The Slums

[Elf]

Emiya

He shook his head and said, "Just because you're a monster doesn't mean you're evil or bad or anything like that.  I've met 'monsters' that were nicer than most people.  Like the White Princess?  Is a giant airhead when she's not vampire hunting."

Emiya rested his hand on her head and said, "And the King of Heroes is the biggest asshole I've ever met and he does deserved to be killed.  Besides, one person's monster is another's hero."

[SINIB]

Mothra (as Lora):

"-So she had pointy ears? Was she an elf?"

"Maybe. She also had a red rock in her forehead."

"Thank you very much," Lora said, slipping a candy bar through the chain link fence. The boy she was talking to took it and ran off without another word.


A few days ago, when Lora was walking home from her part-time job, she spotted her neighbor crying on the bench in front of the apartment complex. Of course, Lora couldn't just walk by and ignore her, so she stopped to ask the woman what was wrong. The older lady explained between sobs that she had an argument with her son, Joshua, and he ran away the night before. While the local law enforcement were doing their rounds looking for him, if he left the district there would be nothing they could do. Since then, Lora's been following the trail the best she could, finding herself travelling through no less than five districts by this point and now currently in the Slums. A common place for people to run off to to disappear, but no place for a child. Especially now that even the local children have been going missing.

But now the trail is heating up again. The mahou kaiju hadn't seen many elves here, especially not one with a stone in their foreheads. If she is the one who's also responsible for the other disappearances, Lora can knock out two birds with one stone. Now all she has to do is locate this mystery woman and pray that Joshua is okay.

Eruraviel

4:00 pm

A tall woman covered in a black cloak slowly walked through the slums, holding something in her hand. It was obscured by the sleeve of the cloak, but as someone sensitive to magic, Lora could tell.

An abnormal spell ran through the woman's body, fueling her body's functions. She seemed to be looking for something.

[SINIB]

Tsumiko

Tsumiko pulled away, suddenly smiling. It looked like she was in pain still, but she was certainly more in control of herself.

"I don't understand any of what you just said, Archer." She gave him a wry, cheeky half smile, wiping aeay the tears from her eyes.

"But thank you. For believing in me. I just hope you're right."

[Elf]

Emiya

Emiya folded his arms across his chest as Tsumiko pulled away.

He shrugged and said, "I'm horrible at pep talks.  Being a sarcastic asshole is where my talents lie.  You should feel privileged that I'm making the effort not to be a sarcastic asshole."

Then he smiled at her and said, "Well, if all else fails, I'll make it right."

[SINIB]

Tsumiko

Tsumiko shook her head. "Feh." She turned around and wandered down the hall towards her storeroom. She looked inside room at the piles and piles of projected junk, wondering if any of it was worth keeping.

She smiled as she looked at it. Training herself was one of the only things that she could find joy and meaning in.

[Elf]

Emiya

Emiya sighed as Tsumiko wandered away. 

He gathered up the few makeshift "Bags" he had made and put them in the shadows.  Then he moved to follow her.  His heart was racing as he realized where he was heading.

The building was completely different, but even after all of this time, he'd know the feel of a place like this.

A place where he spent hours and hours, bringing his body to the verge of near death and surpassing his limits over and over again.  He had tried so hard with very little.  Hard work, determination, and stubbornness had gotten him surprisingly far.

He stared all of the replicas on the floor, his heart thundering in his ears.  It was so familiar, but it shouldn't be here.

He frowned and said, "I'm surprised we can actually stand each other."  He reached down and picked up one of the items, a random wrench, and studied it.

[SINIB]

Emiya

Emiya sighed as Tsumiko wandered away. 

He gathered up the few makeshift "Bags" he had made and put them in the shadows.  Then he moved to follow her.  His heart was racing as he realized where he was heading.

The building was completely different, but even after all of this time, he'd know the feel of a place like this.

A place where he spent hours and hours, bringing his body to the verge of near death and surpassing his limits over and over again.  He had tried so hard with very little.  Hard work, determination, and stubbornness had gotten him surprisingly far.

He stared all of the replicas on the floor, his heart thundering in his ears.  It was so familiar, but it shouldn't be here.

He frowned and said, "I'm surprised we can actually stand each other."  He reached down and picked up one of the items, a random wrench, and studied it.

Tsumiko

"Hrm?" She turned to face him, before looking down at that wrench. Her face twisted. "That one's no good, it doesn't grip right."

She took the wrench away from him, tossing it into her shadow. "It's just a failure. But I don't really regret making stuff like that. Creating just feels-nice."

[Elf]

Emiya

"I think the original must have been shoddy then.  There are two things that I will spend money on if they're quality products: food and tools," Emiya said.

He nodded and said, "Creating . . . does feel good.  Especially when you're not creating weapons . . ."

His fists clenched and then relaxed.  He looked away and said, "Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night, covered in sweat, and expect to be soaked in blood.  Then I realize it was just a stupid dream."

