You wanna get ahead?

[breaksthecuties]

Ariane Emory, Ari to those that knew her well, was a busy woman. When the call had come that Khamja were holding a meeting she nearly ignored it. She didn't attend Khamja's concerns often; they were a sideline, a way to keep an ear to the ground for rumblings in the distance. When you ran such a high profile laboratory complex as Reseune, it helped to know what was going on in the outside world. The shifts in politics might not impact science, but they could impact things like funding, or where those holding the purse strings wanted you to direct your attention.

The actual day of the meeting, however, had fallen into a gap in her schedule. It was a convenient gap, all the more convenient because of what she expected the meeting would be about. Khamja liked to keep its fingers in multiple pies, and the ongoing tension between Niflheim and Lucis was the bigger concern within Niflheim, but whisperings of the outbreak of war on the lowerworld of Spira had reached even there.

Galbadia had taken a Gotei Captain hostage on false charges, and said Gotei Captain happened to be one of the two resident Captains in Archades. One was the lead scientist at Draklor, the other was supposedly a kindly, benevolent figure that had influence in Archadian upper echelons. Ari had her doubts about the kindly and benevolent part; no one rose to that sort of position by being nice, but it was the common rhetoric.

She'd taken the journey time to educate herself on the political situation, and the individuals involved. Galbadia and the Archadian Empire had tense relations. Politically speaking, they'd been eyeballing each other for some time. Galbadia's military were highly effective. If they weren't they'd be an Archadian territory by now. Their remit thus far seemed to have been defensive, but now they'd taken an action that was distinctly offensive.

And curious. Arresting someone whose role lent them diplomatic immunity and a pass to cross borders in the pursuit of their duty was treacherous ground to walk. There had to be some reason other than mere trespass. Possibly, they believed he'd been spying, but that seemed like very dangerous accusations to make right now.

There were people in Khamja whose entire reason for existing was the sourcing of information that couldn't be obtained by other means. That was why Ari had gone to the effort of attending. It was likely Khamja knew more about what was taking place than any single given side of the affair right now.

Her two personal azi accompanied her. She rarely went anywhere without them. They were bodyguards, but they were also companions; people she could trust to listen and retain information without spilling it to undesirable ears. There had been no reason not to bring them.

Ari had been to Khamja's Desert Palace only once before, some years ago. It had been a brief visit for the purposes of her induction into Khamja's ranks. Still, some memories sparked along the way as they moved from the airship port to the main entrance. She remembered the main entrance, and it, it seemed, remembered her, opening to a touch of a glyph. It was a magical defence system. Ari couldn't say she approved. She much preferred more high tech methods of protecting information. Passwords and retina scans were less prone to failure over the course of time.

Though this would have been put in place by Kuja, who she remembered was rather proud of his ability as a mage. Perhaps he was confident the wards would last, or perhaps he carefully reapplied them on a regular basis. It was a complicated bit of magic, she had to grant him that.

The first entrance took them into a corridor, and beyond that lay another entrance. Catlin and Florian were probably working the Room in their heads already; a bottleneck like this would have them on guard. The next entrance opened out into a much larger hall, expensively decorated and, Ari had to admit, a little grander than she remembered.

The place also thronged with the reiatsu of people. It certainly hadn't been this well occupied the last time she'd been here.

Comments

[catlinandflorian]

The two stood behind her, silent and observant in their identical ink-black uniforms, Catlin blonde-haired and blue-eyed to Florian's black and grey. They looked similar enough to be siblings, though Catlin was fractionally taller.

Catlin had clocked the difficult position the hallway put them in the moment she stepped into it. Should somebody shoot down its length, there was nowhere to go save out of the front door behind them, and those doors were stiff and unyielding. She wondered if they only opened with magic from the inside, too.

Florian considered that it was probably for the safety of those inside. It was daunting, being on the receiving end of it, and it made him uncomfortably aware of their vulnerable position, but once they stepped into the open hall he felt better. Not safer, so much. Just rather less hemmed in. He watched Catlin scan the larger room, taking into account all of the doors and blindspots. It was a credit to her poise that she didn't brush her gun with her fingers.

