The Flight

[Karl Jak]

With a low groan, the hanger doors at the end of the facility swung inward.  The nearby primes and secondaries turned their heads as fresh sunlight filtered in through the open door.  Beyond the doors, a large jet sat with its engines idled and a staircase with a red carpet extending down from its side hatch to the pavement.
 
About halfway up the stairs, a beautifully coifed man in a crisp purple suit leaned back on the rail.  With a coy smirk, he waved to the crowd before grabbing a small plastic device from his pocket.  When he spoke, his voice was projected through the various speakers that filled the facility.
 
“Good afternoon, Ladies and Gentlemen.  My name is Karl Jak, and I welcome you to my lovely Dante Verse.  I just want to give a warm thanks to everyone for offering your time and livelihood to help us find our missing friends.”
 
With a saccharine smirk, Karl gestured with a hand toward the side of the plane.  “Now if you’ll all join me, we’ll be leaving shortly.  I look forward to seeing you all.  Smooches.”
 
After blowing a kiss, Karl dropped the little intercom device off the side of the stairs and strode up into the plane.  A few minutes later, everyone was aboard and the large jet roared into the skies of the Danteverse.
 
---
 

You are all aboard a very large jet.  Think of the fanciest jet you’ve ever seen, either in real life or a movie.  Then make it fancier.  It’s up to you to decide how you spend your time on the flight.  The plane has three bars—a dive bar on the lower levels, a sports bar, and a ‘VIP’ club for people who signed up to go along.  The flight includes everyone participating, as well as some Syntech workers and some others from various verses.  Karl Jak is also present, and you can feel free to chat him up if you so desire.  The only places that is 100% off-limits is the pilot’s cabin.  If you go in there, you can expect to be ejected from the plane or worse.
 
In-character, the flight will last for about two, two and a half hours.  Out of character, this phase will last until Thursday night around 8 pm CST, pending some sort of crisis on my end (these are possible until next Monday, when I perform my own mic drop and start summer vacation).
 
Have fun.  Adventure starts soon.

[Damien Darhk]

Cyborg sat quietly ,peering out the window of the large fancy jet. An arc of lighting flashed in the distance as an incoming storm rolled their way. Shouldn't be a problem though, he had ridden in much rougher storms in much smaller planes.

Cyborg looked around the large cabin, more of a lounge really, at the other members of this rescue expedition. His eyes immediately fell on a small girl, Chara. She had apparently answered Karl Jak's cry for help. Maybe she wasn't all bad like he assumed. At any rate he would have to watch the youth...

[Amaterasu]

Fiara was among the first to have boarded the plane when it had been announced that the plane would be taking off soon and that everyone was to get on board. Balancing the paper cup with steaming tea that she had gotten in the Staging area in her hand, she went looking for some place that she could put it down at. Her eyes fell on an area where four seats were arranged around a table, two facing in the direction of flight and two the opposite way. And there were cup holders. Smiling satisfied with her discovery Fiara plopped down on one of the window-side chairs and sunk into the soft cushioning.

After one of the Syntech flight attendants explained how to fasten the seatbelt Fiara strapped herself in and watched wide-eyed how the plane took off. The speed at which this thing moved amazed her. Within so short a time they were so high up, then it was announced that they could take their seatbelts off and move around the plane. Fiara reached down and undid the clasp, then reached for the cup to take a sip, only to find that due to being nervous she had not even noticed how she had finished the drink, and been lifting an empty cup to her lips for ten minutes. Time for a refill, then. She got up and asked the employees for directions to the closest bar, then went rushing down the corridors.

[Marisa Kirisame]

As Chara looked around in the weird machine she looked at the Tin-man that captured her "Oh great we got him here and just when my plan couldn't go any better she looked at around at the many various primes and then went to sleep.

[2B]

Arturia had been walking around the complex that they called the Dante Verse, not simply out of curiousity, but also to gain an understanding of the area surrounding her. It never hurt to know ones surroundings after all, should something happen. Whilst she'd done so, she'd visited some of the vendors and eyed their wares, albeit she hadn't actually purchased anything.

And now, well, now she found herself in front of the last unexplored area, locked away behind a closed door. It gnawed at the back of her mind, ushering her to find what was hidden behind. Something akin to the Holy Grail, perhaps? Arturia didn't know what, nor did she know that just as she stood there, the doors swung open. Unfazed, the knight stood, facing whatever might be inside, assessing the situation with haste;

A man, a staircase, and a plane. The sight took Arturia back a notch. When she'd first arrived to Japan, for the Holy Grail War. All the way back, when she had been the servant of that despicable man, who spat on the face of chivalry. The plane journey had been fairly intriguing, so with all that the man had said, Arturia, much like all the other primes likely would, would board the plane.

---

The inside of the sizable jet was hard to describe with words within Arturias knowledge, as they didn't seem to be...enough. But in a single word, she would've called it... Luxurious. Something Archer would've enjoyed, certainly. Yet another memory that made its way within her head, only to be shaken off, as the knight didn't wish to distract herself from her mission. Eyeing around, the King of Knights decided she'd seat herself by a window, preferably within the presence of some kind of a table if at all possible. In reality, she was seeking for something, or more accurately someone; And during her whole stay in the area, she'd not found them.

