2090/TCOS: The Prinzessin and the Magi

TCOS: The Prinzessin and the Magi
Date of Scene:	21 November 2024
Location:	Museum
Synopsis:	Clarthas goes to investigate a shining source of darkness, and finds more fights than answers.
Cast of Characters:	Aloisia Stauss, Keaka Hoshiko
Tinyplot:	The Crown of Succession

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Aloisia Stauss has posed:
     The Princess of Nothing, its activation had likely been felt around the city by those in tune with dark magic, and the ominous energy that seemed to roll off of her even when she was not actively fighting. Even at the moment, when she was relatively quietly and calmly wandering the museum.

It was fairly obvious she was searching for something as she moved, those glowing eyes sliding from section to section of museum as she walks through it. It was after hours, so largely nobody was around, save for a security guard that had learned quite quickly to not mess with her when she blasted open the front door.

...There might be police on the way, considering the sound of alarms going off in the background.

The Princess of Nothing did not particularly care, though.

Keaka Hoshiko has posed:
    Felt around the city? It sure was. Sarida's readings are weird and inconclusive. Clarthas can only come investigate personally.

    The source has broken into... A museum? She's somewhat positively disposed to the idea of museums, although any actually useful artifacts should be studied and reverse-engineered by those who can do so. ...Perhaps that is less of an issue on Earth, given they would not find artifacts from advanced, lost civilizations.

    Well, usually.

    It's certainly possible some Lost Logia have ended up here, and that the source of that dark energy -- it's so bright -- knows of it.

    She just comes in through a skylight and lands near the Prinzessin. Her eyes -- black pupils in red sclera -- widen. "Miss Stauss?" They haven't really talked but are probably aware of eachother as Obsidian coworkers. "What happened to you?"

    The 'eye' drawn in her gauntler's crystal moves its pupil to look from Aloisia to Clarthas. "Analyzing anomolous readings..."

Aloisia Stauss has posed:
     Bright is a strange description for the Princess of Nothing as she stands there in black armor, looking up at the statue of a knight that she seemed to be scanning when Clarthas Anode arrives. The sound of glass falling nearby gets an immediate shift, the Prinzessin's shield lifted immediately, that lance aimed towards Clarthas Anode immediately.

Analysis of 'Aloisia' is ... ... strange. Nothing there reads right. Everything is wrong, it is simultaneously the same devices, the same person, but at the same time there is a weird sense of Nothing, as if there were not actually a person there... even though clearly there was.

...And perhaps the most ominous thing, is the name of the Device in her hand reads as a single name:

Konigsende

King's End.

Also it's glowing.

And being immediately thrust towards Clarthas Anode, almost unerringly aimed for their heart.

Keaka Hoshiko has posed:
    The lines making an 'eye' widen, and Sarida's -- the gauntlet's -- gem flickers from blue to grey as it analyzes the Device. The lines drawing the 'eye' widen. "What is that... by Burden, is that... another Pure?!" Then it narrows again as it flickers back to blue. "No... There's no connection to the Network. But the corruption on that Device is-- *CHIME* Force Field. Hybrid Sword."

    A translucent amber sphere like Sphere Protection appears, shattering from the impact but in the process flinging Keaka back against the wall and away from the lance's tip. She grunts from the impact. "What the hell, lady! We're on the same side!" Orange energy blades are projected parallel to her forearms as well now, extending out past her wrists. Since she had flight up, she just... floats next to the wall rather than falling down. She holds out her hand, "Barret Burst Fire." a spray of barrets shoots out to try and keep the Prinzessin back and prepares to fly to the side to dodge the next lunge. "Why are you fighting me? What's your de--" Realization flashes across her face. "Are you controlling her? Who are you?!"

Aloisia Stauss has posed:
     There is, much like the original Device's Schlossknacker spell, a fairly heavy armor piercing effect on that lance's initial stab, likely stabbing further into that barrier before Clarthas is able to get away. While she still gets away unscathed, it might be Concerning.

