Nightshift 35: F21-F30 Hallway
Okay, so the day more or less completely sucked. The only consolation Toph had was in regards to the conversation with Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan and the upcoming meeting with Renamon for her file and possessions. That is, if she could even find the woman. Renamon never got a chance to tell her the location of her room; the staff had intervened too
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She waved back to Ururu, then nodded to Arlene and got up. She'd changed out of her trip outfit--not into the usual uniform, but the tunic she'd been making. It was distinctly ragged around the edges, since she'd made it from a bedsheet torn down to size, but she'd folded it neatly and tied it together firmly at the top; aside from lack of hems, it looked reasonably accurate. Although she'd left on the socks and shiny black shoes from the school uniform she'd been wearing.
"Thanks for all the measurements; the less guesswork I have to do, the better," she said, putting the array down and then taking the materials to rearrange around it. Once she had a pencil, she could stop worrying about water smearing the lines, but for now she was stuck with what she had.
Arlene could come sit down across from her or just stay there and watch, her choice; either way the woman was about to be very impressed.
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"I wasn't sure how much detail you needed, so I thought it prudent to be as thorough as I could," she replied, her voice carefully neutral. "Can you explain this process to me as you go? I wish to understand it better?"
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"I'll explain the placement of the lines if you want," she said, tapping the array, "but... um, how much higher-level math do you know?" She could only simplify what she said so far...
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"I was taught Calculus, though it has been eleven... no... fifteen years since I was in school," she answered. She hoped Skuld hadn't caught the momentary hesitation as she tried to recall the years. That damn coma had a tendency to mess with her like that.
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Really, it was all pretty simple--it was just alchemy. Explaining the power itself if she was asked about it would be harder, mostly because she would have to go into concepts Arlene had probably never heard of.
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"You summarized that well; I believe I'm following," she said, finally kneeling down next to Skuld instead of standing over her. Her eyes never left the array as if she was trying to memorize it, though that wasn't the case.
"You said your alchemy was different than the others here. How does one actually take a solid substance and change it as if it was liquid being poured into a fabricated mold. You've explained how the mold is made, but what about the melting?"
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And if Arlene was still wondering about what was different... "That's mostly how the other alchemists work, too, but I get my power from another source. I don't know where they get theirs, but my power's--well, divine." Obviously.
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Yes, that was a much more acceptable explanation if she was going to allow herself to believe in the alchemy. Well, she still needed to see it herself.
"Ah. Well then, anything else you can tell me about this process?"
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And if she doesn't... it's okay, Belldandy usually doesn't get believed either... Sigh.
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Skuld put her hands on the floor, partly for support, and closed her eyes. "Material born in the earth and above it, heed my command..." Arlene couldn't understand a thing and she still got dramatic.
This time, she got inspired; great goddess though she was, she didn't usually sound like she was reciting poetry. Having the arrays made so specifically really helped, too.
...that didn't prevent her from collapsing. Again. She controlled it this time, at least; she fell onto her side but stayed--kind of in a sitting position. "I'm okay." She was breathing a little hard, but she wasn't as totally exhausted as she had been before. And as promised, a brand-new, perfectly-made sword and sheath lay on the floor next to the array, with scattered bits of extra metal pushed off to the side.
Told you so.
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Without a word, the Bride reached for the sword, hesitating a moment before wrapping her hand around the hilt. She stood up and looked at the blade, awe clear in her eyes.
It IS real...
Backing up a few steps so Skuld was out of range, Beatrix tested the balance and line of the blade then cut it swiftly through the air in a basic form. She nodded at the blade and held it before her, eyes closing as if meditating, trying to feel the blade more. It was no Hattori Hanzo, but it would do. It would do.
Eyes opened and she retrieved the scabbard, sliding the katana into it with a smooth click. The Bride knelt down before Skuld, automatically falling into the respectful bow she had when Hanzo had presented his blade to her. The katana was laid on the ground next to Skuld and the yellow-haired warrior bowed her head, awaiting for it to be formally presented to her.
Had her mind not been reeling from the alchemy, she might have realized how utterly ridiculous this ceremony-on-the-fly was given Skuld was fifteen or so.
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"With my blessing..." she held it out to the woman. "Take it, and fight for the day we all bring this place down. For us--and those we were taken from."
She smiled, wistfully; she was even missing Urd a little at this point. "For the day you see your daughter again."
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The maker of her blade was giving her permission to kill with it and kill she would. She would kill Martin Landel. She would kill anyone and anything that got between her and her daughter. She would kill those that harmed her wards. She would make sure they got back to their homes. The blade would be bathed in the blood of those that must die.
The mention of her daughter didn't soften her cold eyes, but they did take on a slightly different quality as her daughter was all she had left to lose and they'd taken the girl from her. Her eyes never wavering from the goddess', she accepted the sword, fingers curling around the sheathe. She didn't say anything but moved slowly backward where she stayed for a moment, bowing her head respectfully once, before getting to her feet.
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That done, she sat down for a minute... she hadn't fainted, but she had made two fairly big items with three different kinds of material, so she was a lot more tired than she wanted to let on.
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She decided then that she liked Skuld. She wasn't ever going to tell the girl this, but she would take efforts to keep her safe should anyone be foolish enough to threaten her.
[to here]
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