[Straightening, he digs into the inside pocket of the trench coat he's wearing for a moment. Then he produces a little miniature bottle of peach Crown, and places it on the railing of the bridge between them.]
I don't mind sharing. You can have the first swallows. I think we could both use a drink for what we've had to deal with.
[He waves his hand dismissively, and leans on the railing nearby with his forearms. He gestures to the bottle. Dozo, Hansa. The cap will come off crisp, too; it hasn't been opened.]
Not at all. Go ahead. Tell me if you like it. Some people prefer the apple one more.
[He doesn't rush Hansa. Just chills on the railing, looking out, until Hansa hands the bottle over.
He does pretty much the same thing without any kind of reluctance: throws it back, winces when it burns going down. They could probably get another two swigs out of it maybe. So he sort of bobs it at Hansa in asking.]
It's good. [His voice is ten times deeper now, like gravel.] But too much will sneak up and put you on the ground.
Ha. I've faced tougher enemies than that. But I'll be on my guard.
[He'll take the bottle from Blanca, lifting it up in cheers, before going for another swig. His body shudders as it goes down before he hands it back over - but just at the moment that Blanca asks that, and his face grows sullen.]
...I think I will. [He says, after a long, pensive moment, moving to lean forward on the railing to stare into the water.] I don't think I could walk away from something like that, after all he's been through. You?
I couldn't vote for him. I didn't vote for Kano, either, because I knew that kid didn't do anything besides bring misfortune on himself. We just missed the culprit. We can't let that happen again.
[He lets out a noise between a huff and a laugh, and he looks over at Blanca - he moves to rest his cheek on his own hand, and his smile is light, almost touched with fondness.]
Well, anyways, I'm just glad I won't be in this alone. Its kind of nice, having a partner.
I think your world and mine are the same...or similar. But I'm aware of a chaotic underbelly in my world that most aren't privy too. You see, in my world...we have mages.
Yes. Well, we have families of mages. They've lived for centuries, building up their own powers and forms of magecraft. Most people aren't aware of them, and the mages like to keep it that way.
[He frowns.]
They're selfish, greedy people, mages. Their ways of thinking aren't human. These are the type of people who will use their own children as their personal tools, or murder hundreds to get some magical artifact they have to get their hands on. Overall, a nasty bunch. And as part of the Church, we stand against them as natural enemies.
There actually was this kid I met before I woke up here. Flat Escardos, I think his name was. He was super impressed with my body and how it worked. Its just a shame that he's embroiled in all that mess in Nevada...
[He just shakes his head, his expression souring. That's right....Nevada...]
[Should he be glad that he's here, and not there? He wonders, some days.]
Ha, right, Las Vegas is there. Like a bunch of sinners and gamblers will save the country from the kind of destruction that's coming.
[He brushes aside some of his hair behind one of his ears, considering, thinking...before he finally huffs. Sure. He might as well tell someone outside the Servants.]
Do you know what a Holy Grail is? Or at least, have you heard of it?
Mm. Yeah, that's pretty much it. But specifically, what it does is have the ability to grant any wish a person desires. There's, of course, the original holy relic that contained the blood of Christ, but there are also artifacts that draw upon that original's power, and have immense magical power themselves. They appear very rarely from time to time, usually through rituals or circumstances that allow them to exist.
[A shake of the head.]
So, you have an artifact like that, and a bunch of mage families who will kill and murder to get any kind of power, so what do you think happens? A full-on war, of course. That's what's happening in Snowfield, Nevada. A Holy Grail War, and the poor inhabitants of that city are none the wiser as to the kind of devastation that it will bring.
[Well, this sounds very familiar, but in an extremely fantastical way.
He smile faintly, teasingly.] You sound like a Templar Knight. [And then he frowns in seriousness.]
I try not to get involved in the details of people's business. The profession I was in required neutrality and no emotion. To get the job done.
But there are things similar to this where I'm from. [He glances up.] I had a regular employer who just recently found a way to produce a hallucinogenic drug that caused people who took it to be controlled. He had plans to sell it to those in politics, and to the government to use on soldiers during war. They were testing it on criminals under the cover of rehabilitation.
Someone... a former student of mine, I guess you could say, was trying to stop him with his gang, and other gangs.
Which is to say, I understand, in a way, what you're trying to explain.
Haha, a Templar Knight? I guess so. Maybe my body is my armor.
[But even then, he's still very much a neutral player. He listens as Blanca speaks, his own frown mimicking the other's.]
A drug, huh? Doesn't surprise me, especially with the government's involvement. The US government is helping to fund and support key players in the Holy Grail War, too. [That's just how it is. The government wants to have its fingers in so many pies, for its own benefit.] Were you all succeeding? I can imagine how hard it is to bring an operation like that down.
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[A beat, and a short huff.]
Sangria...I haven't had that in a long while.
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I'm afraid I don't have sangria, though I admit it would be nice. I have a mini bottle of Crown Royal, however. It's peach.
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[He looks over at him.]
