1396/Truth or Versions of It

Truth or Versions of It
Date of Scene:	10 April 2024
Location:	Club Building
Synopsis:	Corona talks to Bow about past crimes and what might be done about them.
Cast of Characters:	Bow, Kyouka Inai
Tinyplot:	The Game

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Bow has posed:
With the school session starting back up, things are returning to the status norm. Talk of the prom is starting to slack off, and things are just... baseline. Which is pretty nice in it's own way. Having finally started at the school himself after arriving from Etheria so late in the last year that it was just easier to let him wait, Bow had taken Music as his elective - which means he needs to practice.

Which is why one would find him in the band room. He's using one of the school's violins, due to the fact that he didn't think to pack his own. He's working on tuning and preparing it. And when he finally has it ready, he lifts it to his shoulder, drawing back, he starts to saw away, playing a lively and upbeat little melody from Etheria that sets his foot to tap to keep time with the melody in a steady metronome.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Things like Prom, though surely of importance to students of the school, mean little to beings like Corona. Her only concern is her mission... the mission she has represented to those she speaks to as seeking worthy candidates for the power she claims to have on offer. The criteria she judges people by, however, remain vague and it seems that so far no candidates who meet them have been found.

    Perhaps that is why the dog-sized, wolf-like alien is still lurking about the school. Perhaps that is why she is found this morning sitting upon the windowsill and watching Bow play his instrument. She makes no move to announce herself, but neither to hide, and her form blocking some of the light coming in through the open window would be hard to miss for any great length of time.

Bow has posed:
As the cheerful playing continues, Bow's eyes are settled on watching a point on the horizon, having learned a long time ago that watching your hands is the quickest way to mess up when you're making music. The warm tune continues for a couple of minutes before his attention is grabbed by something.

Tunring his attention to the window as he notices the shadow cast, his eyes turn to the open window, where he notices Corona. He brings his playing to a halt a few moments later, and lowers both violin and bow. "Ah, afternoon, Corona." he greets the creature. "How goes your search for the worthy?" he asks with a mote of amusement.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "The search is endless. In truth, I wonder if it is even possible to find such that I seek." The creature laments in her mature-sounding, deep woman's voice. "Or perhaps the mistakes of my predecessor merely make me hesitate more than is wise. It is hard to say, for I am not a god and cannot see the future. I worry about making the wrong choices and suffering a similar fate."

    She leaps nimbly down to the floor of the classroom, padding closer to where the boy stands with his instrument, then leaping atop a desk to sit again. "You are skilled with that." An inclination of her pointed snout towards the violin. "If the ability to make music were the worth I seek, surely you would be chosen. Alas that it, while admirable, is not."

Bow has posed:
"I think that the hardest problem you're going to find is that the one that is probably worthy is going to be the one that will least present themselves to be that. As you said yourself, you made a mistake in the past." Bow asks as he moves to put away the violin for now, and shaking his head with a chuckle.

"There are plenty of people that are way better at making music than I am. The professionally trained, those that were raised by tutors. I'm more the play-by-ear guy." he admits as he closes the case and then goes to take a seat near Corona. "But I thank you for the flattery." A grin at that as his hands fold into his lap.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "'Those who are most worthy to wield power are those who least want to do so' hmmm?" Corona responds, with a touch of amusement in her voice. "That is not untrue. And again speaks to the unwise choices of my predecessor. If he had thought so, he would never have made the choices that he did. Though it does complicate the proceedings, as you have pointed out."

    As Bow sits and puts the violin away, she looks at him and responds to his self-deprecating comments with another bit of philosophy. "Perfect is ever the enemy of good. Just because you are not the best does not mean that you are not skilled. Just because people better than you exist does not mean that you lack talent, or worth. There will always be someone better. Few are those who can claim otherwise. Few enough that we may as well pretend they do not exist. At least so long as they do not show up on our doorsteps. Luckily that is unlikely."

Bow has posed:
"How goes the handling of that?" Bow asks Corona curiously. "The whole... handling of your predecesors mistakes thing? I mean, have you made contact with them and maybe figured out a way to work with you to be better or at least improve on what they have?" Always the optimist, willing to at least hope that things can be resolved without combat or strife.

"Oh!" There's a laugh. "I'm aware that I'm decent at what I do." His grin grows a little. "Just being able to admit and be good with people being better than you is just part and parcel of things!" Bow readily agrees with Corona's thoughts, "Someone will be better than me on violin, someone will be better than me at archery. Someone could even peel potatoes better than me at the Korma. But, if you keep that in mind, you will always strive to want to reach for more and to improve and to want to reach behind you to help those that want to improve as well."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "Fixing the mistakes of my predecessor is, alas, not part of my mission. Aside from doing better with my own choices." Corona flicks her slender tail in what seems like an expression of agitation. "I admit it rankles to see murderers and their defenders left free to wander the city, and even more to operate freely without any sort of punishment for their crimes. But it is not within my mandate to seek such. If I abandon my mission for revenge then I am not failing less, just in a different way."

    To his other statements, Corona nods her head again. "There is wisdom in seeking to emulate your betters. Or perhaps in using them as motivation to improve. Not everyone must excel in the same ways, after all."

Bow has posed:
"I suppose that you could learn from your predecessors mistakes as well?" Bow starts to ask curiously, but then Corona goes into the ideas and letting it slip that the former 'heroes' were in fact murderers and still free and about. Now that little spark of justice is lit. "I... oh. I see." he says, brows knitting together. "That would be dangeroues, yes." Apparently talk of music and improving is set aside for the moment.

