Chevaleresse

Lucine nodded. "Well, my full name is Lucine Nadine Einzbern Yggdmillenia, but most people don't call me that." She almost unconsciously gave a small curtsy as she said the full name; it seemed that she, at least, still thought of Asgore as royalty. At the monster's question, though, she furrowed her brow in thought, before her face turned to the distinctive one of secondhand embarrassment. "Umm. . . I don't know that they did, but when I said they were weird earlier, I didn't just mean that they were mostly humans. They really are super weird." Her expression faded after a moment of thinking about that, but the girl visibly forced herself to move on. It was all going to be solved in due time. "I think I know who did it, too, if it was one of them."

Lucine nodded a moment, still a bit lost in her own head. ". . . Sure." She walked toward Asgore and his family. She thought to introduce herself to them, then realized something. "I never told you my name, did I?"

Lucine looked a little startled to be alive and well. Not that she was complaining, but she'd been fully prepared to rush back to the ships to try and get fixed before the strain did her in. "I guess we did it." She glanced back at where the SOUL containers had been stored. It seemed the resident expert at making bodies had just been carried off, too, but there were a few people that could probably help. Did I really do that good of a job, though? She had hope that they could get Nader back, but Lucine still couldn't help but feel like it was her fault that this needed to happen anyways. The homunculus wandered back to the group. She'd also more or less admitted that she wasn't human to everyone here, unless they really couldn't put two and two together. Things might be awkward going forward. Or, they might not be. Those who'd found out had been kind, or in some cases the variety of kind that mostly involved violence directed at other people. She stayed quiet for the moment, unsure of what to really say, and feeling mentally exhausted by the whole experience.

"I'm. . . not sure I want to ask what an atomic bomb is." That was certainly a turn. She'd known some parts of the central government were ambitious, but as a sixteen-year-old demon hunter, she typically had better things to pay attention to than the movement towards expansionist policy in the central government, such as the demons trying to eat her face. "Here's hoping that my country is saner in my timeline. Speaking of timelines." She turned to the master smith, and gave him a quick, but respectful bow nonetheless. She could be polite, for once. If he was anything like the smiths she knew, it would pay to tread lightly around his possessions. Granted, it didn't sound like he'd made this one in particular, but it probably wouldn't hurt. "Vakama-sama, I, Sanada Tsubasa, swear to protect the Kanoha Vahi with my very life, should it be necessary, and humbly request that you entrust our group with it."

Dani & Joan "Oh, yeah, it's not much further." Indeed, it seemed like they reached the riverside almost too quickly. "Behold, my proud vessel." She faux-dramatically gestured towards a positively ancient-looking dock with an even more ancient looking boat tied to it with rope. "It's normally one at a time, so be careful. Unless you want to kill yourself, I guess, but try not to get my kimono wet if you've gotta." The shinigami climbed into the front of the boat, leaning her scythe over the front and grabbing an oar in its place. "Shall we?" Rory The memory didn't seem to be in immediate danger of sliding further, but he captured a record of the strange youkai girl for later use regardless. Around the time he finished that task, he noticed a pinprick of pain that was still lingering in his back. Osada, Masako, Isobel, & Empi Sanae didn't verbally respond to the "adorable young lady" comment, but it wasn't difficult to tell she was appreciative. Especially given the appraising look she gave Osada once she thought he wasn't paying attention. "The waterfall's right over there. And. . . is that someone else coming up the path?" Around that time, the veteran party noted a pair of figures descending the mountain, one of which Masako likely recognized and one which was totally unfamiliar. Both groups laid eyes on a white streak who sped out to meet the group lower on the mountain; said streak quickly resolved itself into a wolf-eared, white haired tengu with a sword and board. Said board was also white, and bearing a red maple leaf emblem. She slowed down as she approached, looking between the three with confusion. "Chichimura? Is that you? People have been wondering where you went. And you've got. . . one human with you? And a real big fairy." "Huh. That's some interesting timing." Sanae shrugged, then continued. "That would be Momiji. I don't think we're going to see her kick someone's ass. Well, other than maybe yours, but you signed up for it." It wasn't long before they reached the same level as the rest, while the waterfall roared in the near distance.