[SINIB]

Emiya

"I think the original must have been shoddy then.  There are two things that I will spend money on if they're quality products: food and tools," Emiya said.

He nodded and said, "Creating . . . does feel good.  Especially when you're not creating weapons . . ."

His fists clenched and then relaxed.  He looked away and said, "Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night, covered in sweat, and expect to be soaked in blood.  Then I realize it was just a stupid dream."

Tsumiko

Tsumiko giggled, bringing her hand to her face and blushing. She turned away, reaching down and picking up a finely crafted sword, handing it to him.

"Making swords just feels-good." She told him. "They're so simple, so purposeful, so elagent. They're the epitome of class and beauty."

She wished that those dreams only happened every once in a while.

[Elf]

Emiya

Emiya took the sword from Tsumiko, blinking slowly as he looked at it.

Her words struck a cord in him.  He took a stance with the sword, a traditional one, not his normal, personal one.  He said, "They are, you're right about that.  There's just something about them that resignates in me, and probably you too."

And as I pray, Unlimited Blade Works.

He handed the sword back to her, handle first.  "They can be used to kill, but they can also be used to save and protect," he said in an almost whisper soft voice.

[SINIB]

Tsumiko

"Mmm, I'm not very good at the protecting part. I try to do my best and make the Nexus a better place, but sometimes I wonder if I'm doing the right thing."

She grasped the sword, taking a test swing. She smiled. Its balance was perfect. "Most of the time, I try not to think about difficult things like that. I've only really had the luxury since I ended up here in the Nexus."

[Elf]

Emiya

Emiya snorted, ruefully smirked, and met Tsumiko's eyes.  He said, "Honestly, I'm not that great at protecting either.  And I do try to fight evil in the Nexus, even have a silly superhero identity including a costume. Even though it's armor and a protective, holy shroud."

He pulled his glasses out of his pocket and said, "And it's another reason I wear these in public.  Figured that it works for that Clark Kent guy, it'll work for me."

And I think too much, Emiya thought with a sigh.  He tried to keep himself busy with the shop, his moonlighting as a superhero/vigilante, and cooking.  Tohsaka's presence helped with the mental stress more than he thought when the cat appeared on his doorstep.

[SINIB]

Emiya

Emiya snorted, ruefully smirked, and met Tsumiko's eyes.  He said, "Honestly, I'm not that great at protecting either.  And I do try to fight evil in the Nexus, even have a silly superhero identity including a costume. Even though it's armor and a protective, holy shroud."

He pulled his glasses out of his pocket and said, "And it's another reason I wear these in public.  Figured that it works for that Clark Kent guy, it'll work for me."

And I think too much, Emiya thought with a sigh.  He tried to keep himself busy with the shop, his moonlighting as a superhero/vigilante, and cooking.  Tohsaka's presence helped with the mental stress more than he thought when the cat appeared on his doorstep.

Tsumiko

Tsumiko looked really, really confused. "Um, Clark Kent? Ok?" She muttered, fidgeting. She was annoyed. She could tell it was definetely something she was supposed to know, but didn't, for some reason. She really had no clue who this man was!

"Um, I have a costume too. If you can call it that. It's more than just for the aesthetics of it, but I did a lot of work designing it. I didn't want people knowing what I look like."

[Elf]

Emiya

Emiya grinned dryly and said, "Superman.  He's a popular American manga character.  His secret identity is literally glasses and it works.  They make movies about them too.  Apparently some are really dark."

He shrugged and then smiled at her admission of her having a costume as well.

"Well maybe one day you can show it to me, if you want."

[MissingMandible]

Eruraviel

4:00 pm

A tall woman covered in a black cloak slowly walked through the slums, holding something in her hand. It was obscured by the sleeve of the cloak, but as someone sensitive to magic, Lora could tell.

An abnormal spell ran through the woman's body, fueling her body's functions. She seemed to be looking for something.

Mothra (As Lora)

4:00 pm

Lora glanced at her phone. Four in the afternoon - evening will be approaching fast. She didn't want to be in this particular district after dark, going by the word on the streets. A small thing like her human form would likely be targeted. She didn't particularly fear for her own safety, mind you, but she didn't want to draw too much attention to herself this early on in the search. A girl suddenly transforming herself into a humanoid moth goddess would certainly be the talk of the town, closing down avenues for her personal investigation.

A text message from one of her classmates suddenly popped up, asking if she wanted to go to karaoke tomorrow. The mahoe kaiju was in the middle of writing a declination when she accidentally walked right into a tall, feminine figure wrapped in a dark cloak. The rebound of which cause her to drop her phone and fall on her rear.

"I'm sorry, miss, I wasn't -" Lora started to say while grabbing her phone and picking herself up, only to pause for a second upon sensing some sort of magical object that caused the hair on the back of her neck to stand up. "- I-I wasn't paying attention where I was going. I'm sorry."