The hook and bait were cast and she's definetly got a bite.

"If they were to be brought to justice, would you be willing to help them?" comes his curious question. "Everyone deserves a second chance. Or at least a chance to realize their mistakes and make amends for what they did."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "I am neither a jailor or a rehabilitator." Corona says, with what seems to pass as a shrug of her alien shoulders. "I have my mission. It is to find worthy candidates to carry the power of the Lux Tenebrae and use it for maintaining the proper equilibrium of the universe and protecting those who dwell within it by doing so."

    "The individuals that my predecessor chose for this mission turned out to be skilled, powerful, and dangerously unstable. He paid for that choice with his life, when one of them decided that she had had enough of his leash and required his power for selfish ends. Knowing he would not hand it over willingly, she killed him instead. This was nigh on a decade ago, mind. Yet still she walks free amongst you." She shakes her head. "I do not know if she could be helped, or if she wants to be helped. But I do know she remains a danger to those who wish to help others, rather than themselves."

Bow has posed:
"And that is a very important mission... and..." Bow realizes the issue suddenly. "That sounds terrible!" the young Etherian admits as he is told the story of Corona's predecessor, and he looks worried and concerned for the creature all of the sudden. "If she..." now he knows it's a she. "...was willing to do that to your predecessor..."

"If she found out there was another here, she may come to try to find you to get more power! That would be terrible! Oh no. I... I mean, that can't be allowed to happen, right? I wouldn't want you to be in danger because of what your predecessor did!"

"But if she's hurting other people, and is a danger, then she should be put to a stop somehow. I could try to help!" he offers. "I could try to find her and see what she's doing and try to help, if I can."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "Your concern is touching, but she already knows I am here. And has threatened my life, in fact, though so far she has yet to make good on that threat. Obviously. I have avoided her since our first encounter- that is something I can do which my predecessor unfortunately could not. After all, she was his charge. I have no such obligations. I am not particularly concerned for my safety, so you need not be either. It is more simply the fact that people are allowed to commit such crimes and suffer no consequences that disturbs me. My people believe in maintaining balance, after all. Committing evil acts without punishment is not balance."

    She regards Bow as he offers to help. In silence she considers him for a moment. "You would not need to 'find' her. She is not hiding, except in that few know of her past crimes. But I would be concerned for your own safety if you were to challenge her. I did not speak lightly when I spoke of the skills of the previous generation, both she and her partner. I am sure you are capable, but there is no need to be reckless."

Bow has posed:
"It's not..." Bow admits, another frown, that sense of justice in him is really strong at this point and he suddenly hears her and realizes that Corona is suggesting that he may not be able to handle things and that whoever this person is may be too much for him to handle. And that simply won't do!

He makes a fist and slaps it into the palm of his other hand and shakes his head, eyes wide and dark with that sense to do the right thing. To make things right again! "I wouldn't be reckless! I mean, I've been a soldier for as long as I've been able to hold a bow and can be stealthy and quick when I need to be. Please, let me help! I can at least try to confront her for her deeds and if I need to, stop her from hurting others!"

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Corona seems to consider the boy for a moment more. Finally, she gives that little shrug of her front shoulders again, almost as if to say 'so be it'. "Take my warnings to heart, then. I would not wish to see you meet the same fate as Aurora, my predecessor, because you chose to tread where you were unprepared to set foot. At the very least be careful and know that the one you wish to confront is no easy mark."

    She hesitates a moment, almost as if for dramatic effect, before continuing, "The one I speak of, the one who selfishly murdered Aurora, her own mentor and origin of her power, is the woman called Fuyuko Yuuhi. She works at Obsidian, but is often simply out and about in the city. She is dangerous, young man. I urge you to approach her with caution, if at all."

Bow has posed:
"Fuyuko Yuuhi." Bow commits the name to memory, along with the name of the past guardian mascot. "I'll be careful, I promise." the Etherian archer offers with a chuckle. "After all, I'm used to handling things at a distance!" A small smile at that, but he's clearly serious about this idea and frowns a little. "She works for Obsidian?" Then she definetly must be a bad person!

"Thank you for the information, Corona. I'll see what I can do to help you." There's another one of those brief smiles. "After all, you should be allowed to rest easy in your search for a successor to your powers."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "One other word of caution," Corona says, as she rises to all four feet and sways her tail back and forth. "Fuyuko Yuuhi is the murderer who has unpaid for crimes. But her partner still treads these halls with equal abandon. Though she is not a murderer, at least not of humans or Statera, she has proven herself unstable, profligate, and lacking in virtue. Should you seek to confront Fuyuko Yuuhi, you may be forced to deal with her as well. The two of them are often at odds, but when they are united in purpose they are a formidable force. It would be wise for you to avoid such a circumstance. For your own safety."

    She leaps down and treads back over to the window, leaping up to the sill and glancing back over her shoulder. "So I warn you- do not trust Kyouka Inai." And then she leaps down from the windowsill and out of sight.

Bow has posed:
As he's told of the second, Bow listens intently, taking more notes as he draws in a breath. "One here in the school?" he starts to ask, trying to figure out who that would be. But when it's brought up that it's Miss Inai, there's a brief look of confusion. He's not had any dealings with her, but had been told she was strict, but fair. This puts a new spin on that.

"I... I will be careful and considerate. Thank you, Corona." he offers quietly, drawing in a breath, and considering what his plan will be so not to draw both of them in at once. This will take some planning!