2024-06-24: A Distant Reflection
- Log: 2024-06-24: A Distant Reflection
- Cast: Murasaki El-Amari, Flay Allster
- Where: CANON Duelling Grounds, Asticassia
- OOC - IC Date: June 24, 0099
- Summary: Murasaki El-Amari, a commander of the Orb Union, and Flay Allster, a public name within the Gaia Sabers, meet while observing a duel over a relatively minor colonial dispute. While the attack on NUNE's Mobile Doll facility goes unmentioned, they discuss Cagalli's sudden elevation to leadership and what the ideals the Orb Union strongly upholds really mean. Murasaki doesn't shy away from invoking confronting topics, and while Flay tries her best to navigate them, she only reinforces her belief that her current path is the only way to avoid becoming another powerless victim of the Universal Century.
<Pose Tracker> Murasaki El-Amari has posed.
"Attention passengers: We will be docking with Asticassia School of Technology in ten minutes. Please ensure all belongings are stowed for disembarkation. Your cabin crew will be along shortly to collect any garbage for disposal."
With the pilot's announcement, the cabin was abuzz with excitement. Nearly all the youthful passengers were in a frenzy of discussion, excitedly boasting of their already known house placements and futures, their new home for the next few years awaiting them. The mood in seat 38A, furthest to the back and left of the shuttle was less excited, in fact one could call it extremely tense. The passenger was older than the rest by a considerable margin. She wore not casual clothing but the dress uniform of the Orb Defense Forces, her black hair done back neatly in a braided bun, pinned in place to an impeccible degree. She was not here as a student, thankfully. Someone of such low birth as herself would have never found herself even close to a school this prestigious. Not that she would have even wanted to come to a place drowning in undeserved smugness and political connections.
Newly promoted Lt Commander Murasaki El-Amari was arriving on Asticassia on official buisness for the Orb Union. Being promoted to senior officer rank meant you had to do more unfun things, like official visits and liasoning. President Delling Rembran had convinced NUNE and its associated power blocs that the CANON dueling system was the future of international power relations. Murasaki was there to pay lip service to the Benerit Group, to observe a few duels and write a reccomendation to the Orb Cabinet of if they should pledge their support and acceptance for the dueling system. Of course, it had been made in no uncertain terms by most of the cabinet that Murasaki was to write a firm but fair reccomendation of denial, but at least she would get a couple of free meals and a nice hotel room for the week.
Of course, Murasaki was also quite tense. She had recieved the orders while on board the Uzume, after the terrorist attack on the NUNE Lunar Mobile Doll Factory. To say that she wasn't in a particuarly good mood to see anyone from NUNE at the moment was an understatement.
Murasaki disembarked with the rest of the passengers, thankfully being able to bypass the incredibly long student line for one reserved for all other entrants. She presented her invitation papers, and was provided a transportation pass to the residental block. A light-rail trip later, she arrived at her hotel, checked in, changed into something more casual, had dinner, watched some television, went to sleep, woke up, showered, and changed back into her dress uniform, opting for the skirt, hose, and heels today. May as well look nice. After breakfast, she reboarded the rail system and rode it to the section of the Asticassia Dueling grounds reserved for visitors to observe. She was somewhat offended that she had to take directions from Haros, but they eventually led her to an empty observation room. Apparently there were a number of duels scheduled for today. Some of them between the students, for petty rivalries and other such nonsense that teenagers were beheld to, and some were settling minor trade disputes within NUNE. How thrilling. Murasaki popped her white topped brimmed cap from her head, and took a seat in front, crossing her legs and waiting for the first duel to begin. As more observers began to file in, all rich buisness types for the most part, Murasaki could see the realities of NUNE's comms blackout on the Lunar Mobile Doll factory attack. No one was discussing it, even in hushed tones. They were all either completely oblivious, or they were smart enough to keep quiet about it if they knew.
<Pose Tracker> Flay Allster has posed.
