RP: 5th Fleet [Chapter Eight] Castles and Catgirls

Neko Boot

"Hm," Sif's placid face pondered. "So you like it. I see," the Mini-Neko observed, her own reasons for staying small unstated but clear.

As Titus watched their exchange, and Bia's sudden but brief change in demeanor, his eyes narrowed. Perhaps the legionnaire was wary of them, now more than ever, but he still risked a glance at Mioshi before looking away. Even before he met them, the Neko was placed in his care for a time - it wouldn't have been surprising if she was on his mind. The young man's musing was suddenly cut short as Werner pawed at his shining, polished plates. Eyes widening in shock, the legionnaire listened to the young man's plea, only to place a comforting hand on his shoulder as Titus' stoic face broke into an expression of sympathy. He understood Werner's pain.

Tomiko's gest however, only drew a stern glare from him as Coco began to laugh.

"Hahahaha!" the little girl began at the Neko. "Hey! Don't go all ahegao on us if he sticks you with it!" she kicked her tiny feet about in glee. Adelaide looked less than pleased though; the fair princess seemed to have a sickness hovering over her head. As Titus sighed, he moved past the despairing Werner, and without warning, thrust his 'sword' right at Tomiko.

Though she prepared herself for it, it took a moment for everyone - Tomiko included - to realize she slapped it aside, semi-unaware and caught off guard at his sudden attack. The dull thunk of her own weapon tapping against his armor could be heard. Unharmed and blinking incredulously, the legionnaire thrust again, only for the scene to be repeated again as her fair hand slapped it aside.

"Some of us, like Tomiko and Mioshi in particular, are also blessed with speed and precision," Sif began, matter of factly. "So. Knowing all that I just outlined - that we're all stronger than most, with some of us stronger and faster, who should be doing what when we fight?" the Mini-Neko asked them all.

If she had a pair of glasses, Sif would have adjusted them like a stern schoolteacher by now.

Hobbling towards Titus, Werner took a breath and whispered to him".. if there is such as thing as a devil in this world it is her...." He hid behind Titus like a scared child, trying to hide from a terrible monster, "you have been warned...."

Slowly but surely, he slipped away from Titus and tried his best to stand up straight. He needed a few more hours of vital rest before he can restore to his previous self.

Yuukito was still reeling a little from being hugged by Bia, staring at the Elysian with wide eyes, before turning her gaze to stare at Sif as their tiny leader gave another lecture. "I-I dunno what I'm good at," she stammered with a shameful blush, before looking back to Bia for help. "What was I good at in the fight, Bia?"

"Ya' didn' fork 'et yah blood ta some shits an' die." Bia dropped back into her makeshift seat and picked up her whetstone. Flexing her fingers around the stone for a moment the Elysian broke her pause as she began to toss the rock from one hand to the other. "Tha's tha' mos' ya' can ask fer mer than 'alf tha' lot tha' take ta' tha' job."

Snorting, the short soldier stopped the whetstone were it rest in her left hand. Tapping the stone against her thigh Bia stared up at Yuukito. "Ya' got ah need'a ge' bettah? Ask yaself if what yah won' is ta' wherk or ta' sa'vive."

The Elysian looked down and picked up her blade, setting the whetstone in her hand to work. "Ya already good 'nuff at one."

"Yes. Not dying is very important," Sif observed, her face plain, voice flat. At the same time, the expression that Titus gave Werner was one of stoic disbelief and shock. Assuming a stoic making an expression counted as an expression. Looking at them all, the Legionnaire kept his cards close to his chest. "The point I'm making is that our most physically capable members should be either in the front, or making aggressive, fight winning moves," the Mini-Neko explained to them all. "That means you, Tomiko. Mioshi. What do you two want to do exactly? You need to figure it out and tell us so we know," she told the two. "Meanwhile, the rest of you need to hold the line at the very least, or provide support. What roles will you all play in a fight?" She hummed to herself in thought for a moment, and turning her gaze on the princess, she asked again, that question. "Speaking of support, what makes healing so difficult? You haven't even tried."

Though Sif was being upfront and confrontational, the princess didn't even wilt from the heat like she had previously.

