04 ❀

[princessia]

Who: Elize Lutus and YOU maybe?
Broadcast: Fleetwide
Action: FS Starlight, at the parks!
When: February 14-20ish?

[VIDEO]

[ The broadcast opens up to show a young girl with fluffy blonde hair, only about eleven or twelve years of age. She's sitting down, out in the park. She has a notebook, a stash of pens, her mage staff, and her doll next to her. ]

...I'm Elize Lutus. Hello. I've been here for about ten months now? I think. If anyone needs help with anything, let me know. I'll do my best.

[ That's mainly directed towards many of the newcomers to the fleet. Then there's an awkward pause. That's not the reason why she's making a video broadcast in the first place. For someone as shy as Elize, she normally dislikes recording herself for the entire public to see. ]

Um... so, I've been learning a lot about other worlds. And Jove has been teaching me how to write in the common tongue! She taught me some Elvish words too. Like falon. That means friend.

[ The reason she decided to record herself is to show off what she has been learning, her achievements, like a proud child. She opens up her notebook, holding it open to the screen. It's lines of sentences written in the common tongue, recognizable to those who come from Thedas. (It looks a bit like this.) Some lines are written in practiced repetition. They're extremely basic sentences like "my name is...", "how are you?", simple greetings, etc.

Everything is written in sparkly, pink gel pen ink that she bought from the station. It's written neatly too, with no smudging. She made sure the ink dried! ]

When I get better, I'm hoping to write a letter entirely in common tongue.

[ She flips the notebook over to look at her own writing. Her shoulders slump in disappointment and her proud expression begins to falter, like there's a moment of disbelief that the letter she writes might not reach. She then looks back up, putting on a brave smile even though her cheeks are red with embarrassment. She'll get this letter delivered, somehow. ]

If... anyone wants to hang out or something, I'm at the park. Or, we can just chat over the communicator. That's fine too.

[ACTION]

[ And as she mentioned in the broadcast, Elize will be in the park. She's laying down on her stomach, being diligent and practicing writing down sentences repeatedly in her notebook. ]

Comments

[princessia]

[ Elize isn't sure if she's friends with Solas. She wishes she can be though, especially since she knows he's friends with Jove and Cole. She hasn't had any problems with him and he always greeted her with kindness. ]

Solas is nice and he knows a lot about the spirits from Thedas. And he painted the beautiful murals on the Pathstone! I really wish I could paint like that.

[nerdeology]

[Hmm. Elize is young and has been honest with him thus far, and he can tell that she isn't lying now. That means Solas hasn't done anything to make her feel unsafe.

Is he hiding from everyone? Or... what was all that malevolence from?]

I see. ...A short while ago I visited the Pathstone, intending to see you. We just missed one another, but I met a few people on your ship, so I was curious.

[princessia]

You visited?!

[ The smile she had while she was talking about Solas and the others, falters. She feels disappointed in herself, having missed her friend while she was on the ship. ]

I'm sorry I didn't get to welcome you in...

[nerdeology]

No, it's my own fault for not checking first. Anyway, it's for the best. I wouldn't have been able to stay for long- this is much better.

[A prolonged visit on a ship with that much malevolence... yeah, it would not have ended well.]

[princessia]

[ She suspects nothing. Maybe Mikleo was really busy that day or something! ]

Oh? Did you have something to do?

[nerdeology]

No, I...

[Ugh, he's really not sure how to tell her. He doesn't want to frighten her, but he hates the thought of lying. It wouldn't be right when she's been so up-front with him.]

There's something on your ship that I can't be exposed to. If I go there again, it could make me very sick.

[princessia]

[ If she's ever not up-front with him, it's most noticeable with how easily flustered she can get. And well, she certainly hasn't noticed anything on the ship that makes her feel sick or any of her crew. ]

What?

[ Confusion and concern crosses her face. ]

What are you talking about, Mikleo?

[nerdeology]

[And here he'd been really hoping to be vague about it.]

I don't want you to be scared, Elize. If you haven't felt it already, then it shouldn't have any effect on you- it's not really contagious. But since I'm a seraph, it isn't good for me.

[princessia]

[ Too late. She's more curious now. Even if whatever it is doesn't have any effect on her, she's already scared and worried about her invisible friend. He has to be more specific. ]

What's not good for seraphs?

[nerdeology]

[elize pls]

...Malevolence. I felt it there.

