It all seems to fall at your defense.
Jan. 21st, 2015 01:44 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
theschemer posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
spira_rpIenzo ached all over.
He wasn't sure he could remember the last time that he felt so exhausted. He had slept well enough in the hotel bed, but a single night's sleep was nowhere near enough to soothe away the strain of travel. He had, thus far, been unsuccessful in his request for a second one.
Just under a week ago, he had been informed that one of the Ryoka had defected from the main group and relocated to Daguerreo, an ancient, vast and half-submerged library out in the wilds of Nabradia. The Ryoka in question, a man described as being tall and very similar in appearance to an Al Bhed, could only be Vexen. Or Even. Whatever he was going by now -- Ienzo didn't know.
Under ordinary circumstances, Ienzo would have pointed out that Vexen was a scientist and that a trip to a repository of information like Daguerreo would not be out of character for him, certainly not enough to count such a trip as being a defection. However, these weren't ordinary circumstances, not now. He remembered Ulquiorra's recording of the battle following the Fall of Midgar. More precisely, he remembered Axel's participation in said battle, and the fact that he was fighting alongside Saix. That, Ienzo was sure, would definitely be enough of a push to get Vexen to cut ties with the group once and for all.
After the revelation came to light (something that L was responsible for), a quiet meeting was held with some of the other members of Khamja. From there, it was decided that he should be ... collected. It wasn't that Ienzo was concerned about him returning to the Order that had made him agree to do it, it was more that he wouldn't put Vexen's elimination past certain members now that he had shown a desire to leave them behind. Clan Khamja was not exactly safe, but it was certainly safer than going it alone in a still unfamiliar world, with enemies behind you, even in a remote location such as he had chosen.
A brief discussion later and a small party was decided upon. It was a carefully picked group of powerful fighters, friends and, it had to be said, enemies.
The group that left the Desert Palace consisted of Lumi and Marluxia, a pair of full Khamja members with enough firepower between them to subdue an unwilling addition to their ranks; himself, due in part to his long association with Vexen, his similar circumstances and the knowledge that Vexen would not trust Marluxia or his partner in the slightest without someone to vouch for them; Ulquiorra, now known to be an associate of his and someone Aizen could trust not to let him escape; and Neliel, because she was strong, non-antagonistic and it was safer for two of Aizen's minions to go on a trip such as this than one, especially given the company.
So far, the journey had been arduous, at least as far as Ienzo was concerned. For a start, it had all been taken across ground, or under it, instead of by airship. They had travelled more of the Zertinan Caverns than Ienzo had known existed and, in spite of the fact that some of it had been undertaken on chocobo-back, there was rather more walking on his own two feet than he would have liked. The second leg had been across the desert, all mounted. The longest part thus far had been through a great tunnel called the Fossil Roo.
That had been the worst.
The Caverns were bad enough, but the tunnel was long to the point of being seemingly endless and, as if that wasn't bad enough, it was also full of air so stale that it had been recommended that masks were worn for that part of the trip.
The aspect of it that had unnerved Ienzo the most was the fact that the Roo stretched from one continent to the other. Underwater. The idea that there was no hope of escape in the event of a cave-in was not his idea of a good time. The huge Gargants that scurried along the long-dead root systems that sprawled across the ceiling was not much fun either and they had, at least to begin with, spooked the chocobos quite as much as they had spooked him.
Well, they were giant spiders.
It had not taken him long to work out that, when the tunnel was built by whichever ancient culture had carved it out, the path between Dalmasca and Nabradia had probably not been submerged at all. Indeed, the sea above them was very likely to be considerably shallower than the rest of it. It had, to his reckoning, been some sort of land bridge recently enough that an intelligent culture had made and, for the duration of their stay, maintained the path. It was a minor miracle that it had survived for so long without its integrity being compromised.
Alternating between riding and walking, they had made the trip from one end to the other in a few long and, after a while, rather painful days. The only positive aspect of the Roo was that it was, for the most part, free of monsters brave enough to bother a party of their calibre.
