Post
Region: Eientei Gensokyo
[Operative Cooper would be the first to admit he had noncombatant blood on his hands, but as he looked upon the wide, innocent eyes of the child he realized he had never been faced with the task of murdering one so young before. He wavers, lowering his rifle somewhat.]
Cooper: [Quietly] I...I don't speak Libersprekt. Can you speak Standard? [He looks around furtively, and catches a glimpse in the corner of a corpse lying in a pool of blood out of sight of the child] I... [Damned if he was going to have this on what remained of his conscience. Let someone else kill the kid, who was doomed anyway. He presses a button on his helmet and the visor retracts, revealing the startlingly young face of a fair-skinned man, and affects as calming a smile as he can muster] It's...it's alright. The coast is clear. [He points towards the open front door] Run, and don't look back. You can go.
---
[Illys takes a cautious step back from the new arrivals, shaking her head at the Order man's question.]
Illys: No. [Rivulets of blood stream up her arm, gathering into her open hand and coagulating until she holds a wickedly sharp dagger, pointed at the man in the skeletal mask.] If our new friends would be so kind as to introduce themselves.
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Lumei: [She gently takes the toy from Mercia's hands and holds it in her own open palm. The dragon shakes itself to life again, running in playful circles in Lumei's grasp.] No offense taken, Kaiserin. To those unaccustomed to our ways, fleshcrafting can often seem...alarming. But I assure you, it is not devilry or evil magic. It is...a skill, only as good or evil as the intentions of the one wielding it. [She allows the dragon to run up onto her shoulder as she leads Summer onwards down the street] Fleshcrafting is a tradition of our people, the descendants of the Kalmaktama...but I will spare you the history lesson. You could call it magic; the Sisterhood would call it being immersed, completely in tune and in control of the living cells that make up our bodies and those of every living thing around us. You may recall, little Mercia had a fever on the way here, and the way I healed her...that was also fleshcrafting. [She smiles somewhat apologetically] I took the liberty of sensing her ailment, and redirecting her immune system in the optimal way to relieve her fever quickly and allow her rest. Nothing more. [They are coming up on a quaint little café on the style of a cottage at the end of the intersection, which Lumei leads them towards] For our abilities, we were...hunted. Persecuted. For centuries, our people lived in hiding and in fear of our lives. But we kept the tradition alive... [She gestures to Summer, allowing her and Mercia to enter the café first] We have time. I would be more than happy to hear about your peoples' experience with...Trollisken.
