The Evrensel Conflict - Prologue - Chapter 3, Mission 1 - Diplomacy

[BobTheNinja]

The team gathered around the central control hub of the TARDIS as it performed a quick jaunt through spacetime, phasing back into reality in a tucked-away corner of a large drainage spillway just beneath the surface of downtown New Moscow.

Scott Steiner, cleared his throat and began to speak. "Alright people, I've talked with the 10th Doctor, and here is the plan we've come up with. We need to make contact with the United Earth Parliament in order to parley with them, and to whistleblow on the military's ongoing capture and experimentation on non-monstrous Scattered. The hope is that with our testimony, we'll be able to get the government to put a stop to these black site prison operations, and maybe even get their cooperation in helping us solve whatever is causing the Scattering."

"In order to do this, we're going to disguise ourselves as normal civilians and make our way to the Parliament building. The security checkpoints leading into the building will be expecting us to provide identification, but The Doctor has informed me that he has a method of spoofing the security checkpoint called "psychic paper", which should allow us to get through. From there, we'll head to the public viewing gallery in the main chamber, and figure out which representatives we should try and make contact with from there."

"Frankly, I'm not confident about our chances of success here. There's the possibility that Parliament security may have some other method of finding us out, and beyond that, we don't know how much Parliament knows about these black sites, or if they're fully in league with the military or not. There's a very real likelihood that revealing ourselves will immediately provoke a hostile response, if it does, we'll be right in the middle of an alerted hornet's nest."

"But...at the same time, the Doctor seems to truly believe this can work. And beyond that, I hate what Elgin did to you guys...and I hate that I was too afraid for my own skin to do anything about it at the time. So...consider this my way of trying to make amends. I will provide testimony of my experience at the prison, which should hopefully provide us some extra credibility. But even if we get a lucky break and find an official with a sympathetic ear, we won't be out of the woods yet. The Joint Defense Forces have a lot of influence in the government thanks to their role in protecting the last of humanity from hostile Scattered, and depending on how high up this goes in the chain of command, there's a very good chance that they'll respond by trying to either re-capture or eliminate us. So no matter what, we need to stay alert."

Scott paused for a moment, taking a in a breath and letting it out as he mentally prepared himself. "So, that's about the size of it. The Doctor confirmed that he has a wardrobe in the TARDIS that we can get clothes to blend in, and I have a map of New Moscow stored on my smartphone, so I'll be able to guide us right to Parliament. Any questions or concerns before we start getting ready?"

 

[Wiggin]

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Ashwin
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Well, after the confusion of meeting sheogorath who has supposedly recruited another group from another dimension, the plan was to split up and try to fix the broken down world they were in. That's what Ashwin thought they were doing anyway, or something close to that idea. Everyone in the groups had been split up into individual missions to accomplish this goal. Ashwin's mission was to try and reason with the governmental figures of this world so that they could get freedom to do their actions. Scott had been the one explaining this to them, since he was from the world they were trying to fix. He also said that a few of the people within the group would need a disguise in order to pass as not being from another world. The Tardis's wardrobe would assist in this.

Ashwin was unsure as to what to wear. A dress or jeans and a leather jacket? It was a lot of choices to choose from, and Ashwin didn't even know where to start. They were probably one of the last out of the Tardis. What they wore was a mismatch of different styles that fit better than one would think in a post-apocalyptic world. On their head they wore a violet and burgundy tartan cap with a black puff ball sticking out of the top of it. The red highlights in Ashwin's hair seemed to blend in with the brightly colored hat, and made it harder to see them. Around their shoulders was an old green military jacket devoid of any pins or insignia. As for a shirt, Ashwin had a grey turtleneck shirt, with purple highlights adorning the collar and cuffs. The khaki pants they wore also had these highlights. These drew attention to the brightly colored sneakers that Ashwin had on their feet. They were the same color as the tartan hat, and used clothes pins instead of laces to keep them tightly fastened to their feet. Compared to their previous outfit, they looked slightly more feminine than before. Their red eyes also looked slightly dulled in the lighting of the sewer which made them look a light brown.

Ashwin did not know what had happened to the other group on this world, but it was easy to tell that this Elgin guy was bad news and that info would lead them into some type of agreement with the government. "Ehm… aren't people going to notice how weird a group of-" Ashwin stopped to count, "-twelve people coming out of the sewers is?" Ashwin asked Scott, not knowing exactly how the social structure of this world, or any world for that matter, was.

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Scout
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Scout didn't require the wardrobe like the others, instead, she used her ability to morph her current clothes into something different. With a split second of bright blue light, the butler's suit she had been wearing turned into a blue t-shirt and jeans. The longcoat she had been wearing remained the same, along the scarf around her neck. The only thing she had really taken from the tardis's wardrobe was a blue baseball camp which she tried to tuck most of her deep blue hair into. She was probably one of the first out of the Tardis, and patiently waited through Scott's explanation.