They had come up some distance inland on Nabradian soil. The nearest city and, as luck would have it, their destination, was Luxerion. It took the group more than a day to reach it, but it was visible long before that thanks to the sky-piercing spire of the city's Cathedral. Luxerion may have even lived up to its name if it wasn't permanently overcast and swirling with Mist of the sort of density that could probably be described as 'low-to-moderate-risk-to-foreigners'.
They arrived late and in darkness. Luxerion did not have much of a tourism industry, not since Nabradia's fall, so the party had no trouble getting a hotel room for the night.
With dawn having broken, the city was beginning to come to life again. Shops opened their doors as the cathedral's bell tolled and, an hour later, Ienzo found himself sat inside an open-fronted café in the railway station, nursing a cup of rapidly cooling tea.
He wasn't sure he could remember the last time that he felt so exhausted. He had slept well enough in the hotel bed, but a single night's sleep was nowhere near enough to soothe away the strain of travel. He had, thus far, been unsuccessful in his request for a second one.
Just under a week ago, he had been informed that one of the Ryoka had defected from the main group and relocated to Daguerreo, an ancient, vast and half-submerged library out in the wilds of Nabradia. The Ryoka in question, a man described as being tall and very similar in appearance to an Al Bhed, could only be Vexen. Or Even. Whatever he was going by now -- Ienzo didn't know.
Under ordinary circumstances, Ienzo would have pointed out that Vexen was a scientist and that a trip to a repository of information like Daguerreo would not be out of character for him, certainly not enough to count such a trip as being a defection. However, these weren't ordinary circumstances, not now. He remembered Ulquiorra's recording of the battle following the Fall of Midgar. More precisely, he remembered Axel's participation in said battle, and the fact that he was fighting alongside Saix. That, Ienzo was sure, would definitely be enough of a push to get Vexen to cut ties with the group once and for all.
After the revelation came to light (something that L was responsible for), a quiet meeting was held with some of the other members of Khamja. From there, it was decided that he should be ... collected. It wasn't that Ienzo was concerned about him returning to the Order that had made him agree to do it, it was more that he wouldn't put Vexen's elimination past certain members now that he had shown a desire to leave them behind. Clan Khamja was not exactly safe, but it was certainly safer than going it alone in a still unfamiliar world, with enemies behind you, even in a remote location such as he had chosen.
A brief discussion later and a small party was decided upon. It was a carefully picked group of powerful fighters, friends and, it had to be said, enemies.
The group that left the Desert Palace consisted of Lumi and Marluxia, a pair of full Khamja members with enough firepower between them to subdue an unwilling addition to their ranks; himself, due in part to his long association with Vexen, his similar circumstances and the knowledge that Vexen would not trust Marluxia or his partner in the slightest without someone to vouch for them; Ulquiorra, now known to be an associate of his and someone Aizen could trust not to let him escape; and Neliel, because she was strong, non-antagonistic and it was safer for two of Aizen's minions to go on a trip such as this than one, especially given the company.
So far, the journey had been arduous, at least as far as Ienzo was concerned. For a start, it had all been taken across ground, or under it, instead of by airship. They had travelled more of the Zertinan Caverns than Ienzo had known existed and, in spite of the fact that some of it had been undertaken on chocobo-back, there was rather more walking on his own two feet than he would have liked. The second leg had been across the desert, all mounted. The longest part thus far had been through a great tunnel called the Fossil Roo.
That had been the worst.
The Caverns were bad enough, but the tunnel was long to the point of being seemingly endless and, as if that wasn't bad enough, it was also full of air so stale that it had been recommended that masks were worn for that part of the trip.
The aspect of it that had unnerved Ienzo the most was the fact that the Roo stretched from one continent to the other. Underwater. The idea that there was no hope of escape in the event of a cave-in was not his idea of a good time. The huge Gargants that scurried along the long-dead root systems that sprawled across the ceiling was not much fun either and they had, at least to begin with, spooked the chocobos quite as much as they had spooked him.
Well, they were giant spiders.
It had not taken him long to work out that, when the tunnel was built by whichever ancient culture had carved it out, the path between Dalmasca and Nabradia had probably not been submerged at all. Indeed, the sea above them was very likely to be considerably shallower than the rest of it. It had, to his reckoning, been some sort of land bridge recently enough that an intelligent culture had made and, for the duration of their stay, maintained the path. It was a minor miracle that it had survived for so long without its integrity being compromised.
