Thanatos 5-2

[18:27] <Neph-GM> The sound of machinery and gushing wind pass only faintly through the isolated interior of the train car. The lights of the tunnel flash past every 3 seconds, but their illumination is minimal compared to the white interior lighting. It isn't a large carriage; it could fit maybe two dozen people, but empty as it is it feels disquietingly big for the young girl traveling in it.
[18:27] <Neph-GM> The young girl carrying her backpack... and the man sitting opposite from her.
[18:27] <Neph-GM> He's an older man, probably in his 60s. His formerly black hair has streaks of grey in it, and his dark skin shows the wrinkles of age. His breathing is loud, a mix between snoring and wheezing. With his eyes covered by orange-tinted glasses, and his head slightly leaned forward, it's difficult to tell if he's sleeping or silently staring at the girl.
[18:32] <Miu_Setogiri> "Hello, I'm Setogiri Miu. Do you know what the Elysium is like?"
[18:34] <Neph-GM> The man stops breathing for a couple seconds, before making a strange noise with his throat. It takes several more seconds before he answers. "It's supposed to be beautiful," he says with a hoarse voice.
[18:38] <Miu_Setogiri> "I don't know much about it. Is it a new city?"
[18:40] <Neph-GM> "In relative terms, yes."
[18:46] <Miu_Setogiri> "What do people do there?"
[18:49] <Neph-GM> "What they do everywhere: they work and frolic, they experience happiness and sadness, they live and..."
[18:49] <Neph-GM> Blinding light fills the the carriage through the windows. When the Miu's vision clears, she sees the massive underground cavity behind the man, the geofront. In the middle of it stands the Styx Main Shaft, like a pillar holding back the fake sky, and around it lies the city of Elysium, structures of glass and white stone sparkling against the condensed and rerouted natural light used to fill the engineering marvel.
[18:50] <Neph-GM> The train runs alongisde the outer shell, descending along a wide spiral.
[18:53] <Miu_Setogiri> "It is beautiful.."
[18:56] <Neph-GM> The man remains quiet, making no efforts to look behind him.
[19:00] * Miu_Setogiri watches and hums something to herself.
[19:02] <Neph-GM> "Why are you here?" The man suddenly asks.
[19:02] <Miu_Setogiri> "I need to meet a woman."
[19:02] * Miu_Setogiri smiles at him.
[19:05] <Neph-GM> The man remains expressionless. "What kind of woman?"
[19:05] <Miu_Setogiri> "Older. She's japanese."
[19:05] <Miu_Setogiri> "I think she's going to help me?"
[19:06] <Neph-GM> "Help you... with what?"
[19:07] <Miu_Setogiri> "I'm not sure. But there's always new things to learn."
[19:10] <Neph-GM> He seems to contemplate this for a few seconds. "You're saying you're here to meet an unknown woman, for unknown reasons."
[19:13] <Miu_Setogiri> "Maybe it's for a performance?"
[19:14] <Neph-GM> "...A performance?"
[19:14] <Miu_Setogiri> "Maybe!"
[19:15] <Neph-GM> "What kind of performance?"
[19:17] <Miu_Setogiri> "Music!"
[19:20] <Neph-GM> "A singer..."
[19:21] <Miu_Setogiri> "Oh! You know who I am?"
[19:22] <Neph-GM> "Do you?"
[19:23] <Miu_Setogiri> "I don't know you, I'm sorry."
[19:26] <Neph-GM> The man again makes a strange sound, once, twice. He leans back and takes a long breath.
[19:28] <Miu_Setogiri> "Are you okay?"
[19:33] <Neph-GM> "I used to sing..." the man mutters, "...when I was a child."
[19:34] <Miu_Setogiri> "Did you have a nice voice?"
[19:37] <Neph-GM> The man remains quiet.
[19:43] <Miu_Setogiri> "Anata no namae wa...?"
[19:52] <Neph-GM> <"I have forgotten.">
[19:59] <Miu_Setogiri> <"I hope you remember it.">
[20:00] <Neph-GM> The man makes that strange sound of his, and goes quiet the rest of the journey.
[20:00] <Neph-GM> Eventually, the car reaches the bottom and takes a turn, making the final stretch to the Styx Station on a raised rail. A few structures rush past on both sides as the central pillar's apparent size increases, until finally the train is swallowed by darkness briefly before stopping at the disembarking platform.
[20:01] * Miu_Setogiri gets up and bows to the man before going to grab her things and finding the woman.
[20:14] <Neph-GM> Styx Station, also known as the Central Shaft Terminal, is enormous, and crawling with people coming and going in every direction. After much waiting on the baggage conveyor, however, the girl is beginning to suspect the rest of her belongings have gone missins...
[20:19] * Miu_Setogiri pouts for a short while, but it only takes a minute before she moves on in search of the woman.
[20:20] <Neph-GM> It doesn't take long for the girl to find herself near the main entrance, carrying her only backpack.
[20:22] * Miu_Setogiri searches the crowd for a woman of a particular ethnicity.
[20:25] <Neph-GM> It doesn't appear like there are any Japanese women here besides herself, but what she does spot is an indigo blue coat standing next to her. The same man from the train. With his left hand on his pocket and the right on a walking stick, it appears like he had been observing her until she noticed him.
[20:26] <Miu_Setogiri> <"Was I meant to find you instead?">
[20:29] <Neph-GM> <"No."> The man answers.
