[Event] The Independence Gala

Scanning over the table, Laelynn searched for something more familiar to her tastes, but yet still unique or interesting enough to stand out. After all, she didn’t see herself with such an opportunity to try such high class food, especially free food at that.~ “Ooooh!” In the corner of her eye, she spotted a platter that caught her eye, promptly skittering through the crowds down the table. Looking down with a look of pure excitement, Laelynn eyed down a plate of soft tacos of various meats and styles, complete with a set of different sauces and toppings to choose from. One breath to the heavenly scent of seared meat, fresh tomato, and a freshly made tortilla was all the motivation she needed to solidify her decision, quickly grabbing a plate and placing two shredded chicken tacos upon it, ignoring using the tongs and opting to grab them by hand. Polite, probably not, but it would prevent the filling from falling out, which mattered more to her at the moment.

After a quick pouring of green sauce, Laelynn took her first bite, so flavorful and balanced that for a moment, chewing with an expression pure satisfaction and bliss, to the point she entirely forgot her annoyance at the snooty environment. Half way through the second, Laelynn took a moment to take a deep breath, eyes closed, savoring the well crafted food. It was so much better than her usual meals, and especially better than the processed junk food she relied on back on the streets of Elseima. Opening her eyes afterwards, however, Laelynn could a glance of a familiar face at the nearby refreshment stand. Specifically, Eris, one of the two individuals she had her ship, current food money, and invitation to the gala itself to be grateful for.

Though she had hoped to see both her and Leonidas here, a simple thought crossed her mind in that moment, and a mischievous smile crossing her face . A normal greeting of course was too boring, and considering the circumstances she met the two in, a practical joke seemed only natural. Wasting no further time, and hoping Eris didn’t already see her, she quickly placed her plate down onto the table and slipped deeper into the crowds to mask her presence. With years of experience in casing targets and theft, Laelynn’s movements through the crowd were casual as could be, with the intent of drawing as little attention to herself as possible, especially since she didn’t plan anything actually other than a prank. Yet with professional focus, Laelynn kept the corner of her eye on Eris, guiding her movements through the crowd as much as she could out of Eris’ view, ensuring to use her small frame to an advantage.

Closer and closer, Laelynn zig zagged through chatting guests and traveling groups, eventually making her way behind Eris, hopefully unaware of her presence. With quiet yet casual steps, Laelynn slowly crept up to Eris, and extending her right index finger out, would attempt to poke Eris’ back with a firm, yet non aggressive amount of force. “BOO!” Without really waiting for a reaction, Laelynn would reach over and attempt to give a brief, but sincere hug with a smile. “Hi Aunt Eris!”~

"Heh, yeah, well the vast majority of the group assigned to it hadn't even known each other before, and were volunteers. Fiore's resources were diverted elsewhere at the time, to the more looming presence of the Boscan war machine. The Eisenstadt, especially," he said. "That battle was before the Blight even struck, and the casualties were momentous. It certainly didn't hep the later effort to repel the cataclysm." Oh, what a bloody mess it had all been. War always resulted in a mess, certainly never as purging or single sided as history tended to paint it. Usually, hatred only grew as a result of it, rather than absolved because of a so called victor. But then again, that was only human nature, incapable of putting aside differences for the greater good. Or, so he had once thought, though the exodus had long ago proven him wrong.

Indeed, Stefan would live on as long as Fiore did, and as long Arlan before him. For, in a way, the two were the same, both having contributed to the birth of a new nation, though completely opposite in the same regard. "A nasty presence," Leo commented, looking up at the ceiling far above them for a brief moment. "Change is necessary for progress, though, and I don't think anyone would argue that monarchy is better than democracy, whatever flavor the former is seasoned in. Certainly, though, the ideological conflicts between the Federation and our friends in the Union of Pergrande has plunged the galaxy into chaos a few times." His eyes fell back onto Blitz.

The crowd was, save for a few oddities, mundane. Eris was disappointed in such, that the strangest among those she could see was this Blitz Ranfen, a survivor from Earthland, as it would happen to be. The rest her - for the most part - impartial eye passed over, automatically sorting them into categories based on their movements, attire, and a variety of other things. What else was to be expected, though? Repetition, repetition, repetition, society sure did like just going through the motions, doing the same as others before them had. It made any point of study boring, any phenomenon that occurred during a specific lifetime stir the same few emotions among the populous.

Her gaze lingered on the mural far away, just barely within her sight. Now the Great War, that had been a fascinating event, though her conscience told her it would be better not to think of it as such. Not that she didn't have the right to, though, unlike most others that shared the same sentiments. They were maniacal, attempting to connect to the rotten past, whereas for her it was simply reminiscence, though then again that was giving justification for something - a justification that told her some part of her thoughts did not agree.

