Vigil

[quillpleasant]

A Bridge too Far

Octavia effortlessly flies up alongside Khannie, unaffected by the wind and low temperature. Temperature extremes aren't really something she's aware of. But she can certainly appreciate the architecture! In fact, she could float around and study this place all day.

Not having a body sucks, but the flying is a pretty nice perk.

And then Lapis! Octavia quickly snaps a picture of her. -yes, galgal, current designation octavia! your designation is lapis, correct? pleased to make your acquaintance-

[Zefir]

The Battered Shield

A while after Mia has set up the golem on another island, and aranged someone taking him down, She takes a seat at the Battered Shield. Her gear with her in a cart.

She takes a seat in a corner, placing the cart close. She creates a screen where the blueprints of her devices are and starts working on them. Even thought the solution Eddi gave her wasn t something she can do, he has pointed out a flaw in them. So she goes over the blueprints in search for a solution.

Looking at her it is easy to say somethings off. Her expression looks sad and it doesn t seem its related to the things she does right now, rather the work is a distraction from thoughts she has.

[Ironsmith]

[The Battered Shield]

"Hey there."

Mia will promptly be joined by one of the waitresses; a blonde woman with what appears to be a VR headset over her eyes. She takes a seat opposite the priestess, folding her arms in front of her on the table. "You all right, miss?" Angela asks, tilting her head quizically. "I'm seeing a lot of cortisol and not so much serotonin in that head of yours. Something's got you down, huh?"

[Zefir]

[The Battered Shield]

Mia looks up startled. She was so in thoughts and work that she missed her. Not that you can't expect people in a tavern. Still She sights and turns to her clueprints to save her progress befor turning back to the waitress.

"I would appreciate if you could keep medical conditions secret." she says. It doesn't sound to seriouse.
"Yes, I recently had to talk with a stranger who used our training field without even asking. For me thats rude and also he destroyed part of it. But the real reason is, if it had come to a fight would he just smash me to bits? He seemed strong and so I wonder. Did I made any progress since the destruction of the old base? Can I participate in combat if needed? Am I a burden?"

[Ironsmith]

[The Battered Shield]

"Ooh, yeah, that's... sounding familiar." Angela grimaces. "Seems like every week or so, we get somebody in here asking the same question. Usually a rookie. First time I've seen someone with as much seniority as you get down in the dumps about it."

She pauses, folding her hands together. "...I'm not entirely certain if this helps." She continues. "But not everyone here at VIGIL needs to be a combatant. I mean, look at me. Unless you count beating up my little jerk of a brother growing up, I've never thrown a punch in my life. But that's not really what you guys ask of me, right?"

[Shadowcaller]

[Khafir's Lab]

...And in all the excitement, he still didn't delete the photos.

Hm.

Khafir watches him leave, and then continues watching him after he leaves. She'd promised to take care of those photos herself if he didn't; now she'd have to make good on that, or else he'd be under the impression he could get away with wuch blasé noncompliance. It wouldn't be a particularly complicated procedure... as long as he's comnected to some form of network and required to put forward some kind of credentials, remote access was at least theoretically possible.

...Except for a small problem. He's still a high-ranking member of HALO. Leadership, in fact. And with all the sensitive data that was likely in that phone, if she did hack into it for the purpose of deleting three photos that ultimately didn't give out very much information, she ran the risk of causing an incident. The exact kind of thing Commander Mithar told her she wanted to avoid.

And then the realization. She might not be perfect at reading people, but Reinholdt did seem a little... rattled. She may have caused an incident already.

...Not having a functioning amygdala could be such a problem sometimes.

Khafir returns to her computer and types in a few commands, putting her lab on lockdown until she can confirm Reinholdt has left the island. No further access to this space for anyone until she's lifted it. She has somewhere else she needs to be and that meeting will require her full attention.

Cessie is going to want to know about this.

[Khafir's Lab]

"Come one in, please." Cessie bids the doctor, giving her the 'what disaster have you caused now?' look which ironically pretty much anyone but Khafir would recognize at this point. "What can I do for you, Dr. Khafir?"

[Ironsmith]

[Khafir's Lab -> Cessie's Office]

It's a little unexpected, how readily Cessie sees her. Not because there's nothing else occupying her attention; Khafir could always scout that out ahead of time. Really, the surprise was that Cessie was still willing to see her, given how many of their meetings tended to take a turn for the worse.

But, she's not going to dwell on it.

