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magisteriaexe2024-06-16 04:49 pm
magisteriamods) wrote in magisteriaexe2024-06-16 04:49 pm
High Risk Quest #1: The Ghost Signal
Note: Here we go, gamers! The first High Risk Quest for Magisteria. These quests will serve as tiered mini-events which reveal crucial world lore, goings-on, and also tie into the metaplot and the large events. High Risk Quests will trade off in emphasis, meaning tech --> magic --> tech --> magic.
While this quest has seeds for the Tech Path Conflict, it should be noted that it's OTA and also that quite a bit of magic-specific locations/mini-events will open soon. The Magic Path Conflict is brewing in the background and will become more apparent soon, too, so keep one's eyes peeled.
Context & Recap
This quest takes place after The Coffee Shop Mingle, which features NPCs discoursing on the goings-on of High Rise Village. Players are encouraged to look at that.
In the first event, Training in High Rise Village, we learned about a mysterious intruder who infiltrated the Digital Flora Dome and the Neon Nest, two properties belonging to an android named Rosalind Vireo. PCs who restored the properties deciphered a mysterious phrase, "Symphony of Disruption..." Seems portentious! In the above coffee shop mingle, Rosalind speculates as to the possible culprit(s?).
Bling
See the plotting post: PCs can go all out with the cyber weapons on this one, in addition to whatever tech or magic they've learned, whatever canon abilities have returned, and Selena and Titan-7 can also be used as weapons (so to speak) or defenses/back-up. Feel free to write interactions with them or them stepping in however. Of course, the main route to success will be PCs supporting other PCs!
IN THE HOT SUMMER NIGHTS OF HIGH RISE VILLAGE
In the Hot Summer Nights of High Rise Village
Pursuing the “ghost signal,” Selena, Titan-7, and the Otherworlders will find themselves entering parts of High Rise Village that may be unfamiliar. Back alleys which would not be particularly noteworthy during the day, but which, at night, away from the Bios-infused neon glow of the city, may seem to take on ominous characteristics.
For those Otherworlders insisting there must be something beneath the glossy exterior, this could be their first introduction to the parts of Magisteria which seem not as perfect.
… ā̴̡̦̙͔̟͍͕̪̻̻̿̆͛̂̚h̸̛̺̬͓͙͖̔̑̔̂̿͗̉́́̋͑ḩ̵̨̫̮͍̜̆͌̐̏ḧ̴̢̨͉̥̖̣̮̗̥͇̯̱́͒̇̐͂͆̊͗̋̅̈́̈͠͝ͅ
… ā̴̡̦̙͔̟͍͕̪̻̻̿̆͛̂̚h̸̛̺̬͓͙͖̔̑̔̂̿͗̉́́̋͑ḩ̵̨̫̮͍̜̆͌̐̏ḧ̴̢̨͉̥̖̣̮̗̥͇̯̱́͒̇̐͂͆̊͗̋̅̈́̈͠͝ͅ
Out of the corner of your eye, you see it:
Amidst the darkness of the evening, they begin to appear.
The Fractured, as Otherworlders learn, are an eclectic mingling of cyber beings whose existences are equal parts problematic and tragic: discarded junk code which attained sentence, if perhaps animalistic or insectoid sentience rather than the human or superhuman levels of so many of the AI citizenry of Magisteria, AI who were created and misused by humans or even other AI [as many AI have tried to self-replicate without knowing or following proper ethical regulations, leading to fragmented “children”] or AI whose Bios was darkened to impurity, beings who lost hope and reprogrammed themselves to be unreachable. Even viruses who attained sentience, but who know only how to corrupt systems.
Otherworlders learn that the only way to “save” them, or to make them compatible with life in Magisteria, would be to de-program and/or re-program, and while attempts have been made on this front, The Fractured have often self-immolated or simply stopped functioning. For that reason, they are generally left to their existences in the city’s underground.
It Begins
Whether with creepy, halting steps, or in a sudden ambush, the beings of The Fractured approach the PC/NPC alliance, clearly not looking to negotiate, but with intense, violent aggression. To reach the source of the Ghost Signal and stop the threat, PCs will need to fight them.
