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Priscilla     Things settle down, the city seems to be in order, everyone leaves to go check the myriad things outside the walls for a change, and a new problem happens back home. Typical.

    For a change it doesn't appear to be violent, which is a step down from the usual; merely a public disturbance. This time they were even smart enough not to do it on the grand plaza, before the Citadel Palace. The obstruction manages to almost wholly block Anor Londo's many wide roads, even sized for giants as the castle metropolis is, as hundreds gather from the surround web of branching walkways, stairs, roads and weird medieval elevators to come and see the rumour for themselves. A throng of people has formed in a wide semicircle around a much smaller group at the side of the road, giving them some considerable space, but all shouldering and stretching to see.

    The performers to this audience seem to be clerics; about the least unusual thing that could be surmised. Even further, judging by white robes, gold trim, and vaguely Sumerian overtones to the Norse design of their vestments, they're clerics high enough to be formally (though obviously not by blood) related to the royal family. Under most circumstances, anything they would have to say would be worth listening to, but this day appears to be special.

    For one, they have a very, very large stack of books. Far from the ancient, magically preserved tomes of the Royal Archives, they look brand new, bound in tawny leather, pages lined with silver in the way fancy bibles are, and adorned with gold that seems to be a relatively plentiful metal in this area. One woman is dedicated to handing out as many as possible as people venture to the front lines of the crowd to ask for one, not even trading souls for the literature (albeit, judging by its quantity, literature only written by hand once).

    At metaphorical center stage, stands one more woman and three men, two of the men armed and armoured, and all with the strange, cloth idols of sacred talismans tucked somewhere, or even in hand. One of them stands atop a mini-plinth brought out to the street, reciting something from what must be a very long tale, throwing his arms above his head.

    "And behold, did the Blade Tracer stand firm, finally speaking the strange words that had built within his bosom through his quest, becoming sharper in his mind with each step taken; every drop of blood shed. He declared, for the world to hear, that as his soul, his own body must be made of swords, and whence he did-!!!"

    Of all damned things, in an arc over the man's head, a row of swords of brilliant white light appear, poised in a convincing allusion to . . . well, the obvious.
Mel Brock     Technically, Mel Brock has not given her answer to a certain someone regarding her membership in a certain covenant. So, for the time being, Mel Brock still has ties to Anor Londo, which means that she has a vested interest in the goings-on here. Especially if it involves some sort of potential disturbance.

    Thus, among the crowd, one woman stands out; at five feet and ten inches, the space cop tends to do that in general, but here it's even moreso where her typical longcoat-with-shoulder-pauldrons and the cheek-affixed strip of technology along her jawline both stand out amidst the medieval fantasy fashion.

    She doesn't say a word when she sees the spread of illusory(?) swords, but both her eyebrows climb pretty high. She remembers Emiya, vaguely.
Reiji Arisu     There's so much to do in Lordran, so many things to keep tabs on, so much peace to keep. While neither Reiji nor Anor Londo are aligned with the Union anymore, the exorcist still feels some degree of responsibility for keeping things moving smoothly in this neck of the multiverse. When news of strange new clerics exhibiting amazing but unfamiliar miracles reaches him-- admittedly not too far away, since he's JUST on his way back from near Darkroot Garden-- he makes for Anor Londo as fast as his legs can carry him.

What he finds is...

"..."

'Blade Tracer?'

    The exorcist appears amidst the congregation from somewhere high above. He probably jumped off a rooftop again. "Excuse me," Reiji asks the most nearby cleric, "Could you explain what exactly it is is happening here?" It doesn't... SEEM violent. Perhaps it's just a festival? A festival of... Of magic?

But then why are they replicating Emiya's schtick?

...

The implications are just a little bit worrying.
Guest Psyber     Psyber promised Priscilla no outside food and drink. That means he has to find other ways to entertain himself in Priscilla's world.

    "No. I don't want souls. I want those gold coins." Psyber points at the counter.

    "You give me one hundred of those, and in exchange I'll give you this." Psyber holds up a switchblade knife, clicking the blade in and out a few times so the merchant can see. In-universe, the blade would probably have some minor armor piercing, some heavy bleed build-up, and make it look like the person didn't have a weapon with a huge bonus to crit.

    "Those are... worthless... Are you sure?" The merchant hungrily looks at Psyber's switchblade knife.

    Psyber nods. He hands the merchant the switchblade and the man greedily shoves a pile of gold coins to Psyber. Worthless in Lordran, but he can take them to a Boston gold vendor and probably get way more than the value of a switchblade.

    Shoving a pile of coins into his pocket, Psyber wanders over towards the preaching individual, "Huh. Well that's new."
Kirito Kirito was in the neighborhood, on a hunt for some odd materials the new base Tomoe found will need, which meant he was just a warp gate away from Lordran when the alert came.

    The Spriggan's wasted no time whatsoever swooping low over rooftops towards the gathering. But he doesn't approach, and has no intention of revealing himself yet.

    No, he swoops down into tight corridors and decides to lurk in an alley. By now it's second nature for him to reach to his right and press something meaningful only to him - the 'Hiding Skill' on his shortcut bar. For all the good it might or might not do. The shadows cloak him a little more deeply - or is that just a trick of the light? - but it's not exactly invisibility.

    For now, the swordsman just wants to know what the heck's going on that people are calling out 'heroes of the multiverse' and 'divine visitors'.
Zero Kiryu It isn't usual for Zero Kiryu to go wandering out on his own. But after having an encounter with an apparently ancient garbage cat and essentially recommending the extermination of said cat and everything in its woods, he's decided that he really ought to spend a little more time figuring out what's going on with the First's world. So much like some of the others present, he's just been wandering around having a look at things-- and feeling things out. For the most part he's found Anor Londo to be strange and about as obnoxious to engage as any community filled with abnormals.