As for her thoughts on the mission itself, she thought that it would be advantageous to have allies in the government as the others did their respective missions. She also disliked the idea of people being captured and experimented on, and did not want to experience that herself. As for questions, Scout asked "how exactly are we going to infiltrate this building and speak to one of the governmental figures, there has to be some type of pat-down or check-in before we see one of them and I don't think we want to risk that, and I don't exactly trust this whole 'believe in some weird paper' idea to fully let that fool them and waive any type of security check," She finished by gesturing to Alista, as her tail would inevitably be found if they went through a checkpoint if the psychic paper failed.

 

[The Wanderer]

Jotaro Kujo

Jotaro was a man who liked to wear expensive clothing, as evident by his outfit. But considering the circumstances, he was going to have to change his attire. Taking a gander into the wardrobe the Doctor had allowed them access to, Jotaro snagged a rather nice but heavily worn looking gray overcoat that reached his knees, black suit pants that were thankfully roomy enough to not restrict leg movement and brown hiking boots.

Changing out his outfit, keeping only the black turtleneck he had back in Morioh. He kept his white hat on with the pins and such still on it, as Jotaro's daughter had personally made the hat for her father, and he wasn't about to leave it behind and risk losing it. He'd already lost one of her hats thanks to Josuke's outburst when they first met, and he wasn't about to add another to the list for when she asked what happened. Just the mere thought of making his daughter sad tugged at Jotaro's very being.

But he would grab a drab looking black cap, similar to his old one from back in nineteen-eighty-eight. Minus the pins and other such school stuff that would adorn outfits of students. Ripping the back up before putting it on so the look of wasteland survivor would be enhanced. Putting the white hat in one of the deep pockets of the coat, just in case he needed to switch it out and to make sure the cap stayed with him. A good luck charm in a sense.

Joining the others outside, he awaited for their journey to start.

@Amber Franklin @Wiggin @LenxKaitoYaoi @Valkan @Signupname @Snowtwo @Whomever-Else-I-Missed
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Hei

Hei was no stranger to disguises, it was a trait every Contractor and any secret agent's salt in their organization picked up. And Hei was among the best. Taking off his coat, wrapping up until it was a small square around the size of his hand. Placing it in his pocket, just in case he'd need it to take some bullets. He'd grab a worn brown coat was thankfully long enough to cover the harness around the thighs of his pants, a green beanie that soon had some holes thanks to Hei. Slipping both on, and after applying some makeup, Hei would look like he hadn't slept good in months, and constantly crawled in dirt and his clothes were worse for wear.

So long as they didn't get a good look at his face or nothing was sent from the prison, then he should pass as one of them.

Looking at the others gathered, he'd do his best to help them blend in. Adding makeup to add some 'dirt' to their looks, whatever was needed to sell they were simple citizens of this shithole. "Take it from me, a new change of clothes will not help sell a disguise. You got to act like you've been here since it went to hell. Tired, weary and overall miserable. Which means you got look a bit drab like you've been living in the last city on its last legs."

Once he was done, everyone willing should look as if they've lived here for years.

All that was left to do was wait for them to continue on with the mission.

 

[Wade Von Doom]

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Ashwin
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Well, after the confusion of meeting sheogorath who has supposedly recruited another group from another dimension, the plan was to split up and try to fix the broken down world they were in. That's what Ashwin thought they were doing anyway, or something close to that idea. Everyone in the groups had been split up into individual missions to accomplish this goal. Ashwin's mission was to try and reason with the governmental figures of this world so that they could get freedom to do their actions. Scott had been the one explaining this to them, since he was from the world they were trying to fix. He also said that a few of the people within the group would need a disguise in order to pass as not being from another world. The Tardis's wardrobe would assist in this.

Ashwin was unsure as to what to wear. A dress or jeans and a leather jacket? It was a lot of choices to choose from, and Ashwin didn't even know where to start. They were probably one of the last out of the Tardis. What they wore was a mismatch of different styles that fit better than one would think in a post-apocalyptic world. On their head they wore a violet and burgundy tartan cap with a black puff ball sticking out of the top of it. The red highlights in Ashwin's hair seemed to blend in with the brightly colored hat, and made it harder to see them. Around their shoulders was an old green military jacket devoid of any pins or insignia. As for a shirt, Ashwin had a grey turtleneck shirt, with purple highlights adorning the collar and cuffs. The khaki pants they wore also had these highlights. These drew attention to the brightly colored sneakers that Ashwin had on their feet. They were the same color as the tartan hat, and used clothes pins instead of laces to keep them tightly fastened to their feet. Compared to their previous outfit, they looked slightly more feminine than before. Their red eyes also looked slightly dulled in the lighting of the sewer which made them look a light brown.

Ashwin did not know what had happened to the other group on this world, but it was easy to tell that this Elgin guy was bad news and that info would lead them into some type of agreement with the government. "Ehm… aren't people going to notice how weird a group of-" Ashwin stopped to count, "-twelve people coming out of the sewers is?" Ashwin asked Scott, not knowing exactly how the social structure of this world, or any world for that matter, was.

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Scout
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Scout didn't require the wardrobe like the others, instead, she used her ability to morph her current clothes into something different. With a split second of bright blue light, the butler's suit she had been wearing turned into a blue t-shirt and jeans. The longcoat she had been wearing remained the same, along the scarf around her neck. The only thing she had really taken from the tardis's wardrobe was a blue baseball camp which she tried to tuck most of her deep blue hair into. She was probably one of the first out of the Tardis, and patiently waited through Scott's explanation.