"Anyone can heal, but without proper knowledge, the healing will go badly, and be difficult for trained healers to reverse," Adelaide began. Despite the serious tone and nature of what she was saying, her handmaid, Coco, simply rolled her eyes with a smile, which she either didn't notice, or ignored. "It is a very difficult series of concepts and ideas, but I will name a few that must be kept in mind when casting. For an example, one must understand the nature of scar tissue, and its propagation as cells divide in order to provide proper healing. Especially when it comes to nerves - blindly casting healing magic without proper knowledge to back our will, always leads to scar tissue, which will block off the regenerated nerves and prevent feeling and control of limbs."

"Yeah, real tough stuff, right guys? So, who wants to heal again?" Coco toothily smiled, childishly kicking her feet about as she sat on the carriage's side. Did she think them discouraged? Or know just how basic this knowledge really was?

'Huh. That's...a lot easier than I expected,' Sif spoke in their minds, simply staring at the natives like they just said something insane.

"Metal dain't dah i'self well when it come ta' transmutin' mana." As Bia spoke she stood with her sword rotating slowly in the grip of her right hand. With her left she tossed the whetstone she had been holding at Yuukito with a quick telepathic 'catch' thrown in for good measure - a quick test to see if the minkan could be quick. The Elysian's attention cut back and closed in on Adelaide. "Ah naw lot enuff 'bout bodies-" Bia's face was a smirk with added teeth. "-ah'm a' pratcal healah when ya' got ta' work wit' tha' mundane."

The blade came up into the air, steady, a thin, gleaming metal leaf happy to see the morning.

"Wha' ef-" Bia paused, her breath coming from low in her throat in a predator's rumble, her eyes on her xiphos for a second before drawing back to the Princess. "-this gets con'entra'd onna spell as tha' catalyst ta do us some healin'. Tha' blade dun' like tha' spell 'n the mana dun' like tha' metal - roight?"

"We shud ge' ah mess, but we then lohk at tha' healin' spell. An' fer it we take all we know 'bout dying - caus'd, seen, 'n heal'd - 'n tha' gets ta drive our spell 'stead a' tha' graces ofah healthy body." Bia grinned, her teeth curtained behind her curved lips, the smile seeming still mischievous now, but also friendly - inviting. "When push comms ta shove 'n this-" The Elysian moved her weapon the blade rested in the crook of one arm and reached a finger up from the hilt to tap just above the guard. "-when ah push 'n shove this inta tha belly a'ah body I want dead. Wit' this sort ah... paradox'cal healin' spell added in how much damage coul' we do?"

Yuukito's eyes widened comically when Bia tossed the whetstone in her direction, raising her hands and catching it just in time, before fumbling with it awkwardly for a few seconds in a desperate effort not to drop it. Once she had finally gained control over the stone, she blushed, glancing around sheepishly before holding onto it. "I-I mean..." she spoke up timidly. "I could maybe try... learning how to heal. I do have some knowledge of biology already, so..." A thought seemed to occur to the scientist rather suddenly, who squinted at Adelaide in a manner that was almost suspicious. Whatever thoughts she had, she kept to herself, seeming to shrug them off for now. Instead, she approached Bia, who was busy suggesting new and sadistic ways to murder people to the princess, and cautiously offered her whetstone back to her with a little smile.

Hanging his head low Werner scratched the back of his head before, "That sounds like a good idea, and maybe I should learn how to fight under these circumstances so I don't get mercilessly... battered, and bruised." He stared deeply at Bia, wondering if he could gleam some knowledge from her "Say... Bia-" , but then promptly cut himself off. The quick thought about the trouble that he would have understanding her instruction suddenly came to his mind, and shut his mouth. Instead he once more turned his gaze to Titus,

"Hey, I know you probably of matters of your own to deal with.. but can you help another guy out? From one desperate soul to another? A way to fight that doesn't revolve around 'swish swish death'?"

Smoldering Village

The traumatized, almost lifeless stare of the princess settled on Bia as she considered the Elysian's words for a moment. And then tossed it entirely aside.

"You want an enchanted blade that will cast fireball or lightning after you stab it into someone," she replied. The buxom young woman then turned and reached into the back of their open carriage and pulled out a blanket. Wrapping herself up in it, she stuffed her dark green dress under until there was little left of her to see other than her brown hair or large, round glasses and the dark bags under her eyes. Though she hadn't participated in the fighting, Adelaide was not weathering any of this well it seemed. Her little handmaiden,Coco however, was ecstatic.

