Mosaic City, located along China's coast, is quite large city sometimes called the Crossroads Between Nations due to its diverse population. While it was once a large tourist spot, the city was placed under a blockade as the military appeared claiming there was a radiation leak. The true hazard, however, is much more sinister.
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 15, 2014 9:34:10 GMT -5
Tristan was still unsure of how to go about like everything was normal. He had been dealing with monsters, and he could bring a mythological being into existence just by concentrating. It wasn't like he was still like everyone else. He had more important things to do than be stuck at school. He had a city to save, with possibly the fate of the world on the line.
He could have the fate of the world resting on him... Suddenly, Tristan felt sick to his stomach. There was no way he would be able to eradicate the monsters so completely that something else like this could never happen again. He would need help. But he didn't have anyone else like him around. Still deep in thought, he went to class.
Man... History was just so useless... He knew and believed in the mantra "history repeats itself," but there are certain things that don't need to be talked about when there are more pressing concerns. Sigh... If only he could find someone else that shared his perspective...
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 15, 2014 13:45:57 GMT -5
Tristan sat at his desk, trying not to let his mind wander too much. He may not be the most active person in his room, but at least he pays attention. He decided to look around at his classmates. He never knew why, but watching others always interested him.
Looking around, trying not to stare, he noticed that someone was looking at him. He decided to take special attention of her, because hardly anyone payed him a second thought. She was wearing a uniform, and red hair. She was actually quite attractive, which made Tristan suspicious as he never really noticed her before. He saw her around, but never got to know her.
Trying not to seem odd, he decided to give just a small wave. He didn't know how she would take that, but he would respond accordingly.
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 15, 2014 14:32:46 GMT -5
Tristan was glad she didn't decide to either: try to pretend she wasn't looking at him or act all haughty. She gave him a wave back, but then Tristan realized he had no real way to communicate with her. It wasn't like they were sitting right next to each other. He could try passing her a note, but he wasn't very good at that and didn't even know her name. What would he do?
He decided to try to start off with lip reading. He wasn't a master at it, but he could tell most words. He could only hope she had this skill. He mouthed Hi. I'm Tristan.
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 15, 2014 14:58:31 GMT -5
Tristan read that her name was... Isolde?!? He was suddenly curious. His name had come from an old Celtic legend, that of Tristan and Isolde. The short version of the legend is that Tristan was a noble knight under his king. This king, trusting no other man, sent Tristan to retrieve his bride-to-be, Isolde. However, Tristan and Isolde fell for each other, causing multiple problems. It ends up being quite the tragedy, and Tristan had always held the story in high regards. It was that story that led to his interest in both reading and mythology.
Tristan realized he had zoned out. Still, not everyday that you hear the name of your namesake's lover. Still, Tristan was unsure if this girl knew about the legend or not. Not likely, but there was a chance. He mouthed to her Nice to meet you too. After a moment, he decided to ask if she knew the legend. Hey, what do you know of your namesake?
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 15, 2014 15:34:57 GMT -5
Tristan was impressed. Not very many people outside of the Celtic area knew of the legend. Heck, the only reason he knew it was because he had been raised on it. And that's when she dropped the bomb: she's a princess? What? There was no way he read her lips correctly. He was a fairly good judge of character, and she didn't seem to be the "better-than-you" type of person, but... Either she said that in an attempt to impress him (which it could be, since he had just met her, but it seemed unlikely), or it was such a total slip that there was no chance she could be lying.
He decided to be sure. Did... Did you just say you're a... Princess? He realized that if he didn't add on to that statement that she might take offense, so he also mouthed That's... That's kinda cool. If you did say that, of course. He realized he was blustering, but he also just realized that he had been acting casual around a princess. Yet at the same time, if he did anything rash she might be insulted that he decided to treat her differently. "This is so confusing," he muttered under his breath before he realized she was probably still reading his lips. He could feel the blood rushing to his face, but hoped it wasn't noticable enough that she would pay attention.