Lucine blinked. It wasn't nearly as bad as she had been dreading. Still, she didn't want to strain herself too much. The homunculus had no idea if this was going to trigger a breakdown regardless - or if the lack of unpleasant sensations meant it had already begun. She slowly turned to the barrier. It seemed strange that something she hadn't even seen until less than fifteen minutes ago had caused so much strife. Lucine hadn't ever imagined that things would happen the way they had, but she supposed it worked out in the end. Sort of. I don't know what's going to happen after I use this power. I don't know if you'll all disappear, or stay here, or. . . do anything. So, if you can understand me thinking at you, thank you for helping me do this. And Nader. . . I'm really sorry. I wanted to really help. I messed up really badly and. . . I'm sorry. Please forgive me. She focused on the faint sensation of weight and power in her chest. The homunculus grabbed ahold of it mentally, then spoke. "My wish is for everyone in the underground to be free."

That was unexpected, to say the least. She didn't exactly know the story behind the angry creature currently held captive, but it didn't seem like it'd be a happy one. Lucine forced herself to ignore the thing's screeching and focus on the SOULs. "Okay, here goes." She stepped up close to the containers they were held in, looking between them in turn. The young mage wasn't actually entirely certain what she was doing here, but she figured it was something between what she did to hand control over to Opal and absorbing power from a leyline. Not that she did the latter consciously, for the most part. "I don't know who most of you are, but I hope you can help us out here." She opened each of the containers, and then reached out with her own magic, clumsy and fumbling as it was, attempting to absorb the SOULs.

Lucine stepped forward, taking yet another deep breath. She looked at Asgore and the sorrow that filled his expression, then back at Rachel. Finally, she turned to Arminius, and the SOULs floating in their containers. "I can do it," she began. "I'm. . ." She shook her head and restarted. "I was made for this." She wondered how Law was doing. "The Lesser Grail fills with seven Heroic Spirits, to break through reality and connect to the Greater Grail." It wasn't quite a quote, but she spoke as if reciting it anyway. "Heroic Spirits are bigger and stronger than any human soul. It'll be easy for me." That was a lie, of course. Heroic Spirits might be larger than life. . . but it was hard to quantify the essence of a person. It was possible that it would kill her. Not immediately, almost certainly, but the vessel was only meant to hold the grail until it could begin to fill. Once that happened, the vessel was to be discarded. "And. . . one of the people there knows me." She looked at the second orange SOUL for a moment before her gaze fell to the earth. "I want to at least say I'm sorry."

Tsubasa shook her head. "Westerners. . ." There were so many problems to deal with, but all of Europe figured they should get embroiled in some ridiculous conflict about a random noble dying? "Well, if Japan was involved, we must have been helping out the English, right? At the very least, we would have the sense to not get into a second one of all things after the first one ended."

Something Rory said piqued her interest. Not the military marvel bit - it didn't seem like it would help kill demons, slow and ungainly as it was, and so she didn't care - but about the part immediately after. "Wait, second world war? There were two wars in your timeline big enough to be called a 'world war?'" It sounded like they were from the same, or similar worlds; as such, this news was deeply concerning to the demon slayer.

Thunderlord, lacking much in the way of further input to contribute, elects to help Harry in his tasks, and providing an incentive for any potential threats to leave the doctor alone.

Mitsurugi shook her head. Another modern human who had lost the way like so many others. "Maxwell Schiff, you are embroiled in matters you do not understand." She paused to look back at him, golden eyes glinting in the shadows. "Youkai have stalked humanity since time immemorial. They are felled by the strength of one's heart and the will to carve meaning into the world, not by bits of mass-produced lead." Humanity in its current state seemed to know so much, and yet understand too little. How did one speak of faith and meaning to a person who knew only bare facts and what their eyes could see? She turned to continue ascending the stairs, moving ever closer to the interlopers. "You may be the least prepared of us for this battle. My blades shall stand between you and these dark creatures - you would be wise to watch and understand why."

Lucine looked at the ground upon hearing Ignia's comment. "It's Nader." She took a breath, trying to steady herself. It didn't really work, and thus she continued through occasional choked-back sobs. "He accidentally. . . I got between him and Asgore. I just wanted to stop people from getting hurt until we figured everything else." The girl wrapped her arms around herself. "He shot me, and then gave his soul to Asgore. I don't know what happened next. I just wanted to help. . ."

Justine was in her room, staring down at a blank sheet of paper in front of her. Around here were more of the same, save these had been written upon, crumpled up, and scattered. Her fingers were black at the tips from the ink stains, and her eyes held an unmistakable exhaustion. No matter how hard she tried, the words simply wouldn't come together on the page the way she wanted, the way she needed. The former actress had hoped that the act of putting her thoughts down in writing could organize them, quiet them, help her think through her decisions, but all it had really done was use up time that could have been a good night's sleep. There was too much to consider, things that didn't sit easy, and choices she did not want to make. Darcy was alive, Tobias was not, and she was faced with a decision her heart could not make for her. ". . . Justine, everyone always told you that you'd get yourself in trouble." She sighed, shaking her head ever so slightly. "If only I'd known what kind of trouble they had actually meant." For better or for worse, the commotion downstairs brought her back to the real world. She picked up her belt from where it'd been tossed - the back of her chair - and buckled it around her waist as she headed down to investigate the commotion. She was met by more people than she expected: Kane, Lenore, Arthur, Mim. . . and Pestilence? "What's the story here?"