But even as the maiden's thoughts lingered, she made her way to one of many groupings of four seats facing one another, blessed with a small table in the middle, separating them. Albeit, there was already someone seated; A girl adorned with red eyes, along with short rusted locks. She didn't look all that old with her slim, almost child like figure, perhaps fifteen, sixteen years old. Clothes made of dark, seemingly smooth fabric, together with contrasting undergarments of white.
Bowing ever so slightly, the knight offered her inquiry to the girl; "Excuse me, Miss. Would this seat be taken?"

[Marisa Kirisame]

As Chara looked around the Machine she saw a face she all but forgot "Tin-man decided to join me I guess" she mumbled to herself getting annoyed with herself for thinking she could just go though with her plan to "save" the crew, no she would have to make a new plan now that Tin-man was here so she looked through her bag for a bar of Chocolate and started to eat it to calm her nerves.

[Amaterasu]

Retconning a bit to include Arturia’s post!

"Excuse me, Miss. Would this seat be taken?"

Fiara only noticed that it was, in fact, her being adressed when she noticed the woman clad in armor standing by the group of seats, bowing and looking at her. She blinked, feeling oddly compelled to bow back deeply, but just bowed her head a little, as far as kosai-ho demanded to not appear impolite. “Oh. It’s not. Be my guest, please”, she replied and shuffled her legs a bit so as to not hog all the space beneath the table to herself.

Arturia offered a curt nod and slid onto the seat then towards the window while looking at Fiara. “My thanks.”

“You’re welcome.” That was all the conversation they did for now, though luckily the ambiental music covered the silence that may otherwise have been awkward.

As the other woman sat herself, Fiara took what chances she could to sneak in a glance at her, if possible without the other one noticing - looking over the edge of her cup, at her reflection in the glass of the window, or eyeing her when the other one was looking away. What she wore looked like western armor, not the traditional samurai armor, and it was fashioned for a woman. They allowed for female samurai there? What a weird culture. Then again, after the number of odd... beings she had seen in the lobby this one was a minor surprise in comparison. And no doubt it wasn’t the last one that this whole... place held in store for them. She had not seen Amaterasu anywhere, but she wasn’t going to give up. She might already be at their destination. Or if she helped she could ask the people there for aid - the man who'd introduced himself as Karl Jak was clearly a very powerful individual in this place.

After the plane took off and Fiara got up to get a drink refill she found that she had walked the wrong way, and would need to get back through the corridor that she had come from to get to the bar she was after. When she walked by the seating where she’d been at she noticed the samurai woman still sitting there and cleared her throat. “Excuse me, but... I’m headed over to the bar.” She held her cup up. “Want me to bring anything for you?”

The woman smiled again. Even though she looked friendly Fiara felt strangely pierced by those green eyes. “I appreciate the gesture... a glass of fresh water, please. I shall wait here and keep your seat unoccupied until your return.”

“Alright. See you soon.” She headed out along the directions she’d been given. There was something in the woman’s voice that she could not quite place her finger on... authority maybe? When spoken to she’d felt a sensation much like when Amaterasu, or one of the Celestial Brush kami other than her parent adressed her. Although, there was no doubt that that woman was no kami herself, she would have known if that was the case. Just over ten minutes later, she came back with the requested drink as well as her own tea. She put the glasses into the cup holders integrated into the table before sitting down, as she didn’t trust the plane to not go through sudden turbulences at the worst time and make her spill the drinks over the both of them. “Here you go.”

“You have my thanks, Miss. What do I owe thee?” asked the woman as she picked the glass out of the holder and put it down before herself instead.

“Owe, wha- oh, no. They give them out for free.” Fiara slid into place and peeked out the window before speaking. “Don’t think we’ve shared names by the way, have we?” she asked, purposedly not naming herself. Maybe the other one wanted to avoid it.

[Marcus Wright]

Marcus was more outwardly focused on the android who looked at him with pleading eyes like Skynet had taken its will to fight back. Perhaps he had realized him and the android had more in common that he first believed.

How was the android before he wasn't infected with Skynet?

Just like him...

Just like him.

Marcus pulled the Vision to his feet and helped him walk to the ship as the smoke of the airplane along with an slightly overdressed, gel haired man. His features made him look richer than all of the primes and/or secondaries combined.

He helped the Vision to a seat while they both entered into the airplane and found somewhere near the back of the VIP club to chat and discuss.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The plane Marcus and the android had walked into was a lot more fancy than the Resistance jets that were left in heaps of human and machine skulls on the battlefield. But why did he give a shit about the Resistance. They hadn't greeted him more than with a hanging up of him in chains only to find out he himself was a machine.

But the Vision...

Did the android really fight Skynet..?

Or was he just as much of a threat?

Skynet couldn't give a flying fuck who it infected these days...

[Okor]

His seat screamed beneath him, the steel of its structure struggling to sustain his weight, the innumerable corrosive substances leaking from his necrotic flesh forever tarnishing the supple leather. The blind of his window had been pulled shut, obscuring the whipping winds from his vision. He never understood the purpose of such portals. All they did was serve to remind the viewer of what was outside, which, in this case, was a drop of several thousand meters into a cold and unforgiving sea. They were merely a structural weakness, and an eternal reminder of the doom below should the mere mortals manning the vessel fail. At least a voidship would offer a vision of the Empyrean in all of its glory, the infinite tides of madness and power held at bay by nothing more than a pledge of allegiance to the fell powers that dwelled within its eddies.