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 15, 2014 16:28:34 GMT -5
Tristan was dumbfounded. He did red her lips correctly. And then she tried to clarify for him. This girl was to nice to have let that slip intentionally. She was genuine. It made Tristan glad that she didn't try to cover it up. He glanced at the clock, and was shocked by how much time had passed already. The class was nearly over. He looked at Isolde, then back at the clock. He turned to Isolde, and mouthed is this right? meaning the time. It just didn't seem possible. He looked over a his new friend. At least, he hoped they were considered friends. It would be really odd to know that sort of info and not consider that person as a friend.
He knew she had to trust him slightly, else she would have denied saying she was a princess. Still, he didn't want that to be the basis of their friendship. He quickly mouthed talk to you as soon as class is done, and started to gather his things. A new concern was on his mind now. She was his friend now, and had shared something that she probably would have liked to keep secret. Should he tell her about what he knew was going on? And if she didn't believe him, would she think he was mocking her? He decided he would wait a few days, or until they were good enough friends that she would understand that he wouldn't be lying to her about something like that. So he sat, waiting for the end of class...
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 15, 2014 17:01:37 GMT -5
Tristan started letting his mind wander to Pyro Jack. This was a powerful being, that seemed to follow Tristan's commands. Why would it do that? It's not like he could overpower Pyro. Why does it stay with Tristan anyway?
Even though he was dealing with these horribly philosophical questions, Tristan couldn't help but jump up when class ended. He knew that it might make him appear out of his usual casual mood, but he had something that interested him to do. He had a friend who was a bit more unusual than your average unusual person.
He did, however, try to slow down when he was walking over to Isolde. He didn't say anything at first, partially because he didn't know what to say, but mostly because he was curious as to what she would say to him.
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 15, 2014 18:22:08 GMT -5
A knight? Tristan was bemused by the idea. Yet at the same time... He thought about it. It didn't seem to be a bad idea. After all, they live exciting lives, get the girl, vanquish evil... And suddenly Tristan was brought back to the real world. The one already filled with enough excitement. And the horrible, oppressing evil that Tristan knew he had no chance of vanquishing.
Still, he had just made a new friend and he wasn't going to be brought down by his gloomy thought process. And he was pretty sure he had just been called a knight. If not, then she had just started to talk to herself... Not that he can judge.
Still, it would be rude to sit there quietly for very long. "So..." He was unsure of what to say still. It wasn't everyday that you're getting looked at from a princess sitting across the room. He had no previous experiences to judge a course of action on. He started to think of the legend. He had never been the best in social situations, but that seemed like a solid base to go off of.
"A princess," he said quietly, just loud enough that she would hear. "One that reads tales of medieval romances. Is that just a coincidence?" He knew she was expecting almost anything different, so that made it a good conversation starter. It wouldn't pull a rehearsed reply that would kill a topic as soon as it started.
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 15, 2014 19:04:44 GMT -5
Tristan knew a bit about tales of knighthood. Growing up with his craving for literature and his name, he knew the main synopsis of Arthur by heart. And that was generally the most complicated story out there. And besides, he had always been fascinated by stories where the good guy not only wins but gets the girl. He grew into slightly darker tastes, but his favorites always ended the same: evil is defeated, guy is alive, girl is grateful.
His tastes on just how the guy wins has changed though. He likes it when the brave soul corrupts himself in order to save his love, then fights off the plague in order to protect her from himself. Those stories were getting more common, but they weren't original anymore. Sigh... He hated his taste in books.
Tristan was curious in Isolde's favorite stories. She seemed to be unique, but one can never know. Still, if it turned out Arthurian tales were her favorite, he would be impressed with her yet again. After all, most new books were just ruining old material anyway. Gotta respect one who respects the classics, was his point of view on reading.
Deciding to ask, Tristan knew it wasn't an odd subject given the topic. "So, what are your favorite types of stories? Knight in Shining armor saves the day? Doom and gloom? I respect them all, but one where the hero actually acts like a man and tries to be a hero is already one of my favorites." He hoped she wouldn't stop being so intriguing to him. It had been a while since a single person had held his interest for so long.
