driftfleet | 01 - Action/Video

Entry tags:

01 - Action/Video

Who: Dracule Mihawk and Anyone else.
Broadcast: Video - Fleetwide.
Action: Marsiva.
When: Now.

[It's the annoying chill that stirs the swordsman from sleep, already frowning as he pulls back the sheets and cracks his neck once. Chill tends to stiffen one's body and bones. Now, as her rubs his face with a long yawn, Mihawk peers around at the unfamiliar space, the even more unfamiliar clothes, and his scowl only seems to set in place. He's not unfamiliar with being dragged from his home, his world and thrust into a whole other one on the whims of whatever nonsense that sees fit to haven him there, but there is one thing that is lacking the confined space he finds himself in.

One very large and exceptionally important thing.

At the very least his clothes and his cross necklace (doubling as a small, concealed knife) are inside the chest. After dressing, he sweeps up his communicator and easily flicks it on. He's had previous experience with gadgets like this, after all. He doesn't care where he is, how he got here, what his purpose for being here is. Mihawk has not a care about that frivolous bullshit, he just wants to know--]

Where is my sword?

[Later, after Mihawk has heard enough, he's gone to explore and to look for his sword. Regardless of what he's been told, he's not parting with Yoru so easily. One way or another he's getting it back. He doesn't look any angrier than usual as he prowls through the halls like a stalking wildcat, but the sheer presence of him, the sharpness that hides in the edges of his golden eyes...it's obvious Mihawk's not at all pleased with this so-called fine print. Not in the least.]

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[...well hello, familiar face. Nami flicks on her comm to reply immediately

and then flicks it off again, because Mihawk doesn't know her from a bar of soap unless he comes from Adstring. Which seems to be unlikely given her luck so far. Hah.

She flicks it on a moment later, tone carefully neutral.]

It won't be here. They take all the weapons when you first arrive.

[Hello, equally familiar face. Mihawk's quiet fury diminishes only a light sum, replaced by a mild surprise. The lady navigator? Ah, he's...not sure her name, oops. Must have forgotten - maybe it'll come back to him eventually. But once again Mihawk's eyes narrow, and he doesn't mince words when he responds again.]

Where?

[Because taken doesn't mean gone.]

[ Ino sighs. Yet another dude missing his sword ... ]

Atroma takes your weapons from you when you arrive, we don't know where they keep them. If you're lucky, we'll get off this stupid ship and stop at a planet that sells good weapons soon.

The Atroma. It's a group that kidnapped us all to be on reality television. I made the same inquiry of them about my weapon, and they said they'd "look for it, but filling in the paperwork would help."

Which we're currently not in a position to do. If you even believe that.

Your staff?

[Why yes, he does know about it. Mihawk really has no care to hide that he knows Nami from before, when they both shared the experiences of Adstringendum. Were she one he knew or not, he simply doesn't mind either or. If she doesn't, it means a lengthy explanation for him, and he has other matters to attend to, but he's not going to go to lengths to hide this fact. Too much of a bother. She'll find out someway anyway, and it's not exactly a huge secret.

Anyway--]

So they can be contacted then. [That's useful.] Though I'm assuming their physical whereabouts are safeguarded.

[Not like he's going to go charging in on horseback screaming and waving a red banner, but still. A little intimidation sure gets the point across sometimes.]

[Excuse you, his sword is an important part of who he is, okok. How can Mihawk be the World's Greatest Swordsman without his partner sword? Stop being so insensitive, Ino, GOSH. )8

But wow, that is a lot of information in a small package. Mihawk grunts, cluing in on the latter part. Ships, planets... Meaning the "ship" is some sort of space vessel. Fantastic. Just what he needs: to be even farther from his home.]

When will the ship dock? And Atroma...I'm assuming that is what brought me here, correct?

[Natasha hasn't given up on finding a way off the Marsiva, or off this show, but she's mostly stopped prowling the halls in an effort to determine the actual size of the Marsiva or find a new door or duct she hasn't seen before. At the moment, in fact, she's curled up in a chair with a book, and doesn't even look up as he passes her for the fourth time. She does, at least, speak in his general direction.]

Hallway's 340 feet long. At least it was this morning.

Looking for something?

[That sure is a suit of armor with a teenage boy's voice you're talking to, Mihawk.]

[He has seen odder, by far. Though being called out at least has Mihawk stop his march and glance sideways. He's found out nothing, barely more than a basic layout of a singular hallway. Obnoxious, definitely, and it's done little to appease his bad mood.]

Correct. Though I'm beginning to think I'm walking a fool's path in vain.

I've been asking that for two months now.

[In other words, good luck.]

[Oh, don't for a second think Mihawk hasn't noticed he's passed this woman several times already. By now he's keyed into the faint signature of her haki, and his title of "Hawk Eyes" isn't just to be funny. Even from his peripheral vision he's seen her as he passed, in glaring detail.

But, beaten, he stops and turns to face the woman at last. Decided to speak have we? Alright then, hopefully what he gets is informative. ...Though the length of the hallway wasn't what he was looking for.]

Is that so? Then I can assume you must know where it leads, and the many paths that split from it as well?

[NOT HELPING.]

And in that time, what have you learned in regards to its retrieval? [Because, boy, if you tell him you've given up on getting it back, then he's not going to count you as someone who deserves to carry a sword. Or bear the title of 'swordsman'.]

[Al nods.]

Maybe I can help- what do you need?

Literally squat. Atroma's no help at all.

[Although to be fair, his swords only exist in the virtual world, so it's not like they can just pull it from his home and hand it to him. Maybe if they worked like his avatars do, it would be fine, but he seriously doubts it'll be that easy.]

I'm looking at alternatives for the short term.

Information. Is there an armory aboard this vessel? And if so, where?

