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There truly is no limit to the spontaneous absurdity that can happen in Twisted. While Mabase itself is fairly stable, who knows what goes on out in the periphery? Today is an excellent example. Nothing unusual seems to be happening one moment; Liyara is returning to Truce Fountain to check on her spell-sensor.
She's placed several in the parallel dimensions that run alongside Twisted, but the one here at the fountain is the only one that's been giving her erratic signal. The simulated sky is clear, the fountain is clear, and there's not so much as a hint of a breeze. It's tranquil.
So when the sound of an explosion is heard in the distance, it draws the dragonborn woman's attention. She stands up straight and looks off to the West for a moment. "...Bahamut's blood?" There is a low whistling sound heard, shrill and repeating, like something spiraling very quickly through the air, and Liyara furrows her brows for just a moment, before she looks up. Just in time for a Ford F-150 pickup truck to slam into her from above with a worrying crunching sound. The dragon woman doesn't even have time to get a cry off.
The sound of tearing metal and shattering glass gives way to just a moment of hushed silence after the now-crumpled vehicle creaks and settles into place. Then, the black body of the vehicle begins to change color, as it heats to red-hot. It slowly begins to melt into a molten mess, and after a few moments there is just a spreading puddle of liquid aluminum, with a vaguely humanoid shape rising out of the middle. Molten metal in the shape of an arm reaches up and brushes more molten metal off of the figure's face, revealing an irritated looking Liyara now covered in the stuff.
The dragon-woman looks around, flapping her wings in irritation and trying to get the red-hot metal off of her in the way someone might try to shake water or mud off. She looks around, seeing absolutely no sign of where the projectile came from, and makes a face. "Is it too much to hope this will stop happening? It's like this fountain is cursed." ...This wasn't the first time?
The woman steps carefully out of the steaming puddle of mirror-sheen, letting her wings carry her so that she doesn't have to get any more on her than she already has. Once she's clear, she examines the fifteen-foot wide puddle with a humph. Well. She's not cleaning that up! ... Time to not be at the fountain. She looks around, hoping desperately for something she can do or someone she can bother; she'd prefer to look like she is in fact not involved with the ever-expanding reflective surface that used to be a truck. "...Sundays. Ugh."
It might be easy to overlook at least one witness to the events. He's small. With a cough, the noise nearly makes him choke on the contents of his bowl. Jumping up to his feet atop the parked vehicle, feet thumping against the thin metal underneath his form, the masked bystander watches everything in quiet wonder at first only to explode into laughter after the fact.
Rocky does not call out Liyara's name. He finds the imagery far too hilarious to bother just yet. He simply laughs on from his little spot while hugging that bowl to his chest. It's not a jerk thing to do if nobody got hurt, right?
What's old is new, what's new is old, and Chiffon has settled into his old routines. Which means disappearing for weeks at a time, and coming back with just enough coin to get by until the next job. Re-establishing a business is rough when you don't have hands to make fliers and the like.
The sounds of chaos are enough to draw Chiffon to the scene in a brisk run, coming to a tap-tap-tap stop and a little bit of a skid. Nose wrinkles at the smell of melted metal, but he shakes it off and straightens. There are other things to pick up; individuals nearby, other effects that may or may not be lingering. He glances from the mess to Liyara--recognition visible in the perk of an ear, flick of a tail, and the raise of a paw. "... experiment, or just bad luck?"
Wandering away from the pool of metal, Liyara finds herself hustling towards the edge of the courtyard, doing her best to simultaneously look casual and busy. She has no idea what that sound is, having never heard Rocket laugh, but she has very important things to do, like... not be here. So when she spots a familiar snout, she waves Chiffon over to her, not slowing down. "Ah! Hello again! Come, walk with me, quickly now, away from here." That truck definitely stuck a bee up her bonnet.
"...Bad luck, I suppose? This is the third time this month something has made me look like a vandal." Discounting all the magic circles she's carved into the city that make her an actual vandal, of course. "But that luck is changing now that I see a friendly face." She turns on the charm and offers a radiant smile designed to melt hearts even quicker than she melted that truck. Sadly, it has a mixed success rate. "How are you?"
Saying not a word, the small individual carefully climbs down the parked vehicle and begins to follow along. He doesn't actively try to be stealthy, as can be told by his follow-up snickering, but he doesn't call out after the dragon lady yet. No, not yet. Of course, this reveals her stopping to meet up with another familiar face, yes, and, in turn, Rocky pauses to lean against the nearest supportive pillar to watch and eat. The man of whom stands there with a raccoon against his leg widens his eyes and looks like a deer trapped in headlights. He has no idea how to react.
Chiffon glances at the terminator waiting to happen, then Liyara again and gives a swift nod. About-faces and falls into line beside the Dragonborn. "Yes, those are definitely sounds that either warrant running to or from." And since she's at the epicenter, well, he'll take this at face value. He bucks up with a goofy smile. "On the up and up. Search hasn't proferred much progress, but I'm at least getting back to where I can... encourage people to help."
The firelion's face falls a moment, but picks up just as quickly. "What about you? Last I saw you we were in similar straits, but I think we're up to very different.. hm... I smell a friend."
"You're a wise one then, friend." Liyara says to Chiffon as they continue to stride away. She looks around a bit as they walk, but does NOT see Rocket over there. Observant is not a word people use to describe her. Ever, actually.