Which is to say that he mostly hates it.

Familiar presences dance through his head in the surroundings. They seem to be gathering around a particular point, which itself reeks of some kind of abnormality that he can't quite put his finger on. Zero has been around quite a few of the people here, but not all of them. He doesn't recognize the significance of what's going on right away as a result.

But he does fall into the crowd near Psyber, somebody he recognizes at once, as swords begin to appear in the air at the demonstration.

"Is this unusual? I can't tell with this place." He asks.

Zero can't recall whether he's been formally introduced to Psyber before, but they've been involved in overlapping situations enough that he's comfortable addressing the angel casually out in the open that way.
Kushiko It was nice to visit when violence and other assassination-like things were hanging as some terrible specter here, though in Kushiko's case to interact with the world at large, the use of Mesa--her most 'human'-like--was employed. The gunslinger, bandana headwrapped Warframe was accompanied by Kiras, the familiar Kubrow some had seen here.

She'd have to eventually speak with a certain someone about that covenant of yore, but now perhaps, was not to be the time. Thus, the eyeless figure simply watched, fascinated by the illusionary sword display. She liked swords, after all. Well, she liked a LOT of weapons, but that went without saying. A low little whistle, more to herself through the projection of the Void, ethereal and resonant. <"This is really nice, isn't it girl?"> Kiras makes a faint 'wuff' before panting a little, provoking a light earscritch from Kushiko's Mesa.

She had no idea about Emiya. Or anyone else, though the Lotus was a fair deal more concerned, watching through the Warframe's optical sensors. This wasn't normal, but there was no cause for alarm. Yet.

All the same, it'd take someone some deliberate focus to pick Mesa out of the crowd, even with her unusual appearence. Damn Tenno ninja skills. Maybe.
Priscilla     Coins are, indeed, garbage. More than a few of the pilgrims brought them from outside, expecting to actually need them (hah!) and thus are not shy about parting with them. You can't graft coins into your core being to get stronger or smarter, after all. They also weigh a lot.

    The man looks down at Reiji pretty quickly, and then gives an utterly delighted smile, wrinkling the corners of his face with the early onset of age in that 'happy granddad way'. "Excellent timing my boy! We are telling your legend! Your /mythos/! Why should such a tale not be remembered for the enduring centuries that our old heroes of Lordran have? You have worked miracles for our world, and so we shall work miracles in your name! Observe!"

    He points to one of the armed men. Said man hefts a large, triangular shield, readying it into position. His other hand clutches his holy talisman, as he mutters loudly for a full verse. "And thus a bulwark in the stream of fire, one dances as the Immortal Fairy behind the veil of the Mourning Wall." With that, litanies of names surface from the front of his shield, fading in and out of sight across its surface; scrolling, even. Unlike the real deal, they are in Lordran's text, rather than being ALO player names.

    It seems to work pretty well though. The cleric on the plinth gestures, and the kansho-bakuya-alikes launch at him in a spinning deluge, each striking the shield with a wailing ring, and lighting up one of its rings of names. When three have been lit up --the standard for an ALO spell verse-- the shield fires back a number of light bullets of appropriate appearance, aimed away from the cleric. The warriors amongst the crowd murmur in sincere appreciation, cracking open their books and skimming through the pages to find mention of this miraculous feat.

    Despite the uncanny resemblances, there is an overall feeling of 'artist's interpretation' to the display. The glowing swords are almost a dreamlike stand-in for the real ones, as they lack the detailed patterns that would be impossible to accurately describe. The shield likewise does not bear the names of old players, since it would be impossible for anyone to have read and understood them. The verses don't line up the same way, the bullets don't quite behave, but the sheer enthusiasm, the sheer /faith/ going into the display, is strangely charming. It's almost like they're performing a play.
Mel Brock     Mel Brock takes the time during this demonstration to work her way through the crowd, snagging a 'bible' where she's able to. She starts to flip through it while she moves, glancing between the book and the crowd, until her course of walking... takes her right beside Reiji.

    "Hey, Arisu. Did you know you've got a mythos?" she asks, her tone slightly dry.
Guest Psyber     Psyber shoves roughly 120-grand in gold coins into his pockets and gives the shopkeep a thumbs up, "Thanks. Good sale. If I get any more crap, I'll bring it to you for barter. You just keep getting me those coins. Tell people they can pay me in them instead of souls." The half-angel then looks around a bit.

    "Yeah, this is actually pretty fucking weird," He notes, rubbing his hand under his nose a couple times and looking at the other Hunter, "I don't usually see you without Kuran around. Still upset that she didn't manage to talk a situation to resolution?" He asks as he keeps one ear on the other revelation.

    "So is this a cult or what?"
Reiji Arisu     "Our... Our mythos." Reiji cocks an eyebrow at not just the unusually delighted Cleric, but also his... explanation. Is that something that's going to be alright? "I don't have any personal objections-- but does Her Highness know about all of this?" It's not like he'd achieve much other than hurting a few eager clerics' feelings if he told them NOT to, after all. People will tell stories as they will, and something tells him that pushing over this particular sandcastle would just make him feel really guilty and not actually achieve anything meaningful, but...

Well. The whole business with the Darkmoon Blades made it obvious just how much resistance there still was in Lordran towards the Multiverse. Surely it can't have simply dispersed so soon.

    He glances over towards Mel, then, and squints at the book she's carrying around. "So I'm told, though I don't remember anyone asking me about what they're writing down. What does it say in there about us, anyway?"
Kushiko <"So... guess you're famous then?"> Kushiko-Mesa asks towards Reiji, the few diodes of lilac light flickering upon the syllables as she meanders a bit closer to where Reiji and Mel had begun to converge, Kiras following her shortly after. Though she /does/ use the armored crest on her head to tease at the twin-tailed syandana scarf flowing from her back.