"Oh, oh! We could totes get you guys something like that!" the small girl began, hopping up onto the edge of the cart. Balancing precariously, she animatedly continued, "You guys just gotta like, find a cave that leads into a dungeon, dive through all the mobs, and then kick the elder litch's butt!" The mini-neko of their group however, simply shook her head.

"I think it's time we head out, if anything. The next city, where we drop off our princess and her maiden - " Sif glanced at Adelaide and Coco, " - should not be far off." Of course, that wasn't everything. 'We have new orders - command is rotating out Tomiko and Mioshi. We're receiving one in return.' The news wasn't the best to hear of course, but, they had to deal with it as best they can.

"I might as well begin teaching you, Yuukito. I guess," the blanket wrapped princess somberly replied. Hearing this though, the plate clad legionnaire took a deep breath and cracked his neck.

"My best advice to you, is to fight smarter, not harder," Titus replied to Werner. Though he was clearly in his late teens, younger than the incognito Star Army Soldier, the tone of voice was unmistakable. He looked down on him. It wasn't intentional of course, but, considering he was an Imperial, it was likely just a given. "The villages told me what had happened - do not let your baser desires best you." Looking at Sif, he added, "You bet not delay, whatever it is you're hurrying after." She nodded back.

Helping them pack and mount up on their open carriage, the steel and red clad legionnaire waved them off, with Tomiko and Mioshi by his side as their forms grew smaller and smaller behind them.

On the Road

"On the road again! I can't wait to get on the road again!~~~<3" Coco sang, adorably off tune. "Sing it with me!" she pestered her charge. Adelaide's blanket bundle simply tightened in response.

"Tell me, what do your people think of those fellows with wings? The feathered ones?" Sif began. 'The new member I'm expecting is another Elysian,' Sif's voice sourly remarked in their minds. Surprisingly, the sullen princess spoke up first, her fair voice making her opinion clear.

"They are God's holy ambassadors, sent to enact his righteous will," the princess explained, adamant. Just out of her view, Coco rolled her eyes.

"And? What about the rest of you?" Sif asked the lot of them, her words deadpan.

Yuukito was crestfallen to see two of their company leave, though she seemed unusually sullen and withdrawn; more than she might be expected to when simply parting ways. "You guys be careful, alright?" she urged Tomiko and Mioshi, giving them plentiful desperate, clingy hugs, before watching them board Titus' carriage and disappear into the distance with a trembling pout and glistening eyes. She was jolted out of her sullen state by Adelaide, blinking at the princess with wide, teary eyes. "T-teach me? Ok, sure! Thank you, princess." As the rest of the team boarded their carriage, Yuukito sat herself next to Bia, who she seemed both fascinated by and terrified of.

"Fellows with wings? You mean E-" Yuukito cut herself off and blushed, glancing nervously at Sif before correcting herself. "Yeah, God's holy ambassadors. Those guys. They're fluffy and feathery." The scientist quickly stopped her nervous chatter, blushing intensely and lowering her gaze.

Somewhere on the road...

A cacophony of clinks, clangs, and rattles drew upon the princess and her escorts from behind, manifesting itself from a... Small woman with a backpack that seemed nearly her size, features mostly covered by the browned cloak with its hood up. With each footfall the entire body and backpack bounced and wobbled like a tower of opaque jelly. When she finally caught up, the odd woman bent forward, setting her pale hands onto her knees and heaving in and out desperately-needed air. Her form waved up and down for several seconds before a hand shot up and brushed the hood away, letting a neatly-arranged bun of blindingly white hair shine in the sunlight. "My... Apologies! I meant to meet you at the town and... You had already left!" She spoke between breaths, the woman's golden eyes glistening as she struggled to speak.

On the Road Again~~~<3

Werner suddenly felt the tiniest foot kick his seated tush.

"Oi, boy. Stop the carriage." The moment he pulled on the reins and the horses stopped, the Mini-Neko skipped across the carriage's frame, her face stoic as ever. Standing at the rear of the carriage, sharp green eyes fell on Arria, silent. "God's holy ambassadors, huh?" the tiny, tiny person glanced back at the others. She soon jerked a thumb over her shoulder however. "Get on. We're learning magic." Pointing at what looked like a blanket bundle, she went on, "The princess there is teaching healing magic," Sif explained. As though on cue, a pair of blue eyes sparkled from the dark depths of the blanket burrito. "If you know something already, or want to learn something different, speak up." Glancing at the princess's handmaid though, she asked, "How proficient is Yuukito now?"