As for her thoughts on the mission itself, she thought that it would be advantageous to have allies in the government as the others did their respective missions. She also disliked the idea of people being captured and experimented on, and did not want to experience that herself. As for questions, Scout asked "how exactly are we going to infiltrate this building and speak to one of the governmental figures, there has to be some type of pat-down or check-in before we see one of them and I don't think we want to risk that, and I don't exactly trust this whole 'believe in some weird paper' idea to fully let that fool them and waive any type of security check," She finished by gesturing to Alista, as her tail would inevitably be found if they went through a checkpoint if the psychic paper failed.

"Scout, right?" 10 asked, as he was coming out of his TARDIS with a large trench coat and fedora hat. "First thing you should know about me:
I am and always will be and optimist. The hoper of far-flung hopes and the dreamer of improbable dreams. Even if it's the most tiny glimmer of hope, I'll always catch onto it, because it's easy to think how you're thinking right now, that the odds are against us, there's no possible way of it working out, and we'll wind up dead before we even make up through the door. And yes, we have a hundred different hurdles to go through, and we're running a ramshackle operation right now with smoke and mirrors, but, like a good magician, you need to two things. A good slight of hand, and all the confidence in the world to pull of the trick." He flipped open his little wallet to show the paper was no longer blank, but perfectly replicated to look like an official pass.

"You'd be surprised what I get away with this little thing. Works on machines, door passes, even use it as a credit card. Plus, we have this." He threw his screwdriver up in the air and caught it as it fell back. "Always mess about with the scanners so they don't see anything we don't want them to see, or make a camera act up when we need to get past a door. It's not ideal, but we work within our means, and keep catching onto that glimmer of hope, we'll be more dangerous than those soldiers up there." And with a smile to Scout, he threw the coat around Alistia and gave her the hat to wear. "And what's wrong with sewer people?" He started telling Ashwin. "Last I checked with Scott, most people up here already think the lower classes live in the sewers, so we'll blend in just fine."

 

[Snowtwo]

Alistia caught the trenchcoat and fedora with ease and sighed as she looked it over. Then she changed her class again. To what no one saw as she flung the coat on in a near-instant, causing it to sweep over her body as she put the fedora on. For a brief second she had the hat on her head and the coat was flowing behind her seemingly held onto her only by her shoulders. Then she pulled it nice and close as she lowered her tail down and tried to flatten it up against her own leg to hide it away. Quietly she thanked the fact that her hair hid the lack of human ears, surplanted by her miqo'te ears, which were slightly muffled by the hat. If she tried hard enough she could even make the hat wiggle by moving the ears around, which was something she didn't plan to do.

"Alright. I've got two huge advantages in this world. First off, no matter what language they use, I should be able to understand it. Secondly, if they have some method of trying to control my mind, I should be immune to it. I don't think they will, but given the insanity we've seen so far, we can't discount that they might have some sort of mind trick or something. If push comes to shove I do have some ninja training but... it isn't much." she said forlornly. "Plus I can repose people and put them into a stupor which should help. If these people aren't familiar with magic they won't know what's going on in the slightest. So don't worry about me; I've got skills to help me slip through."

 

[LenxKaitoYaoi]

Ziv still had only half an idea of what the hell was even going on since he arrived in this mess. He went from fighting a monstrous octopus spider to some duke of madness venomania and now parliament to talk things out about experimental prisons? It was a roller coaster of events that he had a hard time keeping up with but loved at the same time. It was fascinating and thrilling in a way. At the same time it opened up the already difficult issue of finding his sister, making it vastly more difficult with the introduction of new worlds.

Having that thought in mind, he decided quickly that he was better off with this group in solving the issue of Scattered. He might find his sister among them, and if not, at the least he could again cut down his search area to just his world.

He found some difficulty with the first task at hand though, as he honestly thought he was dressed as an average citizen- at least he was in his world. This was a whole new issue. So after looking through some of the clothes available he found one of the only fitting outfits that would fit him; which basically means he's now an anime butler or crime drama lawyer. Either way, he was definitely not among the others who were dressed to 'blend in' so to speak. He stepped out to join the group, the tie lying undone entirely around his neck like some scarf and his sword sitting sheathed comfortably on his hip.

Hmn… he may have some issues with this mission. He wasn't anywhere near looking like the rest of the group, and his sword wasn't a weapon he could well hide. "Well… this might be harder than I thought." He mused with a chuckle.

 

[Wiggin]

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Scout
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Scout was slightly annoyed by the tenth doctor. In her line of work, hoping for the best with optimism might result in someone's death or a grave mistake. "Well then excuse me doctor if I am suspicious of a man who only gave us his title and is merely hoping for the best. If we get through this fine, then that is ok with me, but I know who to blame if things do go wrong," She replied to the doctor, leaving the situation at that. It helped the doctor that Alista chimed in with her skills, those involving being able to translate and resisting any type of mind control. "I can also transmute anything if that is necessary," Scout mentioned, hoping that could also be of use.