She's about to tell Chiffon that she's actually made a lot of progress on her own search since last they spoke, when he mentions a friend. She looks around again, surprised, and then blinks. "...Where?" Next to the paralyzed man, Liyara.
Once the shock wears off, the man inches away just a little, leaning away with an urgency to get away from the furry creature using his leg as a means to chill, before giving a nudge with that leg and turning to flee. Rocket's position is upset around the time Liyara looks his way and, with a stumble, the probably-a-raccoon recovers from the offset balance and keeps his bowl from spilling its contents onto the ground. "Whoop..! Oi, vat was uncalled for..."
Looking up, seeing eyes his way, Rocky lifts a hand and offers a cheesy grin in greeting. "Oh, uh, 'ey! Didn't see you vere." Liar.
"You're too kind. Though I certainly don't mind positive reccomendations. There's a lot of freelance competition here, apparently." Chiffon sticks his tongue out, then licks his chops to fade the expression. He doesn't see Rocket, either, to be fair! Snoots just are silent betrayers.
Chiff lifts his paw again to Rocket. Some sort of unseen gravity always tugging them together like this? Hm. "Maybe I should try more fireworks next time!" It's like people don't want to be seen, and how silly is that? "Looks like you're having some... luck... too?" Lunch is luck. That's how that works.
When Rocket waves to them and speaks, Liyara blinks. She was staring right at him! ... Well, at the man he was leaning on. "...I didn't... see you either?" She sounds a bit confused, presumably she hasn't come to terms with her poor passive perception yet. "...Ah. It was you." That laughter from before. Now it makes sense. Well, at least it wasn't the truck mocking her or anything like that. She's had that kind of week.
For better or worse, Rocket is left without that context, so he can take that statement as he will. Liyara glances back to Chiffon. "More fireworks are always better. Ancient dragon wisdom from my mom." Ooh. Ancient dragon wisdom.
"Wait. Wot? Fireworks. Well, it just so 'appens ven wot I'm a veri'able mastuh of supplying fings wot might resemble fireworks."
Don't sound too cocky, Rocky. The raccoon even has a bit of swagger as he draws just a little closer, if just to tease Chiffon's nose with the smell of meat and tasties. He even waves the item back and forth a few times with a flutter of the other hand to send some smell that way. Now -that- is being a jerk. Kinda. "I always get lucky." He clicks his tongue twice and winks as if implying something else, but finishes it quickly off with an open offer to share his food. He holds it out and looks between the two.
"Beef bowl?"
Chiffon gestures from side to side with both 'hands' in alternation. "I think the fireworks I would be good with are closer to dragons than what you have on hand. But maaaybe." He squints thoughtfully. "Signals. I need to think about signals." Ah, there are some gears turning, with increasing vibrations and glow of tailparts. But he gets ditracted a moment by another thought.
"I wish my mom was a dragon. Well, I don't know my mom, so it's possible!" There's a cheerful thought. Nose follows, stomach rumblies, and Chiffon considers the HORRIBLE TEASE for a moment before giving a little shake. "Thanks, but I'm too distracted to be hungry." And him taking handouts, well, it's just a strange image.
When Rocket offers her a beef bowl, Liyara's left eye twitches slightly. She offers a wide grin that is totally not compensating for a minor aneurysm she just had, and shakes her head. "No thank you, Rocket." Beef bowls. Her navigational nemeses. She will eat one when she has solved interdimensional travel, to let them know that she has defeated them. But not before then.
"Having a dragon for a mother is quite interesting. You get to have treasure and boundless wealth, but you can't do anything with it or take it anywhere." She grins, her upper incisors looking a bit more like fangs than normal - it's probably just the subject matter. "And then there's the fire resistance." ... Resistance. Right. She just bathed in molten metal - resistance seems a bit of an understatement.
"Eh! Your loss." That much said, Rocky works on finishing off what's left. It's gotten cold at this point, but Rocket will eat most anything if he deems it safe enough. He's not terribly picky. Expected, right? This is time spent listening in, though. He has no idea what either of these two are talking about, other than dragon moms. He furrows his brow as his eyes shift from side to side back and forth from candletail to dragon chick.
"Seriously, you evuh find vat fing?" Thing? Well, Rocky forgets for the moment what exactly it was that was in question of missing. "Liyarer is good wif maps, so va's somefing, innit? You two hook up yet?" Vocal stumble ensues. "Eh, you know, for va fing wot does va stuff. Wif a map. To find... Not, uh, hooking up like vat kind a'ooking up. I fink."
"All perks, yes! Being a dragon is a grand thing. I think we all lucked out though, in our own ways..." Chiffon puffs a small stream of flame. Not enough to warm up a sandwich on or anything. "It's like. Abstract. Wealth you can't spend feels like a... what did my grandpa used to say... a koan?"
A thoughtful look, and a circular pace. Chiffon looks amused, for a moment, and then wags a hand. "If we had a magic map that showed off Sanuye, that would help, but people generally don't show up on maps. We could, ah.. always help, yes."
Rocket's question draws a raised eyebrow from Liyara. She could step in and rescue him from his verbal stumbling - certainly a kind person might do just that. But Liyara isn't feeling particularly generous at the moment, so she just lets him flounder for a bit, smiling. Well, it's amusing her at least.
