RP: 5th Fleet [Chapter Seven] We're Not In Yamatai Anymore...

Dimitri took a step back when he noticed the bar maid getting a bit more hot tempered. "Sorry, sorry. I just wanted to make sure. Hmm...if she took several horses...she probably wants to either pull something quickly, or is worried they'll get injured." He stroked his chin and thought a moment before turning and looking at the rest of the group. "I planned on trading our horse for one that's well rested but that might be a problem."

The response that Yuzuki received was hardly the one that she had expected, an artifact that relied on physical endowment? That was too big to fit? Who would make something like that? Discarding the line of thought for a moment Yuzuki instead found herself cross referencing Víteliú finding only one match of note, the Lady Adelaide Weiss' supposed teacher. If Coco was to be believed, and given how little Yuzuki had as a point of reference she had little reason to doubt, the teacher, of the famous teacher, was a perpetually young girl... Given that they had seen what was apparently magic in a universe where it was supposedly dead, she supposed the idea wasn't too absurd.

With all of her reading between the lines Yuzuki was a little slow to reply, "I'm not sure I'm worthy of the honor, but if you'd be willing to take the time I'll be sure not to disappoint as a student." She smiled warmly and decided to be productive while she waited for Coco's response. Meandering over to the prone form of the Lady Weiss, Yuzuki took a brief moment to figure out what she was going to do, and with a small thrill plunged her hand into the abyss to retrieve Sif's entrapped form. After a moment spent ensuring that she had a firm grip, Yuzuki pulled Sif's diminutive form from the humid, hot chasm into the comparatively cold embrace of fresh air, giving Sif her first opportunity to breathe properly in what had probably been an unpleasantly long time. Not that Yuzuki had honestly really wanted to free her.

Still with her duty done, Yuzuki set Sif down a safe distance away from anyone who might once again dare to plunge her into marshmallow hell. In these moments Yuzuki found unsurprisingly had to fight off thoughts of condemning Sif to another, more pleasant fate. One that Yuzuki was forced to admit was unfortunately not really feasible for the moment, so instead of rubbing her thighs together, Yuzuki settled into a casual stance and cheered, "Welcome back Sif." At least she sort of meant that.

The Ifrit tavern maid casually waved a hand at Dimitri, dismissing what he said.

"Horses for that? No, no. The forest is a bad place for them unless you're guided by the Elves themselves," the woman started to explain. "It didn't look like she was trying to just use them all up; there were just too many provisions loaded up. She had several saddle bags, food, water, even several quivers of crossbow quarrels all brought to her for a pretty penny." The moment the fiery redhead said this though, the woman let out a pained groan and brought a palm to her face, flames briefly rising with a crackle. "Ugh. I'm so sorry. I should have realized this sooner - your friend had enough supplies for five riders, not one," the Ifrit maid apologized to Dimitri. Rubbing her temples, she added, "You might be able to get a horse from someone else, but just not ours. The lumber workers have slow but strong horses suited to pulling loads. They won't get you out from trouble though; the guards might be a better choice if fast horses, or long distance horses are what you desire," the woman suggested.

A small, scared voice started to speak up to Rin, but was stopped quickly.

"Kitty lady quiet long ti - " the Kobold on the shoulders of the one below had reached down and closed the mouth of the other as the milky blue Neko was seemingly lost in thought. Trying to sneak away, they didn't go far at all, and stacked atop one another, went right back to what they were doing before. There was a man suspended from the crossbeams above by his underwear. With the tavern maid watching them, they weren't allowed to just climb and cut him down, so the best they could do for the time being was simply poke him with a broom. It was almost humorous to watch really, as the man started to turn in one direction, then the other, moaning every now and then. They weren't going to get him down on their own anytime soon.

At least, not without help.

"Huh?" Coco tilted her head. "Me? Teach you?" the little girl asked, puzzled. "I never said I would, but having an apprentice again will be so much fun! We'll do it my way, and it'll be really, really super awesome, just like when I had to teach that young man too! He was hyper-ultra-funny in the magical dress I had him summon!" she giggled with glee. The distinct feeling that Yuzuki was going to end up with a Magical Girl's dress of her own could not be ignored. That, however, was eclipsed by Sif's rescue. Reaching down into Adelaide's depths, the princess moaned in her sleep as the Mini-Neko was extracted from her personal hell. Limp like a ragdoll and gasping for air, Coco was soon by Sif's side as she was laid down on top of a bench's backrest. "Sif, speak to me! Who did this to you?!" the little girl hammed it up.