At least the food was good, though, and free - though she didn't really have to worry about expenses it was still convenient, and oh so kind of the government to spend tax dollars treating citizens and foreigners alike. Regardless, she had set her plate down in one of the rather concealed bus trays and moved toward the drinks; while Eris doubted there was alcohol available so early while she was in the vicinity it would be better to check. Before she could do so, however, there was a flickering of familiarity, and as she turned about Laelynn faced her, probably having attempted to scare her given the girl's words. Eris offered a laugh, shaking her head though embracing her at the same time. "Maybe some day you'll get me," she said, amused by Laelynn's attempt to spook her. "Hey, glad you could make it, though. Leo was convinced you weren't going to show, really, but I knew otherwise. No one's a carbon copy of their relatives, well I would hope not. That certainly wouldn't have played out well for me."

Eris chuckled, brushing her own words off as if they were nothing, and indeed they were to her. "I'm sure he'll want to see you, though," she added, pointing in the general direction of where Leo was although certainly he wasn't visible, there being many guests of taller stature, especially considering her own. Waiting for Laelynn's response, Eris would then start off in his direction, grabbing a cup of iced tea, out of all things, beforehand.

The gala was going along splendidly, a plethora of conversations flowing throughout the rooms, many about Independence Day, some concerning politics, and others on less patriotic yet still engaging topics. Despite the disparity of individuals found in the President's Citadel at the time, it was rather harmonious, the most animosity held being harsh looks and the occasion mutterings between attendants. Still, even the most placid of social gatherings always caused such disruptions, and certainly there was little that could be done about it, at least so long as the discourse remained tame.

Some time had passed since the gathering's doors had been opened, and for the most part there had been a distinct lack of formal speeches, performances, and the like. Things were bound to change, however, and as the clock struck a new digit so too did a woman step out onto the balcony of the foyer. Tall and authoritative yet at the same time with a worn visage and aged eyes, President Lilian Argall wore what most would consider standard dress attire taking into account her years and occupation, a black pantsuit with an orange tie, the twelve petal emblem of the Federation pinned on her lapel. She had gained popularity and prestige as a leader of the Knights of Fiore, and upon retirement from the physicality required had turned to the political side of governing. The scarring present on the left side of her face exemplified such, though Argall did not shy away from it, her silver specked ginger locks pulled back in a professional matter leaving all blemishes exposed.

The ambiance both live and projected gave away, and so did the collective voice of the masses, lending to her own. "As I am sure you are all aware, we gather here today to honor the lives lost battling against tyranny long ago - those who loosened the chains shackled by man and nature alike. The Federation of Fioran States would not exist now without their noble sacrifices, nor would humanity and all other races descended from Earthland. However, over time we have drifted from this view of Independence Day, and all the events leading to and continuing after it. While the decorum is kind, the holiday truly serves as a reminder of our past and to not repeat it. Fiore, along with other nations, has gotten dangerously close to it before, and without retrospect we may draw near to that line again." The president paused for a moment, looking about the crowd and their eyes focused on her, yet she did not falter in the slightest.

"Thus, we must first extend our arms in friendship before we withdraw them for war, no matter who our opponent may be. There have been rumors of forces beyond our society's comprehension lurking at the borders of our galaxy, a threat unlike the quarrels we have had with other countries in the past and even at present time. It could be unifying, or nothing, but let us not make it a device to promote hatred. For the Federation especially stands as a testament of self-determination in our civilization, a bastion of hope for all those who flee from oppression. We cannot let that change."

Argall took a calculated pace backward, and applause broke out amidst the crowd. Beneath it, however, the great doors guarding the entrance of the structure slowly came to a close, and almost immediately the president noticed it. In a rush she exited the platform through the door found behind her, only to be halted by two guards holding out pole arms in an X. Slowly, she backed away, and they pursued, pushing her toward the railing of the balcony. The other guards nearby seemed to do nothing, or rather, nothing about the assailants. Instead, they turned their attention to the participants in the gala, particularly those who hadn't seem to cower in fear at first sight. Their identities were concealed beneath masks and clothing covered their entire body, but something about their movements, on a close look, didn't seem entirely natural nor human.

From the way the blonde man spoke, it seemed as though the 'Task Force' went about as swimmingly as Blitz pictured that it had. "Yeah, we were stretched kinda thin. A war, a short recovery period, then we launched one of our own. We were keeping a check on our resources not long into that second war, I can tell ya that much." Blitz said. "No surprised they basically drafted anyone willing to fight when things got to that point."