"We haven't had the opportunity to work together again yet, but now seems as good a time as any. I think I have some idea how to search for people, now." ... Wait, she does? "At least some version of them." ... Sounds iffy.
Rocket Raccoon eats 'iffy' for breakfast and washes it down with a heaping helping of 'stabbing uncertainty in the face, with bullets'. He uses his plastic spork to point to Liyara with a snap, although it sends flecks of sauce-laden food in her general direction. "Va's wot I'm talking about. Let's do vis fing." Rocket doesn't always do things out of the goodness of his heart, but he -is- itching for something to do.
That makes it all the easier to talk him into it. Somebody is talking him into it, right? Oh well! Chiffon has to agree now. Peer pressure? "Well, or at va very least, you do va fing and I'll keep watch for more metallic projectiles. I swear, it's like when Big Green 'as a tantrum."
"Do you have anything that does.. uh.. magnets? I haven't learn anything that works on metal in particular." Chiffon frowns, thinking through this problem of randomly appearing vehicles. Will this be a continuous problem? If it is, he'll have to start down some specific monster hunts. But taht's neither here nor there.
Rewind a bit. Chiffon tilts his head very slightly and smiles. Not that he's oblivious to such connotations, but it rolls off like orange sauce off a duck. "If there are multiple versions of us, that's going to lead to some interesting living situations... gosh. But that's the best news I've heard in.. ever!" Wag. He looks up expectantly.
"Magnets? ... No." Liyara looks amused at the idea. "I'm all fire, all the time. But I appreciate the troubleshooting. Melting metal seems to work fine." ... And being resilient enough to tank a pickup truck to the face doesn't seem to hurt, either.
"...As for finding someone, let's not get too ahead of ourselves. Where did you say you came from again? Can you take us back to where you first arrived?" The methodical approach. Couldn't hurt.
The raccoon scarfs down the rest of the scraps and looks around for a moment before wandering off to toss the bowl into a trash bin. "I can't answer for 'im, but we met in vat uhvuh Nexus or wotevuh you want a'call it." That's all Rocky can really offer. Well, he offers a cat-calling whistle, too, but the woman so targeted doesn't appreciate the fine specimen of space pilot genius Rocket is and simply flips him the bird without breaking her stride.
"Dream on, Beaver," she replies without turning her head to look.
Rocky scoffs as he turns away with a shrug. "Fine! But when I do it'll be of somefing a lih'uh finnuh."
"Ah. That's a different part of the equation. If--if there's math, I might have a difficulty." Chiffon frowns and drums his claws on the pavement, thinking. "The map may help, actually. Kalwa just sort of... popped out on this street. A few blocks from the Usual?" That's where THEY met, after all! "A bit.. high up, though. Rooftop abouts." He measures some distance with his paws, and becomes promptly distracted by Rocket's interaction.
After a moment, he looks back at Liyara and inquires, "... 'ssat some kind of spell he does?"
"The multi-versal nexus through the employees only door at the Usual?" Liyara asks helpfully, as if that was common knowledge. ... Wait, there's a nexus through that door? "I think the pony came from there, too." ... The pony. Right. This place is certainly unique.
At Chiffon's explanation, Liyara nods. "Alright, then let's head back over there, and I'll see if my little observation post there has caught anything." ... Observation post? "...And I think he was trying to cast a charm spell." Liyara muses, with her tail swishing back and forth.
"A charm spell... I didn't feel any magic, though." Chiffon frowns, and considers Rocket again. Well, he's more of the technologically inclined sort. "If it worked, it might be handy with dangerous beasts." The best, and worst part of any career. His tail finds a slow sync with the Dragonborn's and he leads the way with noble snoot and steady trot.
"I'd be happy to repay any assistance! Though, if it's things of the magical nature, I will have to learn by... imitation, basically."
Distracted momentarily, Rocket winds up trailing behind for a moment. "Oi!" he complains before breaking into a sprint on all fours to close the distance quick enough to reach Chiffon. But why? Because Rocket aims to Catch-a-Ride! It could be very rude, but Chiffon is a big lug! Maybe he won't even know if the raccoon hops up to sit side-saddle on the candletail. Just gotta mind that mane.
"Maybe he failed?" Liyara shrugs at that. To her, the whistle was a pretty clear spell component, and the woman reacted as if she'd had a spell cast on her and she passed. She can't see any other explanation currently. "...Regardless, he seems to have plenty of luck with it, if my past observations of him are any indication." He HAS had a few girls on his arm from time to time.
As the troupe heads back toward the Usual, Liyara explains herself. "I've been putting up sensors showing me parallel dimensions that run alongside certain locations for about a month now..." Mostly because it takes her a very long time to put one up, and she needed to collate data from many sources. "It so happens that the streets near the Usual and the hub through the door are some of the first places I set sensors up. So I have the most data from those locations." How does that help? Well, she'll explain.
"If I can find someone in one of the recordings, I can track them here, with time, and with their permission." ... Oh, only with their permission? That was about to be very useful.
"Oh. Oh! Well, that's encouraging then." Wrong interest for the right reasons. Clearly. Chiffon lifts his head as he gets a sudden passenger, a soft chuff, but he doesn't seem to be bothered by being used in such a fashion. Not for someone as uh, light as Rocket. "Maybe you can teach me how to charm, then!"