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Ashwin
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From how the tenth doctor had responded, it sounded like he thought Ashwin disliked any kind of sewer people. "No, that's not…" they went to respond, but decided that it wasn't as important as making up a game plan. Then Ziv walked out, being vastly different from the rest of the group with his clean suit and sword on his hip. Ashwin had left their bow leaned up against a wall near the door in the Tardis. Ashwin then looked down and turned a slight shade of red, a little embarrassed at the fact that everyone looked like they had picked good outfits instantly, meanwhile Ashwin hadn't even been sure as to what to wear.

 

[Hero]

Robin tapped his chin in thought as he looked over the available clothes. Earlier he incorrectly believed that the situation could not possibly become any more bizarre than it already was, and then less than an hour afterwards he met a deity. An actual, physical, divine being. Perhaps holding dominion over madness made Sheogorath less holy than Naga for example, but the sheer significance of such a being should not be understated.

And now he and several others were here in a sewer, preparing for a simple diplomatic mission. For a given level of simple that is... Certainly, he didn't doubt that it would be either as or more challenging than predicted. After all when one is given a task by a god, the assumption is that it will be appropriately difficult. However, the contrast still seemed almost funny to him.

Settling on a large black coat with room to hide his sword and tomes for if the worst occurred and simple grey trousers, Robin felt he looked fairly unassuming. He then went to properly join the group and waved at the others with a smile.

"I think i'm as prepared as i'll get. I suppose once everyone else is ready this mission will be properly underway?"

 

[BobTheNinja]

Scott nodded in approval at the Doctor's response regarding both the psychic paper's capabilities and also his sonic screwdriver. He finished a applying just a touch of fake grime on his own face and hands to help complete the look of an ordinary, working-class citizen.

"If it works on electronic systems too then that will definitely increase our odds of success. Also, sadly, the bit about people living in sewers is only partly exaggerated. It's not uncommon for the city's poor to take shelter in places like this. I don't think we'll need to worry too much about attracting attention, as long as we don't act out of place."

"That being said, I don't suppose you have enough sheets of psychic paper to cover all of us, do you Doctor?" he asked as he finished getting ready. After ensuring that everyone was dressed and geared up, Scott led the group around the corner and out of the spillway into the dreary overcast of daylight, taking them up a concrete stairwell that led up to the street level.

Downtown New Moscow was packed with large, blocky, visibly reinforced skyscrapers built to withstand possible attacks from monstrous Scattered. At the street level, people went about their daily routines, most commuting to their destinations either on foot, by bicycle, or using the city's subway and light rail systems. Cars appeared to be comparatively uncommon here.

The Joint Defense Forces seemed to be a common sight within the city, with small patrols of troops present every few blocks, and with troop carriers and other military vehicles rolling down the streets at semi-regular intervals. There were plenty of propaganda and recruitment posters to be seen, encouraging people to fight for humanity and sign up with the JDF.

Scott fished out his smartphone and pulled up the map of the city. "Alright, it looks like we're only about five blocks south of the Parliament building, shouldn't take more than 15 or 20 minutes to get there on foot. Try not to stare at anything too much, and whatever you do, don't get separated from eachother."

 

[Wiggin]

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Ashwin
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Upon leaving the sewers, Ashwin was met with a brightly lit street that had a decent amount of foot traffic. Above the group stretched high skyscrapers that reached for the blue atmosphere above. To Ashwin, it was unlike anything they had ever seen. Fluorescent signs hummed as the group walked by them and the engines of the occasional military patrol vehicle roared as they passed. Even though the sight of the city was so bright and vibrant, the people walking and biking past told another story. Most of them had bags under their eyes and were smoking on shriveled cigarettes. Each person didn't seem to be looking towards the future, instead, they looked to be in fear of it. The depressing atmosphere was almost suffocating to Ashwin, but not unfamiliar. Thoughts of the human army looking toward the elven territory flashed through Ashwin's mind. The conflict here had lasted a long time, or at least, the internal conflict.

People looking at Ashwin at this moment would notice a stark change. The flustered and innocent person they had all seen before had a determination behind their eyes. The air around Ashwin had even changed, as people would feel a cold aura around them. The closest people who could possibly feel this was Jotaro or tsunade as Ashwin was walking by them.

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Scout
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Scout disliked the bright lights and steep buildings. There were too many distractions here that could easily cause someone to slip up or find themselves in a precarious situation. The down-trodden feeling of the area wasn't helping either as it put Scout on edge. When the military patrols drove by, Scout pushed down the front end of her baseball cap to hide her face. Even if the psychic paper did help them, there were bound to be people who were suspicious of their actions. She also minimized eye contact with any citizens so she wouldn't attract attention. She stood next to the doctor on instinct as to quickly defend him. If he were to get injured or captured, then there would be the issue of her getting home or escaping with the group.

 

[The Wanderer]

Jotaro Kujo

Jotaro hung close to the group, hiding his shock at the utter depressing feel the city had. From the citizens that looked like they were just walking around for little reason than to stay active. Soldiers and patrols constant enough that Jotaro began to get worried that they had been found out. But despite this, they were spared little glance beyond tired expressions.

The patrolling soldiers did the same, their expressions less tired and more anxious, as if they were expecting hell to rain down at any second. Jotaro was amazed they hadn't been stopped yet. Maybe their disguises and 'make-up' were just convincing enough that most were overlooking a group such as theirs during their routine movements.