Tsubasa quietly listened to the discussion, actually trying to focus on events for once. It seemed like something that would require some careful consideration, and so she gave it some such. After letting Vakama finish, she nodded once, firmly. "Right. We should take it." Belatedly realizing that this would, in fact, necessitate some explanation, she continued after a moment. "Makuta is deathly afraid of it breaking. If this Medusa tries, he'll turn on her. He can read minds, so he'll know." She refrained from adding on the other half of her "reasoning:" she just sort of felt like they should, and she wanted to try it for herself.

Dani & Joan Death shrugged again. "Collect them if you can, but this is more important. Consider it, er, extra credit. I'm sure you'll find some anyway." Death started to turn back to his meal, then stopped. "Oh, and this isn't the only world you'll visit. Have fun!" The connection promptly faded. Rory "Oh. Some people call me Komeiji Koishi. I'll try to remember you, Rory." The hunter blinked, and the girl was gone. The memory of her already felt a little fuzzy, a bit slippery, as if it were trying to escape his mind already. He got the feeling that something positive might come of the encounter, though. Osada "Oh, I suppose if you're new to Gensokyo, you wouldn't really know what it's about. I didn't think there were many magicians left Outside, though. Weird. Anyway, I have no idea what most of what you just said means, but Gensokyo is surrounded by a barrier that inverts common sense." The miko pitched her voice oddly, almost as if she were beginning to narrate a movie trailer. "Mysterious magics, lost arts, creatures forgotten by men and gods alike, all of them can be found in the strange land known as Gensokyo." She then returned to a normal conversational tone. "So basically, everything nobody believes in anymore exists here. Including a crapton of youkai." IP Aside from the resources provided by the train itself, the area seemed relatively stable compared to the environment. One location nearby felt warm to the touch, as if magma lurked just below the surface of the rock. The possibility of ores was also present, though nothing about the place seemed to suggest a great wealth of such. As for threats, the village nearby was still an unknown factor. Evil spirits could be seen floating about, occasionally thrashing in midair or emitting an eerie howl. A further understanding would require more exploration, or finding someone with some knowledge of the area, however.

Lucine just stood for a few moments, attempting to process everything that just happened. There were two goat children who looked like the towering goat woman with her erstwhile companions, and all three looked a bit like Asgore. Nader had said something about time, about something or someone being shattered. It was the last thing she'd really heard him say, and it had something to do with them. Then Rachel shot herself with a gun she'd just thrown away. Lucine squealed in fright, hands reflexively darting to the hole in her shirt. She tried to retreat simultaneously, and the motion actually sent her tumbling backwards, landing awkwardly on her rear. She forced herself to open eyes she hadn't realized she'd squeezed shut, to see Rachel. . . still alive. Faced with this intense mixture of stress, confusion, terror, intermingled with relief, she froze, stammering. "I-I. . . W-what. . .?" She was visibly on the edge of bursting into tears.

"Well, not that I trust the guy, but the Makuta said something about universe-eating monsters, and everyone else seems to agree they're the main threat. I'd say it's a pretty natural time to unleash everything you have, even if it leaves you vulnerable afterward." Tsubasa glanced at the rest of the group. "If there was ever a time for extreme actions, it'd be now. Especially if people are dying." The swordswoman looked down for a moment, thinking about something that didn't seem to be pleasant. She took a deep breath, and smoothed her expression out. I'm thinking too hard again.