"A-a monster. Monsters. Massive. Overwhelmed. Devoured. Avenge....me." Dramatically fainting, it was genuinely very hard to tell if she was simply oxygen deprived, or actually returning the ham with some cheese of her own. Especially considering how sweaty, exhausted and disheveled Sif was looking.

"Noooooooooooooooooooooooooo!~~~~~" With Coco's cry to the heavens, Adelaide startled awake, gasping for air herself. With where the little handmaid stood however, her cloak blocked the princess' view of Yuzuki.

"C-coco! I'm so glad it's you. I - I had this awful dream. Horrible, horrible slaughter. And then, the aftermath of debauchery. Uninmaginable debauchery," she began, slowly sitting up, rubbing the side of her head. "It was abso - oh no! It's not a dream!" the young woman cried, her eyes settling on Yuzuki. "N-no offense of course - I owe you so much," she quickly added.

Yuzuki smiled in response to the comment. She was careful not to show any teeth as she smiled at the Lady Weiss, though she sorely wanted to use them. It seemed that Masato had done quite a number on the Lady's state of mind, though she supposed it was to be expected of a wet behind the ears Minkan. Sif was also being a drama queen, which was adorable, in a way... Yuzuki wasn't really sure how to respond though. At the moment she was trying to wrap her head around whether or not there had been a couple of subtle social slights directed at her person, and whether or not it was in her interest to take note and respond to them. Eventually she settled with restraining a sigh.

"I am sorry to have you inconvenienced m'lady, however it seems that for the moment things are largely out of hand. With hope some meagre sliver of civility will return and we will all be able to relax knowing that things are right in the world." Uncertain if her words were genuine or mocking, Yuzuki hummed and hoped that those in the Tavern would wrap things up soon enough so that they could return to their mission rather than wallowing in the sex-scented inn of a backwater charcoal town.

Aya decided to leave the hapless kobolds to their own devices for now; they didn't seem to want her help, and the most obvious methods of assisting them in rescuing the man would fall afoul of the squad's need to keep their true nature under wrap. Of course, there was every chance that this world's "magic" would have very close equivalents to her natural abilities as a Nekovalkyrja, but it was a tremendous risk to take. Aya was by no means by-the-book, but even she could see that it was one not worth taking.

"Sorry for wasting your time," she murmured, stepping away and repositioning herself closer to the rest of their merry little gang.

"Well, sorry for holding out on you. I couldn't quite string it all together," the Ifrit apologized. She then turned around and settled her eyes on the two Kobolds prodding at the man hanging on the ceiling. "You idiots! One of you just climb up there and cut him down!" she yelled, her voice suddenly furious at them. "Sorry you all had to see the place in such a mess though," the tavern maid apologized again, the woman's temper at her slaves nothing outside of normal. Meanwhile, Adelaide shook her head furiously,

"Oh no, don't apologize! Just as you say, it's not your fault at all! It's just that...my head became so faint - I hope I wasn't a burden to carry," the young noblewoman apologized instead. Meanwhile, Coco simply looked upon her new protege with gleaming eyes.

*****

With what info they managed to gather, time soon flew by like wind as they got ready to depart. As a Kobold loaded their carriage, topping off the food and supplies they had with the extra coin they got from the loot they collected, the adventurers soon delved into the woods itself.

"They said 'Stay on the road' - I'm curious as to just why this is more important than normal, but there's something else that I noticed after my...recovery," Sif spoke, recalling the dark, sweaty horror as the wagon gently bounced along, their new horse cautiously pulling. "I briefly heard the Kobolds talk about them possibly being broken free by others of their kind from beyond the town. They didn't say much more and started pointing towards the rafters where I was hiding however."

"That's preposterous!" Adelaide quickly spoke up. "The slave trade is well regulated and well maintained - if any Kobolds were to ever dream of doing so, it would have to be wild ones, and everybody knows that they can barely organize themselves, let alone raid a town to free their own," she pointed out. "They're just not intelligent or civilized enough to do so." The way she said it, crossing her arms under her bosom, made it sound like fact. They all knew better though, and it looked like Coco did as well, considering the way she rolled her eyes at the Young Lady's view of the world. Subtly, the forest around them changed. In truth, it really didn't look ominous or anything like that at all. Now however, with the forest now shading them, they could see how the tree branches began to loom over them like archways of a grand temple, interlinking together ever so slightly. This forest? It was well kept.