Playful thing she can be, at that.

<"Though... it seems a bit like ceremony and preaching and all that, doesn't it?"> It's something wondered aloud to the group. The Lotus had her concerns and they were growing by the moment, and with Mel having snagged a book, she takes a scan of it through Mesa's secondary optics once a bit closer. In theory. Alternatively she might well be doing so anyways from others nearby.

<"... and isn't faith something that's really strong around here?"> At least, Kushiko thinks it was. Memory's a little fuzzy.
Zero Kiryu "Maybe. I don't know. I'll ask her later." Zero seems indifferent to the idea. He'd already talked with Yuuki about the whole thing, and it hadn't gone all that well. It wasn't even his fault this time, although he had said some harsh things that he probably didn't need to. Still... her predatory instincts were running wild. At the time he'd been too focused on the monsters surrounding them, but if he'd been paying her closer direct mind it would have occurred to him.

He shrugs, "Doesn't matter. Told her so. You can't acquiesce to things making impossible demands of you. Deal with enough vampires to know how to handle a bristly predator making demands. Cat wasn't going to cooperate no matter what, so it's no more harmful than anything else to put her in her place."
Kirito 'The Immortal Fairy behind the Veil of the Mourning Wall' the man said... and proceeded to give Kirito enough of a light show that the cloaked Spriggan's face screws up rather spectacularly. Eyes wide, mouth gaping open and lips twisted screwily into pure gobsmacked flabbergastation. Though he quickly clams it up.

    Dark eyes flick to his status bar. The number of his Hiding efficacy: 80%.

    Not bad. Whatever it means outside ALO. He's still not sure, because he hasn't used it much.

    But Kirito twitches at the sight of the Mourning Wall mockup. The ALO-like spell effect used to conjure it. So awkward. Downright embarassing. His brain kicks into overdrive trying to figure out how exactly these spells can or even could work - is extra effort going into making things LOOK proper, style over substance?

    Or... are they somehow using a form of magic that he's completely unfamiliar with, something deep and maybe written into the very fabric of how Lordran works. Did saving the world actually make this world consider Tomoe a Goddess?

    Half a dozen theories swim in his head, none of them solid enough to work with... all of them contributing to that face he's making though.

    "... Should I even approach..." he murmurs, his eyes falling across some familiar presences here. Psyber. Reiji. And... some not-so-familiar. He can't help but peer uncertainly at Kushiko's current Warframe. Thing doesn't look quite... NATURAL...

    Quite disturbing, a humanoid thing that lacks a face. Gives him the willies.

    The boy's whole body suffers a brief tremble as he works on gathering the courage to approach. But he stops himself...

    What if there's an off-chance these weirdo sorcerer-priests recognize him like they idolize Tomoe? Should he disguise himself to avoid drawing heavy attention?

    Decisions, decisions. For now, Kirito's still too weirded out to approach.
Tomoe Tomoe is here however she's here with a cloak on to hide her face somewhat, her weapons are not visable she wants to keep her profile low given what's going on. It's a lot for Tomoe to take in, a whole hell of a lot. She was quiet as eh took a moment to observe the mourning wall, she was just floored and happy most of her face was hidden it was enough to hide her self enough it was close but it was also different at the same time. This was a result of their aiding Priscilla to save this world and to claim what was her's wasn't it?

She spoke quietly into her party chat.

<<Kirito take it your seeing this?>>

Tomoe is flawed she's mortal and she is naive she knows this but the alternative to the would have lead her to grizzly end at the hands of the Assault Team and thsoe form the multiverse.

<<Kirito You all right there?? I'm feeling odded out at all of this.>>
Priscilla     And that is why Psyber is not a Paladin. Coincidentally, this is also one of several reasons that being a Paladin does not appeal to Priscilla at all either. As soon as he strolls up to Reiji however, people start looking at him, several of them furtively glancing between him and their books, whispering page numbers and flipping back and forth. A third of them have gauntlets, so it maybe begs the question of how.

    "Why would she not approve, my boy?" the cleric enthusiastically replies to Reiji. "Was it not our Archlord who brought you all here? Who summoned heroes from beyond the edges of the world to do her bidding? Champions sought with her keen eye for epic ability, who now represent the lands that now bend knee to her!"

    "There are those who disparage such deeds, but to spurn everything that is new, all innovation of faith, is not to be faithful, but to be stubborn and selfish! One cannot declare that an epic tale is not fit to be recorded simply because it is not /old/ enough! All reverence was new once! As soldiers pay respect to the mighty Havel, and the brotherhood pay respect to the Old Dragonslayer, so shall we pay our own! Would you like to see your place in the annals of history?"

    Predictably, the books are all written in the same ancient, gothic-eastern scrawl, albeit Illuminated beautifully. It's nothing anyone here will understand, though in the interests of all the reports Priscilla has filed, a decent translation is probably available to those who have access to Concord data, or those who retain some from the Union's translators.
Guest Psyber     "It's true. The thing was trying to flex nuts and get what it wanted." Psyber agrees with Zero as he rocks on his feet a bit. He dislikes this entire setup going on right now, "She did a pretty good job telling that thing to fuck off, mind. But eventually, I'm gonna just be okay with shooting that cat in the face."

    Psyber makes a finger gun gesture while talking to Zero. And then he scowls a bit, "I hope these aren't cults. I don't like or want to be worshipped as a religious figure. I'm just a guy that did a job." He looks to Zero, "Anyone offers you KoolAid, tell them no."
Zero Kiryu "I don't think she sees it that way." Zero says, which is strange to him because it's exactly what the Vampire Queen is /expected/ to be able to do. But there you go. Maybe she isn't as interested in projecting that sort of identity as he assumed. Or maybe it was a problem simply because it didn't achieve the goal they set out to achieve. To the matter of just shooting Alvina he says, "If it had stayed I would've already done so. I couldn't sense any humans in the area."