"Commander." Khafir greets, taking a seat. "I am here to advise you of recent events. Reinholdt Terenti just visited me in my laboratory, unannounced." She explains. "While we were there, he generated unauthorized documentation of the contents of said laboratory. I asked him to delete it, and what ensued was... I believe the colloquial term would be a 'pissing contest'. It seems like the sort of interactuon of which you would prefer to be informed."

[Shadowcaller]

[Cessie's Office]

The time Cessie would be unwilling to see her would be the same time Khafir would be asked to leave the organization.
Since the more awful the disaster the more keen Cessie was to hear about it. Since doing damage control was part of her job and Khafir's job seemed to be to do damage.

As these news would suggest.

"A pissing contest." She repeats in a monotone voice as she turns around the portrait of Jillian on her desk so it was facing away from her. She didn't want her to witness this.
"Could you clarify what Rein was so interested in and what this 'contest' consisted of?"

[Ironsmith]

[Cessie's Office]

"His official business- insofar as the label applies- was a follow-up meeting with regards to the mental state of mister Quire. That portion of our meeting was not especially lengthy. Before I met him in person, however, he showed a keen interest in the cogniforms I am studying, and seemed to be planning to release them at a later date; as I caught him photographing the lab's security measures. He also very nearly caused a containment breach while he was there, though I managed to avert it... and as an aside, expect future reports to contain data on subjects thirteen and fourteen."

"As for the... contest, I asked for permission to delete the photos from his device. He refused, citing it as containing sensitive information, and did not volunteer to do the procedure himself. From there, I clarified I was still capable of deleting the information in question, with or without his cooperation. He... did not seem to like that."

[[brackets lover]]

[A Bridge Too Far]

Ardi furrows his brow with wounded pride. "I'm not lost! I know exactly where I am and where I'm going towards. Lost. Pshaw, as if I would ever get lost."

He throws his hands behind his head, a smug, confident look on his face.

[Rebonack]

[A Bridge Too Far]

"Lapis is some sorta angel too, I guess? I don't think she's from the same place you are, though," Khannie comments.

"Mother made me here," Lapis replies, providing little insight into where she's actually from. But when Ardi announces that he isn't lost Lapis beams with delight! "Oh! I thought you were that means you don't have to use Miss Geneva's bridge and I can show you my favorite trees instead!"

Khannie gives a sigh, "He's lost he just doesn't wanna admit it."

What's with guys not wanting to admit that they don't know where they are? It's dumb.

[Zefir]

[The Battered Shield]

"Ooh, yeah, that's... sounding familiar." Angela grimaces. "Seems like every week or so, we get somebody in here asking the same question. Usually a rookie. First time I've seen someone with as much seniority as you get down in the dumps about it."

She pauses, folding her hands together. "...I'm not entirely certain if this helps." She continues. "But not everyone here at VIGIL needs to be a combatant. I mean, look at me. Unless you count beating up my little jerk of a brother growing up, I've never thrown a punch in my life. But that's not really what you guys ask of me, right?"

[The Battered Shield]

Mia widens her eyes at that number. "That many?" She says. "How can we miss so much."

"It is a different. Sure there are more preferable combat trained member, but I chose to be one as well. I even went through Wenomirs training. It s hard to find an example. It feels like reading an instruction but never build it. I am not sure where i can go from here."

[quillpleasant]

A Bridge too Far

-you're an angel???- Somehow Octavia's synthesized voice is able to convey multiple question marks with ease. -that's so cool! i've never met an angel who's anything like you!-

By which she means that Lapis at least seems to be flesh and blood. None of the angels from Octavia's world are made of meat.

-ardi, there's nothing wrong with being lost. you don't even know how you got here- she points out. He just... appeared, mysteriously. At least when Octavia appeared here, it was intentional.

[Shadowcaller]

[Cessie's Office]

"His official business- insofar as the label applies- was a follow-up meeting with regards to the mental state of mister Quire. That portion of our meeting was not especially lengthy. Before I met him in person, however, he showed a keen interest in the cogniforms I am studying, and seemed to be planning to release them at a later date; as I caught him photographing the lab's security measures. He also very nearly caused a containment breach while he was there, though I managed to avert it... and as an aside, expect future reports to contain data on subjects thirteen and fourteen."

"As for the... contest, I asked for permission to delete the photos from his device. He refused, citing it as containing sensitive information, and did not volunteer to do the procedure himself. From there, I clarified I was still capable of deleting the information in question, with or without his cooperation. He... did not seem to like that."