"Soooooo....Miss White-Cat, let's get started on making you into a Magical Girl!!" Coco suddenly shouted, pointing a finger right at the Neko in question. "Can you draw out your essence? If not, we'll yank it out right now!" she rolled up her sleeves. "Anyone else want to join?" the little girl cheerfully spoke, putting Yuzuki right in the spotlight.

The look of horror that crossed Adelaide's face was not missed.

Dimitri kept the carriage on the road and chuckled some as Sif spoke. "Of course we stay on the road, fifteen steps off it and we'll encounter enemies, don't you know how this goes Sif?" He chuckled a little more and continued to drive. Adelaide's words surprised him however, they were the words of someone who just didn't get how the world worked. "Miss Adelaide, the world is constantly changing and progressing. From experience, the harder people push ideas about another group of people, the less likely it is that it's true, that's why people try so hard to get people to believe it."

As for Coco's eagerness, Dimitri knew his mission but he didn't want to end up wearing a skirt and he was also sure getting his 'essence' yanked out would be at least painful if not dangerous, he would let the others with more hearty constitutions than his try it out first then he might consider. He just made sure to avoid eye contact with Sif in case she tried to get him to follow his mission.

Rin had been quiet during most of the exchange in the tavern. But now the group was back on the road, and progress was being made in finding wherever Kuroneko went. She noticed that the forest seemed to adapt to their presence within it. Whether for good or for ill, that was yet to be seen.

She sat near the front of the carriage, bow cradled in her lap. She put her Nekovalkyrja eyes to work, scanning the forest for movement. At Coco's statement about essence, Rin turned around and cocked an eyebrow at the young girl.

"And what if we do not want our 'essence' yanked out of us?"

While Yuzuki listened to the conversations that went on around her, she displayed very little by way of interest in the topics, content to let the others in the group talk amongst each other and conduct the business that would get them on their way. While it was all well and good that they should stick to the road, that some supplies could be obtained less expensively than others, and that the Lady Weiss was comfortable with subservient inferiority, none of these subjects demanded her attention. As such Yuzuki spent her time humming a jaunty tune and let her mind wander from the passive assimilation of information.

At least that is what she had done until Coco had addressed her.

Twitching her ears Yuzuki focused on Coco, biting back a comment that likely would have caused the Lady in their presence to faint and tumble from their wagon, she instead admitted with pleasant humility, "I'm afraid I know nothing of the arcane arts and though it may be trying, hopefully you won't mind covering the very basics. As such I place my faith in your guidance." She smiled warmly and waited to see just what her assent would earn her.

Aya reacted to Sif's description of Kobolds freeing their enslaved brethren with interest, though she kept it off her face. Knowing the squad's luck so far, they would either be captured by them and held to ransom or get embroiled in a Kobold slave revolution. She felt sympathetic to the Kobolds' plight; perhaps some day they would be able to throw off their masters' chains and achieve the freedom they sought. Aya also felt some frustration at the fact that their mission's parameters made it unlikely that she could contribute materially to the slaves' quality of life. Think of it this way: if you tried and messed it up, you'd probably make things worse for them... It was cold comfort, but it was something. The Neko was only somewhat surprised at Adelaide's comments - she certainly seemed sheltered enough to genuinely not know better. But she was one of the group's few leads, and antagonising her wouldn't solve anything.

Coco's desire to make one of her comrades into a "Magical Girl" drew Aya out of her thoughts. Judging by Adelaide's reaction, things would be getting interesting. Putting on her best placating smile, Aya said, "Um... I'm fine, thanks!"

Sif was about to open her mouth and rebuke him, but, realized that he might just be right. The way this world was made? It followed its own rhyme and reason. One she didn't quite yet understand. Instead the 7 inch tall person sat there in thought beside him as the carriage trotted along. Coco was only a little better off.

"Aww! It'll take years and years for you to find your potential and coax it out on your own though!" the little girl pouted. "I might have the time to wait, but that doesn't mean I wanna! And I sure don't wanna!" Crossing her arms, she muttered to herself, "And it's not even that bad. Just a weird trippy dream I get to watch and laugh at is all..." Looking at Yuzuki as she replied though, the little girl's eyes opened in surprise and shock. "Really? But, your definitely magical! I mean, just look at yourself - you got cute kitty ears!" Coco exclaimed. When Aya expressed her own discomfort with the idea of magic, the girl couldn't help but actually pout this time around. "Hmph, backwater, stuperstitious bunch you're turning out to be. Magic is awesome! There's nothing that could go wrong!"

