tampered | log; complete

log; complete

When; today, noonish
Rating; PG
Characters; Azel [

debted] and Nemu [

sciencedaughter]
Summary; Azel lands in the middle of nowhere. Nemu says hey, you're screwed. No hijinks ensue.
Log;

His feet hurt.

Then again, he had been running through a forest from creatures he'd never seen before. Not that he wasn't used to monsters - two heavy, panted breaths and yet another reassurance that he did still have his blade on hand later and he reminded himself that he was very used to facing beasts - but this place didn't have a high concentration of Celesital Chi. In fact, it didn't have a very high concentration of any type of Chi he could use, he had no idea where he was, oh, and there was the fact that he was missing his captain and the rest of the Tears of Blood. Who he'd been following.

He fell to the ground, wincing as his head smacked off the tree he'd hidden behind. What the hell was going on? One of the Four Warriors? She had used an illusion on Reith before, but Reith had broken it. Justina hadn't been able to, so Maya probably couldn't this time, but this was one hell of an illusion if it could seperate him from the others, plus the fact that they hadn't heard or seen anything. And anyway! What would one of the Four Warriors be doing at the Great Temple?

Which left him back at the first point - illusion or not - Azel was lost, and without his captain. And had just run away from monsters he'd never seen before. He really wished he'd at least had Calintz near him. In fact, he would have even settled for Chris. Or Haren. Or anyone at all.

Azel took another deep breath, forced himself to stand as he rubbed the back of his head. And almost fell back over again as he noted the large buildings through the trees in front of him. "W-what?!"

Yeah. He really could have done with anyone, even Chris.

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Nemu had not set out from Mayuri's laboratories to be of use to anyone.

She left for one purpose, to retrieve a sample of "the blob" for her creator, and to then return. The shinigami had retrieved the sample, sealed it in the container she had brough, and had turned to return to her tasks. The entrance to the 12th division captain's laboratories was out of the way, well hidden, as it should be in this City, but she had to admit, at least to herself, to taking the scenic route.

Trees, nature... it was calm, nearly soothing, and a nice contrast to the stark, clinical feel of the lab. But, she saw, it was interupted by the precense of another being.

Curious, Nemu paused, watched, still, almost to the point that deer appeared before they took flight, watching the new arrival quizically from mere meters away.

Buildings were not meant to be that tall! Not even the Great Temple was. The monsters in the forest he'd just struggled through seemed a better choice than this. Hell, returning to Yason Roven seemed like a plan at this point in time. At least he wouldn't be lost if he did that.

But Azel was lost, and he was alone, and he was very confused. Hand straying to his blade for yet another time, Azel lent back against the tree responsible for the mild throbbing in his head. He was a mercenary, he could handle this. He was a member of the Tears of Blood, he could handle this.

He needed Calintz. He was in way over his head.

Azel sighed. Way, way over his head.

And the trees were too real for it to be an illusion, he decided, after smacking his head against it one more time.

... Frustration.

Yes, that was the emotion most prevalent in this indivisual. She would assume one of two things. One, that he had a personal issue he was unable to resolve, or, two, that he was a new arrival.

On the chance that it was the second, and considering she had finished her task quick enough that she had time to dally with such... simple things, the shinigami allowed herself the pleasanties of social contact.

"Excuse me." She called, soft, standing still yet. "Are you alright?"

He almost jumped. He almost smacked his head again. He almost did a lot of things but one thing Azel did do was grab for his sword again. "I'm fine."

She didn't look like a Yason. Wasn't dressed like a Blast Worm. Was too dressed to discern if she had a Vindi. Didn't look like a Turibo. And he was pretty much obvious as a human, so she had the upperhand if she wasn't.

"Who are you?" Azel asked, checking the Chi levels. Five attacks, maybe. Then he'd have to switch styles. If she was a Yason.

Alarm. Panic. Contained anxiety.

"Kurotsuchi Nemu." She did not bow, did not dip her head or move at all, the only motion in her body in the slow blink of eye and the steady rise and fall of her breast.

"Vice captain of the 12th division of the Gotei 13, shinigami." By learned habit, she announced rank and species, in the case that he was new and did not know of such things. She didn't ask for his name, for anything, knowing that if he felt the need, he would tell her.

An officer. Not a Yason. A-

"A shinigami?" And he'd been confused before. "Is that a new division of the Alliance?"

Azel's grip on his sword loosened, but his hand did not move from the blade. It could be a Yason division, or anything. They were in a war, after all.

"No." Nemu was watching his blade, in face he did decide to attack, but this led her to believe more that he was a new arrival, which could explain his confusion, and the questioning nature.

"Shinigami is a state of being. Souls of the dead. We are not a division of this Alliance you speak of, because you are no longer in a world where such applies."

Wait. He blanked.

"Dead?"

Except she had said-

"No longer-"

Not in Efferia? That was one hell of a spell if the Yason were responsible. "I need to find Captain Calintz," he managed to mutter quietly, mind having glossed over the things Nemu had said.

"You are in The City." Nemu spoke calmly, slowly, without any change in her voice or tone.

"It is a world connected to all worlds, and draws in people from all walks of like, and death." She prepared for a reaction, for questions, readjusted her grip on the container in her hands.

What. What.

"...I really need to find the Captain." Azel couldn't think of anything else to say. He hadn't been seperated from Calintz without warning since he'd been rescued - the minor point of his abduction and subsequent rescue from the Yason's capital notwithstanding - and this simply was not on.

"Your captain may not be here."

Nemu answered bluntly, to the point.

"The best way to attempt to contact them would be over the City network."

Not here? Oh, oh nononono. Calintz had to be here. Calintz couldn't not be here. Here- This City thing.

The City needed to have Calintz, because Azel was in the City.

And the dead... Would that mean- He couldn't hope for that. He just needed his orders.

This... 'Nemu' had said something else. "City network?"

"The City network." Nemu cast about, settled for a large rock. She approached, sat her small contained, warded and sealed, carefully on the ground, and perched lightly, folded long, bare legs beneath her and brought out a small device from her uniform.

"Using the technology here, one can access the network." She displayed the small handheld, still calm and slow in speech, feeling out if he was familiar with such devices.

His hold on his sword tightened again as he considered everything he knew so far. It was... Incredibly odd. A joke.

A joke! Had to be. Justina, probably, she didn't seem to like him very much and she had the power. Eonis would never stoop so low. Reith was still missing. And Maya wouldn't. Maya wasn't cruel. So Justina was behind this, and it was a cruel, cruel joke. He knew he had never liked a thing about her.

"Y-you know, I think I'll just break this illusion spell and be on my way, thanks."

Nemu did not make a move to stop him, nor try and convince him. She looked down to log on to the network, and then raised her head, solemn, to meet his gaze, eyes dark, near cold, but more like distant.

"I do not joke, sir."

She was emotionless enough to work for Justina. Justina didn't really like the Tears of Blood. How was this not a joke? ...Other than the fact that Justina had been off getting the Celestial Shard, and they were heading to go get the Ice Shard.

Okay. Maybe she was telling the truth. Then there was no harm in investigating this network thing. Azel could handle that, surely.

He took a deep breath, relaxed his hold on his sword. "Okay." He was a mercenary. He could manage. "I'm Azel."

Nothing his uneasiness, Nemu nearly shifted uncomfortably, but decided against it. She quieted to let him think, let him take his deep breaths and steady himself before she turned the device about so he could see the screen.

"It is a pleasure to meet you." The pleasantry was automatic, ingrained politeness, subservience, before she became somewhat authoritative.

"This is the network. If you'd like, I can assist you in making a post searching for who you seek if you can locate him by energy signature or other means."

"By his Chi? I can't do that." He wasn't a mage. He wasn't anything. But if this network thing could do it for him, that was enough. All Azel needed was to get in contact with Calintz.

He moved forward, slightly worried he was offending her by hanging back so much, and knelt down next to her. "How does it work?"

Nemu filed away the reference to chi, assuming it the same manner of energy to this boy as reiatsu to her, as chakra to ninja, and other such categorization.

She bent a little to accomodate his new position, and displayed the log in process.

"You will be assigned a user specific identification and security. With this, you may access the network. You can view others entries, make entries, and converse with others through this technology."

He understood that... Kind of. Slightly. Partially?

...Not really. But he got the basics. It was similar to what they used in Efferia, but not really. Near enough.

Okay, he was still confused. But it would help him find Calintz, and that was all that mattered. "All right."

Nemu looked somewhat sympathetic for a moment.

"Your world does not have such things?" She conjectured easily, demonstrated the main page, the long line of entries and such, long dark braid hanging heavy over her shoulder.

"Would you like further assistance?"

The young swordsman shook his head, mostly from the reference to 'his world'. "Efferia doesn't. We have communication spheres that let us contact people in other towns face to face, but nothing like this thing."

Further assistance? Azel would like a way back to Efferia. He'd like Calintz. He'd like- Lots of things.

"I think I'll manage." He was lying.

"I see." Nemu folded her hands, display up, and sat back, shoulders squared, back straight, legs crossed.

"Are there any other questions I can answer for you?" She was unsure how to comfort him, if he needed comforting, as she was unsure on the diagnosis on other's emotions in the first place.

"The way out would be great, but I guess I'll take whatever I can right now." Azel was worred about the dead thing. He was worried about being seperated from Calintz. He was worried about what would happen with the Turibo, the Blast Worms, everything.

Being here was not helping.

But he remembered his manners, at least. "Thank you very much, Nemu."

"I am afraid to inform you that there is no definitive way to leave." Nemu tried to be... comforting, but she was unsure how, and merely tried to make the information available.

"There are curses here... deities..." Nimble fingers flashed across the screen, pulled up the guide commonly given to newcomers and passed him the device.

"... you are welcome." She murmured.

He read, quietly and slowly. His frown deepened. "This is... Hard to take," he managed, once he was done.

Really hard to take. The eighteen year old wasn't so sure anymore that his meager skills could handle this. He really wanted Calintz. But he was a mercenary! He was strong.

He'd have to get through this.

Nemu nodded slowly, turned the machine back and began to shut it down.

"It will be hard to understand. Acclimation will come slowly, but it will eventually occur." She was trying to be reassuring, in her own way, soft and slow.

"Right." Sure. He could manage this. Easy. Just- Stranded in an odd place with no way home and unsure if the others were around.

"Thanks," Azel repeated, standing again. "Guess I'd better get settled in then," he finished, casting a glance towards the City proper.

Nemu stood as well, brushed her skirt, smoothed, and picked up the small container again, folded neat between pale hands.

"If you ar in need of further assistance, you may ask for me on the network and I will try as I am able." She offered, quiet.

"I'd appreciate that, Nemu." Azel sighed softly, mildly curious about the container but he refrained from asking.

The guide answered everything he needed to know desperately, Calintz's whereabouts notwithstanding, and that would be enough questions for now. Hopefully.

Nemu nodded curtly, bowed lightly now.

"It is my pleasure, Azel." And it was, she admitted. Contact so limited now... it was something to treasure.

But now she nodded again, a farewell, and resumed her original path to the clinical smell of labs.

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