That'll be the day. The Sanuye listens intently, though. He might not be able to do a lot of practical application arcana, but he grasps it well enough to nod along. "Even just seeing the shape of these.. parallel worlds might be useful, since we got yanked through them to begin with. If he's not here yet. Otherwise I might just have to make a big noise and hope he notices." Chiffon frowns. "... oh, uh, well, you have permission to track us if you want. That sounds useful."
"Wait. Uh, 'us'? Who's 'us'?" Rocket very much enjoys his privacy. The thought of being tracked is actually a bit unnerving to him. "Actually, nevuhmind vat. Not important. Moving along." It's true. Rocky doesn't weigh much. He especially doesn't weigh enough to justify the level of strength he has, if you want to compare and correlate the two. Still, there he is, then. A passenger. No need for a saddle or straps. He might mess with Chiffon's clothing a bit just settling down, but his balance is great! "But, uh, if you want some tips on vat kinda fing, mate, I'm sure we can work out somefing. Gotta know 'ow t'play all angles, yeah?"
"Well, I'll need his permission to track him; it's not a courtesy." Liyara clarifies, since it sounded like she was simply respecting people's privacy. "It's the only way I know how; I can't actually cast most spells, but I can cast a large variety of them through ritual circles." Which she carves into the city, and has gotten Jack on her case at least once. Though he's pretty amicable for law enforcement, and really didn't seem upset, just curious.
"...But the rub is, if he's here and declines, I'll know. So there's that." ... That sounds like not using the spell as intended. So that's the way Liyara is, is it?
"That's very valuable information on its own. If he's -here- then that means I can do something... and uh, if not, then that I guess..." Chiffon trails off there and hangs his head. Well, if they got parted through multiversal splints, would it even be responsible to drag him back again? Would that just make things worse? Now he's not entirely sure. "I... I guess we just see what happens..."
Liyara looks at Chiffon, and tucks her chin in for a moment, her wings drooping a bit. Yes, she can sympathize with losing someone you care about and not knowing if you'll find them again. "...Don't worry. If he's been through here, or through that other nexus? He's probably not back home yet." Why does she think that? "Because I haven't figured out how to send people back home." ... Right. Because she is THE ONLY HOPE people have, right? She certainly seems to think so.
"Well... I mean, if he IS back home, that would be for the best." Chiffon puffs up a bit and smiles. "It's not like he'd be lost without me! That's where we were always trying to get. So, if that's the end of the story, it's a happy one." Silver linings and all that. He straightens, shakes, and looks around. There's really nothing remarkable about where he came out. Some modestly high residentials. Some canopy covers on windows, and low lying shops below. It is, in essence, just a street that happens to be near some very Unusual happenstances.
"I just want him to be okay." He shoulders Rocket a bit more, tries not to shake too much.
"Not t'piss in va punchbowl, love, but I fink portals to previous 'omes was part of what made fings unstable before, back in vat ci'y place on wotevuh version o'Earf vat was. From wot I 'eard, vose wot 'ad access to veir 'omeworlds got displaced again even vough vey was were vey came from. Va act o'connecting va two could be dangerous beyond our knowledge."
Rocket frowns a bit as he says this but offers a shrug, anyway. In turn, he gets repaid by a shaking beneath and has to hold on. "Oi!" It's not the best news, but it's important to know. "...wot I'm trying a'say, love, issat opening a portal to a place might be damning for it, knowha'Imean? We need to learn more about where we are first." His last sentence is delivered in a way that sounds almost sobering.
With a nod to Rocket, Liyara looks around as the trio arrive at roughly where they were headed, clearly not stopping what she's doing. "So I've been told. But there's more than one way to handle a problem." What is THAT supposed to mean? "...Anyway, getting people back home is still a work in progress. Finding people that are here? I think I can do that." She pauses at that, looking around, and then leads everyone to... the front of a nearby 24/7 convenience store and looking at it quizzically.
Does... does she want a slushie?
If she does, Chiffon wants one of the blue ones.
"Suppose it's always been a bit different for some of us who aren't really trying to get back anywhere... doesn't stop me from looking for the doors though." He stabilizes and looks up. "Sorry. Ehehem. All the ways I've came, the things that move you from here to there only seem to be good at making you more lost. Learned not to play that game a while back." So... hm.
"Spoken like a true adventuruh." Chiffon gets a pat-a-pat from a small hand. "At va very least, it's a mark of adaptabili'y." Rocket might get a nudge to insert some comment there about 'endearing aspects and reasons to appreciate' and all that mushy stuff, but he doesn't know the first thing about Sanuye relationships, so he plays the smart hand by keeping his mouth shut. Just this once.
"What are we looking for, love? Secret entrance? 'opefully not where va fire suppression lines are."
Liyara glances at Rocket for a moment, then turns her attention back to building. "Portals are just the most common method of interdimensional travel." ...There are others? "And there are certainly risks with any form, just as you said. So what's needed here is likely..." Liyara walks up to the 24/7 and gives the wall right next to the glass doors a push. A brick lights up orange, and then that light spreads out around the wall in an orange circle that isn't ENTIRELY different from the circles she's made on the public streets; but it's smaller, and brighter, and slowly spinning in place.
"... A little creativity."
