⚡ 11th zap | action ⚡ forward-dated to morning of May 5th

[i_am_not_cute]

[There's a familiar young woman stalking the streets of Luceti today, newly returned from her mallynapping a week ago. But those who know her will quickly realize that something is...off.

There are the physical differences, for one. She's slightly taller, wears her hair longer, and carries herself a little tighter, like a coiled snake ready to strike as needed. Her expression is intense and wary, not cheerful like it usually is. And she carries a katana with her -- a strange choice, considering her trademark weapon as a Hero (and the fact that she never walked around armed in Luceti).

Ah...Heroes and HeroTV. That's where things get interesting with this one. She remembers a certain event from her world rather differently from before, and as a result she's a girl with a mission now. Her purpose in Luceti is to rest a bit from her earlier ordeals and to learn enough to get her where she needs to go; she doesn't intend to stay any longer than she has to. After all, there's nothing that anchors her here aside from unfortunate circumstances. Friends? Don't be ridiculous -- she lost all her friends four years ago. It's the whole reason she's even stuck here in the first place.]


((OOC: Replies to come from lightningbride! You can find Bride-Lin practically anywhere in Luceti during the daytime as she scopes out the village and tries to gather information. Evening is reserved for other ridiculousness...))

Comments

[action] placeholder!

[hiken_ace]

[Ace was just taking a walk through the village, as per usual, until he noticed a... slightly familiar head of hair. He raised his hand and called out to her.]

Oi, Pao-lin! [It was her, right? Just a way to check.]

[action]

[lightningbride]

[Before she can think about it, Pao-Lin stops upon hearing her real name being spoken by an unfamiliar voice.

...maybe it's not what she thinks it is. Maybe it's just a massive coincidence, and there's someone else named Pao-Lin in this podunk village.

So, after a moment to recompose herself, she continues walking.]

[action]

[hiken_ace]

--uh, Pao-lin? [She stopped, so... she definitely heard him, right? He walks up to her to get a better look, and offers her a smile.]

Hey! When'd you grow out your hair? Looks good.

[action]

[lightningbride]

[Okay, shit. He was definitely talking to her.

Pao-Lin turns around to face him with a slight frown on her face.]

How do you know my real name?

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[hiken_ace]

[That's... not really like her, and it's really, really weird.]

You told me. last year when we first met.

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[lightningbride]

[Last year? She was still in a coma last year. What is this guy talking about?]

Sorry, I've never seen you before in my life. Who are you?

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[hiken_ace]

[He just stares for a bit before sighing.] Shit, you probably went home and forgot.

Uh, I'm Ace. When you were here before, we were friends.

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[lightningbride]

...I've never been to Luceti before either. This is the first time I've even heard of the place, never mind been here.

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[hiken_ace]

Ah, no. What happens is people come here, and sometimes they leave, but come back and don't remember. Something to do with time, I think.

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[lightningbride]

[That's absolutely ridiculous. How can that sort of thing even happen?]

How do you know something like that?

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[hiken_ace]

I've seen it happen before. And apparently, the same thing happened to me four times.

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[lightningbride]

Four times?!

[She doesn't yet believe Ace on this issue, but whether or not it's true, the concept is still horrifying to her.]

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[hiken_ace]

I don't remember any of them, but I was apparently here.

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[lightningbride]

[Ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous. With a sigh, Pao-Lin tries a different tactic.]

HeroTV. Albert Maverick. Dr. Rotwang. Sternbild. Do you know about any of those things?

[action]

[hiken_ace]

[He just shakes his head.] Sorry, never even heard of them.

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[lightningbride]

What do you know about the area surrounding Luceti, then? Is there a larger city nearby that I can get to?

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[hiken_ace]

Luceti's all there is. We're surrounded by a barrier that keeps us in here.

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[lightningbride]

[She doesn't believe this, either. Well, okay, she can believe that Ace wouldn't know if there was anything nearby Luceti -- she certainly didn't see much of note on the drive to the forest surrounding the village. But...]

A barrier? I didn't notice anything like that.

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[hiken_ace]

It's invisible. We can't see it above us [Points to the sky.] but it's there.

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[lightningbride]

That's not what I meant. [Though that information is useful -- if unsettling -- to know.] I wasn't informed of anything like that, and I didn't run into any resistance when I walked here. [Unless...] How big is this barrier supposed to be?

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[hiken_ace]

I'm not quite sure. I've never walked from end to end, but I imagine it must be pretty large. Maybe a few hundred miles? Maybe more.

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[lightningbride]

[A few hundred miles...Pao-Lin's terrible at guessing distances, but it was a hella long drive from St. Samael's to the edge of the forest.]

Do you know if a place called St. Samael's is inside this barrier you're talking about?

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[hiken_ace]

[He shakes his head somberly.] Luceti's all there is in this world.

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[lightningbride]

[Still not believing it. Luceti must just be too rural, that's all. Or maybe this guy forgot about what was outside Luceti, considering he's apparently been to Luceti four times but never remembered his previous times here.]

I see. Thank you for your help, then. Is there a place I can stay at here, like an inn or something?

[action]

[hiken_ace]

Yeah, there's a lot of community houses here for you to stay in. Houses, too. Some of them are empty, or you could room with friends of yours. I think some of them are here.