Alternating between riding and walking, they had made the trip from one end to the other in a few long and, after a while, rather painful days. The only positive aspect of the Roo was that it was, for the most part, free of monsters brave enough to bother a party of their calibre.
They had come up some distance inland on Nabradian soil. The nearest city and, as luck would have it, their destination, was Luxerion. It took the group more than a day to reach it, but it was visible long before that thanks to the sky-piercing spire of the city's Cathedral. Luxerion may have even lived up to its name if it wasn't permanently overcast and swirling with Mist of the sort of density that could probably be described as 'low-to-moderate-risk-to-foreigners'.
They arrived late and in darkness. Luxerion did not have much of a tourism industry, not since Nabradia's fall, so the party had no trouble getting a hotel room for the night.
With dawn having broken, the city was beginning to come to life again. Shops opened their doors as the cathedral's bell tolled and, an hour later, Ienzo found himself sat inside an open-fronted café in the railway station, nursing a cup of rapidly cooling tea.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-23 03:56 am (UTC)On their way back, they would need to recuperate in Luxerion before tackling the Fossil Roo once more, if only because they were already tired and suffering. Nothing particularly difficult had bothered them, but it still wasn't a journey one wanted to undertake with aching muscles and on minimal sleep.
Especially not with Vexen in the party, as he would be, by then, should all go well.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-23 09:39 pm (UTC)Ulquiorra spent most of the journey in what Nel considered his Power Save mode, speaking when spoken to, and otherwise very still, like someone who was dog tired and didn't have the energy to hold a conversation. Not that this was unusual for Ulquiorra. She certainly knew the feeling; she had aches where she had no business having aches, and she could have easily stayed in Luxerion for another night.
They couldn't risk someone from The Order beating them to Daguerreo, unfortunately. Once they had their target in the grasp, they could take as long as they needed to get back, but the thinking was that if Khamja knew he was there, others would soon find out.
Nel wasn't sure how likely that was, but L had been a bit spooked about losing all of his informants in Rabanastre, and was playing it safe as to the risk of there being a leak, or him having been beaten to the information about Vexen's departure, due to his sudden and unexpected lack of informants.
Nel had got through two out of date women's gossip rags on the journey. Anything to avoid pretending to be social when she was too tired to put the effort in. Marluxia and Lumi appeared obnoxiously wide awake, which didn't do much for Nel's mood regarding the two of them.
They'd waltzed up to the station with coffee. Nel hadn't commented on it, but had been amused to notice Lumi carrying a cardboard cup ticked off with the markers for 'latte' and 'vanilla', meaning he had something in common with Szayel.
When she'd read every scrap of idle gossip and sad story one upmanship in the magazines, such as the woman whose husband left her for a Seeq, and the other woman whose husband left her for a Bangaa while she was pregnant, and other such tales of romantic woe, she discarded the magazines. She was tempted, briefly, to offer them to Lumi, but thought even he might catch that dig, so she refrained, and checked on the kids.
Not that Ulquiorra and Zexion were kids in anything but the technical sense, but she felt like they were her responsibility in a similar way.
"Not long now," she said, snapping Ulquiorra out of his doze to get a nod from him and a small noise that was basically a grunt of recognition.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-25 12:00 am (UTC)Instead of sleeping, something he really, really wanted to do, he zoned out and watched the countryside whizzing past. Sadly, in Nabradia, what passed for countryside was a lot of warped grassland, peculiar rock formations, marshes all covered in Mist and old, ruined cities. There were some clear patches, but much of it was drear and dull. It didn't help that it was starting to grow dimmer and dimmer as the day drew closer to evening, either.
At any other time he might have been interested in what Mist could do to ravage a landscape, but exhaustion pushed the curiosity away and turned everything on the other side of the glass into a grey and green blur.
Conversation might have kept him more alert, but nobody seemed interesting in talking and trying to keep a conversation going, or even attempting to strike one up, didn't feel right given everyone's mood. Lumi and Marluxia seemed content to sit in silence closest to the door of the carriage. Nel sat in the middle, between Ulquiorra and Marluxia.