But that was in a place of sanity and reason, where all things came to an end. Not in this foul mockery.

Claws seeping sewage gingerly turned a plastic page, the dark whispers from his helmet momentarily pausing, the dark pidgin of Gothic, Barbaric, and the black tongue of Daemons translating the alien symbols upon the surface. He muttered a silent curse, complementary to the susurrus of sinister speech suffusing his hearing. There was no opportunity to learn this arcane language in his youth. The roaming hordes of ravenous corpses, the struggle for survival, and his induction into the legions, denied him the chance.

He folded away the sheets and tucked them away in the pocket of the similarly luxurious seat before him, the discrete mechanisms within struggling desperately to decontaminate the leprous literature.

Tainted talons tapped on the armrest, the tightly-wound core of violence in every Legionnaire begging to be unleashed.

Why did he come here? Why did he offer to save the unfortunate secondaries caught up in Karl Jak’s multitudinous schemes?

He could offer up honeyed lies of justice, truth, and benevolence. He wished he could, that he could allay these suspicions and lay his eye upon a populace that, for once, was glad to see him.

But the truth remained. Dante’s Abyss was universally known as an orgy of bloodshed and slaughter, a no-holds-barred free-for-all, a pocket dimension of publically broadcasted murder and glory. Oh, of course they spoke of cooperation and locating the lost. Everything started with good intentions. Thunder shook the aircraft as it scythed through the air at speeds unthinkable by mortal men in their hovels of mud and straw.

But it all went sour, sooner or later. Perhaps giant insects would crawl from the earth, maybe every organism in this entire ‘verse sought to end all life. It was only a matter of time until he could bloody his gauntlets, drenching them in crimson as he unleashed his pent-up fury upon those unfortunate enough to stand in his way.

He would rip, he would tear, he would snap necks like brittle stalks of wheat before his scythe, he would kill, maim, burn, kill, maim, bur-

The crack of lightning tore him from his reverie, the acidic spittle that filled his mouth slowly sliding down his ravaged throat, his hands slowly uncurling from their previous posture, banishing the plague-ridden claws to the recesses of his memory. Gods, how he needed to break the habit. It had been an eternity since he had spilled the blood of primes, and such a travesty needed to be rectified, should one of his fellow participants trespass on his patience.

But for now, he needed to be civil. He needed to be respectable. He needed to be sane. He had ten millennia to banish his psychoses to the dark places within his mind, did he not? He had seen the slavering madmen that still clung to their legion-gifted arms like drowning men born aloft on flotsam, and he knew he was not among their ranks. The caustic saliva born of his Betcher’s gland sizzled as it ate away at his innards. All he needed was a foe, a subject of his hatred and attention, to leach away the madness that was not there.

He needed to distract himself. All around him were mysteries and a long plummet to his demise. An inglorious, forgetful death in a desolate realm unworthy of mention.

His armoured snarled, rust scraping against verdigris as he turned across the vermillion-carpeted aisle, looking to the tan-skinned man reclining in the seat, technologies the mechanicus could only dream of surrounding his skull.

”What… Brings you here, Prime?” Asked the gangrenous giant, his voice granted an underlying digital growl by the distorted speakers of his horned helmet.

[Marisa Kirisame]

As Chara finished her third Bar of Chocolate she looked at a person in armour who clinched his hands on his seat and she felt sorry for the person and looked through her bag for any food to calm his/her nerves and found two more bars of Chocolate and got up and walked over and said "Um, sir/mame do you want some Chocolate to eat as it always calms my nerves" after he/she said ”What… Brings you here, Prime?”  to a Prime then he looked at her and the chocolate bar and she put it on the table and walked back to her seat

[Zack Fair]

Less than thirty seconds after being reunited with Christa, Abner had watched her sucker punch one of the Omniverse’s greatest celebrities like they were in the midst of a bar room brawl. Within those same thirty seconds he’d also learned that Christa was here to rescue Katia, who desperately needed her big sister’s help. Boy, some things never changed.
 
Abner had decided against commenting on Christa’s favorite pastime in the manner that first came to mind, and instead relished the opportunity to be reunited her, even under these extreme circumstances. Admittedly, to both of them, danger and chaos seemed to follow the other. He’d also hurried her away from the situation with Ron, shooting a glance over his shoulder as he did. Tough gig for Burgundy, this time around.
 
Before Christa had explained much more, Karl Jak announced it was time to board the plane. With pursed lips and a forlorn glance towards the teleporter back to Darkshire, Abner had guided Christa onboard the luxury jet. He couldn’t believe this crap was happening.
 
By the time the luxury jet had made it into the air, Christa and Abner were both on the upper level VIP bar. Abner had reasoned that if they had to make this godforsaken trip, he might as well get some free booze out of it. Christa sat at a stool at one of the bars, exhausted from her travels. Abner, meanwhile, stood across from her, leaning against the bar and listening intently to a recount of everything Christa had done since the former secondaries had parted ways after the return from the Oververse. As he did, he munched on some greasy nachos that he’d made the grumbling server fetch from the sports bar just below them, and sipped at some powerful concoction the bartender had whipped up. Beside his plate sat his tin of chew tobacco, for after he finished his snack. He was going to need plenty of that, too.
 
