Arkangel
Terra Maledicta
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Futuristic [Archived] VOIB_ARC1_PART3
Arkangel
Terra Maledicta
Imperial Security Directorate
Director
Electra Greyhardt
Aericross International Starport, Aucteraden
The Aericross International Starport was the first of its kind. Unlike the other starports located around Agartha, the Aericross Starport is believed globally as the world’s safest starport, for its outstanding security and technology imbued within its safety systems in case of a terroristic attack.
And hidden deep within the confidential areas of the starport exists a private establishment used exclusively for the Imperial Security Directorate and their operations, functioning as a military base equipped with several battle fleets and armed starships. With authorization that can only be permitted by the director of the agency and the deputy director, the Aericross Starport doubled as an highly advanced military base, often used to store air vehicles and other armaments that the ISD may require when the time is right.
Electra Greyhardt, the Director of the ISD, had authorized the starport to be accessible for this specific day, as she was personally overseeing this operation through, as the head operational manager.
The Director stood before the onyx starship and checked the preparations with the chief engineer, giving her the thumbs up signaling that the starship was prepared for launch whenever she was ready. Another perfect timing, she thought to herself, as the quicker they would be sent to the sector, the better for Agent Jager.
“Cullanes is an environment that most Empyrians would only read in fiction. An unregulated sewer system, corrupt law enforcement, and streets that have never seen a day go by without a man being stabbed to death by its opposition.”
The Director passively smiled and faced the agents standing before her. “Agent Jager will be present upon your arrival to the sector. He will guide you through the lands of Cullanes, and be your field commander for this specific mission. All the resources required for the operation have already been sent and secured by the Agent. From here on out, all you have to prioritize is the objective: Neutralize the Sishen Yakuza’s port, and block all supply chains that are being sent to Zhenra.”
The majority of them were fairly new recruits with massive potential. Although it was risky to send them outside the domestic territories of the Empire, this was the perfect opportunity to use her. A woman who had recently joined the ISD under an approved alias. A criminal informant. As of right now, only Agent Eina and Zhao Jintao were aware of her true identity.
But there was a chance that her identity would leak to the others if things become hectic in the fiery battle against the forces of the Yakuza.
“Do enjoy your trip. We’re not using the standard spaceship for international travels for a reason. It’ll take no longer than 2 to 3 hours to get to your destination. The operation begins the moment you step foot onto the soil of Cullanes.”
The Director gestured to the entrance of the ship as it gradually opened, with the pilot most likely already present within the ship for take off. With all the preparations green the Director moved to the side and left them with one last note.
“I entrust this operation to your hands. I have high hopes, earnestly speaking. Let us not disappoint the Symbol of Revelation who requested this for her planned strike against the Yakuza. Though, I believe it’ll be a piece of cake for you talented agents of valor.”
Interactions:
Panther
(Dortmund),
Khocolatte
(Eina),
WinterFestivity
(Jiayi),
saxon
(Grimhex),
Purity
(Isolde),
Elucid
(Kane) ,
voided
(Fukui)Code by Serobliss
saxon
One Thousand Club
IMPERIAL SECURITY DIRECTORATE
GRIMHEX
KATRINA SARDET
AERICROSS INTERNATIONAL STARPORT, AUCTERADEN
Slowly walking through the facility as she was directed towards where the meeting was going to take place by a guide she had been assigned. Upon her arrival at the location where the briefing was going to take place. She saw the oynx colored ship that seemed to be getting worked on and loaded up with equipment. I wonder where that ship is going to go? Though I suppose that's need to know I should figure out more about the mission once the briefing starts. She thought to herself as she zoned out for a little bit in her own mind upon hearing someone talk about the mission she snapped back to reality to realize other agents were now gathered here as well. Looking toward the woman she instantly recognized who she was, the director. she had seen pictures of her hundreds of times.
Clasping her hands behind her back as she listened to the brief giving it her full attention. We are going to Cullanes? So we are going outside the Empire then, well this is going to be a lot more interesting. Though what could be the purpose of us going there? She pondered the various options as the brief continued to go on about the status of the mission and their contact once they land. Though the mission seemed fairly straightforward once they were told about the objective, eliminate a nest of criminals and keep supplies from going to a specific place. In the back of her mind, she didn't think that it was going to be a difficult mission. Upon the completion of the briefing, she nodded her head and looked at the other agents whom she was surrounded by.
Katrina looked around at the group curious as to what the skill set of this group was going to be like, so she took the first step. "Agent Grimhex," Katrina introduced herself as she looked at the others to see what they were going to say.
mentions:
Panther
(Dortmund),
Khocolatte
(Eina),
WinterFestivity
(Jiayi),
Arkangel
,
Purity
(Isolde),
Elucid
(Kane) ,
voided
(Fukui) -->
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WinterFestivity
Shez Emblem!
Imperial Security Directorate
Qinglong
Jiayi Yu
AERICROSS INTERNATIONAL STARPORT, AUCTERADEN
...Ah, trained senses gave away the approach of the recruits of which she was technically to be associated with, a deep inhale would be the only external reaction she had to the news, to be brought to this place alongside her, it was clear that this batch of I.S.D would-be’s were not mere amateurs. She’d silently shift her gaze towards them as they approached, quietly speaking as her gaze found itself turned towards Zhao. “It seems it’s time for me to take my place.” she’d state dryly, promptly taking up her place in the line.
There she stood with discipline nearly betraying her experience, as she listened to the directors' speech… Everything was already in place for a successful mission, it seemed, they just needed the manpower to carry it out, the manpower to carry out an attack on territory belonging to the Sishen. It almost caused Jiayi to smile wryly, but, emotion was something that she was trained to keep repressed. Her eyes would briefly scan over the Director, as she clearly knew what she was doing by sending her of all people on this mission, but she saw no cause to make anything more out of it. This was to be her mission and she would carry it out to her utmost ability, even if it meant the deaths of those she had “worked” with prior, not that she cared.
She’d offer one final nod to the Director as the spaceship was gestured towards and the final note given, only pausing upon words from that recruit, the one who looked the least fitting among the group that had been assembled, while usually, she would’ve simply ignored such things, this time was different. She’d stop for but a moment, glancing back towards “Grimhex” for but a moment to speak. “...Agent Qinglong.” her voice once more utterly dry and neutral. She’d then continue on her way, stepping up into the ship and taking her position as she awaited the rest of the groups’ own arrival, and for the arrival of her supervisors.
It was time for her to exercise her gift once more, whether it would be the full-blown erasure of those within the port or the mere apprehension, those who call themselves Sishen would be taught in the only way they understood; Force.
Mentions:
saxon
(Grimhex)
Khocolatte
(Eina)
Arkangel
Panther
(Dortmund)
voided
(Fukui)
Elucid
(Kane)
Purity
(Isolde)Code by Serobliss
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Elucid
Pearannoyed
Imperial Security Directorate
Gladiolus
Kane Albright
AERICROSS INTERNATIONAL STARPORT, AUCTERADEN
After a long day wandering about the place, Kane decided to rest and recuperate at a scenic café on top of an elevated artificial water body. The Directorate had provided a brief on the first mission he was about to undertake as an ISD agent. This seemed a better time than any to catch up on some reading. Kane had been intimately familiar with the Sishen Yakuza, having spent years in the SISS's Financial Crimes Bureau. While the number of actual arrests of Yakuza members had been woefully low, they were able to foil several attempts to gain new sources of legitimate revenue by the infamous criminal organisation. A few calls to friends back at the department, and a dossier regarding the port in question, with its suspected annual outflow of contraband and other tangentially relevant items, were immediately transmitted on his PADD display. The rest of the day went by in a daze, returning home from the café, not remembering whether he'd actually paid for the coffee. At least the ISD accommodations came furnished, meaning he could just ease himself into bed for some much-needed rest.
The next day came early; a transport had been arranged to chaperone Kane to the International Starport, where he was told the Director herself would be delivering their final mission briefing. He did not pay it much mind. After all, the head of operations was entitled to see off their field operatives. But the prickling sensation that this mission might be a bit more than he'd bargained for could not just be ignored. The section of the Starport used by the ISD and its functionaries was impressive, with numerous workers loading and offloading equipment. At the same time, a battalion of security staff ensured that all the safety requirements had been met. Some of the hardware coming into the station seemed new as well. It had been almost a decade since Kane was back in the military, and it always amazed him how quickly things became obsolete when it came to arms and armament. He'd been informed of the make of the ship he was set to travel on and the name of the special agent in charge of their mission, one Agent De Jagger, and not much else. Finding the starship in question wasn't difficult, as the onyx contraption was being loaded up with equipment and having a series of last-minute flight checks performed. There he was informed that he'd missed the guide tasked with gathering all the agents together at a predetermined area, and profusely apologised for ignoring the support staff during his exploration of the station. Kane had feared that he'd have missed the briefing due to this delay, but the Director seemed to have as yet not arrived. Allowing him to take a measure of the team in whose hands he was about to put his life. Most of them seemed... surprisingly green? Which was not a good sign. He wasn't allowed an opportunity to complain, however, as Director Greyhardt made her presence felt.
