647/It's a gun!

It's a gun!
Date of Scene:	25 October 2023
Location:	Club Building
Synopsis:	Naru brings the v1 Heartstealer gun pieces to show Hannah. They both are pretty confident its a gun, yep.
Cast of Characters:	Naru Osaka, Hannah Steiner

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Naru Osaka has posed:
A flurry of text messages came from Naru asking if Hannah might have time that wasn't training to look at some bits of tech. Things that aren't quite so condusive to a quick glance after Naru getting her butt handed to her in practice. She might be getting some muscles, but those come at the price of a lot of butt whooping.

Which means that Naru finds herself outside the workshop room at the Clubs building, not only with her usual satchel, but with another bag over her shoulder as she waits for Hannah to arrive. She's got a coffee with her, of course, sipping carefully from the still hot beverage.

Hannah Steiner has posed:
Right on time, a smiling figure comes up towards the workshop room, Lyra's lead in one hand, a bag over her shoulder, and her Device in the other! Lyra lets out a hiss-bork, before nudging one of Naru's knees in greetings!

"Frau Osaka! It has been too long mein scholarly freund of matters obscure! How are you, hmm? Acht, come, let us not stand around in the hallway like a pair of herumlungerer!" She proceeds to knee open the club door, waving Naru in with her as though it were necessary.

"Guten tag! Anyone about!?" Offers the space german's voice. And when no response comes?

"Wunderbar! All ours. Now what joys have you come to tempt this humble technological magnate with?" She may not be drooling, but her words certainly are!

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Hi Lyra." Naru bends just a touch to offer a scritch of greeting before heading into the room.

"It has most assuredly been too long, everything got altogether too busy and full of crises for a little while." Naru sounds apologetic about it. She missed /runs/.. it had to have been busy and crisisey!

"Right.. so .. did you hear about the soul stealing guns that have been out there shooting people randomly for the last.. mmm.. month or so?" Naru plunks the bag that she's brought on a convenient table.

Hannah Steiner has posed:
A wave of a hand dismissively. "Nein, nein, we have /both/ been busy with crises personal und otherwise. Having someone of your calm demeanor as freund und font of advice native to this planet is always a bright spot in mein life und circumstances, Naru." Comes Hannah fondly, before her head tilts.

"Little more than they exist, I admit I have yet to personally run into one or whomever is using them. Any details would be useful." Pause.

"Kark, do not tell me someone shot you with one!?" Because of course someone would. Hannah is firmly convinced that luck is Naru's dump stat.

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I think I've met them three times? Perhaps four?" Naru has to think about that as she starts removing chunks of tech debris from the bag in question.

"Of course I got shot." Naru can't help but laugh. "It was absolutely /fascinating/. I don't really recommend it.. talk about disorienting.. but that one self destructed." She explains a little further. "Apparently they have a self destruct mechanism, although we're not yet sure how it's triggered."

There's perhaps half a dozen pieces of exploded debris on the table. "We've destroyed three guns so far, and version two has been changed significantly, including dropping the lethality, but these are all the peices of the two of them."

Hannah Steiner has posed:
Hannah Steiner lets out a small sigh. "You get shot und you laugh. By a gun that steals souls." Finally she just smiles.

"Faru Osaka, sometimes I worry for your sanity. Or, I would, if this world were not drowning in madness. No wonder the rest of the galaxy considers this place an inescapable black hole." Pause. "You know, aside from the magical very-fraught-to-escape black-hole esque properties." She really, /really/ wants to punch that Moon Queen that led to all of this, according to a certain Pluto.

Hmmmm! Out comes BG, and she holds up her cane. <Fokussuche>

One scan later, and then she tosses her Device in the air, which promptly floats with gravitic magic. The Countess then gets hands on, running through the data Blauer Greif shunts into her head alongside physically examining the bits.

"Well. The whole reason for weapons to explode upon capture is to prevent reverse engineering. But...hmmmm...." She starts to move the parts around, herself and her Device attempting educated guesses at where they /should/ be.