[ Feel free to make your own threads/logs off these comments! The NPC abilities are listed in the comment below. ]
lucy kushinada | cyberpunk: edgerunners
[ Lucy's cyberware isn't working at full capacity yet, but she still finds herself accepting Selena Voss' invitation. Something's happening in the city, something that's causing her cyberware to glitch out sometimes, something disruptive, something that's causing whispers in the clubs in the entertainment district where Lucy's spending some of her time. Something related to that weird signal they'd found in the garden.
It hasn't been that long since she was actively working as an edgerunner, but it feels like-- it's been an eternity. So much has happened since then. Things she can't bear to think about. But there's a mystery in this city and Lucy wants to throw herself head-first into it so she doesn't have to think for very long.
She'd teamed up with another Otherworlder to seek out more of these Fractured, and Lucy has armed herself for battle. The full body nanosuit she'd been given is largely white, black and purple accents curving over her hips and thighs, over her shoulders, glowing with threads of white-purple Bios. Neon-bright lipstick in some indefinable club-paint-under-a-blacklight color stains her lips. The bodysuit-- it's familiar in a way that hurts, in a way that makes her wants to shed it and go back to her regular clothing, in a way that makes her think of being young and wounded and tired. But it also feels like gearing up for battle, and it has weapons that she can use. ]
Here. Feels like the kind of alleyway that has something nasty lurking in it, doesn't it?
[ They're at the mouth of an alley that looks too dim in the evening light, and as Lucy presses onward, something takes shape in the darkness. A tin soldier, distorted. Twisted. Limbs too long, clad in rusted metal.
Before Lucy can say anything, that awful mouth opens and screams. Breath is punched out of her lungs as she hunches over, hands covering her ears, fear ricocheting through her very bones. She flings up a gloved hand, fingertips glowing, and the thing pauses, frozen, fighting. ]
We need to distract it! If it's an AI-- maybe I can try to rewrite it or something.
[ Later, still on the hunt, Lucy and another Otherworlder are walking down a backstreet in High Rise village. It's night time, and in the alleys and backstreets people have largely cleared out, drawn towards either their own homes or the more populated nightlife. This backstreet is full of the back-ends of cafes and diners, the smell of oil and herbs and spices still thick in the air.
Lucy makes a mental note to come here later when they're open. Anything that smells this spicy has to be good.
On the air is a strange noise, something that starts faint and tinny, like a radio set on low volume. A song that Lucy can't make out. It grows, and grows, until something is stepping out of the shadows -- a tall, grey-skinned thing with black armor and a long whip-like hair extending from their head. Its terrible smile gleams in the reflected light of neon signs.
It's singing. And part of Lucy wants to... listen, and float away with it. Her voice is rough when she grits out: ]
Fuck. Don't listen to it-- tune it out. It's putting off some kind of hypnotic effect.
fractured i.
Hmph... a shielder would be quite useful in such a scenario... [ Gilgamesh murmurs.
quite involuntarily, the tiny, all-but-invisible golden hairs on the back of his neck prick to attention as that dreadful feeling washes over him, too. it's disorienting, but he is not a hero-king for nothing, so he does his best at such a time to focus on strategy, on combining their resources. ]
Perhaps if we combine our Bios, we might, with these Bursterflies, form a makeshift barrier.
[ was that possible? having the insects come together to harden the Bios into a shield of light and project it? Gilgamesh had been spending his time studying them, and by altering their frequencies mentally, one could certainly train them to do a great many things. granted, these beings they were up against... even with the technology, it might not hold them back for too long, but at such times, even a few moments could make a difference. it might give them an opportunity to strategize, form a plan with their resources.
at any rate, when Lucy turns, she will see that Gilgamesh's own Bios signature is blazing golden and brighter than she will have ever seen. he actually looks like he is being more serious than usual this time. ]
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His suggestion is a good idea, and she remembers his explanation of how he'd been harnessing his own Bios: having an object for both of them to grasp. Lucy has been experimenting with her own method -- slow-going, she thinks, because the concept of magic is still so foreign to her -- but in an emergency situation, she'd feel better about relying on something that has a better success rate. Namely, his strategy, and not hers.
Lucy's nature is not a trustful one. It had been, when she was little. When the other children around her had been just as terrified and lonely as she was. When they were the only people she could count on, and the adults with their scalpels and injections and awful smiles were monsters in the dark. But Night City had beaten any remnant of trust out of her.
