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[Somebody is very happy. Maniacal laughter happy. You see, somebody has a fully grown plant that appears to be coming along swimmingly. Or snappingly, really; it's occupying itself in trying to eat the air. Hey, you never know- SOMETHING delicious might come within reach!]
[Kuja approaches the plant and leans in, examining the creature closely, seemingly without regard for her personal safety. She doesn't look particularly impressed, but she's curious enough.] Ah, a plant beast. We have such as well. This one is rooted to the earth?
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[It snaps at her, apparently particularly interested in her hair. Vitalia makes no moves to warn her away; Kuja either knows what she's doing or will learn a Very Important Lesson.] Yes, it is not likely to walk about any time soon; I've yet to experiment with such faculties. I wouldn't call it a beast; I haven't hybridized it with any fauna parts. I haven't the confidence to do so without Papi's guidance.
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When I said 'beast', I spoke but metaphorically, of course. I am familiar with plants that move like animals, although they are not.
[Kuja carelessly waves the plant away from her hair, and it snaps at the manicured fingers that come into range, but its teeth do not so much as scratch her skin, and then the plant backs away, as if some stimulus has repelled it.] Ah, so you have made this creature. [Her eyes light.] And how was it done?
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[She's mildly interested in Kuja's apparent immunity to bitey plants, but much more interested in chattering away about her work. Technobabble happens. The words "snapdragon" and "Venus flytrap" come up. Blood may be involved somewhere.] ...so really, it's quite simple, once you've got the proper apparati. Should it be called for, I'm sure I could have a hedge of them quite easily. Though I don't expect it to be necessary in this place.
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[She smiles and nods as she listens to Vitalia's explanation. She is familiar with the concept, if not those particular details.] I too made creatures, once. But they were not plants. No, not at all.
As a defensive measure, such rooted plants have their flaws. It would be very easy to destroy them.
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Oh, did you? What is your specialty? [OH BOY OH BOY NEW FRIEND OH BOY!!!]
I suppose not in the sense of an invasion, but surely they would work well against an unsuspecting thief or saboteur. I have no reason yet to believe I should require more defense than that, here.
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The things I made were more like humans in form. They served as weapons of war. [Her feelings regarding the Black Mages are--complicated at the moment, so she does nothing but relate the simplest facts.]
But, my dear, their purpose seems so obvious. Someone would have to stumble upon them in the dead of night for them to have any effect. Is there no way to camouflage them?
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Ah! Then your interests and Papi's are very close, indeed! Of course, his creations were never meant for warfare, but his studies are based around the refinement and improvement of the human body. ["Improvement" means "tacking stuff onto" here.]
An obvious guard works as a deterrent as well, wouldn't you say? It'd do me no good to have social callers stumbling in and losing bits. Although perhaps I should devise some other, more subtle safety measures, as you suggest... for those who are not so innocent... Oh, Miss Kuja, you're so delightfully helpful! I'm certain I shall have to consult with you quite often, if you'd consent to it.
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The creatures I made were not improved humans, precisely--they were powerful and intelligent enough to follow orders--they could speak and reason to an extent--but they possessed no true minds of their own. [They were mindless for the most part, that is.] Their lifespans were limited, their only purpose warfare.
[Ah yes, some people like to have visitors.] Yet their very obviousness makes them useless against any determined enemy, as they can simply be burned. It is a very easy thing to make a fire. They cannot elude attack, and they have no projectile attack of their own. [As she is being polite, she does not illustrate how easy it would be to destroy the plant. Being appealed to as an expert does flatter her vanity. Although--she was supposed to ( ... )
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I see... so, closer to automatons than an actual life, if I get your meaning?
[Her face clouds] i- I should hope it would not come to that... not again... I'm afraid I have no way to defend my specimens against fire...
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There was some actual life to them, but it would not be incorrect to say that. [For someone talking about her own creations, she seems oddly ambivalent.]
[Kuja doesn't seem to have the empathy required to realize that the topic of fire has unsettled Vitalia.] Working with plants, that would be my chief concern. Yet, I once made such weapons as made the world weep-- [She is getting a bit carried away, and does not forget that those weapons were part of the problem, but this is an entirely different situation.] I could set my mind to solving that little problem.
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I see. I don't suppose you'll be continuing the work here... unless it's merely out of interest. I haven't seen any reason to need war machines.
Oh, could you? I should find that very helpful... It sounds like you were a very accomplished scientist in your home! [Vitalia: impressed!]
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Oh no, not at all. I have no interest in war now. I am but a woman of peace. An artist, you might say. Devoted to beautiful things.
I can make no promises, but I will see what can be done. [She nods.] My accomplishments were many.
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How lovely! I do hope you will get along well here- it does seem quite an aesthetically pleasing area, wouldn't you agree?
In any case, I look forward to any collaborations we might embark on.
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I agree that the natural elements are pleasing to the eye, but where civilization is concerned, there are no beautiful artworks, no shining streets, and instead of symmetry and harmony, there are haphazard buildings, springing up at random here and there, with a complete lack of unity. There is no design, no sense of purpose or intelligence. One can only gaze upon a tumult of trees and blossoms so long before one grows tired of the disarray.
...not that I have yet reached that point. [She nods at Vitalia's last words.] It may be an engaging pastime.
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I suppose there is something to that... I imagine the strange properties of this area might make a well-planned layout difficult in the first place, as so often places seem to move when one is not looking.
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