[Cessie's Office]

"I must admit Doctor, I'm still not sure-" Cessie suddenly pauses and folds her hands.

"Actually, this could be an opportunity. See, I understand that the cogniform project is something you have put a lot of effort into but I simply don't think it should fall under VIGIL's purview. Given that Rein isn't the first person who have let themselves be influenced by the creatures and that the base has been under attack before I consider the entire thing something of a security risk. Indeed, the way you've described them they seem to be like a potential apocalypse in themselves."

The commander was expecting objections at this point but she wasn't quite done.

"So I would like you to hand over the project to HALO and give them all the necessary data about the cogniforms. So I want you to travel there and explain to both Rein and the rest of the organization what the projects goals and risks are. Furthermore, while you're at it, you could also introduce yourself and your abilities. In fact, you should probably do that first before getting into the project. I will accompany you and help out with the social details." Like explaining all of this to Rein without insulting him.

[[brackets lover]]

[A Bridge Too Far]

"Yeah, well..." Ardi says in a defensively tone, a haughty look on his face. However, despite his attitude, he actually doesn't argue his point anymore. "Everyone's mother's made them. Duh. My dad told me that the goddess on high herself personally appears before women in loving relationships and blesses them with the power to make a child. I betcha didn't know that, huh?" He has a confident grin on his face.

[Rebonack]

[A Bridge Too Far]

Lapis seems a bit confused.

As usual, anything other than being one hundred percent forthright is puzzling to her. When the Burning Light of Truth blazes on your tongue it's hard to speak anything else. Being deceptive, even a little bit, is largely lost on her.

"So we DO have to go see Miss Geneva?" Lapis asks, seeking clarity.

"Yeah we've still gotta go see her," Khannie replies. Then she gives Ardi a curious look. "Sounds like the gods are pretty intervene-y where you're from. Like, with EVERY mom?"

That sounds like a whole lotta work.

"Okay! Follow me this way!" Lapis says, setting off toward the elevator that leads into the interior of the island. As she goes she speaks to the galgal! "I only look this way when I'm all folded up! If I didn't then I would have to tell people not to be afraid all the time and they might still be afraid anyway and that would make me sad. Are the angels were you're from not able to do that?"

[quillpleasant]

A Bridge Too Far

-not everyone! i don't have a mother, just a dad- says Octavia cheerfully. She's been learning the details of familial relationships, but there's still some aspects that escape her.

As they set off, Octavia buzzes along, feeling more confident in being away from her body now that they're in the presence of another angel. Mortals are great, but other celestials are a comfort, even ones different from the ones she grew up with.

-folded up? oh, you mean your body is a vessel! that makes sense. we have vessels too, but they're forged and crafted from chemicals and metal, they're not made of meat. i don't know how that would even work- She lets out a bell-like laugh. -but yes, people aren't afraid of me because i'm one of the weakest and smallest of my choir. i can see mortals being scared of the others, even if that's silly-

[[brackets lover]]

[A Bridge Too Far]

"Uh..." Ardi says uncertainly, raising an eyebrow towards Khannie, "I guess so! It certainly explains why women act so strange when they're pregnant."

He returns Khannie's curious look, asking, "Say, what do you mean by 'gods' anyways? It sounds like 'Goddess'. Is this just some otherworldly language slime?"

[Rebonack]

[A Bridge Too Far]

"Pff," would be Khannie response to Ardi's comment on pregnant women. "I think it's just 'cuz they're fulla babies."

Being fulla babies drives people to want strange things!

The question, though, gets a pretty befuddled reaction outta Khannie. "Like a goddess but not a lady? I guess they haven't got any of those where you come from?"

That definitely seems weird. But Khannie is pretty accustomed to boy gods and girl gods and ineffable genderless gods. When you've lived in the Nexus most of your life you invariably grow use to a whole panoply of strange entities.

Meanwhile!

"No it isn't a vessel it's made out of the same stuff as me I just have to hold myself so that 'little girl' is the only thing people see," Lapis kind of but not really explains. "I could unfold and show you but then Ardi might get scared!"

"Ardi's a legendary hero I dunno if you've gotta worry about him getting scared," Khannie interjects. "And I've seen Witches so crazy abstract stuff doesn't really bug me anymore."

[quillpleasant]

A Bridge Too Far

-there are many gods and goddesses and other creators of various types across the dimensions. for instance, my choir was created by Ba'al- says Octavia to Ardi. She understands where he's coming from. When she first learned about other gods from other worlds, it had as confusing as it was exciting.