"I don't think anything surrounding us in that forest was a person." He concludes plainly. There's a light noise of shuffling paper as he withdraws a packet of tablets from his jacket and adds, "Don't make a habit of eating things is strange places like this anyway. Tends to be dangerous."

"Why do you care if they decide to worship you?"
Kirito Kirito gets the message. He rapidly brings up his own menu and whacks out a reply, typing in mid-air.

    <<Don't show yourself. Disguise before approach.>>

    Typical Kirito, he's way too invested in his own deep and troubled thoughts to worry about how that sounds.
Reiji Arisu     "Ah, that is true," Reiji answers with a cautious murmur. He scratches uncertainly at his cheek, looking altogether not sure about... About all of this. This is a lot of stuff to be uncertain about. "But there is the political aspect to consider. Regardless, she should at least be made aware of... all of this. Unless she's already been informed, that is. I had assumed by the robes that you were... in communication with her."

That IS the garb of clergy close to the royal family, isn't it?

    He glances over when Kushiko's distinctive Warframe manifests out of the crowd. "It is. Faith and proper scripture can allow for the use of those miracles you just saw," he says, answering her question. "I knew people knew my name around this part of the world, but I hadn't realized they were... writing miracles."
That's kind of a step beyond what he's mostly comfortable with.

But maybe one should withhold judgment until hearing the full story.

    "I... suppose that is true?" Reiji shrugs. All things must, after all, change with the years. "Well. Look, I have nothing against history. If you want to celebrate something, that's fine, as long as nobody ends up forced into it. But there is the question of accuracy. Why don't you show me what you've done?"
Staren     Kirito's question about a strange performance piques Staren's interest. He decides to show up stealthily, at first -- his shapeshifting and magic clothes readily provide a disguise, a human woman in local-looking clothes incorporating a cloak, with his signature bag hidden underneath. After observing for a moment and determining there's no danger, she ducks into an alley, and then Staren emerges, cat ears and all in his signature outfit. He tries to get one of the books, and of course he downloaded the translation data back in the Union days. "Man. First Afterus and now this. Maybe we need to start collecting mythoses, huh?" he says to the other outsiders somewhat jovially. To the natives, he comments, "I'm all for new legends, just as long as you're not, like, worshiping us blindly or anything. I don't really want to be worshipped, I don't think I can hear prayers or anything... But revering us as heroes is fine! Just don't put more focus on the show than on the principles we embody, right?"
Tomoe Tomoe does not want to be worshiped or really think she's deserving of such. She shakes tht off and she watches them for a moment she know if she reveal herself? Would be unwise at the momsne she needs to observer try to figure out what to do and get more information for the moment. Also thsoe far more skilled in speech craft. She knows howeve she's going to have to own up one way or another, to her own deeds though the quetion is when and how at this point.

She remains hanging back in the watchers observe and only speaking quietly over the comm.

<<Right, I'm keeping the cloak on and not moving to get any notice, I can't do anything about my height though. I'll be careful, trust me I'm already on edge the only thing that would make it worse as if I herd someone yell Show Time.>>
Kushiko Some of the data is familiar, once scanned, once ran through translation protocols--and familiarity with Priscilla's input information with the Concord aside, the Lotus feeds this information back to the distant Operator, who frowns a little bit. May not be seen but... well. Given Reiji's confirmation of what she thought was possible here?

Yeah. They needed to know a bit more.

<"The attention given not withstanding, this may well be dangerous. But people need something to believe in, at times. Still, we imagine it would be far better to actually have a choice in taking on that burden."> she muses lightly. For Kushiko, however, she's keeping a quiet hope that her use of Mesa here--pure chance, mind--means she may not be recognized as Valkyr.

Not that she'd be opposed to power granted, but there's too many unknowns.
Mel Brock     "Dunno," Mel replies to Reiji, "I can't read Ancient Whateverish. Might be able to get it translated from some of my old Union files, gimme a minute."

    She takes out a comm unit and mutters into it for a minute or two, evidently communicating with someone else back at the Paladin headquarter ship. It takes a bit, but eventually she pulls out a datapad, says, "Yeah, thanks, it's coming through. Brock out," and then properly holds up the pad. "Okay, let's see..."
Priscilla     Priscilla gets a message from Kirito in the Gatecrashers to come check it out in person. She does. She does it sneakily because it would be tremendously awkward not to. You know what that entails.

    Meanwhile, Reiji's favourite cleric responds. "Oh come now! Have we not had enough of politics? We cannot simply shuffle around, walk on eggshells, and bury history out of fear of upsetting the delicate sensibilities of the old guard. History is worth preserving! It would be a /colossal/ failure for the scriptures to read blank at such an unprecedented changing of the celestial monarchy! What would scholars of a century from now think of us when the books gloss over the /rekindling of the First Flame/ for political correctness' sake?"

    The cleric only seems delighted to show. The man with the rapidly fading shield enchantment squares off against his fellow, with a brotherly, gauntleted fistbump. The one across from him secures his sword and his talisman, running the cloth idol along the length of his blade whilst whispering rapidly under his breath. Rather than the gleaming gold and white of before, the light that twinkles from his hand is a deep violet approaching indigo, more closely resembling the power of the Dark Moon than the Sun, but further deeper still, even darker than the work of Velka.

    When his hand comes away, the blade of his sword has faded away to a semitransparent image, letting off dark smoke for all of a few seconds, before he slashes across his companion's shield. The blade phases right through it, striking against his armour with grating sparks. The feat is impressive, and widely divergent from the usual, even if it's perhaps inevitable it can only emulate the symbol of Reiji's treaty with the dead, just well enough to go through an inch of shield, but not a second inch of armour.