However, Jotaro would feel the oppressing cold feeling in the air, his heart skipping a beat as only one time before had he felt this cold. Moments before the Stardust Crusaders entered Dio's mansion in Cairo, a battle to keep their nerve under check, as if their souls were telling them to turn back. But it couldn't be that Dio was the cause of this, as Jotaro would notice the feeling fluctuate as he walked further and closer to Ashwin, their aura causing those around them to get that cold feeling, and not wanting any passing stranger to get the feeling something was wrong. Jotaro would whisper to Ashwin. "You alright?"

@Wiggin

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Hei

Hei's reaction to the city before them as they walked unnoticed by the populace, was rather dulled. Hei had seen far worse cities, where families were left with nothing but the clothes on their back after Contractors had a fight. Or children carrying pieces of their parents to have something to bury or to feed upon depending on where they were living. For someone at the young age of twenty-five, Hei had seen too much in his lifetime.

So the city before him earned little of a response from him, beyond a detached viewpoint of 'ignore it, show a response and they'll find you out.' Hei's inner Contractor side told him, the unwavering logical side of it making itself prevalent in Hei's mind. It had saved him many times over his career, and it would hopefully continue to keep him alive...

@BobTheNinja @Wiggin @Amber Franklin @Whoever-Else-I-Missed

 

[Amber Franklin]

Tsunade Senju-Character Sheet

Relieved. That was the least to be said of how Tsunade had felt to no longer be some kind of squid woman. Everything that should be rigid was rigid, and everything that should be soft and pliant was soft and pliant. Whatever was the true nature and intentions of Sheogarath, Tsunade was grateful for him curing their state.

Two things of note she had learned, aside from the mind-numbingly confusing information given by the supposed 'God': Naruto and herself were known to at least the one named Ayami by reputation. She hadn't been able to talk to her more as to how and why Ayami knew them at all.

The one named Markha had thought she was something called a 'Jedi' based on the weapon she'd taken from the prison armory. A 'Jedi Knight' to be more particular. Based on the pink woman's manners, she supposed it was some kind of honorable position. Yet another thing to question when next she had a chance to talk to Markha.

When a mission to the government of this Earth was proposed, Tsunade had decided it was where she would be needed the most. To her knowledge (limited as it was given the sheer volume) nobody else had been a national leader, and so would relate best to the politicians they would be trying to talk to. Tsunade did not think herself a 'politician' mind you, but in addition to her experience as a leader of Hidden Leaf, she was confident that should things go awry her strength and skill would be vital when in the heart of enemy territory.

After Scott had briefed everyone and opened the floor to questions, Tsunade had done like the one named Scout and used her ability to simply transform her appearance where she stood. This would be a time as a shinobi, she needed to blend in as a civilian.

Wasn't necessary to make herself appear younger, but she figured she would anyway.

On the advice of Hei, Tsunade had nodded and made some further modifications to her appearance. Mostly it was some lines around her cheeks, bagging under the eyes as if she had trouble sleeping soundly due to existential distress.

She smiles at the one, Alistia, admitting that of all her talents she has had limited 'ninja training' as she called it.

"Lucky you, you walk with an expert ninja" Tsunade walks to be beside Alistia to say.

The walk into the city proper was a test of discipline. Tsunade had never seen a city made of so much metal, with so much light even if it still looked gloomy in spite of it all. She walks with her arms crossed under her bust, looking around with a mundane searching mask over her real vast curiosity that wanted to spread over her face.She looks like she was just making a mental shopping list as they go along.

She does note that when passing the one named Ashwin (was Ashwin a man, or a woman? It was hard to tell without being rude or distracting to their mission) there is a cold feeling. But it wasn't something worth asking about now, to Tsunade. Jotaro was taking point on that anyway. Tsunade is content to assume this Ashwin was just like the ANBU Black Ops that protected her as Hokage: shut off emotionally to better act swiftly and brutally when needed.

@The Wanderer @Snowtwo

 

[Snowtwo]

Alistia nodded as she walked with Tsunade. "Yes. I've worked beside Yugiri Mistwalker herself on multiple occasions. I... Do not suppose that name means anything to you, but in my world she is the loyal servant and right hand woman to Lord Hien and easily the best ninja in the world in my experience. As for my own skills, I am afraid I am more inclined towards the arcane, but I have indeed practiced the art of Ninjutsu. Ninki, Ten, Chi, Jin, and everything else. The art of assassination is not lost upon me; just not my tool of choice when it comes to battle. I can see your own arts are different judging by how you transformed yourself just now. I don't think I could pull off such a thing; at least not with the ninja arts I know. Indeed, if I were to classify you according to my worlds rules I would say you are a monk and not a ninja. Not that there's anything wrong with it. I feel certain your world would struggle to classify a woman whom communes with the planet itself to fight properly as well. Not even fight but healing."

With that her attention turned to the world outside. She had seen such sights before, and it made her uneasy. The worlds of the Alliance, while by no means 'backwards', were all far more... feudal in at least their appearence. A world with so much concrete and steel seemed more at home in the Empire which caused her to wonder if some imperial would storm out from the corners any moment now and demand their surrender in the name of the emperor. She knew to keep it calm as this world could not be expected to be the same as her own by any means, but she couldn't help the instinctual alertness either.

