tushanshu_logs | TEL VISHAN BEACH PARTY

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TEL VISHAN BEACH PARTY

Characters: OPEN
Date: Saturday, August the 9^th
Location: The Shell 'Coastline' nearest the Water Sector
Situation: Baby Turtle Beach Party!

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At the edge of Asti's shell there are coastlines of natural deposits that make up the closest thing to a 'beach' that they'll ever find in Keeliai. It's here that the official Tel Vishan Beach Party is set to take place. All turtle 'parents' will have gotten a message from their respective hatchlings about said party (perhaps a nice change from the whining and the temper tantrums).

Temporary shaded areas built with poles and sheets for weary parents or hatchlings who do decide to come, and some simple snacks and refreshments have been set up as well. There's a fishing net set up to act as a volleyball net for the day, and a ball waiting in the sand for some players.

The rest is up to those who come.

((ooc: feel free to comment under the headers, or start your own top-level comment!))

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Raine had more of the optimist about her than she would like to admit, but she wouldn't be surprised to find it was the enemy's doing, either.

"That much I don't know for sure," she said, with a small grimace. "The most reasonable assumption is, of course, that the magic and the office of Emperor is unrelated. If the current Emperor has very little magical ability himself, the delegation makes sense."

The gap in her knowledge irked her, not least because she should have pursued more about Evandau before now, if only for context. All she'd seen fit to establish was that he was not actively malicious, and then the enemy had taken greater precedence.

"But it does beg the question of why the delegate didn't become the next Emperor," Skulduggery pointed out. "Or how either of them managed to acquire the ability in the first place."

He grew quiet after those comments, slowing his steps as he and Raine approached the city. Apparently, before Skulduggery was brought to Keeliai, the Emperor used to hold question-and-answer sessions with the Foreigners. She was seen everywhere, well-known and fairly well-liked, very much a part of Keeliai's daily affairs. Her replacement, on the other hand, seemed forever busy, and yet subtly hidden from view. It could mean nothing - Skulduggery was well aware of how such a sudden increase in responsibility could run a person ragged. It could also mean the war was coming to a head, but then why not enlist the help of the Foreigners you'd already conscripted into fighting?

Something didn't add up.

"I've heard he does have magic," Skulduggery went on after a moment. "Or a magic-cancelling shield of some sort. Have you ever visited a country where a military leader became the Emperor? Has that ever ended well?"

"It does, doesn't it." Raine's focus turned inward as well, and she was content to match Skulduggery's pace in relative silence while she considered that. If the previous Emperor had selected Evandau to take her place that was one thing, but there was too much about that situation that she just didn't know.

That had been foolish of her, not to follow up on what had happened after Eshai's murder. Well. It was not the worst mistake she'd made, at least, and could be rectified.

At his voice she glanced up again, and after a moment nodded. "Not precisely, but I can draw a rough comparison. And no. It didn't end particularly well. It's a different set of skills, and it takes a rare person to handle military strategy and sound governance all at once. I take your point."

"It does," Skulduggery agreed. "That's generally why the power of the throne remains in royal families, and why military advisors have to stage hostile takeovers and impose unnecessary military law in order to have a chance at it themselves."

Not that Skulduggery was implying Evandau had anything to do with Eshai's death. Well, alright, he was, but he was actually fairly sure that wasn't the case, given how constant and detailed the story of her assassination went. That didn't, however, rule out practically any other form of hostile takeover and military rule. The bombings, Skulduggery remembered, had surprised nearly everyone. There were too many neat coincidences.

"I'm glad we haven't been given an impossible task to accomplish before we're allowed to go home," Skulduggery said remarkably cheerfully. "Otherwise, this would be much harder."

"Have you seen many such situations?" Raine asked, genuinely curious. He spoke of it like a matter of course, and with the years he had lived it might well be. At least religion hadn't been mixed up in the local mess so far as she could tell.

