Scene #8055: The Rallied armies of Hyrule / Catching up with Kalia

Owner	Pose
Staren	Hyrule. A medieval fantasy land inhabited by a country of pointy-eared humans and their neighbors, Hyrule's past cycles of peace and darkness have passed into legend. No one thinks theirs will be the generation to face Ganon until it happens. Most of them don't think anything, now. The Twilight falls across sections of land, turning hylians within into monsters and beasts, with the shadows themselves coalescing into predatory monsters that roam the land. Hylians sheltering in small villages outside the Twilight face not only shadow-monsters, but the warlord Vaati, a man who promises that once all are united, they'll be strong enough to stand against the darkness and usher in a new age of peace and prosperity free of the old order. People are skeptical, to say the least. Well, that's old news at this point. Staren's been working with Vaati to build a new stability, but the war has kind of thrown it into disarray. Staren threw everything they had to resist Lilian, but it hasn't been enough. Now, a war meeting, as such, is in progress. Vaati's base is an old ruined castle which he's moved into and half-repaired the un-crumbled sections of. A little pavillion has been set up on the roof, which Staren's helpfully deployed a table and chairs in, so that they can look out from the battlements at the assembled forces. Hylian soldiers loyal to Vaati work somewhat nervously around the shadow monsters they've somehow gained control over, stylized beings of shadow with circuit-like glowing traces running along their bodies. More monsters, and the occasional denizen of hyrule -- hylian, goron, zora, bird-person, etc -- looking to make a name for themself in battle trickle in from all around. From the direction of the gate to Staren's base, more reinforcements stream in. Human adventurers, soldiers wearing mostly medieval but some 20th century gear, backed up by skeletons and zombies. And then... Well, there is a complete mishmash of Fey Lords leading whatever they each feel like are cool soldiers. The Freeholds are primarily inhabited by anthropomorphic animals, but they seem to be all different genres. There are groups of fantasy soldiers backed by wizards and dragons (the friendly talking kind who are mostly joking when they say you'll go good with ketchup.) There are groups of modern or even futuristic soldiers. There are individuals in exotic dress with exotic powers who scream 'anime main character' or '13-year-old's OC'. There are even people who've been grown to kaiju size by fey magic, who are mostly engaged in digging trenches and trying not to break catapults, tanks, and mecha when they pick them up and reposition them, and being very careful where they sit when they take breaks. Observing from the battlements are three people. Staren herself, the warlord Vaati -- a youthful-looking hylian with a lot of muscle definition dressed in black -- and an anthropomorphic two-tail kitsune in a labcoat. The Freeholds turned out to be her home, sort of, although she seems content to basically play the observer now. She says she's Sta now, in ordered phase instead of chaos, there was a whole thing going on with her but no one's been on-screen when it was explained. "I feel a little bit bad for them. I called for help, but are the immortals forcing them to do this?" Staren wonders aloud, concerned. Vaati hmmphs. "We do what we have to. If that's what it takes to get the strength to establish a peaceful order, then it needed to be done. Without their help, and yours, I would have almost nothing here." Sta states calmly, "I told you, no one there is doing anything they really don't want to. The nature of the freeholds doesn't allow it." Staren looks at her. "So you keep saying, but there's no way to prove--" Sta looks at her, but before she can say anything Staren continues, "--yes, you see things impossible for mortals to see, I know, I know."
Kalia	Spoopy Ghosts need a vacation too. Forced or otherwise. Kalia hadn't been busy so much as caught in a mire of bad things and indisposed, but recent shifts have allowed their focus and sapience to return. And what do they feel, right out the gate? The unbound shadows of Hyrule, the specters of imminent war. People being turned into monsters. Yum. "Well, when you think about it, a lot of things are impossible for mortals to see," comes the telepathic voice of Kalia, in the rough vicinity of "behind Staren". "Your soldiers are really, really uneasy, by the way." If Staren turns, he'll see Kalia floating idly there - their appearance hasn't changed, that static image of a thin, pale ghost in patchwork black clothes, broken blade on their hip and all. The scarf hides their mouth, as it ever did. "Are we intruding? We were drawn here. Hello Staren. Do you still hate us?" There's no sentiment in the tone. Kalia's attention seems wholly focused on the catgirl, for now.
Staren	Man, Kalia missed some fun with Midway awhile back. Actually she's missed a LOT of negative emotion around Staren... but the catgirl seems to be more stable right now. Staren jumps and turns around with a hand going to her laser pistol. Vaati's hand goes to the hilt of his sword as he turns. Sta just watches the two of them. Staren's eyes widen in alarm and recognition. "YOU!" She remembers Kalia being trouble. There's the beginnings of thoughts about how to take down Kalia... But, asked that question, she stops those thoughts and says, "I think everyone should get a chance to start over. Maybe I've misunderstood you..." she has the memories of being the Ghost of Maslow Peak, now. She wonders if that's a few steps closer to being something like Kalia or Midway. Staren extends a hand to shake. "I'm Staren Wiremu. Partner of the Concord. And right now, the strategist in control of this zone. Nice to meet you. What do you want? Or, what do you intend to do here?" Vaati looks at Staren, then Kalia, then also extends a hand. "I am Vaati. This world is blighted by shadow, fear, and chaos. I will build a new order from the ashes, a peace stronger than that maintained by the royal family. You can see what their negligence and complacency has brought." He waves a hand in the direction of the distant Hyrule Castle, one of the areas now covered by the Twilight.
Kalia	"Yes hello," Kalia replies nonchalently. Ah the pistol pull. It's like they never left. "Well, we're not here to fight, if that's your question. We don't really do that anyway. We could, but that feels..." The ghost feigns rubbing their chin, mimicing the motion more than anything. "Empty? Motions? Like this, yes." "No, no, we're just here because... it feels like home." ~Vwoop~. Kalia is by Vaati - not in front of, not behind, more aside, as if they had been side by side this entire time. "Yes. Shadow, and fear, and chaos. You understand, yes?" They look towards Staren, to confirm. "The beasts, they want to let loose. The soldiers, they want to reclaim. They want the war to end so they can see their family again. They'd do anything. We can be that anything, if you want? Most of them are already so close to the edge. A little push, "for queen and country". They'll fight better."
Staren	Staren didn't actually draw it! She nods at Kalia's assertion, then tilts her head. "It feels like home? What does that mean?" Kalia explains, and Staren nods. "I suppose. I don't know your story, but... I can see how maybe you're from a place like that." Vaati twitches slightly, at the teleport, but as this doesn't seem to be a fight about to happen, he takes his hand off the hilt of his sword. "It's a sad fate the people caught in the Twilight have met." He looks out at the army, then back to Kalia. "They'll fight better, eh? What do you do, exactly?" "The others will take them, if you fix the Twilight and they need somewhere to go." She indicates the immortals' armies with her gaze. Then quirks an eyebrow at Vaati. "Queen? Not in this timeline." Staren glances at her, but those are conversations for another time. She looks to Kalia. "This won't... hurt them, will it? I just don't want to completely lose what's been built here, although I hope Lilian will care for the survivors if she wins, I don't think she'll be willing to work with Vaati."
Kalia	"Home. Um. Hm." Kalia thinks, and eventually decides: "It feels like us. Not quite the same. It's different, too, but it's similar as well. There's a lot of emotion in the air. Conflicts, wants, desires. It's how he put it. Shadow, fear and chaos. It's very accurate. He must be a good ruler if he can tell." No one ever said Kalia knew anything about ruling, or the bars one should set for it. As far as they're concerned, Vaati has a good eye though. "Ah? You are queenless?" A bit player! "We see. It was just a saying. We understand though, yes." Kalia shuffles a bit, looking around at Staren, before gesturing vaguely towards her. "What we do? Will it harm them? She's seen it before," Kalia answers, implying Staren already knows the answer. "We free people. We turn their wants into power. We let them break free. We let emotion take over, and become as a roiling dark flame that consumes all in its path. The effect isn't the same for everyone. It won't harm them. Not one bit." The ghost raises a finger. "But, they'll fight more. They might disregard danger and risk of death. If this is their last stand, then they have nothing to lose. They will act like it. And that will become their power."