“And you have no idea who the girl in the picture is?” Abner repeated his question from earlier once Christa finished, feeling the need to ask again now that he had a little context.
 
“None,” Christa admitted, having racked her brain for answers already. “And you saw what happened next.”
 
“Son of a…” Abner rubbed his face as he spoke. What a mess.
 
“You never said what you were doing here,” Christa turned the subject to her friend.
 
“Following you,” Abner responded sternly as he dropped his hand back to the counter. “You don’t have to watch a whole lot of TV to know what happened in this damn Verse last year, and when I heard you were coming, I had to look into it.”
 
“And how did you know I was even here?” Christa’s face twisted to a confused expression.
 
“Well, I came back from our little journey with a few more friends in Coruscant than I remember having,” Abner replied. “Real secret squirrel types. Questioned the hell out of me, went through all my records, dug through my mail. Probably my apartment, too. The typical spooked spook shakedown.”
 
“…And what did you tell them?” Christa was hesitant with her questioning. She trusted Abner, but certainly not the Empire.
 
Abner’s response was a look of humored disbelief, like she should already know he gave them the runaround. Of course, that’s what she figured, but it was nice to confirm it. She nodded in understanding.
 
“So, they sent you here, instead,” Christa concluded, realizing Abner wouldn’t have responded to Karl Jak’s call if not for her. Still, she couldn’t and wouldn’t apologize for anything she did in rescuing Katia. “Can’t get you to talk, so they just send you on another mission.”
 
“Jokers at the armory started calling me ‘Retread,’” Abner joked with a grin. When he didn’t see a matching smile from Christa, he just placed one hand over hers and got serious for a moment. “Hey, we’ll find her.”
 
Christa nodded with a forced smile, and he nodded back. Not that he had even convinced himself, yet, but he felt pretty good about their chances. There was an unknown confidence that stirred in him when he was near Christa.
 
Or maybe that was just the alcohol. Damn, this stuff was strong.

[2B]

Arturia, unlike many others who would've glanced at Fiara from her reflection in the window, faced the girl with a calm and unfazed expression. Perhaps to assess something about the girl based on her looks alone, or to judge how the other would react. And seemed the girl decided to take her eyes as the cue to start a conversation;

"Names? No, we have not exchanged names, Miss. My name is Saber." the knight responded with a curt nod to accompany her words. “And whom art thou, Miss?” the woman inquired with a polite tone in her voice.

“I’m Fiara Moegami.”

As Fiara gave her answer, the knight would continue, taking a slight sip of her water before she did so; “May I ask, why are you upon this plane? What drives thee to seek saving the lives of those you know naught of?” The knight’s pattern of speech was old, yet it had a weird tinge of modern in it, as the two mixed and matched together. Perhaps she had once lived in the times of old, only to be yanked into the future?

But, the question of her speech mannerisms went unanswered, as the knight closed her eyes and leaned back into the backrest of her seat ever so slightly. Whilst her armour wasn’t designed for a travel such as this, the knight had decided to leave it on. She knew not if they were to land in a hostile zone, necessitating for her to draw her blade, so the King of Knights was determined to wear it. And during her times as a servant, the woman had already grown accustomed to combat readiness in any and all situations.

Fiara visibly took a bit to understand the wording, the old words coupled with many words that she didn’t understand due to the cultural meaning differences delaying her response. But then she replied;

“I’m not sure if I got the meaning of your words right. I came because I’m looking for someone and I thought that they might either have come to these people’s aid, or be on the island already. If she isn’t, the circumstances of the disappearance of the people we are getting to rescue sounds like there might be a presence of Akuma. And if that’s the case, I am going to have some fun exorcising them as we help.”

Arturia listened to the girl’s response with attentive expression upon her visage. Yet there was one thing that stood out; Akuma The instant thought that entered the knight’s mind was the one person in this universe she knew; Amaterasu. Without any kind of beating around the bush, the King of Knights inquired, “Are you… Are you looking for someone named Amaterasu?” Perhaps it was true, perhaps not. But it seemed that the two of them shared a similar goal.

“Huh? Yes! Wait, do you know her?!“ the girl asked wide-eyed and nearly stood up from her seat.

From the body language alone, Arturia knew what the answer would be, even before the girl’s response was delivered; “Mm. I do, yes. Shiranui is a friend, one whom I was separated from against my will. As such, it is mine duty to seek her.” the knight explained, not in any excruciating detail. She wasn’t sure how much time they would have to converse before they’d arrive, so she continued with her precise and on point conversation. “Why art thy looking for Shiranui, Fiara?” the knight inquired, waiting patiently for the girl’s response.

[Amaterasu]

"Woah, wait... hold on." Fiara raised her hand and sunk back into the chair, frowning. "I'm searching for Amaterasu, not for Shiranui."

“That is what I understood.”

“There’s some mix-up. Shiranui, the wild white wolf, isn’t Amaterasu Okami, kami of the Sun in wolf form. I think that Shiranui was a prior incarnation of her, but...”

“Pardon, Miss, but allow me to interrupt and explain... Shiranui is the name by which Amaterasu wishes to be referred as.”

“Right...” Fiara pushed her drink aside and leant closer, wanting to know more. Arturia obliged.