The shuttle to and from the Orbital Ring is nothing more than routine at this point for Flay Allster - there's nothing particularly exciting about it for her. She's seen Asticassia's school grounds plenty of times, too - a recent graduate from the institution.
As someone already drenched in its environment, this makes her a pretty natural pick to observe, and perhaps even occasionally participate in Asticassia's newly-implemented CANON duels for the Gaia Sabers. After all, her role in the organization revolves just as much around these public appearances as it does combat - to many, just having the eyes of the former Vice Minister's daughter is enough.
Not participating in today's round of duels, Flay is dressed for the role of observer - styling her hair down for the day, and presenting in her high-femme customized version of the Gaia Sabers' uniform, (though she can easily remove the jacket if it gets too hot), and heels.
Though this clearly marks her as a member of the Gaia Sabers, Flay wasn't apart of the force tasked with defending the Luna base and its Mobile Dolls against the combined forces of the Dawn of Fold and Satellicon. The media blackout is in full effect, and the higher-ups of the Gaia Sabers are even choosy about the information that reaches their own. Therefore, the side of the story that reached Flay didn't even make mention of Mobile Dolls - just that a NUNE base was struck by an 'unprovoked attack' by 'terrorist rebels' and were 'valiantly driven off' (without any mention of Terminal's contribution, of course).
While Murasaki waits for the duel to begin, Flay conveniently seats herself near the front too. The observation room is a fair bit less lively than it was during the major Holder-deciding match between Suletta Mercury and Guel Jeturk, but staff are still scattering around to make sure everyone is situated with drinks and food. Indeed, the mood is as if the attack on Luna never happened. After all, you never know when a terrorist sympathizer may be overhearing your conversation.
Flay takes a sip from her own drink - it's just sparkling water, as the first round of combatants take to the field, reciting the vows of the Dueling Committee. An orange ZAKU, clearly from the Space Assembly League, faces off against a Dilanza Sol of unknown origin. "Huh... the Chairman really was serious when he showed up last time," Flay muses, remembering her interaction with Durandal last time. He... didn't seem so bad, she supposed. The 'ZAKU' of the Space Assembly League still don't sit right with her, though.
But Flay never really enjoyed observing Mobile Suit combat from afar, and she's certainly going to want some kind of distraction to make it through the day. If anything, thinking that the likes of Dawn of Fold could strike at any time puts her in a worse mood than anything! So she studies the person who happens to be next to her. That uniform...
"Hey, you're from Orb, aren't you?" She asks, and her voice might be familiar to Murasaki from her time in Desert Dawn, might not be. "I'm kind of surprised your government is giving the dueling idea any consideration at all." She takes a sip from her drink. "Well, I guess keeping it all contained here is better than going to war, isn't it? The Princess really does have a brain in that head of hers~" Is that how Cagalli would think? She never really made the effort to get to know her on a personal level...
<Pose Tracker> Murasaki El-Amari has posed.
Murasaki noticed the woman walking into the room, and immediately turned to the waiter and asked for a double vodka. What the hell was a Gaia Saber doing here? Murasaki started to ponder concievable options. Wait...did they know? Surely they had footage of the battle. Did they see her Astray in action? She was certain to have it painted with a non-government paint scheme but it wasn't like Orb was dealing out surplus to anyone who wanted it. Did they send this woman to monitor her? Throw a bag over her head and haul her off to some Gaia Sabres blacksite?
She had to be on her guard. Don't bring up the Lunar facility raid, that's for damn certain, as much as she wanted to give a Gaia Sabre a piece of her mind, she knew that was only going to end badly.
Her suspicions didn't lessen when the woman sat near her. Of course if Murasaki was monitoring someone, she certainly wouldn't sit so close...
Or talk to her target. But then again, this woman looked and sounded familiar...and what was that snide remark towards Cagalli...wait a minute. Still images and voices rang out in Murasaki's mind. North Africa. Two years ago. When the Archangel was taking shelter in the Desert Dawn compound, Cagalli had wandered to it, and Murasaki had followed her. The two had overheard an argument between three of the crew members, one of whom turned out to be Cagalli's twin brother, Kira. Wait, now she remembered. This was the drama girl, who cheated on her boyfriend with Kira and opened an enormous can of worms that was thankfully put on pause when Waltfeld attacked that town.