"Though you'll have to be more specific about the 'Boscan war machine'," Blitz added, raising a finger, "As I seem to recall there were a number of monstrosities wandering the battlefield or perched in the back. The name rings I bell, but I can't get a picture of it in my head - could be the memory loss again, or maybe I just never happened to actually lay eyes on the thing," Blitz mused, rubbing his chin in thought. "Unlikely, though, as a literal war machine is something I would have basically called dibs on getting to fight, back in the day..."

Blitz trailed off slightly as the blonde man spoke of change and rulers. "Given what's occurred to me, personally, I'd be in quite the spot if I wasn't in favor of change to at least some degree," Blitz said with a half-hearted chuckle and a slight shrug, "But as far as ideologies go, differences in opinion happen all the time. The problem is when one of those who get their feathers ruffled at the sight of something they don't like happens to be in charge of an army. The reason fights begin is always simple, it's the fights and wars themselves that get so goddamn complicated."

Blitz's eyes flicked out to the crowd as a sudden quiet fell over the hall - not a complete silence, but the kind of quiet that falls when someone noteworthy appears or something important is about to happen. In this case, it was the former.

Blitz glanced upward at the lady who walked out onto the balcony in a dress, giving off the air of something used to being taken seriously. So, this is the latest bigwig that's in charge of things....Blitz thought. Bit early to judge, but then again, the last one I was around for went out of his way to set the bar tremendously low as far as quality rulers go. That she had a scar already told a story or two of it's own. This was not someone who had sat behind a desk their entire career.

She gave a speech that seemed equal parts friendly and threatening before applause broke out. Blitz himself wasn't applauding - not out of any outright disagreement, but he was more the type to run and fight oppression, rather than flee from it. So from one war straight into another. Quite the timing I have.

The President turned to walk - rather quickly - out of whatever door she came through, but reappeared shortly after, being approached rather aggressively by two guards who Blitz had thought were her own. Stranger still, the other guards didn't seem terribly concerned about it, some even turning to face members of the crowd. One of them was close to Blitz, glaring at him quietly. "Hey, if that's just because I did applaud the speech..." Blitz started to say, then caught the look in his eye. That wasn't a look of someone mildly miffed or affronted. That was violence glinting in those eyes.

Blitz sighed, uncrossing his arms, quietly wishing he'd gotten another swig of punch before this. "Well, it's been a 1000 years, but I see something things haven't changed - traitors and spies are still a thing. So let's make this simple - you move, I go help the President, or we fight, then I go make the same suggestion to the next guard in line. What's it gonna be?"

Blitz was doing mental calculations in his head as he said this, however - he was confident in his skills, but that trip through time had taken its toll - by his own estimate, his physical abilities were running at about 10.8% of what they'd been before the Exodus. Hell of a drop, but I'll have to make it work, Blitz thought.

“Awww!~ I thought I had’ya’.~” Though obviously embarrassed, whining with a minor scowl, Laelynn still accepted Eris’ embrace, only shrugging when it ended at Eris’ follow up comment, prompting a minor chuckle and cheeky grin in response. “Heh, thanks.~ From what I’ve been told, I could probably say the same.~” Though Laelynn admired her father’s bravery and legacy, Leonidas, Eris, and her own mother had told her of Jaxus’ light hearted foolishness, that putting their personality in a positive light at that. In a sense, it was a blessing she didn’t take that trait on in the long run.

“Oh yeah, I was gonna’ ask where uncle Leo was.~ Don’t tell em’ this, but I actually missed ya’ two.~” Laelynn gave a cheeky smile as she said this, almost in an endearing way before her attention was quickly distracted by a sudden thought. Looking back to the table to where her plate of food lay, Laelynn looked back to Leonidas, to Eris, to her food, only letting out a shrug in response. Surely her food would be available in just a few more moments, and she was sincerely excited to see Leonidas and Eris once more. Half way through however, Laelynn would attempt to burst ahead of Eris, quickly sliding up upon her heels beside Leonidas, reaching out to give them a brief hug. “Hi Uncle Leo! What’chu’ been up to?~” It wasn’t much longer before Laelynn noted the metal arm of the individual present in front of Leonidas, her eyes shining with curiosity, but sadly before she could inspect it, the head figure of the gala, the president of fiore or something to Laelynn’s knowledge began a speech, to which many seemed to go silent for to observe, causing her to scowl in response at the mood dampener.