“You call her a wolf, I must say that she was human in her appearance. Albeit, her clothing and hair was predominantly white. She also wore a necklace of green beads around her belt, and the end of her hair was coated in black ink.”

Fiara’s frown deepened and she stripped off the jacket, then reached up and pulled her T-Shirt back to show Arturia a red mark on her skin, going along her shoulder almost up to her neck. “Did she have marks like such on her shoulder and chest? And a circular mark on the front of her head, on her hair or forehead perhaps?”

“Mmm...Yes, she does bear such markings.”

“Then it’s her.” She adjusted her T-Shirt and pulled the jacket back on. “I’m the daughter of Moegami, one of the Celestial Brush kami whose power Amaterasu draws from to invoke the Celestial Brush. My parent is sealed in the stars above an endless desert and awaits her arrival.” She clenched her fists, and the flames around her wrists briefly flared up with anger at the memory of Moegami’s faint voice among the stars, unable to escape. And having to leave him behind though he was right there. “Saber... you say you seek her too? What connection have you with her? And what do you know of her whereabouts?” Though the flames had died down for the most part, Fiara’s excitement and tension caused them to continue flickering around her wrists, and she stared at Arturia, awaiting her response.

[2B]

It was an interesting question the girl presented to her. What connection did she have to Shiranui, really? Now that she thought of it in more detail, they had only spent a very brief amount of time together, and even then.......

"I and her.. We arrived to this...universe,  very...close to one another. I found her when she had only just arrived. We came to travel, together. And then...then we got separated. She said she would find me once more, yet after a while, I decided to work towards finding her." Keeping a slight pause, the knight roamed in her thoughts for a moment, before continuing. "I last saw her at the Nexus, escorted to what I believe, is called Coruscant. However, as I saw the Dante's Abyss, I expected she would have came to help the people  here.. So I enlisted mineself."

The knight kept her explanations brief and concise, as she crossed her arms across her chest. She had a suggestion to the girl, a simple, yet effective one. "Fiara, I suggest to thou, that we are to work in tandem with one another. We share a common goal, and as such, we should work together to attain it." With no more said, she extended her hand across the table, in an offering of a handshake.

[Gildarts]

When Christa climbed aboard the magnificent plane, it was hard not to notice that it was the Titanic of planes. If a plane ever needed a use for a fucking chandelier, this one had two, serving no other purpose than just to be called the most extravagant piece of garbage in the sky. Not far down from where she was sitting, sat Karl Jak, the man who had discovered this verse. She stood (sat) no shorter though they shared the same room, and thought herself nothing less, for she was a secondary gone Prime, and that, perhaps, was a feat in itself.

Christa's fiery eyes had dampened slightly as she boarded the plane, now stowing the other envelope, and the picture in one of her pockets. The other one was white and said 'do not open' as well as there was a date attached. She didn't like what kind of game the kidnapper was playing, it was ridiculous, and put Christa in a bind. The woman couldn't exactly storm over to save her sister with the man somehow knowing her every move. Hard to plan a counter attack against a man who has eyes seemingly everywhere. The sniper was looking disgruntled, as she cast a glance around them. There was a teeny bit of turbulence, and Christa cringed and looked at the ice rattle in his drink.

Abner stood next to her, she hadn't even thought to ask what he was doing on this fancy flying machine, her thoughts had been trapped elsewhere, but now she had her answer. "Following you." Tch. She should have known.

Christa now took the time to summon a new phone in her hand, watching perhaps, a little too long as the Omnillium formed into the solid shape of a cellular.

She did not call the kidnapper, he could call her. He could have the illusion of power, but once Christa had her bartering piece, the game would change. Instead she sent a simple text. "On plane, who's the girl and where can I find her?"

"Christa that won't send, you're on a plane," Abner voiced rationally.

"Airplane mode be damned. I'm getting my sister back." Though the face of the black-haired girl had been put away, Christa couldn't help voicing, "Why would he think she's even on this island anyway? You know what? I think I'll go ask the master of the Danteverse. We don't even know what we're getting ourselves into."

He smirked at her surprisingly 'positive' morale, "What, are you gonna punch him, too? Because that is not a habit we need to be getting into."

Christa grinned, but had no intention of punching the classy man. She took a moment to glance out the window, and saw but sea. Abner was invited to their little interrogation, but it was a wordless invitation, as it would be, coming from her.

[Granite]

Lucky enough for Granite, he had had just enough time to ask around for this other Institute fellow. 'A large suite of armor, bursting at the seems with rot and decay' is what one of the reporters told him. 'Just follow the smell' another one had said, not that that one would help any. And another even said 'Just get on the ground and let yourself roll too him! After all, that's how I found you!' in a joking manner. But, this did nothing to help, as he just seemed to sit there.

Now, though, he was on the plane, and had more or less been pushed to the back by those behind him. Now though, everyone seemed to have settled down in their seats, giving Granite a chance to walk the isles. Among the faces he saw were knights, a dragon, a child, some animals, and a few other humans. He tried his best to turn his head from the vampire as he walked past her. And there he was, Okor, the soldier rotting at his seams. He seemed to be trying to talk to another man, but then then the other man seemed to get flustered and darted off. It was almost as if he had seen a ghost.