Then she's completely distracted by Lapis. -not a vessel? i do not understand but i dearly want to. please show me! if you're unwilling to unfold in the presence of mortals, then i can remain after they're gone. understanding other celestials is an important part of my mission here- Octavia says, pulsing with excitement.

[[brackets lover]]

[A Bridge Too Far]

"Uh..." Ardi says, looking down the hall they're walking through, "Try not to let yourselves get distracted here. 'Sides, true form reveals are best saved for big, dramatic moments, anyways."

[Rebonack]

[A Bridge Too Far]

"Okay! I'll just wait until Khannie and Ardi are talking to Miss Geneva about portal things and then I can show you!" Lapis says, since she has zero concern for maintaining dramatic tension.

Down the elevator and through the sterile halls of the VIGIL island interior!

Soon enough, they'll reach the lab doors that house Project Bifrost. There are several warning signs cautioning readers of the presence of exotic mass in use, high energy experiments, and warning against bringing food and drink into the lab. No food in the lab! It isn't safe! There's a large red light (currently off) under a sign which reads: 'Experiment in Progress'.

Lapis pushes a buzzer on the door and a few seconds later there comes a magnetic buzz from the locking mechanism before the door swings open.

The interior of the lab beyond is dominated by an enclosed double chamber with an array of devices pointing inward. It isn't neat and pristine, far from it. It looks cobbled together and uses a vast array of different magical and technological components as eclectic as the inhabitants of the Nexus itself. The outer doors of the chamber are currently open and some sort of six-wheeled rover with scorch marks all over it is currently trundling into the lab proper.

There's also a middle aged woman in a lab coat with pink hair currently eyeing a tablet computer.

"Hey Auntie Geneva," Khannie calls out as she trots inside. "This is Ardi, he just got castaway here in the Nexus, like, less than an hour ago."

The woman looks up from her tablet, gives a hmm, and fetches a pair of grayish cylinders from a desk nearby. "Hold these, please," she says, offering them to Ardi.

[quillpleasant]

A Bridge Too Far

-yay! i am very excited for this to happen, yes indeed- says Octavia, without a hint of irony. Maybe this whole weird ordeal will be worth it after all!

She follows along with the others, bobbing through the air like a bumblebee. Upon seeing all the weird stuff going on here, she reconfigures herself into a video camera, peering around at the various experiments as she records them for future studies. This place looks like the world's biggest toy store, and Octavia is feeling like a five year old.

-this place is soooo cool! what does your organization do again?- she asks, slowly rotating in order to see everything. Why didn't her superiors send her here instead of a highschool?

And upon seeing the pink lady, she switches back into a polaroid and snaps a picture. -designated: auntie geneva. pleased to meet you!-

[[brackets lover]]

[A Bridge Too Far]

Ardi raises an eyebrow in suspicion as he's handed the cylinders, cautiously accepting them. "Um... pleasure to make your acquaintance, lady Geneva."

Ardi looks about the room before turning back to Geneva, speaking with an urgent tone. "I've been told you can help me get back to my world. I must return as soon as soon as possible! Monsters could be ravaging the kingdom as we speak!"

[Rebonack]

[A Bridge Too Far]

Geneva isn't totally sure what to make of the photography but she's definitely grown accustomed to similar levels of exuberance from Lapis. "VIGIL is dedicated to ameliorating potential threats to the Nexus as a whole. My work is mostly focused on controlling and manipulating Einstein-Rosen bridges, both natural and artificial, to allow both exploration and prevent mass ingress of hostile forces."

Wow she sure is a nerd.

She also checks the tablet she's holding.

"Those cylinders are recording your 4-brane resonance; the signature of your home reality. Once the information has been processed I'll set the Bifrost Chamber-"

Geneva pats the VERY complicated looking machine that dominates her lab.

"-to search mode. Once it's found your home reality the next step will be finding WHERE your world is within that reality. As you may be aware universes are often quite large and we wouldn't want to open up a bridge to a random point of empty space."

That would be bad.

"Did you emerge into the Nexus through an active portal or did you simply appear here?" Geneva inquires of Ardi.

Meanwhile!

Khannie is checking out the robot that just rolled out of the Bifrost chamber. It's a pretty fancy looking sensor platform atop a bunch of wheels. Not as fancy of a probe as Octavia, obviously, but still pretty fancy.

Speaking of Octavia!