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 15, 2014 20:18:35 GMT -5
Tristan had picked up on what she had said immediately. "I notice you said knights and not hero... Is there a certain reason for this?" He asked her this for only two reasons: most people say hero, as that covers a lot of genres, and for the obvious reason of him having no other way to continue this conversation. Actually, he realized he did have a third reason... If she would be able to tell him answers to seemingly odd questions like this one, then he would be able to tell if she trusted him sooner.
And if she trusted him, he could tell her about what was going on. The creatures outside of the safe circle. His ability to bring forth a being of fire, Pyro Jack. He didn't have many friends, and the few he did have laughed in his face when he tried to tell them the truth. He wanted Isolde to be able to trust him so he could trust her. After all, this secret was driving him crazy.
He enjoyed talking to Isolde though, even with the constant thought of the demonic apocalypse going on just a few miles away. After all, it's not everyday that you meet a princess who's as well-read as you are.
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 15, 2014 21:50:10 GMT -5
Brave and kind, huh? Tristan understood that not all heroes are the brave and kind type. Still, a little diversity was what made books so interesting to him. He did, however, respect her opinion. After all, it wasn't commonplace to have anyone look up to knights anymore. People's role models had been corrupted in the last few decades, and now people aspire to become these... Watered-down versions of actually cool things. Tristan realized that he hated most of his generation, and not for the first time.
Tristan could tell that Isolde was enjoying the conversation as much as he was. He could also tell that there was something... different about her. Something that set her aside from the majority of the people around. As he sat there, looking at her, he asked more or less under his breath "What is it about you?"
He then remembered that even if she didn't hear him that she would be able to read his lips so he hoped desperately that she didn't realize that he had said something.
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 15, 2014 22:23:48 GMT -5
"Per...Persona?" Tristan was unsure of what he was hearing. Is she referring to... No. No way. He didn't know what she was meaning by persona. It was possible she was talking about Pyro Jack, but... That made no sense! How could she know about him? Better yet, why would she call him a persona?
"What," he asked Isolde, "exactly is a 'persona?' And what do mean by 'persona-user?'" He kinda hoped that he was thinking of the correct thing, yet at the same time... If he was right, then did that mean she had a Pyro Jack of her own? Then another question came to mind: if she had a Pyro Jack, who else had one?
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 15, 2014 23:28:13 GMT -5
Knowing the definition of persona, the mask bit didn't faze Tristan. It's the projected us that we use to not project us... He knew that what he just thought wouldn't make sense to anyone else, but he was dealing with this one step at a time. The next thing that came to mind for him was the using the Persona for combat. He already knew about that, being saved by Pyro Jack from shadows not once but twice. He wasn't sure why this was making any sense to him... Maybe it's the fact that you have a freaking Jack-o-lantern in a hat sprout from your mind and it shoots fire at monsters? He realized that after witnessing that, everything could possibly make sense. He decided to sit and listen more to what Isolde was telling him.
What were the odds that his first real friend that he made would be able to tell him more about his abilities?
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 16, 2014 0:04:14 GMT -5
Different strengths... Tristan thought back to how being caught on fire hurt less than being hit by a creature's body. He could understand strengths and weaknesses. Different spells? Well, odd words would come to his mind in a fight. He says them, and Pyro Jack does something. Simple enough. Not anything complicated there. He always assumed that the words were provided by Pyro, and he just got confirmation for that.
Isolde told him that her persona's strengths were ice and healing... Tristan thought for a moment, trying to get Pyro to give him a word for ice in spell speak, but Pyro seemed to shy away from the word, almost as if he was scared of it...
Post by Tristan Carter on Feb 16, 2014 8:24:16 GMT -5
Tristan understood that concept easily as well. After all, if one was a horrifying monster of darkness, why wouldn't you want to be things that fit easily into the world one was conquering. He quickly came to realize that he held a certain amount of respect for these creatures, just because their plan would be foolproof if it weren't for people like him who had power to stop it.
Still, Tristan was unsure of something. "How is it," he began to ask. "That you know so much about these things? How long have you had your... Persona?" He also came to understand that there had to be others, or else Isolde wouldn't have known that their Persona's were different. Still, Tristan thought. If there are more like us... Then how could there still be... 'Shadows?'