Scene #1586: A Peaceful Phase During Wartime

Owner	Pose
Miko Fujimoto	Phase Rock is not an especially interesting place. It's a fairly small island, without vegetation or life of any kind. At the center, it slopes upwards - though with plenty of jagged edges and upwards protrusions - into a hill. And it is upon THAT which the so-precious resource that is Phase Rock actually stands. A glowing green crystal, about twenty feet tall, radiating light and coursing with all manner of energies, it is what makes this otherwise unimportant location worth fighting for. It is Princess Paladin's first time here. The pink-haired, pink-eyed magical girl in her mix of armor and schoolgirl unifom, stands ready to meet the Union intrude-'vistors' and act as their escort. She is wary of a second person being added in post-agreement, on either side. But Princess Paladin's power functions about Law, and changes to the rules have a reason to upset her. She doesn't like it at all. She knows Kyra's capabilities, for the most part. She feels she could handle her if something went wrong. She knows nothing of the one coming with her. But still, she stands at one rocky outcropping on the edge of the island, where one of the Warp Gates in the general area will eventually send those who emerge from it. She has a beacon set up, so even if someone arrives from some other gate, they should know where to come. As usual, Princess Paladin radiates an aura of pure holy energy for anyone who can sense such things. She practically shines with it. But it's also... A bit of a cold feeling. Cold like it wasn't at Mount Battle. With allies either on the way or already here, she has only to wait for the Union to arrive.
Kyra Hyral	Phase Rock might not be an especially interesting place to look at...but given what Kyra has heard about its nature she is oddly interested in it. Too bad it was currently held by the Confederates leading to this extremely awkward situation. Now from the initial reactions she'd expected to be told to go away-instead she gets a familiar-sounding voice volunteering to escort her and her friend Soan. Upon arriving, she realizes why. "Oh." Kyra's eyes widen, "It's you. I remember you." She considers saying something else about the aggressive magical girl...but decides not to. True to her word, she doesn't seem to be too interested in the military encampments and fortifications that the Confederates have set up here to defend the place. Dealing with those things was the job of proper Union enlisted Elites. She frowns a little at Miko who seems a lot different than the last time she met her and in a way she couldn't exactly place. "So. I'm just here to examine and poke the rock. A naturally-occuring battery is a very novel thing to the two of us."
Regina of Borg	High above the crystal hovers a cube-shaped ship some 300 meters across. It rotates slowly, absorbing energy from the crystals below. A testament to the power this rock can generate. Beside Princess Paladin stands Regina of Borg, a woman with grey skin and a black body suit of armor and cybernetic enhancements. She has no hair. Instead hoses run from the back of her head to her shoulders and back. Weapons are attatched to a belt around her waist. A set of plasma pistols, several grenades, and a few other things. And, on Regina's should sits a Shinki. A nurse-type shinki, judging by her weapons and outfit. Dozens of Borg drones scuttle about the island, conducting research on the crystals, trying to see if they can form these crystals elsewhere.
Soan Sagittarius	After mentioned friend Soan Sagittarius is right there, walking alongside the white mage Kyra. This is a very good sign that he has no intention of causing any trouble, if you know anything about him, as he /is/ quite visible and not trying to sneak around on people. He seems pretty relaxed, a tourist-like eye critically observing the rather barren rock surrounding the much more appreciable crystal in the center of it all. The fortifications are doing a very good job, that's for sure. Still, they have to be careful. They don't want to spook them. "Hi." The young thief says, nodding at the woman. She apparently seems to know Kyra, and vice versa, but he can't say he knows her very much. What he /does/ know, is that she don't smell like she has evil powers inside. On the contrary, it's 'quite different', holy, almost. "I'm just here to escort her." Soan says, giving the various drones around, not to mention the bald, gray skinned woman next to the magical girl. "Look at the crystal, too. Hold some things. That sort of stuff."