Well this just gets better and better, doesn't it? Better not bring that up either. Why is she acting so catty towards Cagalli though? Oh no, does she not know they're twins? Better add that to the list of things to keep quiet about.
"The United Emirates of Orb is willing to give any method of maintaining peace and avoiding warfare a fair chance. I am simply here to observe the dueling system and make recommendations to the government."
Murasaki took a sip from her glass of vodka and leaned back. "What is this duel even about anyway? The listing simply said the sides, not the stakes. Or is that some sort of insider secret?"
<Pose Tracker> Flay Allster has posed.
Perhaps the Gaia Sabers do want Orb to themselves... but kidnapping one of its pilots in broad daylight probably isn't the best method. Nor would they even consider sending Flay Allster of all people to do it. So maybe she's trying to get something else out of this conversation... or maybe she is just bored, and this is how rich people kill time.
Murasaki eventually recognizes Flay from the Archangel's time in Africa, and in turn, Flay sees some familiarity in Murasaki's face, though she can't quite put her finger on where. Most of the Orb high officers she would have known... she isn't in contact with them anymore. Perhaps that vague recognition means it wasn't totally at random she picked Murasaki to speak to, though.
"Well, I guess that makes sense." Flay replies, when Murasaki explains she's merely here to observe the dueling system. "You know, I used to live in Orb... so you could say I've got a personal interest in your government's policy decisions." She adds, a confident smile on her face... though she isn't sure if that confidence is feigned or real. She just says it.
"Oh, and I've even met that Princess of yours before. I know exactly what she's like." She confirms, making it clear that her comment earlier was personal. "...Isn't it a lot of pressure to put someone like her in charge of a whole country?" Her body language shifts, legs fidgeting just a little as she asks that question.
Murasaki questions what the duel is even about, though, and Flay lightly shrugs. "I don't know. The Gaia Sabers don't really have a stake in this one." She then points at the ZAKU. "That's one of the PLANT's new mobile suits, though, so it probably has something or another to do with colony stuff, I guess." The Dilanza and ZAKU face off, then, and it's clear that there's a moderately wide gap in skill between the pilots, as the Dilanza's Beam Torch is parried by the ZAKU's Beam Tomahawk. "Whoever the SAL brought in must be a total hotshot... but that doesn't mean he'll win."
<Pose Tracker> Murasaki El-Amari has posed.
Yup. Definitly *that* girl. Murasaki takes another sip at the comment about Cagalli. "Well, if you know her, then you certainly know she's more than willing to fight for her ideals, no matter the cost...and yes, her ascension to Chief Representative was tragically unexpected, but she is handling it with all the strength and dignity expected of an Attha." Murasaki's finger tapped on he side of her glass as she tried to calm herself.
And a personal interest? What, would she get a tax break on her vacation home if the Britannians took over? Knowing them, she probably would.
"Ah well..." Murasaki replied, upon hearing Flay's indiference to the entire point of the duel, "...I suppose the patricians cared very little for the petty grievances of the gladiators they watched murder each other for their bread and circuses. But you may be right on the duel. People are often surprised what one can do in a stock mobile suit."
<Pose Tracker> Flay Allster has posed.
"Uh-huh, that sure does sound like her." Flay nods, absently stirring her drink, her tone becoming... a touch quieter, less arrogant and self-assured. To Murasaki, it might sound like she's accepted her argument, but is that a hint of jealousy in her tone? From what Murasaki knows about her, it might not be surprising.
"But she lost her father! And no one knows why...!" She clutches her own glass. "How in the world can she be so... so composed after something like that?" At this point, she's getting a few stares from some of their fellow patrons... it's not common to wear your emotions on your sleeves in a place like this.