    Kushiko will be able to read through in a cursory fashion with her Warframe getting some manner of bandwidth to Concord software she may have downloaded. It's awkward to read, like a pre-King James Bible, but it is, indeed, a fairly faithful recollection of a journey through Lordran. The page she is on has a passage describing Psyber in detail, in fact, and something about a 'Bell of Awakening'. Mel has a record of whom is unmistakably Nathan Hall, conversing with some kind of spider witch, with fairly, though not entirely, accurate word content (though she has no way of knowing that). The books, ultimately, read much less like a holy tome directing one how to live, and more like the epic of Gilgamesh or Beowulf.

    Performing street miracles is a pretty damn good way to sell a mythology. The more the crowd sees, the more they crowd around to get their mitts on a book full of stories that cool. Some among them, however, begin to mutter after the demonstration of Reiji's legacy. It's difficult to hear, but little pods here and there in the overwhelming crowd seem to be discussing a topic with concern; specifically they are worriedly debating if the Miracle they had just witnessed has qualified as veering too far into territory of the Dark, and whether it should be reported.

    One of the armoured dudes promptly picks up Staren (hands under the arms, good-naturedly, mind you), placing him on the podium with a big old smile. "Well timed, Innovator! Go on! Quickly! Show them how you clad yourself in armour from the air!"
Kirito Kirito finally has his nerves up. He'll go approach. But first...

    First, he takes stock of the situation. Dark eyes sweep up and down, left and right across his personal HUD. Checking party status and the little icon near his name that confirms his hidden status.

    The boy reaches out into empty space, airstrokes downwards with two fingers to pull open his menu, and begins scrolling through his inventory and picking through some random things.

    ... No, that thing looks like a Leprechaun, and not the ALO kind...

    WHEN did a clown mask drop? What even dropped that?

    Eventually, he comes strolling out out into view wearing the most outlandishly fancy medieval attire he can quickly whip together. A long brown tunic with a HUGE leather belt to hold it in place, thoroughly embroided with light tan swirling branches-and-leaves patterns. Baggy dark brown trousers and shin-high leather boots, and draped around it, an open-fronted cloak, hood up. It's so open-fronted that the cloak is almost more of a cape, though, and it's similarly embroided beyond all sensibilities in detailed patterns.

    Only the crystal-blue sword 'Divination' sheathed at his side instead of on his back remains of his normal gear. Hopefully the tiny White Wyvern emblem on its scabbard won't have been written down anywhere, if these people care about him too and not just Tomoe.

    But this means that of those here, only Psyber and Reiji stand much chance of recognizing him...

    So he strolls out into view and starts traipsing dramatically towards the gathering, hands in his tunic pockets.
Mel Brock     After going over the video record for a moment, doing some comparing, and finally shutting off her pad, Mel turns to Reiji, Psyber, Zero and Kushiko, and declares, "Reiji Arisu, a thousand years from now they're going to be making cartoons where ten wizards summon the spirits of you, you-" She points at Psyber here, "-and everyone else that's famous around here, to fight over some sacred and powerful local artifact. That's the kind of mythos you've got here." She holds up the book, and gives the exorcist a cheeky smile.
Guest Psyber     "It's a religious thing. One of the big tenants of my religion is about false idols and worshipping them." Psyber wobbles his hand a bit as he talks to Zero, addressing the last point first. As he does address it, he removes a crumpled pack of cigarettes from his coat and puts one in his mouth before lighting it, "If you were a religious man, and your god said not to worship false idols, people worshipping you would make you awkward." He finishes, "Hence. Awkward point. I don't want this persisting."

    He shrugs a bit uncomfortably again and then waves his hand as Mel points at him, "They better not. I will come back and sue their asses for defamation of character, since I'll actually still be alive."
Staren     Staren is a bit surprised at being picked up, his tail sticking out straight, but then he's on a podium. "Um... I'm pretty sure I never used that here, what story says I did? It's not a parlor trick, you know..." Still, people want to see, so he reaches for the protoabstractum currently disguised as a belt buckle, and a light washes over his body, fading into armor. He looks over the crowd with a slightly nervous smile.
Tomoe Tomoe is taking a cautious look at thins she's not speaking out she is watching intently however she wonde4r is it harmless, poltical or dangerous. She won't deny she had a effect on this world even if it was just keeping her more squishy allies from being directly hit by things. She was all right, it was more than she could have done to help before the Death Game. She lisens she watches as the script and will turn on FRAPs to record it to go over later but she'll need to call in a favour or pay for the means to translate things later and then Staren catches a look and she wonders how this is going to end up for her.

She's also tensely watching Kirito do what he's going to do but thankfully he hs been changing his clothing. She's going to now pause and step aay to hopefully do the same without attracting too much notice.
Kushiko Mesa's head tilts once, then twice, and then looking over to Psyber, Reiji. Then back to the book, and she turns up a hand to project a holographic panel which has some of the translation data flowing on it, while she holds the book with the other hand. The Kubrow makes a quizzical headtilt of her own, mirroring her master before sitting on her haunches.

<"This is really detailed about you,"> she calls out over to the Half-Angel investigator. <"Something about a Bell of Awakening? Doubt that's actually..."> The projected voice stops short there. Might not be so wise to actually call out that she doesn't quite believe in, at least in front of all these people. Probably.
Reiji Arisu     This cleric is certainly amazingly enthusiastic! Almost infectiously so, but Reiji can't just let himself get swept along like that! Especially because there's something of a risk involved in doing so. "I... do suppose that is correct? As I said, there is nothing wrong with the accurate recording of history. In many cases, however, becoming too reckless with your zeal will create enemies unnecessarily. Your passion is impressive, don't get me wrong--"

    And then they show off the miracle. Well. That's unmistakably something inspired by the only-sort-of tangible sword hanging from his weapon rack. Reiji can't help but admire the quality of the reproduction, even if Darkdrift is nowhere near as flashy. And better at actually cutting things.