 

[Wiggin]

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Ashwin
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The amount of focus Ashwin had compared to them previously was surprising to say the least. For the most part, they would have been pegged as a naive and innocent person, but in that moment, their determination was comparable to that of a soldier. That certain tone didn't last long though, as Jotaro quietly chimed in and asked if Ashwin was alright. "Oh uh… yeah why?" Ashwin replied in a whisper. With that change, the icy feeling condensed around Ashwin and became even colder. Sure, people passing by wouldn't notice it now, but it was a menacing freezing cold that now rested upon Ashwin's skin.

 

[Wade Von Doom]

Scott nodded in approval at the Doctor's response regarding both the psychic paper's capabilities and also his sonic screwdriver. He finished a applying just a touch of fake grime on his own face and hands to help complete the look of an ordinary, working-class citizen.

"If it works on electronic systems too then that will definitely increase our odds of success. Also, sadly, the bit about people living in sewers is only partly exaggerated. It's not uncommon for the city's poor to take shelter in places like this. I don't think we'll need to worry too much about attracting attention, as long as we don't act out of place."

"That being said, I don't suppose you have enough sheets of psychic paper to cover all of us, do you Doctor?" he asked as he finished getting ready. After ensuring that everyone was dressed and geared up, Scott led the group around the corner and out of the spillway into the dreary overcast of daylight, taking them up a concrete stairwell that led up to the street level.

Downtown New Moscow was packed with large, blocky, visibly reinforced skyscrapers built to withstand possible attacks from monstrous Scattered. At the street level, people went about their daily routines, most commuting to their destinations either on foot, by bicycle, or using the city's subway and light rail systems. Cars appeared to be comparatively uncommon here.

The Joint Defense Forces seemed to be a common sight within the city, with small patrols of troops present every few blocks, and with troop carriers and other military vehicles rolling down the streets at semi-regular intervals. There were plenty of propaganda and recruitment posters to be seen, encouraging people to fight for humanity and sign up with the JDF.

Scott fished out his smartphone and pulled up the map of the city. "Alright, it looks like we're only about five blocks south of the Parliament building, shouldn't take more than 15 or 20 minutes to get there on foot. Try not to stare at anything too much, and whatever you do, don't get separated from eachother."

"Just the one piece, I'm afraid, but you'll be surprised how far we'll with it." 10 told Scott, before following him up the stairs to the streets of the lower levels of the city. Such visuals like these weren't uncommon for the Doctor, least of all 10, who had seen such dystopian societies all throughout his life. Only recently had he seen the underground motorway of New New York, where a planet wide gridlock had placed many of the lower class citizens into an endless car jam to save their lives from a deadly virus that killed every living being on the surface in a matter of hours. In their sacrifice to close off the roads down below, they saved the human race from extinction. Here though, this wasn't survival. It was oppression, as clear as it came. Big brother was watching all these people. Monitoring them, constantly observing their actions, keeping them in fear of the outside world, and making them believe the only hope for salvation was in the corrupted higher ups. Doublethink and Newspeak were all these people knew. Or, so he thought.

Meanwhile, Arthur Morgan was in hell. Literally. He was always caught between the nastiness of nature and the brutality of encroaching industrialization in civilization. He always thought he could somehow outrun it, but now, he was stuck in it. How was it the ruins of an old world, home to monsters and vicious beasts, there was more life there than in this last bastion of humanity? This was the future Arthur had feared for, metal, smog, pollution, and greed. And now he had to actually go talk to the people in charge to get their help to get off this goddamn planet. Arthur couldn't help but let out a big sigh as they continued down the street. He didn't bother dressing up like the others, his regular clothing was good enough to be a commoner. He couldn't help but find it humorous that Jo just dressed in all black, but still looked kinda lavish. At least there was that. "Scott, have there been attempts to populate outside the city? Like, colonies, or towns, or something away from all this?" Whatever Scott answered, a few people started running down the opposite side of the street to around the corner, where some commotion could be heard. Two vehicles, blaring sirens, rushed passed them to where that commotion was. It looked to be away from where parliament was, so perhaps they wouldn't have to deal with it. But, it was best they got a move on just in case.

 

[Valkan]

Funny Valentine

Things went from 100 to 1000 real fast. As after defeating a giant monster, Valentine was met with an apparent god of chaos. More importantly, a tall man clad in white was there, and his blood boiled. He was related to Johnny, somehow. Valentine had no proof, but his aura painfully reflected Johnny's. If this man had a Stand, it would hinder his job. For now though, he played along.
Now in the group attempting to take a diplomatic approach to this issue, and a full closet of disguises ahead of him, Valentine prepared himself. Settling with a tattered down two piece black suit, with a red tie and worn black gloves to match. After wearing down and dirtying his disguise, as well as disheveling his face on his own with makeup to look beaten up by life, he was set to go. Staying near the front of the group, Valentine, casually strolled through the impoverished streets, discreetly scanning his surroundings as he moved. "Such a failure of leaders... Leaving people like this" he muttered.

