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[foin]

[Location: Lobby

Time: Afternoon

Mood: Confused as hell

Off to the side of the castle lobby stands one young woman dressed in white and red, looking thoroughly confused and slightly panicky. The sword at her left hip stays sheathed for the moment, as her attention is currently occupied by the floating menu in front of her. Tapping and swiping, she soon gives a frustrated noise slightly akin to that of a distressed water fowl. Unknown to her, the journal sits open on a table a few feet away.]

Where the heck's the map? It was just here! [She pauses before groaning loudly.] Oh, come on! Don't tell me this is another glitch-- that's the last thing I need right now!

[With another aggravated swipe, the menu vanishes, and she whirls around to face the room.]

Godfree! Are you still around? [Pause.] Kirito-kun?? [Another pause.]

Geez! What just happened?

Comments

action!

[dupable]

[ And here is John now walking in on the scene. Or more walking out of the kitchen into the lobby with a plate of food in hand. He stops when he sees the girl poking at a holographic screen that reminds him a little of the computer Jade made him make.

He walks over to her, tilting his head to the side as he checks it out. ]

It'd probably be easier if you were actually standing next to your journal when you asked that.

*A*

[foin]

[Asuna looks over at John, still very alert and even more on edge than before. The fingers on her right hand twitch slightly, and she moves them to graze the hilt of her sword.]

What are you talking about?

[dupable]

[ He doesn't seem all that concerned about the sword, in fact he doesn't even seen to notice it at all!

Maybe this is why John keeps getting stabbed by people? ]

Huh? What do you mean? You are looking for some people in the castle, right? It would be faster to just filter something to them in the journals.

[foin]

What castle is this? I should be able to see them, but the mapping data's just vanished!

[She's now gripping the hilt of said sword with a light clink noise, and her eyes narrow.]

Where am I?

[dupable]

Paradisa. It's uh...

[ Oh well this explains a lot about why she's been acting kind of weird here. ]

It's on another planet than wherever it is you're from.

[foin]

Another pla... net........

[Asuna narrows her eyes.]

Don't tell me this is another game!

[dupable]

What? No, this isn't a game.

[ Stopping to think about that for a minute. ]

... I am pretty sure anyway.

[foin]

What do you mean pretty sure? It is or it isn't!

[dupable]

I isn't! I think... I mean, there is no reason to think it would be?

... maybe.

[foin]

Make up your mind!

[dupable]

Okay! It's not.

[foin]

You don't sound certain! [Regardless, the grip on her sword loosens a little as she studies him.]

Paradisa, huh? Tell me about it.

[dupable]

Well that's because this place is kind of one big mystery? I mean, we know a lot about it, but there is even more we don't know. What we are all pretty sure about is that it is a castle on another planet, and probably also in another universe than whatever one you came from. And it definitely does like to play games with us, but I don't think that is actually what you meant.

[foin]

Hey, hey, slow down! Who's "we" and what's actually known?

[dupable]

We... like everyone else in the castle that was brought here the same way you were!

And oh man... I don't have everything written down, but it's a lot of information. Maybe it'd be easier if we started with you asking more specific questions and I just answer those?

[foin]

There's more? How many?

[She nods slowly at the last bit, letting her hold on the sword drop.]

[dupable]

[ He has to pause to think about it. The castle isn't as bustling as it used to be, but it's still pretty full, so... ]

Maybe... a couple hundred at least.

[foin]

Were they taken from their worlds, too?

[dupable]

As far as I know. I don't think I've met a single person who lives in the castle that was originally from Paradisa. ... No one out in the Dead Zone either.

[foin]

[She looks at him curiously before moving to take a seat on a nearby chair.]

Dead Zone?

[dupable]

[ He'll remain standing for a time being, but sort of twists around to point towards the front door before turning back to face her. ]

Yeah it's...

[ Trying to think of a good way to describe this. ]

Do you have any magic or powers?

[foin]

In a sense. Why?

[dupable]

Because they won't work at all out in the Dead Zone! It's basically a place where no magic or electronics work, which is why it's called that, not because there are a bunch of dead bodies out there.

[foin]

Nothing works out there? How's that possible?

[dupable]

[ He's trying to remember exactly what he was told during the one expedition. ]

I'm not sure exactly, but I know magic travels in a funny way out there. It moves around all over the place, and so I'd guess that probably messes with people who have it? But I don't know how it affects other things. Like my powers aren't magic based at all! Or the fact that nothing that runs on batteries works without-

[ He adjusts the plate in his hand so he's only holding it with one and he can reach into a pocket and pull out his crystal that he carries on him at all times. ]

One of these things.