As Argall presented their speech, Laelynn could only roll her eyes as they began. Honoring the lives of the lost fighting tyranny? She had scanned the room many times, and not once found any name or even reference to her father. After saving so many lives and sacrificing their own for others, they didn’t even have a place holder in the annals of history. Regardless, their biggest annoyance was the fact she had been held off from further snacks for such a boring speech. In fact, she only scoffed at their mention of “forces beyond their society’s comprehension.” Anything “beyond comprehension” in reality just meant yet to be studied properly, that was just a basic rule in her book.

As Argall ended their speech and applause broke out, Laelynn merely shrugged, looking back to her plate on the table across the room. Yet, before she could make a move to obtain her food once more, a strange silence made itself present in the room, followed by a ruckus stirred as the door to the entrance slammed shut, and the guards which were presumably there to protect the president turned on them, and the guests of the gala themselves! “Mmmm…..” Laelynn paused for a second, attempting to process the situation, noting the stranger Leonidas had been talking to as the first to take up arms.

Letting out a groan of frustration, Laelynn stared up at the president who seemed to be in danger, then back to the traitorous guards approaching the civilians. “I really don’t want'a be involved here…” Yet, in a flash of sparks, a blue and white, high tech combat armor, styled similar to a cat in aesthetics would appear around Laelynn. The visor itself immediately lit up with an array of blue LED lights, instantly forming the face of a hissing cat as two large knives appeared within her hands, specific in design for a reverse grip fashion. “But I guess I don’t have much of a choice either…~” Laelynn whined at the end of her sentence, looking towards Leo and Eris for protection, then the snack table, which she doubted would survive the encounter. Regardless, her father wouldn’t have backed down, and neither would she.

"Yes, well, the Boscan war machine isn't referencing anything in particular, rather the nation's brutal and effective efforts to secure victory. Emperor Wilhelm VIII didn't hesitate to pluck farm boys from their fields for cannon fodder, neither did he bat an eye at using potentially world-ending weapons to wreak havoc," Leo responded. "The Eisenstadt, or Iron City if that helps at all, was a massive, moving fortress that threatened to march onto Fiorean soil. The knights and mage guilds rose to confront it in East Bosco, and although they succeeded the failure of Taskforce Hyacinth occurred on the very same day."

Before he could continue any further or reply to Blitz's later dialogue, though, a head distinguished itself from among the crowd, rushing toward him in a manner that caused Leo to bring up an improvised guard for about half a second before he realized it was only Laelynn, and laughed, as Eris had done the same just a few moments earlier. "Hey Laelynn!" he exclaimed, patting her on the head once. Before he could say much else, however, the room started to fall quiet, although beforehand Eris squeezed next to him.

"Looks like you'll have to send Cecil that picture with the beard now," she murmured, in which Leo choked for a moment, recalling all too well the joking bet they had made not long ago. Yet it was not the time for any retort, ad so his eyes focused upwards, onto the grand general turned president, Lilian Argall.

Ah, the classic grandiose speech. It wasn't nearly as long as he had braced himself for, and at least the first part wasn't unbearable. Leo's reaction to such was indifferent at best, and at worse almost callous in nature, his yawn placed in the middle of it not helping him sway toward the former. Certainly, it was important for others to hear what the president had to say, and indeed she had a point he could agree upon, of the dangers of the Blight, but that was the thing, Leo already knew the consequences of meddling with the unknown. All too well, as a matter of fact, the slight throbbing of his head reminding him of it quite clearly. His teeth clenched for a moment, pushing away the images that flashed over his eyes suddenly, and his hands moved up toward his tie. Leo tightened it against his throat, the momentary asphyxiation releasing him from his past, even as Eris glanced in his direction worryingly.

His palms offered a few percussive beats as Argall's words concluded, not because he had been impressed or enraptured; it was simply a societal standard to do so. However, all was not well, as the timbre of a clanging door turned his head around. A sigh escaped his lips as his gaze reconnected with the president, her position threatened by two guards advancing. A political overthrow, perhaps, or the threat of another nation? No, something seemed off. Leo knew the pulsing rhythm of humanity all too well, and the life emanating from the aggressors was not that. Neither was the inhumanity a familiar one, and he out of all people could tell such. Was this seriously the exact same threat Argall had just referenced, the so called aliens intruding on their galaxy? Dramatic timing, if it were the case. Then again, he couldn't really wrap his head around there existing life not descending from Earthland, or from another reality altogether, despite science having previously stated it was likely.

