Scene #6455: Dark Hand B-Sides

Owner	Pose
Xion	DELING CITY It's not just 'Basically Paris', It Is Paris. It's early evening in Deling City (it always seems to be Early Evening in Deling City, but that's another matter), the city that never sleeps because the town is only rendered in nighttime and early eveing, but it's just as popping as any town of its size would be - if not more! Rows of old buildings sit on winding streets around large squares, with great mansions sitting on giant lawns with rustic gates guarded by not-so-rustic soldiers in blue uniforms and cyclops-like silver helmets bearing modern-looking carbines slung over their shoulders and very anachronistic straight sabers with some sort of technological hilt on their sides. In fact, military presence is pretty high all over, as Galbadian troops integrate at most major city checkpoints and thouroughfares, helping direct traffic and engage in a 'police force' atmosphere that's almost casual. The civilians don't even seem to mind, noses buried in smartphones or business, and the overall atmosphere is entirely laid back. Besides that, it's a more militarized Paris, complete with Arc Du Triomphe at the center of the city's spokes, controlling the major arterial road and thouroughfare roundabout... Or would, if the entire area wasn't bypassed and lightly cordoned by red-clothed and heavier armored and armed G-Force sergeants directing traffic and people away from the large, permanent Warpgate right smack-dab in the center of the Arc. Traffic in and out actually continues, of course, with strange anachronistic vehicles from other worlds driving through and being immediately put through customs, as foot traffic is handled from the other end in the seamless bureaucracy of a military force all-too-accustomed to, and optimized for, garrison duty within the city. The friendly local soldiers, today, are very helpful in directing weird looking people (that's you, especially if you come through the gate) with cordial-if-professional ID checks and directions to General Caroway's manor where a light gala is being held. Of course, invitations aren't especially hard to get, but neither are they easy - some shadowy hand helps in the selection of those People of Interest that have been cropping up in and around the locale, especially extended to the 'guests of honor' that cleared out the Deling City sewers of the Heartless and recovered the personal effects of a number of Galbadia's finest.
Xion	Presiding over the event is not, in fact, General Fury Caroway - himself an impressively military man and the current operations director of the Galbadian military stationed in Deling City and head of the 'G-Forces' program, but another local legend: Gabriel Agreste, who lightly masquerades as Deling's greatest fashion mogul. General Fury Caroway is a middle-aged man with graying black hair slicked back and tightly cut, a single bang falling on his left side, and dressed in full military honors with a black uniform coat trimmed in blue and black pants, studded with enough medals that one must either expect him to be a career armchair medal-collector or a Serious Deal. His overall build and bearing - ramrod straight and severe - leads one to suspect the latter. Gabriel Agreste, on the other hand, is also a severe man, slightly younger in build with platinum blonde and perfectly maintained hair and a birdlike face with prominent chin and nose, and a thin, unsmiling mouth. Two large designer frames sit on his nose and frame two intelligent, detached ice blue eyes. He wears a white collared shirt with peppermint stick ascot, silver sweater, and white dinner jacket and matching pants, and holds his arms clasped behind him. All around are a number of enlisted and officer members of Galbadia's G-Forces, dressed in blues and reds, carring their sabers and side-arms, but none of the distinctive carbines inside the large mansion with various tables set out to recieve and cater to the wants of those arriving. A female majordomo, a black haired secretary in red turtleneck and black jacket and pants, greets everyone and signs them in to the guest list. If prompted, her name is Nathalie. If introduced, she checks the guest list on her (high-tech) clipboard, nods, and offers a Fake Service Personell Smile.
Axel	For once, Axel is /not/ dressed in cult clothes. He's actually dressed in the suit vest and suit pants he got from the shopping trip in Lilian's world, knowing that you got to dress to impress at something like this. If it wasn't for the spiky red hair that screams 'I'm a protagonist' and the teardrop tattoos under his eyes, he'd probably not set off the 'weird-looking people' senses at all. With invitation secured, Axel moves into the building, and identifies himself simply as 'Axel' for the guest list. Nathalie gets a smile back, only slightly more genuine than hers. And then, Axel heads into the party proper, though he asides to those coming with him. "Your first time coming to one of these?" The subtext is 'it's absolutely mine'. See, while Axel knows not to dive onto a table or suddenly shout to get everyone's attention for a drinking contest, he's still sort of a bumpkin. Fancy galas are not his scene at all, but he can totally eat finger foods and mostly stick around the crowd he 'trusts', at least compared to the military personnel and strangers.
Evangeline	Evangeline was surprised to get an invitation to a party, especially a high class party at a powerful official's mansion. She floats through the door of the mansion and presents her invitation...and probably looks a bit silly doing so. Her friend Yoshika insisted she dress properly for a gala, and so the usually completely black Neuroi without any actual clothing is wearing a proper yet elegant pink dress. The skirt hangs down far enough that only the rounded ends of her plane engine-like legs are visible. One large strap over her right shoulder keeps the dress in place, and someone has braided a flower crown of medium-sized pink and white flowers for her to wear on her head. The dress is fairly simply in design, more like an evening gown than a ballroom gown, and has been covered in glitter to give Eva little choice about whether she draws eyes or not. Of course, a floating mannequin with cat ears and a tail wearing a pink evening gown is probably not going to draw the sort of attention that her friends might have been hoping. Once inside, Evangeline seems rather lost. She sticks close to Axel, who she has at least encountered before, and nods ever so slightly at his question. "...I...am not invited to such events often..." she says in that soft, nearly monotone voice of hers.
Arthur Lowell	"Nah, homie." Arthur assures Axel. "But DON'T WORRY. Doesn't matter how many times you get up into a FANCY HANGOUT." He puts on a pair of sunglasses. "You can always LEARN NOTHING about being POLITE at 'em." How does a rambunctious shouty guy like him manage to get an invitation to the Gala? Haha, of course he got it by fighting! He's stopped in what appears to be his God Tier suit (black, white, red accents, and a tie lightly patterned with off-black eight-pronged whorls that match a pair of cufflinks). That is to say, it's a suit that he gets for being God-Tier, not a suit that is god-tier. Suits that are god-tier are more the realm of Gabriel Agreste, who Arthur is here to see. Of course, he first has to go through Nathalie, whom he greets with grins, swagger, loud introductions, and a particularly eagerness to meet the man of the hour. "Yooooo, what up G? Can I get a chat with BIG A 'bout some BUSINESS? Some'a those RAD AS HELL DESIGNS might be gettin' the RISK." He verbally shotguns in her direction. Somehow he manages to lean away in a cool way, while also managing to lean into personal space. "Found that SWEET GEAR of GALBADIA'S BEST down there, gettin' that WORRY that BIG A'S RAD FASHIONS were gettin' the TARGET on 'em. Seemed FOCUSED and shit, def had HELLA DEFENSES." It /was/ really well-protected! The Heartless clearly had some kind of interest in it. Obnoxious though he may be, Arthur definitely has the authentically altruistic look to him. He wants to help Agreste if he's dealing with anything Heartless-related!