"Tell me if I cam getting anywhere close to what you remember of what the weapon looked like." Another beat.

"Do you remember /what/ it fired? Energy based? Kinetic munitions? Any visible feed, battery, or magazine if kinetic?"

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I did put bits of tape on the ones that came from the one that shot me, to distinguish it from the other one." Naru explains and shows where there's green painters tape making one gun from the other. "I didn't figure it would be particularly obvious otherwise."

Naru laughs softly. "I mean.. what else can you do but laugh? If I started crying about it all, I'd never stop. So instead I delight in the fact that Usagi put my soul back in and we got more information."

Naru steps back a little to let Hannah have full access to the bits, few as they might be. "Energy based, dark energy of some sort based on the Obsidian branding and how it felt and how it generally looks. The gun was quite bulky." She illustrates the size on the table. "Apparently the new ones are smaller, something to be said for upgrades."

Hannah Steiner has posed:
Hannah Steiner is happy to let Naru guide her, though Lyra has to hop up and help out on the color front! Unlike actual dogs, Razorhounds aren't color blind! Clever girl and all!

Alright, Naru wins that round. "Fair enough, I suppose! Where I am from, magic has a certain Order to it. It is one part Science - all Science if you ask any Mid-Childan, the Sanktkaiserless Heathens - und one part a reaffirmation of Her Upon the Cradle's benevolent gaze from the swift winds of the Universe." She comments as she works. Soon enough, with Naru and Lyra and BG's help, there's a vague approximation of a completed weapon. Actually a pretty good one, the born weapon-merchant having touched many a firearm despite being blind in her short time in the galaxy.

"This world happily throws all of the Science straight into the maw of some of the worst of the old Empire's Sankt Kaisers that we Belkans do not enjoy thinking about. In fact, it very much harkens to the sort of madness /they/ so enjoyed. Luckily this is not on a planetary scale." There's an unspoken 'yet' by the sheer antipathy that sneaks into her voice.

'Dark Energy' is exactly what she didn't want to hear but absolutely expected it.

"Well. In mein expert opinion as a certified Meister of Devices, Belkan, Mid-Childan, und Ancient Belkan as well as guarding secrets passed down to mein House..." She starts dramatically.

"This is a gun!" She ends with a big ol' grin as she raises both arms to the assembled pieces! She lets her words hang, and then she chuckles.

"Und a gun missing a feed system." She adds more seriously. Then she ponders. Sigh.

"Do not let mein conjectures spread /too/ far, hm? I am...in an awkward position of attempting to not run afoul of anti-technological-proliferation treaties mein world und House are in with the Time Space Administration Bureau. However given this technology seems home grown...Conject I shall. I am, after all, a Knight of the Church of the Sankt Kaiser, und I have a Duty to life, Administered or Unadministered world regardless! Typically an energy weapon -Dark Energy or even just interfacing with a Linker Core or other source of magic - possesses a way to siphon said magic from either a standing source...Such as a Linker Core...then amplifies it through a system before firing with various attuned lenses, crystals, acht, a nigh-endless amount of potential ways to step up the magical-potential energy towards an aim. Without said feeder, I cannot determine /what/ is powering it - the user's Dark Magic? Pre-charged Dark Energy storing 'magazines' for lack of a better word? But that is most likely how it works on the base level. As for the soul-extraction itself?"

That is a stickier issue. Her brow squints.

"Such would be on the level of a Lost Logia to accomplish. Extracting something so vital as a Linker Core would require, for example, ancient und banned arts of magic, but not I suppose impossible? Und before you ask, no, such abominations are /not/ what mein House has preserved. We tossed off the Old Ways thousands of years ago. I suspect a very specific, very focused sort of Dark Energy aimed at....acht, a 'spiritual linker core' as it were."

