tampered | Log-Complete.

Log-Complete.

When; Monday afternoon.
Rating; PG-13.
Characters; Caterina Sforza (

juste_ultionis) & Isaak Fernand von Kämpfer (

rozenmagician).
Summary; Isaak guides Caterina through several spots of the city. Tres ~~stalks~~ guards his Duchess.
Log;
Tic-tic-tic-

The noise stopped as soon Isaak summoned kohoruto to keep him company. The adorable, ravenous monsters growled and followed him through the shadows of his tidy laboratory, pushing the madding, incessant ticking out the Magician’s mind.

It was not the noise itself what disturbed Kämpfer or the possible countdown linked to the carousel. No, those things were meaningless currently, low priorities in his thoughts. The unnerving aspect was that each tic represented a second and made Isaak aware of time itself.

He who had chosen to forget the pass of time.

Self-absorbed as he normally was in his research, Isaak had been anticipating his appointment with the lovely Duchess Sforza. He had already bathed and chosen a proper outfit to stroll with the Iron Lady through the streets of the charming but nonsensical city. He still wore black but a still wore black, but a virgin wool gabardine with a grey tweed vest beneath instead of his Order uniform. The squared, small spectacles on his nose aided to project the perfect gentleman image he sought to maintain.

They would attend to a quiet place, Isaak had planned. None of the sultry and dangerous underworld whose sights were terrible for a lady of her rank. Not on this occasion at least. He would have plenty opportunities to show the Duchess all the attractions hidden in the town.

Abruptly, two of his kohoruto rushed towards the main door, scratching the wood blindly. Cocking an eyebrow, Isaak’s lips curved into a small smile. There she was. His servants had sensed her. They would recognise her. With a snap of his fingers, the beasts were gone. He opened the door and held it, inclining forward on a bow before Caterina had a chance to announce her presence.

“What a coincidence, Duchess of Milan. Good afternoon.”

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Isaak looked downcast for a fleeting instant, shaking his head lightly. “It wasn’t rude but would not matter really who or what I was in the past, would it?” he inquired honestly. “I was many through history. Shaping the world for better or worse. Were you aware there was another Caterina Sforza millennia before you were born, Duchess? I met her too. You have the very same golden ringlets, only longer hair. She did not heed my warnings either,” he finished with a note of regret. The Lioness of Forli had struggled and failed her battle against Cesare Borgia.

He was aware of the lack of information about the history before the Armageddon. Everything was fuzzy, mythic. Tales of a mythic, better world that never existed.

“However that was the past. I am Isaak Fernand von Kämpfer now, Cardinal Sforza,” he added, voice dripping in nostalgia.

“If you don’t enjoy the small things what are you fighting to protect?” questioned Isaak, mirroring her challenge. His fingers caressed her hand as he aided her to rise gently, lingering briefly before realising her. “Those are the objects you should cherish and guard. Otherwise why bother to put yourself in dire circumstances?”

He bowed and gestured the park. “Which direction we should go? To the daisies or the tulips?”

She immediately regretted the downcast expression that crossed her features and minded herself to be more diplomatic with her words. "No, I suppose who and waht you were in the past does not matter now, but it all helped in shaping you." Then paused, eyes widening, to his admittance of the past historical figures.

"Another Caterina Sforza? How did-" She almost asked how the woman had died, but restrained herself, "Millenia, that was before the Armageddon!" He was positively ancient! Older than the krezniks. Could it be that he had a hand in the creating of the nanomachines and now he was, through his own convoluted and quite dark methods, attempting to stop Cain?

"There is so much you must know that we have lost," She marveled, facing him after his lingering touch abated from her own hand. Her skin prickled with the feel from his glove, but the feeling was not a harmful one.

"I am fighting to protect the people so that they may enjoy the small things," Caterina replied wistfully. The things that she, it seemed, was destined not to be a part of. Obviously she would not answer his other question, she put herself in dire circumstances because she was already dying, because those circumstances filled her with the fire of life.

"The tulips, I have always been partial to their colors," Finally, she murmured.

Isaak nodded his head, thin smile curving once again on his lips. She would digest the knowledge and thought about it later. That was a good sign. It was enough for the night. “You have some answers know to sort me out, Duchess. Defeat me for your peace,” he assured her. “Indeed, I am far older than the Armageddon or how it was called then World War Three. There were other wars previous to that one, you understand that? I lived through all those conflicts.”

Offering his arm once again, Isaak waited for her to take it to guide Caterina towards the polychromatic tulips. They were of the shape of small balloons and their shade shifted when the light hit them in a different angle. Like prisms.