Extending her hand feels like an impossible thing to do, but she forces herself to do it. ]
Let's try.
[ It's as firm as she can make it, hand held palm-open, waiting for Gilgamesh. ]
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were he to realize Lucy thought of him as a friendly individual, it would be deeply amusing to Gilgamesh, because in actuality, he has spent his entire life staunchly refusing to call anyone but one person a friend, and even insisting he does not take on companions of any sort. setting himself entirely apart from humanity, ruling over it from afar: that had been his own existence, and lonely though it was, it was a path of loneliness Gilgamesh had chosen for himself. and yet, it could not be denied that, in this very form and summoning, he had come to Uruk in its time of need, and had overseen the goings-on of Ritsuka and Mashu, and really, was he doing any differently in Magisteria? even if this was not Gilgamesh's kingdom... it had become undeniable that his instinct was to assume a certain sense of responsibility. but, well, he was not really a man to dwell on his own internal life in such a manner. he was more a man of action.
so when Lucy offers her hand, those tense seconds quickly pass, and Gilgamesh drops something which looks a bit like a stone tablet into his own hand. he guides Lucy into his pose, helping her take hold of it with/alongside him. this tablet, of course, is summoned from his vault, and golden glyphs encircle the air around it.
this is indeed magic... though Gilgamesh would not ever claim to be any especially notable mage, nor does he care to be. even the form thereof was simply a game to him. ]
We shall both channel our Bios, then...
[ he is not looking at her... rather staring forward with great determination/focus to see whether the two Bursterflies will act in unison. indeed, as he watches, guiding them with his mind, they do begin to act together. it would seem their Bios is indeed filtering outwards... and now it remains to see if it will form the makeshift shield. of course, this was all a matter of thinking on one's feet as one went... but that was just how the King of Heroes operated when presented with challenges. ]
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It takes a few seconds. She has to close her eyes and think about cooperating, about working together with someone that's just about the polar opposite of her. White-purple Bios flares in lines over her skin, rippling like a pool when it comes into contact with his golden glyphs.
First things first: they need to protect themselves. And just like that, a shield snaps into place in front of them, and the thing's howling is muted enough that Lucy can recover and stand up straight, breathing easier. One warped limp snaps forward, crashing against their shield, but it holds. ]
If we can get this thing back to Selena and Titan-7, they can-- I don't know, study them. Put them in jail. Whatever. I'd like to take a look at its code, too. See if I can figure out what caused it to corrupt like this.
[ Lucy's fingertips tighten on the tablet, stone scraping over her bodysuit's gloves. She wonders if Gilgamesh has ever been ordered around in his entire life. But this is tech, this is her specialty. Also, she's just kind of bossy. ]
Think of it like telepathy; we're going to look inside that thing's brain.
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btw feel free to wrap this up if u wish. i know it's an older thread hahaha.
aaand done!
fractured ii
This shows in the way he stepped into the darkness with no hesitation or fear, taking flamboyant, giddy steps whilst humming a tune to himself with an eager, honest-to-goodness, smile on his face. Maybe the katana at his side made him feel so confident, but it could also be something more primal in his veins. ]
Feels reassuring to know that even a place as clean as this has these sketchy side streets and questionable establishments. I wonder if they have rooms for rent?
[ It was in the middle of his fantasizing that the siren like creature appeared, along with the pull that felt familiar. A twisted smile appeared on his face. ]
Hooo? A siren, eh? Though, it's less fishy than what I'm familiar with. Oh well.
[ With a shrug, he started to approach the creature - one hand moving to the blade to have it at the ready. ]
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The siren, on the other hand, kind of ruins the image. Lucy holds one hand over an ear, dulling the noise coming from that awful sharp mouth, while Bishop approaches. He's armed, and so she's assuming he knows what to do with that katana.
Lucy's better from a distance, so she'll stay exactly where she is, fingers touching her temple as she gets a feel for this thing's programming. Her neural cyberdeck isn't working at full capacity yet, but she's still capable. The bodysuit she was gifted helps. ]
They're rogue AI, so-- I should be able to dismantle its code, or take out the parts that are making it dangerous. If you can distract it, I can get to work.