The wall seems to blossom open, as if part of the 24/7 were disappearing. It's not, of course, but rather, a view into another place is opening. It actually looks much like the location they're in now; in fact, in some ways, it's almost like a mirror that the trio don't show up in. 'Behind' them is the Twisted Street, or at least a version of it. The reason it seems different is because it doesn't seem to be shattered and mashed together parts of different locations. It's all the same street. Many buildings are the same, but some newer ones are missing, with older ones behind it.
Liyara tilts her head to one side. "Interesting. I was expecting a connected dimension, not an alternate one." She slowly turns her hand within the orange circle, and the view ahead of them just simply... alters. Like a TV changing channels, now there is a similar street, but it's not a 24/7 convenience store, it's a fast food chain building that is designed like a bunch of burger patties stacked on top of short ribs held aloft by cow legs. It's very tacky.
"MacMeaties..." Liyara reads off the green arches on the sign. "...That doesn't look right." She turns her hand again, and this time the image changes something that the other two might find familiar. It's a road leading to the Usual, but it's the one in NeoTokyo. Well, this seems handy.
"The thing with Mist, is it seems to have less of a destabilizing influence. I think you end up trading too much predictability... it's basically useless as a foundation by nature." Chiffon winds down a thought, reaching up to adjust phantasmal glasses before blushing a little. Once Liyara starts in on Ze Magicks, though, Chiffon is spellbound. He watches through a few iterations before he manages to glance up at Rocket.
"... What're we looking at? So... alternates aren't connected? Do you think our money is good there if we want a burger on the sly?"
Rocket, on the other hand, watches with a very different level of wonder. He's fought beside a number of people with amazing magical ability. He may not understand how it works, exactly, but he's been exposed to such extremes that encountering these types of displays is less wowing. That isn't to say it's not impressive or that Rocket isn't impressed. This is a very different style of magic and it's interesting, but it takes a lot to /really/ make Rocky's eyes sparkle.
"Va's interesting. Easy t'mistake it from va local one from va inside; almost outside, too, but vere are a few differences around it, I fink. I fink I get what you'uh checking for, love." But, well, Rocket doesn't say what he's fully thinking. He simply watches with now-crossed arms atop his Sanuye steed.
"This looks like the one the pony came from." Liyara announces her certainty and nods her head, ignoring Chiffon's burger question. She pulls her hand back a ways, then releases the circle. The orange hue goes away, and then they're not standing outside the 24/7, the trio is 'in' NeoTokyo. Any close examination reveals that things don't match up; they're still ACTUALLY next to the 24/7 on Twisted Street, but it simply looks and sounds like they're elsewhere. It's not unlike a holodeck conceptually, but nothing can be interacted with. It's just visuals and sounds being reproduced by a spell, no matter how fancy.
"I haven't explored it much, since the singularity cleared up. But this place is actually connected to us through the Usual Restaurant - no portals necessary." ...That does seem helpful. So they can actually go here, if they need to?
The dragon takes a deep breath, and then lifts both of her hands out towards the wall. She traces small fiery sigils in the air with her fingers, and as she does so, the imagery seems to rewind. It's slowly at first, with denizens walking backwards at half speed, but as her fingers trace larger and larger circles, the rewind seems to speed up. Her slit-pupils dilate, and she takes it all in. Magic brain, magic memory.
As the visuals speed up and go faster and faster, the people and lights on the streets, including any vehicles, seem to just turn into ethereal blurs that aren't really there. At least to people with normal visual acuity. Liyara seems to have no trouble following it, and for anyone whose vision accepts and processes several thousand images per second, it would be quite clear, as well. She hums a little tune to herself, and then stops the recording after about ten seconds. She grumbles, and then fast forwards at a slower rate, until a dark red quadruped with a flickering flame on his tail and spectacles on his nose appears and she resumes normal playback, catching him in mid-stride on the way to the Usual. He's laden down with some satchels that resemble saddle-bags, and a bit smaller than Chiffon.
"You lot are rather distinctive."
Forget trying to parse what he's seeing, Chiffon's still hung up on the NATURE of it. Glances followed by a little dizzy whirl, he lifts a paw to his forehead and tries to force himself to focus. "So we're not here, we're just... seeing here? Is this happening right now?" Oh, geez, don't through time into the time and space mix. That'll just make this all the more difficult.
Ritual magic is just something that Chiffon can't parse in his tradition. The effects are felt, and even struck with awe but beyond there are fundamental incongruities.
Oh, well. That's what makes variety the spice of life. As for Chiffon, though, he's... mostly silent, still for a moment before slowly trying to approach the image.
"Bloody awesome trick vat, Liyarer." Rocket takes this in, too, with a different level of scrutiny. He doesn't fully take in all the details, but he still observes with a very trained eye. Patterns in chaos, and all that. Holding on to Chiffon, he goes quiet as he watches the larger quadruped approach the image of the smaller one. This isn't his moment.
Calwa looks like he's been through the wringer a few times and back again. His fur is dirty. His posture slumps. His mane droops. For a moment he simply stands in front of the entrance to the Usual, panting. His strapped bags hang slightly loose. He's...lost weight. For somebody small in frame as Calwa is, that says a lot. He seems to be trying to catch his breath. His nose appears to be dry and cracked. For all of his panting, little saliva looks to be present within a dry maw.
