     "I have not yet decided if the pleasures of modernity outweigh the cost, but I do not deny that it has many. The freedom for a man to find his own place is not ignoble, though I find it displeasing. These mo-vees provide fascinating insight into worlds within the Box. Bards can play great symphonies of many instruments with only a small object. Do not think my vision so short-sighted that I can only see the flaws of this grey box of a world!"

     "I am simply testing its weight."

     Gilgamesh pauses. "I have asked you much. You have asked me little. Have you things to ask me?"

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "So," Toph says after a few seconds, "You got the world's most expensive fridge." Hey, it works for her. Sokka would probably like having a treasury like that if it meant he could store food within it...

    Noble burden... those words make Toph frown as she walks. "Or man becomes miserable when he must pretend to be something he's not and only exist for those around him instead of exisiting for his own sake. Some people do better when they can do something with all of their heart." No, Toph does /not/ buy into that train of thought. If she had then her life would have been very different. So silly, just as silly as imagining that a machine could replace /her/. "Nah, I would push the limits once again and show that machine just why it will always be inferior to the real deal. That's what true talent and skill does..." Not to mention she could always easily destroy the machine, hah! "Then again, I'm no farmer. Farming isn't my thing, I prefer fighting."

    Half of her bread is gone at this point, and she eats eagerly as she walks. "Yeah yeah, I know you're getting used to it all... you did come from another time, I'm pretty sure Gawain mentioned that..." she mumbles, talking with her mouth full before she swallows. Yes, she's aware of him talking a lot and her listening. There are some things she /is/ wondering about, that's true. "So how did you end up being a king?" she asks. It's something she asks most of the kings she's met through the years. "And why did you decide to join the Paladins?"

Gilgamesh has posed:
     "I did not. I was born King. I was designed and crafted for the purpose of being King. It is what I am. If I am not the King, I am not."

     He rolls his shoulders again. "When I was born, I was complete. Two thirds of god, one third of man, I was born with the knowledge, the duty, the power, and the right instilled within me from the very beginning. As a boy I ruled the land, and as a man I rule the land. I am the shepherd who guides humanity towards the promise of the future. It is why the gods made me. It is why humanity cried out to me. Before me there was no other who could truly call himself the King, and after me there will never be another who can truly call himself the King. There will be kings, I have already understood, who walk my path, and heroes who follow my footsteps, but there shall never be another who is like me."

     Gilgamesh stops walking to pull a cup out of thin air and sip from it. "I chose to join your order because its words are in the shape of my own. The echo of my words rings through these laws. I do not know at what time, or at what place, my words take on such import, but I recognize them in the laws of many worlds. I recognize my own mind. It is not a direct hand, but it is the echo, diluted across time."

     "To join a group that did not respect that is to disrespect myself. It is to invalidate my own word, even if it is my own word as understood by people far from my own time."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    It's clear that Toph doesn't exactly buy into his words, but at least she seems to consider her words before she speaks. "So... one of your parents were a half god who did the naughty with a human, most likely one of them royalty, and decided that you should rule?" she ventures. "Like a super baby?" Give her a break, she doesn't know how godhood works. "And how old are you anyway? You don't sound nor 'look' much older than a teenager, in most places we're still considered kids," she adds. Really... no other like him? Lots of royalty seem to be just as wordy as he is and with an ego to match, but eh... she sees no reason to go into that argument now.

    It's easier to understand why he joined the Paladins. In short, he agreed with the creed; to uphold the laws of the commonwealth. The blind girl nods her head. "Just wondering, since some kings that I know of isn't in the Paladins, but other groups. I don't really know too much about them, I'm still trying to get used to /this/," she says, then shoves the last piece of bread into her mouth as she chews. "I just... it's hard learning /all/ of the laws, you know? I'm kinda used to just doing what I feel is right most of the time..." Okay, what else to ask him...? "Do you always talk that much?"

