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Third: Undercover (Text; anon) - spoilers everywhere

[After everything that had happened over the Forest of the Fisherking mission, Mukuro was feeling restless. Really, really restless.

She'd been here almost two months. The entire time trying to consistently pull off an act that she really wasn't at all equipped to handle, not outside of the very limited and controlled environment of the killing game, anyway. And...it was exhausting. Even if it was absolutely essential she double-down on the 'Junko' act under the current circumstances, she knew she'd just keep letting things slip if she didn't let anything out right now.

There was no way that any sleep was coming tonight. So, maybe if she wrote an anonymous post on the network in the middle of the night, it would be fine, right? If she was lucky, no one would spot it, and tomorrow she could put her best Fashionista act back on like nothing had happened.]

27 FEB XX, 0233

Seeking advice for not going crazy during an extended undercover mission. Any potential breaches of cover have been effectively managed, however the indefinite timescale involved is making this difficult.

Failure is not an acceptable outcome under any circumstances, for reasons I cannot disclose here.

Mission commander uncontactable at present and usual tactics are proving less effective given... sudden magical transportation to another world being completely beyond the scope of either my training or the original brief.

Any strategic input would be appreciated.

Over and out.

[A pause, before she decided to sign off with an emoji. Just to leave the option open in case she needed to reach out again whilst she was stuck in this situation.]

🔪

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thank you
i am still in a similar position but by choice now, and not so totally..... at home i took an assumed identity for a time out of necessity. here it’s out of preference, merely erasing certain details. there are still important things I choose to hide about myself and my past and my future, since being spirited away several months ago, so i still have my own truthkeepers here too.
but it’s not because im ashamed or dont want to live those parts of my life. its just because the only duty i have here is to live a normal life, for the first time in my life. it’s easier to wipe the slate clean, selectively.
so it’s not living under cover exactly... but it’s not living my true identity either.
and that actually feels okay like this.

I see... it sounds as if you've managed to come up with a good balance, here. There's no reason for you to reveal everything if you don't want to or feel you can't.

You don't have to answer, but you said your duty was to live a normal life. But what is living a normal life to you?

well..... i have friends now. that’s the most important part i think. i didnt have any friends at home until a couple months before i left. all my friends are my age. a lot of them are pretty average. lived privileged lives. no powers, no fighting. just normal kids. so we just... hang out and talk.
i used to work a normal job in a teashop my uncle opened at home when we were living under cover. then i worked a normal job again in a teppanyaki restaurant in the last place i was. its not glamorous but i supported myself for the first time. now that im here im thinking about going to school... ive never been to school before.....
plus i have hobbies now. i never had hobbies at home. i was too focused on my missions. busy traveling. this is the longest ive been in one place since i was a child. now i have all this free time to make model warships and watch movies and research random stuff online... pursue new interests casually..... do whatever i want with my time. that cant happen in a war. i haven’t lived such a calm life since i was little and still lived with my mom. but now i can pretend to be just like a regular teenager. even though i know im not. and never will be. but its been fun to play at it...

[It took her a little while to absorb what he was saying. He sounded...settled, here.]

Friends. Allies. Yes, that would help.

Living a normal life, supporting yourself, hobbies, school...that sounds about right. For me I always found living a normal school life strange, I felt most confident- most like myself- when I was on a battlefield. I'm not good at talking to people usually, and...most of my friends back home don't remember I exist to start with. Not as 'me', anyway.

Are you happier, now the war is over? It must have been difficult to adapt, but it sounds like you prefer life the way it is now. Don't you find yourself getting restless?

[There was a pause as she stopped herself, mentally scolding herself for getting too personal.]

Sorry, um...Could I see one of the model warships? If you have any here?

no im constantly restless
i am better on a battlefield than sitting around talking. i dont want to say more comfortable, but..... more competent. but until coming here, there wasn't a battlefield in the last place i was. so ive had no other option but to live a calm life. i dont know if i prefer it. logically i should say i prefer it to my life at home which was a lot more chaotic. but the stuff i struggle with here is different. more mental. less direct avenues for action. no missions. just... living. thats uncomfortable.
but i like the people ive met. i never had a best friend before. on the other planet i had two. one remembers me here, one doesn't, so i guess i have one best friend now... but it's still for the first time. and now my friends from home are here too. allies. that makes all the difference.