As for her personal interest, well... she'd never admit it out loud in a thousand years, but she still cares deeply about the people she met on Heliopolis. Such as Mirialla, despite their strained relationship... even Sai, after she broke off their engagement. Her hopes are that Orb will make the decision that keeps them safe.
"Is that what you think of it? You're not wrong... I think a lot of the people around us are here for fun, and nothing more." Flay considers, when Murasaki likens it to the gladiators of the middle ages. "Didn't people treat the Gundam Fights like that when they were still a thing?"
Flay shifts in her seat, though, as the two mobile suits continue to come to blows, the Dilanza upping the pressure on the ZAKU. "But I also think... it doesn't matter why they're fighting. All that matters that they can at all. How else are you supposed to protect the things you care about?" A belief of hers that was only reinforced by attending Asticassia. "...That's why I learned to pilot the Strike."
<Pose Tracker> Murasaki El-Amari has posed.
Murasaki notices the shift in Flay's tone, and starts to ease up a bit. She didn't do much poking around while she was on the Archangel, but she did recall at one point asking Mirialla what Flay's deal was, and apparently she watched the ship he was aboard get destroyed by ZAFT as they attempted to get to Earth.
"Well..." Murasaki said, leaning back, looking at her drink as she swirled it around in its glass. "...what she's presenting in public may not necessarily be how she's feeling inside. Maybe she understands the legacy her father left behind. Maybe she understands that the best way honor him, is to keep the ideals of Orb alive, and to protect its people. And maybe that means keeping her sadness in private...where people can't use it against her, especially in times like these."
Murasaki listens to Flay explain her views on the dueling system. Now it was starting to fit together. Murasaki recalled seeing the fight between Kira, her and Sai, and how to put it bluntly, she was shielding herself with Kira. So she wanted to stop being the damsel in distress. Fair enough.
"Well tell me Miss-."Murasaki paused for a moment. Was it worth tipping that card at this point? "-...tell me, Miss, What do *you* think is worth protecting?"
<Pose Tracker> Flay Allster has posed.
Flay notices the shift in Murasaki's tone matching her own, and her tight grip on her glass slowly begins to loosen. The idea that one might not present how they're truly feeling is almost... a foreign concept, as someone who was always encouraged to not just be loud about her own feelings, but even aggressive about them.
"...Maybe I misjudged her." Flay concedes that much, as to Cagalli's feelings. "I thought maybe... she just didn't care at all, because she already ran from Orb before." She adds, but she shakes her head after. "But no! that couldn't have been it at all! What daughter wouldn't care about her own father's death?" She does ruminate longer when Murasaki speaks of Cagalli doing this entirely to honour her father and Orb both. "..I can understand that sentiment at least. Let's just hope she doesn't break under the pressure."
Part of it is Flay not wanting to be damsel in distress... part of it is coming to a realization that she can't be. That she needs to move on from Kira, and he needs to move on from her, even as she pilots his former Mobile Suit. Murasaki's question almost seems to catch her off-guard, her glass remaining hovering in her hand over the table. "I..."
"It's not like I have any family left to protect. Not after the Bloody Valentine War. But it's not just about me... you know? The world has almost ended so many times, and I haven't been able to do a thing to stop it." She frowns, and looks Murasaki in the eye. "I never want to be that powerless again, even if it means fighting in the Strike." She sets her drink back down. "Now it's your turn. Why did you join the military? Is it really because you believe in Orb's ideals?"
<Pose Tracker> Murasaki El-Amari has posed.
Murasaki listens closely to Flay. And when it's her turn to share, Murasaki speaks in a hushed tone, leaning in close to Flay. "You know, the big divide between naturals and coordinators seems to be a driver for so much conflict...no one stops to think about what it's like to be in between, really. To be only half. To have neither side want you. To have both sides of that divide see you as either an abhorrent sin against nature, an example of man's hubris, or they see you as impure, held back by old genetics, tainted somehow. To have both your parents pay the price for loving you enough to bring you into the world."
"I know how you feel about being powerless. I was powerless to stop that from happening when the Britannians invaded Southern Japan. When some people decided they wanted to be good little bootlickers for some inbred Emperor an ocean away. That the price they were willing to pay was a Coodinator mother and a genetic traitor father."