Nevertheless, Argall wasn't a figure he had anything against, nor had the state prepared for a potential mole, as seen by the chaos unfolding. "Lovely," he muttered. "It's never a good party without some drama." Clearly, Leo's intonation held a degree of sarcasm, almost resignation in a way. Still, his hands soon were occupied with a sword in each, edges glinting with the tint of steel. Eris summoned forth her staff as well, her clothes morphing to a more practical albeit still rather fancy black coat with a white blouse underneath it, slacks and boots matching the former color. In the palm of her left hand she held a few small seeds, whose contents soon exploded into a stream of greens, racing toward the president and the guards threatening them. First she attempted to strike each one of the guards in their masks to momentarily stun them, then wrapped a vine around Argall herself, straining to remove her from the balcony. Leo glanced back at Laelynn for a moment, gesturing his head toward the nearest pair of guards that seemed to be advancing on the cowering masses. Sprinting toward them, blades held in a reverse grip for a moment to avoid injuring any innocent parties, he then flipped them back around, attempting to strike one of the aggressors in the midsection and arm with each weapon respectively.

Alarms blared, reverberating throughout the compound. Panicked citizens pushed against the doors leading outward, bodies clogging the chance for any help to enter the building. However, a few brave souls had taken up arms to face the unknown, among them a collection of soldiers, mages, mercenaries, and the like, along with guards that had removed their helmets and turned against those advancing. Weapons were few and far between on the defense, however this was Fiore, and magic made an ample substitute for material in some aspects, and in others it could retrieve objects themselves. While some of the traitorous guards had gone toward those who had posed themselves as threatening to their unseen plan, others were discharging weapons indiscriminately into the crowd, with apparently little to stop the projectiles from connecting.

The guard staring down Blitz twisted their head to the side, flicking a baton out into their hand. "The president is ours," they said in a mechanically warped voice, or at least it seemed as such. Then, the guard charged him, baton at the ready to strike. Meanwhile, another had spotted Laelynn and had started to make their way toward her, although they were far enough away that a confrontation could be avoided, at least it appeared to be so until they pulled out a pistol and started shooting the girl, who in the eyes of that mole in particular had made herself a prime target with her flashy armor. The vines that had swiftly crept toward Argall and the sentinels restraining her made their mark, however they did not achieve the desired effect. While stunned for a moment, long enough for the president to be hanging off the side of the balcony but not even close to secure, the strange intruders soon countered, one slicing through the vine and sending her precariously plunging toward the ground below. And off near one of the staircases the two blows made by Leo connected with an unsuspecting guard, sending them teetering down to the now stained floor, yet at the same time their partner in betrayal turned and aimed a strike with a blade of their own.

If any combatant had the brief moment to glance toward the control panel of the room located to the left side behind a curtain, they would notice a masked figure that distinguished themselves from the others with their attire, slicker and engraved with peculiar symbols that almost seemed to shimmer in the light. Whatever ill will they intended to perform, however, was obscured from view, as nothing more than a few ambiguous switches were being flipped, with no apparent effect at the present time.

Before the commotion:

---

Blitz glanced at the young man, slightly aghast as he recalled the machine that his new friend was talking about. "Wait, that was the 'Iron City'?!" Blitz asked, somewhat incredulous. "That monstrosity of iron? That thing was as durable as a mountain, sure - perhaps moreso - but it was barely more mobile than one, too." Blitz said, then scoffed quietly, "'Iron City'. Please, that thing was a brick with wheels in terms of tactics."

He had also caught the man's mention of Pergrande, and from his tone, relations between the nations were strained. Blitz wanted to inquire further, but didn't have the time before all the ruckus with the guards began, so he made a mental note to ask later.

---

Back in the moment:

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The guard Blitz had made his offer/threat to tilted his head to one side - not in a curiosity kind of way, but the kind of movement made to illustrate one's point, and unfortunately, the only point it had made so far was the threat of violence. Though in fairness, if not pointing out his goal was to save the President, Blitz would be guilty of the same conduct. He was a bit surprised to hear a metallic edge to its voice, though. "I don't know if you're a robot or not from that voice, but if that's a voice changer, kinda defeats the point after going this far, dont'cha think?" Blitz asked, taking a light stance as the guard rushed at Blitz with a baton in his hand. Blitz raised his metal arm to block the baton as the guard approached, thinking Well, it's likely just a voice changer, but if it's actually a robot, or even just wearing metal limbs like me....As his metal arm moved to block the downward strike, he raised his other hand and unleashed a jolt of electricity toward the guard's torso.

The man in the shadows might have been flipping switches during all the commotion, but the iron brawler hadn't noticed him just yet - normally, he might have, but he was too busy checking to make sure he hadn't gotten rusty (almost literally) after a full millennium of no combat of any sort.