Swole City

[YOLF]

Yusho

Yusho clapped his hands and nodded thankfully to the waiter. For a moment he stared at the chopsticks by his plate, but then split them cleanly with a snap, licking his lips.

"I'm human, but not mortal." He said, before diving into the broth of his meal with the utensils. Fragrant steam kicked up as he hooked the chopsticks on the noodles and pulled the first taste to his mouth. Yusho slurped with delight and took a moment longer to swallow. "I was blessed by the Elemental Dragons when I was young. My power is of them. Or from them. I don't fight people over that. Some do. But I don't suppose you've ever heard of the Dragons."

[yinsukin]

Roman

"So what someone gave you that power?" he said, leaning in a bit.  Despite being famished, he barely registered the food in front of him, picking up the fork out of habit.  "Was it a god or...?"

He couldn't help but hope it was something that could be found in the Nexus.

[YOLF]

Yusho

His lips curled up as he inhaled of the rich smell of his meal. Yusho poked the ingredients with the chopsticks, pondering both what to first stuff his mouth with, and how to respond.

"The Five Elemental Dragons are more like... an integral part of the universe. They're around us, and beyond us. We are taught they're above reincarnation, and rest in immanent perfection in the elements." Upon speaking, Yusho finally threw an egg boiled in his mouth, and munched it down with meat and noodles. His face flushed at the combination of flavors.

"Mm, this is delish. Sorry, I'm digressing. They're not gods, but they are divine. The stories say that in the first of days, they empowered humans to bring order to the world. Then, this blessing was passed on through blood, and spread over Creation in families of heroes. To awaken as an Exalt and receive the gift of the Dragons, you must have some connection, no matter how faint, to those who first held it."

He slurped on the soup and allowed that to sink in for Roman.

[yinsukin]

Roman

With the possibilities crashing down around him, Roman finally took in the smell of meat below his chin.  His fork sunk into the tender meat, the brown flesh calling to him.  It didn't help that the old man seemed to be enjoying his own food so much.

"Wait whats the difference?" Roman asked before taking a bite. 

Meaty, rich, chewy: those were the best adjectives to describe what he just ate.  The sweet but slightly tangy sauce slipped down his throat with each mash of his teeth upon the meat.  For some reason his mind wandered to the perspective of a god.  For some reason he wondered if humans were to gods what animals are to humans.  Then again, when you're that powerful, you don't need to hurt anyone.

[YOLF]

Yusho

Yusho had a choice. He could go into a long ramble about the philosophical differences between the state of the Dragons to material existence and that of the proper gods, or he could go into a likely heretical chain of guesswork and approximations regarding divine taxonomy. He didn't want to spoil the meal with a lecture.

The exalt waved his hand in the air between them, rolling his wrist ambiguously. "The gods are overseers, and owed their allotted tribute, but except for about a handful, they're important but not inseparable from the cosmos. The dragons are both omnipresent and emanated into the material world."

As he spoke, he slowed down to sift through his bowl, before bringing the pork and vegetables to his mouth. The different textures melted together with a gentle contrast, embraced in the faint flavor of the sauce.

[yinsukin]

Roman

While he had a vauge idea what Yusho was talking about, the core of what he was saying flew over his head.  Finally swallowing the meat he said, "So one is more tied into the world and the other is just godlike?  I guess I can see why people want them so bad.  Do you think its possible to surpass the limits of a human with training alone?"

All the sudden he found his view shifting a bit.  If he rose to the level of these dragons, he would smite anyone looking for power.  After all, if you could become that powerful, why let anyone else threaten that superiority.  All this seemed like so much work after all.

[YOLF]

Yusho

He paused his chopsticks against the bowl, tilting his head at Roman. "We don't aspire to the dragons because we want power, Roman. We do it because what lies at the end of virtue is peace, and there's no greater fulfillment than joining their perfection."

"If you don't do the journey right, there'd be no point in the destination, though," Yusho added, smiling again. "As for your question... No. There's countless ways you could find to breach mortal limits, and numberless paths you shouldn't take, unless you enjoy ceding control of your fate to amoral beings, but training alone can't change what you've got. I can teach you my skills, but not my talent."