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He did the same with its third and fourth attacks, partially drawing the katana from its sheathe to parry the sixth before kicking it the center to push it back and then taking a stance and lunging forward.
His strikes are decisive, swift, but controlled like he's getting the creature's measure as they danced around each others attacks. Neither are able to land a clean blow and the match is for the most part even, but the grin on his face seems to suggest that he's still got some tricks up hus sleeve. ]
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So she can poke and prod and examine this thing's shattered code, but ultimately, she's not going to get anything useful done unless she does a full deepdive. And she doesn't know if she's safe enough to do that with Bishop.
So. They'll just have to kill it. ]
I'll make some openings for you.
[ Fingertips digging deeper into her temple in concentration, Lucy pulls some strings. The creature seems to freeze momentarily, limbs stuttering to a halt, before it grinds back into action, but slower this time, moving jerkily. ]
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fractured i
She can tell the other woman seems uncomfortable. She's determined, yet ill-at ease. Something about her new bodysuit? Maybe it doesn't fit quite right.
She stands at the alley, one sword resting over her shoulder, and the other held out in to one side. She grins in anticipation. She's seen alleyways like this before, plenty of times. "Oh indeed, indeed. But something even nastier is out here. Let me take the lead, though."
They walk down the alley, Musashi's sword held out while the other stays ready, on her shoulder, ready for a strike. When they see the...metal soldier thing, she flips it around, ready for battle.
She shakes the scream off a bit easier than Lucy does; she's experienced her fair share of horrors, and the effect seems boosted somehow, it's not enough to overcome the recklessness of her EX-ranked Madness Enhancement. "Got it! One distraction, coming right up!" She can keep it busy enough while Lucy works her mojo.
She takes a step forward, and then with a sudden gust of wind, she's disappeared from the Edgerunner's side and is just in front of the machine thing, having crossed the distance in a blink of an eye. Her katanas flash in the dim light of the alley as they come down, meeting one of the machine thing's arms as it raises its sword to block making an electronic chittering noise as it does so. The force of the impact creates sparks between blades. Oh, this thing is strong.
"Miyamoto Musashi, at your service, good sir!" She says with a wolfish grin.
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For the first time, Lucy gets to see what Musashi has bragged about. She'd claimed to be a legendary swordsman, but it had been a little hard to believe when it had been said grinning over a glowing verve cocktail. Now, Lucy sees for the first time. Musashi's speed is shocking, like she's got a Sandevistan locked onto her spine, there one moment and gone the next. And her blades actually dent the thing, the shower of sparks so bright it has Lucy blinking.
And she's just grinning, like she's not facing a horrible corrupted AI monster thing.
While it's distracted, Lucy strikes. Fingertips light against her temple, eyes lightning up digital orange as she delves into the thing's programming. It's even more awful to look at internally. Lines of code as fractured as its name. Broken protocols trailing away into data corruption. The remnants of its core programming are still at its heart, but it's going to take a lot to get there.
"Can you keep it distracted?" she calls. "I need to go deeper. I won't be able to fight."
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The blades continue to spark against each other but the creature's other arm suddenly twists, contorting in ways that would break the bones of a flesh and blood arm and is suddenly snaking towards Musashi from below. She's forced to disengage and jump backwards, not wanting the machine to get a hand on her, but she's not quite fast enough to avoid its fingers brushing against the sleeve of her kimono...
As she jumps back she glances down and sees the fabric blackening and begin to fall away in pieces where it made contact. "Ahaha, I see! So, your touch is corrosive, is it it?" The slightest touch could cause rot and decay, and it can move its body in unexpected ways. She has to keep her distance and keep it distracted and away from Lucy-chan?
This fight just gets better and better, honestly.
She charges back in again, and so does the creature, collapsing downwards with a crunching sound so it can skitter forward in almost crab-like fashion on both its legs and free hand. The sword it keeps up and its arm twists wildly, ready to meet her blades. Musashi meets it with a wide, powerful spinning blow, hoping to knock the sword aside with sheer strength and leave it open for a coup-de-grace.
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She stays long enough to see Musashi's sleeve flake away, long enough to see her look downright thrilled about the whole thing. "Just be careful," Lucy says, but it comes out like a murmur, a whisper, too nervous to say it louder.