The Princess of Nothing is utterly silent as she's questioned. But that shield lifts up as those barrets are launched towards her.

<<FELD DES NICHTS.>>

Ripples of magic-disrupting energy burst out from the Princess of Nothing, simply... erasing the spray of barrets.

...The security guard that had been slumped in the corner is also gone.

There is no response from anything in response to the question of controlling her. Who is she.

...Empty and blank gaze simply stays locked on Clarthas as the lance glows with red energy edged with black.

<<STREULOSCHUNG.>>

In response to the scatter of barrets towards her, the Princess of Nothing dashes to closer range, her lance stabbed towards Clarthas...

...And at the last moment it unleashes a scatter of short range lasers, each burning through the air.

Keaka Hoshiko has posed:
    "Hey!" Clarthas objects to having her attack deleted. It's so rude for someone else to do that! Okay, so trying to block or parry is a last resort here. She's already on the move, circling around the room to keep her distance when she's charged. Years of reflexes have her moving her arms to parry -- and instead she's blasted with lasers, point-blank. "Agh!"

    ...But she's still parrying through it, trying to turn the lance aside with her energy blades, step within the Princessin's range, and stab with the stunning energy field, consisting of two overlaid layers of different hardnesses for better piercing other energy fields.

Aloisia Stauss has posed:
     A close range attack, pushing the lance aside and stabbing towards the Prinzessin Der Nichts seems... half effective, as the blades strike true!

...Against something hard, as the blades strike that black shield.

Still, there was a stunning energy field, which does seem to give the Princess of Nothing pause, if only for the moment. The princess dropping to the ground to land on one knee.

Still absolutely. Utterly. Silent.

And then she starts to stand again.

Those glowing yellow eyes piercing through darkness as they turn back up towards Clarthas.

...But there /is/ a moment, as she recovers from that stun, to breathe.

Or escape.

Keaka Hoshiko has posed:
    "Why?! What are you looking for?!"

    There's probably no answer.

    That's... really unsatisfying! But Keaka is always thinking of her next step. Well, often. Anyway, she is right now! And she has a couple avenues of finding information left.

    For one thing: What is Aloisia -- or whatever's controlling her -- after, here? To find that out...

    Clarthas kicks off the ground, flying back out through the same hole they came in. If the Prinzessin gives chase, she'll duskport. Otherwise... We'll see.

Aloisia Stauss has posed:
The Prinzessin Der Nichts shifts slightly, slowly standing as the threat retreats.

As expected, there is no answer, its gaze following, the occasional pulse of search magic sent out. ... .... ...

After combat seems to have ended, the Prinzessin Der Nichts seems to be going back to checking the exhibits, seemingly drawn towards the statues, staring up at them silently for a few moments...

...And moving on to the next. ...

However, it isn't long before it seems to decide that the museum is not of worth.

And silently lifts its lance up to shoot up into the air, shooting out through a skylight, much like how Clarthas herself had arrived and left.

Keaka Hoshiko has posed:
    As soon as it's clear she's not being chased, Clarthas dismisses the swords and changes course to land on the roof of the museum, near the entrance.

    She needs to observe Aloisia, and see what she's going for, and not get detected in the process. And she has a brilliant idea for that. It must be brilliant, because she thought of it and it seems like a good idea at the time. She kneels down, and holds out her hand, and-- "Wait, no, what are you doing?!"

    "It'll be fine," she answers the worried gauntlet, "Just keep watch." And she reaches into her chest -- her hand phasing through as if cloth and flesh and bone weren't there -- and pulls out her Heart.

    Not, like, the actual physical organ, obviously. And not quite one of those crystals the rifle knocks out, either. Clutched in her hand is something like a gem-and-metal squid, or maybe one of those viruses that eats bacteria. It's radially symmetric, with a definite 'head' and 'tail'. The 'head' is a gem maybe the size of a chestnut or walnut encased in a cage, or perhaps a setting, of glittering metal. From one end extend multiple segmented tendrils or tines. The little object glimmers brightly in the light.