He looked across at Nel when she spoke and nodded.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-25 12:44 am (UTC)A game of cards might have made the time pass more quickly. Marluxia was reasonably sure Lumi had caught a catnap at one point, although even Marluxia wasn't sure, which meant it was unlikely anyone else had noticed.
He was fighting exhaustion himself, now, but he'd kept himself awake by mulling over what lay directly ahead of them. Vexen was not going to be pleased to see him, by any standards, and depending upon how bad a day Vexen had already been having, Marluxia's chances at getting an icicle aimed at his head increased drastically.
The scenery outside was dismal. It brought to mind some of the fragmented worlds, broken by the Heartless and whatever other forces lay in the Darkness. This world had seen fit to make him a Geomancer, which had entailed learning how to manipulate Mist to use the environment for magic, and Marluxia could feel how powerful and abundant it was here, even from inside the train. The landscape had been flooded and ruined by it.
"I'm sure our appearance will make Vexen's day," he said, softly. No one had pretended that Vexen would be pleased to see them; no one is pleased to see an envoy from Khamja, but no one had explicitly said, aloud, and to the group, that Vexen would be displeased to see them, either.
Well, they'd find out soon enough.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-25 12:54 am (UTC)"What's your plan?" She asked, of both of them. She knew what her plan was, hers, and Ulquiorra's: stick close, observe the situation, and subdue the target if necessary, but they were there to subdue by force.
Zexion, and Marluxia, were there to try words, first. Better to have someone join Khamja willingly than be dragged in as a captive, and not just for the whole bother of getting a captive all the way back to the Palace. It'd be much better for their target, too.
She wasn't sure what Lumi's plan was. Possibly, kill the target if all else fails, but he probably had some role before that point, even if it was to make sure no one got it into their heads to kill Marluxia while he slept.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-27 01:04 am (UTC)He sat upright and very still, but not still enough to be stiff. His eyes were closed, his legs were crossed and his hands were folded in his lap. He looked... if not relaxed, then definitely at rest.
He wasn't, though. He was alert. He hadn't been for the entire train ride, though. He had, as Marluxia suspected, catnapped on and off.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-27 01:22 am (UTC)"Appeal to his better nature," he said, quite cheerfully.
Of course, what he meant was 'appeal to his ego', which he had told Nel earlier on. He looked across to Marluxia and Nel, eyebrows raised a bit.
"I'll speak to him first," he said, as if that part of the plan wasn't obvious, "though you," he nodded at Marluxia, "should accompany me. Nel and Ulquiorra, you two might want to hang back. I'll tell him we need him, flatter him, point out that it will be dangerous for him if he doesn't on account of certain members of the Order possibly tracking him down."
He left off the 'and killing him' because that much was obvious. Particularly to Marluxia.
"If that doesn't work, we'll point out that the base will have a degree of privacy, lab space if he's willing to convert a spare room and like-minded morally challenged members willing to fund his experiments." He paused and backtracked a bit. "I might not put it like that, but it's about the size of it."
no subject
Date: 2015-01-27 02:00 am (UTC)Uninvited. Ulquiorra didn't expect that Zexion was going to get aggressive, but there was the possibility that Vexen would once confronted with Marluxia, or that Marluxia would if he considered the moment without the Arrancar presence to be an opportune one. Ulquiorra wasn't here for Marluxia's safety, but he didn't trust him any further than he trusted Gin, and Vexen was an unknown quantity.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-27 02:11 am (UTC)She glanced at Lumi. "I take it you're waiting with us, then?" He didn't seem to be part of Zexion's plan to entice Vexen; that one was on Marluxia, and himself, which left Lumi in the unenviable position of either being a spare prick at a lesbian wedding and making things awkward, or having to stick about with the bodyguard crew of herself and Ulquiorra.
Because waiting for Marluxia and Zexion to coax a crotchety scientist who in the very least would rather see Marluxia dead than join him was exactly what Nel wanted to be doing while in the company of two guys for whom emotions were things that happened to other people.
On the other hand, if Lumi went in with them then she knew Ulquiorra would object. Potentially out loud.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-27 02:18 am (UTC)Vexen was going to be unhappy enough to see him. If he was confronted with himself and Lumi, he might jump from unhappy to scared, and a scared Vexen was prone to doing something stupid and regrettable.