When Calwa eventually moves, it's like watching a struggle of bones and muscles fighting the process. He's slow, clearly aching, but finally manages to pull himself forward, away from Chiffon's observant position, to enter the building before him. He looks like he needs something to eat and drink. It's probably good call to make, though one might wonder why he wouldn't have done so earlier.
The answer to that becomes very apparent soon enough. The Trio watching may have time to take in and validate the identity of the one focused on after he disappears inside, but others soon appear.
These others are NOT customers.
Head to toe in black body-fitting suits, faces covered with a mask, goggles resting on faces with lenses that glow eerily red to the point of leaving afterimages -- this group of six not only look like bad news. They also carry automatic rifles. One of the people toss something out, an item that goes straight through Chiffon, and sticks to the ground. They then group up. They breach the door with an explosive bang. They pour inside.
Gunshots ring out.
People scream.
Rocket may regret his choice of steed, because Chiffon's gut reaction to everything unfolds with tickles of adrenaline and pricking fur. What he's -seeing- doesn't matter as much in theory as the rawness of it, and there's only a beat and a half of gunshots before he tries to bolt in that general direction.
Which, if we're reading correctly, probably results in him getting a faceful of brick.
"I'm afraid it's not current - this is from..." Liyara pauses, furrowing her brow. "...About three weeks ago." She gestures at the image, as it plays forward. When it does, the dragon woman's brow furrows further, and her eyes narrow. "...Who are they?" She doesn't know who's chasing this new fire-lion, but she is not pleased.
The dragon woman makes circles in the air again, and then Chiffon is off, and she blinks, closing her fist quickly. The image vanishes for the time being, and she looks to Chiffon. Hopefully she was fast enough that he saw the wall he was running into - but was he fast enough to not run into it? "Oh dear." She doesn't have healing magic, unfortunately.
"Oh, flark. Who are vem flarknards?" asks Rocket concerning the dangerous bunch. "Friends of yours?" It's a very militaristically strong CQC breach-and-clear maneuver, the raccoon notes mentally while trying to get a good focused look at those guns. Powerful, maybe, but still children's toys. Still dangerous against unarmed restaurant-goers, though. Chiffon bolting suddenly upsets Rocket's balance completely, though, and he winds up rolling off the back of the Sanuye and eats the ground with a thump.
Chiffon, naturally, ends up headbutting the building. Leaving a small amount of rubble and dust and one ruffled skull. The crumpled liondog groans for a moment and covers a spot on his head with both paws. "... three weeks." He manages after a while. Then, pulling himself up with renewed dignity and grace, there's a dim white light and a soothing wash of warmth. Pearelscent, almost, and an ethereal wind.
This one knows healing magic, if a bit primal, and a bit.. splashy. White Wind doesn't discriminate within its area.
Then with a quick lick of his paws and a smooth-out of his mane, he continues on in a calmer fashion. "I don't recognize them... but I know before Kalwa and I met, there were people after him. Never saw them, I assume they'd never made it through from their world. But if they had, that begs... a lot of questions." If it's even the same people. He sighs and glances over his shoulder towards the wall. "... what now? We can't just leave him, uh, there."
There's a moment where Liyara looks concerned, but when Chiffon does... a form of magic she's not familiar with, but recognizes as healing magic, she nods, satisfied. "...We won't. But we have to see what happened." She purses her lips, trying to phrase this delicately.
"If I pull the image back up, do you promise not to headbutt it again?" ...Mixed success.
Liyara has her hand out again, and if Chiffon agrees, she'll start the lightshow back up, skipping ahead until the next time they see Chiffon's friend.
On the bright side, Chiffon's magic should soothe any roughs he's accidentally done to his passenger. Totally. "... I know." If THAT's the first thing he's seen of someone like Kalwa in a long while, well, the reaction might be normal. Alas, he doesn't have any sort of reality breaking powers to back up the impulse. Just a bit of a headache.
The Sanuye exhales and nods. "Promise. Do let me know if you have some spells that I should consider headbutting, in the future."
Rocket feels better, sure! But he's pretty darn tough himself. If a tumble onto the ground could finish him off, he'd have been lost after his first real night of heavy drinking. He sits up at first, rubs his head, then stands and wanders over to where they were originally positioned for a better view of the goings-on. "Preh'y bloody passionate act o'valor, innit?"
And with Chiffon's agreement, Liyara makes contact with the circle again. The image springs up on the wall, and she pulls it out to fill their view a second time. She circles her fingers in the air, and NeoTokyo* is around them once more. At first, the images are paused, but as before, the traces of her fingers seem to get it moving again.
"Remember, this is just a recording. We'll find him." Liyara doesn't say anything as reassuring as she's sure he's fine. But then, where she's from, death isn't exactly a hard stopping point.
"Mm... a faceful of brick is not the better form of valor though, is it." Chiffon, admonished. He leans back, sitting with ears up and eyes clear. He draws a deep breath. "One way or the other, huh? I might need some... time. Depending how this goes." He's doing his best, really!
"... and thank you. I could never pull off anything like this. Even seeing this far, I'm in your debt."