“Those are noble goals, Duchess, this is why I admire you,” he commented, stopping a moment so she could appraise the flowers. “And why is better you shouldn’t listen to what I know of the past deeds. That could falter your resolve, specially considering you honestly believe the Rozen Kreuz Order as the examples of monsters on Earth.”

"Defeat you? I think you would rather come in handy for the defeat of the RKO if your priorities are truly what you intimate them to be," Caterina replied, but said nothing more on the issue.

Once his arm was offered, she slid her hand into the crook and allowed her fingers to rest there. So close to his body, it was odd. There had always been a small thrill when he was around, but this was disconcerting. She found herself enjoying his conversation, his presence. The wariness and tension around him was slowly melting away and she knew that could be dangerous though he meant her no harm.

"I am not one to be admired, Kampfer, my goals are only the same as most everyone elses, but I have teh means to acheive them," She replied and paused with him, reaching out with her free hand to caress the petals of the balloon shaped tulip. It was odd, but quite beautiful, soft to the naked caress of her fingers.

"There is nothing that could falter my resolve, Kampfer, nothing," She murmured and released the tulip, straightening, "Though I will not press you for information. I find it better to live in the here and now. Shall we see the lillies next?"

“Ah, but Duchess, have you forgotten? Isaak Fernand von Kämpfer is the Magus of the Rozen Kreuz Order,” Isaak commented, entertained. “Thus, in order to defeat it, you must clash with all the ones who joined.”

He was attentive to her body reactions, mostly to see any sign of her health faltering, but also because he was anxious to see if she enjoyed his presence. Caterina was less tensed this time around. Her contact was almost natural and that made Isaak selfishly gleeful.

Her naïveté about people it was almost refreshing. It was not a foolish, wistful, good-hearted thought but an honest, calculated one that made her words even more ironic.

“I have lived enough to know that people normally seek the opposite you say, Duchess,” he commented, watching her toying with a tulip with the corner of his eyes. “If you want to. The lilies are a dead end, to see them; you must ‘swim’ through them. Our clothes may be stained with the nectar but I assure you the experience worth that small sacrifice.”

"Swim through them?" She asked, looking to Isaak's face to ensure he was not mocking her. "As long as the necter does not attract any sort of foreign insect. I shudder to imagine the types of creatures that dwell naturally here."

Then gave a small shake of her head, "There are very many people who wish peace and others who need guidence in order to live a good life. They follow whomever they find that is a strong leader, and if that happens to be someone that does not have good interests in mind, it matters not to them because they do not have the power within their own wills to lead themselves."

Then added, "That is where the Vatican comes to mind. The Vatican is looked to by humanity as a way to live." The air had chilled and she forced her muscles to relax from an oncoming shiver. Perhaps she should have brought a coat.

“There are only butterflies and birds in the garden. Harmless,” Isaak answered, hoping to diminish her doubts. The lilies stood at the end of the marble pathway. The giant flowers, tall enough to reach Caterina’s collarbone, kept withering and blooming every passing minute. A never-ending cycle of life.

“Those people aren’t like you, Duchess. They don’t share a common good, they are like me. Selfish to seek their own peace and do not care for what happens to others as long their joy and those they know and cherish is assured,” Isaak argued, offering her a sly smile. “You are different and special. This is why you must be preserved above the rest.”

He paused his tracks when felt her first shiver. “Are you cold? The night has gotten fresh, isn’t it?” he asked, unlocking their arms to remove his jacket. He had still the grey vest and he hardly felt the weather changes. “May I?” asked Isaak, about to cover her shoulders with the coat.

Preserved above the rest. She found that sentiment almost humorous considering her life was withering before Isaak's very eyes. "I am no more special than anyone else, Kampfer. All life is sacred." Then paused, "You cannot be entirely selfish if there is life aside of your own you wish to preserve."

The cycle of rebirth among the lillies was predictibly ironic, but she found the sight and the smell pleasant enough. When he asked after the temperature, she was ready to brush it off, the weather was not so cold as to be unbearble.

However, curiosity stole her tongue as Kampfer released her arm. At first, she could not fathom a guess as to what he was doing, but as he slid his own jacket off and politely offered it to her, she couldn't help the smile draw over her lips.

Such a gentleman, Abel would have never noticed her chill. "Yes, thank you," Caterina replied in a softer tone, watching him from the corner of her eyes as the jacket was settled around her shoulders. The smell of him now surrounded her, sulfur and tobacco, stronger than the lillies, but no less pleasant. "I do hope the chill does not affect you now."

“If you said so, Duchess,” Isaak replied, pursing his lips to her first response about the sacred nature of life. “But death is also sacred. Creation and destruction. There could never be a grand peace without an equally devastating unrest.” He motioned at the lilies to serve as example his contrast.