"Since everyone's busy I can show you what I'm like unfolded but we should do it out of the lab Miss Geneva doesn't like it when I do it in here," Lapis informs the galgal.

[quillpleasant]

A Bridge Too Far

-potential threats? that does sound promising- says Octavia thoughtfully. After all, she's already proven very skilled at saving people and defeating threats on a smaller scale, so why not a bigger one?

But if she was interested in joining, she'd have to run it by her superiors first, and she's not here to be a hero. The heroism is secondary to information gathering. So as interesting as Einstein-Rosen bridges are, that'll have to wait.

What doesn't have to wait is Lapis! Octavia does a loop-the-loop in the air.

-yes please! you lead the way- she says excitedly.

[[brackets lover]]

[A Bridge Too Far]

Ardi pauses for a second, thinking before speaking up, "Um, the last thing I remember was... fighting a really powerful monster and... then... I awoken in the school. I can't tell what happened!"

He shakes his head, distraught. After a moment, he clicks his tongue, worriedly correcting Geneva, "Oh, but... I only have 1 brain. Will this still work?"

[Rebonack]

[A Bridge Too Far]

Khannie, for her part, is looking at some weird alien plant samples in jars that were collected by the trundling probe. They definitely look weird.

"Hmm, I see," Geneva replies to Ardi, still examining her tablet. Then a moment later she goes, "What?"

It seems to take her a bit to process the nature of his correction. "Oh. Oh! I scan see how that would be confusing. A '4-brane' is a technical term for a universe. It doesn't have anything to do with brains. Don't worry about the scientific jargon."

"Scientists have gotta use big words nobody else understands. It's a compulsion," Khannie says, making a face at the weird mimic plant in the jar that does it's best to replicate it.

Meanwhile!

Lapis will lead Octavia back out into the hall which is, at the moment, not occupied by anyone else. Really, most of the people around VIGIL have seen Lapis unbound at some point so it isn't too big of a deal, right? Octavia is just curious!

"Okay I guess I probably don't have to tell you not to be afraid since you're an angel too but here goes!" Lapis says.

What happens first is... odd.

Have you ever seen one of those works of art that consists of a large number of various random objects but when viewed from a specific angle it forms a particular image? And how when you change your perspective it just kind of... comes apart?

That's what happens to Lapis.

As if the half-drow girl were just an artifact of looking at her from one particular perspective and when she moves suddenly that illusion comes flying apart.

She shifts and folds and unfurls and what emerges is absolutely NOT a thing of flesh and blood in any traditional sense of the term. Reality itself seems to strain around her, visual artifacts flickering over surfaces as if the world were struggling to make sense of what's standing there.

Something like a magpie, unbound by the chains of the world and filled with probing curiosity.
Something like a dragon, strength and glory bound up in an unwavering guardian.
Something like glass, smooth and hard and sharp and glittering, dividing the world into a myriad of reflections.
Something like a shark, liquid motion and ten thousand teeth rasping against each other in eerily beautiful harmony.

This is no mere jumble of parts, but a unified whole. There comes the creeping impression that all of her features were hers and hers alone and the beasts and objects that bear her image are mere reflections of her.

Her presence DIVIDEs the world not into dissolution, but into distinction.

[quillpleasant]

A Bridge Too Far

Octavia flits after Lapis excitedly, the others completely forgotten. Being bodiless for a while is a small price to pay to witness a higher angel's true form- especially an alien angel.

-i don't know if i've ever been afraid? so don't worry about that!- she says cheerfully, hovering in place to watch Lapis transform.

And as the unfolding takes place, Octavia's many eyes all grow increasingly wide until it almost looks like they're about to pop from their sockets. Which would take some doing considering she's incorporeal.

The little angel's mind is capable of processing and sensing information in a different way than mortals, and she's seen many celestials in her time. Although none were quite like Lapis, they were uniquely alien in their own way. Which means that as predicted, this sight doesn't scare her. In fact-

-lapis! you're soooo pretty!- she says, spinning around in excitement, -ohhh i just love the way that you're uncontained by space, it's so fetch!- Usually a bright white in color, Octavia's glow flickers into waves of green and pink before she regains her composure.

-gosh, if i looked like that i don't know if i could stay folded, mortals or no mortals. you're sooo lucky- she says, sighing dreamily.

[[brackets lover]]

[A Bridge Too Far]

"Ah, got it!" Ardi responds cheerfully, happily continuing to hold the cylinders. Oddly enough, he seemed to be a lot more patient now then he was before, graciously compling and listening intently to anything Geneva says.