The murmuring that it inspires is... Not so reassuring, though. Hrmn.

    "That was pretty good, I'll admit," he says. "But is that really what I'll be remembered for? The gift I received from the First of the Dead is indeed great, but if it's about the re-ordering of the world, then... The role I played was in the guidance of the currents of power. Death is a facet of the cycle as well, certainly, but the other aspects are also vital. Heat and cold, creation and destruction, life and death, and the flow of All Things In Nature. Of course, that goes into my own philosophies as well. Perhaps now isn't the best time to be discussing those."

    He glances over at Mel, then frowns. "I'd really rather not end up pulled away from a peaceful afterlife just to punch Nathan or Psyber in the face. That's something I can do whenever I want to right now." Beat. "Maybe Lezard. I might be okay with that. It depends on the circumstances."
Priscilla     Tunic, boots, cloak, hood. A little out of fashion, but not exactly suspicious. Kirito can navigate in fine. A few people turn to look, but that has more to do with his dramatic gait than any kind of recognition. The hood is even hiding his ears. Some good natured souls step aside to allow him into the fold.

    The crowd actually applauds in places at seeing Staren verify the claim found in the book half of them are skimming through now, as someone finds the page number near the beginning and spreads it around. One amongst them calls to the cleric to demonstrate his faith. This time the man on the podium performs, eagerly taking the opportunity to showcase his unfaltering, unshakeable resolve that all of the story is true, and the inspiration he finds in it.

    This one is back to a normal sort of Miracle, where soft white light coalesces around his body and bands into plates of faint, translucent, blue armour. Admittedly, it looks significantly more medieval than Staren's suit, but bonus points for the ghostly cat ears and tail; something nobody could fail to record. Thankfully, the beaming man is blissfully unaware of what a nekomimi is, or the connotations of such. He just looks like he's ready for someone to shoot him in the chest and laugh it off. "As the great warrior Havel the Rock clad himself in his faith to rebuke magic, so do we to rebuke fire and light!"

    The atmosphere that oozes from this fellowship can't even be considered enthusiasm, or eagerness, or even really worship. It is something closer to 'absolute confidence', or 'complete surety', which Kirito's language definitely has a better word for. It's as if they've sublimated all preconceptions of the idea 'it doesn't work that way' or 'you can't do those things' and placed all of their faith in the tales they've gathered, that such things can be no less than ordained fate, if not divine providence. Rather than coming off cultish, the longer they go on, the more it comes off as pure conviction, in the 'Emperor Protects' way, but to the point of becoming supernatural.

    Even so, the whispers are spreading. There are those who are clearly impressed. Those that are wholly convinced, those won over by its practicality, and those that are simply engrossed in the plot that is recorded on the pages. There are also those unsettled by its implications, hesitant to change their views, reluctant to add anything new to stories that have gone back to their childhood, and some deeply concerned about the resemblance of Reiji's story to a school of magic that has yet to exist, save Lezard's distant and infamous approximation.

    Regardless, one of the women foists a book upon Reiji immediately. "Have patience. It is easiest to be inspired by those acts most easily impressive; feats of arms and sorcery. Know well that all details should be lovingly rendered, and in time, those are the sorts that great minds and faithful hearts seek to tease the secrets from the pages. Go on. Keep it! Read it at your leisure."

    One of the books mysteriously lifts itself off the pile and begins flipping through its own pages. This is incredibly unsubtle, but it's not like anyone is bothering to watch, nor can anyone hear the radio but the Multiversals.
Staren     Staren looks at the cleric curiously. He opens his visor. "How are you doing that? Is it an illusion for show? Magic specially designed to replicate our feats? Or is it some sort of power of faith?" He taps the suit to check if it's tangible or not, and also tries to get ahold of a book.
Zero Kiryu "I suppose." Zero agrees with Psyber neutrally, "The kind of gods that we have in Director Kuran and I's world are reasonably physically evident, and worship is typically compelled rather than voluntary. I suppose that a servant of such a being is usually ordered to loyalty at all costs. From that perspective, being worshipped would be inconvenient or dangerous. But I don't see much value in the sorts of beings that style themselves as gods back home."

"But it seems to me that if the people here can develop abilities based on reverence of those who have performed great enough deeds, that being revered here is a dangerous inconvenience in itself." He muses aloud to Psyber, popping several tablets into his mouth. "Might be best to start going incognito here."
Mel Brock     Mel flips her own copy closed, sliding it into a coat pocket for the moment along with her datapad. "It could be worse," she replies to both exorcist and angel. "They could be moving things with their mi-"

    Mel's eyes fall on the book that just lifted up and started flipping through itself as if manipulated by invisible hands.

    "Oh, find me in the Alps."

    She's already starting to move through the crowd to investigate.
Guest Psyber     "I spent a lot of time here. I'm not surprised that a lot of people have the ability to write about my appearance in detail. And that bell." He tries to remember if he was there for the bells as he talks to Kushiko. He faintly recalls that event in the swamp, so it does ring a bell, no pun intended.

    "I wouldn't recommend trying to punch me. I kill people that do that," Psyber shouts to Reiji, scowling a bit in his direction. It's a good-natured rib between the two, but Psyber makes sure to tease him a little for that slipup.