    Keaka sets it down -- it uses the tines like legs to stand, not struggling or trying to get away or back into her because this was its idea after all -- and pulls Sarida off her hand to set next to it. Her Heart hides inside it as turns and strides across the roof towards where Aloisia is.

    "KEEP WATCH?! And do what?! I am a glove!" Sarida protests, but Keaka doesn't answer.

    This was a good plan. She knows this, and is currently not capable of taking the initiative to reconsider it.

    Without her heart, she can sense things around her just like she does in the Dusk Zone. Their... thing-ness, the property of being themselves that she now lacks, shines so clearly she could see it in absolute darkness. Below her, through the ceiling filled with its ceiling-ness, are cases and exhibits and such, their case-ness and exhibit-ness easy to see. But no doubt far brighter is Aloisia. Or whatever's in her body or controlling her or something. Something that Strong, something that Dark, something that Powerful... it must shine brighter than the Wishing Heart it's subduing, right?

    So Keaka -- or her husk, anyway -- walks over the roof, avoiding skylights, using her Dusk Vision to spy through the wall. Well, the roof. Looking at Aloisia, and at the Crown and the Device and at whatever exhibits she stops at, trying to remember what they are.

    Boy, her guess that she wouldn't ping the Prinzessin's senses like this had better be right! Of course, if Aloisia even looks at her she's turning and running away.

Aloisia Stauss has posed:
Running away is somewhat... of an overstatement.

She finished examining this location.

It is time to move to the next. She does not, however, seem to register that Clarthas Anode is a threat like that, though there was a moment as she paused, looking at the figure on the ceiling.

<<BEDROHUNGSEINSCHATZUNG: NIEDRIG.>>

...Did the evil device just call Clarthas a low threat?!

...Yes it did. And the Pincess of Nothing turns away, rocketing into the distance using the lance in her hands, the subtle black-with-red-core energy disappearing into the distance.

The Thing-Ness that desires to bring all to No-thing... gone.

For now.

Keaka Hoshiko has posed:
    Aloisia looks off. Her self, her her, her Wishing Heart is still there, but its... intents, her will, are no longer connected to her body. It's weird, compared to how other people look to this sense, and it gives a feeling of watching, well, a puppet that is being jerked around rather than a human moving like a living thing. So yeah, that's creepy, but right now it's also... whatever, like, what is Keaka gonna do about it?

    Far more interesting is The Prinzessin.

    Not Aloisia, the Prinzessin Nicht, shining bright in all of its Nothingness, in all of its Ending-of-All.

    The Crown and what it's made of Aloisia's Device is no Pure, no Dark Abstractum, but they are, surely, akin to the true Abhorrent Weapons -- abharimani, "World Enders" -- of legend that 'Abhorrent Weapons' like Sarida are named for. Or, in TSAB terms, a very dangerous Lost Logia, but that just doesn't have the same gravitas.

    Keaka can only stare at the Prinzessin. It is... oddly comforting. They are devoted to the same thing, right? An ending of all things and of all the troubles of the world. It's so bright.

    So bright.

    And then the Prinzessen looks at her and yeah Keaka is freaking running. It's not that she feels pulse-pounding fear, so much as doing so was her plan when she last could care about doing things and that seemed like a good plan and doing that is what she's doing now and now that means running.

    She can still see Aloisia and the Crown and their device clear as day through the back of her head anyway as they take off into the sky.

    Keaka returns and picks up Sarida, who intones a sigh of relief. Keaka's Heart skitters out onto her hand on its spindly tines, and she puts it back in her chest just like she pulled it out, and pulls Sarida back onto her left hand.

    "Let's go." Keaka takes flight towards the Obsidian offices.

    *WHUMP*

    And flies smack dab into a building, making some office workers look over before she flies up out of view and they just remember a large bird or something.

    Vision is so... dim, compared to how bright everything's everythingness shines when you don't have your own. It will take her awhile to adjust to seeing normally again. Especially after staring at the Prinzessin Nicht like that.

    She'll... She'll get to Obsidian eventually.