Aranea Highwind	Aranea never misses a chance to slip a nice evening in her travel expenses. It's a lot like being paid to chill, and that's, generally, always fine with her. Especially when it potentially furthers contacts and connections, as is the case here. Sometimes it pays to be Niflheim. Today it pays to be Monoc. It's dressed in much more formal wear than usual that Aranea walks in behind Axel, offerinh to him a pile of neatly folded napkins. If nothing else, she pulls the nice suit and gloves Bazett look pretty well. "Don't forget to wipe your fingers between snacks, it's impolite to shake hands while they're dirty." It's not hard to tell he's not used to fancy galas. "The suit works a lot better than the creepy robe, by the way. Slicking your hair back might have given you that nice finish to make it convincing, try it next time." An idle look at Arthur. Back to Axel: "In retrospect, you're beyond fine."
Deelel	So from Phoenix to Deling, a vast improvement in terms of surrounding and Deelel is far happier at night, none of this freakish sun burning in the sky business the human world has. Well, it's just not over it and that's all that really matters to her. She cooperates with the Galbadian troops knowing that they are doing their jobs, after all, there's a lot of monsters in this world, right? She looks a bit odd but it would be classed as some club goer with some very odd tastes in tattoo work nothing more. She will thank the soldiers for their help in finding her way to her destination and away she goes. She's a bit out of place fashionwise and the odd thing about her clothing it lacks any stitching or seams like it was formed wholesale on her body. Also, anyone looking at the disc on her back it would have some sort of locking mechanism seemingly place there too. In the back of her mind Deelel thinks she needs to get a third outfit for more formal events. She does the whole thing with Nathalie gives her name and will now go on in to mingle also to try the food. She does gavtiated in trying to seek out Gabriel Agreste as she's got a few questions about fashion on this world and it's a good place to start by asking a pro, right? She does spot Aranea for a moment and doesnt' seem hostile, heck she waves to her.
Raziel	Raziel approaches the gate, after what may look like to the guards as materializing right in front of them. The creature, very ghoulish and monsterlike approaches the guards, hands up when he notices weapons leveled at him. This likely causes the guards some pause, as the creature appeared to be able to communicate. "I am invited here," He indicates, offering ID and obvious papers. This gets some people to look at each other weirdly. It also probably gets some people shadowing him as he is granted entry and moves towards the mansion for the party. He does notice the weird looks he gets the whole way, but he's used to it by now. Finally entering the mansion he looks around, blue orbs for eyes taking in everything as he considers things for a moment. 'The city itself always seemed to be in perpetual night. However, the structure of the city is one of the frightening calms and military presence. While a rich culture obviously flourishes, the need for military all over the place speaks much to how little the people consider their streets. I should do my best to not attract unwanted attention to myself, lest I bring strife for my allies in the Concord.' On that, he notices Axel, already getting a crowd around him. He also notices a loud obnoxious person near him. Well, at least he does not stand out as much now. He moves to catch the eye of Axel, giving him a nod before trying to slip back behind the cover of the crowd who was likely already parting to want to do nothing about him. However, Raziel is well aware of his appearance and does not seem to mind the situation much.
Lilian Rook	Lilian had been to Deling before. She had made it clear that she likes Paris. This time she makes it clear that she likes it a lot more than Phoenix, Arizona. This time she isn't on a mission to kill things, but rather, going to a fancy mansion with a fashion designer there. This involves leaving the cut down battleshit behind, and spending no less than six hours fretting over an outfit. One that even involves heels, actually. Not super high ones, but enough to not advertise being ready to break someone in half if needed. She hadn't quite done emperor Tyron that courtesy before. So here she is, dispensing with the generic Correct Answer party dress type of thing, having a white collared shirt with a red ruffled tie visible under a formal, cut down, black double-breasted jacket and pleated skirt. She'd even gotten a much fancier scabbard for the silver sword she refuses to leave basically anywhere, but had settled for propping up on nearby furniture within arm's reach instead of having it be literally strapped to her. She's also in on alcohol. She might have to produce a license that says she's a mildly incredulous amount of older than she looks, but this is France, known for not really giving a shit about who drinks the wine. It's not like she's driving. She immediately homes in on Axel right after though, pointing to him and saying "See? I told you. Now you're glad you came shopping, right? You almost fit right in." She then offers to shake hands with Aranea now that they're meeting on sort of kind of business. Then she has to break off because Arthur is being Arthur, and it's also the same topic she'd come here on. "Please, be patient with him. That's just how they speak where he comes from." Yep, she's making up a Multiversal land of xbox kid talk so it's now culturally offensive to tell him he's being rude. "I couldn't help but notice the same before, however."
Xion	The crowd today is, conservatively, 40% less completely clownshoes crazy, comedically nuts, and oozing with incompetent directed protagonistic aggression and cult robes. Thus, the atmosphere is pretty good. Nathalie does her smile-and-why-is-the-pen-scratching-so-loudly thing with everyone as they come in, and those - like Axel - willing to move to the vague periphery can mingle with the various members of the elite G-Forces and their Plus Ones (if allowed). See, Axel isn't a huge guy. He's lanky and has got that teardrop tattoo under his eye. Which is pretty awkward in this rather polite company. So awkward, in fact, that a large red-uniformed Galbadian officer with the pauldron... epaulettes? Accents, at any rate, of the rank of major. "Hey, kid. Why've you got that tattoo on your eye? That's a prison tattoo, kids like you shouldn't-" Another, lankier man saunters up. "Major, don't pick fights with the guests." "Lieutenant, aren't we guests?" "Y-yessir, Major Biggs, sir." "Then shut up, Wedge." "Yessir. Sorry sir. Very questionable tattoo, sir." Evangeline's appearance is strange but, after a few moments of inspection, is easily waved through to... ... eat catering? The blue-armored lieutenant - 'Wedge' - follows Evangeline across the room with his eyes. "Major, sir, is that one of those Nifleheim..." Biggs turns away from hassling Axel to look at Aranea. "What? Yeah, one of their contractors. She's a big legend. She's not a Nifleheim regular, though. Don't worry about it." Wedge blanches, his gaze dropping to his feet. "I meant... the floating black girl with the silver hair." Biggs claps Wedge across the back. "Only when her armor's on, Lieutenant!" And then starts guffawing for no reason. Wedge just sort of deflates. "Y-yessir. While her armor's on, sir." As Raziel rolls in, Gabriel's hand comes up in an appraising chinstroking, looking at the ragged armor and the general state of disrepair of his clothes, before leaning in to the ragged, zombified man. "I was made aware you were knighted for past service. There's no reason for a man of your stature to present in less than the best clothes. In the Fall, may I recommend a number of our new 'Tactical Dress' collection? With your complexion, as well, a thick scarf and the right tailoring around the shoulders and waist could cut a striking figure in any situation." Gabriel smiles then, a thin and slightly smug/self-assured 'you're welcome' smile from an expert. Arthur, a Literal Xbox Child with a tie on then accosts Agreste with words, and his look turns uncomprehendingly 'please get this peasant away from me, and bring me a translator, and perhaps security?' before Nathalie leans over and whispers into his ear. "Ahhh. Forgive me." He reaches forward as Lilian steps up to the plate, to take her fingers lightly in a gentle grip and bring the to his lips in a 'kiss-the-ring' greeting. "Dame Rook, of the Unseen Order, I presume? Lovely for someone of your pedigree to join us. I heard that you and your..." Arthur gets a glance, less dismissive, more 'how do I even describe this'. "Companions handled a very serious infestation of Heartless under the city. In fact, there's a man here who'd like to personally thank you. Ah... Major!" Biggs looks up from hassling children and being a buffoon. "Sir!" "Where's the Captain?" Biggs gives the biggest, helpless shrug that only a man with gorilla arms and giant pauldrons and arm bracers can. "D'unno, sir." Agreste tisks. "He's about. Nathalie, please find him." Nathalie fades into the background to find the mysterious 'Captain'. Don't they have a Major? Isn't that better?