[Mihawk half knows the answer, but he's hoping his assumption will be wrong. While he'd like to reunite with his sword, Yoru, he's not blind enough to realize that's going to happen soon. Atroma or whatever obviously doesn't want them armed, at least not with weapons they're familiar with. But even so, he will need a replacement eventually. Just until he does get his sword back.]

[She isn't trying to go unnoticed. Time for that's passed, hasn't it? Instead, she's fallen into a holding pattern, and if that pattern includes poking at the newbies, well. They'll adjust.]

Nowhere you haven't seen already. Bathrooms at one end, bedrooms along the hall, this room at the other end.

[She looks up, finally, jerking her head back and to her left.]

Kitchen's over there, if you want a change in scenery.

Nothing? How disappointing.

[Mihawk leans back against the headboard of his bed, or the wall, with a sigh. So it seems like getting Yoru back is going to be a severe challenge, but not impossible. If he's lucky, and patient, he might come across the black blade while traveling to other planets... But he's not exactly happy with that. The weightlessness he feels on his back is telling - it's like he's missing a piece of himself.

His eyes narrow though, when replacements are spoken of. This is a touchy subject.]

...You sword. What is it called? ['Does it have a name' is what he's asking.]

[For a moment, he hesitates. It's not a question he's used to, and... for some reason, it feels oddly personal. He's not even sure how to answer; he's had so many over the years, since upgrading equipment is such a simple thing in games. No matter how attached you might be to a sword, it's only numbers that matter in the end. A weapon with better parameters is far more important than any feelings you might have towards what you're currently using.

The real world doesn't work like that, though. There are no numbers, no stats. Only durability, weight, and the skill with which you wield it. So in that case, what blade does he even want? His latest, Kagemitsu G4, the photon sword he's trying to recreate here? The sword Liz made for him in ALO, after Asuna was saved?

No. He knows what weapon he really wants.]

....Elucidator.

[It's the one sword he stubbornly stuck with and faithfully upgraded and maintained, despite the urging of every blacksmith he visited to just get a new one. The one that saved his life countless times. The one that helped him end SAO forever. That sword, though he doubts he'll ever get it back, is the trusty partner he's been missing for a long time now.]

[ Look, she's sorry you feel like you men have to compensate for something with your big long swords, but that's not her fault!!!!11 ]

We don't know. Usually we go somewhere different once a month, but we've had a bit of an unscheduled interruption.

That's right, Atroma is responsible.

[There's a pause.]

Not so much contacted as they deign to contact us. If you're here long enough they'll probably open their traps on the screen to speak again. And yeah... nobody's seen them in person.

[Bluntly:] Did you just come from Adstringendum or did you have the luxury of going home first?

[He doesn't habitually lose himself, whether in principle or in practice. Absent-mindedness is the bane of any food-worker's existence, much less one who works with the customers directly.

In his defense, this place does not promote clear thought in its newcomers. Qing may not have lost anything of note when he arrived, but even after speaking with a number of others here, he's beginning to think he's losing his mind. A reality TV show? In space? Where no one knows how they got here, why they were chosen... nothing at all.

His wandering thoughts follow his wandering feet, and it isn't until there's a sense of heat and a looming presence that he looks up. By then, it's nearly too late, and the sound he makes is one of faint embarrassment. Perhaps Mihawk will have noticed his mindlessness, been ready to move when Qing's form kept forward, but his reaction will be the same regardless.

It's just a question of whether or not they collide in the least, the almost-negligible weight of the redhead shifting back in alarm. The movement is remarkably quick, whatever Qing thinks of himself and his abilities, but that doesn't matter - staring up into the face of someone with that much presence, with such sharpness in his eyes...

... well, he may well have fucked up, hasn't he.]

A-ah! Excuse me, I wasn't- [Paying attention. Qing's hands rise up as if to surrender, begging forgiveness as his face turns red. He'll have all the apologies in the world, and as it stands he just has to hope that irritation doesn't turn too sharply on him in his panic.]

None that we've been able to find, unfortunately. Atroma- those are the people who brought you here- isn't big on us arming ourselves. The most you'd be able to find is a knife in the kitchen.

[Ugh, damn it all. There goes that idea. So it really will be a waiting game then... Mihawk's face darkens at the thought of being separated from his treasured sword for more than a few days, let alone any longer than that. He's had Yoru for decades now - she's always been with him since he was young, probably around Nami's age.

The change in conversation is very welcome, and Mihawk raises his head so the shadow cast by his hat isn't as prominent (and doesn't make him look as brooding).]

I was lucky enough to be returned to my home for several months after we left Adstringendum. Not very many, but I was able to enjoy the sea air for some time. ...Were you not as lucky, young lady?

[HEY NOW, JUST BECAUSE MY CANON'S GOT THE D. INVOLVED, YOU DON'T HAVE TO GO MUDSLINGING!!1

Once a month. The ship docks month a month...that's too long to wait to have even a sparse chance to try and locate his sword on some other world. Mihawk is feeling one hell of a headache coming on, and his brows knit together as he closes his eyes with a deep scowl, chewing on the information and exhaling slowly.]

How long is the stay, once docked? [Interruption? Whatever, so long as they get moving again, and soon. He rubs his thumb over his cross necklace, which conceals his knife, the only weapon (albeit very small) he still has from how] And are we allowed to keep weapons at all? Things we find, I mean...or will they be taken as well, once we board the ship once again?

Usually we stay for the whole month, so there's plenty of time to look around. Then a few days or a week to travel to the next place, and then we dock again. So on and so forth.

And yeah, you can keep what you find or what you can buy. It's just a pain in the ass to build up a collection like that again ...

[ Ino, stop complaining, at least you have some weapons now. ]

Edited 2015-11-25 00:09 (UTC)

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