    And then his attention is on Zero again, "I'm starting to get that impression. I don't really want people getting dangerous powers based off the stuff I can do." He has yet to break up the gathering, much as he wants to. Attacking these religious people would just draw more people into investigating them right now. "So. You wanna go kill that cat sometime this week?"
Tomoe Tomoe once out of sight will within the confine of her cloath change her gear so she's wearing some far more generic and lower level gear, of the sort she had very early on staring out in SAO so she shoudl be good, hell there's actually pants but she'll step in to the crowd once more once she sees and opening as she watches the books and stares longer, she'a also making sure to record what she's seeing here to go over later. She'd figured she might be known but something like this? Was not what she expected for herself or any of the others.
Kirito "There is a serious danger with developing new miracles and magic off other people you regale as heroes, if I understand how your newfound powers work." Speaks the hooded Kirito, after he's had time to listen and view a bit more. He keeps the hood up but steps forward the moment he has enough room to do so.

    What a bold declaration. The question is... what does he mean?

    "Shackle your development to someone else's accomplishments... then what do you have that's really yours? How do you surpass it?"
Reiji Arisu     Wh- book!? Reiji blinks at the book suddenly thrust into his hands. He idly starts flipping through the pages. Of course, it's in the local script. Which means it's is something he certainly cannot read without the help of some very handy files in the Paladins database. "I see. Yes, that's certainly true. The most bombastic stories are often the ones most repeated, after all."

    And that is probably why all the most famous bits of ancient mythology involve heroes punching out terrible giant monsters. Relatively little about the nitty gritty about the underlying philosophies involved.

    Not like Reiji has much time to read, though. Mel scuttles off after a mysterious, floating book. And then Psyber suddenly appears out of the fog-- well, not exactly. He's been here for a while. "You'd have to try," the exorcist gives Psyber a cutting glare. Only on one eye, though. They're buddies, after all. "You'd probably manage it, but you'd still have to try."

Then... A mysterious man in a hood!?

    "That's quite negative, isn't it?" Reiji cants his head just a little bit. "We all stand upon the shoulders of giants in ways that we frequently do not even realize. There is little harm in the emulation of someone that you admire; they become something to aspire to, to improve yourself with. That's not shackling; that's just doing what' been done in every generation since the dawn of history, and we exceed our predecessors regularly."
Priscilla     Priscilla is holding the book. The fact she didn't even turn visible is practically sheer laziness at this point. Who's going to look at the other side the pile while /literal miracles/ are being performed in front of them. Just short of the point Mel is going to be touching her, she decides to cut that short with ". . . may I help thee, Lady Brock?"

    Then Kirito pretty much spits in the punch. The air doesn't turn quite hostile, but nobody has to say anything to make him sound like a massive buzzkill. "The tales of the new and old belong to all of us, young man." the lead cleric patiently explains. "There is nothing reprehensible in honouring the actions that have shaped our world. In fact, there is much harm in allowing it to slip away unremembered."

    He actually nods towards Reiji. "I know that it is difficult to fully understand, for those only beginning their journey of faith. It is hard to look up to such feats and consider yourself capable of them; to put that wall between yourself and your potential, and the shining examples set by others. Perhaps the clergy is something simply not for you. You are young still. Perhaps you could enlist in the Vinheim school of sorcery, if it befits you. However, I will show you this."

    He waves his hand to the swordsman, and nods his head. The armed man understands immediately, spreading his stance, clutching his blade with both hands, turning it up towards his face, and holding it in stoic vertical pose as he recites under his breath. A snatch of a biblical verse can be caught, though almost without context. He then raises his sword high, whereupon his right hand blazes with white fire, and its radiance shoots up the length of the steel, with a commanding gesture, he points it off towards the sky over the crowd's head, and a deafening crack of holy lightning flashes up into the clouds, cutting one of them apart on its way past. It is by far the most powerful show thus far, and immediately resonates with an entire culture that has come to associate divine lightning as the providence of the Sun Gods. There is immediate, thunderous applause, and something about "The Redeemer."
Kushiko Well. This could be interesting, to put it gently. Personally speaking, the Tenno drinks it all in, so to speak. Scraps and strands of conversation, between Reiji and Psyber, Zero and Psyber, and now watching Mel make her way towards that floating book, to say little of Staren's crowdly interactions and getting a book too. Hmmn.

<<This is worth observing, for now Tenno. It is lucky that you chose Mesa. Scan and see if they have an account of your Valkyr, perhaps they do, perhaps they do not. Warframes are myth and legend among the civilian populace in Origin. Maybe that would not be so bad here.>> Indeed, Mesa begins to thumb through the book which... really, it kind of looks weird. She has no discernible optics by which to read, though she is silently moving all the while. It's a little unnerving for those with the awareness for subtler things, though she has little to contribute; at least, not yet.

Kirito's words, on the other hand, and the lead cleric's that follow, prompt the Tenno to speak, that oddly resonant echo of her voice without presence: <"There's far worse examples for people to follow."> she observes. <"Some of you may not like it, but they are making something of it, even if you'd rather they not use you all for it. We do what we must, do we not?"> A slight pause. <"At least most of us."> A brief shrug, and back to book reading, one hand on the spine, the other projecting a translation panel.
Zero Kiryu "The killing of the cat is up to the discretion of other individuals, but... I wouldn't have a problem with getting rid of them if I were under instructions to do so." Zero says to Psyber, flatly. He adds, "It's a practice where I come from that a hunter is assigned their targets, rather than selecting them themselves. The reason for this is to avoid hunters simply indulging in aggression."

"It doesn't always pan out that way... but the point is that I'm not going to go out of my way in this instance. The cat disagrees with me too much." He concludes, plainly.