His last statement sparked a short, bright peal of laughter from her. "Yes-- though even if it was impossible, I suspect that wouldn't stop many of the people here." She had seen what happened when sufficiently determined people decided that 'impossible' was more of a suggestion, and several of the other foreigners she'd met she had no doubt would push on regardless.

"I'm over four hundred years old," Skulduggery reminded her, his tone as casual as if such a long life span was an everyday fact. "Yes, I've seen many such situations. Only one where the evil could measure up to this one, of course. Someone I respect once told me the only two human constants are love and greed, and I haven't yet had cause to doubt him."

Actually, maybe that was Shakespeare. Skulduggery couldn't remember anymore. He really hoped it wasn't, for the solitary reason that he would have had to deny all knowledge of the quote. Shakespeare was far too pompous for Skulduggery's tastes, refined though those tastes admittedly were.

"It certainly wouldn't stop me," he agreed. "Or you, if I'm not missing my mark. After these last few months, I'd be surprised if any of the foster parents would happily sit by and let anything terrible happen to their turtle charges."

"Love and greed, hm." The lifespan really was an everyday fact as far as both of them were concerned, and not worth commenting on at this point. She wasn't sure she agreed about human constants-- even the kindest of humans usually hated something. But hate was still a learned behavior, wasn't it? Much like shame or fear, it didn't come from nowhere. "People are born knowing both," she said finally, not quite an agreement, but certainly acknowledgment.

Even if it was Shakespeare, the beauty of talking to a person not from an Earth was that Raine wouldn't be able to accuse him of the quote.

To the latter, she nodded. "Ryder reminds me of my brother, sometimes," she said. Her expression was soft. "Even without that, I would go to great lengths to protect him, and the rest of the children. But the thought that the enemy may pursue our worlds as well, if this one falls-- even if the task is impossible, we must give it everything we can anyway."

"That they are," said Skulduggery as the high walls of Keeliai grew steadily closer. "All sentient beings are, to varying degrees. Knowledge, culture, and belief all change. Greed, unfortunately, does not."

Neither did love. As old as certain wounds were, as well-worn and well-healed as those wounds had become, there were certain words which would always elicit a small tinge of regret in Skulduggery. 'Brother,' annoyingly enough, was one of them. At least it was easy to ignore.

"I'd like to impose a law," Skulduggery decided. "A single law. A very simple law. And that law is this: if your dimension is capable of inter-dimensional travel, kidnapping, or shenanigans of any kind, don't play around with unimaginably powerful evils."

On the point of greed she could not disagree with him, and she simply nodded.

"And how do you plan to enforce that law?" Raine asked, easily following him out of more serious discussion and back into the dry sort of humor with which he seemed most comfortable. "I don't disagree with it, but those inclined to obey it wouldn't be those dealing with unimaginably powerful evils in the first place." The quirk at the corner of her mouth gave the lie to her otherwise serious tone.

Skulduggery nodded. "True. We would need a task force. A group of immensely powerful dimensional hoppers from whom you would need a permit before playing around with unimaginably powerful evils. Perhaps they could be bunnies. Then no one would suspect a thing."

What, precisely, someone might suspect, Skulduggery didn't elaborate on.

This earned him a long, bemused stare from Raine. Skulduggery was hard to read at best, and deadpan humor didn't help with that. But he must still be joking. "Bunnies," she repeated at length, skeptical. "Immensely powerful, dimension hopping rabbits are your solution."

She let that hang in the air for a moment, at a loss for any sort of sensible response. She'd thought teaching teenagers had prepared her for just about all forms of nonsensicality, but there was always room to be proven wrong. "Why rabbits?" she asked finally, wondering if there actually was any logic that had led him there.

"Bunnies," he confirmed. He was entirely used to the sorts of expressions from which Raine had drawn while she stared at him. "No one ever suspects cute rodents."