"Orb was good to me. Orb didn't care about my genetics. Orb saw no crime in me being born. Orb took in a scared little girl who didn't understand why, and said 'we'll keep you safe, no matter what.' "
Murasaki leaned back and looked right through Flay. "So yes. I do believe in Orb's ideals. I believe in its ideal that Naturals and Coordinators *can* live in peace, together, bringing the best out in all of us. Not by force, but by willing understanding and cooperation. And if anyone...*anyone* thinks they can *force* Orb to pick a side in the Genetic conflict, or the Earthnoid - Spacenoid conflict, or *any* conflict...it won't be on my watch."
Murasaki finished the rest of her drink and looked back at the duel.
<Pose Tracker> Flay Allster has posed.
At this point, Murasaki's built enough trust that Flay lets her lean in closer, though it perhaps earns a few curious onlookers.
Flay listens to her experiences as a 'Half-Coordinator', one who was rejected by both Naturals and other Coordinator. It kind of reminds her of the way Kira talked about his experiences as a Coordinator raised among Naturals... but Murasaki isn't Kira. She needs to see her as her own person.
"That's... I had no idea." Flay says, quietly. "I don't think I've ever heard of someone being a half-Coordinator before. Only that you must be one or the other, that you should at least pick a side." Even if she knows it's theoretically possible, having literally dated a Coordinator... it probably speaks to how deep the divide is in her mind.
She's silent when Murasaki brings up Britannia's invasion of Southern Japan, and it's a good thing Murasaki makes sure others in the observation room can't hear it. "...I think my family might've had some part in that." Flay admits, because she is indeed a branch of Britannian nobility. "But I was raised so far away from that, I had no idea until I saw... what the Massacre Princess did, on the news." She's still not sure how to interrogate that. "...That means you were from Area 11 - I mean, South Japan?"
Flay stares absently into her drink, as Murasaki goes into Orb's ideals. "I think I get what you're saying. I really do. It's just... so hard for me to believe it. Ever since Heliopolis was destroyed, everything just went.. downhill." The Federation and Orb's collusion, ZAFT's swift and brutal attack on the colony, it only feels like a representation of the failure of those ideals to her, and so Murasaki's words just don't fully come through to Flay. There might just be a divide there that can be overcome... but not yet. "...Still. I guess I should say thanks, for sharing your reasons."
<Pose Tracker> Murasaki El-Amari has posed.
Murasaki nods silently when Flay brings up Southern Japan. She even forgives the slip of the tongue. The entire Heliopolis incident and everything that led up to it still toils in Murasaki's mind, and she wasn't expecting Flay to demand she go with her back to Orb. Maybe she'd come around to it eventually, maybe not. That was an issue for another day. She didn't say 'you're welcome' for sharing her reasons, it just kinda seemed more awkward than it needed to be. Instead, Murasaki just looked at her, nodded, and watched the remainder of the duel in silence.
<Pose Tracker> Flay Allster has posed.
While many were expecting a more unhanded move from one of the duelists, orange ZAKU Warrior cleanly snaps the blade antenna and claims victory in the duel for the PLANTs, earning them colony-reinforcement material to repair the damage to Armory One, that otherwise would have been used to reinforce the Orbital Ring. Some of the attendees can be clearly heard groaning about this. The SAL pilot, on the other hand, puts on airs that he's humble about his victory, but he's pretty clearly soaking in the spotlight for the cameras, until he's escorted to exit with Gilbert Durandal.
But Flay lets the silence of the moment hang as well as the duel comes to its conclusion. Murasaki is someone whose lot in life couldn't be more different than her own, lending itself to a greater gulf of distance than there might even be with Cagalli. But while Flay indeed won't return to Orb to fight for its ideals of absolute neutrality, she can understand that Murasaki too, lost a lot. When it comes time to leave, Flay doesn't salute or put on formalities, but she does hope the next time they meet won't be on an actual battlefield.