Then she shrugs. "I will print out what Blauer Greif detects as the material composition, but sadly without a working - or at least less 'blown up' example, its' inner workings are mostly a mystery." Comes Hannah apologetically.

Naru Osaka has posed:
Naru watches as Hannah explains and assembles.. and reassembles and explains a bit more about philosophy and history and everything else.

Naru laughs easily. "Gosh really, a gun!? I'm shocked!" She giggles and then continues. "So far everyone I've seen fire one has been a hard core dark energy type, so I can't say if its their energy powering it, or if it's self powered. That being said, it does appear to be single use and then either needs reloading, or recharging of some sort. Every time, it's been a single shot and then a fight for the crystal, rather than just moving on to shoot another target, which I'd expect if the weapon recharaged in any sort of timely manner, or if it was working with the user's own energy."

Naru has, clearly, been thinking about this. "The main researcher is a device user, if that helps.. or hinders. I'll keep collecting pieces, but the next ones we manage to get.. even in pieces.. will be the next version which I've been told are configured differently. Thank goodness."

Hannah Steiner has posed:
Smirk! "Whom would have guessed!?" Comes Hannah, happy to lean into a little lightness given the dour circumstances.

"Hm. I suppose then the soul extraction is the whole point. Less an assassination weapon, und more...a purpose built weapon to gain access to the resulting 'soul'. Which begs the question, why? With this world's tech-base, even augmented by magic, such is quite the achievement I must admit. Were they looking for mass energy from said 'soul', all of it seems a touch...wasteful. Und if our Enemies are one thing, I shan't do them disservice by calling them unfocused." Postulates Hannah.

A raised brow. "They already have Youma for mass Energy Gathering. Nein. They are looking for a specific 'soul', most likely. But what sort und for what purpose?" She wonders aloud.

A swift nod. "Please do. The closer to a complete example, the more concrete help - Sankt willing, a counter-measure - I can be. Hm. Did you get a name perhaps?" Brows tighten, and she grips her cane. Clearly the Royal Meister desires a good Stab of said researcher!

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Yes.. the soul extraction is the point." Naru confirms. "I've been told that they are looking for /something/ in a specific soul, but apparently getting just most of it is enough? Based on version two at least. It extracts only about 80%, or so I've been told. I've not yet met one of those in person."

Naru considers the pieces of gun spread out on the table. "I'll keep picking up bits, and letting you prod at them."

Naru nods. "Riventon is the researcher." She confirms what Hannah probably already suspects. "When it still was entirely lethal, I was more worried about trying to figure out some sort of barrier jacket.. without being exactly a barrier jacket for people, but I have to admit, the unfeasability of it mixed with the less then lethality of the new version makes me less worried about sorting /that/ out."

Hannah Steiner has posed:
Both hands go up at the mention of Riventon's name! She actually, to her own shame, smiles!

"Were he born on Tharkad, he would have been a genius Meister! As it stands, he plays with toys und makes from scrap things that are.../wholly inferior/ und yet are slightly less monstrous works of artistry than I ever suspect. Arrogant little jerk." Given her Noble Ways, she all but /smells/ of hypocrisy here, if not having the Dark Energy fuel.

"Und yet a talented one. This hurts to say, und yet I find meinself praying that the Sankt guides his hand to further less lethal means." Better a more efficient soul-extractor, than a more rough one in her eyes. And frankly tech-improvement of any sort has her smiling.

"Barriet Jackets -or the superior Belkan version, Modern or Ancient, Knight Armor - protect the corpus rather than the soul. Und while I always advocate advancements...Unlikely to stop the soul-extraction process at least until we have a functioning model to examine. Shields must know what is going to hammer into them, und all." She offers, nodding a touch.

Then, she starts to haul up the remains of the weapon into Naru's pack, offering a companionable arm about her short stature after.

"Business out of the way, how about dinner, hm? I should like to hear about the Scions of House Osaka." Offers Hannah, prepared to learn more about her good friend, aside from the soul-punching gun worries!