Granite approached the Space Marine and stated simply, "You'r Okor, of the Institute are you not? My name is Granite, associated to the Institute through Miss Cat. I wish to offer you my services as your subordinate." Granite had not been too sure on how to introduce himself, so he opted to use an air of formality.

[Amaterasu]

"Nexus, Coruscant... I think I heard those names somewhere before. Don't think I've ever been to them though. Can you describe them?"

Arturia answered with a brief description of the Nexus and the Stormtroopers that she'd seen, which entailed further questions from Fiara about those locations. Slowly it became clear that she had never even crossed the portal and left the Endless Dunes - the Town with no Name was the closest she had ever gotten to it. She didn't know anything about a white smiling individual either, nor of Omnilium. When Arturia asked where Fiara had gotten her clothes, weapons and everything else from, the girl just shrugged and said "They were there when I woke up." She had little worth sharing herself - sand as far as the eye could see, groups of marauders roaming the land in search of the unfortunate wanderers that they could rob, the occasional oasis or ruins of some place... she also told Arturia about the Mobile Dataverse Device that she'd gotten her hands on, though she'd left it behind again after it'd finished its service. Her understanding of the modern world was a fair bit greater than Amaterasu's, but it was second-hand knowledge and couldn't compare to Arturia's, as the King of Knights had actually lived in such a world for a time.

"I believe that Amaterasu might be around here too. If she isn't... well, we'd have to track her. She could've gotten sidetracked. Come to the aid of someone. Chased after an Akuma. She wouldn't have interrupted her search for you if she had no good reason for it. On the other hand I don’t trust her with understanding the workings of a Communicator if she gets her hands on one. Amaterasu is a being of magic, technology is more difficult for her to understand. Might be why she hasn’t contacted you yet.”

“Should she not be here, ‘tis still a good deed to help save these individuals. Alas, we shall keep our eyes open, and see. It should be said, that we never formed a way of remotely communicating, as our parting was abrupt and unplanned. As such I am seeking her, rather than contacting her myself.”

“‘Course. Helping out a bit and swinging our fists at whatever is responsible for the disappearance of those people are also reasons to come here. Even if Amaterasu isn’t around. We'll get a hold of her sooner or later though. She's not very low-key.”

The Knight chuckled ever so slightly, the corners of her lips curving to a smile. “Youthful, and full of energy, I see. Just remember, that ‘swinging your fists’ is not always the correct path. At times, a sword falls in front of the way of the word.” The King of Knights remarked, a piece of wisdom veiled within her words.

“Hey, you’re not THAT much older than me.” Fiara rolled her eyes and leant back into her chair. “Yeees, I know. A sword can slay one but a quill can pacify thousands and whatnot. I’m the daughter of a Celestial brush kami, Saber, remember - we literally exist for the quill. He’s more annoying with his teachings than an old man, but I guess some of it got through to me. I get your point though. I promise I’m not gonna hit anyone if it can be avoided, alright.” Emphasis on “IF it can be avoided.” She wasn’t sure if Saber would be satisfied with that broad of a definition though.

[Hiro Protagonist]

The hacker had waited a bit, allowing other contestants to file onto the plane before boarding himself. He was stunned at the luxury and decor of the place. It was furnished better than some corporate headquarters, not that he'd seen too many of them....but it was more than extravagant. Greeted and directed by Syntech flight attendants wearing form fitting skirts and neon spandex tops, he made his way towards the main seating area and took a seat, buckling himself in. As the flight crew prepared for departure, he leafed through a magazine that he'd found in the seat pocket in front of him. It was called.....Play, Boy? 

"But why the comma....?" The samurai unfolded it and was mildly bemused to see that it was pretty much the same magazine as the brand in his home world. Little raunchy for an airline, but given what he'd seen of Karl Jak's mannerisms, it was only fitting. Eventually they took off, the plane roaring into the air amid heavy rain and thunder strikes. Some marvel of engineering prevented the passengers from feeling most of the turbulence, although the gyroscope filter in Hiro's goggles was displaying some worrying impacts. Syntech had spent a looooot of money on this plane, if it was taking heavy structural shaking like this.

Then all of a sudden, his perusal was interrupted by a question, asked by a voice laden with rust and decay.
 Hiro looked across the aisle towards the grating, buzzing sound, only to see that it was the rusted marine he'd identified earlier. 

"What brings me here? Hm....a desire to learn more about the Danteverse...an assignment from higher up....And you. You, Okor Paleblood, fugitive from the justice of Coruscant. I was hoping on finding others that had bounties, but uh..." He fiddles with his goggles. "You're a lot bigger and....virulent in person. So....that part's been called into question, now." Stupid. Stupid, stupid Hiro, trying to play it cool with the guy who was probably melting through the seat.

Oor laughed at that, a buzzing, thick, hacking issuing from his vox. "Is that so, now? Such a shame that most Primes lack true resolve. Does the prospect of combat and struggle frighten you, boy?"

The hacker ignored that last comment, making a few gestures in the air. Not much he could answer that with which would sound like anything other than an excuse. "More like lack of tactical awareness. In any case, I think you're here for similar unclear reasons. This is obviously more than it seems. So....I guess if you stay out of my way, I'll stay out of yours? Although, big tough Prime like you, I doubt anyone tells you to do anything." He should really stop taking his cues from those stupid action movies.