[ He doesn't remark if he's happier or not. It's a strange frame for Zuko to question. He's never happy. But one small source of joy in his life has become his silly model ships. Only one other person has taken interest in them. It's validating. He's shocked to hear she wants to see. But he is eager to send a photo over, a ship he'd been sent here with from Lunatia where he'd built it, his favorite... It's a small cruiser warship that he's painted to look like metal to resemble his own ship during his many years of travel, a ship that had been his home for three years. It has no dramatic spike on the bow, but he even painted over the flag that came with the model to have a little red Fire Nation flag atop the ship. He's proud of it. He's allowed to be so openly proud of his nation here. ]

i painted it to look like my own ship from home a little bit

I'm the same. As I said, the only time I feel confident in myself is when I'm fighting.

...The other stuff is harder than just knowing where to point a gun. Understanding the terrain and flow of a battle makes sense- talking to people doesn't. Having friends is nice, though.

[It definitely sounded like they were of a similar mindset. In many ways, she was a little sad they couldn't talk face to face, without her being in disguise. It felt wrong to ask this person's name, but...

No. It wasn't fair to ask that when she was hiding behind an anonymous emoji.

He'd probably have appreciated it if he could have seen her expression when she saw that model ship though, her eyes lighting up.]

That's based off your ship?? You had your own warship?? I've used tanks but not had much experience with naval combat.

And that model is amazing!!

i feel the same way.. i never had any friends growing up.... not really... i dont know what im doing hah

[ But his best friends have both taught him how to joke and have a sense of humor at last, at least. That's a new feature. ]

some of my friends come from a normal world, grew up in a country that hasn't been at war since this huge devastating global war called World War II where two bombs decimated two whole cities in their country [ wait why the fuck does he know this, he's an alien ] and so the country has been at peace since then..... for them it's been over half a century since they were at war. where i come from, there has been a world war for a hundred years.... all because of one country — the Fire Nation... which is where i'm from..... i cant imagine living in a place like japan where all my friends here are from, no war, just life.... ive been all over my world. theres nowhere the war hasn't touched. the whole world is scarred.

[ Downer. What a serious guy, even if he learned to be a little bit funny. It just as quickly descends into... what depth and darkness he's used to dwelling in. But something tells him this girl maybe gets it... He's definitely surprised that she likes his model ship, he wasn't expecting her to get that. This has been his private dorky hobby. But he has his special interests he fixates to and he likes it on his own no matter what. But hearing praise about it... It makes him bashful. But surprisingly keen to share more. ]

yes. i lived on a naval cruiser for three years. a real Fire Nation warship has a long spiked bow that can actually lower into a bridge. my friend suggested that i should customize this ship with an extra piece of wood to make the spike..... i made this model in that other place and showed up with it here. this was one of the first ones i made. but i wanna try his idea of customizing it sometime. i never did anything like this back home. building things..... but i like it, it's distracting.

Edited 2021-03-18 02:39 (UTC)

WW2? I'm from Japan too- I remember it from when it was peaceful like that, but I travelled around warzones as a Mercenary in other countries as well. That's where I was trained.

Although our Japan is... I guess you could say it's been at war the last couple of years, since Despair hit. It's like what your world became. Scarred. In many ways it feels like the world already ended.

[On the subject of downers...she was no better!]

That's amazing though! You should customise it- is there a way you can make it so you can raise or lower the bridge too?

I've never done anything like that before.

you must be from their future... sorry to hear they end up in war again. ive only read about this place. but ive read a lot. complicated past. WWII has a lot of parallels to my world's 100 Year War.. thats why i am so fascinated about it. like Germany, the Fire Nation will carry our shame over the past century for many years to come.
"since Despair hit?" what does this mean??

[ Clearly down to get wrapped up in other world's wars. Weird kid. Must be fun at parties. ]

yeah im gonna ask my friend if he'll help me with it even though he doesn't remember anything from before. he's a smart guy. back then he'd suggested maybe with a little clasp and chains....
ive never done this stuff either. far more experienced in destroying things than building things.

[ Is that a joke? Who can say. It's still true. ]

Ah. That gives me more understanding of what your world and your country went through.

Despair was what took root in our world. That's what began the war.

[Making little model ships...she wasn't sure she had the skill for it.]

That might work.

