tushanshu | oo1 / radio;

[Blinkblink. She knows that voice and that name. Hasn't heard from him in over half a year, but given how they got to know each other... Raine knows him.]

Cain. You're back.

It's been a while. Have you... did any time pass for you, at home?

[ It isn't hard for him to recognize her voice, nor to notice that a filter has been put on the communication. Huh. ]

Raine. Pleased to hear you're still here.

[ He remembers, back in the dream, how she'd decided to stay for her own reasons. Wasn't ready to go home yet. He's glad she has been able to do that. ]

None. Just missing another chunk of time, like when we were in the Dreaming. How long is a while?

It's early August, if you haven't found the date yet. Nearly eight months, then, I think.

It's... good to hear from you again.

[Though there is a tiny part of her wondering why Cain and not Genis. Raine quashes that with a little effort.]

We've made landfall twice in the interim, and recently established that Tu Vishan is alive, if something like comatose.

Well, that's a relief. Better than a year, even better than a decade.

You know, I don't think we ever made landfall in the time I was here before, either. Too bad I keep missing it. [ There's a smile in his voice. ] Oh, some good news. It would have been just our luck if he was gone forever.

[Which are very real risks as far as Cain's concerned, she knows.]

It may be some time before we do so again-- we left the last one barely a full month ago.

[But he'll be able to hear a smile in return.]

It's hopeful. Unfortunately, we're expecting unwelcome visitors soon, as well. What do you remember about the Chihuleans?

[ Not that it's really happened to him before, but he's relatively young yet. Having huge swathes of his life wasted like that is bound to happen at some point. ]

What kind of place was it?

Hmm. Refresh my memory.

It was... cities built on the water, populated by a partially aquatic race.

[Cain... might remember how she would feel about that.]

They had a caste system, or something of the like, which set individuals over about 18 as lower in stature than those younger. Still, the ruins there were fascinating.

[She did not spend a lot of time there.]

There was an invasion, during the year we spent in the Dreaming. It took somewhat of a toll on Keeliai. Now, someone calling themselves the Grand Justicar has announced that they plan to return for their fugitives, including Celaunn, and will brook no contradiction.

I believe the file was archived on the network, if you wish to look for yourself.

[ He certainly does. One doesn't forget an impossible drowning, nor how the whole situation spiraled from there. ]

Some cultures value youth over wisdom or experience. It sounds fascinating, but maybe not the best place to hang out in.

Ah, that's right. I came back just in time for some fun, didn't I?

[ He pauses, lets his tone even out. ]

Are you free? Might as well reconnect in person instead of over the phone.

[It was definitely not the best place to hang out in.]

Fun... isn't the word I'd have used.

[She sighs. She does know he's teasing, but sometimes the sheer magnitude of the problems that Keeliai runs into...]

I have enough time to talk, though I'm at the Guild right now. Do you remember where that is?

No, probably not. Can't blame you. If they'd made training dogs a cultural passtime, I'd probably feel the same.

[ It's an admission but not exactly an apology. Everyone has their own pleasures and hangups, and theirs just so happen to not coincide a bit. ]

Should remember it. If I get lost, I'll call you back.

[Close enough. They understand each other, at least, which is the main hurdle.]

All right. I'll see you in a little while, then.

[ Cain arrives sometime later. He may have meandered along the way, partially thanks to the heat but also because he's insistent on people-watching and gleaning everything he can about the time he's missed. It will take a while, but that's never been a deterrent to him.

When he shows up, it isn't too difficult to find Raine and he smiles widely when he sees her. ]

Long time no see?

[He'll have had to ask one of the kedan there, who directs him down the hall and a few turns to the small room Raine's repurposed as her office. It's spare, and the primary feature is the desk and the papers. And, of course, the healer bent over them. There's one particularly large tome open to a page that involves no script native to Earth. Raine flips one page of this over, pauses, glances up. Smiles, and stands to come around the desk.]

That is the applicable phrase. Hello, Cain.

How have you found the city?

[ Glancing at the book reminds Cain how out of depth he is here. It's the little things, really, and he resolves to start trying to learn whatever languages are primarily used in the city. He's rather good at picking up new languages by now. ]

Hot, dry, bit better than when I last saw it despite that. I see we've still got the families hanging around.

[ He smiles back. ]

Hi, Raine.

[This one, unfortunately, only one person in the city speaks. But she might be amenable to teaching, if Cain does want to learn elven.]

[Raine stops a few paces away from Cain, still smiling, but she hesitates there like she's not quite sure what to do with herself. It's good to see him, at least.]

There was flooding, earlier in the winter. Of course, now drought is a concern.

[She'd ask what Tu Vishan is thinking, but it likely doesn't have anything to do with the weather.]

There have been some shifts-- for instance, Xuiyu, Zanru's cousin, has taken over the Metalworkers. The Merchant's Guild is becoming more prominent...