While her briefing had been acceptable enough, he hoped Greyhardt's speech was not intended as a pep talk in the end. The woman was intimidating enough, and asking the agents to enjoy their trip to Cullanes, expecting a speedy conclusion to their endeavour, seemed almost like a thinly veiled threat. At least to him. As the Director made her exit, Kane collected the duffel bag he'd brought with him, containing a change of clothes and some essential equipment, to be stowed safely on the ship. That was when the short brown-haired youngster introduced herself. Agent Grimhex, which Kane thought was an appropriately mysterious codename. There was a momentary silence in the air when the Demonoid answered with her own codename, albeit with a slight curtness, before shifting off into the starship and finding a place for herself. Taking his cue from Quinlong, he introduced himself, "Agent Gladiolus, a pleasure to make your acquaintance." Before going ahead and finding a berth to claim for himself.
Code by Serobliss
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Purity
Nebulous Member
Imperial Security Directorate
Aria
Isolde Caen
AERICROSS INTERNATIONAL STARPORT, AUCTERADEN
The facility was impressive, she was willing to admit that much. She’d read plenty about the starport’s reputation and prestige as being revolutionary in what it did, but stationary words of a text didn’t do it justice. She was on the landing from a set of stairs that went up to a very large walkway overlooking the main area, where thousands on thousands of people swarmed around like so many little rats. The walkway led off to other hallways as well, and so though she stood at a place where she might easily be picked out from someone below, there were enough people around her that she was just another face in the crowd.
Her entire life, summed up in a bitter sentence.
She had a place to be, however, and so she faded away from the spot she’d been using to survey the area. She took a very specific route around the halls and gates, going through this door and that to finally reach the area designated by her instruction set, and was satisfied to find that she’d arrived not to early, and not too late: the middle of the pack. Having people find their own way here was likely yet another way to keep discretion, if having a secret military base within a public international starport were any indication of the rules to go by.
Now it was time to play the game.
Grimhex had spent some time in the I.S.D. already. Her family had certainly spent some time in the I.S.D. Isolde only knew this since, as she’d expected most of the others around her had done, she’d obtained the manifest for the dark starship next to them that she expected to be their transport. But doing her homework only got her so far, and she was more reliant on first impressions regardless. Grimhex seemed to be open, too open, evident in both her stance and the way she reacted to the things around her. It was an easy assessment that she would likely speak first.
Qinglong was much more stoic in comparison, and to say that a grim determination was over her face would be an understatement. Now, here was someone that was too closed off, which was amusing for Isolde to see in such a short jump of her gaze. Her movements were about as static and cryptic as whatever she’d been discussing with the others a moment prior, disciplined and boring save for what might be inside of her head should Isolde ever wish to crack it open, which included the background that was on file. It had some uncanniness that Isolde couldn’t quite place, as if she were missing the pieces necessary to fill it all in. She was willing to guess that Qinglong had been first to arrive.
Gladiolus. At last someone that was interesting. He seemed like a man with his air of competence and polite coolness that befitted a man of his tenure and operational record, though she would have to admit there was some bias here. He had studied the same magic as she’d wanted to learn, been in some places she’d wanted to see, had the experience that she wished she had. Jealousy could be the word used here, but not quite. Respect, yes, and no. It was more of a desire to take the knowledge he had and make it hers, a desire she had always carried. Perhaps a partnership would be mutually beneficial, even with her own limited experience she would have to find some way to convince him. But if she made that too obvious, then the game was up. So she would have to approach him later.
And then there was, of course, the Director. No, that made it sound as if she’d expected her to be here. Isolde had no doubt her presence was significant, and the fact she’d taken command even more so, but that meant almost nothing to her. Electra Grayhardt. And she imagined it really didn’t mean anything to her, either. The monotony gave it away. The words might be different, but the intent, the purpose, it had been given a thousand times before and would be given a thousand time more. The words, which sounded genuine, were in fact another aspect of her performance, complimented by the lucidity of her actions and a smile that didn’t penetrate tired eyes.
There would be more time to finish the game on the ride to Cullanes, as Grimhex offered introductions like she expected. Isolde gave a very particular smile, a crafted one that spoke of genuine delight at meeting the acquaintance of others.
“Aria. I suppose we’ll get to know another soon enough?”
But she already knew who to push on, who would give her the most entertainment in the short term. Those who gave away nothing always had something, as far as secrets and the little things of this world went, and like a bloodhound to blood it always excited her. As she entered the transport, she situated herself next to Qinglong.
Her face, however, was not a hound’s face. It was of a child, forlorn and longing for a place that might remind them home, innocent of the things that she really carried with her.
“Are you… Jiayi? Are you also from Zhenra?”
Code by Serobliss
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voided
who is real.
Imperial Security Directorate
EREBUS
HIKARU FUKUI
AERICROSS INTERNATIONAL STARPORT, AUCTERADEN
But duty calls. And she was not one to be late. She had to impress, and impress she shall.
Walking through the starport with a duffel bag in hand, Hikaru was already taking the opportunity to take in her surroundings. Impressive was a word that could not define this starport alone; magnificent, sublime, and lofty were also words that popped into Hikaru’s head. She heard of this place through word of mouth and through various media she consumed, but it really was a different experience seeing it in person. As she was being guided to the onyx starship, she glanced at the many last-minute happenings around it. Perfect. Right on time.
She stayed quiet as the Director briefed her on the mission. Hikaru was slightly intimidated by the Director. Who wouldn’t be? This was a woman who had experience and power, something that Hikaru yearned for. One mistake and Hikaru felt that the woman would chew her out. Alright, maybe that was an over-exaggeration. It was wondrous how fast Hikaru could judge based on appearances. Thankfully, she kept most of it to herself.
Under her breath, Hikaru repeated the key points she picked up on; Agent Jager is the field commander, prioritizing the objective, neutralizing the port and blocking off supply chains. With that mental list in mind, Hikaru nodded along to the last few things director Greyhardt had said.
Wait, high hopes? Oh, hello pressure, Hikaru’s old friend. Taking a sharp inhale, Hikaru glanced around at her fellow agents, trying to keep her anxiety as subtle as possible.
Her gaze snapped back to Agent Grimhex, who began introducing herself. Grimhex, huh? That was an interesting codename. Part of Hikaru wanted to know what it meant, but there was a time and place to make small talk, and that time and place wasn’t now. She then looked over at the blue-haired Demonoid. Curt. Curt and boring was Hikaru's first impression of her introduction. At least Grimhex had some personality in her!
Before Hikaru could potentially make a jab at it, Agent Qinglong was already making her way into the starship as Agents Gladiolus and Aria introduced themselves. The man seemed to be the most calm and collected out of everyone here so far. Did he have prior experience with the ISD? Hikaru felt that he had. Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad thing to ask him for any tips that he had. Then there was Aria. Aria interested Hikaru the most out of everyone. Maybe it was because they looked similar in age and they were both new. Regardless, Hikaru simply smirked and nodded at her introduction.
“And I’m Fukui. Hikaru Fukui. Codename Erebus,” she introduced herself with her cocky, crooked grin as she placed one hand on her hip, the other hovering above her chest; just below her collarbone.
How overconfident. Maybe too much so.
Regardless, Hikaru followed the others into the ship, quickly glancing around where to sit. There would be plenty of time to get to know others, so for now she decided on bothering Qinglong, and through her, potentially Aria.
Of course if Grimhex and Gladiolus chimed in, she wouldn’t mind chatting it up with them either. Why would she say no to getting to know the whole gang.
Flitting over to the seat beside Aria, Hikaru sat down gracefully. Her cocky smile from earlier twisted into something more sly as she leaned forward a bit to get into view.
“Wow, you have quite the way with words, don’t you, Agent Qinglong! Lighten up a bit! Wave and smile, no one is going to bite... maybe.”
Code by Serobliss
Panther
I thinkn't, therefore I ain't
Imperial Security Directorate
Dortmund de Jager
The Ice Cream Man
Aericross International Starport, Aericross, Aucteraden
And soon enough indeed, the projector lights up, projecting the life-sized image of a rather young man. The man, presumably the Agent de Jager mentioned by the director, opens the conversation by commenting, “So this is the team that the director assigned for the job? Hm. Not bad picks considering that I’ve read the personal dossiers. A few greenhorns but this shouldn’t be a bad ‘training mission’ if you will.”
He clears his throat, “Anyway, I’m Agent Dortmund de Jager, the commanding field operative for this entire operation. We normally would’ve delegated this to the local authorities and military garrison in Cullanes but unfortunately, they cannot be trusted so I had to make a personal request for a strike force to be put together. Now, the director’s already told you of the general overview of the operation which is to disrupt the Sishen Yakuza’s operation by hitting their key bases of operations here, mainly ports that traffic narcotics and other important materiel to Agartha, but most importantly - people - especially Rythen refugees that want to escape from here with the intent of getting a good life on Agartha by any means.”
“It’s been rumored that the Sishen Yakuza partakes in human experimentation involving the refugees because of their inherent arcane potential that can be used to do a lot of things, even granting enormous power to people that normally wouldn’t or shouldn’t have. It’s no secret that the Rythens possess such potential, you’ll see it on medical journals, arcane research journals, the list of journals, scientific or otherwise, go on. All published after we accepted all the refugees that we did after the Invasion of Raignork.”
He sighs, “Unfortunately, a few years ago, the rumors have been confirmed. We just never had any reliable information and actionable intelligence to make a move against them, but now we do. An operation as big and pivotal to the Yakuza is pretty hard to conceal, especially when the refugees themselves are making reports of their friends and family going missing for any number of reasons. Thankfully, a few good eggs in the authorities brought the matter to us as we were investigating, we already told them to lay low as best they can. My people are already keeping tabs on them and are in charge of their protection, we never had enough people here to operate as effectively as we would’ve liked to begin with so to go any further, we were left with the rest of the authorities. I’d rather make the impossible trip to Caliburn Vitos and see the Queen personally than trust them with this operation which is where you people come in.”