Roxas	One of the Galbadian Soldiers stands out, just a little. He's larger than his fellows, by about a head, to begin with-- but the color of his uniform is different, among other things. The primary coloration is black, with white trim. An emblem on his chest matches the flag of Galbadia, and his helmet's faceplate wraps around from the sides to cover his mouth. A half-cape is draped over his left side, and the design of his armor incorporates the bulkier power-assist structure used by Galbadian elite troops. At first he seems to be simply lingering nearby -- evidently, on security detail -- but when Arthur comes by talking about what happened in the sewers a while ago, his attention is drawn magnetically towards the deity. He tilts his head slightly as a noise crackles in his ear, the radio in his helmet coming to life. People are looking for him. Specifically, Mr. Agreste is looking for him. The Captain moves from his semi-distant post, sweeping through the crowds as he mutters into his radio for somebody to take his post. Probably, he wasn't even supposed to be minding it to begin with, but... It's hard to stop this guy from 'doing his job'. "It's fine, Miss Sancoeur. I'm here." Captain Galbadia's voice is mild, but firm. He strolls up to Arthur, his head tilted down slightly. "I was with that unit, that went down in the sewers. Only one to make it out of there." The Captain's voice is only a little forlorn, in the way of somebody who is pretty bummed about it but has enough control not to go to pieces in public. He shakes Arthur's hand firmly, "I'm Captain Galbadia. Thank you for putting my comrades to rest." The weird thing is, this guy doesn't seem like he would have any problems at all handling what went on down there. Even with the sort of power Arthur has, he can tell that the Captain has a grip like iron.
Raziel	'Upon entering, I was accosted by a tall man with blonde hair and glasses. The man held himself upright, with likely noble upbringing. With his well-kept clothing and appearance, one might think he was someone who got that way on fashion itself. Given the luxury of this city, it is not such an unsurprising possibility.' Raziel turns to look at Gabriel, giving the man a nod at his answer, though speaking eloquently and calmly. This was something expected of a nobleman, no less a knight. "Once long ago, I was these things. However, as you see before you now this is what I am reduced to. I would not ask for things I could not use, as the form you see now is not but a projection." "You see, I am a ghost. I have stopped living, by your standards, thousands of years ago. It is only through forces which that elude me still that I continue to exist, and not have passed on from this life." His eyes closed as if recounting that moment, "Because of this fact, any clothing beyond what is on my corpse now would not be able to be held up once I stopped willing myself to exist in the Material Realm." "I do apologize for my appearance, if it were in my power I would find another form to inhabit. However, such power appears to be outside of my current ability."
Evangeline	Evangeline does float her way over to the catering tables. And while her hair is a bit dark to count as silver, it is still quite shiny and metallic. And notably doesn't move at all, as if it is a helmet of some kind more than it is hair. With no apparent facial features one might wonder just how she is going to eat anything. Or how she is going to carry those things with no apparent hands. But, both questions are answered when slender, slightly boxy fingers emerge from the ends of her sleeve-like arms and she picks up a sweet dessert of some kind, then holds it up to her face. She doesn't actually take any bites. Instead, when it touches her face...it glows a sinister red before simply disappearing into her dark form. It is just after that that she turns slowly, rotating in the air without moving, to meet Wedge's gaze. But how can he be sure? She has no eyes! Then, she starts toward him, floating her way through the crowd without ever touching the ground. She reaches him and stops, just floating there in front of him. After a long pause she finally bows at the waist politely. "...hello...I am Evangeline..." she says before straightening up again. "...I am not from Nifleheim...I am from a world known to other worlds as Strike Earth...I am a Neuroi..."
Axel	Raziel gets a nod of recognition and a brief smile back, before Axel moves to reply to those responding to him. "I'm already plenty polite, you know." He responds to Arthur, before nodding to Aranea, wiping his hands on napkins after eating some food. "What, ruin my hair? It's perfect just the way it is." This is supposed to be humorous, not him entirely hewing to 'my hair is perfect'. Lilian gets a smile and a nod. "Yeah, I can pull it off. Almost fitting in is just what I like." And then Axel is accosted by Galbadian officers. As he's questioned about his tattoos, gears turn in his head for a second, and he responds. "Oh, there's an amazing story behind it, one that'll make you laugh, make you cry, make you..." Oh, they got distracted by Aranea and Evangeline. Good, Axel was bullshitting - he got the tattoos because he liked them, and because of some symbolism he doesn't reveal to the public. Axel takes this moment to disappear towards the others, joining up with Lilian and Arthur as someone new is introduced. Captain Galbadia. "With a name like that, sounds like you're a real champion of the people." It's meant as a compliment, since the guy looks like a goddamn superhero. "Don't worry about it. It's all in a day's work. Name's Axel. I was down there with the others." If Galbadia offers to shake his hand, or is willing to, Axel does so, trying to network with Literally A National Superhero. Since he was down there, he has to be in the know about the Underground, so he could be a solid ally.
Deelel	So far the party is going pretty good and Deelel will at least enjoy the sight and people here. The tattoos Deelel has upon her visible arm, give off the feeling they are more a fashion statement than anything else. Though the truth they are actually natural markings she does catch Biggs and Wedge with Axel for a moment to look them over but she finally catches up to Gabriel for a moment gives a fashion assessment to Raziel. Tactical Dress collection? "Tactical Dress collection? That sounds promising for people in our line of work." Her voice is a bit odd it has a digital warble too it like one of those digital singing programs might but it's fairly faint. She doesn't push too hard she was not down in the Sewers and she knows enough not to be rude. She takes a moment at what Raziel has said and is just a bit mind. He had a task a function if you will, and that gets a load of respect from her. She will have to talk to him later, for now, though she lingers with Gabriel while taking an eye at Wedge and Eva. "We're both what you might call synthetic lifeforms!"