Okor's rusty voice came across the aisle once more, accompanied by a clanking, scraping sound as he turned in his seat. "A pact that benefits you more than... I, I wager.  I shall conduct myself as I please.... I don't believe I've caught your name."

The cyber samurai gave a nod, almost as if that only confirmed his earlier statement. "Protagonist. Hiro Protagonist." The scan he'd started a moment ago kicked into high spectrum analysis as he stared at the marine's form. His goggles began to feed him information, including energy spikes, program data (probably from that armor) and....wait....what was that?

There was a shape, hovering above/behind/around the plague soldier. Wispy, and semi-transparent, made of swirling, burning smoke and oily rags, stretched taut over rusty bits of metal and salvage. It has no real definition, it's edges bleeding into a void of sight, other similarly indistinct shapes flitting behind it. Surprise would be visible on Hiro's face, and he would actually go pale as the thing seemed to notice him, opening a mouth like a garbage disposal as two long, metallic fangs pistoned out of it's mouth and it made a sound like a collapsing building.


He got up out of his seat, possiby a bit too quickly, and jammed his hands in his jacket pockets to hide his nervous jitters. Giving the marine one last look, he backed away, facing him until Okor was out of sight. "Now, uh, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to take advantage of the free drinks before it's time to get to work."

Okor laughed, distorted into a hiss by his static-suffused helmet. "Seek solace in liquid courage, Bounty Hunter." Another crash of thunder, closer to the plane than Okor would find comfortable. "You may yet have need of it."

Hiro was already down the hallway toward the staircase. Fucking christ, that guy was a creepshow! And he apparently had some sort of robot ghost as a pet or something. Hiro needed a stiff drink after a sight like that, and also to maybe quiet the fears that Okor would most definitely kill him if he tried to apprehend the diseased bastard.

Heading up a lavish spiral staircase, Hiro soon found himself at a curtained door, attended by a few Syntech staff and a bouncer. The sign said "VIP Club", and Hiro breathed a sigh of relief. Just the place to lose an hour or two to the haze of alcohol, cigarettes, and techno music.

Sunshine Slims, A Drink, and Maybe Some Women

[Kenpachi Zaraki]

Nanaki cast his gaze around the airplane’s cabin curiously, observing those that would become his peers for the duration of the event. He had plopped himself down comfortably on a leather bench seat, abreast a large rectangular window. From this vantage he could see only roiling seawater below, churning ominously despite the average wind speed. Around him sat a number of interesting individuals, ranging from mere children to truly menacing warriors. Though some had paired off and made polite conversation, most sat in silence enjoying what food or drink they had requested. Save for the muzak being piped in overhead, the aircraft was largely quiet. 

“Uh...here, sir,” a shaky voice came, lowering a plate of meatloaf onto the bench beside the burgundy beast.

Red caught sight of a man with a familiar blonde combover, its owner smiling sheepishly. “...Thanks,” the canid replied, examining the meal. 

“Sorry about back in Darkshire. I figured I owed you something.” The Syntech employee bowed slightly before quickly heading back down the aisle.

Nanaki sniffed at the loaf for a moment before tearing a chunk free. He had been informed that all food or drink on the flight was free of charge, though he appreciated the gesture. His stomach was in agreement, having been shrunken with hunger since long before he had even entered the Pale Moors. The search for his comrade had taken up much of his attention for quite some time, though luckily hunger didn’t seem to have any long-term effects in the Omniverse.

A few moments later the previously meat-bearing plate was wiped clean, leaving a satiated feeling in the beast’s gut. Nanaki briefly considered returning to his seemingly evasive slumber, though he shook the idea from his mind. Much like hunger, he doubted his body would suffer from missing a nap. Instead, he focused on his competition; though they all now sat as peers, politely trading words, he knew what Dante’s Abyss was known to have in store. Odds were good that before the end of this event, he’d have to tear the throat from one of those gathered. He did not relish the idea, though if it meant finding Vincent he wouldn’t hesitate.

[2B]

The King of Knights smiled ever so slightly as Fiara made a remark about their age difference. Perhaps their age wasn't different, no.. But she could see something in the girl. Something, that she herself no longer possessed, that she'd disposed of when she'd drawn Caliburn from the sacred stone. And as such, she wouldn't lecture the girl, even if she already knew, that the promise the girl had just given, would likely be tested in the future. "Perhaps so. Our priority is to rescue those whom need our aid, and find Shiranui. As such, should we draw our blades, it should be only to further those goals." the knight noted with a serene demeanour.


“And if we have to protect our own hides”, Fiara added.


Arturia acknowledged the point with an ever so slight nod, they’d have to protect themselves, and each other as well. Who knows what they’d be face against in the near future? It could be servants, masters, beasts or simply humans… But it could also be nothing at all. There could’ve been a large scale accident, that would’ve taken out the explorers, or a hazard that somehow had disposed of them. They had no way of knowing, nor really any way of preparing against it either.


“Hey...” Fiara asked into the ensuing silence after a little bit. “You know your way around this whole modern stuff, right Saber?”


Arturia pondered a moment of the question presented to her.. Did she, really..? Sure, she’d been given the knowledge of the modern era, when she’d been summoned as a servant to it, but she didn’t necessarily have the experience. Alas, the knight responded with a slight nod of acknowledgement. “One could say I do, yes.”