Miko Fujimoto	Princess Paladin nods to Kyra upon being identified, and then to Soan. "Princess Paladin," she provides helpfully. "This is Regina. She will be acting as an additional escort." The giant flying cube overhead is amazing to Miko, something she would gawk at in her normal form. But she has a job to do and has the magically-imbued mannerisms of her transformation. The aggression and hostility that was plain when she sought to defeat Kyra to protect her allies is nowhere in evidence. She is serious, but... Serene. Calm. And her magic makes every movement graceful and sure. She is confident in herself, and someone who civilians could easily rally behind in an emergency or time of crisis. Why she's with the Confederacy is a mystery. Especially given what reports have said about her conduct in the past - even going outside of her way to fight a fire in Slum Urbania alongside Sakura Kinomoto, and save the lives of endangered civilians - civilians with nothing to do with the Confederacy, who simply need help. For what reason? Why is someone heroic like this working with the 'villains'? She stands side-by-side with a cyborg lady like this, who wishes to 'assimilate' others, but she won't stand with the Union against tyrrany? For her part, Paladin is not entirely aware of her own change in aura and demeanor. She simply feels... In control now. Her passions aren't raging out of control under the surface. More like smoldering. When she sees Kyra, she doesn't wish to hurt her, necessarily. She does not seek vengeance or to inflict pain for transgressions - perceived or otherwise. When she looks at Soan, while she is suspicious of him, she does not treat him any differently. These are both enemies. But she has no desire to harm them inside of her. And that... Is unusual for her. And she doesn't really understand it. Shaking off her introspection, she says, "You are permitted to examine Phase Rock and potentially 'hold things', but you are not to take any of its energy in any way, by action or inaction. Feel free to increase your understanding of the power source, but not to take the power source with you. Is that acceptable?" She needs to reinforce the Law Magic she has used to transform. To make sure all is happening in accordance with rules. It's really, really important. "If so, we can begin your limited tour. And you, what was your name?" she asks as she turns away. She is probably talking to Soan.
Kyra Hyral	When Kyra had snuck into the Borg homeworld, she hadn't been attentive enough to look skyward to see one of the Borg cubes in orbit. Seeing one now was pretty amazing and she pulls her phone out, ready to take a picture of it-only to stop. They...wouldn't like that, would they? Taking pictures of their defenses? Yeah. She puts the phone away. "Hi. This is my friend, Soan Saggitarius." She adds, introducing the thief and fellow classmate. Either of the Confederates...well, Kyra watches them, even the Judgy-feeling Princess Paladin. She actually doesn't know if they'd pull something like trapping the two of them here. Neither she or Soan had rank so there wouldn't be much to gain from taking them hostage-and if they did that might make the Union attack this place for real. "I dunno, that crystal looks pretty big, I don't think I can lift it." Kyra jokes, "Okay, yeah, that's acceptable." A shrug follows. "Honestly, I don't thing this will take much time at all." Especially since it doesn't sound like she'll have any agency to run real tests or try to use it to charge her phone.
Soan Sagittarius	Soan is a calm and collected individual, or at least he appears to be. His internal perceptions, are, however, quite different. His accute sense of smell gives him a lot of information on people, for better or for the worse. Sometimes it gets difficult to not act on things you know, instead having to react on things that you /should/ know. It makes it quite easier to just be rather simple, mild-mannered. It helps a lot that he is naturally that way, without having to force himself in that direction. As he's presented, the young thief gives a small, worthless salute with two fingers as a greeting, even with her back toruned. It's the intentions that counts, in all cases. "That'd be me. Thanks you for allowing us to do this, ma'am. We agree to your terms. We are here to see it, not take anything away or add anything in." He could go deeper, but honestly, without actual paper to sign, it's kinda pointless. He strolls along, with confidence, his eyes returning to look around, particularly that gray-skinned woman. She smells odd. "We're just here to look at it." Soan agrees. He keeps his hands clear, quite in sight. Not that it means /much/ to him. Being relaxed, but not unaware, is the best stance to be in right now.
Regina of Borg	Regina notices the phone, and a light smirk crosses her face. "Feel free to take images of my ship. It is nothing the Union has not seen before, and I am happy to allow such images to spread fear and awe whenever possible." Regina says. The shinki on Regina's shoulder suddenly hops up into the air. "This is Queen Regina of Borg! And I am Britt, her medical shinki and social officer!" the little shinki says cheerfully. She looks much like a fairy, being only about 6 inches tall and flitting about the heads of the people around her. Regina watches Soan as he strolls about. He feels the more unpredictable of the two to her. The one more likely to make trouble if trouble is made. Kyra is just a child. She might cause trouble, but not on purpose.