"Really, it isn't so bad at a all," Adelaide offered. She had been ruminating on what they had told her off on before, but kept her mouth wisely shut instead of impulsively blurting out more of what she felt at the moment. It was truly the mark of a young noblewoman, and one oft unnoticed. "When someone teases your potential out, it may become a very odd memory, but it's quite worthwhile due to the expedience," she explained, adjusting her glasses. As they talked, Sif pulled at Dimitri's sleeve as she came to a conclusion.

"I think you're right. The people back at the town kept going on and on about the elves and their magics and how they were the owners of the forest. It would make sense if they held sway over it." Though it was quite sunny through the treetops overhead, and cheerful with the sound of birds chirping away, it all somehow seemed so much more ominous. "Can you teach fire magic?" Sif turned to ask Coco.

"Mochiron!~~<3"

Frowning as she received a response that she hadn't expected Yuzuki reconsidered her words and shook her head before saying, "I misspoke. I meant that you could go ahead with the yanking of essence, or whatever you deemed necessary. My intent was for you to begin with whatever process would be needed for me to begin my magical education."

As she lapsed back into silence the noted quietly that the rest of her group didn't seem interested in the prospect of learning magic, something that she found a little out of place. After all who wouldn't want to learn such wonders? Mentally shrugging Yuzuki settled with the knowledge that only she among her peers would be magical. If they did not want it, she would not insist they try it. Even so she was curious to see what Coco would do, and how her life would be changing in the near future. Exciting times were ahead it seemed.

Dimitri glanced back at Coco as she spoke of nothing going wrong. "There is something that could go very wrong, I could lose all my manliness. I will only learn if it doesn't involve lowering my manliness." It was hard to tell if he was joking or being serious, but he had a confident smirk, like he was challenging Coco. "Though I think guys are supposed to become Espers right?" He let out a chuckle and continued on their way.

"So are the elves friendly people?"

"Oh. Ohkay!~" Coco simply looked at Yuzuki in surprise before she positively beamed with happiness. Getting up on the open topped carriage, the little girl stood tall, but before she could do anything more, Dimitri snagged her attention, and Weiss'.

"Though it was not I that was asked, I cannot help but answer, as I greatly enjoy history. I hope you don't mind," the young noblewoman replied, glancing at Coco, who shrugged with a smile. With that, she went on. "The elves' vast legions are well known to have once ruled the world," Adelaide answered for her handmaiden. "However, the Elvish Golden Age is long gone, and they now exist as nothing more than mere enclaves, distant and isolated from one another," the young woman explained, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose with a single delicate finger. "Though diminished, these enclaves are incredibly powerful. At least, in the confines of said enclaves."

"Hai!" Coco agreed. "They're really weird though, with their togas and marble buildings, and greenery and stuffs. They always look down on anyone other than themselves, especially if you don't have magic. Though, the more magic you have in your veins, the nicer they get!" the little girl added. Adelaide absentmindedly nodded along, before suddenly stopping, wide eyed in disbelief that her Handmaiden had dealt with them as well. Before she could say anything though, Coco spoke. "Oh, this reminds me!" Turning to Yuzuki as she stood up high, Coco reached down, finger outstretched like an angel breathing life into the fallen.

Only to bypass Yuzuki's raised finger and tap her on the nose.

"What is Fire?" Rang a timeless voice in the Neko's mind. Cast adrift in an endlessly serene abyss, she was made to answer. "What is thy desire?" Question, after question, after question about the world, what it was to her, and what she wanted bombarded the young woman for hours and hours on end. Yet, not once did she ever feel tired, ever feel uncomfortable. She was at peace. Not that this mattered. All everyone else saw was Coco tapping Yuzuki on the nose.

"There! All done! You have magic now!" the little girl smiled with glee.

To say that Aya was sceptical of the idea that the squad could 'learn' magic from a little girl was an understatement. She might have been willing to suspend her disbelief for her favourite shows, but claiming it could be done in real life? That was a step too far. Coco's casual attitude to it was somewhat jarring, too. She treated it as if it was a toy or a game you could learn in a few minutes. Admittedly the blue Neko had never been exposed to bona fide magic-with-a-capital-M, but it had always been built up as something that required years of study and practice, not something a little girl could teach you like it was nothing. Her suspicions quietly nurtured the growing belief that Coco was just playing a game of pretend. The fact that Adelaide seemed to buy into it, however, prevented Aya from dismissing it entirely as nonsense in her mental filing cabinet.