I've disassembled and reassembled firearms, but I'm not an artist. Not sure I'm good at building things.

yeah. there was a genocide and everything. nothing like how systematic the germans were... our world is much smaller. but enough parallels to capture my interest even from another planet.

what countries does japan go to war with? i heard about other countries too. like china. which is nearby japan. [ lol show-off. She knows. ] does japan try again to start an empire after the despair took hold?? or is it a civil war??

i can do calligraphy well because it was part of my swordsmanship training growing up. but i'm no artist otherwise, either.. like i said. i don't have time to waste like that back home.

[ His uncle needs to teach him much about the arts still, and that not all leisure time is a waste, that fun can also be work, and vice versa... Not everything in life has to be fought for and earned, most especially not simple enjoyment. ]

That's concerning but I can see the parallels.

It wasn't...systematic. And it wasn't like one country against another. The despair hit everywhere, and society collapsed in on itself. I went underground a little while after that and I don't know how it ended.

Swordsmanship and calligraphy?

[She was definitely curious to hear how those two connected!]

despair was like a plague.....??
it sounds terrible...

yes. swordsmanship and calligraphy share a lot in common.
control and grace, dexterity and precision
masterful swordsmanship requires creativity, one must be versatile in battle to stay alive..
writing your name and leaving your mark on the parchment have much to do with the essence of the identity of a swordsman and the mark of his sword....

A plague
Yeah
I guess that's a good way of putting it.

[Was it a bad thing, though? Truthfully, Mukuro felt somewhat indifferent- she wasn't enamoured with despair the way her sister was, but if Junko got what she wanted, that made her happy.]

I used firearms, explosives and knives rather than swords. They're efficient and firearms have a range advantage. I'd like to try swordsmanship someday though.

...It sounds poetic when you put it like that. I like it.

I got told a lot that being a 'disappointing, muscle-headed battle junkie' was one of my worst traits. But it's nice hearing it described like that.

Um.

Sorry that was a bit weird of me wasn't it?

im sorry to hear that
war is bad enough without illness too

ive never used firearms. there are no such thing as guns in my world. but ive seen them in movies now.
swordsmanship seems more honorable. killing shouldnt be so easy.

[ He doesn't mean to offend or imply she's dishonorable. He has strong convictions, thinks of things a certain way and sticks to it, but also, uh, blurts it out stubbornly. He speaks his mind — whether the thought is refined or raw. ]

combat cannot be separated from philosophy and artfulness. not all violence is mindless or heartless. or wrong. people who cant understand that nuance yet judge others for being dedicated fighters are unburdened fools.

Thanks. It was just surreal seeing how it all played out. I don't even know how it all ended.

Swords are definitely more honourable, but you can still ambush people and take them off guard with a blade. The only real difference is that you have to get up close rather than from a distance.

Did you have longbows or crossbows where you were from? Do you think they're dishonourable the way guns are?

[Mostly asking out of curiosity - Mukuro was a mercenary who fought on the side of despair - she'd never think to call herself honourable. So, even if that implication were there, she wasn't particularly offended by it.

Implying Junko was a fool on the other hand...]

She's the smartest person I know.

But. Yeah. I want to see if I can find something like that in my own fighting. I feel most like 'me' when I'm on a battlefield, and... I don't know if that's a good thing or not?

that must be hard to bear here.. i dont know how my war ended either..... i was taken from home the morning that we launched a coup, and the morning the fire nation launched a full scale assault on the earth kingdom.
ive met people from my world from my future who tell me we won. but thats all i know. i dont know how.

it's not about the weapon being dishonorable itself, it's how it's used. and who uses it.
ambushes aren't honorable anyway regardless what weapon is used. a battle without mutual respect is just violence. thats my point.

the smartest person you know shouldnt tell you you're a disappointment.

[ And even if he can't comprehend more nuance than that, not knowing any specifics, that much he feels certain of. ]

have you ever painted? my master also had me do landscape paintings as part of my swordsmanship training.
to take in my surroundings in an instant, then paint all that i remembered seeing without looking at it again. observing and using every detail of your environment to your creative advantage is important in battle. that could apply to any martial art probably

It is. There's someone here who knows more than me but I don't really want to ask him.
Coming from right before a big battle like that must have been frustrating too, though. You ready yourself for the combat and then suddenly nothing.

Do you really think there's respect in war? Even if you try to be honourable, your opponent probably won't be, and that would leave you at a tactical disadvantage against them.