They needed to avoid that if they wanted to bring him in alive, in one piece, and willing; that being the ascending order of preference.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-27 02:32 am (UTC)He wasn't going to go in with Vexen. There was no need. Between Zexion and Marluxia, they should be capable of subduing Vexen should things go awry. If they weren't, however, he, like Nel and Ulquiorra, would step in.
He was there largely to make sure nothing happened to Marluxia. He knew he was strong, but should Zexion, Vexen and Zexion's new friend decide to rid themselves of him, he wasn't sure he'd be capable of fighting off the three of them. Ulquiorra was there for Zexion's protection, mostly from Marluxia and himself. Nel, he suspected, was there for Vexen's benefit. She was, functionally, the mediator.
He was going to wait outside. Should Vexen prove unable to be controlled, he would be on hand to put a bullet in his face.
"Of course," he said, quietly. "And, should Vexen not answer the door, I can handle the lock."
His job as a hitman was a secondary form of employment for him. His speciality was infiltration, breaking and entering and theft of information and, more rarely, tangible property. He was more than capable of breaking into his hotel room should it become necessary.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-27 02:44 am (UTC)"All right," he said, happy enough with the plan. "If you feel Vexen's reiatsu spike, don't worry too much. He's a defensive fighter. His weapon, if you can call it that, is a shield. He ..." he paused, trying to phrase his next line in such a way that didn't imply that the same type of weapon generation as Saix had demonstrated. He gestured as though grasping for the word. "... imbues it with his element. If you feel anything, he's likely putting that between us."
no subject
Date: 2015-01-27 11:16 pm (UTC)Honestly, she wouldn't blame him for reacting offensively, either, but he would probably be too intelligent to try an attack unless pushed, knowing there were reinforcements nearby.
"We'll watch for yours," she said, looking at Zexion, and then acknowledging Marluxia as well, since he also counted. "If you let yours go, we know you're having to respond."
They weren't going in guns blazing, so to speak, so they'd be silly to respond to someone's defensiveness with escalation. It also meant that no one was going to get away with trying anything while they weren't exactly looking.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-27 11:22 pm (UTC)His ego would need a lot of placating, first, in any event, and then there would be the discussion of terms. He'd probably also be in for a little information, once he'd agreed, that it would be beneficial for him to have immediately.
Such as not pulling out his shield where the Arrancar could see it.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-27 11:26 pm (UTC)He'd be keeping a watch on Marluxia's reiatsu in particular; it was him that Ulquiorra didn't trust. With Zexion out of his sight, he wasn't going to stop observing the reiatsu levels for even a second until he was in Ulquiorra's sight again.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-28 12:27 am (UTC)The landscape had grown darker during their conversation as the sun had continued to descend. The Mist had thinned out slightly the further they got from the Nabreus region, but it never completely disappeared. The landscape had steadily grown less and less warped the further out they got.
An hour or so on and they were crossing a long and rather ancient cantilever bridge to the island on which Daguerreo was located. Daguerreo Island's lands were relatively normal looking, at least by night. By the time they reached the station it was pitch dark.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-28 01:04 am (UTC)Now that the train ride was over, the really hard part was coming up. This was the bit where they had to physically track down their target. Neither she nor Ulquiorra were familiar with Vexen's reaitsu to try identifying him that way, although they would be able to home in on strong individuals, and, once near enough, the chakra type of them, which would make things easier. It wasn't, however, a guaranteed quick find, so there was still legwork to do.
"He's Ice elemental, isn't he?" Nel asked, double checking with Zexion because now would be a really good time for any addenda like 'Yeah, but he's got Wind subtype' or 'Actually he's just really good at it, and secretly he's Poison elemental', although she doubted they were coming. Ice was, at least, one of the less common chakra types.
Daguerreo itself loomed ahead in the darkness; a lurking patch of darker shadow ahead of them.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-28 01:29 am (UTC)"He is," he confirmed. "Pure Ice. No subtypes. He's probably the most powerful Ice Elemental you're ever likely to meet and he knows how to use it to its full potential." Somehow, that still felt like an understatement. "He doesn't look like much, but he's powerful. He's a mage and a true Master of his element. Don't underestimate him should it come to combat."