The rapid pops of fired shells, a sound that should be quick and fierce, spins up slowly again into normal time as things pick up from where they left off. People naturally flee when the gunshots ring out. The front entrance opens and numerous patrons exit in hasty fashion. All shapes and sizes of people nearly trample one another to get away as the sounds of bursts of fire can be heard off and on. Very soon the flood of victims slows to a trickle and then...nothing. Not a single Calwa among them exits with the groups.
An eerie silence follows, and while it may not last long there's something terrible about it. Suddenly, a mask-muted yell of pain is heard from within the building and a red-furred figure leaps through the door and just past Chiffon with a cry of help.
"Grandfather protect me!" But, wait, Calwa is running straight toward where that device was tossed a moment ago. No amount of protest can stop what has already happened, however. The device explodes in a flash, Calwa jerks his head away from the blinding light and deafening sound limited to that small area of effect, and, momentarily blinded and disoriented, he nearly trips over himself as he tries to run forward but lists to the side awkwardly.
Two figures emerge, one with a broken arm, while the second lifts his gun, aims, and fires.
Calwa's body rolls across the ground as the momentum strikes his hip and twists him to the side, off balance, with a yelp of surprise more than a yelp of pain. He recovers quickly, allowing the roll to bring him around onto his feet again, and only then does the pain hit him. The color of the impact site is a different color of red than his pelt. Worst of all, that back leg doesn't seem to want to work. Unable to draw it in and up, it hangs loose and he's forced to drag it along over the asphalt in his escape.
"Shiiiiiiii...." cries the limping Sanuye, no doubt cursing from the pain and stress, only the word he draws out ends in an 'F'. The soldiers seem incredulous at the stubborn beast that refuses to be caught and they once again are hasty to give chase...until the one with the broken arm puts out their other arm to stop them. They then point at the trail. It'll be easy to track.
However, a silhouette of a figure shows up in response to the attack and looks not one bit amused. The soldiers scatter, forced to abandon their hunt for now, although a few are left behind to deal with the 'vigilante'.
Another silence follows, though this one doesn't end with Chiffon bolting face first into the image. It's a bit of a grim ending, but not a definitive one. "... well, I got one thing out of this. 'n that's if we get ourselves a Kalwa, we're also going to probably going to be getting these guys." A pointed look, followed by a grimace, a grin, between the pair. "So. How do we deal with that? More... fireworks?"
It's not exactly an elegant plan. Nor is it probably the right question to be thinking. He tries to follow where that trail goes himself, glancing. "... I can think of a few places where he might try to take shelter, but I'm not sure any of them are good. Jeez. This is..." Not what he was hoping for. Not what anyone was hoping for? There's another, almost meek, "Thanks..." To follow all the effort.
"It's not like it actually took anything of me. I was doing this for a different reason." Liyara pauses, not selfless enough to entirely turn down a debt. "...You can owe me if we need to track him down. That will take a lot of work and time. And I will require food." ... Ok?
As the scene goes on, Liyara actually winces when she sees the Sanuye image get shot. She doesn't like these modern guns - their bullets move fast, she can't hear the shot until the bullet has already arrived. That's bothersome - it means she'd have to be looking to catch one. Of course her thoughts are mostly about herself.
"I don't know if they'll be able to follow him, but I know people here don't much stand for invasive interlopers." The dragon woman's eyes are narrowed, and she lets a hand drift to her side, lightly caressing the edge of her rhythm blade. It cuts her finger, ever so slightly, and a single drop of strangely-orange blood drips towards the ground. Where it hits, it alights, more fire than blood, and is quickly gone, leaving a scorch mark that actually shows through the imagery. "...There'll be people to defend him."
That almost sounded protective!
In the scene around them, the vigilante mopping up the assaulters seems to be cloaked in shadow, and no matter what Liyara does, she can't seem to resolve his image. He must have some sort of anti-scrying magic. She finds that interesting, but it's not important now. She closes her hands into fists, and the image disappears again.
"Oi, vem flarknards is going a'get a right good fumping -- oh! Yep. Oh, va's gonna leave a mark." Rocket is actually quite invested in the follow-up fight like any overly-masculine male might indulge in wrestling or bloodsport. "Oh ho, gonna feel vat one in va morning. Oh, look out behind yo-" The image ends. The excitable raccoon is left standing there, arms in the air, pointing and paused in place. He then lowers his arms. "Awr."
Rocky wrinkles his muzzle before turning away. "Free weeks ago. Lots could 'appen between ven and now. Clearly vat fellow needs 'elp wherevuh 'e is. So... Do you fink 'e's still in vat uhvuh Nexus or somewhere else?" Where Rocket is from there is tech that can do what Liyara is able to do, and even track people, but the supertech requires immense space and power. On that level, Liyara's spells are really impressive. Rocket still doesn't admit as much. Yet. He also doesn't comment on the four-legger's injuries. That goes without need to mention, he feels, and does little to worry when it happened long enough ago so that it probably doesn't matter anymore, one way or the other.
"That doesn't mean it's not important to me." Chiffon puffs, eager enough to repay his own... gratitude? Yes, that's about right. "I am willing to put in work. And food is something I can put on the table, deee...pending what it is you are asking for." A glance aside to Rocket. You too! You're getting tangled up in this too. "Guess I'm the client in this case, huh."