“It’s not my rule. It’s how things are, I’m afraid. And, don’t worry for my health. A cold won’t kill me. Little can at my age.”

His smile accentuated when she accepted his coat and quickly secured it over her shoulders, tucking her within the folds of the wool. Her skin was pale and glistening like silver and salt. Luna. His eyes lingered a second before, conducting her through the sea of lilies.

The fragrance of the flowers was intoxicating. They smelled to fresh spray of dawn, as sweet candy and how hearts in love would if souls had a distinctive scent.

Isaak remained quiet during that journey, hoping Caterina’s cyborg got his sensors damaged and lost the sight of them. But, if Iqus did that, she would surely have him search for her lost hound on the bushes.

"Death, when natural, is sacred, yes, but when death is forced upon those who are not naturally dying, then I believe that is wrong," Caterina replied, uneasy to talk about death so lightly. She did not fear where she was going, but she was saddened to leave her family and the world that she had experienced so little of behind.

"I do not believe a cold could kill you, but I have no want for you to be in discomfort on my behalf, Kampfer," Caterina was warmed almost instantly with the wool binding her in Isaak's scent and presence. She knew he was staring at her, had her makeup started to smear? Or was he simply admiring. Caterina knew, before her sickness, she was considered something of a living goddess.

Allowing Isaak to take her among the flowers, she stopped every now and again to smell their heady scent. Beneath the first scent there lingered an afterscent, almost too candy sweet for her senses, but pleasant none the less. She did not quite understand how Isaak could be enjoying this, frolicking in the flowers with her.

Tres still followed at a goodly distance, picking his way through the thick field of lilies. His olfactory sensors were pinging rapidly due to the heady scent of the flowers, the pungent smell growing even more so as some were inevitably trampled on the way through the field and out once more. Thankfully, it did nothing to interfere with his enhanced sight and hearing, in case something should happen. But even so, he did not enjoy having one of his senses so thoroughly muddled like this. It could impede his duties in some way, which was unacceptable.

“Violence is less natural than illness, Duchess?” asked Isaak, fascinated after they exited the lilies garden. The perfume faded when they came out, their clothes dried immediately from the nectar by magic, leaving them spotless. “Curious. Nature proves you wrong on that. However, several society avoids both illness and violence, normally. It’s a social condition, not a natural one.”

He did not release her when they strolled out the gardens, back to the noise and startling lights of the city that never slept. He headed to Cafe Juliet directly, skirting the misery square to avoid Caterina’s discomfort.

The restaurant appeared small and crowded on the outside yet, against the laws of physics, was spacious inside. There were many citizens and newcomer, eating and chatting, others swinging at the rhythm of the zigzagging tuned played at the background.

“I’m afraid there is no better restaurant than this one, Duchess,” he commented, holding the door for her to enter. Isaak peered over her shoulder.

The cyborg had not lost his way.

"Violance for the sake of violence is wrong. We are not animals to settle disputes with our claws and teeth," Caterina replied. Though she fell silent on the topic of illness, not trusting herself to argue dispassionately about it.

He did not release her and nor did Caterina pull her hand from his arm as they strolled from the gardens back into the city. Upon reaching the restaurant, she marvelled at how quaint it seemed on the outside, while holding a vast seceret upon breaching the threshold.

"Not as private as you would have liked, am I correct?" She asked, casting her eyes up to Isaak, then back out to the crowd. "The atmosphere is fine, for now," she granted with a small smile and stepped inside, appreciative at his efforts to remain in every way a gentleman.

The cafe was more crowded than Tres would have liked, should something happen, but it could be worked around. Usually humans ran when bullets rang out anyway, so should something happen where he would need to protect the Duchess, it was unlikely that there would be any civilian casualties.

Knowing the pair would settle down at one of the tables to refresh themselves, he moved to a good vantage point, where he could both see all of the goings-on in the cafe as well as the surrounding area. No one would be able to come within a hundred meters without him detecting them immediately, plus he would be at Caterina's side within a moment of a threat being noticed. Now all he had to do was wait for this escapade to be over with so he could escort her home once more.

Isaak led her to an empty table near a window that possessed less neo-light illumination to hurt her eyes then pulled the chair for Caterina to sit down. “Please,” he motioned with a polite nod. He passed her the menu and took a seat himself, waiting for her to make her order first to choose his meal.

“We have little to talk in private now,” he explained, opening the menu to pass the pages idly. “You have enough information for a night, don’t you agree?” Isaak wanted to enjoy some quiet moment without worldly discussion if short. Take a sip of coffee and just relax without concerning to offend her with his philosophy or actions.