He remembered Ulquiorra's recording and how Axel had looked on it. It was as though he had the Fire he wielded entirely under his control, even in that volume. Vexen was, in Ienzo's opinion, better than Axel with Ice than he was with Fire. Axel lacked Vexen's precision control and relied on physical attacks as heavily as magical. Vexen did not.
"Now we just have to find him," he said.
He looked at the yawning darkness ahead of them. Daguerreo was built into a giant, hollow rock, or possibly a dormant volcano, probably thousands of years ago. It was said to pre-date the War of the Magi. Ienzo could hear rushing water up ahead of them and he could see the moonlight that managed to penetrate the Mist glittering on what could only be two waterfalls either side of the mouth of the cave. He smelled nothing of interest, not yet. The scent of the sea was strong, but even that was dampened by the ambient Mist.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-28 01:35 am (UTC)The moonlight was thin and pale, but it was more than enough for him to see by. He could see a gigantic rock up ahead of them. He would have described it as a mountain, but the climb was nowhere near gradual enough for him to use that description. It looked like a vast, mountain-sized boulder, or inland cliff, hard and grey and unforgiving.
The short and mercifully rough-paved walk from the station took them to a long bridge suspended over a large lake, into which a pair of wide-spaced waterfalls drained, one higher than the other. The cave entrance was obvious enough. It was a good few storeys high and sat at the opposite end of the bridge.
He scowled to himself. Who built a library in a cave?
no subject
Date: 2015-01-28 02:01 am (UTC)Potentially on second and third time visitors, too.
There were no lights visible that would indicate windows, he noticed, suggesting that someone considered wall space more valuable than natural light; a common affliction of many libraries, and their patrons. Of course, it would have been difficult to put window into rock anyway, but someone had made the effort to build inside it, so they hadn't been averse to labour. Only, it seemed, to sufficient amounts of natural light.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-28 02:30 am (UTC)He was already tracking reiatsu, although the Mist, and the shell of Daguerreo kept it too muffled for accuracy out here. Marluxia's was steady, with only minor fluctuations; Ulquiorra had been observing what was normal for him over the course of the journey so he could catch anything unusual before it began, just in case.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-28 02:38 am (UTC)She was good, and Ulquiorra was frighteningly good at judging how strong someone was. The Ryoka always seemed to embody their elements more than normal, she'd noticed that, and if a Ryoka was strong, and of an uncommon element, that gave them a better edge when it came to tracking them.
She led the party inside, and gave the place a once over before she turned to Zexion and said, "Remember to breathe."
no subject
Date: 2015-01-28 07:51 pm (UTC)For a moment he felt almost numb in his surprise, half convinced that he'd fallen asleep on the train and had yet to wake up.
Daguerreo was vast. The main chamber rose up on multiple levels and each of those contained more books than Ienzo had ever seen in his life. Floors upon floors held hundreds of bookshelves, each packed end-to-end with thousands of books. Everything from the ground floor up was packed out with volumes of varying ages, but those below were no longer in use. Ienzo could see why. The old chambers down there, visible either side of the carved bridge, were flooded.
As if to combat the damp, everything inside was hewn from stone. Columns and alcoves were carved into the rock itself, while other structures were made from blocks of shaped stone left over from the excavation. Centuries of use had worn away the toolmarks and smoothed off any rough edges.
"This..."
He barely noticed the desk and clerk at the other end of the entrance bridge.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-28 08:35 pm (UTC)Daguerreo was more than merely vast, and the reality of tracking down a single individual here was looming uninvitingly. Nel was willing to try anything that would make it quicker.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-28 08:40 pm (UTC)Zexion would be impressed; he knew that before he heard him try to talk, and fail. It was not often, in Ulquiorra's experience, that Zexion was lost for words.
He kept one hand in his pocket, the other stabilising his bag, and pressed on, sticking close to Zexion. Daguerreo was rampant with the ghosts of reiatsu, some more ingrained into the surroundings than others, and over the top of that was the fuzz of Mist, belonging to no one, but playing tricks on perception. It was hard to identify any single individual from the noise, right now.