"Given my circumstances, I wouldn't be surprised to receive an extermination order regardless." He replaces his packet of tablets in his pocket and waves at Psyber as he turns and departs from the crowd, evidently on his way elsewhere.
Priscilla     Staren gets a book freely, if not /eagerly/ handed over to him. His question has been answered by an accidental skip though. When he prods the illusory armour, he finds it very much solid to his initial tap, but then as solid as smoke when he pokes more casually. It's like a weightless field of energy, bound to a shape a few inches off the guy's surface, that blocks anything much faster than casual contact.
Guest Psyber     Oh god damnit.

    Psyber pinches the bridge of his nose and just stares at the ground embarassedly. He doesn't usually like people making a huge deal out of the stuff he does, since he does it out of self-loathing more than glory-hunting.

    As Zero departs, Psyber abruptly feels even more awkward since he lacks a conversation partner to distract himself. He scuffs his foot against the ground and slowly tries to back his own way down an alley before one of the worshippers realize it's him.
Kirito Weeeeeelp. This wouldn't be the first time Kirito had a crowd giving him a leer. Although... it's pretty rare for him to act this way and speak his mind in front of anyone. He gulps inwardly, for this is a reminder of why he likes to keep his opinions to himself more often than not.

    He throws a hand up to shield his eyes slightly from the LIGHT SHOW THAT FOLLOWS. One hell of one in fact. A bit of VERY powerful magic that leaves him briefly gawking...

    "Reprehensible... n-no, hardly. But that's putting words into my mouth. Recording history and spreading it can't be called anything less than noble. But... the fact that you're emulating people you hardly know... didn't see... only heard about... can you base complete miracles off incomplete tales?"

    This leaves him turning to look Reiji in the face, which means he has a view of Kirito's face despite the hood. Whether he recognizes it is another matter. "... Hooooh...? I hope their magic works like that, then." Kirito sounds a bit doubtful and disapproving, but it's disguised under a thin layer of 'it cannot be helped' tone.
Reiji Arisu     Suddenly, there's a GIANT BEAM OF LIGHTNING into the sky. Reiji does not stare, on account of wanting to not end up blind. "Well," he muses in a way that somehow prods vaguely in Psyber's direction, "That was pretty impressive. Made mine look downright subtle."

poor psyber.

    "Regardless of how their magic works," Reiji says to the Mysterious Hooded Man whose face Reiji definitely does recognize. He doesn't say anything about it, though. If he's hiding his face, it's for a good reason. "That is how society and mythology seems to work, regardless of where one finds themselves. Regardless; we emulate people we hardly know all the time, you know?"

"We frequently look only at the legends, the achievements. It's rare that we ever recognize the struggle and the anguish that goes into making all that glory."
Staren     Staren watches the beam go up into the sky, then looks at Kirito, not recognizing him in disguise. "What matters is if the miracles work or not, and whether they're used to make people's lives better or worse. I may not like Lezard, but if someone can imitate his power and use it for good, how could I have a problem with that? As long as people decide on their own how to use them, and don't, I don't know, guess what we'd want and do it in our names without checking."
Tomoe Tomoe has moved through the crowd a bit more into the crowd now as she takes her tim to get vclose to listen she dares to not speak yet but she does watch Kirito for a moment and then looks to Reiji for a moment. The Tenno's words gets her attention though. She doesn't like it but doesn't want to crush people's world view if it's not doing any harm ot the world, and hopefully gugiding people but if they turn into dangerous fanatics? She's not sure but she does want to get a copy of the book to look at it. She's careful wuth her tone as she speaks up.

"My home often turns to legends and myths along side figures of imporantace form the past. There can be much to be learned fom those with's merits and flaws. They also do serve to inspire..."

The mysterious woman doesn't reveal her face at all s she talks she also goes silent afterwards. She is concerned abou
Mel Brock     Priscilla has probably seen this sort of thing countless times.

    But she can now add Mel Brock to the list of 'people she's scared the crap out of by being invisible'.

    The PsiMarshal jumps back a good foot and a couple inches into the air besides, letting out a startled, "-the f-?!" She cuts herself short very quickly, hastily looking around to make sure she hasn't drawn too much attention. "...I completely forgot you could /do/ that," she hisses. "Look, is there anything I need to worry about here? Any of these people likely to cause a problem? ...they're not gonna suddenly start developing psionics if I stick around long enough, are they?"

    There's a sudden holy thunderbolt.

    Mel jerks in surprise again. "Jesus-!"

    Stop smiling, Priscilla. STOP SMILING. WE KNOW YOU'RE SMILING.
Priscilla     Priscilla is totally smiling. Smiling as much as she ever actually does, anyways. For being half-sun goddess, she isn't good at being 'radiant' in any social quality. Still though, it amuses her. "It is entertaining, is it not?" Mel might get the impression she's gesturing towards the crowd, and has forgotten she can't see her.

    "Aside, it is not something I am inclined to curtail. It is a symbol of mine authority that mine own choice of heroes wouldst be recorded in such fashion. To demand otherwise is to place mine own authority below that of recruiting the Knights of Gwyn. To do so wouldst be meek and spineless. Be gladdened that thou art appreciated for thine competence, for a change. This is certainly more honour and praise then the Union didst ever giveth any of us." The last part feels like an especially pointed observation. Perhaps a tiny, tiny barb at her choice of affiliation.

    Tomoe is more popular with the crowd then that buzzkill dork Kirito. She has clearly given the right answer. One of them foists yet another one of those books on her, where she can learn all about the things she was already there for. Staren is not the recipient of hostility, but mentioning Lezard only has those scattered, dissident elements of the crowd rumbling louder, all of a sudden considering that some crazy asshole might get it in their head to worship /him/ (outside of his sempai status at the Archives). That, finally, strikes them as directly dangerous.

    With the majority reading or going their separate ways though, there is not much to stay for save the end of the recitation, though some of the best parts have already been shown. If at all possible, nobody will be leaving without a divine tome.