“I’ll tell you more details of the circumstances and the strike operations once we're together. Going further with sensitive information will require me to meet you boys and girls in the flesh than me going over it through a secure line. The ship you’re taking will get you over here in just a few hours. And I must warn you, if you're expecting standards of living here to be low, Cullanes brings a shovel. You’ll be meeting with my twin brother at the starport. Fraternal twin, mind you, so don’t bother looking for someone who looks exactly like me. He will take you to my rather… eccentric base of operations. But while this trip is going, I’m open to certain questions and maybe I should also take this opportunity for I and the whole team to… socialize, you know, get to know each other beyond just the codenames you told each other. That kind of stuff. I don’t care who starts it off, I can tell some of you are just itching to talk. And maybe talk smack.” He chuckles.
Interactions:
Arkangel
(Zhao)
saxon
(Grimhex)
WinterFestivity
(Qinglong)
Elucid
(Gladiolus)
Purity
(Aria)
voided
(Erebus)Code by Serobliss
Arkangel
Terra Maledicta
Imperial Security Directorate
Tianshu
Zhao Jintao
Onboard the LWSS Marduk
The documents did not lie. However, Zhao wasn’t one for expectations, as he wasn’t exactly against the idea of sending this batch of recruits for this particular mission. Especially when they had one other skilled individual, Gladiolus, to offer his acumen when the time calls for his talents. And not to mention, both Agent Aria and Erebus weren’t exactly a plebeian undeserving of his praise. Not that he could talk, having a negative record when it comes to operations that he had once partook in when he was stationed in his home province.
But one thing was absolute. His pessimism that was born from his abused optimism knew for certain that nobility or not, it rarely ever mattered when it came to the dealings of the Sishen Yakuza.
“Tianshu… Agent Tianshu. I’ve been in service for roughly… 20 years, now? Graduated in Huazhong University, which is now being investigated for cooperating with the Sishen Yakuza in drug trafficking. Though, I should talk about something people don’t already know about when it comes to Zhenra and its blatant legalized corruption.”
Zhao chuckled, finding it all too ironic that after leaving his home province, he was now going to be stationed in the equally shit sector called Cullanes. This wasn’t going to be his first trip to the land of the lawless, but if one were to ask him of his experiences, he’d simply respond with a grunt.
“Yo, Katsuragi girl,” Zhao assumed her origin from her name, although he already knew of her birthplace before they had met, mainly because of the Director’s demand that he knew of everyone’s identities before take off. “Why don’t you start us off, yeah? No better time for us to bond before we inevitably get spray painted with bullets by one of Sishen’s paid hitmen. Knowing them, they already know we’re being sent for reconnaissance. Might as well get to know each other a bit better before we bite the dust.”
After several seconds of silence, Zhao chuckled and continued before anyone else could respond to his demeanor, “Hah, I’m jokin’. The Director wouldn’t send meat shields if she believed we wouldn’t return alive. A sophisticated woman, she is, I wouldn’t downplay that gaze of hers. If any of you meet with Karana Greyhardt in the future, do try to study her eyes. It runs in that family.”
Zhao strapped his seatbelt around his waist and gave the pilot the signal for take off, as the ship hovered above the landing platform and prepared to depart. “Anyway, my rambling aside. After Erebus, I wanna hear more about you, Sir Gladiolus. Then Aria and Grimhex. You’ve all got an interesting story to tell, I’m sure. Especially you, pretty boy. I bet you're hard to miss in a crowd of people.” Zhao joked, lazily pointing out Malo's silence.
Interactions:
Panther
(Dortmund),
saxon
(Grimhex)
WinterFestivity
(Qinglong)
Elucid
(Gladiolus)
Purity
(Aria)
voided
(Erebus)
OverconfidentMagi
(Malo)Code by Serobliss
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Elucid
Pearannoyed
Imperial Security Directorate
Gladiolus
Kane Albright
AERICROSS INTERNATIONAL STARPORT, AUCTERADEN
Once the briefing was at an end, and the holographic projector shut down with a satisfying swoosh, a taller agent of about Albright's height got the ball rolling by introducing himself and giving the team a glimpse of his background. He seemed competent, although slightly dejected. Albright had seen the type before. The type that had spent years in the mud and grime, with nothing to show for it in the end. It broke some people, turning good agents into the very thing that they'd sworn to fight against. Agent Tianshu didn't seem too far gone yet; perhaps there was still some hope for him. The agent had set up something of a roster, allowing everyone a moment to present themselves to the team. Accordingly, Albright waited patiently for Erebus to finish before taking his turn.
"Greetings, as I said before, the codename is Gladiolus." He began, straightening himself up a little bit. "I've served in the SISS for the better part of the last decade now. Every year we send a provisional attaché or two to the ISD to ensure the smooth functioning of Agartha's security apparatus. Although, I'd say most of the agents that apply for the post are likely envious of all that extra funding the powers that be seem to funnel your way. Some people back home seem to think that given the ISD's long history fighting Zhou Sishen and his spawn, we'd be better off spending that money elsewhere." That last little pointed remark was intended for Tianshu himself, although it was said half in jest. "But I digress, maybe it'd be better if I explain the usual functions I perform in a unit? My specialties are tactical misdirection and general support, so while I shall be counting on you all to drop bodies, you can rest assured that I shall have your back while you do so." Albright let out a dignified chuckle.
Mentions:
Panther
(Dortmund) |
saxon
(Grimhex) |
WinterFestivity
(Quinlong) |
Purity
(Aria) |
voided
(Erebus) |
OverconfidentMagi
(Malo)Code by Serobliss
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voided
who is real.
Imperial Security Directorate
EREBUS
HIKARU FUKUI
AERICROSS INTERNATIONAL STARPORT, AUCTERADEN
She quieted down as a hologram popped up not too far from her while she was still leaning forward from earlier. A subtle hum could be heard as she leaned back in her seat, crossing her legs ankle-on-knee to listen more comfortably to the man, Dortmund de Jager, speak. Like she did earlier, Hikaru made mental notes about the key points that caught her attention. The mention of human experimentation was accompanied by an eyebrow raise from Fukui. It wasn’t that she didn’t believe this was happening, she just didn’t expect this to be her first mission. Well, what better way to learn than to be thrown into the fray. Surely if Hikaru couldn’t handle this, she would have no place in the ISD. There were no questions from her, everything felt straightforward. If anything, she may have questions once they land and get the sensitive information thrown at them.
For now, it seems that the higher ups wanted the group to get to know each other. Maybe she will have time to bother Gladiolus, Grimhex, and the pretty boy after all.
She tensed up for a second as another person began talking, someone who called himself Tianshu. Frankly, she didn't see him on the way in, so him suddenly speaking gave her a slight spook. Another veteran, eh? Another one to add to the list of people to talk to for any advice. Although, any desire to talk to him quickly went down the drain as he began to address her. Katsuragi girl? She didn’t like being called Katsuragi Girl. In fact, she didn’t like a lot of nicknames that were thrown at her in the past. Did he not catch her name? With a scoff and an amused grin on her face, she listened to the senior Agent speak. Hikaru looked at the man who called her that from the corner of her eye, studying him. Unlike Gladiolus, Tianshu came off as jaded, came off as someone who coped with whatever he went through by humor. It wasn't surprising. Being a part of any group that dealt with combat wasn't all fun and games. So while she didn't show it, Hikaru slightly understood his behaviour.
“Erebus.” Hikaru corrected Tianshu, not hiding that she disliked the name. ”I’m hurt! Did you really think I’d allow myself to be caught off guard and get riddled with bullets? If anyone else wants to volunteer as a bullet sponge, they can go right ahead.”
The woman let out a bitter chuckle as her fingers rhythmically tapped against her knee. Now what to say. She was never good at introductions. She normally left it at her name or codename and called it a day. There was no getting out of this, huh? With a sigh, Hikaru raked a hand through her hair, briefly pulling her bangs back as she lowered her leg.
“Anyway, as our lovely Tianshu said, I’m from Katsuragi. Lived there for most of my life before I decided to leave and head on over here. I’m a new recruit for the IDS and currently I’m bunking at the dorms for now. Now, my past, uhh...” Hikaru trailed off, still not too sure what to say. She didn't want to talk about her family. If she were to bring family up and be vague about it, she felt they'd just poke and prod at the topic. Well, to be safe, it was probably best to not bring them up at all. “Hm, I guess it’s worth mentioning that House Fukui is one of the noble families that dabble in the military, so from a young age I’ve been training. I specialize in long range combat with guns and prefer to be in the backlines in regards to combat, but if need be, I can get up close and personal.”
She said with a wink before quieting down. Her job was done for now, she glanced over at Agent Gladiolus and nodded, silently telling the man that it was now his turn to introduce himself. As he began, she toyed with the ring on her thumb, looking down at it while still paying attention to his words.
MENTIONS:
Panther
(Dortmund) /
saxon
(Grimhex) /
WinterFestivity
(Quinlong) /
Purity
(Aria) /
OverconfidentMagi
(Malo) /
Elucid
(Gladiolus) /
Arkangel
(Tianshu)Code by Serobliss
Purity
Nebulous Member
Imperial Security Directorate
Aria
Isolde Caen
AERICROSS INTERNATIONAL STARPORT, AUCTERADEN
Sharing was a weakness, whether that was her quarry or her emotions.