The duo's discussion of the elves caught Aya's interest. So they're the remnants of a grand civilisation...? Content to leave Coco to her seemingly silly little game, Aya turned her attention to Adelaide. "What happened to end the Elvish Golden Age?"

"First thing is first. Pick an element you like and imagine what it is, but right in your hand!" Coco eagerly awaited Yuzuki's first foray into magic. Though Adelaide herself looked a little disturbed by the impromptu magical emergence and lesson, she shivered once before looking away.

"I can't believe I felt that. It's still so hard to accept," she muttered to herself. She did go along with it before, but the moment she finally saw it felt like her perception of Coco was shattered all the more. "Well," the princess began to answer Aya, "Though their empire was very vast, it eventually succumbed to a large variety of factors. It's all pretty well documented you see." Looking up into the sky for a moment to recall, Adelaide went on, "The fact that bureaucratic corruption was quite bad helped things along; because roughly half of all taxes were being lost, and many state officials were themselves of poor moral quality, all sorts of problems arose. There wasn't enough funding for the military due to budget cuts, so my predecessors were able to make inroads. The slave uprisings also disrupted their cities and brought their economic infrastructure to a halt as well." She smiled, "I'd like to go on, but I wouldn't want to bore you," Adelaide blushed, both proud and embarrassed by her knowledge.

To them however, it all sounded far too familiar. Almost modern even.

Fire is a miserable chain of chemical reactions.

The desires she'd keep to herself.

As glacial blue eyes opened at the tail end of the second mystical experience Yuzuki had experienced in her life the Neko was honestly a little bemused that something as coveted as magic might be so simple. Not that she was going to complain. Prompted with her first task, Yuzuki raised her left hand and did as asked, immediately thinking of something exciting like a ball of mercury in her hand. Unfortunately this yielded no result, which upon further consideration made a bit of sense. Modifying her expectations and framing her thoughts in line with what would be more typically expected of a fantasy setting, Yuzuki went for the next best thing. Water.

With her mind on shimmering blue pools, the Neko gleefully tried to will her first bit of magic into being.

Rin found herself intrigued about Yuzuki suddenly gaining 'magic.' She watched the other neko intently, waiting for fireballs to erupt from her hands or lightening to fork from her eyes.
She hoped Coco was not going to kill them one by one by 'gifting' them each with 'magic.'

She casually found one of her daggers and kept it in hand. Just in case something terrible happened.

Dimitri listened carefully to the history lesson and gave a soft nod of acknowledgement. "Guess they thought they were invincible or something...but it sounds like they might be a bit prideful and hard to cooperate with." He tried to keep his eyes on the road but he couldn't help but look back at the going-ons with this magic awakening. "When did people find out about magic anyway?"

"Oh no, not at all," the princess shook her head. "I mean, they didn't think they were invincible or something; their records were all very well kept, and reading those of their Senate made it clear that they feared barbarians at their gates." For a moment, she paused and looked a little angry, but continued. "So, they always pushed forward, trying to find a defensible position. And then did that again. And again." Adelaide giggled. "It was all really a way for politicians to become generals and gain power. Men!" she crossed her arms under her bosom, chin held high as she closed her eyes. They suddenly opened wide. "I-I mean, not that there's anything wrong with you!" the princess blushed at Dimitri. "They're definitely prideful and hard to talk with though - you just have to swallow the little insults, since they say them without even meaning to."

Meanwhile, Yuzuki started her own little 'experiment', the little girl slowly leaning in closer and closer as she felt the ebb and flow of mana change.

"Magic? The origin of - " the young woman glanced at his cat eared friend. It'd be natural he'd be concerned! After all, it seemed they were some sort of country bumpkins who didn't know a single thing about magic. As befitting someone of her standing, it was her Noblesse Oblige to educate them! Taking a breath, her chest swelling with pride at the notion, she began. "Well, magic is a gift of the Great Divines, the Gods of our realm," she softly began, her voice sweet and gentle. "When time began, they - AHHH!" Out of nowhere, a massive clump of mud flew through the air and smacked Adelaide in the back of the head as they passed over a muddy rut in the road. The stinky, sticky goop hardly splattered, and literally stuck to the poor princess.

Coco just cracked up laughing.

"Oh, em, gee! You tried water magic? Water magic?! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!" she bawled with glee, hugging herself. "My sides! They're going to fly away with little wings! My sides!"

The wet eyed look of innocent hurt that Adelaide gave Yuzuki was heartbreaking.