One of the people I knew back home would have called something like that a... prisoner's dilemma, I think? She's a skilled Gambler, so she ran into things like that in how she played a lot.

[She could practically hear Celeste's distinctive voice in the back of her mind explaining the concept. If there was a risk the other side would cheat, both sides likely would, to save being 'caught out'.

Mukuro stared at his words about not being a disappointment... but it didn't quite sink in just yet. Nor did she know how to reply. So for now she let that be.]

Definitely important to get a grasp on new terrain as quickly as possible for tactical advantage.

Painting as a way to do that isn't something I've tried. It sounds like your Master was an interesting person to see warfare that way.

Edited 2021-04-22 22:17 (UTC)

it would decide the fate of our whole world... it's worse than it sounds

there is no respect in war
but not everyone who fights in a war is making war
a battle not built on respect is just violence.
there can be respect in combat. but not in war.

yes piandao is a brilliant man
he is the most accomplished, most esteemed swordsman and swordsmith in the fire nation
we also did rock gardening to practice utilizing your surroundings as a weapon in itself
his ideas all translate beyond the sword.... my uncle trained me in firebending with similar mindfulness.
one has to understand what exactly he is taking up when he takes up arms.
people who understand that fight with respect. and honor. people who don't understand that... do not.
that's the difference between gambling on a battlefield or not. gamblers don't anticipate the moves of those who fight with compassion, though. respect in battle is their blind side.
to answer your question..

And it sounds bad enough as it is.

Respect in combat but not in war. I suppose then it comes down to motive. Why people fight to begin with. That is different for every soldier.

Firebending?
There's a lot to think about, isn't there? Not just about what tactics or strategy or weapon to use, but everything else that goes on behind the blade/bullet.

...You've given me a lot to think about.

firebending is the kind of fire magic i use at home
the elements are very important in my world. but only elemental magic is real there. and it's different than here. but similar enough.
and any kind of medium in fighting, it all comes down to these same principles, swords or guns or fire or just bare hands
it is a lot to think about but people who don't think about it..... are why we have wars.

Understood.
Magic didn't exist where I was from. We had technology and people could push themselves to almost supernatural limits, but that wasn't magic.

Wars exist for any number of reasons. It's not just a lack of understanding.

we don't call bending magic
it's just a way of our world. a way of life. the fire nation has very advanced technology as well. or at least i thought we did until i came to worlds like this one..... by comparison we seem primitive

youre right im oversimplifying for the point
but in my world it's just been one war that's lasted for a century with very little change in the way the scales tip
the fire nation just expands and expands and invades and invades
i know the motivations behind the fire lord's reasoning and theres nothing good to be said of any of it.. all the fire lords since the war started just want power. plain and simple. any positive spin put on it is just propaganda to justify the terror we cause.
a war like world war i and world war ii in your world is far more complicated and morally multifaceted.....

So technology combined with bending. Not too dissimilar to this world then.

Power, territory, military might, fanaticism those motivations are common enough for a War. Multifaceted though ours were, most of it can be boiled down to simpler reasons like that.

...It think I see the sun coming up. Probably should try and sleep sooner rather than later.

I'd like to talk to you again though. If you want to.

our world's reasons for war weren't far off from that in the end.... but the beginning was more unique.
i can tell you more about it sometime. you can tell me more about the despair too if you want.

it is sunrise youre right
i'd like that too though..... you have my username. you don't need to tell me your name. but i like talking to you.

[ Some sleepless miracle of affection and connection that Zuko'll say that outright to a stranger on the internet?! ~*~DeSTiNy~*~ ]

I figured it was fitting for these two!

corpsewarblade - 2021-05-16 22:18 (UTC) - Expand

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Third: Undercover (Text; anon) - spoilers everywhere

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I now have a craving for teppanyaki

eheheh sorry to inspire it

Hehe! Japanese food is so good

now i'm craving too ehehe

Mwahaha my job is done (also DR Spoilers and I'm loving this cr it's precious)

I don't mind spoilers, i never have time to watch/read new shit lol, but I love this cr too!!♡ ; 3

I'm glad you're enjoying it too!

ruihsgjk ten years late again, sorry!

No worries!

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figure as they've started another thread makes sense to wind up this one?

yes sounds good to me! & omg i love the detail about the sun coming up ty ; v ; ic for him too! cute

I figured it was fitting for these two!