[20:30] <Miu_Setogiri> <"I must be lost.">
[20:35] <Neph-GM> The man says something in an unknown language, then continues in English. "They all are, in this place." He taps the floor with his cane. "Come, I'll help you find what you're looking for."
[20:36] * Miu_Setogiri nods and goes along with him.
[20:40] <Neph-GM> The man begins moving, using the cane for support with each step. Soon they reach a bus stop and board the first one to arrive, the man paying the fare just by waving his hand at the card reader. They sit together, near the back, the bus almost empty.
[20:41] <Miu_Setogiri> <"Do you live here?">
[20:42] <Neph-GM> The man shakes his head.
[20:43] <Miu_Setogiri> <"And you know where I'm meant to go?">
[20:46] <Neph-GM> <"I know where you'll have to be. But not yet.">
[20:48] <Miu_Setogiri> <"Is that where we're going?">
[20:49] <Neph-GM> He shakes his head.
[20:54] <Miu_Setogiri> <"Where are we going then, sir?">
[21:01] <Neph-GM> <"I'm visiting someone.">
[21:07] <Miu_Setogiri> <"Would they know your name?">
[21:12] <Neph-GM> <"Only God knows my name."> He answers, and stands up as the bus comes to a stop. Being so close, the girl spots the rosary dangling from his wrist.
[21:14] * Miu_Setogiri stands up as well.
[21:17] <Neph-GM> Out of the bust, the pair walk a few blocks until reaching the edge of a park. The man stops to look at the children running and playing on the grass.
[21:17] * Miu_Setogiri smiles at the sight.
[21:20] <Neph-GM> The man enters the park, and walks a along the paved path until reaching a bench to sit on.
[21:20] * Miu_Setogiri walks along, still occasionally looking around for a japanese woman.
[21:22] <Neph-GM> With almost deliberate slowness the man sits, laying his back against the cool stone. He takes a deep, loud breath.
[21:29] * Miu_Setogiri takes a seat on the bench, humming to herself. A different tune this time, she makes small motions with her hands as she does.
[21:31] <Neph-GM> "She's afraid," the man says after a while.
[21:32] <Miu_Setogiri> "The woman I was going to meet?"
[21:34] <Neph-GM> The man lets out a breath. "She will be angry."
[21:35] <Miu_Setogiri> "Oh! I guess I should have waited there..."
[21:36] <Neph-GM> "Go now, back the way we came. You'll find what you're looking for."
[21:37] * Miu_Setogiri gets up, bowing to him. <"Thank you for helping." before running off.
[21:39] <Neph-GM> The man grabs her hand just as she's taking her first step.
[21:40] <Neph-GM> "What do you want, most in the world?" He asks.
[21:41] * Miu_Setogiri seems a little scared by the action, looking down and pulling away. "I want everyone to be happy!"
[21:43] <Neph-GM> The man looks at his hand, opening and closing it. "Hm. You'll do."
[21:46] <Miu_Setogiri> <"Oh! Thank you for not hurting me!">
[21:46] * Miu_Setogiri bows again and runs off the way she came.
[21:47] <Neph-GM> On the path she finds two girls about her age, standing side by side. One has short, dark copper-coloured hair. The other, slightly shorter but a bit taller than Miu, has golden hair tied into a ponytail. The blonde looks at Miu warily, while the redhead is almost glaring.
[21:52] * Miu_Setogiri smiles at them as she aproaches. "Excuse me, please." as she gets ready to walk past them.
[21:54] <Neph-GM> After a moments hesitation the redhead tugs at the blonde and they step aside.
[21:54] * Miu_Setogiri gives a little bow and passes with a "Thank you."
[21:56] <Neph-GM> They say nothing as she walks by, but continue staring.
[21:56] <Miu_Setogiri> "You both look very nice!"
[22:01] <Neph-GM> "Who..." the blonde begins, but yelps as her companion grabs her by the shoulders and turns her to the side, in the direction Miu just came from. The redhead spares a glance to give the Japanese girl the dirtiest look ever before before pushing the blonde onwards.
[22:12] * Miu_Setogiri continues on, not having watched this happen.
[22:16] <Neph-GM> The girl exits the park without further incident, but as she crosses the street a blue car makes a sharp turn and pulls over next to her. The glass slides down, and a dark haired woman wearing shades sticks her head out.
[22:16] * Reiko_Shishigami (~Nephilm@F31656AB.B3802017.A073A89C.IP) has joined #ThanatosIC
[22:17] <Reiko_Shishigami> "...Setogiri Miu?"
[22:17] * Miu_Setogiri nods. "You are the person I was meant to meet?"
[22:18] <Reiko_Shishigami> "Get in," she asks, and opens the copilot's door.
[22:20] * Miu_Setogiri gets inside. "I'm sorry, I couldn't find you at the train station. I'm glad you found me still!"
[22:21] <Neph-GM> The woman lifts her shades up with one finger, and takes a long, hard look at Miu.
[22:21] <Reiko_Shishigami> "Anata..."
[22:23] <Miu_Setogiri> "Do you know why I'm here?"
[22:26] <Neph-GM> The woman lowers her shades and fiddles with the gear stick. A second later the car accelerates, pushing the girl back into her seat.
[22:26] <Reiko_Shishigami> "You're here... to help save mankind," she answers coldly, eyes locked on the road.
[22:26] <Miu_Setogiri> "How?!"
[22:27] * Miu_Setogiri holds on to the seat tightly.
[22:29] <Reiko_Shishigami> "By piloting the biomechanoid war machine, Evangelion."