Gilgamesh has posed:
     Gilgamesh shakes his head. "No. It is not that simple, but explaining it is...extensive. I do not doubt that I can put it into terms you would understand, but I suspect it would take me far longer than I would like to find words to fit the concepts in modernity."

     Gilgamesh looks away from her again and scratches his cheek, and once again seems much more *human* and much less imperious. "I am sixteen years of age. Did I not say that already? I am certain I said that I was sixteen years of age. The opinions of the world do not matter to me; I have seen and done more in my life than these empty shells ever will in theirs. I am a man." THAT was definitely a boyish assertion, even if he walks and talks like an ancient king. That was that hint of immaturity that keeps leaking through, that teenage boy who says that because he says it, he's a man. He might be right, in his own culture, but here and now it sounds like a rejection, a determination, rather than a statement of fact.

     He shrugs. On the subject of other kings he appears to have nothing to say. He listens to her troubles, but he also appears to have nothing to say there, either; it's probably not *ignorance* so much as he just doesn't know /how/ to relate to the problem. It's probably hard to relate to 'don't know all the laws' when 'my word is law' is part of your very metaphysical fabric. "I do not know what you mean by 'right'. The law is there to mete out justice upon all. Acting against it is injust, even if intentions are noble. Is it better to be just, or to be noble? I do not know or care. I am the King; by definition what I do is both."

     "I do what I please, when I please. Sometimes I give the world the gift of my voice. Other times I withhold it." He shrugs. "My whim."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "Then think about it so you can explain it some other time," Toph suggests with a shrug, wiping her hand on her shirt after she's done eating the bread. "Thanks for the food." Unlike him she seems content with saying things in a simple manner. "And yeah, you did mention you were sixteen. So you're barely older than I am. I don't think people would like being called empty shells though, as most of them actually do have thoughts and feelings. Even if it might not seem like it," she quickly adds. It's funny, Gilgamesh seems to care what people think about him, which might explain why he acts the way he does. "I was the greatest earthbender of all time when I was thirteen, so age doesn't really matter that much. Even kids can be greater than men who have lived for decades," she claims. It certainly sounds like she believes in those words.

    He... doesn't know what she means by that? At that Toph raises an eyebrow. "Okay, I'll put it like this... I didn't care what the law said, I did what I could to keep people safe, and I would often break the law to protect people. Because sometimes, the law doesn't really make sense to everybody. Heck, it was the law in my world that female waterbenders couldn't learn how to fight. If I followed the law I would still be a prisoner in my father's house. So sometimes the law is not just. Must be a bit weird, but..." As for what she would choose? "Right now I would have to say just, considering I'm a paladin. But if given the choice I would like to be noble too. Just... not /a/ noble."

    So... he does talk a lot, in other words. "What do you think you can contribute to the Paladins? Got any specific skills or powers?"

Gilgamesh has posed:
     Gilgamesh audibly shrugs. "I am two-thirds god and one-third man. Ordinary men are not as strong as I. I have my treasury. I have slain many monsters to amass it. I am not without skill. All the treasures of the world are within my treasury; it is not merely full of gold, and art, and fine foods and drinks. I rule all things, so it is only natural that I have all the treasures."

     The King doesn't seem to understand what she means by /a/ noble. He's visibly confused by that. It's probably a time-spanning confusion. He shrugs again. The idea of an /unjust/ law is probably also completely alien to him, and it's pretty clear in his motions and his mannerisms that he thinks that way, too, as he drinks from his cup and frowns. Again, there's that apparently-uncharacteristic silence as he walks and drinks; apparently he *can* just shut up for long stretches of time and lapse into thought, he's just...wordy whe he *does* talk.

     He's trying to process it. It's clear. He's trying to divorce himself from the Law, from the idea that his actions could be unJust, that his laws could be unJust, that his *words* could be unJust. He's trying to figure out *how* that could happen, when he is, as far as he's ever known, the definition of the terms. It's writ plain upon his face, even for Toph's sightless sight to see.