Erebus was going to be the problem child, she didn’t even have to look at the coy smile or the self-confident motions to know. Just the flippant tone of her voice and the fact that she picked up on the scent of trouble almost as quickly as Isolde had herself let her know that there would be a rebellious streak in this one. But she’d also seen the gaze of the girl earlier, looking at the director, calculating her reason for being there, the nervous glance and breath, the hesitation. To say that she had a difficult history with any kind of figures of authority in her life would likely be an understatement. Isolde may not have parents, and so might lack the experience, but she could read. Child psychology was a truly fascinating subject.
It turned out her aggravations were fruitless anyway, as her thoughts were interrupted by the projection of de Jager. There were sure a lot of chefs in the kitchen on this mission, though she didn’t particularly mind. It just meant that she would be able to assess the worth of more experienced agents in the agency. Since he stated they would be meeting him in person at some point or another, Isolde decided to hold her assessment on him later.
Zhao, on the other hand, was another amusing subject for her to recount. She hadn’t necessarily known he’d be on the mission, but she’d made enough educated guesses and it wasn’t as if she hadn’t spent at least a couple days after being accepted into the I.S.D. just looking through profiles of agents, seemingly at random. If she remembered correctly, his operational record was positively miserable. Maybe that might say something about the mission they were headed out on now, but that didn’t worry her in the slightest. She was far more interested to have another Zhenran on board, one that seemed to been jaded to the intricate complications of the district from a career built on having to navigate that maze. Especially after he asked everyone to introduce themselves.
Introductions would at least break up the boredom of the whole trip there, since she surmised that Jiayi wouldn’t be much of the talkative sort anyway. It wasn’t as if she were going to learn anything particularly groundbreaking in what people said here, but rather it was far more exciting to see what people didn’t say about themselves. The point of a test wasn’t to know all the answers beforehand – it was to cheat.
Her guileless and pure smile was almost genuine. Her previous operations, which of course hadn’t been many, had mostly been mundane office work with her being only included in name, it felt like. This was much more like it.
“I’m happy to meet everyone as well! You can call me Aria for this mission. I may not be the best for ‘dropping bodies’ either, but I’ll most certainly be able to tell you which bodies to drop. I specialize in surveillance and reconnaissance, bit of strategy on the side but I’m sure I’ll be learning from you much more knowledgeable folks on that front this time. Otherwise, no real interesting stories here I’m afraid. Just a girl from Zhenra.”
Sharing was, after all, a weakness.
Interactions:
Arkangel
(Tianshu) ⟡
Panther
(Dortmund) ⟡
saxon
(Grimhex) ⟡
WinterFestivity
(Qinglong) ⟡
Elucid
(Gladiolus) ⟡
voided
(Erebus) ⟡
OverconfidentMagi
(Malo)Code by Serobliss
WinterFestivity
Shez Emblem!
Imperial Security Directorate
Qinglong
Jiayi Yu
AERICROSS INTERNATIONAL STARPORT, AUCTERADEN
This one was a bit more of an enigma, she wasn’t quite as green as Grimhex, but she was still certainly far less experienced than Gladiolus and far more difficult to get a read on, such things felt troubling… Her internal thoughts were cut short as she’d find that very woman taking up position next to her within the ship, evidently with the intention of talking to Jiayi, much to her chagrin. There, with seemingly genuine eagerness to get to know her compatriots, it was proven that she had done her homework on those she was to be working with, for the briefest of moments Jiayi’s instincts to protect her identity nearly brought her to action, but she was far more in control of those instincts than any she knew from that place, Zhenra. While she mulled over her thoughts, she’d take a moment too long to respond, her lips parting in a silent sigh as she’d speak with her so-far consistent monotony.
“Yes.” She’d pause for yet another moment. “Yes, I am. It seems you’ve taken the time to familiarize yourself with your fellow agents… Agent Aria.”
Perhaps displaying a frigid attitude would be enough to her here would be enough to dissuade any foul trickery from this one, while her face may convey that of child-like longing, Jiayi had learned to never trust such things, for they may very well be yet another attempt at getting one to lower their guard. Perhaps the Director had intentions of using this one to try to test her? No, nothing so overt, not this soon, not while having her imminently travel to her Homeland.
Perhaps her own questions would prove a suitable method of ascertaining her true intentions, but as she began to speak, they were joined by yet another, this one displaying all the outward pomposity that she could muster. Unfortunate, Jiayi’s eyes would narrow slightly as she watched Erebus’ smile shift into something far more sly, what was her game? Betraying her intentions long before she even opened her mouth, not that what she had to say when she spoke was anywhere close to being more tactful and far less worthwhile. What was with the fascination with her? This was all rather bothersome, but, her face never expressed anything but neutrality as she’d respond far more rapidly this time, compared to her previous conversation partner.
“I see no reason to speak more than required, such things tend to be a waste of time.”
Before she could see if this would sufficiently dissuade the girl, the occupants' attention was grabbed by the man who would be acting as their field commander, while an unfamiliar term, it was fundamentally no different from the arrangement that she had with her family back when she still served under their ranks. Many of these details that he spoke of were, unfortunately, knowledge she possessed already, the experimentation especially was something she was regrettably familiar with, she saw no need to chime in with anything, nor a need to attempt to socialize with Dortmund, or even Zhao.
She did, however, make particular note of Zhao’s omission of her from his attempts to familiarize the rest of the team, aside from her own lack of requirement to contribute, she’d take this opportunity to get an idea of the background of her fellows with silent eagerness. If only Gladiolus knew just how close he was to one of those he spoke about, but ideally, he wouldn’t learn such a thing soon, if ever, but with striking so close to a personal detail, there was no telling what might leak out in the process… Up next was the annoying one, descended from House Fukui, it seems, and a ranged fighter, no doubt one who’d mesh well with Jiayi’s own style, time would tell if this girl would shape up to be more than just her boasts.
And then there was Aria, the one who posed the most threat, so far, her instincts spoke of this one as one to keep her guard up around, but she couldn’t quite place why other than her own past experiences with the attempts on her own life, though an answer of some sort would come soon. Her specialization in Surveillance and Reconnaissance spoke volumes about her overall disposition, Jiayi would have to be careful about what she gave away, for she was clearly in the presence of one who was trained to recognize weakness, it became clear that she wouldn’t be able to get away with saying nothing to them as they all went through their introductions.
Regrettably, she’d have to do… Something, so, Jiayi would wait until everyone else had gone with their introductions before chiming in herself, displaying that same monotony as she spoke. “Qinglong, as introduced earlier. I’m afraid that there isn’t anything interesting to talk about with my background, but you may rely on me to cover our deficiency for the close and personal. Dropping bodies, as it was referred to earlier."
Interactions:
saxon
(Grimhex) ♥
Khocolatte
(Eina) ♥
Arkangel
(Zhao) ♥
Panther
(Dortmund) ♥
voided
(Fukui) ♥
Elucid
(Kane) ♥
Purity
(Isolde) ♥
OverconfidentMagi
(Malo)Code by Serobliss
Panther
I thinkn't, therefore I ain't
Imperial Security Directorate
The Parlor Manager
Dorten de Jager
Cullanes Starport, Cullan City, Cullanes, Empyria
Soon enough, the ship decelerates from FTL speeds, coming out of warpspace over the orbit of Sector Twelve. The space surrounding Sector Twelve, or “Cullanes” as it is called, is a lot more vibrant than Agartha’s these days after the Queen’s harsh changes to immigration policies. It certainly had its own take of life to it with the organized space lanes hosting many transports that run back and forth between Cullanes, the Empyrian Commonwealths, and the vastness of space. Cullanes is a relatively rocky planet combined to the many colors of Agartha’s surface other than the natural green and blue as a result of Empyrian progress and development. The stone gray color of the ground and the rooftops of buildings of all kinds seen from orbit over the clouds that slowly moved in the skies.
Upon reaching the noon skies of Cullanes after a total of about 3 hours, a look out the window would give them a meager city that was developed, still below Agartha’s standards, in the middle and as one went outwards, the slums started to become even more obvious until there was nothing but slums where the water went from blue to green to murky black. In the city’s outskirts lay a large walled Rythen refugee settlement, easily the size of a whole city, that is policed by the Empyrian military around the clock with soldiers on the walls and in watch towers, UAVs circling the airspace around the settlement, and a warship that always orbited above so it could deploy reinforcements in the event of a serious problem.
One couldn’t make a mistake about it, this was no refugee settlement, it was a prison with extra steps. Anyone who’s read Empyrian history can more than likely say with confidence that Reinkurey Eldridge’s sacrifice was in vain. His people weren’t saved. They were simply ushered into a living hell where death is considered a blessing. Sector Twelve as a whole is a suitable base of operations for many organized crime syndicates, the Sishen Yakuza included, and it’s obvious why. Poverty is rampant here and people would do anything for money because money is the greatest enabler of all things. It bought not only the basic essentials, but also power, or for some, the chance to live in Agartha. Away from this hellhole that they call ‘home.’
The starship landed on an open landing pad that is part of the major civilian starport in Cullan City, the aptly named “Cullanes Starport.” The passenger bay doors opened as soon as the thrusters were set to idle, the dust turned up by the starship’s landing making its way into the passenger cabin. One of the pilots opened the door to the cockpit and told them that they were cleared to disembark with their luggage. The pilot then briefed the squad to look for a man that looks like the one in a picture he holds up in case seeing Dortmund’s face wasn’t enough.