With that, she sinks into a deep-dive.
She doesn't register her body falling backward or the thud of it against the backstreet pavement. That's a problem for later. Her cyberself is already floating through the creature's coding -- it's a clean grey core surrounded by blackened, burned walls, parts of it shorn off and disintegrating. She's seen AI like this before in her dives into the Old Net, rogue AI originally built for one purpose but twisted into another and gone mad with it, lashing out at everything it sees. Her cyberdeck isn't working as powerfully as it used to, so Lucy's restricted in what she can do, but she can see her Bios shining brightly even on her cyberself's hands, and that bolsters her confidence. She flies past rotting tendrils of code and lashing tethers, and grabs a thread and yanks, making the creature howl and stumble to the side, leaving an opening for Musashi.
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Emet-Selch | Final Fantasy XIV | open
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There's a flash of wind as someone passes by Emet-Selch and a flash of light blue as Musashi steps in to engage. However, the Eye sees much and is able to track the Berserker's movements, its dagger coming up in an expert spin to block her blades as they come down with an expert parry, deflecting the attack. "Oho, he's fast, this one!" She likes that.
Having parried her initial attack, it follows up with a powerful beam from its eye, accompanied by a loud droning noise. Musashi barely has time to dodge to the side as the beam cuts up the floor and then up the wall where she'd been standing.
She seems more thrilled by the prospect than anything. "Fast and strong? And it isn't even my birthday!" She chances a quick look towards Emet. "Hey ojisan, how long you think you'll need?"
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"'Tis not about how long I need but how long you'll last," he calls back tersely. "I need to understand the extent of its awareness. I'll need you to hit it quickly and from as many angles as possible while I try to keep its attention."
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Well, she can get to know him better later. Readying her swords, she crouches and prepares to charge. She'll wait for it to make its attack against him, and then move. If Emet-Selk wants speed, she can absolutely give him speed.
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crusty as fuck, feel free to ignore!
all good!
William G Maryblood | The Faraway Paladin | open (newbie)
A 'high risk quest' is probably not the most ideal way to do this, but, well, shying away from things would go against his creed.
So, here he is, a young man not even twenty years of age standing confidently with a shield in one hand and spear (more like a glaive) in the other. There's a second weapon, wrapped in leather and bandage, hanging from his hip. Its irregular shape seems to resemble a sword.
For now, he's hanging back and listening to what's being said. But if someone is looking for a partner to take down a particular creature, he'll quickly step forward.
"If you need protection, I can offer that."
I rolled the dice and it came up Rivenwreaver Matriarch
Recognising that he would likely need more than just his magecraft to help with the problems occurring, Rhea'li had picked up one of the guns (something that is in a familiar rifle shape) on offer. It's been a long time since he last shot a gun, but he supposes he'll get back to form soon enough. Still, his trusty grimoire is still at his hip; one cannot underestimate having too many options in their bag of tricks.
Additionally, his Bursterfly (a mechanical insect of fragile, iridescent wings) rests upon his back. It would not be out of place to mistake it as a rather fanciful backpack or cape.
Rhea'li inclines his head in assent, a smile curling at the corner of his mouth, "And I will gladly accept your offer, ser knight." He gestures towards one of many alleys of the High Rise Village. "Let us search down this path, shall we?"
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"If you'll watch our backs, I'll watch the front," he tells Rhea'li. "What are your skills, if I may ask? I can use a variety of weapons but I'm most comfortable with a spear."
The spear - or glaive - in question has a beautiful, bright golden sheen to it with runes etched into its white oak haft. It's clearly a magical weapon. Although the bladed part seems unusually long for a glaive, William handles it with easy familiarity.
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"I am a mage, specialising in constructs for battle. But with the limitations of this land, I sought other means of supplementing my skills." He lifts the rifle in his hands in indication, before jerking a thumb over his shoulder at his Bursterfly hanging off his shoulders. "I was given a construct that can manipulate energy, but its full capabilities are still to be discovered."
The Bursterfly's wings flicker briefly, as if in greeting.
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I blame savage for forgetting about this oops
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Gilgamesh | Fate | Open to All!