 

[BobTheNinja]

Scott glanced at Arthur as they continued walking, a solemn expression on his face. "Many have tried...but none of them lasted long. Hostile Scattered have taken over just about everywhere on the planet, and it's been that way for decades," said, falling silent for a moment as the group passed by a small patrol of JDF troops. The jogging soldiers only spared the group a brief glance before continuing on their way toward the commotion in the other direction.

"...The only outposts that have survived outside the city walls are bases manned and equipped by the JDF. And the government decided that it would be wasteful to try and establish new settlements when they could use those resources to expand and fortify New Moscow itself...so..." he trailed off, not bothering to elaborate further.

The group continued for a few more blocks. It wasn't long before their destination came into view. A wide and tall angular tower set in a more prominently open space within the city. The base of the building was ringed in stylized blocky columns, a geometric spin on the Classical style of architecture once used in public buildings across Europe and the US. In front of the immense building were a set of tall flag poles, the central one bearing the flag of United Earth, derived directly from the old UN flag. Flanking it were four flags representing the land, sea, air, and domestic security branches of the Joint Defense Forces.

Courtyard around the base of Parliament was a buzz of activity, with citizens and city officials regularly entering and leaving, and plenty more security patrols were posted both around the perimeter of the courtyard and right at the base of the building. The main entrance was just beyond the flag poles.

"There's the place," Scott said as he led the group forward, crossing one of the major streets into the main courtyard. It didn't take long for them to reach the base of the building, and once inside, they were greeted by an immense lobby crafted from stone and marble, with plenty more kiosks for recruitment to the JDF posted just about everywhere. Further in was the main security check point, where lines of civilians had their IDs checked and were thoroughly scanned for any weapons, manned by dozens of armed and armored troops.

"Alright, you're up Doc," Scott said quietly with a slight nudge to the 10th Doctor as the group approached the security checkpoint, heart hammering in his chest. This was either going to go smoothly as planned, or things were going to go very badly, very quickly.

 

[Wade Von Doom]

"Goddamn..." Arthur muttered to Scott's answer. "Let's hope we find some answers then. If I go back to my world, and I find it becomin' like this, I'll jump ship to one of yours." Tsunade's sounded ideal for him. Maybe he could convince the gang to come with... if they didn't find him insane first.

The atmosphere within the lobby was paranoia and distrust. Even though the soldiers wore helmets with visors, you could see they were scanning the small crowd with scowls, seeing which of them were fearful of their presence, and which looked the most troublesome in their eyes. "Everybody act calm." 10 Whispered to the group as they walked in. "We're just on a routine inspection of the security systems." That was their cover. Once in the line for the checkpoint, The Doctor could see they scanned IDs, and used the metal detectors to search for any hidden items. A basic set up, nothing elaborate by the looks of it, so nothing too challenge.

"Next!" One of the security officers shouted out, as the person in front walked through the detector. "Papers please." He asked, and without batting an eye, The Doctor passed over the psychic paper. The officer looked back and forth between it and him, before saying, "Aren't you a little big to be a systems inspection team?"

"New recruits mostly." The Doctor began to explain. "Him and her, we're showing them how things are done in the field," He pointed to Ashwin and Alistia, "me and the others are gonna check through for bugs, look over the vents, see if you lot are up to date on protocol, the standard stuff." The officer passed the paper through the scanner, and it came up authentic. With a small smile, he looked to Scout and Scott to assure them everything would be fine.

"Alright, your team is clear. Just pass through the detector, and try to stay out of the chambers, they're holding meetings for the rest of the day."

"We'll be in and out before you know it." The Doctor assured him, knocking on the marble counter separating the two of them.

"Halt!" A voice shouted from behind. A large team of soldiers suddenly marched into the lobby, led by a man Scott was sure to recognize.

"Scotty!" Kyle O'Reilly. Michael Elgin's second in command. There were two others that also followed under Elgin's command, the four making 'The Kliq.' They were the ones in charge of most of the JDF, and why it was so massively corrupt, as they were placed there by the city's military branch leader. Thanks to him, and the Kliq, militarization was entirely reorganized and restructured, leading to the city being more secured. They could also be blamed for the authoritarianism, but that was here decades before they showed up. They didn't help it, however. Kyle knew Scott through training, as they showed up in boot camp at the same time. Michael took a liking to Kyle, and once they had completed training, the two went their separate ways. "My man!" Kyle gave Scott a tight hug, as the soldiers surrounded them. "Ohhh man, it's been a stupid amount of time since we last saw each other, how you been, dude?"​

 

[BobTheNinja]

"Goddamn..." Arthur muttered to Scott's answer. "Let's hope we find some answers then. If I go back to my world, and I find it becomin' like this, I'll jump ship to one of yours." Tsunade's sounded ideal for him. Maybe he could convince the gang to come with... if they didn't find him insane first.

The atmosphere within the lobby was paranoia and distrust. Even though the soldiers wore helmets with visors, you could see they were scanning the small crowd with scowls, seeing which of them were fearful of their presence, and which looked the most troublesome in their eyes. "Everybody act calm." 10 Whispered to the group as they walked in. "We're just on a routine inspection of the security systems." That was their cover. Once in the line for the checkpoint, The Doctor could see they scanned IDs, and used the metal detectors to search for any hidden items. A basic set up, nothing elaborate by the looks of it, so nothing too challenge.