     Finally, he just shrugs again. "Men are not always given the choice," he decides, and then brushes it off. Just like that; the moral dilemma is discarded. It must be nice to be someone so self-assured, so /impossibly/ self-assured.

     "I suppose I could display some of my treasures for fun, if you wished to bear witness to some small fraction of them, however you perceive the world. I have forgotten most of their names, so I could not truly say all the might I bring to your Pala-deens."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    It's easy enough to assume that somebody who claims to be a demigod is strong. And he's used to fighting and killing, and he's got tons of stuff that might be useful in many ways, it sounds like... "Things that /you/ consider treasures, I assume. Because people will always have different treasures." At that she points a finger up towards his face. "So don't even consider trying to get the stuff that I consider to be mine." No, she remembers him stating that he doesn't steal. So at least she didn't use that word again.

    It's strange to hear him be so silent, and Toph is silent a bit after she finishes talking and giving him something to think about. While she can't see his expression, she does notice other minor things that others wouldn't see. His short reply earns a snort, "That's why some men make their own choice to escape what others have planned for them." There's a brief pause, "That's what I did. Because nobody is perfect, not even me." Or you. Or her adoptive father, no matter how big their egos are.

    The offer he gives her does make her cant her head just a bit as she walks. "You like showing off your stuff, huh?" The side comment amuses her more, and she grins. "I see with my feet! Or rather, with my bending. I can sense the vibrations of the earth, and I can feel the earth around me. That includes metal." It's kinda public information by now, so she has no problems letting people, especially allies, know how it all works.

Gilgamesh has posed:
     "It is fun," is actually all Gilgamesh says in response to 'you like showing off'. No epic speech, no big boisterous description of how it's all his treasure and power; just a simple, short response.

     "Very well then. Do not move."

     And then she's surrounded.

     It isn't a sudden surrounding, like weapons simply appearing out of thin air. It's a violent, forceful surrounding. Spears, daggers, swords, hammers, sickles, shields, weapons in stranger shapes the likes of which Toph has never felt before, weapons that strangely resemble modern ones, weapons that are almost alien to her; the list goes on and on, spreading outwards in a field around her as they upturn the path like they were fired out of a cannon. It's a never-ending stream of weapons that just keeps on *coming*, keeps on *falling* around her, never getting close to her or threatening her, but still just.../falling/. After a few moments, Gilgamesh snaps his fingers, and the rain of weapons ceases.

     As far as even Toph's senses can tell, she's surrounded by weapons. All of them feel spiritual, magical, /powerful/. They aren't just...'nice-looking things.' They're magical weapons. They're ancient magic, old magic, from a time when magic was all they ever had to work with.

     "A fraction. Appreciate as you wish. I will return them to my treasury when you are done."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    That comment acutally makes Toph smirk impishly. "I know, I love showing off too." Though her expression turns a bit confused at first when he tells her to not move. "Wha--"

    Before she can finish that first word she senses something dropping into the ground all around her. It's a good thing they're not out in the farming fields right now. While she doesn't look alarmed, she does look a bit baffled where she stands, keeping still as she feels more and more weapons hit the evergrowing mountain all around her. Her face remains turned ahead, though she does seem to wonder just what is going on. Once the rain stops she turns a bit and leans forward. "You... let it rain weapons," she points out, then she reaches a hand out for one of the nearest ones. "... heh, you really /are/ a teenager." Because boys in a certain age really do seem to have a thing for weapons, especially the guys she knows in that age group. "So you can open up your treasury at all times, is that it?" she asks further, even as she seems interested in checking out a shield. The metal in it.. it's really something else. As a matter of fact, there's lots of strange metal items around her. The magic in them isn't something she cares for much, her focus being on a far more geological level.

    "What do you do with all the stuff you collect? Do you ever use any of these?"