The outside was more on the hot side of things in terms of temperature where if they stayed too long, they were bound to sweat. They saw what was simply a large concrete building that acted as a terminal of the starport, likely an old one. Should they look to any other direction, some more modern additions to the starport are visible, expansions of the initial facility or renovations to existing wings. Ground crews and transports on gates, taxiways, and runways were a common sight all around.
Once they were off and a sufficient distance away from the starship, the latter took off once more to start its journey back to Agartha. Going inside the air-conditioned terminal, they were met with large crowds of people lined up behind or in between stanchions. Alongside them were passengers of various races walking through the arrival and immigration area to either people waiting to pick them up or to a location in the starport of their choosing like one of the many restaurants and duty-free shops that lined parts of the terminal. Above them is an internal tram system that led to other wings of the starport. Anywhere else is a collection of monitors that displayed list after list of flights and their details.
They didn’t have to be processed anymore since the ISD took care of it for them. Those in the group familiar with the process would simply tell the rest to walk right through the priority lane and so they did. And luckily, or perhaps unluckily, enough, only one man is waiting for them. And he does actually look similar to Dortmund. The man looked them over before waving and greeting them, “Well, you guys and gals are a sight for sore eyes! I was expecting more given the gravity of this whole charade but I never read any of the books so I wouldn’t know. Bro’s job, not mine. Anyway, Dorten de Jager at your service!” He gives a casual salute to the group with a light smile before continuing, “I don’t know who you people are so let’s just talk in the van. Bro’s waiting for us and I wouldn’t want to stand here any longer anyway. Come! Come!” He gestures, leading the way to the van.
Dorten leads the group to the starport parking building after a lengthy walk that lasted a few minutes. He takes out his car key and presses a button on it. A nearby van’s alarm rings with its lights flashing once, to which they’d walk towards. Dorten walks to the back and opens the rear door, offering to help, “Here, let me help with your bags. Though your carry-ons stay with you. Not a lot of space back here.” He helps those who are willing to be helped, placing their luggage in the van’s cargo space, letting the rest who could manage do their thing and closed the rear door once that was over with. Everyone embarked with Dorten being the last, closing his door before starting up the van. They drove out of the parking building not too long after and into the streets of Cullan City they went.
The streets were well-maintained but there is a certain lack of modernity to it unlike the cities back on Agartha, there are even newspaper stands to go with the food stands, restaurants, and shops on and by the sidewalk but otherwise it was a relatively normal scene of urban bustle in its own way. It just lacked that typical mainland Empyrian color. The field HQ was still a while away and more talking likely would’ve already begun the moment everyone got together in the van. Dorten would add to the group's banter, asking, "So, how was your flight and impromptu air tour of a part of the Sector?"
Interactions:
Arkangel
(Zhao)
Khocolatte
(Eina)
saxon
(Grimhex)
WinterFestivity
(Qinglong)
Elucid
(Gladiolus)
Purity
(Aria)
voided
(Erebus)
OverconfidentMagi
(Malo)Code by Serobliss
OverconfidentMagi
Laugh Like You've Won Always
IMPERIAL SECURITY DIRECTORATE
Malo Salas Vesta
Neon Blackbird
AERICROSS INTERNATIONAL STARPORT, AUCTERADEN
He stood in the lineup alongside what he assumed were the other ISD greenhorns that would be working this mission in parallel with him. Working in parallel was how he'd chosen to reframe anything that felt too close to having a team. He never thought of himself as having a team anymore. Just strangers working in parallel. It made the losses easier to swallow. Director Greyhardt efficiently reduced the mission to shutting down the Shishen operating in Cullanes' port. That was lacking in detail, but he correctly surmised that further details would be forthcoming. The director wrapped up her brief speech and ushered the soldiers- agents onto the transport ship. He nodded to the pilot as he boarded, which was returned with a quick salute. The pilot had noticed him inspecting the ship earlier and they'd spoken some, the familiar jargon loosening his stiff tongue enough for the pilot to recognize who he was. Despite being grounded for what felt like a long time now, he still felt comradery with those who flew the stars on metal wings. He took the seat closest to the loading door; it was the best seat should he need to suddenly depart or need to defend the entry point. This consideration had never been necessary in all his trips aboard transport ships, but it only took one time.
"You’ve all got an interesting story to tell, I’m sure. Especially you, pretty boy. I bet you're hard to miss in a crowd of people.”
He looked up from the dark violet spark he'd been dancing in front of his nose - he had a habit of keeping a tiny flame lit whenever he was between planets; it would flicker in response to the tiniest changes in airflow, indicative of an atmospheric leak somewhere in the craft's hull - at Agent Tianshu's acknowledgement. He stood and bowed. "Malo Vesta, of House Vesta. If you must refer to me outside of this mission, that is my name. You may choose to remember it or forget it. For the duration of this mission you shall refer to me by my callsign of ... Blackbird." His tongue caught on the first part of his title. Blackbird had been his callsign for much longer, Neon being appended to the front only after things had gone sideways. It was a pointless omission, as the mission roster listed the full moniker. "I have no stories I'm at liberty to or want to share. If what you are really fishing for is what I'm able to contribute towards the mission's success, I have a reasonable amount of skill with pyromancy, so if an obstacle should arise that is flammable, I am confident in my ability to handle it." His violet-hued eyes passed over the entire group. Some of their names, at least the family names, were familiar to him, while others held no meaning. "Outside of such a situation, you should temper your expectations towards me. Expect as little from me as I of you and none of us will be disappointed. That said, if you should fail during the mission it would reflect poorly on myself, so do try to request my assistance before giving up. I can't promise anything, but I'll do what I can to prevent a failure from staining my own reputation."
Malo was the first to disembark the craft the moment the seals on its doors released. He'd actually stood before they'd even fully landed, his stance comfortably compensating for the rough movements of touchdown. There was a nonzero chance they had landed in the middle of an ambush, and he was prepared to burn a path to the first cover he saw should he be met with gunfire, or worse, as soon as the doors opened. And just like his expectation of the starship being intercepted and boarded, Malo's paranoia was unnecessary. The Cullanes Starport was as mundane as any other, lacking the threat of sudden death that Malo assumed hid behind every closed door. The group disembarked without event, made their way through the airport unassaulted, and met with the brother of Agent Dortmund de Jager's brother, Dorten de Jager, with everything smooth and mundane as fine clockwork.
Malo stood with his back to the van and watched their surroundings as the others dealt with their luggage and piled into the van. He'd been taught to travel light, and assumed he would be able to buy anything he needed, so Malo had almost nothing but a change of clothes with him. One for the job, one for the show, as it was. When Dorten indicated for Malo to join the others in the vehicle, Malo obliged, as always putting himself next to the door should he need to evacuate in a hurry.
"So, how was your flight and impromptu air tour of a part of the Sector?" Dorten asked his captive crowd.
Surprisingly Malo opened his mouth. "This place was never given a chance," was his scathing review of what he'd seen thus far of Sector Twelve. "It was doomed to become a haven for crime and degeneracy from the moment its ruling class was purged," he left off the end of that sentence: after the war. Saying such things out loud benefitted no one. "We left the common folk without any examples of what to aspire towards, and so they were left to sink into their own filth. And we act surprised when groups like Sishen find support in these places we've left to fester? The Empire's rule over such places is as disconnected as a beacon placed on the far side of the moon: too often left looking away from the problem." Never looking at the problem was the correct metaphor, but Malo tempered it given present company. "Oh, but if you were asking about the flight itself, then it went quite smoothly, thank you for asking." Malo had continued staring at the streets passing outside the van, but his reflection was looking at the man in the front seat.
Interactions:
Arkangel
(Tianshu) △
Panther
(Dorten) ▽
saxon
(Grimhex) △
WinterFestivity
(Qinglong) ▽
Elucid
(Gladiolus) △
voided
(Erebus) ▽
Purity
(Aria)Code by Serobliss
Elucid
Pearannoyed
Imperial Security Directorate
Gladiolus
Kane Albright
CULLANES STARPORT, CULLAN CITY, CULLANES, EMPYRIA
A short notification beep alerted Kane to his PADD display as they made their way through the starport. *Hey! I'd been checking the arrival times for your shuttle; you should've gotten to Parasinus by now. Shoot me a message when you're done with processing. Oh, and Emily's been asking for her uncle again. She's obsessed with those miniatures you got her. So don't be a stranger, ok?* It was his sister, Alyssa. She was sweet but easily anxious about anything that Kane did. It was a necessary evil keeping her in the dark about all this. For all she knew, this was an impromptu business meeting at Parasinus to close a particularly difficult client. He took a moment to send back a short reply before continuing along with the others.
A rather peculiar man, a bit too cheery for Kane's liking, awaited them at the gate. It was apparent enough that this man and the earlier de Jager were brothers if it wasn't clear though he had a habit of referring to the other as 'bro', which irked Kane ever so slightly. As instructed, the duffel bag was placed at the back of the van before Kane found himself a seat, scooting further inward to allow Aria and Qinglong space to sit. This was promising to be a snug ride. Made worse by the babble of some nippy schoolboy with absurd hair. Kane took out a small opioid delivery patch and stuck it safely on his right wrist in an attempt to block out the headache he knew was coming.
"The Empire's rule over such places is as disconnected as a beacon placed on the far side of the moon: too often left looking away from the problem."