[ the darkness of the evening and the misshapen creatures ambling through it... indeed, the whole scenario, for Gilgamesh, calls to mind memories of what had been, for his kingdom and for humanity itself, something like the end of the world.
there, in his time, it had been worse, with the lahmu actively ripping humans to shreds. here, at least, he and the others had a chance to contain these Fractured before it came to that. their numbers were not overwhelming, but it was that same sickening aura as those lahmu, insofar as these were beings who very clearly could not co-exist alongside any sort of civilized society. the incompatible nature was obvious and apparent in every gesture, in the sensations that emanated from the beings that he and the other Otherworlders found themselves confronted with.
the phantom circuits which Gilgamesh had felt in his body since the moment of the Cyberseed implant... there was a small, strange discomfort to them now, an itch that comes and goes. occasionally, he finds his vision distorting, and other effects -- almost as though some part of him were mechanizing in accordance with this world.
presently, his opponent is that first one: the Matriarch, she was called. ]
Do not make eye contact with her -- [ this is said to whatever Otherworlder(s) accompany/ies him, advice given by their allies, Selena and Titan-7. ]
And best you mongrels stay away from those ribbons...
[ unless they wished to end as tattered messes.
presently, however, Gilgamesh's Bios is bright golden, emanating from his body and from the portals that open around him. he may not be at peak power in this world and under these circumstances, but to entrap this witch of the darkness, he shall use his bright aura in all senses of the word. and from the portals, the weapons which now emerge and go flying towards the enemy? not staves or swords, but tri-pronged cybernetic stars. Gilgamesh was nothing if not adaptable to a new setting.
currently, the stars go flying towards that elusive maiden-monster, aiming to slice, or at least distract her. ]
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He's done more dangerous things than this, but always when he was at his peak, and with his own intel that he spent time collecting. He didn't like working like this, and he didn't trust others like this. Unfortunately it was just the state of things, though, and he'd been stuck with someone that he wouldn't have chosen to work with himself. The way V's hackles raised the moment the man called him a mongrel made it apparent that the man had clearly hit some nerve and V's anger was apparent in his voice. ]
Call me a fucking mongrel again and I'll turn you into sashimi for this bitch myself.
[ V pulled out a rifle and crouched, making himself as small as he could behind Gilgamesh. The rifle was clearly a high powered thing: a large caliber, and clearly meant for middling to longer ranged shots. Before he started hacking, he wanted to destroy the seal on her forehead so he wouldn't be interrupted.
He hung behind Gilgamesh, letting him be the big bright shiny cover, as he took his time lining up his shot. He missed the rifle he klepped at the Black Sapphire and its direct link to his optics, but it was neither here nor there. Once he was confident he had the shot, he pulled the trigger - though lord knows if it would actually land, given the fact that he was fighting a broken bit code. Regardless, he kept his that rifle in position until he knew for sure, tracking the symbol on her forehead still. ]
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They were also further reduced by whatever restraints had been placed upon them all in Magisteria. And, like V, he was struggling somewhat with whatever this new technical side of himself was -- perhaps more, insofar as this was all new to Gilgamesh, who had no prior frame of reference for anything like tech implants.
However, he would not be himself if he were to let show any sign of weakness or doubt, so in response to that gruff comment, he just emits a soft, low laugh, under his breath. ]
I suppose such spirit is at least to be commended.
[ his only acknowledgment of the comment itself is tacit, insofar as he abstains from further insults. really, such epithets were simply Gilgamesh-speak, as natural to him as breathing, but even he has perhaps enough tact and sense of priorities to realize that pushing luck with a would-be ally at such a moment might end poorly for them both. he was after all a Wise King... sort of. even if he still had a tendency to get hung up on petty things (one might argue, anyway).
as it is, Gilgamesh settles for the path of least or at least lesser resistance. neither of them is the ally the other wants, but that's just how it be right now. rather than focusing on V in particular, he focuses on the rifle shot, summoning his axe and readying it just in case the shot misses or -- even if it hits its mark and the ... entity retains some power... he wants to be immediately ready to deal a follow-up blow: no being caught off-guard.
but, this will be a good opportunity, perhaps, to see just what a properly targeted shot can do... that is, if it lands. what effect shall it have? Gilgamesh watches, keenly, all senses alert. ]