He had.

Florian felt the magic in the palace. It was a powerful sensation, deep and heavy, like being plunged into water and held there. It wasn't too much for him to handle -- thick as it was it mostly lingered in the background like the kind of low machine thrum that caught him in the chest, but it was there, at the forefront of everything. Catlin, he knew, wouldn't be paying attention to it, if she'd even noticed it.

There wasn't much point in having two bodyguards with identical strengths and weaknesses, after all.

[breaksthecuties]

Ari glanced back at her two azi. Catlin, serious and stoic, and Florian, less stoic but just as dedicated. They were both clad in black, a colour worn only by azi in Niflheim. It might be strange for them to meet normal people wearing the colour here, and they likely would.

There was a gathering forming in one part of the building. Ari was adept magically, or at least had studied the disciplines and learned the techniques, but she didn't use them as a matter of course. Why have azi and fight yourself, after all? Still, she stayed on top of the skills enough not to lose them. Weaknesses were bad, and Niflheim's politics could be volatile.

She headed towards the gathering. A double doored room had been opened up. The space suggested it was a disused ballroom. High ceilings and open floor space made it impractical for anything but social events that involved a lot of standing. There were some chairs pushed back against the walls, but they weren't enough to fill the space.

Ari cast an eye over the faces already in attendance. Many of them weren't familiar, but that wasn't unexpected. Too many well known faces would have been a concern.

[doesthissmellofchloroform]

Hojo wasn't in the best of moods, even for him. The meeting was a waste of his time, but since he was resident in the palace, a prisoner, really, he was required to attend.

It might not be a complete waste of his time. He consoled himself with that thought. The Arrancar were Aizen's underlings, and depending on the outcome they might be offered up to interested parties, or at the very least, there'd be a chance for him to state his interest in them should Aizen not return.

The rest of it wasn't anything he had much care for. What did it matter to him why Aizen had been captured, or what Khamja intended to do about it? That was all political chicanery, and Hojo had long since ceased caring what politics dictated.

Hojo wanted a cigarette, and a cup of coffee. He wanted both of those things any time he was away from his work station, and the desire for them both was making him irritable now. He couldn't access a coffee, right now, but he did have a pack of cigarettes in his pocket. He was still clad in his white coat; he hadn't bothered to take it off for this meeting. He'd only be heading back to his laboratory afterwards in any case.

He drew one out, lighting it as another unfamiliar face paraded in, flanked by two black clad followers. "Underlings are supposed to wait outside," he said, before taking a breath on his cigarette.

[catlinandflorian]

Catlin looked sharply at the man who commented on them. She looked him over, an action not missed by Florian, and decided he probably wasn't dangerous. Well, not in a way that she needed to worry about.

His attire suggested he was a scientist. It wasn't that scientists weren't a risk to them, or more importantly, to Ari, it's just that they tended against it. Catlin resolved to watch him, but take no action. That had been the instruction.

Clan Khamja was risky, but with this many people around, Ari had said that somebody would have to be an idiot to start something. Catlin agreed. She thought it quite likely that she could draw and fire faster than anyone else in the room, and with more accuracy. That wasn't much use if they were expected to stand in the hallway, though.

Florian crinkled his nose at the acrid smell of the smoke from the man, but did nothing but look to Ari for instruction. His expression betrayed his concern, but Catlin's did not.

[thechillyacademic]

Even stood to the side with Ienzo, his arms folded across his chest. He had not gone out of his way to meet the visitors to the palace, but he hadn't been able to avoid some of them. The two grey Mistants from Niflheim had been among the most often seen in the kitchen, as had the two emissaries from Lucis. None had been particularly unpleasant, but Even generally disdained to meet people, especially those he would likely not see again.

Politics was a game he didn't particularly wish to participate in again, not after his first attempt had gone so badly all those years ago. Instead, he'd kept himself in his laboratory. He'd made it clear that his room in the palace proper was to be given up in favour of the one he'd made in the suite he'd taken for himself, so he'd seen little reason to come up except to find something to eat.