Miko Fujimoto	"Then I greet Soan Saggitarius as well," Paladin offers as she leads the way. She pauses and turns quickly at Regina's words. "No." she insists. "There is an agreement in place. Whether they have seen it before or not is irrelevant. The rules will be followed by ALL parties involved. If you object, you can take this to our superiors and see if they wish to make a change to the agreement. Otherwise, we are to escort and ensure the terms are followed, in letter AND in spirit. They may photograph your vessels at another time if you wish to intimidate them with such." She waits for a moment, scanning her eyes over the other three - or four, rather, thanks to there also being a Shinki - before turning once more and leading the way. "And a pleasure to meet you as well, Britt." she adds on. Stiff, certainly. But the fact that she wishes to make sure she and her ally also abide by the rules could be seen as... Admirable maybe? Or just obssessive. It at least means she is definitely not going to take any hostile action unless the Union does. "I would apologize for the nature of our last encounter, Hyral," Paladin begins as she heads towards a well-worn dirt path leading up the side of the hill at the center of the island. "But we were both doing as we had to. At the end, I took action that was not part of my obligations, attempting to take petty vengeance. That, at least, I regret." It should be a relatively short journey up the side of the hill until they reach the top. There are questions Miko wants to ask. Socialization she wants to do. But she can't. Because that isn't part of her rules - her quest. She had forgotten how restricting this transformation was. How it practically robs her of free will.
Kyra Hyral	After Regenia's little comment...Kyra narrows her eyes and definitely decides to not take pictures of the Borg Cube, even if she has permission from the Borg Queen herself. Spread fear of the Borg to the people of Galianda by posting them to her blog with the rest of the extraversal stuff? Nah. "I'll get one of the Union's pictures, they probably have a few on file." Looks like Princess Paladin is going to override that anyway so the point is moot. Paladin's being very, very formal about all of this. Kyra's kind of starting to hate it but she masks her annoyance well. "Apologize? Yeah, no, I don't really expect any apologies from people that will run the whole 'kill the healer' tactic anyway. Is that why you suddenly bamfed into a schoolgirl at the end? You were about to shoot me in the back or something? Because it's good that you didn't, I would have continued retaliating if you decided to go rub some more salt in the wound. Hmph." She was still not happy that they failed to prevent Lute from gaining control of a horrible godbeast. In fact it seemed like all around the Union was having trouble if the last few missions she's been on were any indication. Once escorted atop the hill, Kyra looks the crystal over, walking around the entire circumfrence. She even touches it at one point, putting her full palm against it. This does not engender any energy transfer, however since Kyra doesn't possess the correct spell (Rasp) to do that. "Wow, Soan, this is fascinating. It's like it's /alive/ with its own pool of magical particles." For those brief moments, she forgets the Confederate escort, wrapped up in awe at the rock.
Regina of Borg	Regina raises an eyebrow at Princess Paladin, but does not argue the point. It is valid, after all, and she is a logical being. Britt, however, pipes up. "That is no fun! Command said they could look around! She was just looking through a camera and making a memory! How is taking a picture any different from looking at something in these times?" the little shinki says, flitting around Paladin's head. She follows the others along the path to the main crystal, and watches as Kyra walks around it. "It is indeed an impressive natural formation. The power it generates seems able to fuel my vessels as easily as the antimatter reactions we usually employ."
Soan Sagittarius	That one, Soan thinks, is far too eager to show herself or attempts at intimidation. There is a reason, likely, to this, for all she know she might very well be fearsome in her ways. "As she says," He says, calmly, waving his hand to motion to the Princess Paladin. "We've already agreed to our terms, it would be an horrific breach of trust to our verbal contract if we were to take any photos at this moment. I'm afraid spreading the fear of basic geometricaly shaped ships will have to wait for another time, your majesty." Soan replies causally to the Borg Queen. That's the ticket. Always remain polite when you are in the middle of an enemy strong hold with little to no back up. That does not mean grovel before some of their attempts, mind you. He listens in on the conversation between Kyra and the Paladin, furrowing his brows faintly. Transformed into a school girl? Soan store that knowledge in for later. It's a good thing to know that he's not the only one with 'secret identities'. Not that he ever thought he was the only one, far from it. Then, they arrive at the goal of their journey, at the crystal. He lets Kyra do the examination, looking up at the crystal. He's feeling a fair amount of awe, himself, awe constantly nabbed at by the very knowledge that they are surrounded by Confederate people. "Alive?" He asks, taking his eyes off the crystal to look at the white mage. "As such... it's like it's generating it's own particles?"