Dani & Joan "It's just how they settle things. Big, shiny bursts of magical shots instead of the other way. Although, sometimes they just beat each other up and throw in some of the magical shots and call it good." It was hard to tell given Death's general amorphousness, but the pair of meisters were fairly sure he shrugged. "So work on your ranged fighting if you can't avoid trouble! I'm sure you can handle it, though." Death held up a positively ancient-looking contract, which both were also fairly sure had not actually been present until their headmaster decided it was. "You're entered into the books already, so they won't try to eat you! Isn't that nice?" Rory "That's nice to hear~" The girl spun on one heel before coming to rest with her arms outstretched towards Rory, almost but not quite as if she were inviting the hunter to a hug. "You should look for her bird. Her bird is fun to play with, too. Even before all the stuff." The strange youkai's almost singsong intonation made it hard to tell, but it didn't sound like the "stuff" was pleasant. Abruptly, she pulled her arms back and leaned forward, placing her head almost as close as her hands had been. "Do you remember me?" Osada "Well, I wouldn't say a capital-I Incident is that common. I think this thing probably qualified, though." She puffed her cheeks up in a display of mild frustration, before blowing out in a huff. "I even missed Marisa getting beat up by a bunch of randos. I mean, not that I WANTED her to get beat up, but. . . well, she can be kind of annoying sometimes." As Sanae led Osada down the mountain path, he noticed something: this place was positively humming with magic. It had been slightly less noticeable at the shrine, but the air felt almost as if there was constant spellcasting going on. That, or there was an enormous quantity of Phantasmal Beasts around - which didn't seem to concern his guide, of course.

"Uhh. . ." Once again, Lucine was left rather speechless. Quite a few humans had treated her coldly, if not poorly, but there were plenty that were nice, too. "I, uh, saw him earlier. He was in kind of a bad mood. I should, um, probably go find him, actually. . ."

Lucine frowned. It still didn't explain why they couldn't just go get the burgers themselves. . . though if they were eating junk, they probably didn't have the money to buy much food. She resolved to head back to the ships and bring them some actual food later. "That makes sense." She glanced back at Proditor. "I think we should probably get going. . ." A thought occurred to her just as she spoke. "Um, but before I go, I have a kinda-weird question. Does Asgore ever go hang out in places other than his house?"

"For someone who's over a thousand years old and supposedly almighty, he doesn't seem to hold up in a swordfight that well." Tsubasa commented idly as she followed the group about, taking in the various sights. She assumed that he must be this world's equivalent of a hermit. A bit more active than she might expect, but maybe things simply worked differently here? Something about mastering a craft, maybe. If he knew that much about working with metal and heat, had he worked with crafting anything less permanent? A meal made by a thousand-year-old hermit could only be the best. . . or the worst, but Tsubasa was an optimist.

Dani & Joan There was a bit of . . . well, static might not have been the right term, but some kind of interference. A face that was definitely not Death's appeared for a moment - in fact, it looked irritable, green-haired, and quite familiar - before the mirror flickered again and the more-familiar cartoonish skull mask appeared onscreen. "Oh, hi, Daniel, Joan, did you two get there okay?" Komachi apparently caught a glimpse of Shikieiki's face as it appeared in the mirror earlier, and was currently wearing an expression that, in their home world, only came from exposure to one person. "Did you need something already? Eating well?" A plate of something was visible past Death, apparently why food was on his mind. Rory "Yay~ I'm glad to hear that." She continued to move about almost haphazardly, alternating between looking ahead and meeting Rory's eyes. There was something empty in her gaze, something inexplicably but fundamentally missing. "I saw your group earlier I think and had a little bit of fun~" Genuine uncertainty was audible in her tone, but she didn't slow down. "Are you going to see my sister? You seem like a sister-y person. Do you like sisters? I don't know if I do." Once again, it sounded like the strange girl legitimately wasn't certain what she thought of her own sister. The eye-like thing that seemed to curl about her was more visible now; Rory could see that it was stitched shut haphazardly. Osada Sanae glanced back at the shrine proper, pondering the question. "I did miss out on all the fun earlier. . ." She abruptly clapped her hands in front of herself. "Okay! I'll take you down to where people usually run into her. Momiji likes to play games with the kappa in her free time, so she's usually over by the waterfall." The miko started to march forward towards the gates of the shrine. "And don't worry too much about the spell card thing. I'm sure you can figure out how to make magic bullets, right? Just, uh, imagine all your techniques as bullet patterns and do that."

Lucine wasn't entirely sure what to make of it. Maybe she could come back later (ideally with a fresh set of clothes) and try to resolve the conflicting stories. One detail didn't quite make sense, though. "Why did he have to get you those burgers?"

Heidrun took a deep breath. The energy filtering in was close enough to her home's that she thought she could manipulate it, but it reminded her of mako. She could take it in and exude purified lifestream, but she had only done so under extreme circumstances, and it had been nothing but toxic to her, and she actively rebelled against such a thing. Still, perhaps she could reintroduce this ghost to the normal cycle of energy in the world? The healer focused for another moment. She tried to, essentially, pull at the energy nearby, seeing if she could separate it from the fell taint that had polluted it. If, somehow, this didn't result in any catastrophes, she would bring that flow of energy close to the ghost.