The meeting was rather more crowded than he'd expected. The strange winged woman he'd seen occasionally had already entered the room and was doing little but taking in who had turned up, much like himself. Ienzo seemed on edge. He saw Professor Hojo before he caught the smell of the smoke that clung to him, but he knew that unpleasantness would only be a matter of time.

Kadaj had yet to arrive, and neither Marluxia or Lumi had made their appearances despite neither seeming the type to arrive fashionably late. A woman he didn't recognise walked in, flanked by a pair of identically dressed companions, one male, one female. Underlings, perhaps?

[breaksthecuties]

White coat, hair tied back, glasses, and a stinking cigarette hanging from his fingers. Ari didn't recognise the man from the description, but he obviously fancied himself a scientist. He looked like he'd just been dragged away from a laboratory.

The fact that she didn't recognise him indicated he wasn't high ranked here. Added to that was his language. He spoke Ivalician, and he said supposed to.

There were many things that were supposed to happen that often didn't, but that qualifier made it clear it wasn't coming with the authority of an order.

"Exceptions can be made," she replied, slipping into Ivalician that she knew had more of an accent than she'd like. She had so little need to speak the language it was hard to practice.

[hellsingsforyou]

Integra watched as the newcomer, flanked by two black clad underlings entered the room. She couldn't be sure, but the description was about right for that to be Ariane Emory, lead scientist at Reseune, and a consummate Nif.

Interesting to see that one crawl out of her hole.

Alucard had already made himself comfortable on one of the chairs, his hat tipped down so that he appeared to have dozed off, although Integra knew better. He was too much of a predator to be able to doze off while surrounded by other predators and prey.

Interesting that Hojo, that was the other scientists name she was sure, had said nothing to or about Alucard. Although Alucard had already made himself comfortable before some of these people had arrived. If she was honest, Integra was half looking forward to someone trying to tell Alucard to get out. It would take some balls on their part.

[joinmyreunion]

The last time Khamja had a big meeting Kadaj had been a scrappy little underling with bad manners. Now he was a member, and not just a puppet of Kuja tagging along to give Kuja a second vote.

It was a bit daunting. Walking into a room full of people he didn't know, and that could either kill you, or arrange to have you killed with a carefully timed look was unnerving. But Kadaj had spent so long with the clan, even as an underling, that being surrounded by extremely dangerous people didn't scare him.

And not all of them were bad. He saw Hojo, lurking too close to the doors for comfort, and gave him a wide berth. He'd managed to go whole weeks without having to lay eyes on him; it was a shame to break that run now. It would be even more of a shame if Kadaj had to do something like cut Hojo's hand off if Hojo tried to touch him, so he didn't get close enough for that to happen. The stench of cigarettes permeated the air around him anyway. Kadaj wrinkled his nose.

Gin wasn't here yet. Kadaj was half surprised at that; he'd expected Gin to want to watch for any building fireworks. L was already here, perched on a chair like a demented bird, watching as people began to assemble, probably for the same reasons.

Kadaj headed over towards Even, who was the closest thing to a friend Kadaj had in this room, a situation that probably wouldn't shift when everyone was here.

His eyes dragged over Ienzo. The automail arm was indistinguishable under his clothes. "Hey," he said, quietly greeting Even. Kadaj had never been friendly with Ienzo; he was always a bit of a stuck up snot for Kadaj's tastes, but he was cordial, at least. They both occupied the awkward spot of being young, dragged into the clan by others, and having had to earn trust within it. They also both found themselves under Nel's wing, and Ienzo had once been under Even's, too.

[thechillyacademic]

Even smiled as Kadaj approached, the expression the warmest thing about him. Even with his reiatsu contained and suppressed there was something permanently chilly about him, though that might just have been the association that he had with the Ice Element, like a shiver caused by a painting of a snowy landscape, or the distant creak of a glacier.

"Afternoon," he said, keeping his voice low enough that only Kadaj and Ienzo could have heard him, short of supernatural hearing.

Kadaj seemed nervous, at Even's estimation -- he was used to young men trying not to seem bothered by difficult situations, Ienzo had given him plenty of practice reading that. It wasn't entirely unexpected, either. Kadaj and Ienzo were probably the lowest ranked there and the room was going to fill up quickly with people that were either unknown quantities or very definitely known risks.