Lilian Rook	Axel getting hassled for his tattoo is probably just unavoidable with military types around. Evangeline getting hassled for being a floating robot is justly deserved, as far as Lilian is concerned. She actually stops to turn her head back and give a lingering look on Agreste giving Raziel fashion advice. For a second, she thinks it's a lost cause, but then after a moment, she gets that chin-stroking look, and starts envisioning it. "I can actually see it. Emphasize the shoulders, hem in the waist a little, match the scarf, probably silk. Hmm." Not bad. On her way past, she hands over a prepaid burner card for 50,000 credits and says "Oh don't be a baby. There are tailors for that. Make yourself decent after this" to Raziel. Getting the full on kiss-the-ring really is a delight for Lilian, and her smile lights up to make it evident. "It's certainly a gathering worth joining though, isn't it?" she gestures around the party with her wine glass-holding hand. "Companions might be a bit of a stretch. You could call the better dressed ones 'followers', and the rest were mostly incidentally there and listened to instructions, so perhaps 'informal subordinates'?" The corner of her lip twists for a moment. "Except Lowell, of course. He happens to have a respectable position himself. Of a sorts. Though, I'm flattered you did the research into myself as well~" She has her own questions about the Major/Captain thing, but upon seeing the man on approach, her first words to him are "Well, I can certainly see how you did get out. I would be shocked if a man of your calibre were to disappear down there. It's extremely unfortunate either way, especially so close to a center of civilization and culture. That sort of thing shouldn't be happening here. I'd hate to drag down an occasion like this with such a sad subject, but I would like to leave you with the note that we are still checking around, and that any information you'd be able to furnish us with wouldn't go amiss." She hands over a card. It is A Card. It's very fancy, in black and platinum, and has a phone number, an identification number, a fancy little anti-counterfeit holo like a magic circle in the corner, and a full title.
Arthur Lowell	"Nah, don't worry, INFORMAL is right. I'm HELLA INFORMAL on the REGULAR." Arthur assures. But "companion" is a good way to describe him! He is very companionly. So much so that his immediate approach for Captain Galbadia is terribly friendly, already pushing hard with the eager posture, until very suddenly the topic of death comes up. His mind ticks a few times. A loading bar fills. Is this like a Captain America thing? This is definitely a Captain America thing. Well, he can deal with it. "Yeah, man." He says, taking him seriously and gripping his hand firmly. His subtle read on Captain Galbadia's "echeladder"-equivalent rating gives him a brief pause, a twitch of the cheek and a momentary savvy half-squint, but it doesn't last long. "They deserved better, but least I could do, homie." He says, respecting the deaths. Whatever the odd circumstances might have been. "Gotta say, meetin' the badass who got outta that situation with his heart still beating in his chest sure as hell gives me the worries we didn't clean all the way up." After all, if he lost down there, perhaps they missed something...? "Yeah, I got that HELLA CURIOSITY too. What's the DEAL with 'em? Why did they know HIGH FASHION? They seemed HARDCORE FOCUSED on BIG A'S FASHION BIT. I mean, great headwear, but they're HEARTLESS, not HATLESS. This a CHRONIC DEAL?"
Aranea Highwind	Aranea shakes Lilian's hand and gives her a nod in greeting; there's no reason not to be polite, though it seems she immediatly takes it upon herself to handle the Arthur situation. Aranea's going to avoid that one for now! Playing babysitter is counterintuitive to enjoying herself. Which is why she gets a second glass of wine already, since it's so generously on the house. Whether she notices the duo of Galbadians discussing her or not is never revealed, because she quickly gravitates towards CAPTAIN GALBADIA out of curiosity. Don't get to meet those kinds of people often. "Captain," she says, offering her hand for a shake. "Aranea Highwind. Nice to meet a local legend. Be even nicer to chat over a drink, after your shift." Because why stop at a single party, right? And he's getting assaulted by pretty much everyone present anyway, so there's no sense piling the questions on.
Xion	Gabriel raises his hand as Raziel moves to apologize, shaking his head in the clipped way of a man who even emotes with reduced and efficient motions. "There is nothing to apologize for, sir. Forgive my presumptions." He returns, though nods along with Lilian's backing up of his critical eye. "Posture. Material. Bearing. And, most importantly - an eye to create a unified 'look'. These are the fundamentals of fashion. It is one of these pillars that brings us together: material." Multiple questions are levied in rapid succession about various connected topics, and Gabriel takes a moment to return to his hands-clasped-behind-his-back posture, 'leaning on the ropes' while it all comes in and looking interested and vaguely 'about to speak' until the deluge slows down. Thankfully, Captain Galbadia is here to soak some interest. With a glance to General Caroway, in confirmation of some agreed-upon situation, Gabriel launches into his explanation. "The reason why my business has come so prominently into focus in a military sense, is because my advanced textile division has made multiple breakthroughs to keep our beloved city in the light." Ironic, considering Deling City is constantly vaguely dark and nighttime when anyone's ever around, but perhaps they have their boring daytime when nobody important is observing them. Yeah, that must be it. "The Galbadian Military program, G-Forces, is backed by not just the Agreste eye to cutting a striking image and battle garb, and relateable face for our soldiers at home and abroad, but moving towards the cutting edge of that battle garb through 'paramagical' means." Gabriel extends a hand to his side. "Lieutenant, your sabre." Wedge steps up, drawing his hefty and practical arming saber, offering it hilt-first to Gabriel, who manipulates the upper blade-guard with a few practiced motions, revealing a perfectly faceted quartz-like jewel in the technological machinery of the weapon. "Magic is an invention of fantasy, but creating a cloth - and assorted metal additions - that can be receptive to passive 'paramagical' enhancement via these technological marvels was a challenge laid at my feet. To create a synthetic solution where fantasy failed." He does not complete the thought 'oh and I totally succeeded'. Look at the room! Every single one of the G-Forces soldiers has one of those swords, except Major Biggs and the other red-clothed 'elites', and... Well, Captain Galbadia doesn't either. Wedge, less his sword (and a little deflated he's the whipping boy today), brightens at the word 'synthetic'. "Ohhh. Major Biggs, is that what they are?" "Who, Lieutenant?" "The metal girl." Biggs considers. "Well, she looks like a powerful weapon. Good eye, Wedge." "T-thank you, sir." Gabriel continues "The Captain and his team were equipped with an experimental set of high-quality operations armor and sent into the sewers to strike at the heartless infestation there... And I do hate to admit it, but our design team did not succeed in that first, unfateful outing. The Heartless, no doubt, took the paramagically attuned clothing for their own unknowable desires. That you returned it to the proper authorities is enough."