[ It could be good bonding time. Besides, Cain likes having languages between just himself and one or two other people. It makes speaking frankly much easier no matter the location.

Her hesitation is noted. Considering he's feeling the same thing himself and has dealt with odd reunions every now and then in his life, it isn't hard to recognize. He steps forward and pulls her close for a hug. There's nothing romantic in it, more like familial coming together. After a moment, he steps back with a faint yet constant smile on his face. It's good to see someone he likes after that odd feeling of missing time. ]

If we could figure out how to purify the ocean around us and get it transported, it wouldn't be an issue. We're not so advanced where I'm from, though.

[ He tilts his head to the last part. ]

Nothing wrong with a strong economy. Unless you mean in some other way?

[Raine's not completely expecting it, but it's not an unpleasant surprise, either, and she returns the hug with similar sentiments. It makes her settle, a bit, relaxing now that she's surer.]

I believe desalination efforts may be pursued in the near future, yes, though I don't know where they'd begin.

[She would, perhaps, if her mind were not so occupied by the Guild's business. Raine will simply trust the scientists among them to bend their minds to the problem.]

No, I don't believe it's a problem. Simply a movement in the city.

[She stops there, considering what other changes would be most relevant for Cain to hear about.]

[ Seeing her stance finally come to a sort of peace, Cain gives a soft smile. There it goes. He's good with that. ]

Generating the energy would probably be the place to start. Come to think of it, hydraulic power might be the way to go considering we're constantly moving on a gigantic ocean.

Movement is good. It means stability without stagnation. Glad to hear it. What about those Chihuleans?

Edited (shhh I can totally spell) 2015-08-10 04:17 (UTC)

[Look at that. Friendship. Whatever else she may feel, Raine is glad to see him.]

There's a number of people who'd likely welcome your input. Perhaps the Metalworkers, or those at the College...

[She nods agreement, but grimaces when the conversation comes back to the Chihuleans again.]

The first conflict was while we were trapped in the Dreaming-- do you remember hearing about it? I don't know as much about it, but many people lost family. Apparently, Celaunn was among the Chihuleans who attacked the city, and the remnants of that force...

Apparently, there's a drug that grants minor shapeshifting ability. Any that remain seem to just want to live in peace, but it appears to be near impossible given the current circumstances.

Right, those guys. Good idea. I'll try to get in contact with them, see what the options are with current resources and relations...

[ Not exactly what he wants to be doing with his time, but never let it be said that Cain can stand back when people he's attached to are related. This isn't for the kedan so much as for the other foreigners that he knows. ]

Now that you mention it... So there's Chihuleans living in the ranks, but no one knows who?

[Another nod. Raine looks something like hopeful. Even if Cain can't specifically help, years of experience are rarely amiss when contributing to a project.]

That seems to be the case, yes. I don't think there can be many of them. We only know now because some of them were blackmailed...

[She shifts, absently touching the bracelet on her left wrist. Cain may notice, if he remembers back then well enough, that her gem is not in the same setting of intertwining branches; rather, it's a broader, less elegant cuff.]

Have you heard about the soul gem thefts yet?

[ That's exactly it. There are some things he still doesn't know how to do professionally, but just anecdotal knowledge with some basic understanding can go a hell of a long way. He's hopeful that maybe some things can start to move with enough effort.

He glances to the fiddling, head twisting into the smallest tilt when he sees it. He remembers, but only vaguely. Even if it was only recent for him, he doesn't tend to focus on wrists. If it had been a necklace? Definitely. ]

No. How many were taken? Or... how many were recovered?

[She realizes she's doing it when he looks, gives him a wry smile and glances down at the gem. The initial fracture, deep in it, is still terribly visible to her eyes, though it's a relatively small thing.]

I don't know the exact number, but all of the gems were recovered. No one died of it. Many of them, however, came back somehow changed, and I suspect those who haven't reported an alteration are simply keeping a potential weakness to themselves.

There haven't been many, if any, recently, but... be careful.

[ Cain actually looks somewhat pensive, thoughtful, considering her words for what she actually said and implied, and then what it means to him specifically. If someone dies of separation from their soul gem, what happens to a man who literally cannot die? Will it come back to him, same as every other part of himself? Will it heal any damage to it just like his body does?

His eyes narrow momentarily before he lets the accrued tension leak out of him. It isn't the best idea, but now he finds himself tempted to test the effects regardless. ]

Is it possible they were altered on purpose for some sort of experimental control group? How were they recovered?

[Cain no. Raine nods, however. She looks up from her gem only after he relaxes, thereby missing the majority of the attitude that would actually cause her to worry.]

Yes, that's what we're inclined to think. Why, however, is still under debate.

Most that I've heard of were recovered by chance, or circumstances orchestrated to appear that way. I know someone actually had theirs delivered to the Hotel, though by someone who knew nothing about it; Bakura and Genis found mine near where it had been taken...

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