Unspoken--adventurers getting into the habit of helping each other, well, that's just a good party. The Sanuye watches the blood fall, ignite, and tilts his head slightly. Well. Dragon blood. That checks out. "-I- should--" The emphasis catches, and then he twists a claw to the side, scraping a line on the ground. "... we promised to look after each other. If only I could offer him a little comfort." Or embarrass him a little. Let's get back to the twist in the matter though. "What different reason~?"
"...I don't know where he is." Liyara is uncertain, and she says so immediately. No sense playing at all-knowing. "...But now that I've 'met' him, I can find out." She draws up to her full height, looking determined and heroic for just a moment, before she sighs and deflates. "...In around 16 hours." ... Oh?
"The spell is not one of the ones I can hard-cast. And it's not a small one - so the circle will be large and complex, even for me." She puts two fingers to the bridge of her nose, as if getting ready to push up some spectacles that aren't there, and then blinks, lowering her hand again.
"...If he's in Mabase, or anywhere in Twisted for that matter, he'll hear my request. Twenty five words or less." That's oddly specific.
When she looks over to Chiffon, she smiles softly. "You should help me figure out what to say." Right, because that could make all the difference. "...And I was making these sensors to help people find their home and return anyway. You're just giving me a test run of how practical they are. That much evens out."
"... is sixteen hours slow for trandimensional personal finding? Because that sounds impressive to me." Chiffon looks over to Rocket, as if for confirmation. "Anything you need done in the meanwhile. Picking up reagents. Bagels. Whatever. I can't just sit on my paws and do nothing. wrrrrm."
Twenty five words? So few. So many. "... Chiffon's Here? Stay Safe? We're Coming?" He ticks off toes and concentrates. "... anything, uh, he needs to know for us to actually connect would be.. paramount. I don't know what that would be though." He thinks for a little while. "... and if there's any room left, mm. Rubber baby buggy bumpers." Serious nod.
"Fair enough." Rocket bites his lower lip a bit, then sighs. "Okay, look!" He's not a big softie, or a small softie for that matter, so he draws a line in the sand, so to speak. "You do wot you need a'do, if you'uh going a'do it, Liyarer. Let me know where va spot is going a'be and I'll bring food and drinks."
One hand goes to the top of his head and rubs as he ponders. "Depending on when vis 'ole fing plays out and when you need 'eroes running in, guns blazing, saving va day..." The raccoon exhales and offers a shrug. "I may 'ave prior engagements. Heh!" Rocky waves a hand. "Now now, don't give me funny looks. I can still offuh some supply and technical support if I can't actively 'elp out. But allavat word stuff? Va's up to you."
"It's quite slow for what should take about six seconds, yes." Liyara responds with a bit of a tail thump behind her. It's clear she's not very thrilled with the limits Twisted puts on her rituals. She had gotten so used to faking being a spellcaster of some worth, and now she's like some... some... laborer. Like a PEASANT.
"...But it's not transdimensional. If he's not here, it will fail, and we'll know that, too." She looks thoughtful, between Rocket and Chiffon, then grins. "...Chiffon's looking for you. Stay safe. If accepted, he and I'll find you. If not, stay safe, help's on the way. Rubber Baby Buggy Bumpers." The dragonborn puts a hand on her hip and looks pleased with herself, completely unaware that she's been made to participate in a funny.
"I'll need a lot of food, and I suppose some drink. I *am* the reagent, though." ...Blood magic. Lovely.
"...This time tomorrow. Bring all the meat." The woman's grin grows, and she holds up a hand to ward off any response. "I worry you heard 'Bring a lot of meat'. That is not what I said. Bring it all." Tail thump.
Chiffon offers a soft smile to Rocket. "I don't expect you to throw yourself on any swords for our sake. Even if it's just a cheerful word, I'll add it to the things that keep us on." He draws his paw back, claws running through his mane. "It's... scary there for a moment. But we've got this." We can DO something, and as long as there's something to be done, there's pluck.
The heftier Sanuye nods in approval at that particular weaving of phrase. And he looks up with a mite of determination. "All the meat. Right. Uhm. I will need to call in some favors." Again, a look to Rocket. "... you know where we can get a ride?" Volume demands at LEAST a flatbed, if not more.
Rocket Raccoon crosses his arms with the most smug look one could ever imagine on the face of a hyper-intelligent Procyonid. "Yeah. Yeah, I know somebody. And if vey don't come frough for me, well." His eyes drift off to watch any passing or parked vehicles. "I'm sure I can find someone wot will allow me t'borrow one for a shake. Va's called tech support!" It's also called grand theft auto. "You do you, Liyarer. You do you, Wall-bonk. It can't be said ol' Rocky didn't play a part in 'elping."
"Well. Tomorrow, then." Liyara smiles at Rocket's new name for Chiffon, and pointedly ignores his suggestion that he'll be getting a vehicle one way or another. It's not like she ACTUALLY cares. She only has to appear to sometimes. With a wave and a flutter of her wings, she starts floating off in the direction of the library. Why the library? There are books she hasn't read yet. This is unacceptable.
"I'll be relying on you this time..." Chiffon echoes, stooping down in one more bow of gratitude. "Tomorrow." And... there she goes. Chiffon looks on with a mix of envy and admiration at the wings, and turns back the other way, the rest of him following. "Rrrright. Not the first time I've had to do an emergency fundraiser at the eleventh hour..." He sighs and smiles over at Rocket. "Heh. And you do you, Tech Support."
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