At her question, he tilted his head, eyeless gaze on the sky while he thought about the best way to respond. Was there any logic behind bunnies? Probably not. But he marked the occasion and let it slip to the back of his mind anyway, just in case. It wouldn't have been the first time Skulduggery said something completely nonsensical in good-humoured jest, and discovered later it was the truth. Or part of the truth. His mind worked too quickly for even him to keep up some of the time.

"I don't know," he finally admitted. "Why? Do you have any other suggestions? Mice might be a little obvious."

"That only works if they're in a place where you could reasonably expect cute rodents," Raine pointed out. She was well aware of the futility of applying logic to harebrained ideas, but felt compelled to try anyway. "Inoffensive as a rabbit may be, it will still stand out in a temple or palace, or an area heavily populated by monsters."

She considered the absurd hypothetical situation for a few moments. "Invisibility might be practical, and lend our theoretical enforcers the benefit of not losing opposable thumbs in favor of disguise. Another option is perhaps the capability to shift forms as befits the situation."

Now this was intelligent conversation. Contrary to popular belief, Skulduggery didn't exclude nonsensical topics from the realm of interesting talking points. Quite the contrary, applying logic to harebrained ideas was one of the surest ways of confirming whether or not someone was intelligent.

Raine certainly fit the profile, but he'd already known that.

"Ah, but opposable thumbs aren't as useful as people believe," Skulduggery pointed out. "What if our theoretical enforcers needed to be underwater? Dolphins or whales might be more effective in that scenario. I think you're right. Shapeshifters would be most logical. Bunnies, of course, would be their first port of call."

"I tend to be fond of them," Raine said dryly, flexing her fingers absently. "They're useful for delicate work. Hmm. Environmental concerns are valid, but if these enforcers have immense power, it wouldn't be a leap to assume they also have the resources to survive in inhospitable places. Still, underwater motion at the least would be made more difficult by a limited form."

Shapeshifters really were the most practical theoretical solution for blending with completely unpredictable environments. But why... why did he keep coming back to bunnies. "Do you have a particular fondness for rabbits?"

"Me? No." The answer was immediate, but then Skulduggery stopped to think about it. "I doubt it. Maybe I've had a little too much of turtles recently."

How rabbits were the the particular polar opposite of turtles as far as rodents went, Skulduggery didn't know.

He slowed as they approached the gate back into the city and turned around to watch the turtle party down the curve of the shell on the distant beach. This far away, the party was barely audible. Somewhere in the back of Skulduggery's mind, he could feel Quintus noticing he was gone, but having a little too much fun to go looking for him.

"I'm glad we agree on the shapeshifters," he murmured. Parties like these, even outside of war, Skulduggery had always felt most at home with as an impartial observer. It was only through Gordon's relatively recent influence he'd started to enjoy them, and being torn from his dimension was admittedly leaving a bit of a sour taste in his lack of a mouth.

Raine paused with him, casting her gaze briefly back in the direction from whence they'd come. "Turtles are hard to avoid here," she noted, quiet and almost absent. Ryder didn't seem particularly concerned, now that she was thinking of it; his other parent was there somewhere, as were his siblings, and he knew why she'd gone.

She glanced back to Skulduggery and hummed briefly, a soft thinking note under her breath. His level of engagement had definitely changed. Why? "Yes," she said after another moment more, "they do seem the most viable solution. But that's not what you're thinking of, is it."

"No," Skulduggery admitted after a brief pause, because Raine had definitely earned at least halfway truthful answers. But then, because talking about what he couldn't change did little except to annoy him, Skulduggery gave a noncommittal shrug and turned back to the city gate.

"I've encountered shapeshifters before, unfortunately," he told her with a decidedly more cheerful note in his voice. "They were trying to steal an artefact, and I was trying to stop them." Because, of course, he was trying to steal the exact same artefact, but Skulduggery neglected to mention that part. "They were far more intelligent than I gave them credit for, actually. One of them shapeshifted into my hat. It followed me right into the vault sitting happily on top of my head before I noticed the difference."