“Well... Iunno how much Amaterasu told you, but we are... I think we are from a time before that.”


Arturia tilted her head a little and pondered aloud; “You are hundreds and hundreds of years before the modern times, much like myself. I’ve just been summoned to it, and lived there a while.”


“Well, that’ll probably do, cause that means you’ve seen way more than I did. But, I’m really curious about all of it - would you mind telling me about some of the things that you have in this modern world as you call it? I mean, I already discovered the basics about powder-weapons.” She raised her arms, showing Arturia her Phoenix Blasters. “And about those Communicator things. But other than that.”


Arranging her thoughts, the knight voiced her response. “The most interesting would be communication.. The communicators you have seen.. The widespread flood of information, some of it true, others false.. The way how movement and travel has eased.. Motorcycles, cars.. Planes..” she noted, before falling silent for a moment.


“But the shocking thing is, how the people have changed. Everyone can read and write, it is no longer a privilege of the royal and those with class. Yet chivalry has seemingly been lost.. So I guess one could say you can gain some, but shall in the end also lose some.. There also does not seem to be kings or royalty anymore, nor is there such a disparity between the common and the noble. It has born some good things into the world.. The power is no longer on one person, rather on the people.. It is an interesting concept.” Arturia explained, before she fell silent in contemplation.


“I guess you can’t have everything... that sounds odd though. I suppose that people have small cities governed by groups of advisors, rather than a Shogun or a Tenno and his advisors then? And what about the food? Is there more types? And do people still worsh- ... actually no, don’t answer that. I don’t even know where to start with other questions, there’s so many. If firearms exist, do people not use blades anymore, when fighting? And how do you get that information, is there like, libraries around?” Fiara was leaning forward further and further as she asked until only the table kept her from bonking her forehead against Arturia’s. Noticing that she slid a bit back, but still looked at her wide-eyed and expectantly.


The woman smiled ever so slightly when the girl barraged further questions even still, and then attempted to feed the other’s curiousity as best as she could. “Countries are ruled by governments.. Filled with men and women chosen by the people.. Cities much the same.. The food… Is tastier, more variants and completely new types, as well as things that have been iterated from the old foods.. Gods..? Yes, people still worship the gods.” the woman noted, even though she left out, that the gods worshiped had changed across the centuries, and that the amount of people worshiping had shrunk as well.


“Blades.. Are no longer used in combat, no. They have a more ceremonial value now, and they’ve become inefficient when compared to the modern weapons… And with that, the fighting has also changed.. Gone is the chivalric code I value, and the beautiful dance of blades. Now it is naught but bullets, brutish and without beauty. With no rules, nor technique.” The knight was obviously biased towards her own arts, and because she had never actually shot a gun, she didn’t know exactly just how much work went into aiming, as well as actually controlling the guns.


“The information is stored in libraries, yes..And the internet. Accessed by small and large machinations alike, you can reach any piece of information anywhere, with the power of just your fingertips.. I know not how to explain it better, sadly.” Arturia apologized calmly.


Fiara leant back into her chair, the flames around her wrists still flickering away. “It’s... woah. I would love to see all that some day. Maybe if we find a way out of here. Wherever it is, back to the world we come from, I mean. Or if there’s any place in here that has this stuff. I mean... this plane that we’re sitting in, it means that there’s gotta be other stuff like it, right.” She stared at the ceiling, taking in all the information that Arturia had told her. “It’s fine, Saber. No way you could explain it better when I’ve barely even dipped my toes into all those things. Thanks though, it’s... well, it sounds awesome. Even with all the downs.” She looked at the King of Knights again. “One last question though. You’re clearly not from Japan, we don’t have female samurai. And though your feet aren’t bandaged and small, you have the air of a noble about you. Plus, you wear armor that could never have come from the forge of a japanese blacksmith. May I ask where you are from? And if it’s not too much to ask, what it is you were there? A... some sort of western samurai maybe?”


Arturia smiled a little as the other seemed to bask in the glory of having learned new information, it was amusing. Beautiful even, in its own small way. “Perhaps we shall. But we must focus on the task at hand, Fiara. Perhaps then I will be able to show you some of it. But we shall see.” She tapped her chin with her index finger a little, as she pondered. “No, not Japan.. I am from Britain.” she explained, before continuing upon what she actually was. “I am a knight, Fiara. They are much like Samurai, but simply western..” she noted, leaving her true name untold for now. It was naught that the girl needed to know, and they were on a plane where there were listeners. She wouldn’t let such a mistake reveal her identity. “Alas, I look forward to working together, Fiara. May we find Amaterasu and save these individuals by haste.”


“A ‘knight’... alright, I’ll remember. Thanks, Saber-san.” She finished, now addressing the other one with a more honorary title - something she usually left out because it was custom, and she hated customs. But Saber was deserving of it, no doubt. “We’ll find Amaterasu. Sooner or later, we will. I’ll stick with you until then... during this whole rescuing mission, and after it as well.”


Arturia nodded ever so slightly as she calmly instructed the other. “We shall. But now, you should rest for the remainder of our journey. I shall watch over you.”

“We can both doze off a bit, I’d say. Don’t think that all the Syntech employees are here just to make sure we are comfy. It’d look bad if we arrived on site battling each other.” Fiara returned with an amused tone.