Gilgamesh has posed:
     "It was most inconvenient," Gilgamesh replies idly, "If you could see, you would have been able to witness the opening of my treasury. Unfortunately, since you cannot, I had to fire my treasures at an angle that would not hit you."

     "Wh, what does that mean?" He demands, and again, that childishness is just *right there*, front and center. "Of, of course I am sixteen! What does my treasury have to do with my age? Hmph!" he crosses his arms again and closes his eyes. As she touches one of the swords, his eye opens.

     "Sometimes. It sits within my treasury beyond time and space, mostly. Sometimes I draw them forth to do battle. It is not just weapons in my treasury. I have wonders I cannot even remember from all across the world I rule. There are wonders comparable even to modernity's vast machines, and I could not possibly remember all of them."

     He shrugs. "I have only the best in my treasury, whether food or blades. It is a heaven of wonders. It has no need to have a purpose beyond existing."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "/Fire/?" Toph echoes, then arches an eyebrow. "You have cannons in your treasury now?" Well, it would make sense, considering all the other weapons he has...

    She does look a bit amused though when he reacts like that, smirking. Yup, seems he's sensitive about his age. Then again, most guys seem eager to be considered /men/. Kinda like how Sokka acted when his voice was still breaking back when he was younger. "Just saying that kids our age seem to have a thing for weapons. You should have seen Sokka once when we took him into a weapons shop, he went gaga for all the weapons in there." Luckily for Gilgamesh it doesn't appear that Toph actually is greedy for the weapons, merely curious about how they've been made and the materials in them.

    Next she inspects the shield, picking it up and running her hand over it curiously... before she knocks gently on it and brings it up to her ear to listen to the metal resonate. "Yeah, I mean... weapons are cool and all, but there's other neat stuff out there. Personally I like making statues with the materials I gather around the multiverse. If you come to my birthday you should totally check out the wedding present I made for my dad and mom, /that/ is the most opulent wedding present ever according to one of the guests," she grins widely, looking rather pleased with herself.

Gilgamesh has posed:
     "Somewhere, probably," Gilgamesh replies offhandedly, "But my treasury itself is what launches them."

     "Sokka...Sokka...the other one who was in the Box with you when we first spoke, yes?" Gilgamesh rubs his chin thoughtfully. "Yes, I could see him being proud of a good blade. It suits him." He's /probably/ reacting visibly to the 'kids our age' comment, but in a way Toph can't see, like an angered blush or something.

     The shield is flawless craftsmanship. It's something that deserves to be called a masterpiece; the metal within is gorgeous, pure, and strong, of some type Toph cannot immediately identify. It might be iron; it might be steel; it might be something more like magic in the shape of metal, or something like metal that is beyond classification. Slowly, row by row, the weapons seem to vanish into thin air, as if something is drinking them. Toph briefly has a sense of vibrations around their hilts and handles as they vanish, some kind of disturbance in space. Probably the treasury he keeps talking about.

     "As I said; I collect all the treasures of the world, not merely those that have a bladed edge. It is simply easier to show you swords." And, yeah, he clearly really *likes* his swords. Toph's pretty bang-on in that analysis.

     "I have said I will try to come to your feast, have I not?" Gilgamesh reminds her, "Your invitation did not fall on deaf ears."

     /The most opulent/ rings through his ears.

     /The most opulent/.

     /The. Most. Opulent./

     "I hope that it lives up to your boasts, then! That alone shall be worth my presence. And I have not forgotten that you must also be given a present to mark your survival. As is custom, I shall also bring food."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Is the treasury sentient? Or close enough to being alive and reacting to Gilgamesh's will? Eh, she might learn that another time.

    "Yeah, Sokka's a warrior. He's got a sword that he made from a meteorite, and he gave me the leftover part!" she states, pulling up the left sleeve of her t-shirt to show off the dark metal ring there. "It's unique metal, though he lost it at the end of the war some years ago, he wouldn't stop whining until I helped him find it with my bending."