...You deserve it more, though, Blanca. Especially with everything you've had to deal with.
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I don't mind sharing. You can have the first swallows. I think we could both use a drink for what we've had to deal with.
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[He just glances at the bottle, then at Blanca.]
I mean...its very kind of you. I feel like I'm imposing, though.
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Not at all. Go ahead. Tell me if you like it. Some people prefer the apple one more.
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[He knocks back a single swallow, wincing as it goes down.]
Hm. [He hands it over to Blanca.] I actually don't mind the flavor. Its kind of nice and sweet.
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He does pretty much the same thing without any kind of reluctance: throws it back, winces when it burns going down. They could probably get another two swigs out of it maybe. So he sort of bobs it at Hansa in asking.]
It's good. [His voice is ten times deeper now, like gravel.] But too much will sneak up and put you on the ground.
...
Do you plan to keep working for Mister Won?
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[He'll take the bottle from Blanca, lifting it up in cheers, before going for another swig. His body shudders as it goes down before he hands it back over - but just at the moment that Blanca asks that, and his face grows sullen.]
...I think I will. [He says, after a long, pensive moment, moving to lean forward on the railing to stare into the water.] I don't think I could walk away from something like that, after all he's been through. You?
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I'm not pleased with the outcome of today, but... I would not have voted for him either. Not if it was self-defense.
So there isn't any reason for me to quit.
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[He lets out a noise between a huff and a laugh, and he looks over at Blanca - he moves to rest his cheek on his own hand, and his smile is light, almost touched with fondness.]
Well, anyways, I'm just glad I won't be in this alone. Its kind of nice, having a partner.
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[He turns his head to glance at Hansa, and the amusement brings a little of his own out over the dourness.]
I'm not usually a partner sort of man, but... you're right. I guess we're stuck together for a while longer.
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[He closes his eye, still smiling.]
Anyways...I guess we have a road ahead of us, huh?
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[He looks back out over the bridge, leaning down on the railing and lacing his fingers.]
You didn't tell me much about yourself before. I didn't want to pry. And I'm not offended; without knowing me, it's understandable.
Is this place very different than the one you're from?
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[He opens his eye, staring over at Blanca.]
I think your world and mine are the same...or similar. But I'm aware of a chaotic underbelly in my world that most aren't privy too. You see, in my world...we have mages.
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And then both brows lift in surprise.]
...Mages? Like--sorcerers?
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[He frowns.]
They're selfish, greedy people, mages. Their ways of thinking aren't human. These are the type of people who will use their own children as their personal tools, or murder hundreds to get some magical artifact they have to get their hands on. Overall, a nasty bunch. And as part of the Church, we stand against them as natural enemies.
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I think I understand. There are a few types like that in New York.
You've never met a single "good" mage, Hansa...?
[He sounds a bit teasing, but not in a mean way.]
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[But he lets out a laugh at that.]
There actually was this kid I met before I woke up here. Flat Escardos, I think his name was. He was super impressed with my body and how it worked. Its just a shame that he's embroiled in all that mess in Nevada...
[He just shakes his head, his expression souring. That's right....Nevada...]
[Should he be glad that he's here, and not there? He wonders, some days.]
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Must be dangerous. You would think Nevada would be a place under the radar. But Las Vegas is there.
Is there trouble?
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[He brushes aside some of his hair behind one of his ears, considering, thinking...before he finally huffs. Sure. He might as well tell someone outside the Servants.]
Do you know what a Holy Grail is? Or at least, have you heard of it?
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He does tilt his head somewhat at the question.]
I know of the Holy Grail from our fiction. The Arthurian one. It's--what? A cup, or stone treasure that gives eternal youth and happiness?
Something people say is not only hard to find, but hard to get.
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[A shake of the head.]
So, you have an artifact like that, and a bunch of mage families who will kill and murder to get any kind of power, so what do you think happens? A full-on war, of course. That's what's happening in Snowfield, Nevada. A Holy Grail War, and the poor inhabitants of that city are none the wiser as to the kind of devastation that it will bring.
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He smile faintly, teasingly.] You sound like a Templar Knight. [And then he frowns in seriousness.]
I try not to get involved in the details of people's business. The profession I was in required neutrality and no emotion. To get the job done.
But there are things similar to this where I'm from. [He glances up.] I had a regular employer who just recently found a way to produce a hallucinogenic drug that caused people who took it to be controlled. He had plans to sell it to those in politics, and to the government to use on soldiers during war. They were testing it on criminals under the cover of rehabilitation.
Someone... a former student of mine, I guess you could say, was trying to stop him with his gang, and other gangs.
Which is to say, I understand, in a way, what you're trying to explain.
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[But even then, he's still very much a neutral player. He listens as Blanca speaks, his own frown mimicking the other's.]
A drug, huh? Doesn't surprise me, especially with the government's involvement. The US government is helping to fund and support key players in the Holy Grail War, too. [That's just how it is. The government wants to have its fingers in so many pies, for its own benefit.] Were you all succeeding? I can imagine how hard it is to bring an operation like that down.
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