All for nought, it seemed. "That was very poetic, lord Vesta. And so well put. After all, it is the ruling classes that determine the social mores, artistic inclinations and aspirations of a people. Sadly however, all people are not the same. The Rythens unlike us Agarthans are a destructive people, it is simply the natural consequence of such a tendency that leads them to live in such decrepitude and squalor. I personally see them as little more than chattel, but I understand House Vesta has a great sympathy for mutts and strays and broken things." Kane settles down comfortably on his seat, a little less lightheaded.
Mentions:
Panther
(Dortmund) |
saxon
(Grimhex) |
WinterFestivity
(Quinlong) |
Purity
(Aria) |
voided
(Erebus) |
OverconfidentMagi
(Malo)Code by Serobliss
Last edited:
saxon
One Thousand Club
IMPERIAL SECURITY DIRECTORATE
GRIMHEX
KATRINA SARDET
CULLANES STARPORT, CULLAN CITY, CULLANES, EMPYRIA
As she felt the ship hum to life and take off she rested her head against her seat and decided to take a nap. Taking advantage of the downtime before anything got too chaotic and the real mission started. Upon the ship dropping out of FTL, Katrina woke up and rubbed her eyes before looking out the window. Well, I guess the reports are accurate this place is still developing and doesn't hold anything to the capital. She thought to herself as she brushed some loose hair behind her ear watching as they flew over the city. Though she did take note that the trip seemed pleasant since she was able to sleep through it. As the spaceport came into view she saw the rather plane building and rolled her eyes, this place truly was a backwater sector in her mind. She had grown up in Elesrith and attended university in the Empire's capital so she had grown used to seeing the capital, though she had traveled to other sectors, this was the first time she had come to sector twelve.
Upon being told that they could disembark from the craft, she grabbed her bags slinging her smaller bag on her back and walked toward the exit of the craft. She took note of her surroundings, one never knew when something was going to become very important. As they reached the terminal and walked through the priority line she saw people going in and out of the shops, though none of that prepared her for what was about to happen next. She saw a man that looked exactly like Dortmund which caused her to take a look at Dortmund and the other man. They look so much alike! She shouted in her head before letting out a sigh as the man started to speak.
But they act completely different, I wonder how that worked out. She thought before focusing on the man who was going to be their contact through this operation. After which the group was led outside the spaceport to a van which she assumed was probably hiding a thing or two if she knew the I.S.D as she did. When the man offered to help with the bags, she set down the two cases she had brought and handed them to the man to be put in the van and took her seat in the van before the man spoke up again.
"This sector seems rather boring and still developing, no wonder we were sent here to deal with the targets. Though appearances can not be what they seem given the right circumstances. But the flight in was rather smooth, so that was nice at least," Katrina confirmed nodding her head and glancing out the window, ready to take in what information she could gather from the drive that was ahead of them.
mentions:
Panther
(Dortmund),
Khocolatte
(Eina),
WinterFestivity
(Quinlong),
Arkangel
(Tianshu),
Purity
(Aria),
Elucid
(Gladiolus) ,
voided
(Erebus),
OverconfidentMagi
(Malo)-->
voided
who is real.
Imperial Security Directorate
EREBUS
HIKARU FUKUI
CULLANES STARPORT, CULLAN CITY, CULLANES, EMPYRIA
Hikaru just let out a breathless sigh at Jiayi’s response. "Boring. C'mon, it won't kill you to be less of a machine," She wanted to say something more, but for now, a few other people began pulling at her attention. First was Aria. Just a girl from Zhenra? No one says that they’re just a person from a place. Hikaru was sure that there was something more to Aria. But it’s alright, the other woman didn’t have to share her secrets. At least not yet. Everyone has secrets after all. It was just a matter of when they spilled.
Oh, she’ll spill alright. When Hikaru wanted something, she was going to get it.
And then there was Malo; the pretty boy of the group. Hikaru didn’t like him much based on what he said so far. Expect little of him since he feels the same way about everyone else? Sure, she can do that. She only trusted herself here after all. But then came the next bit. That didn’t sit well with Hikaru. Why care so much about one's status and reputation. They could only get someone so far.
“What if our failures stem from your failure? I think you, as a fellow noble, should understand that we aren’t immune to messing up and having other people’s blood on our hands,” she said as she picked up her bag, waiting for the ship to land at its respective stop as her piercing gaze lingered on him a little longer. Did this stem from her dislike of fellow nobles? Absolutely. But she wasn't going to say it explicitly. Before she could let him potentially retort, she just flashed him a smile and got up as well. Unlike him, she wasn’t well versed in flight, so she was holding onto something with her free hand.
Unfortunately or not, Agent Tianshu’s poor joke from earlier still rang in Hikaru’s head. The idea of getting ambushed was a realistic possibility. As Blackbird got up, Hikaru simply just kept her eyes on the door, subtly moving away from it in case there was any hypothetical gunfire. Her words towards Tianshu weren't a lie. She wasn’t going to let herself be shot, but she wasn’t going to stop others from playing hero.
Seeing how there were no gunshots or anything of the like, Hikaru shrugged and followed Blackbird off the ship. The first person she saw was Dorten. It wasn’t hard to miss him, he looked similar to the other de Jager. Hikaru handed him her duffel bag before going off to find herself a seat, finding herself to be sitting beside Gladiolus.
While cramped, the ride was nice so far, until Blackbird spoke up again. Her hand went up to pinch the bridge of her nose. This guy was a killjoy. She wanted to say something to him againagain, but Gladiolus beat her to it. However, she wasn’t expecting the man to make a jab about Vesta and their household. She could already sense the tension that would have stemmed from that.
“Ah... like Grimhex said! The flight went pretty well, I don’t have any strong opinions on the sector so far, but I expect that to change soon enough,” she managed to get out, hopefully before anything would have been said from that earlier comment. At the very least, Hikaru wanted to be able to pay full attention towards any bickering. After all, people were interesting creatures when riled up.
MENTIONS:
Panther
(Dorten) /
Khocolatte
(Eina) /
WinterFestivity
(Qinglong) /
Purity
(Aria) /
Elucid
(Gladiolus) /
Arkangel
(Tianshu) /
OverconfidentMagi
(Blackbird) /
saxon
(Grimhex)Code by Serobliss
Purity
Nebulous Member
Imperial Security Directorate
Aria
Isolde Caen
CULLANES STARPORT, CULLAN CITY, CULLANES, EMPYRIA
It was a tad hot, though. She was wearing a standard dress for I.S.D. agents, or really any kind of agent in general, with a nice dress shirt and comfortable pants, but it wasn’t exactly summer gear.
As they passed over into the building, the shadow of her hand that was shielding her eyes on the floor almost seemed to writhe and fluctuate as it merged with the shadows of the terminal receiving them, a very familiar eye acknowledging her before it dissolved away from view. This little girl wished to see more of the sights.
Inside the terminal itself was awfully boring, them being provided priority over the others and being heralded of the approach of yet another I.S.D. agent by a cheery voice that Isolde immediately decided to give the internal moniker of, once she saw who it was, Dorty. It was certainly more amusing that way. Dorty behaved friendly towards them all the way to some nondescript van, where Isolde unceremoniously dumped her duffel bag as well. The contents of her duffel bag were… unusual, but completely redundant to her. Pretty much everything that she would need was in her backpack.
And at last, Dorty closed the doors to the van, and they were on their way. Isolde contemplated a nap, but that was quickly spoiled by yet another elaborately worded icebreaker.
Well, at least, that’s what she thought. It became a lot more interesting when a certain flamboyantly dressed agent opened his mouth.
Blackbird was the name of a certain pilot from the Saygien Conflict, one that some of the boys she’d known at the time had talked about briefly in their pantomimed games of war and whatever tomfoolery the male gender took part in. But that was the extent of information she’d bothered to take in about him. Brief. But his cold indifference in his introduction earlier, and now his monologue, gave her other clues into his person. Firstly, she was positive he’d suffered some kind of mental trauma during the conflict, something related to people from the way he attempted to distance himself coupled with the fact that after the Saygein Conflict, his name had all but disappeared. Perhaps he’d lost someone important, perhaps he blamed himself for some incident, perhaps even he had survivor’s guilt, but what mattered is that if she could figure out what exactly the trauma was, she might be able to tie a string to his arm.
Second, listening to his words of superiority over commoners said without any lapses in tone nearly made her ears bleed. That was the next clue into his person. She didn’t like this person. He made it sound as if commoners were dross, and the nobility higher than them in some way. He’d gotten half of it right, at least; but if the former were true, then the nobility were the rats, the vermin, that scurried around the trash.
Gladiolus seemed to speak in some agreement, despite the veiled barb taken at the younger noble. At the very least, he seemed to not care either way. But regardless of whether he took the same stance or not, him at least she might need for some future purpose. She would need to come up with a purpose for Blackbird at a later time.
“If it is the ruling classes that determine the social mores, artistic inclinations and aspirations of a people, if the ruling class is an example of what to aspire towards, then what do the ruling class aspire towards? What determines the ruling class?”
As much as it was a chiding comment, it was almost as if she posed the question towards herself, a musing tone capturing her voice. A sugared smile was flashed towards the way of the two men, further sweetened by a wicked inspiration that floated to the forefront of her mind. A way to both probe and provoke.
“Do keep in mind, dear Blackbird, that if the effort is taken to place a beacon on the far side of the moon, it must be looking for some frightening indeed. Surely you’d know what that is? Considering your loss?”