She didn't push the 'no,' partially because she could take a hint and partially because she was too busy laughing. It was a startled sort of a sound, but no less genuinely amused for it. "Your hat," she repeated. "They're skilled enough that you didn't notice any difference at all until it was revealed? That's impressive."

Granted, she wasn't certain exactly how much sensation Skulduggery retained, but he was a sharp sort of person, and she didn't think he missed much.

"My world doesn't have anything precisely similar," Raine added after a moment, still smiling. "There are fakes -- small monsters that mimic wood or stone, often container items like chests or urns -- but, perhaps for the best,
that's the closest anything comes to outright shapeshifting."

"My hat," Skulduggery confirmed with a nod. "My hat was made by one of the best magical tailors in the world. It was bulletproof, weather-proof, and age-proof." He reached up and tapped the brim of the hat he was wearing with a long finger. "The one I have now is nowhere near as valuable, but it's starting to retain some sentimental value. It's a testament to those shapeshifters' skills that they managed to fool even me while replacing such a marvelous hat."

And not at all a testament to how driven or unobservant Skulduggery was at the time. Nope. Not at all.

He nodded at her description, as though he had firsthand knowledge of the small shapeshifting creatures from Raine's world. "Mimicry is an entirely different discipline where I come from," he told her. "You're very lucky indeed that's as far as they can go. They sound more like practical jokers than anything dangerous."

"It's a shame the other was lost." At least, she presumed if it had survived the encounter, he would have reclaimed it somehow. Sentiment carried its own weight, however.

"My students would likely disagree regarding danger," Raine said, lightly. "Like most monsters, fakes are carnivorous, territorial, and more aggressive than their size would suggest. Many also have the benefit of a resistance to elemental mana. It enables them to survive in extreme environments, and also grants them a degree of hardiness that often takes novice fighters by surprise."

She had a very clear recollection of the fake they'd encountered in the Triet ruins, mostly because it had dealt more injuries than the Seal's ancient guardians had managed.

"Where does the line between shapeshifting and mimicry lie, then?" she asked next, curious. It was also a point of interest that there were specifically magical tailors, but likely not so different from the smiths who specialized in magically augmented armor.

It sounded like the 'fakes' took a bit of finesse, then. Skulduggery was no stranger to that, but neither, he suspected, was Raine. Her students might disagree with small shapeshifting mimics being relatively harmless, but Raine herself very likely didn't disagree. She wasn't a novice fighter.

Skulduggery inclined his head. "Mimics are sorcerers - or small creatures - who can copy an existing object to exact detail. They're very uncreative. Shapeshifters are sorcerers - or small creatures - who can shift into any form they choose, limited only by their own imagination and power. They can also be uncreative, and frequently are, which is fortunate for me since they also tend to be criminals."

They'd learned, as time went on, how to handle monsters such as those with more efficiency, but the early days had left their mark, and no one was particularly fond of the little beasts.

The distinction was a sensible one, and she nodded. "It seems like shapeshifting should go hand in hand with creativity," she mused aloud. Still, most was not all, so there was that hope at least. Such a power deserved to be used to its full potential, though preferably not criminally. "Do you encounter many criminals in your everyday life?"

"I'm a detective," said Skulduggery. "Yes, I encounter many criminals in my everyday life. They run the gamut from unimaginative thrill-seekers to diabolical masterminds. I've arrested the instigators of war, and I've arrested a man who locked himself in a hidden room and eventually suffocated. His was the easiest arrest I've ever made, admittedly."

Her world didn't have much call for detectives, but at least the concept did exist, and that spared some confusion. No wonder he had such a broad range of life experience. So to speak. "While legal definitions likely differ, is it still arrest if the criminal is already dead?" She watched the path ahead rather than Skulduggery for the moment; she didn't leave the city proper that often and it was, overall, an impressive thing.

TEL VISHAN BEACH PARTY

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