He wasn't sure what was worse.

[theschemer]

Ienzo looked up as Kadaj joined them and nodded, saying nothing.

The two didn't really get on, but Ienzo didn't harbour any ill-feelings towards him any more. He had bigger things to think about than squabbling with other residents of the palace, especially ones so low-impact and inconsequential as Kadaj. They both occupied roughly the same rung in the Clan, which was the bottom one. Kadaj was a jumped up underling and he himself was a prisoner, member in name only.

They both had a lot to prove.

"Who're we waiting on?" He asked.

[intangibleman]

Tyki felt a new person enter the palace from the corridor upstairs.

He didn't know who it was, and by the time he reached the stairs themselves, whoever was responsible for the disturbing the magic of the entrance seal had disappeared from view. He went down ahead of Road. Their pretense was still in full swing and he was supposed to be the representative, not Road.

Not bothering to linger in the hallway, he strode towards the meeting hall. Not bad, not bad. He recognised most of them, at any rate. L, the goblin, was lurking at the back, trying to look unobtrusive and he was managing to do that about as well as Integra's psychotic minion, Alucard, who sat in a chair a little away from his master. The two resident Selkie kids were stood off to the side with the Al Bhed, Even. He hadn't seen much of him, but the others had said he spent most of his time in his lab, which suggested that he was a scientist, much like Hojo, who happened to be smoking, as usual, and did well at pissing everybody off, including, quite famously, Kreeth, who stood by herself looking no less creepy than she ever had. She out-creepied the two Noah, even.

There was a new woman about, drably dressed but sharp, with two black-clad servants trailing her. He grinned. They, like him, would likely piss off the two Lucians who had yet to arrive. They got a little funny about people wearing black.

Depending how the meeting went, it should prove to be fun, if even if it wasn't particularly informative.

[joinmyreunion]

Kadaj glanced around at the slowly growing assemblage of Spira's most dangerous people. He wasn't sure who the woman with the two black dressed minions was, but she hadn't been in the Palace prior to today anyway. "Marluxia and Lumi," he said, quietly, "the Lucians," Ignis and Gladio, who Kadaj didn't think would be far behind, "Gin, Kuja," he paused and added, "and Bellatrix," with a note of distaste. He'd run into her in a corridor and she'd acted like he wasn't even there. Kadaj hadn't known who she was, but he'd figured it out from Yylfordt's description of the crazy bitch with dark hair and an expression like she'd trodden in something, and that something was you. Apparently she really didn't like Selkies, or Al Bhed.

"I think that's it." Everyone else was already here. "Lots of Jyllandis," he said, in a murmur. "A lot of the others declined to attend." Kurotsuchi and Tousen among them, even though this was about Aizen. Maybe they'd figured they couldn't risk disappearing at the moment to attend. "You never get the whole clan together," he explained, in an undertone. "They can't stand in a room together for long enough."

And if they did ever manage to assemble into one room together the combined weight of all those egos would probably suck Spira into a black hole.

"But this is more than usual."

[lesstravelled]

Road trailed after Tyki, wearing a skirt that was too short and over the knee socks and generally looking like she was being babysat while Tyki worked. It was Tyki that was being babysat, but no one needed to know that.

She noticed the presence of Ari Emory, though. Niflheim had a close relationship with the Noah, with the Earl in particular, but it wasn't that surprising to find someone from the Empire proper had come along. It was surprising that it was Ari Emory. It must have been a wrench to drag herself away from her work to come and attend to this.

She spied the two well behaved little azi with her, too. Reseune's finest, probably. Ari was supposed to go everywhere with them.

"I've always wanted to get my hands on an azi," she purred, for Tyki's ears only. Shame she wouldn't be allowed. Ari was, technically, an ally. The Earl would be upset if she went upsetting her.

She couldn't wait until the Lucians met her, though. She wondered how diplomatic Ignis would manage to be when one of his country's enemies was flanked by two handcrafted slaves wearing their royal colours.

[immoralmelody]

Kuja had always intended to arrive at the meeting late.

It was the done thing. It wouldn't, however, do to keep him waiting. Had he arrived to find they were awaiting the arrival of a straggler it would have caused tension, an uncomfortable period where the host must wait to begin proceedings. If the host arrived last... then all was well.

Or that would have been the case.

Kuja felt the flare and flash of Marluxia's reiatsu from down the corridor. It was a signature he knew. He associated it with the man's grace and power, and the deft if ... unconventional way he handled the spells of Spira so alien to his hands. If he'd been closer, he knew he'd have smelled the ghost of a rose.

That was the only signature that lit up, so it wasn't, Kuja surmised, a fight. There had been no retaliation. A warning given, and a warning heeded. Khamja members could be volatile when gathered en masse. The needless violence of a brawl offended him, but if Marluxia had stepped in then it was possible that he wouldn't walk in to a warzone.

He entered the ballroom and looked around, hand on one hip.

"Do try to resist starting the show before the curtain rises," he said.

[joinmyreunion]

Kuja's entry into the room seemed to put a blanket over the tension that had been building. With him present someone would have to try to start a scrap, and would get shot down before they got anywhere with it.

His eyes shifted to Marluxia after Kuja spoke. After a flashy display of power he'd retreated to Lumi's side, and it had been a little scary just how controlled he was. The burst of reiatsu hadn't lasted long enough to steal breath or knock people to the floor, but it had been enough to demonstrate that Marluxia wasn't to be messed with.

"Bit late for that," he said, in an audible undertone, his gaze returning to Kuja, and then moving on to Bellatrix, who was backing away with her proverbial tail between her legs. Kuja had missed it. He knew, obviously, because there was no way Marluxia's flash of his reiatsu had slipped Kuja's attention, but he'd missed what exactly Marluxia had done. Kadaj might have to enlighten him later.

He'd have to tell Apache about it, too. It'd make her day.

[cruciohappy]

When Kuja entered the room Bellatrix eyed him, and then took a small, unconscious step back, out of the way. She wasn't ashamed, she didn't feel shame, she wasn't cowed by the actions of that dirty halfbreed.

She just didn't want to be the focus of attention any more.

She glowered at the pink haired Selkie. When they got out of here she might have to teach him a sharp, hard lesson. Just so long as he was separated from that white haired freak.

[gracefuldahlia]

Marluxia smiled graciously at Kuja when he entered. Of course he'd noticed, Marluxia hadn't exactly been subtle. He'd made sure to push his reiatsu more than the mere act of creating Graceful Dahlia in itself required. Of course it had been felt beyond this room.

It had achieved the desired effect, too. The Jyllandi woman was glaring at him like a scrappy dog that didn't know when to quit, but that was, at least for now, held on a leash.

Kadaj's words made the smile on his face tick up into a smirk. "There won't be any further disturbances," he said, addressing Kuja, in response to Kadaj. The Jyllandi woman would have to be madder than everyone believed to try it.

[thesilentstorm]

In any other situation, Lumi might have let out what passed, from him, as a laugh at Kadaj's comment.

He didn't. Instead, he kept his silence, watching Kuja enter and immediately command the room. He'd barely said anything, but Kuja was the sort of person who didn't really need to. He was used to being in charge. Somehow, he made it into an art form.

[theheirapparent]

Arc had been, in a way, rather glad that Bellatrix had acted out as she had, though surprised she'd pick a fight with one of those two. Even her, arrogant as she was, must have heard about their reputation.

Regardless, the little display from Marluxia, which was fascinating in and of itself, had done wonders for taking the attention off him and his new inclusion in the clan.

He still glanced over at L, wondering if he'd dropped the subject, or whether he'd raise it with Kuja during the meeting.

[catlinandflorian]

Catlin stood attentively at Ari's side, not reacting to the newcomer's entrance more than to look him over and ascertain how many weapons, if any, he was likely to have on him.

Florian, however, took on an expression of surprise, only slight, barely there, at the man's appearance. The light hair wasn't so strange, he'd seen enough Selkies in the moments since their arrival to know that wasn't unusual, but the tail..?

It was long, probably almost as long as the man was tall, and white furred, to match his hair. He tried not to stare.

[immoralmelody]

Kuja did not miss Kadaj's little comment, but he didn't respond with anything more than a smile and a look. He wasn't wrong, after all. Impertinent, as ever, but not wrong.

"Good," he said, addressing Marluxia's words, but not asking about the reason for the one prior to his arrival. Bellatrix, that hateful woman, looked both cowed and angry. She was probably the reason for the flash. He was almost surprised she wasn't dead.

He looked around at everybody, taking note of the faces. A handful of residents, mostly Jyllandi visitors and a small number of underlings. He could insist they waited outside, but he knew that Ariane Emory had good enough control over hers that they would not dare speak out of turn. Nel was there on his invitation. He fixed Alucard with a brief look. He could be a problem, but asking him to leave before he'd made himself to be one would only cause more issues, and the risk of insulting Sir Integra was too great to make it worth the press.

No matter.

Act One had been a disaster for Aizen. The follow up... well, it would depend on the outcome of the meeting and what Nel had managed to glean from his incarceration.

"It looks like this is everybody," the full cast. "Let us begin."

[breaksthecuties]

Ari settled, waiting for Kuja to begin. Obviously the main concern of the meeting was what had happened with Captain Aizen, but there were so many branches that came off that subject. It would be telling which avenue was explored first, and which was of greater concern to whom.

Azen's allies would no doubt be more concerned with what was happening to him. Others, like herself, had greater investment in what it meant for the political situation on Ivalice, how Khamja intended to benefit, and how Jylland might benefit.

She positioned herself near the new member, Aizen's son. It gave her a reasonable view of the rest of the group, as well as Kuja.

[lawlietschiffer]

L put his thumb to his mouth and worried at the skin with his teeth. Nel was standing near to the door, alert and attentive, and waiting to be called on.

It hadn't taken much to set her up as Aizen's girlfriend, and forge some credentials to that effect. It was the only way to get someone in to see Aizen and try and find out what he was really being questioned over.

He hoped she'd come away with some useful information.

Even L didn't known the full contents of the meeting's agenda, although he could estimate what some of the key topics would be. Aizen's incarceration, and how and why he'd come to be incarcerated.

He awaited the finger pointing, and wished he had been responsible.

[thatsit]

Once the meeting was over, Ignis and Gladio would need to talk about what they'd seen. Marluxia had done something that shouldn't be possible.

It might require a little more, careful, investigation. If that sort of ability was present on Ivalice it could be potentially useful, or potentially very, very dangerous depending upon the hands it fell into.

He shelved that line of thought for now, however and stood a little straighter, listening to Kuja. His command of the room was quite impressive. His presence was sufficient to make whatever squabble may have been brewing lapse into silence.

He was also quite an unusual looking individual. He certainly wasn't afraid to appear effeminate, and yet that did nothing to diminish his power to command.

He was also a little theatrical. Ignis was aware this did not give him place to criticise.

[immoralmelody]

"As you all know, or should all know, this meeting has been called to address the fact that Sōsuke Aizen, Captain of the Fifth Division of the Gotei 13, and member of Clan Khamja, has been arrested by the Galbadian government and is currently being held in their high security anti-magic prison, D-District."

He looked around at the faces of the gathered, gauging their reactions. Some knew, some didn't. Some knew more than others. At the very least, they were all aware that a meeting had been arranged for members to discuss the imprisonment of one of their number. Whether they knew precisely who is was, and exactly what that could mean, depended heavily on who they'd been talking to and what they knew of Ivalician politics.

He watched the reactions of those who knew what D-District was, and those that didn't, but didn't like the sound of 'anti-magic prison'.

"For those that don't know," his eyes slid over a few of the Jyllandis in the room. "Members of the Gotei 13, a group tasked with eradicating Hollows," he clarified, "Akuma, or Daemons, are given diplomatic immunity, allowing them to cross borders in pursuit of their work, even in tense political climates. As such, Aizen should not have been apprehended, even if he happened to be in Galbadia, though reports suggest he was taken elsewhere."