Interactions:
Arkangel
(Tianshu) ⟡
Panther
(Dortmund) ⟡
saxon
(Grimhex) ⟡
WinterFestivity
(Qinglong) ⟡
Elucid
(Gladiolus) ⟡
voided
(Erebus) ⟡
OverconfidentMagi
(Malo)Code by Serobliss
OverconfidentMagi
Laugh Like You've Won Always
IMPERIAL SECURITY DIRECTORATE
Malo Salas Vesta
Neon Blackbird
CULLAN CITY, CULLANES, EMPYRIA
Gladiolus seemed to Malo one of the unfortunate variety of commoners, those that mimicked the pride of nobility without understanding at all where the right to such arrogance stemmed from. A noble's pride was a light to provide guidance, but that same light on the level of commoners only served to cast shadows and divide. Besides... Agarthans not a destructive people? After annihilating these so-called bred destroyers? Malo smirked at the unseen comedy in the man's words. Such statements proved him a thoroughbred fool. Had Gladiolus been born a noble, Malo may have taken it upon himself to educate the fool, but instead he said nothing. Correcting every falsity rooted in the minds of commoners would waste far longer than his short lifespan with nothing at all to show for the effort. Put simply, it was a waste of time.
But when a noble posed the question, that was another story, proven by his willingness to answer when Lady Caen, using the codename Aria for the duration of this mission, when she asked. “If it is the ruling classes that determine the social mores, artistic inclinations and aspirations of a people, if the ruling class is an example of what to aspire towards, then what do the ruling class aspire towards? What determines the ruling class?”
The noblewoman felt the need to continue speaking however, to the detriment of Malo's impression of her. Ah, so she wished to duel under the guise of propriety? Very well then, have at thee.
"I thank you for caring enough to look into my past," he flashed a smile coated in wolfsbane. "If we're sharing condolences, then you have mine as well. I was saddened upon learning of your house's circumstances." He'd only refreshed his memory of what befell House Caen before today, recognizing the name on the roster but remembering little else. The names of the important houses - though including House Caen in that pile was a categorical error given they were all but extinct now - was something Malo had been made to memorize from a young age, one of the many expectations placed upon a child of a noble house, but keeping up to date with the going-ons of one hundred and fifty houses and their complex maneuverings about each other was something Malo didn't care to maintain. Easier to just know the names for when they cropped up and do his research as they became relevant. Malo wasn't lying either. He was not the kind of noble that celebrated the failings of other houses, even if he understood the reasons such upheavals could benefit the Empire and citizenry in the same way a healthy crop was sometimes tilled back into the soil to benefit future harvests. A noble house dying in war was something to be celebrated. Dying in their bed at the hand of what was likely a petty interpersonal squabble was the opposite.
"Your confusion towards the important role nobles play is understandable given your circumstances," Malo's words walked the line of impropriety, but he doubted present company would call him out for overstepping a borderline they had no concept of. "The divide between nobility and commoner is a rigid thing. Nobles provide the example to which commoners rise, and as the common folk rise, the nobility must always be striving to improve itself at the risk of being torn down by those below reaching for their position. Commoner and nobles both aspire to the same ideal, that being nobility itself. The only functional separation between the two is where they start off, much like the separation between Rythen and Agarthan chattel was it?"
Interactions:
Arkangel
(Tianshu) △
Panther
(Dorten) ▽
saxon
(Grimhex) △
WinterFestivity
(Qinglong) ▽
Elucid
(Gladiolus) △
voided
(Erebus) ▽
Purity
(Aria)Code by Serobliss
Arkangel
Terra Maledicta
Imperial Security Directorate
Tianshu
Zhao Jintao
CULLAN CITY, CULLANES, EMPYRIA
The agent clicked his teeth, finding it all too ironic. It seems he was destined to deal with the troublemakers no matter where he went. All for a small retirement home in a small town in Iliosie, and to live the rest of his life in silence and peace.
Nevermind his internal strife. From the short distance that the van could provide for the team, it was nearly impossible to not eavesdrop on the deep debate of noblility.
After short considerations, Zhao concluded that he didn't have anything of value to drop on the topic.
Nobility, commoners, the ever so confidential royalty... To him, they were just all a cog in a machine working together to create meaning in their actions. Not that this was anything particularly mindblowing, but to him, that was for the best. Try and validate your beliefs too much and you end up only getting disappointed, much like his prior conviction that Zhenra could be cured of its horrible disease that the rest of the Empire mocks at. A tired soul who was counting down the days until his retirement, Zhao could only offer 'boring' philosophies that was born from his pessimism.
Although, from the looks of it, this conversation was starting to become... unstable. Better to step in now than ever, he supposed.
"You're all fantastically gifted people," he spoke with a cheeky tone, "but let's not start anything that'll affect the mission long-term. The chances are, you folks were chosen for this particular operation to test your capabilities as a group. That's how the Director works, in case you weren't aware. Once you get welded into a team for an operation that involves anything from the directorate's top 3 targets, more likely than not, you'll stick with that team until you retire or be sent six feet under."
He wasn't for certain if that's what the Director had in mind, but from experience dealing with the shrewd woman, the teams that she formed individually usually ended up lasting longer than a single operation. And he didn't mean it in the standard duration of things. More often than not, her teams lasted until the end of their service.
Zhao, unlike everyone else in this operation with the exception of perhaps Eina and Dortmund, weren't chosen to become a permanent part of this team. His duty was to supervise Qinglong and report any suspicious activities, not get himself involved with the main operation unless he absolutely must. Those were the specific orders from the Director. It was more likely that she planned on sending Qinglong to somewhere far more dangerous than what this mission had to offer, and she simply needed verification that she was mentally on the directorate's side.
"Hey," Zhao called for Qinglong's attention, who was presumably sitting next to him, "that goes for you too, you know. Better to familiarize their names at the very least."
Interactions:
Panther
(Dortmund),
saxon
(Grimhex)
WinterFestivity
(Qinglong)
Elucid
(Gladiolus)
Purity
(Aria)
voided
(Erebus)
OverconfidentMagi
(Malo)Code by Serobliss
Panther
I thinkn't, therefore I ain't
Imperial Security Directorate
The Parlor Manager
Dorten de Jager
Cullan City, Cullanes, Empyria
Whether or not this van would’ve been involved in some ensuing verbal melee that could go magical or physical depending on escalation, it doesn’t matter to him. This was entertaining. He could just easily get out of the van and even be audacious enough to take pictures and videos of it for posterity and send them to Dortmund just so he can ruin the man’s day, presumably for fun. The boredom of their work was getting to him, but thankfully, he didn’t have to bore himself any longer.
Dorten speaks up, “Nice words you’re trading back there. Don’t get too fiery, while this van is insured, it doesn’t cover the cost of a magical ruckus stemming from at least any one of you.” He chuckles, “Wouldn’t want to get in trouble before we actually get to work. If that does happen, you’re paying the rest of the bills, alright? Cuts to your paycheck are honestly the absolute worst.”
He looks at the group while using his peripheral vision to keep driving, his reflection on the rearview mirror visible to all who paid attention, “Anyway, we’re almost there. So I’ll just end it with a too-long-didn’t-read version of my take on all this shit, take it with a grain of salt by the way. Empyria doesn’t care about this place, it never did. Especially now. The refugees? We just took them in because we needed to win the damn Invasion otherwise the Rythens were going to win in the war of attrition, especially if they still had a Remnant. That one Remnant in the history books was a neat fella. But honestly? He wasted his life. Death would’ve been a better fate for the people he ‘saved.’ Only reason we’re not giving this better fate is because that’d be a colossal blow to PR. Wouldn’t want another Saygien Conflict but for different reasons, right? At the end of it all, we’re still people. Us and them.”
Then they arrived to which Dorten notifies, “We’re here!” It was of all places, an ice cream parlor situated in a commercial building in the more developed part of Cullan City but wasn’t far off from the informal border between this side of town and the slums. The storefront has a large garage adjacent to it with the door opening to reveal an ice cream truck that’s in the middle of resupplying for another run if the dust on the truck had anything to say about it. Dorten parks the van and turns the engine off before disembarking, stretching his arms and legs, “Aaaaaah. Home sweetie home. Welcome to the D&D Ice Cream Parlor! Cringe name, I know, but I’m not in charge of this joint. Commercial building with living quarters upstairs that’ll serve as your lodgings. Keep your bags in the van, we’ll talk about your accommodations after bro briefs you.”
Upon walking into the back rooms of the store itself, Dorten walks out into the general parlor area where there are multiple sets of chairs and tables arranged where some customers, potentially nobodies, were seated, eating their cold ice cream as the sun shone outside. Some of the customers were children with either their friends or family. Serving them is a girl with bluish hair in a uniform and apron. Dortmund is behind the cash register today alongside another employee, also an ISD deep cover agent.
He turns to Dorten who taps his shoulder, “Ah, they’re here. Alright. I’m not going to keep them waiting. You, watch the store and register, just use the busboy droid after the customers are done.” Dortmund told the other agent then turns to look at the girl, calling her, “Kyouka! Break room in 2!” Dortmund then follows Dorten to the rest of the group. The man was also in a uniform like Kyouka unlike the suit he wore earlier, “I told you my field headquarters was going to be eccentric. I hope you’re not caught too off-guard. Anyway, the break room is this way.”