"Oh, I dunno!" Coco began, her short cut brown hair bobbing about with excitement. "Let's find out!" The group watched the ten-ish year old girl pull out a small knife, and before anyone could make to stop her, slice the palm of her hand open. "There, go ahead!" she smiled.

'Coco is not what she seems. Be respectful,' Sif's eternally flat and bored voice rang in their minds, and in the newcomer's particular.

Spurring the horses forward once, Werner thought about how he felt about Elysians. Most of the experience he had with Elysians were in visual novels and the like during his spare time. The question intrigued him so much that he barely paid attention to Tomiko and Mioshi's departure. In his mind, he thought it was a true shame he didn't get to know them more intimately. But now it was his chance to make a good impression, or at least he hoped, with the new member. Maybe he could get brownie points with Bia as well?

So, with a shine in his eyes, and muffled a chuckle, he responded to Sif.

"I personally think that they are cute!" He then silently prepared his heart for rejections.

Arria gasped initially when the one named Coco just kinda sliced open her palm, right there in the road. She was about to say something - then Sif's voice crashed through her mind powerfully and she opted to shut up preemptively. At least... about Coco. On the other hand...
"Who's cute? What's this about being cute?" The rather short woman was still panting a little bit, thankful that she didn't have to run anymore.

Yuukito let out a yelp of alarm when she was called upon, stammering nervously in response to Sif's question. "H-how good am I? W-well-" she blurted out at the same time as Coco, only to watch with wide eyes as the handmaiden non-chalantly slit open her wrist, her cheeks flushing. "I-I mean, I guess I can give it a go?" Nervously, the scientist held her hands out to Coco's injured palm, her brow furrowed in concentration as she put what she had learned to the test. A golden glow began to seep from her palms. She hoped with all her heart that she wouldn't accidentally turn Coco into a flesh-blob.

"Angels are not cute!" Popping her head up and out of the medieval blanket burrito, the covert Star Army soldiers looked upon the princess. "They are dignified and holy messengers of the heavens - such tasteless cravings of the flesh are beneath them!" the princess zealously proclaimed. Her little handmaid mischievously snickered as Yuukito began healing her hand however.

"Naw, don't listen to her guys! She's just angry because the kiss your cat-girl friend gave her earlier is making her feel all funny!" the young girl smiled, casually waving her boss's words away. To her credit, Adelaide began to blush furiously as her cheeks began to glow.

"A-am not!" the princess indignantly pouted. Coco just snickered as a warm, golden glow emanated from Yuukito's hand, healing the wound.

"I honestly like Wōden's lot more, since they're really funny when they're drunk! Z-boy and his fam are a bit too stiff sometimes though," she offhandedly remarked. Idly kicking her small feet about the little girl watched as the Yamataian finished her work. Holding her healed hand up, her eyes looked it over, mouth agape with the results. "Sugoi! This is your first time healing? It looks really good!" Coco remarked, impressed. "Oh cool, I even have this little black beauty mark on the back of my hand!" she added. Staring at it a moment more, the little girl's eyes widened in horror. "Wait. This...this is skin cancer!" Holding her other hand over it, a faint glow began to emanate. "This is really bad! It's gonna spread and get me in three months! What am I gonna do!?!?"

Sif blinked.

Yuukito, who had been working with a look of intense concentration on her face, sweating and biting her lip, blinked in surprise when Coco seemed impressed with her efforts. For a moment, the scientist looked extremely proud of herself, smiling and blushing happily, before widening her own eyes as Coco declared that she had skin cancer. "Wait, skin cancer?!" she squeaked in horror, beginning to panic. "Oh no! What do I do?! I'm so sorry!"

"W-w-well pfftt, I-I, a-aren't they all c-c-cute?" Werner sheepishly stuttered, shamefully red. It was a fortunate event that everyone was sitting in the back and Werner could at least turn his head to the side to hide his shame. Still, The mission was a success!

he gently whispered to himself "A surprise to be sure, but a welcome one, time for plan B! Attention redirection!" He glanced towards the passengers with an awkward smile.

"C-can't you just heal the cancer away again? Is it not that simple?"