Caterina waited while he pulled her chair, then sat down and looked at the menu. As her eyes passed over every menu option, she felt her stomach tightened in disgust. But she had to keep up appearences.

"Privacy to enjoy each other's company, Kampfer, not to speak. I agree, I must think carefully on what you have told me already," Caterina murmured, then closed the menu with a perfunctory snap, ordering unsweetened tea and a very light seafood bisque. She could sip on the soup and pass a few mouthfuls.

After ordering, she inclined her head, tucking back the veil to take a sip of tea, allowing the hot liquid to course through her veins. Setting the delicate cup aside, "You have behaved very well tonight, Kampfer. It is against my better judgement to say so, but I am enjoying myself."

Isaak ordered dark coffee and asked for the flying bubbles to be removed of it before the drink was served. No matter how well they tasted, it was completely against his intellectual flair to partake on such things. He asked some of the bright candies as well, to contrast the sour taste with sweet one. They were small and looked like pixie dust in the little vase.

“I’m afraid the city didn’t offer a better spot after the garden to an eventual excursion, Duchess,” apologised Isaak before digesting one of the cherry flavoured stars. “Most of the stores are dead spots and dangerous to wander. You must remind that. Grey and lifeless.”

He looked openly pleased at her admission of enjoying the appointment. He was quite proud at his own self-restrain and educated manners. “As did I, Duchess of Milan. You are a fascinating lady to converse with. I appreciate your honesty and opposite viewpoint despite my efforts to change them.”

Caterina took a sip of her soup then put the spoon down and swallowed, lifting her glass of tea as she replied, "This spot is fine, I have had Tres scout the city, I know of the dangers." Then sipped her tea, still holding the cup cradled in her hands to warm the cold digits. "As I appreciate yours and enj-" she froze, nearly pitching forward as her lungs convulsed in a fit of coughing. The tea sloshed over her dress, quickly forming a large, round patch of brown that seemed to grow as it abosrbed into the silk brocade fabric.

She dropped the cup and the sound of it shattering was a sonic boom to her ears. Grasping her chest, she began to cough, searching her handkercheif and covering her mouth as the salty, coppery taste of blood splattered onto the pure white cloth of the handkercheif.

Rising quickly, her vision blurred, but she refused to fall or faint, "Tres!" She called in blind panic, then contained herself, straightening her spine and looking to Isaak, "I ... must go..." Breath rattled in her lungs as her rasping voice forced the words from them, lips unnaturally red with her own blood on them, "The tea. .will stain. . I am sorry," And turned, nearly stumbling over the chair.

Eyes taking in the first minor spasm that heralded one of the Duchess' fits, something that, up until now, only he had known about and been a witness to, Tres immediately left his post, pushing his way through the crowded cafe to Caterina's side. It was times like this when he was glad for the limitor he had placed on himself and his emotions. He did not want to acknowledge any feelings he had in regards to seeing his mistress so weakened.

Tres spared not even a glance for Kampfer, arms moving around Katerina as she stood, helping her to her feet. He analyzed the distance they would have to travel to get back to her rooms and did not like his calculations. The Duchess was far too weakened to make the trek herself, and it would take far too much time. It would be best to get her back there as soon and as safely as possible. Therefore there was only one logical conclusion.

"Apologies, Duchess," were the only words he uttered before lifting her into his arms,and moving back through the crowd, glaring at anyone who looked like they may protest or get in his way. His mistress' health and safety was first priority, the sensibilities of those around them not even a consideration.

The coffee felt warm through his throat and it tasted sour enough to wash away the sickening sweetness of the candies Isaak had eaten previously. It was too perfect, he supposed, with Caterina agreeable, her hound obediently staying out and not firing at him. That was why something had to unrest their little solace.

Caterina’s true health displayed openly the fact that no matter how much make-up she wore, she could not conceal it. Heads were turned immediately, focusing on her. Isaak stood and rushed to pat her back and offered her a handkerchief too late for she had one on her hand, stunned slightly by the sudden crisis he had to face.

“Don’t speak, Duchess, you could choke yourself,” he urged vehemently, barely restraining himself to work his magic in her system. But he would not do it against her will. Isaak respected Caterina too much for their own sakes. He pushed her down the chair when she foolishly stood and only moved out when Tres appeared.

Isaak glared at the cyborg but unquestionably moved aside. He would not start a fight when her health was at stake. “It doesn’t matter. Go and rest. I will visit you later,” he promised as Iqus whisked her away through the sea of people, into the glittering city.

Panzer Magier paid the damages and the meals before following the Duchess and her hound through the shadows, assuring their safe and fast arrival by… tossing people that may have crossed unwisely their path.

[[OOC: The end?]]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Log-Complete.

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject