Just a legend, cold words on a page

[thatsit]

So far things had been going as well as could be expected, if not a little better. The hotel staff, well used to discretion as they were, had been adept at keeping an eye on matters. There had been some tense moments in the restaurant, if the waitstaff were to be believed, but they'd resolved themselves peacefully.

It was a good sign. Ila were the only clan to have come from outside Khamja, and their history with Skite had been less than amicable. Their inclusion was probably the biggest risk Ignis had taken with his recruiting, but when it had come down to it they needed powerful healers, and if they came accompanied by tough fighters then so be it. That they could control themselves, and that members of Khamja didn't feel the need to break into violence around them, was only a bonus.

Everyone had stayed within the hotel's confines for the day. Ignis had been glad of that. One or two had been less than pleased with the request, and some had been less pleased again regarding the issue of tags, but he was reasonably sure he'd managed to placate most of them.

He read over the notes he had for their itinerary while he waited for everyone to assemble in the conference room. He'd been up late last night trying to get a somewhat friendly member of the Kingsglaive assigned to the survivalist training, to no avail, and he'd been up early again this morning ensuring everything was in order for the swift processing and manufacture of the tags they'd require so their esteemed guests didn't have to remain confined to the hotel for too much longer. His third can of Ebony of the day sat half drunk by his chair. After so long on the lowerworld and rationing his supply to make it last he'd consumed enough in his first two days back in Insomnia to give himself the jitters, but he'd become accustomed to the caffeine once more rather quickly.

The conference room was one of the hotel's largest. A huge, oval table occupied the centre of the room, and a projector hung from the ceiling, directed to a huge blank wall where it could be used for presentations and displays. Ignis had no intention of using that, but he did prefer the table set up of the room. It would be interesting to see who chose to sit next to whom, for one.

Ignis took a drink from his can and cast his eye over his papers again. Weaponry, clothing, chocobos, food, potions, ethers, camp supplies, water, medical supplies, communication; they weren't going to be heading to Pulse quickly with a shopping list this long and involved, but at the very least the time could be useful. They needed to ensure everyone was capable of surviving in the event they became stranded with nothing.

It was just a pity they'd refused to give him Nyx for that purpose.

Comments

[thatsit]

Ignis straightened up a little in his chair. He hadn't realised he was beginning to slouch, and he corrected himself, crossing one leg over the other as he did.

"Following Levi's assessment that you're capable you'll be fitted for protective clothing and any other such equipment you may require. The ships will be stocked with supplies, including chocobos, and then we will be on our way." He afforded the group a smile. "Those of you that are pilots we will meet with nearer the time to discuss the flight plan. You know the individual capabilities of your ships better than anyone here might. Currently we anticipate departure in approximately six weeks, although that is of course pending Levi's assessment and any delays due to weather or supply concerns."

[jawmask]

"Sounds fair," Grimmjow said.

The pilots had a boring job, but fortunately, it wasn't his. Yylfordt would be required to attend that particular dull meeting, alongside Lumi and whoever it was that had the helm in Clan Ila. He'd be happy to take that particular day off, that was for sure.

[thewingsoffreedom]

Fortunately for Levi, it wasn't his problem, either. He didn't care much for airships, and they weren't his area of expertise. Everybody had one, of course. Which brought him on to the next point.

"I was told by Ignis that some of you have specific areas of expertise," he said, eyeing them all.

Well, it was an exploration mission. They didn't just want pilots and hunters, or they could have recruited from the groups of Hunters that lurked about in the Lucian wilderness, unaffiliated with the Kingsglaive, but a regular source of gossip, help and supplies all the same.

"I'm going to guess you're one of the scientists," he said, pointing Szayel out. His haughty demeanour and terrible choice of frames suggested as much. "Who else has a niche purpose on this trip?"

[sipthehoneylikeabutterfly]

Szayel pressed his fingers to his chest in mock offence. "Scientist, and surgeon, if you want to be precise," he corrected. And Szayel did want to be precise.

If he was being honest, which he wasn't, he hadn't really wanted to come on this wretched exploration mission in the literal arsehole of hell but Aizen had been quite firm that the Arrancar in attendance would benefit from their specialist medic joining them.

That, and Szayel really needed to get away from things for a while. True, this was no holiday, but it would keep him occupied.

[hearstheplanet]

Aerith put her hand up, feeling like a little girl in school as she did. "Healer," she answered, "and botanist." It felt strange to identify herself that way, but it was true. "I don't mind doing my bit in a fight," she added, with a flash of a smile, "but," she looked from Lea to Saix, and back again, "some people are more cut out for that than me."

[gracefuldahlia]

Marluxia leaned forward slightly so he could see Aerith properly. He'd witnessed her healing abilities, if through Ulquiorra's eyes, but her identification of herself as a botanist was a surprise.

"That makes two of us," he said, smoothly, giving Aerith a smile. "Botanists, I mean." His eyes flickered between Axel and Saix before he added, "A pleasure to meet you. I'm sure we'll enjoy working together."

[declaregamuza]

"Does circus ringleader count?" Nel asked, under her breath but loudly enough for Even to hear.

More clearly she said, "I'm another one of the healers, but I'm a front row combatant too, when I need to be." She could also put down each of the Arrancar that was here, although Ulquiorra was getting to be more and more of a concern in that department, especially with his new abilities these days. Fortunately, he wasn't the type to need a clip upside the ear, unlike Grimmjow and Yylfordt.

[innatelunacy]

Saix shifted in his chair, watching Marluxia like a dog watching someone it didn't like come too close to its front door. Marluxia was trying to rile him, of course, him and Lea. The annoying thing was that it was working.

[theschemer]

"Alchemist," Ienzo repeated.

It was an uncommon enough ability, mostly because Alchemy took a ridiculous amount of research to get started in, let alone reach a level of proficiency where the skill was anything approaching useful.

"I don't need a circle to perform it, either."

That wasn't something he'd generally admit to regular people, but they were all weird here and that fact was going to come out sooner than later in front of the people who didn't already know.

[thesilentstorm]

Lumi decided that he wouldn't open his mouth about his ability to speak and read pretty much every Spiran language he'd come across so far. Others had been gifted vast elemental power, to the point where they were fairly compared to Aeons, others had been given such a close connection with a certain Class that it practically defined them, like the Berserker.

Lumi had nothing like that. He was just good at language. It seemed like a raw deal, but there wasn't anybody else alive who could control his ship, or read any of the menus. He expected that the language on Pulse, even if only the written was left, would prove to be a similar conundrum to them all. He supposed he'd have to come clean about it sooner or later, or at least pretend he'd learned it from the ship, but he wasn't about to declare it now.

Instead... "I'm a marksman," he said. "I use a variety of ammunition, including Hollow rounds. I can kill Daemons."

[jawmask]

"Some of the rest of us can kill them too," Grimmjow added to that.

He didn't have any special skills. He wasn't an Alchemist, or a Scientists, or a researcher, or even a healer. But he did have a Zanpakuto, even if it was a Hollow one, and the nice things about Hollows was that they devoured their own.

"Me, Apache, Yylfordt, Szayel, Nel, Kadaj and Ulquiorra," he said. "We can all do it."

[thechillyacademic]

"I would be one of the other scientists," Even said, shortly.

He wasn't a surgeon, or a healer, but he was a scientists all the same. His other main area of expertise was utterly destroying things with ridiculously high level Ice magic, but he doubted that would be any more useful to this conversation than Axel pointing out that he specialised in setting things on fire.

[raindownhell]

"I don't have anything as special as all that," Fang said, listening to the scientists and the Hollow killers and the fancy healers, "but I know a thing or two about Gran Pulse. That should be useful enough."

[soundfivebitch]

"I'm a kunoichi," Tayuya piped up, sticking her chin sullenly into her palm and giving Levi a flat look. "And a Summoner. So's Kadaj," she added, with a gesture in the silver haired prick's direction. "You don't have Summoners here, so let's just say we can call on some big magical monsters to fight for us." She gave a shrug. "The flying ones are useful for scouting too."

[palehornedprince]

Yylfordt raised his arms and laced his fingers behind his head. "I'm Al Bhed," he answered, with more than a hint of cockiness. "Machina is my thing," he added, with a grin and a look across the table at Ienzo. "I do airships and Ienzo's automail."

[innatelunacy]

Saix buried his amusement at Fang's explanation of her skills. Of course she wasn't about to declare the truth of her origin here and now, but she had a knack for understatement. She knew more of Pulse than Ignis could, and Ignis spoke as if he was something of an authority.

He didn't bother to chime in with anything for himself. He was a berserker, and a blue mage. His skills were all combat based, and in this room that didn't set him apart.

His head turned when Yylfordt mentioned Ienzo and automail, his brow furrowing. Zexion didn't have---

Hadn't had. He looked over to Zexion.

[thatsit]

"Quite the cross section, as you can see," Ignis said, oblivious the ripple of surprise emanating from the back of the table. "You can count myself in among the healers, of course," he added, addressing Levi, "and Lumi has done some work on translating the old tongue which should serve as a starting point for further decrypting."

He glanced at Lumi and smiled. "Noctua is really a stunning craft. I'm sure there's a lot we can learn from and about her."

[thewingsoffreedom]

Levi listened to them all.

"Good," he said. "That will all be useful if you're there for a long time."

He had to admit, Ignis had got himself a decent crew together. They could do with another healer or so, but if they were to be believed, at least one of them could make potions, something he knew to be no easy feat, and one of them was even trained a surgeon, which was a rarity in the field, but useful in a way that a simple healer couldn't always be, skilled or not. That they were most warriors in the simplest sense was a given.

He was glad the pink-haired girl had clarified was a Summoner was, though. He wouldn't have known otherwise because she was right -- they weren't a thing in Lucis. He wasn't any the wiser what an Alchemist was, of course, but he figured it was some sort of scientist, so he didn't ask because he didn't care. One thing stood out though.

"What's automail?" He asked.

[theschemer]

Ienzo pulled his glove off to show him. It was easier than explaining that it was a mechanical limb tied into his nervous system. He moved the fingers to demonstrate.

"This," he said. "It requires maintenance, and Yylfordt and Szayel worked to build and install it, so having them both along will be conducive to keeping it running."

It wasn't their primary purpose, obviously. Yylfordt was there primarily as a pilot, secondarily as an airship mechanic and additionally as a member of Skite, and Szayel was there mostly for scientific reasons and to keep an eye on the health of the other Arrancar due to this expertise, but they'd be useful to him all the same.

[innatelunacy]

Saix had lived in Rabanastre long enough to be more than passingly familiar with automail, but it existed as an Al Bhed thing. It was definitely not something Zexion should have; when Saix had last seen him he had two fully functioning arms.

"How did that happen?" he asked. It was his first thought, upon seeing the shining metal fingers of Zexion's hand.

His second was that Lexaeus was going to be upset. For Zexion to have automail, something awful must have happened to his arm. Lexaeus would blame himself for failing to stay with Zexion.

[sipthehoneylikeabutterfly]

"He had his arm ripped off by some ancient mythical monster that Ulquiorra couldn't beat," Szayel answered, with relish. "It did make a mess. I have to say that the reconstruction and installation has been some of my best work."

Yylfordt's too, not that he was about to say that out loud. Szayel himself was less necessary for the maintenance now than Yylfordt, unless something went wrong with the port, such as it taking a massive blow. Fortunately, Ienzo had opted for mythril as his metal which had some interesting properties that made it more resilient to things like magical attacks than the usual conductive metals.

[tozasemurcielago]

Ulquiorra sighed, quietly but pointedly. It was a sigh that said that Szayel was lucky to still be drawing breath. The temptation to get up and rip his tongue from his throat was there, but Aizen-sama might be annoyed if Ulquiorra killed him.

Fornicaras had been a swine to capture, apparently.

"Shut up, Szayel," he intoned, his eyes fixed firmly on the pink haired annoyance with as little movement of his head as was possible.

[theschemer]

Ienzo gave Szayel a similarly flat look.

He just couldn't resist rubbing things in, could he? Ulquiorra was easily one of the strongest people sat at the table, even if some people were unknown quantities. He'd heard that Lumi had stood without flinching in his presence, even released, so he suspected that he might not be the strongest, but he was certainly up there. The creature was something else.

"The creature in question is something research suggests is a 'Weapon'," he said, thinking back to the books he'd scoured to find something that looked anything like it. "It was ridiculously fast, absurdly strong and bigger than anything I've ever seen. They're supposed to be mythical, but apparently they aren't. Let's hope there are none of them on Pulse, or we're going to have a less than optimal time there. But unless we see one, that's irrelevant."

He put his ungloved hand down on the table with a quiet, metallic click.

[raindownhell]

Fang found herself staring at the kid's arm.

She wondered if it was magic that made the fingers move, or if there was some technology behind it she had no hope of understanding. She'd never seen anything like it before, either back home before civilisation went to hell, or in Rabanastre. Sure, so she'd seen people with prosthetic legs, but she couldn't say she'd ever seen the toes move. This was something else.

That one of them had made it and another had installed it made her half glad they were going along for the ride, even if it did bring to mind some questions.

"Some of Gran Pulse is desert," she pointed out. "And there's snow in other parts. If that's metal, ain't it gonna ... heat up and get really damn cold in different climates?"

[palehornedprince]

Yylfordt gave an unconcerned grunt. "With steel or other alloys, sure," he said, gesturing with his thumb at Ienzo and Ulquiorra, "but moneybags over there sprung for mythril. Light as carbon and non-conductive, but the user can run magic through it." He grinned. Working with mythril had been a challenge, especially working with that much mythril. It was a tough metal, but the results were worth it.

The fee had been worth it too. "Your typical desert or snowy temperatures won't be a problem for it. If we hit extreme cold we might have to swap the arm out for a carbon one but swapping parts after your initial installation isn't a big job. Couple of hours at most, and it can be done in the Ragnarok."

He grinned, and it wasn't a nice grin. "Hurts like vilg though."