Roxas	Captain Galbadia /does/ in fact shake Axel's hand, just as forcefully as Arthur's. You can't help but get the impression that he hasn't been this powerful for long-- he's a little clumsy with it, but not painfully so. He seems to consider what Axel said about him, and replies, "I'm just doing my duty, sir. The power that I have now was granted in a moment of despair, but it's not my own." His attention turns then to Lilian, to whom his first reaction is a slightly embarrassed noise. He says, "The Heartless aren't a very predictable enemy. They're... impulsive. It's all that they are, so you can only predict them if somebody is guiding them to start with. Most of the time they just sort of run parallel to the world and come out when they decide something vulnerable is near enough to make a grab at. We can't venture into the realm they live in without risking becoming one of them, so we can't really take the fight back to them. But I appreciate your service and diligence." "I understand it was better, back when there were still Keyblade Knights to help fight them." He adds, taking Lilian's card and examining it with interest. It's clear that Captain Galbadia hasn't seen /that/ much magic, because there's just a little too much wonder in him before he puts it away. "I--" An adjutant comes up alongside him and passes him a business card he didn't know he had, which he gives to Lilian with a puzzled look. There's a number on it that can ONLY be a dedicated emergency line. He shakes her hand while he's at it-- there's a certain apologetic quality to it that suggests he'd /probably/ have followed Mr. Agreste's lead, if he wasn't wearing a full-face-covering helmet. Arthur's examination of Captain Galbadia's "echeladder" yields surprisingly compatible results. It's a little less riddled with obfuscation than Arthur's own-- the man's reading as a LV. 10 SUPERHERO / LV. 5 SOLDIER. It's the sort of stats you'd expect out of a JRPG character at the start of the game who is supposed to be pretty badass, but still has to be statted to 'the start of the game', and job changed pretty early. "Mr. Agreste's line of equipment is high-quality," Captain Galbadia explains, "and it tends to look good for military gear. These helmets..." He taps his own helmet, "Are pretty new stuff. That's why they were so excited about them. Since Heartless are pure want, I think you get the picture fro mthere." Despite his newness, Captain Galbadia doesn't get overwhelmed. He shakes Aranea's hand heartily -- there's a casualness to it that he doesn't use with the others, and a little more roughness that can probably be identified as the way one soldier would treat another -- and says, "Pleasure to meet you, Miss Highwind. You'll have to wait until Mr. Agreste's escort detail is up, and that's flexible. I'd be happy to have a drink with you when I can, but I should warn you that I have a one beer maximum. Two on weekends." He's a boyscout, too, apparently.
Raziel	"This isn't a scarf, it is the banner of my Clan. It is the only thing I have of them left, tied to this decrepit form," he calmly explains. Of course, his attention goes back to the man. The cold and efficient motions do not escape Raziel's notice. "There is nothing to forgive, I have taken no offense." However, when the card goes into his claw, he looks surprised for a moment. "I can not accept this, I apologize," Raziel says, attempting to hand the card back to her. He is somehow able to hold it, despite having only three 'fingers' each one having a claw tipping them. "I can look into such things, but I am unsure if such magic will make any lasting change to my form. From experience...I tend to change whatever I am thrown into, to this." Raziel watches the sword and the explanation of the events so far come to pass. He remains silent, instead of absorbing information for a moment, instead of speaking. 'The blade was a well-crafted weapon, to say the least when revealed of the work underneath of the surface, the crystal seemed to glow with the hum of energies I was unfamiliar with. Whatever this 'Para-magic' was, it was no doubt a good conduit through it. Clever use of the blade, likely similar in scope to the elemental properties of the Reaver."
Axel	"It might not be your own, but it's yours to use, yeah? That's important to remember, and in that way, it is yours. I bet you'll put it to good use." It's all a little empty coming from Axel, and some of it is indeed just to get a good impression to the guy as being a cool potential ally, though Axel does think that 'a Galbadian superhero' is pretty cool to meet, and does believe what he said about power. The equipment explanation draws his eye, though Axel already has the perfect weapons, so he's not jealous in any way. It's the mention of Keyblade Knights that causes Axel to raise an eyebrow, but he ends up making a thinking face, before moving to grab another finger food, eat, and wipe his hands. He'll rejoin the crowd later, right now, he's hungry and there's fancy food.
Deelel	Deelel takes a good moment to listen to Gabriel as he explains a few things from their military grade clothing which she planned to look into when she got a chance. She also watches with interest as the sabre is asked for and Wedge offers it's up. Paramagic? That does get her attention she looks at the Sabre now. She takes a moment to thinks on this as it's explained. "A way to give a scale of magical abilities to your soldiers, so they can better handle themselves? Very impressive sir." She does looks at the weapon with interest. Then the mention of the Heartless. "Yes the problem is making the Heartless stay down." As Captain Galbadia goes on as Gabriel finishes up and the Captain takes over. "So the best that can be done is to keep them from gaining footholds then Captain?" She thinks on the matter of Keyblades and Dual Disc feels a lot more heavy all of a sudden. "The Heartless are a serious threat and why I come to offer my help fighting them where ever they might be, Captain. Oh forgive me, my name is Deelel." Riku's words to her had hit a very important point she had a duty to hunt the horrors wherever they make themselves known. She'll offer the Captain a Hand and Lillian gets a look for a moment trying to size her up a bit and isn't quite sure what to make of her just yet. She also makes a note to go catch up with Arthur? Or is it save other guests from Arthur?
Evangeline	Evangeline draws very little attention all around, at least little that she actually notices. And what she does get she recognizes as the cautious, even fearful reactions she has come to expect from most of humanity. The comment that she must be a weapon actually makes her look toward Biggs. "...I was not sent to be a weapon...I was sent to try and make peace between humans and Neuroi...and I try to do that with anyone I meet if I can...but...Neuroi are quite dangerous if we do engage in combat..." she says, barely heard over the general noise. "...and I am not a synthetic lifeform...except maybe in the sense that I am not organic..." she adds after hearing Deelel. She nods lightly in agreement with Deelel as the subject of fighting horrors comes up. "...I will also help if I can...if what everyone says about the Heartless is true...they must be stopped..." All the talk of military gear and clothing really isn't of much interest to Evangeline. She doesn't often wear clothes and all of her weapons are built in. But, she still listens politely.
Aranea Highwind	There's a lot of blahblah about magitek flying around. Well, their version of it, anyway. It's unusual to see such open discussion of it, but then Gabriel must either not be too secretive an individual, genuinely that good-hearted, or just isn't a competitive scientist at heart. Could also just be a trap. It almost makes Aranea smile that most of the attention is going to the boyscout instead. "A beer's plenty enough to share some stories from the frontline. We'll make it last," she smiles back to Captain Galbadia, now all the more curious to see the man behind the title off-duty. "Isn't bodyguard duty just a bit below your station, though? Or is there cause to believe they need someone of your skill on the floor tonight?" With how much firepower is in the room, it seems absurd anyone would try to start an incident.
Lilian Rook	Lilian takes the proffered business card as if Captain Galbadia hadn't looked confused at all and this is perfectly rehearsed. She also takes a very interested look at what Gabriel is showing off. This one isn't rehearsed. "It's definitely true that few people have the necessary qualities to make use of magic, and relying on magic to handle societal issues is difficult, to say the least. I rather like this approach. And you were able to do this with textiles manufacturing? Or at least, the infrastructure base for it? You're certainly a man of multiple talents. I'd only heard of you as a titan of fashion until now." She pauses momentarily to consider the description of the operation. "It's regretful, but brand new technology has its risks and shortcomings, and it takes use in the real world to see where they are, and improve upon them. If that description of the Heartless is accurate, I can also see why they'd want a trophy and lock it in a treasure chest like that. They'd perceive these items as extremely desirous. I'd hope that's an artifact of them attacking soldiers who are attached to Mr. Agreste's fine work, and not that the latter draws the former." She fluidly shifts back over to focusing on the Captain for a little bit. His hand gets a reciprocal shake that is surprisingly strong in of itself. "I'd like to put the idea on the table of a strike operation aimed at the primary concentration of Heartless 'on the other side' of Deling here, if they're becoming a persistent in-urban problem. I understand what you've described is a serious matter, but the individuals of my order are specifically qualified to handle unnatural psychological or metaspiritual hazards as described. At the very least, it could be useful information gathering."
Arthur Lowell	Arthur tilts his head. "MILITARIZED FASHION. Shit, that's crazy." For a moment, he considers the implications of connecting even more leisure industries with the military-industrial complex, and the sociopolitical implications of associating civilian fashions with foreign or domestic military culture. Then he decides that's all nerd shit and he's interested in the details. "So the HEARTLESS are gettin' that HUNGER for PARAMAGIC GEAR." He looks over Agreste himself, then examines the work he's done for the many G-Force soldiers at the gala. "Gotta admit, I can DIG THE STYLE. Bet they really do too. Can't blame ya eating shit on the IMPS and all, I did too at first. Was WORRIED when I started seeing HATS like that, they were, I dunno. STEALING SHIT out of AGRESTE CLOSETS or whatever." He laughs a bit at the idea. "Long as the homie ain't gettin' SINISTERED AT, I'm good." Lilian's idea draws his attention. An eyebrow shoots up fast and hard, "I'm IN ON THAT if you get anything for it." Arthur speaks up. "The usual GATES and shit ON-OFFER. I got that GREAT EXPERIENCE divin' up in MONSTER DIMENSIONS. Didja know I got DIPLOMATIC CREDENTIALS for OUTER REALMS too? TRUE FACT, dawg." He beams pridefully, as if that meant anything to anyone.
Xion	Gabriel contains a snort, cranking it down to an emphasized exhalation through his nose. His expectant, hawkish demeanor turns to each person - lingering on Lilian's receptive nature to his Tactical Fashion Battledress, and almost looming over Raziel as he monologues internally about Wedge's arming sabre. Then, nobody says any of the magic words. Nobody triggers Gabriel's expectant 'trap card', but instead offer help to another problem. His nasal derision is revealed as he speaks up. "Deling City doesn't need the Keyblade Knights. Galbadia has always had its own protectors standing up against the dark." Biggs puffs up. "Yeah! Like Ladybug, and Chat Noir!" Gabriel manages to not spit his drink, as he has not had anything to drink all day, and probably precisely for this reason. Instead, he tactically adjusts his ascot. "Thankfully, Deling City has no shortage of superheroes." His gaze falls over everyone, from Deelel and Evangeline's technological powers - and potentially synthetic hearts - to Arthur's Space Tie. Good god, his space tie. "Dame Rook, your expertise and assistance in coordinating such a strike against the holdfasts of darkness underneath our beloved city would be much appreciated. Perhaps after, we could discuss the particulars of improving threat response and the... necessary measures to take to keep such a space from not filling up with base creatures that require martial measures to be taken."
Roxas	"I suppose you're right. Thank you for your confidence." Captain Galbadia offers back to Axel, genially. Before Deelel calls his attention, he responds to her, "The magical abilities of the common soldier are the result of another innovation, ma'am. We call them job crystals-- they endow you with the abilities of somebody who held onto them and 'filled them up' with their experiences, and accelerate your learning of the more advanced stuff. I don't need mine anymore, but it's made a huge impact on the G-Forces." "As for the Heartless," Captain Galbadia shakes Deelel's hand as he explains, "repelling them is usually enough. Since they're all impulse, if you can make it less-than-worth-it to them the impulse to leave gets stronger than the impulse to stay. Making them stay gone isn't really something we've considered much of. It's just not feasible." Back to Aranea, "I prefer to take my time, anyway. It's not much fun to be done all in one go if you're only going to have the one. I don't really think any duty that needs to be fulfilled is beneath me, but I think this one is just because of how many important people are gathered here. It's a good opportunity if somebody can figure out an angle, so I'm here if somebody does feel like they've got a good enough shot otherwise." Since Gabriel has the Heartless assault idea taken care of with Lilian, Captain Galbadia pretty much defers that matter to him. It's above his paygrade anyway, even with the massive abrupt promotion.
Xion	From the second level, among the clinks of drinks and the gentle susuration of munching under the low rumble of undifferentiated conversation among the Galbadian soldiers, comes a strange... clicking sound. Not like some sort of Jurassic Park 'oh no it's a t-rex' or some gutteral xenomorph-ism, but like a lady's heeled shoes spiking against marble or wood. But it's not... one set. It's like four, in a regular rhythm. Axel's eyes are drawn up by the sight of a raggety hood with two 'ear'-like striped offshoots and a dark cultish 'cowled face'. Not precisely short like a child, but hunched over like a young man who probably shouldn't be there in a shitty ripped hoodie with red sworls on it. The sound, though - the clicking noise comes from two scarecrow glove hands each with a throbbing red claw. "captain, hmm?" "quite a..." The voice is raspy, yet impish and clearly coming from the shady figure, who peeks over the edge of the Caroway Mansion's bannister with two bright yellow eyes and a jagged red line for a mouth. "promotion" The strange scarecrow-like monster hops up on the railing like a gargoyle, staring not at General Caroway, any of the assorted guests, or even Gabriel - directly at Captain Galbadia. "its because you were too weak to hack it" "it's because you wouldnt accept real power into your heart" "now you're just a" "puppet" Nathalie is already escorting Gabriel out of the room, and General Caroway grabs Wedge's sword from Gabriel on his way out to take a battle stance - not even going through with the 'get out of my house' but seriously considering the strange imp-person as a Real, Military Threat. Soldiers begin to fan out, taking up their arms and discarding food around the area. The imp waves a scarecrow-stuffing'ed hand at everyone, as if this were the most normal thing in the world.
Raziel	Raziel looks up at the strange man, who apparently does more looming and talking than anything. He isn't sure about this whole thing, but rather continues to listen for a while. If there is one thing he is good at, it is paying attention to the lines between words. However, something just too out of left field breaks his concentration, staring towards Biggs. "Who or what are Lady Bog and Chat Noir?" The question is simple, he is not from here after all and this all seems bizarre. "I don't know about the Keyblade Knights either. Though I have and have encountered the small shadowy things. I am assuming they are the heartless." The gaze and the term superhero causes Raziel to shake his head. He is no hero, and that is something he won't really accept. However, his gaze shoots towards the creature. The words cause his eyes to narrow at it, as he walks slowly towards the creature and in front of the military men. 'This strange creature was ragged as I was, though smaller and more imp-like. There was an uncanny resemblance between it and the strange heartless creatures I had seen through the shroud. I moved to position myself between it and the people surrounding it.' "This was an invite-only event. I do not believe you have an invitation...so I very much suggest you leave under your own power, or I shall be forced to make you leave."
Aranea Highwind	'I prefer to take my time,' he says. If it were coming from anyone else, Aranea might well take this for a double-entendre. But Captain Galbadia seems entirely too straight a man to make that kind of joke. Or maybe he isn't? Surely she'd get to find out later. "You'd have to be completely brainless to attempt such a--" Oh hey a Heartless. A very lucid Heartless, even. Weird. As the room shuffles into a response, Aranea remains by Captain Galbadia (or behind him, if he's the sort to be so knightly as to automatically cover the woman low-key flirting with him), and doesn't make any kind of attempt to ready herself for combat. Other people clearly have this, and she'd really like to see the Captain in action if there's anything left for him to punch. "How dreadful. Your security probably needs some work."
Axel	Axel's in the middle of eating a tiny bite of food when his eyes are drawn up and he spots the scarecrow-like monster. For a second, it seems to be a Heartless...until it speaks up. Okay, that's strange. Axel starts to raise his hands to summon his weapons, but then he remembers something. He wipes his hands on a napkin real quick. And then, in a flash of darkness, the chakrams appear in Axel's hands. He doesn't wreath them in flame - they're powerful either way - and moves to throw one of them, holding the other for a defense. The chakram goes flying for the creature's legs, trying to knock it off the bannister. Axel is purposely not aiming to kill it on the first strike - he has no idea what this thing is and he should probably see what it plans on doing before he kills it. Curiosity, it seems, and also not wanting to underestimate what is clearly an Intelligent Threat. "Man, it's one thing to crash a party. But one full of armed personnel? You must really be off your rocker!"
Arthur Lowell	"Didn't I used to visit that IRC channel?" Arthur questions, at the mention of the superheroes. No, Arthur, not /that/ kind of-- Well, anyway. On closer examination, his Space Tie is indeed slightly gaudy. Specifically, it's multidimensional; from minor motions of the head come tremendous movements of the perspective. Eyes aren't on that long. Eyes get on the tricksty scarecrow-child that has invaded the party. Arthur is actually struck a bit wordless by a speaking Heartless. He hasn't seen all that many Heartless himself, mind, but he does... have experience, in a way. Experience with very, very similar creatures. He blinks several times, processing the idea that something so much like an Underling could speak. And that it could try to overtly, directly emotionally abuse someone! Wait! He turns back. He's not going to make dramatic statements to the creature; instead he gestures at it, looking back to Captain Galbadia. "You ain't gonna TAKE THAT SHIT from some fuckin' HEARTLET, are ya? Fuckin' BEAT HIS ASS, G." Arthur doesn't really know how badly Captain Galbadia feels about what happened with his men in the sewers, but he invites the rookie to vent those feelings in the way a boy scout superhero might not, if they were unprompted.
Roxas	Captain Galbadia turns in answer to a familiar voice. His body language grows tense at once, but the tilt of his head lowers a little through the accusations. As the Darkling finishes its accusation, he looks up properly at him. "Stop." He says. This is strange, the time to tell the Darkling to stop was a little while ago, wasn't it? A clock spins into existence around the Darkling, ticking backwards and then stopping. The Darkling becomes unnaturally, bizarrely still. Axel's chakram hits it, and it just sort of... tips over. The Captain leaps up onto the railing, seizes the Darkling by the back of its stupid hood, and draws it back like he's holding a baseball in his hand. Perhaps compelled, perhaps because he very literally has to in order to make it work, the Captain shouts as he winds up-- "SORCERESS'S... PRISON!" Captain Galbadia hurls the Darkling into the horizon, a great burst of flames erupting into being and trailing off of the back of the creature as it hits the apex of its throw and carries on into the sky. It's hard to tell exactly where it ends up, but the possibility that he literally just THREW IT INTO SPACE is there. (He didn't, he's not high enough level for that.) It does not come back. He watches it for an awfully long while before it goes away. Probably would have watched the sky longer from his body language, but Captain Galbadia realizes quickly that he's drawn an incredible amount of attention to himself and steps down from the banister, clearing his throat. "Sorry about that." He says.
Evangeline	More talking, more things that Evangeline doesn't really know much about. She continues to listen politely, only her feline tail moving every now and then. Talk of the Keyblade Knights and standing up to the dark draws a bit of her attention but soon there is something even more attention grabbing. Some sort of squat, shadowy creature up on the second level. The Neuroi in the pink dress floats upward slowly, and even raises a hand to return the wave. She has no idea if this creature is friend or enemy. Though the reactions of the military here and the creature's own words make it clear that they at least are not on friendly terms. "...are you here for the party..? ..there is plenty of nice food and friendly people...so there is no need to cause any trouble...and it would probably be a very bad idea to cause any..." It seems others here aren't so willing to try and make contact. Evangeline just floats there in the middle of the air as Axel attacks and Captain Galbadia suddenly leaps up and throws the poor creature so hard it bursts into flame. "...so...that was a Heartless...?" she asks anyone who is nearby.
Deelel	"It's good so many are willing to rise up in the defence of their homes, nation and families." She replies not thinking too much og Gabriels' gaze on her she really doesn't think much about her own heart these days. "Dame Rook? I think your plan to strike them sooner rather than later is a good one and would like to offer my aid in such matters." She shakes the Captain's hand smiling and it's an honest one too from the look on her face. "That is true so long as no other force is able to direct them somehow." The strange figure and the yellow eyes put Deelel on alert, she drops into a ready stance and looks up at the thing is saying. "Do not listen to that thing." She has seen a fair number of heartless but not a single actual heartless who talked before, she stares for a moment. She moves a split second after Axel makes his go Deelel will hold out her hand and summoning her keyblade the Dual Disc into it the tech looking Keyblade is at the ready and so is she as she says "I do not think..." Captain Galbadia then acts and just hammers the thing whatever it is and it's gone. She also thinks about the job crystals a way to in essence program skills into a User?! She will pause banish her keyblade and look /very/ sheepish. "Well then that is that but I have never seen one /talk/. I need more data it could be but I do not know, Evangeline."
Roxas	"Not exactly." Captain Galbadia says, uncomfortably, to Evangeline. He explains, "It was somebody who decided that being like them sounded like a good time. We're not sure what to classify them as, but they're a bigger problem than actual Heartless. We're not sure if they can command them or not, and until we know we have to assume that they can."