Staren	Vaati gives a short, sharp chuckle at being judged 'a good ruler.' There's a bit of annoyance and frustration there. He gathered his initial army of cannon fodder with empty promises of whatever would make greedy, selfish Hylians fight for him 'once they won.' Vaati had been planning to challenge Hyrule to test it, to make its people recognize the weakness of the current order and form something better, something stronger to fight him off. The coming of the Twilight threw a wrench in those plans and forced him to instead try to lead a new order immediately himself, a role he takes only out of reluctant necessity. He doesn't see himself as a true leader but now he's all they've got. Staren blinks at the 'queenless' assertion and comment. "The royal family was caught in the Twilight and are presumably beasts now. She just means that Vaati's a man, not a woman, so..." Vaati interjects, "I'm not a 'King', either. The monarchy messed things up long before the Twilight exposed the old order's fragility. ...I'll worry about titles once I have a realm to rule. I'm not counting my cuccos before they hatch, that's just the sort of arrogant complacency that rotted Hyrule from within in the first place." He says that, but now he's totally trying to work out a title in his head that sounds powerful and important but does not denotatively imply he's more worthy than anyone else. "They call me a warlord, and for now," he waves a hand over his army, "that suits me just fine." Kalia describes what she does. Staren sighs, but seems to resignedly accept this devil's bargain. Vaati considers, and nods. "We do what must be done." He turns to look out over the battlements. "Strong enough to be free. Strong enough to need no masters. If you can really do what you say, perhaps I will no longer be needed." He seems to consider this a win all around! Sta quirks an eyebrow and her mind gives off a hint of... mischief? Curiousity? Interest? As she watches Kalia. Something like 'ooh, this is gonna be good' at the thought of such power being given to the troops led by the immortals. Somewhere in there is an impish, mischievous little shit-stirring side even if it's currently overwhelmed by being in Order phase. Staren is conflicted. She's wondering if there's a way for everyone to win and avoid bloodshed, but resonance surges bring conflict by their very nature. A war on these terms is better than her bungling an attempt to do even better... right? Probably? She watches, curiously, as it's been awhile since she's seen Kalia do this -- and usually she doesn't get a good look, as there's fighting and distractions and stuff around, or Kalia meddles before she even gets there. So, this is kind of a rare opportunity...
Kalia	"Oh. We thought you were the king. Well, a warlord without a king or queen is really just a king himself, isn't he?" Kalia feels it makes sense, at any rate. "Well, regardless, we are sorry to hear about your royalty problems. Maybe you will find them again. If you desire the power to do so, we could help." Kalia gets the go-ahead. "Alright. We will see what we can do." Vwoop. They're gone. The process isn't exactly instantaneous and easy to observe, unfortunately - but it's tangible, once it starts. The soldiers most inclined to give in to their inner darkness grow in size and become monstrous, not unlike the Twilight beasts. The beasts who want even more power become consumed in dark auras and rage. The soldiers who only have a bit of giving in to them, just get a dull glow otherwise, a sliver of power. There are extra beasts though. Ones that weren't there before. Coalescences of bad vibes, emotions, fears. The soldiers' fears manifest beasts not entirely unlike Moblins, wielding tridents and dark powers. The beasts' fears manifest shadowy heroes wielding glowing swords and shields. That kind of stuff! What Kalia didn't say, though, is that commanding an army so riled up in darkness might not be as easy as commanding an army of coherent people. And they might attack each other once they run out of enemies! Or they might not. Either way it's a step towards a slightly better army.