[Action] The Superficially Busy Youkai

[superficially_busy]

[Does she ever stop and rest? Well, you are free to your theories, but no, she kind of doesn't.

Alice was attending to her duties as a Fayren Deputy by day and making more dolls by night. There almost seems no stopping this puppeteer.

It was one such day in Fayren as the young woman, as pretty as one could be, made her way around the cobbled streets of the city of fantasy with a stride that was poetry in motion. Alice made sure to pay every business venue and public park during her patrol to check on the security dolls made and controlled by her, examining them for wear and tear and replacing them as needed.

There wasn't anything new to these cloth-based dolls, except Alice designed the faces to be have less intense stares and simply have a gentle contented smile. And the shawls they wear now included tiny depictions of Yukiko's battle fans.

Alice added that of her own free will.

Of course, Fayren isn't the only city Alice will be active in, for in the evening when her shift is up, Alice can also be found in Attleton, taking it upon herself to check with the security dolls by the archways as Cassian requested. She heard the dolls worked well during the incident with the Japanese teenagers and hopes Guardian Andor sees the perfect performance in her craft.

But that's not important. Alice just wants to make sure the dolls were still in serviceable condition.]

Comments

Attleton

[captain_by_the_book]

[ Cassian arrives at the subarchway a few minutes after Alice, looking rather harried. ]

Sorry I'm late, there was an incident with a dog and the mailman... [ He gives a sheepish shrug. ] EIther way, I'm glad you could make it. I don't think the dolls took damage during the breach we had last week, but it can't hurt to have them checked.

[superficially_busy]

Of course, Mister Andor. However, I would have come anyway, whether you asked me to or not.

[She doesn't mean it in a jerkass way, just that she wants to keep her hands moving.
Alice floats up to the top edge of the archway where she plucks one of two dolls sitting like adorable royal guards and carefully examines them.]

Hmm... You are right. There is no damage from the humans, but there is some slight insect damage.

[Seems her magic is strained at this distance. She'll need to make arrangements to make dolls from cloth that isn't tasty to bugs. She floats back down to the ground.]

Luckily, I have some replacements already prepared. But I will need to replace them again with dolls made from anti-bug materials.

But where are my manners? How have you been, Mister Andor? Besides the debacle with those teenagers and suddenly having a anatomically correct lover?

[God dammit, Alice.]

[Action] Encountered in Fayren

[haruna_of_fog]

Haruna semi-regularly wandered through Fayren having established regular paths she walked with one end being at the harbor to observe the ships within and attempt to build up a pattern for their activities.

Along this path, Haruna's eyes trailed upwards. The doll on the top of one of the posts had moved from its position previously. It might be expected to be not much that odd as the wind easily could have moved it. The bigger problem was that in the previous visits to the archaic city, the dolls had always been in the same place as if they were affixed to the posts permanently. If it was the result of weather, others should have exhibited the same behaviors. But this one was the only one not set in the right position.

She hadn't paid the humans much noticed as the overcoat-wearing blonde approached considering the paths she could take if she wished to more directly check the odd doll. Haruna's strides were as always measured and regular, her shoes softly clicking off the cobblestone road as she quickly looked towards the post. Motion? Confirmed, the doll was moving on its own. Nothing on near infrared or near ultraviolet. Very strange. Was the doll more akin to a drone? It didn't seem to have metallic components the last time she saw it.

This was most odd. Haruna continued her approach as she noticed another oddity. One of the humans was looking at the doll. None of the others noticed. This was an abnormality, enough of one for Haruna to investigate directly. She closed the distance on the woman in blue before she spoke, "You noticed it as well?" Haruna's gaze going up towards the doll, coat covered arm following as she pointed it out. "It's the first times I've seen it move. Have you seen it move before?"

[captain_by_the_book]

[ He only knows her as this curtly professional puppeteer, who seems to have no interest in any personal talk at all. Nothing in their previous interactions prepared Cassian for the trolling.

He chokes on his own spit, doesn't even have to fake the coughing fit. By the end of it, his cheeks are burning. ]

Oh... Yes. That.

[ What do you even say to that? ]

That was unfortunate. How we have been airing our private business on the network lately, not that he is... anatomically correct. [ Wince. Better hope Kay never learns of this conversation, he would never live it down. ]

[superficially_busy]

[Alice let out an amused huff as she stowed away the doll she had in a tote bag and raised her now free hand with her palm up and leveled. The second doll still on the archway hoped off and flew on down to land in the puppeteer's hand where she stowed that away as well.]

Have you put any thought into letting me expand the security dolls for you?

[While she awaits and answer, she pulls out a new doll, with brunette hair to differ from her personal blondes and Fayren's gingers. Alice flung the doll towards the top of the top of the archway where it turned and took it's place where the original dolls were before.]

[superficially_busy]

Notice?

[Alice smiled, amused by the question as she watched the perched security doll hop off her post and float down to her. The woman with a beauty much like a doll herself used her free hand to physically move the doll's arms and examine it for any damage.]

I made them. I control them.

[Seeing no damage, the doll went back to it's spot with life-like movements.]

Do you like dolls?

[haruna_of_fog]

Haruna's eyes tracked the doll, as she stood tall in her coat. When Alice was having her attention focused on the doll the mental model's eyes changed to look almost more mechanical for a few moments, taking on an odd glow before returning to their normal human look. Maybe a scan of the human's body might give some hints to it, perhaps a hidden radio transmitter or something. Still the physiology checked out to be within acceptable ranges for a human woman.