Lilian Rook	"I'd been meaning to ask about that, actually." Lilian replies, glossing over whoever the hell Chat Noir and Ladybug are and instead settling on "Who exactly are, or were, these Keyblade Knights? I assume they were important at one point, if they needed to be replaced, but leaves in the question of why they vanished at all. I suppose they aren't tremendously relevant, but I'm curious." A pause, and a slight frown. "I'd rather a civilized city not have to rely on 'superheroes' to handle its own affairs. Civil defense is a job to be taken seriously, not done on a whim by altruistic teenagers." Wine sip. "Especially not the altruistic ones." Back to smiling though. "I'm glad to hear that. I'd also be happy to discuss whatever you need. I'm not a general, but I already have plenty of experience in efficient sterilization and security procedures for urban areas, on more or less this exact topic. I'm happy to see the police forces here so capable of mingling with the citizenry without concern, and I'm sure the look has a lot to do with it, but it'd be ideal if armed guards didn't need to be at every corner. Just in terms of personnel, it's a bit exhausting; those officers could be doing a variety of other things with their time." She looks at the Job Crystal. She looks back, suggesting 'did you make these too?' with her eyes in Gabriel's direction. "Have you considered outsourcing some of those crystals to Elites of . . . various stripes that are partially but not entirely accurately represented by those who fought in the sewers before? It seems that would be a very quick way to gather lots of practical combat experience." It feels like something Lilian said earlier had been particularly tempting fate, as this is about the time the horrid little scarecrow hoodie monster shows up, appearing out of the party, somehow, without drawing anyone's attention. She delicately sets her wine glass down, her demeanor becoming rigidly pissed off in that tense-shouldered, chin up way that only someone holding their anger in for just long enough to expend it on something close can affect. She snatches up her sword from the end table it's propped up against. "Normally, I'd love to ask what it is you're going on about, but I'm busy right now." The almost managerial indignance in her voice transitions into Lilian pushing the crossguard with her thumb, such as the guard clears the lip with an audible, chilly click. The silvery hilt burns dark, iron black, taking on a more baroque shape as etched patterns of twisted scarlet vines and flowers crawl up its grip and bloom at its pommel and chappe. Black smoke issues from the inch of revealed blade, falling to the floor like dry ice. Oddly, the Captain takes the initiative. Just before Lilian can come up with something suitably dramatic to say, he's thrown out his own kind of . . . time paramagic? And hurled the Heartless a completely ridiculous distance. When she'd heard 'para' put before magic, she was expecting some kind of knockoff mass produced techno brand, not- actually . . . "Would that happen to be the power that 'awoke within you' that you spoke of?" says Lilian, keeping it admirably level while pushing the ridiculously ominous and uncanny sword back into its sealed state. "As high an opinion I have of Agreste, that seemed a little . . . egregious. I think you also didn't kill it. Would you care to explain?"
Roxas	"The Keyblade Knights," Captain Galbadia explains, "were heroes that used to fight against the Heartless and other threats from outside of normal reality back before the Sorceress War. Trouble is, they took sides in that war and killed each other off. Rumors back at the Garden say a kid down in Balamb Town manifested a Keyblade recently, but I don't know if it was substantiated. Superheroes do the same work, but when your first responders are cut in half it sort of shows. Or... I assume it does. I haven't been alive long enough to remember when the Knights were actually around." Job crystals are new, and sort of proprietary. They don't get released lightly." He adds, apologetically. Regarding his own abilities, Captain Galbadia replies enthusiastically, "Stop was a spell from my job crystal. We have a few things like that. Personally, ma'am, I prefer Sleep. It's a little less weird for people to experience. My powers are stuff like I just showed you-- or, 'Galbadia Kick'!" Captain Galbadia follows the arc of his throw, "Yes, ma'am. My priorities in this situation were to get it as far away from the VIPs as possible as quickly as possible. That spell doesn't last very long. We've got a score to settle, but it doesn't change the job I was tasked with tonight."
Xion	"The Keyblade Knights were the old protectors. They weilded key-shaped weapons and defended the world from things..." General Caroway's stance loosens as Captain Galbadia throws the darkling INTO THE HECKIN' SUN (not really). "Lieutenant!" Caroway barks, and Wedge looks up (from holding his fists up like he was gonna box the Darkling to death from the floor below), snapping to perfectly drilled attention as his sword is underhanded back to him. "Major, take a detachment of 'volunteers' and secure the grounds. Find out if our guest left any 'friends' or holes in our security net, and close them." Biggs snaps a perfect salute, randomly picking a half dozen of the once-relaxing G-Force elites from the crowd with a recitation of names. His chosen squad falls in, and within a minute they're sweeping-and clearing the second story. General Caroway walks very deliberately to the open bar, orders another round of beverages, and picks up a tray, moving to the center of the 'guests' as they arrange themselves, or come back downstairs. He specifically offers a champagne glass (on a tray of the like) to Lilian. "Now, Deling City will be protected by Deling City's military. With Agreste, we'll turn the old order into a drillable, trainable, disciplined force." "And with yours, I presume, we'll tear out the muck from the heart of our city." He straightens. "Please, enjoy the party. Thank you for coming. I look forward to hearing of your victories."
Arthur Lowell	Arthur thinks through things. He tries to track, mentally, the events that could have led to this. Captain Galbadia is new to things, freshly changed. Someone knew he'd accepted power, but not 'true power'. The speaker had to have known him before this happened, and then known him still after. And this has to have been connected to a failure of some kind, an inability to "hack it". And so he comes to several conclusions, but none of them solve the majority of the problems. Hmmm. He stops staring at the wake of this. Then he turns back and grins wide at Caroway. "Alright, dawg." He declares, grabbing up a... glass of water. "So, we gonna RIP UP THE HEART while you handle the BIG STUFF? Hell yeah, don't sweat the SMALL STUFF, we got that STRIKE-FORCE IMPACT. HELLA SURGICAL up in this motherfucker." "We'll keep that GOOD CHILL tonight, then we hit that LILLIAN PLAN soon? Let's get up in that HEARTLESS HEART, for real. You keep those EYES OUT for that QUISLING MOTHERFUCKER too, and give us that GOOD RING if you put EYES ON 'EM. I wanna make sure someone gets to BREAK THEIR JAW."
Deelel	With the creature long gone and her own weapon banished she'll look to Captain Galbadia for a moment and several old memories come to her not happy ones. the talk of Job Crystals does get her attention again. 5R "It's a way to program in skills in a way I can see why you would keep them for your forces use and the fate of the Keyblade Knights? That sounds rather tragic." She frowns. The General is fast on the uptake and starts issuing orders to the troops. She'll nod to the General and says "I will General, and I hope we will have worthwhile ones to tell you about." She will then bow out to head after the finger food and then harass Arthur for a portion of the evening! She had an old friend to catch up with.