"Next!" One of the security officers shouted out, as the person in front walked through the detector. "Papers please." He asked, and without batting an eye, The Doctor passed over the psychic paper. The officer looked back and forth between it and him, before saying, "Aren't you a little big to be a systems inspection team?"

"New recruits mostly." The Doctor began to explain. "Him and her, we're showing them how things are done in the field," He pointed to Ashwin and Alistia, "me and the others are gonna check through for bugs, look over the vents, see if you lot are up to date on protocol, the standard stuff." The officer passed the paper through the scanner, and it came up authentic. With a small smile, he looked to Scout and Scott to assure them everything would be fine.

"Alright, your team is clear. Just pass through the detector, and try to stay out of the chambers, they're holding meetings for the rest of the day."

"We'll be in and out before you know it." The Doctor assured him, knocking on the marble counter separating the two of them.

"Halt!" A voice shouted from behind. A large team of soldiers suddenly marched into the lobby, led by a man Scott was sure to recognize.

"Scotty!" Kyle O'Reilly. Michael Elgin's second in command. There were two others that also followed under Elgin's command, the four making 'The Kliq.' They were the ones in charge of most of the JDF, and why it was so massively corrupt, as they were placed there by the city's military branch leader. Thanks to him, and the Kliq, militarization was entirely reorganized and restructured, leading to the city being more secured. They could also be blamed for the authoritarianism, but that was here decades before they showed up. They didn't help it, however. Kyle knew Scott through training, as they showed up in boot camp at the same time. Michael took a liking to Kyle, and once they had completed training, the two went their separate ways. "My man!" Kyle gave Scott a tight hug, as the soldiers surrounded them. "Ohhh man, it's been a stupid amount of time since we last saw each other, how you been, dude?"​

Scott cringed as he heard his name called out, recognizing that voice immediately. "Goddammit," he cursed under his breath, before inhaling softly and putting on a slight smile as he turned around, opening his arms and accepting the hug.

"Oof. Kyle, it has been a while, hasn't it?" he replied in a friendly tone, patting him on the back, trying to keep his cool. "I've been alright, still going steady in the JDF. I actually just got re-assigned to Capital Security Division. I'm helping out the inspection team here with auditing the facilities and such. How about you, what have you been up to these days?" he asked, desperately hoping that Kyle wouldn't bother checking to see if his bullshit story checked out.

 

[Wade Von Doom]

"Oh, buncha stuff, been put in charge of the lower sectors security teams, and I part time with Butyrka, you know, helping Bobby out." Bobby being the warden of the prison. "Who's your buddy?" He asked, looking to the Doctor. As he asked that, the soldier began surrounding the group, and pulled aside both Ashwin and Jotaro.

"John Smith." The Doctor quickly said, putting his hand out to shake Kyle's. "Inspection team leader, my team and I were going to check out the security mainframe and look for any weak points the building might have to intruders."

"Bit big, aren't you?" Kyle asked, keeping his hands away from the Doctor.

"New recruits, they're shadowing us to see how things are done."

".... ID?" Kyle asked, raising his hand up to get it. Without batting an eye, 10 gave Kyle the psychic paper, who read it over carefully. "And this cleared?" Kyle asked the security people behind the desks.

"Yes sir, came up authentic." One responded

"Huh. How long have you been doing this?"

"Ohhh, not long. Been mainly over at the other buildings, helping them out with their systems, then recently got transferred over here."

"Yeah, I hear they're getting harder to maintain with the hoards constantly at their doorsteps." Kyle handed back the paper. Both Ashwin and Jotaro would get eye scanners put in front of their face by the soldiers, with neon purple lights blinding them both. "This'll just be a quick checkup, we got reports of scattered in the sector, so we're doing the rounds to make sure." Uh oh.

"Do scattered usually look human?" The Doctor asked, feigning ignorance.

"Oh god, most the time. But see, the trick is to scan for anomalies. Any diseases you can catch from outside, physiological differences, how they dress, they have some sign that they're, you know, not from around here. How long you been with Scotty?"

"Just met today." 10 simply said, with Kyle letting out a giggle.

"Oh, then he hasn't told you about his name!" Kyle had a massive smile on his face, like that of a teasing bully who realized his victim's weakness. "His full name is actually Scott Rechsteiner! Re-ch! He thought he was being so clever when he just shortened it to Steiner!" He laughed again from the amusement of thinking how Steiner was a better last name, and that he was clearly stupid if he thought so. "You might as well change it to Scott Rech, because he got reched in training camp! He dislocated his shoulder two times, and even got his pants hung up on barbed wire, so he had all these holes in his pants, and we could see his tighty whities, and oh, don't even get me started on the crying." He then began to overly mimmick a crying face while he rubbed his eye, "Waaaaaaaah, my pants are all wrangly and cut up, and my panties are all dirty from the mud, I miss my momma, where's my momma!" Kyle thought it was the funniest thing back then.

The Doctor Scowled at Kyle. This man's sense of humor was that of someone who'd grown accustom to belittlement and toxic masculinity.