A few seconds later, they find themselves in a spacious room where there’s a large dining table complete with more than enough chairs for all of them. There’s a kitchen, a fridge, and basically everything that a combined dining and kitchen area would need. This was probably also the dining room and kitchen of the whole building for whoever lives upstairs to which the break room is connected to by a locked door. A bathroom is close by, and Dorten is seen racing toward it.
Dortmund takes the floor from here, taking his seat, “Please. Have a seat, all of you.”
Interactions:
Arkangel
(Zhao, Kyouka)
Khocolatte
(Eina)
saxon
(Grimhex)
WinterFestivity
(Qinglong)
Elucid
(Gladiolus)
Purity
(Aria)
voided
(Erebus)
OverconfidentMagi
(Malo)Code by Serobliss
Last edited:
WinterFestivity
Shez Emblem!
Imperial Security Directorate
Qinglong
Jiayi Yu
CULLAN CITY, CULLANES, EMPYRIA
There wasn’t much time for her to mull over her newfound distaste for the experience as they were soon essentially booted from the ship and given a face to look out for, a fair bit less procedure than she had expected, admittedly, but bizarre circumstances call for unorthodox methods. That being said, it wouldn’t take them very long to find who they were working for, a very casual man, but, there was no sense in observing the obvious longer than necessary, especially not in this sort of heat, so, she’d simply cooperate and place her meager belongings in the cargo space. Soon after, piling in alongside the rest of the motley group.
It wouldn’t take long for the overly cheerful one to chime in with an icebreaker of his own. "So, how was your flight and impromptu air tour of a part of the Sector?"
This provided the spark for a far more… Spirited discussion, this one catching her attention, for once being something that she was dreadfully unfamiliar with, the topic of nobility was one she took great interest in. So, she’d silently absorb the conversation, all while keeping at least vaguely alert, she was all too familiar with the tactics employed by the criminal underbelly in most places, especially by the Sishen, though that would only matter if they didn’t end up tearing each other apart in the course of the rapidly escalating conflict of words and viewpoints. She’d need to approach them for more of their opinions later, likely, to truly get a full idea of just what they thought about the concept of Nobility, it was interesting to hear the sheer variety, after all--
"Hey,"
Her thoughts would be interrupted as Zhao spoke to her.
"That goes for you too, you know. Better to familiarize their names at the very least."
She’d turn her gaze over towards him, neutral as ever in expression as she spoke. “I’ve been paying attention to their conversations and identities when divulged, you needn’t worry about me failing to familiarize myself with pertinent information regarding them.”
She’d pause, visibly thinking for a moment.
“...I suppose if what you say is true, I’ll make an effort to return said favor, I suppose there could be worse groups to be attached to for the foreseeable future.”
And just like that, Jiayi was back to her usual silence as she listened to Dorten speak once more, giving his take on the spirited discussion, of which his final statement would ring true with her, either side, in the end, was comprised of people… Interesting, very different, too. She’d offer a quiet sigh as the conversation seemed to be left in the dust as they arrived at their destination, where they’d be living for the duration of this mission, seems that they wouldn’t be taking care of it all at once. Possibly wise, depending on what they were dealing with, but that information was still out of reach, within that… Icecream parlor.
“You spoke true, it seems, I was... Not expecting this.”
An odd choice to say the least, but one she would’ve never expected, she couldn’t help but keep her attention on the rest of those present - civilians or other agents? - but there was no use in her paying too much attention to that oddity, the two brothers seemed more than capable of avoiding an information leak through their customers. Either way, she’d follow dutifully behind as they were all led to the breakroom, where they were promptly asked to take a seat, which she once more would do with little hesitation, though she did make a point of absorbing the environment around her, she would likely need to get familiar with it in case of any problems.
Either way, though, she’d maintain a quiet and attentive attitude when Dortmund saw fit to fill them all in.
Interactions: ♥
saxon
(Katrina) ♥
Khocolatte
(Eina) ♥
Arkangel
(Zhao, Kyouka) ♥
Panther
(Dortmund, Dorten) ♥
voided
(Fukui) ♥
Elucid
(Kane) ♥
Purity
(Isolde) ♥ Code by Serobliss
voided
who is real.
Imperial Security Directorate
EREBUS
HIKARU FUKUI
CULLAN CITY, CULLANES, EMPYRIA
Initially, Hikaru was highly amused by the bickering that was happening near her. Such simple words set people off so easily. However, she really couldn’t find a moment in the conversation to get a word in. There was a part that interested her; "If we're sharing condolences, then you have mine as well. I was saddened upon learning of your house's circumstances," said the flamboyant man. Did something happen to Aria’s noble house? Hikaru was never the type to pay attention to other's houses. She was too busy dealing with her own family and combat training. Maybe it was common for nobles to keep an eye and ear out for drama involving other families, but Hikaru really couldn't find a reason to care until it involved her. It didn't involve her back then, but did it involve her now? Probably not, but Hikaru was going to make it her issue anyway. Why? Simply because it was interesting and she was the type to get underneath people's nerves just for a reaction.
Glancing at Aria from the corner of her eye, Hikaru kept a lookout for a reaction of any sort. Regardless, it was interesting. Seems like Aria wasn’t just a normal girl from Zhenra after all.
Other than that, she was highly disinterested in the bickering session between the mutt and the veteran. She tried zoning it out, but hearing Malo constantly state opinions like they were facts was starting to get on her nerves. He acted like there was such a huge divide between nobility and commoners. Wasn't the only divide money and power? Maybe the ability to get access to things easier? Nevertheless, She absolutely detested other nobles who acted like they were the most important person in the room just because they had the status and wealth. Who got them that wealth? Their parents. They had never worked a day in their life, and yet they acted like they were some hot shot because they could hide behind mommy and daddy's money.
It was hypocritical. Hikaru did the same, but to her, it felt different. Why? Because she was Hikaru Fukui.
Regardless, she was reaching her limit on Malo’s antics. She was about to tell the man to shut up, but it seems like Tianshu and Dorten had it handled. Dorten wasn't wrong. They were all people at the end of the day. It was interesting how a certain amount of money could divide people this easily. Now, she just hoped that Malo, Gladiolus and Aria dropped the nobility topic there. She needed a smoke after bearing witness to that horrible Debate Club.
"Hope the little academic debate club here is able to actually able to hold their ground in a proper fight instead of attempting to come off as some big, important, pathetic noble with their words." Hikaru added a snide comment, not bothering to look at the group of three involved. "It would be a shame that the group that reads a thesaurus for a living gets domed in the skull by a stray bullet! All because they got upset by a few comments here and there made by one of their comrades in the heat of the moment."
Leaning forward a bit, Hikaru made fingerguns with one of her hands and aimed towards the argumentative group. She lazily aimed at Malo's head, whispering "Bang." before she rolled her eyes and blankly glanced towards the window. She could wait to get off this ride. As the van slowed down, the only word that popped into Hikaru's mind was 'Finally'. She was glad to be free from this petty squabble. Once the van’s doors opened and Hikaru was given the chance to leave, she immediately hopped out, pinching the bridge of her nose as she took in a sharp intake of fresh air.
Wait, did she smell ice cream? She lowered her hand and glanced over at Dorten, who just confirmed her suspicions. They were indeed in an ice cream parlor.
“Never expected an ice cream parlor. Well, I guess it does work, it’s such a mundane place that no one would really expect it...”
How intriguing, were all of ISD’s field headquarters this eccentric? Spotting Dortmund and the woman beside him, Hikaru gave the two a lazy wave before following the group to the breakroom. Wait, did their pilot go straight for the ice cream? Alright, Hikaru was beginning to like that one. What was her name again... Eina? She'll have to keep that in mind.
Regardless, once the senior agent told the group to take a seat, Hikaru wasted no time in doing so. Taking the opportunity, she sat down beside Jiayi. Waiting for the others to find a spot and settle down, Hikaru leaned back into her chair, hands in her pockets as she looked over at Jiayi, starting a conversation.
Well, attempting to.
“What’s your favourite ice cream flavour?”
Interactions:
Arkangel
(Zhao, Kyouka) /
Panther
(Dorten, Dortmund) /
Khocolatte
(Eina) /
saxon
(Grimhex) /
WinterFestivity
(Qinglong) /
Elucid
(Gladiolus) /
Purity
(Aria) /
OverconfidentMagi
(Malo)Code by Serobliss
WinterFestivity
Shez Emblem!
Imperial Security Directorate
Qinglong
Jiayi Yu
CULLAN CITY, CULLANES, EMPYRIA
“Unfortunately, I have never tried nor sought to try the substance and as such, am incapable of having a… “Favorite Flavor.” While I would leave it at that, I shall instead return the question to you; What is your “favorite flavor” of Icecream, and why? How much of the substance do you typically consume? Is there an abundance of it in Katsuragi, Agent Erebus?”
Jiayi’s attempt at being social was… Stilted, to say the least, though she was trying, that much was clear. Though her tone and expression remained as neutral as ever, outside of a slight moment of almost legitimate curiosity from her when she actually launched into her barrage of questions. However, it wouldn’t last long as she’d return to the characteristic outward neutrality, attention fixated on Hikaru for the moment. Her grasp of social etiquette was evidently rather poor, it seemed, as she stared and awaited an answer from her would-be conversational partner.
Interactions:
saxon
(Grimhex) ♥
Khocolatte
(Eina) ♥
Arkangel
(Zhao, Kyouka) ♥
Panther
(Dortmund) ♥
voided
(Hikaru) ♥
Elucid
(Kane) ♥
Purity
(Isolde) ♥Code by Serobliss
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