[princessia]

[ A gasp. She remembers Sorey mentioning that scary, big word when they first met.

She's worried! And her fingers are moving slightly like they're about to tighten around Mikleo's invisible hand... ]

I-I thought you and Sorey can purify something like that!

[nerdeology]

[He's definitely wishing he could have avoided this, but he would have run out of excuses for not visiting her before long.]

We can, under normal circumstances. But we've been told that we can't just purify people when and where we please. It could cause problems within the fleet.

[princessia]

It's... someone from my crew?

[ The fearful expression on her face suddenly... shifts to the most unimpressed look, like she knows the answer to this. ]

It's Tek, isn't it?

[ Because clearly everything that goes wrong on the Pathstone is Tek's fault. ]

[nerdeology]

He's... yes, actually.

[Well, that dislike is palpable.]

Does he cause problems for you?

[princessia]

[ She dislikes him, though that dislike isn't as great anymore. She can tolerate and live with him being around the Pathstone. ]

He's always standing around, grinning, and looking creepy. He thinks it's funny, but it's not. You don't have to worry though. I can handle him.

[ ...He hasn't actually done anything drastic to her. ]

[nerdeology]

That sounds about right, actually.

[So uncomfortable.]

Do you think that he's dangerous? I told Sorey about it, and he's worried about you, too.

[princessia]

I used to think he was dangerous, but now... not so much. He's just annoying.

[ She has known him for months, but they hardly spoke to each other. It's only recently she has had to see him on the Pathstone every day. ]

Jove probably knows much more about him than I do.

[nerdeology]

I see...

[Mental note to check with her, then. He hadn't sensed any malevolence and she'd been kind enough, so it would probably be alright to approach her about it.]

...Anyway, I... didn't want you to think that I'm avoiding you. Please know that you're welcome on the Huntress any time.

[princessia]

[ "You wouldn't avoid me... we're friends!" is what she's about to say, until he mentions the Huntress. ]

The Huntress? That's my old ship...

[ And she'd already dropped by several times. She still has some attachment to the ship. It's where most of her memories of Cullen were. ]

I didn't know you're staying there now. [ OBVIOUSLY since you're invisible... ] I'll let you know when I'm coming by next time.

[nerdeology]

I'd like that.

[He's relieved that she isn't upset, at least as far as he can tell. Limitations are usually hard for humans, more so for children, and his reasoning isn't something he can properly convey. Saying something is poisonous is one thing; saying it's harmless to one person but not another is harder to swallow.]

Sorey's on the Huntress as well. He transferred so we could look after each other, so he'll be there too.

[princessia]

Sorey's there too?

[ She starts smiling a little when she hears Sorey mentioned. Another person that she's fond of!

And she's mildly annoyed with Tek. However, this is a normal thing. Also, it's more understandable for her if Tek's the reason why Mikleo can't board her ship without risking being exposed to malevolence. (Even though that's also Solas's fault too.) ]

I'll visit often. I wish you could come to the Pathstone... but, I... I understand! [ She nods her head. Admittedly, it's a little disappointing, but she has to be mature and not complain! ] I don't want you to be sick.

[nerdeology]

Sorey and I will likely visit at some point together, to verify whether or not the malevolence is harmful. When that happens, I'll be sure to let you know. No doubt he'd love to see you again, too.

[Sorey was pretty taken with her, after all - though Mikleo can't really blame him - and her proximity to all that malevolence has them both worried. At the very least, they have a duty to make sure that she and her fellow passengers are safe.]

[princessia]

[ Knowing how long Tek has been living on the Pathstone without much complaint from the rest of the crew, she doubts it's harmful. For those that aren't seraphim, at least. She's surprised how the others are able to coexist with Tek for so long. ]

Will you be fine as long as you're with Sorey?

[nerdeology]

Yes, it shouldn't be a problem if it's only for a little while. Sorey is what we call a Shepherd in our world. He borrows powers from the seraphim, and in exchange, he creates a domain that protects us.

[The truth is, he doesn't want to promise too much because he has no idea how Sorey's domain will hold up against that much malevolence. They need to test it out first.]

[princessia]

A domain... I think I understand. And what if you find that the malevolence is harmful?

[ Still doubting it is. If it's dangerous, how could have the Pathstone been drifting along space for nearly a year? It wasn't her original ship however and she wouldn't have known if there were any past problems. ]

How do you purify it?