Miko Fujimoto	Paladin does not feel the need to defend herself, but also sees no reason not to clarify. "Eliminating support personnel is a perfectly valid tactic, and one that BOTH Factions have employed. It was not, however, one that I sought to use. I was acting based on emotion at the time, and thought that you were a sniper due to the weapon you carried. As a matter of fact, I am a healer myself. And yes, the rule I set down for using my powers was violated, and so the magic was disengaged." She sounds sincere in everything he says, thanks to her magic. When she said she regretted her actions, it sounded like she believed it was the truth. If she had said she was sorry, that would have sounded sincere too. It's almost but not quite like suggestion magic. She SOUNDS convincing. But it's up to the listener what to do about it - or not do about it. "And I would like to remind that verbal antagonism is a form of aggression. You will not receive another reminder about it." She is glad that Regina at least understands logic and does not kick up a fuss. But Britt flying around Paladin's head and Kyra mouthing off are testing that control over her emotions she has gained. "Rules must be followed," she says calmly, though with a hint of steel in her eyes and an edge in her voice. "It's important." After that she simply stands back and lets Kyra and Soan examine the stone. She keeps an eye on them, but also remains in-contact with her allies. If they see anything unusual, any hint that these two brought additional un-announced 'escorts', if there's anything out of the ordinary at all, she wants to know about it. Shooting someone in the back isn't a problem for her, morally. An enemy shot in the back is one less likely to fight back or hurt her friends. Protecting those close to her is all that matters. But doing so has to fall within the rules. And a retreating enemy is not a direct danger to her friends.
Kyra Hyral	"Hm. Well, for future reference-" Kyra starts then...stops. No, she had no reason to give the confederates information about her equipment, did she? They'd attack her if it was a healgun or not healgun she was using. "Actually, never mind." At that point she felt pretty done with talking to Princess Paladin period. As they examine the rock...nothing happens. No Union backup. No suspicious signatures pop up around the island. Kyra and Soan talk quietly to each other a little and it sounds like all about the awe Kyra feels over the rock. It sounds like batteries are a big deal to her for some reason. "It is generating its own particles." Kyra assesses. "It probably has a steady limit it stays at and when energy is depleted, it generates more. But I wouldn't be able to prove that unless I could run some tests." She pulls her hand away. Part of her also wishes she could test it to see if it'll restore /her/ MP depletion but that sounds like it would be off limits. "Well Soan, I don't know about you, but I'm satisfied. I think we can go now."
Regina of Borg	"A pity." Regina says to Soan, not seeming to be insulted by his reference to her ship. It is, after all, a basic geometric shape. That is the point. Basic, streamlined, efficient. None of that silly extravagance that humans and other lifeforms are known for. Britt seems unhappy with Paladin's strict attitude as well. She flits over to land on Kyra's head since Kyra seems to be the fun one here. "Don't worry! This place changes hands pretty often. I'm sure you'll get a chance to study it in more detail soon enough." the cheerful nurse shinki says. Then, Kyra mentions satisfaction. Regina nods. "Then, shall we escort you back to the gate?" she asks.
Soan Sagittarius	Soan comments little on the quips between them, instead storing away the information, subtle little clues that the Paladin Princess is telling bout herself, filing it away into his mind. This could be useful for another day, and nowhere in their contracts, in spirit or words, did they say to not remember things about the escorts themselves. He's, however, quite glad that Kyra didn't step it up. That's very good. "That would make senses. If it kept making more and more magic, without any real way to store it or expel it, that could cause a lot of issues. I really do wonder if this is a natural occurance or if it has been created by someone." He muses. His hands didn't move very much since he's arrived, merly following the movement of his walk, remaining in clear sight. The Thief nods at Kyra. "Allright then." He turns at the Paladin and the Queen, nodding. "Yes, we would appreciate that, thanks you."