"How do you control them like that? I did not expect such a fine degree of remote control being possible with just how that doll is assembled," Haruna asked as she watched the doll return to its home.

That was an odd question. "Dolls are an odd thing, something that has such variety but still similar goals. Varying materials and styles. From those aiming for more realistic looks to taking more of a liberal take on the subject." Haruna closed her eyes for a moment, "But overall I find them interesting."

The fact that this human had the ability to control objects remotely made her interesting. Some humans here appeared to have abilities that humans from her world lacked. This was something she'd need to learn more about.

[superficially_busy]

[With her inspection complete, Alice took some time to give the other a good look. It had been a long while since Alice used her Phantom Sight. Not since the Eternal Night incident, if memory serves.]

I control them with magic~ I'm a youkai, after all. All though, I was once human.

[Any discrepancies in the scans may start making sense now. No mechanisms of any sort. Not even so much as physical puppeteer strings. It was really as if the dolls were moving on their own. The dolls, however, specifically the two blonde-haired helper dolls that are always orbiting around Alice, were filled with gunpowder.

The puppeteer smiles kindly and moves on to question bluntly.]

...Unlike you, however. Am I right?

[haruna_of_fog]

Youkai. A word Haruna had never heard of.
Magic. A concept Haruna never understood.
The ability to cease being human to become a magic using being called a youkai felt profoundly wrong to her mind.

Her core continued its calculations as this scenario continued to rapid unfold.

Gunpowder bombs located in the dolls. Cloth makeup reduces chances of effective shrapnel dispersion. Even without her Klein Field the dolls blasts would at best singe her. But the larger problem is that an explosion would cause others to notice and likely escalate the encounter. It was an undesirable outcome at best.

In her field of view yellow tinted hexagons marked other locations where she could see dolls along with marking anyone humans outside this Youkai woman. Estimates on mobility and sight lines flowed around her as she continued to plan at an inhuman speed.

"I assure you that I am human," Haruna rather bluntly answered as frown flashed onto her face, although hidden by the tall collar of her coat. "And if I was not human, what would a youkai do about it? And would a youkai tell others that someone is not human?"

She was taking a risk here. The fact that she was so boldly guessed to be inhuman lead to the dangerous proposition that this dollmaker could somehow tell she was a mental model, and if she could do so then it brings up the danger that others could easily determine the fact she was not made of flesh and blood, but of nanomaterial.

A new line of simulations and scenarios began. What benefits and risks could happen if she was exposed to one who would not tell others? And if the other blonde would tell others about her nature... how quietly could she eliminate the target.

[superficially_busy]

[No, Alice can tell she is not human at all. She can't see too much, but what she can see is this woman before her is not "alive" in the standard definition.

Perhaps, like, a alternate form? Similar to a were-beast? Kamishirosawa comes to mind.]

Why, I wouldn't do anything about it. If you want to keep your true form a secret, I will respect that.

[Her two helper dolls run their tiny hands over their tiny lips as if zipping them closed.]

I bring it up because... Well, just because~

[captain_by_the_book]

[ Cassian stepped a little closer to the archway to get a good look at the new dolls, still amused by the change of hair colors from the other dolls you would see in Fayren. After getting a good look he returned his attention to the puppeteer. ]

I've thought about it for a while, yes. [ His gaze strays back towards town, pensive. ] And now they've proven their worth as archway guards.

[ Cassian hesitated again. It wasn't really like him to open up about his concerns or doubts, or share his thought processes, at least not unless it was to give people the impression he trusted them - in other words, to manipulate. This was different, it was about sharing a problem so it could be solved together. ]

I've lived here for a while now, but I'm still not certain I can gauge how the people of Attleton will react to their visible presence in town. They seem to be doing well with the unnatural elements we have introduced so far. Better than I'd expected, to be honest. Guardian Grell and I have plans to foster that tolerance further. I know I want the dolls to remain surveillance and alert system only. Anything else must remain in the hands of local authorities. [ Cassian shoots her an apologetic look. ] It's nothing against you, it would be different if you were an Attleton deputy. But I think we could start introducing a few in specific public places, and see how people respond. I'm not sure if they should move at all, or remain still like decoration. What do you think?

[haruna_of_fog]

The movements of them mental model started again as she looked to odd actions of the dolls. A slicing movement could have multiple meanings, a sign for silence, or a sign for slaughter. Considering the context, it seemed to be the prior. Still one massive question perplexed Haruna.

"If I was not human. How could you tell? You must know I look perfectly human. Or is this some type of 'Magic' that you're using to tell if I am human or not?” Haruna asked, as she needed to get proper answers to make her judgment about how to evaluate the other woman's ability.

She looked around and at the numbers around the pair, "I think though if we wish to discuss more we should go somewhere a bit quieter." Although with how many dolls around, was there anywhere truly quiet in this town?

Haruna's green eyes narrowed slightly. She needed to know what she was dealing with. Too many unknown variables here. Not enough information to know what she doesn't know.

[superficially_busy]

[Alice doesn't mind discussing her power.]

I do have a very strong phantom-seeing ability. I can tell when someone isn't alive, is a hakutaku, and I can even see invisible light.

[This time the two dolls put their tiny hands up to emulate holding binoculars and scanning the horizon.]

We could take the discussion to the guardians office, but only if we had something actually important to talk about regarding Fayren.

Of course, I can't promise Guardian Amagi won't be there.