The dragon-blooded slurped on the noodles for a long moment. Sauce spilled onto his facial hair as he raised his voice again. "But in this city, who knows?"

[yinsukin]

Roman

Roman sunk his fork into another bite of his meat dish, chewing as he thought, Peace?  What the hell was that?  Like death?  Ah well, this guy looks pretty zen.  Is that from being old or the dragons?  WAit did he say join?  Does that mean he is a dragon?

Although internally he was confused, his face didn't show it.  A light hum is all that came from his lips as his mind moved to savor the flavor of the meat for a moment.  It wasn't hard to feel relieved from that revelation.  Joining the dragons sounded like an emotional experience he wasn't sure he was ready for yet.  It was good to know there were other ways that he just didn't know about yet.

"Thats disappointing," Roman said with a sigh.  "I wish everything could be taught.  Maybe... wait?  What do you mean there are paths I shouldn't take?  Are they dangerous?"

This old man was starting to sound like Mira.

[YOLF]

Yusho

Was Roman the kind of lad to put his foot in the mud before proudly declaring he'd keep going, and sink more every step? Yusho was starting to get the impression, and he wasn't having none of that on his watch. Maybe just sometimes when they both needed a laugh, but not in these matters.

"Selling your soul to demons, having your heart ripped out of your chest by a ghost, or getting your humanity consumed by fair folk sound like jolly good times to you?" Sighed Yusho. "Speaking of which. Roman, do you know the Vampire King?"

[yinsukin]

Roman

As Roman swallowed, he clutched his heart.  "No I guess not," he said.  The world felt far wider and more diverse in that moment.  "I mean no more than anyone else.  The vampire district is one of those places that your parents tell you never to go unless you find out you have a unique blood type.  Even then, you make your donation, get your money and get the hell out.  Why?"

[YOLF]

Yusho

The concept of repayment for offerings of blood made Yusho stare deeply into his bowl. The claims of that whimsical vampire king floated in his mind in comparison... but whether it was compromise for survival or inhuman privilege that determined her kind's place in this city, he had yet to determine.

"Nothing much. A little while ago, I wasn't sure where I was going and had an interesting encounter there," he retorted, before bringing more ramen between his lips.

[yinsukin]

Roman

He had always been scared to, but at that moment, Roman genuinely considered a journey into the vampire district.  While it may be a devil's deal, it could give him an edge he could use.  Well, at this point he should see what he can do with training, then go there if he gets desperate.

Raising his eyebrow, Roman said, "And what was that?  Don't tell me your a vampire too."

[YOLF]

Yusho

"You think I was gonna lecture you about untoward paths to power and then get myself a bite of it?" The exalt put his food down with a grunt, and swallowed a laugh at the last word out of his mouth.

"I told you, I'm a human and a Dragon-Blooded. And don't you start getting ideas about it. What are you going to do with strength that costs you your autonomy as a person? Listen: whatever the circumstances of your birth, everyone has roles they can fulfill and decisions they can make to further goodness around them. You can accomplish things outside nature and a single man's ability by warping yourself, but what are you giving up in the process?"

[yinsukin]

Roman

Roman's face turned red and he shook his head.  "No! I mean.... yeah...  Its just..."

Turning his head to the side and staring off out of the window, he briefly contemplated his next thought.  "I don't think i'd lose anything, even if I took a deal like that.  I don't have any freinds, and I think i've hated almost everyone i've known.  Why not take something like that when I have nothing to lose?  I mean thats got to be it, how the greats are able to push themselves so hard.  Inner strength is such bullshit."

[YOLF]

Yusho

The exalt followed the words carefully, and found his eye widening at Roman. Yusho brought his palms down on the table, rattling both their dishes as he half-rose from his seat.

"Don't be a fool! You always have yourself to lose, and even without anything to value now, you can still gain friends or goals in the future. You want to remain human to enjoy that fully. Be warned, Roman. Damn mere ideals, for those that fight for naught but themselves are strong indeed; but those who have nothing to protect have nothing to give them strength." With a deep breath, he relaxed back to his seat, unresponsive to the crowd of stares and murmurs he had drawn.

Then he reached over and nudged the younger man in the chest with his fist. "If that's how you feel though, then you have me now. And that inspiring lady of yours."