    When the weapons start to vanish however she raises her head, then sighs and studies the shield closely in the time she has left before it too rises from her hands, shaking a bit before it is no longer there, and she sighs. Well, it was fun while it lasted! "Yeah, I get that it's easier to show me these things. I think weapons are okay, but even if I'm more macho than most guys my age doesn't mean I'm all that weapon crazy. It was interesting to study them a bit, though!" she admits.

    Her birthdays are usually rather fun, and having many guests is the best part. Even if she had a smaller birthday last year, this year she totally needs to make it big since it seems to be a big thing. As long as she doesn't need to make it like those stupid sweet sixteen parties. Ugh. His comment regarding the wedding present she gave Tony and Pepper does make her blink. "Well, of course it does! I worked hard for it, and for somebody like me it's easy enough to make sculptures! I mean, I only need to study some faces, and that's easy enough. Presents are nice, get me some new metal or ore that I can work with, huh?" she suggests with a grin. "There will be food, dad's going to make his speciality, /and/ I'm ordering catering. There will also be contests and prizes. It's a beach party, so wear clothes that you don't mind getting wet. I live by the beach in Malibu, in the largest and most expensive house there. Considering my dad is a billionaire superhero philantropist and stay-at-home-dad nowadays."

Gilgamesh has posed:
     The words 'billionaire superhero philanthropist stay-at-home-dad' go in one ear and out the other, and it's clear that they mean about as much to him as him speaking of Sumerian Gods would to her. Of much more interest to him is the sky-metal ring; he bends in close again. No, personal space isn't a concept he seems to have much of, but then, at least he isn't a creeper about it. It's probably a result of living in his time rather than some intentional 'I must get up close to your face' thing. He examines the ring with the critical eye of a master collector. Eventually, he nods, and straightens again, leaving her personal space bubble.

     "Metal. Very well then. I will find some metal worth your time."

     "Ah. These are 'swim cloths,' yes? Seras spoke to me of these when I asked her what a spee-doh was. A strange and barbarous custom to be so ashamed of your bodies, but I will ensure I acquire one of these swim cloths to conform to your rituals." He pronounces /spee-doh/ poorly. He also sort of blinks at 'Malibu', though he clearly understands /largest and most expensive/. That...yeah, he gets *that*. THAT is a concept inherent to him.

     "Very well, then. I will make certain also to receive directions, so that my wanderings do not take me beyond my mark." That's a funny way of saying 'so I don't get lost'.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    It's a bit different when he leans in to look at the ring that she's actually showing him, it was just weird when he got all up in her face earlier. Heck, she even bends the ring off and then holds it out for him so he can take a closer look. "Yup. Space metal. It's the gift from Sokka that I kinda appreciate the most, since it was his first gift to me," she says with a shrug, as if pretending it's not a big deal. Nopes, Gilgamesh isn't the only one who really enjoys gifts and fancy trinkets.

    There's little need for Gilgamesh to pronounce the word correctly, as Toph blinks and gives him a deadpan look. "Swim shorts is usually the norm unless you really want to show off." Which he might, so... "Just go for swim shorts, as that's what most people will wear. And hey, some people aren't used to showing off their bodies, so what. People who show up nude will get launched into the ocean, and yes, I will be aiming for their butts." Directions are easy enough, as Toph reaches for her radio and fiddles a bit with it before the directions are transmitted over to Gilgamesh's radio. "Just follow that signal, and you'll find your way there. If not you can call me, I'll keep it on while we prepare for the party."

    With that said and done Toph bring two fingers to her forehead in a rather informal salute. "Right now I'm kinda itching for a hot shower and some food, plus I think Sokka is waiting for me. I'll catch you on the radio, and maybe we'll run into one another on a mission on something. Take care, mister Left-turn-at-Albuquerque!" she grins, then turns and walks off, bending the metal ring back onto her upper left arm.