[open] all natural and technological processes proceed in such a way

[corundrum]

Characters: Padparadscha and you!
Date: August in general
Location: Streets of Aifaran, one of the Tifaut places of worship, Dreaming Bridge
Situation: August catch-all feat. Justice 2, Faith 5 and Meta 3 affinities. Feel free to hit me up on Plurk if you'd like a closed prompt instead!
Warnings/Rating: None currently.


[A: Mis-Knighted]

[The concept of "knighting" doesn't exist in Padparadscha's world, so they initially decide to play along with the decrepit ex-Sentryman's apparent intent to do it to them. It mostly just seems like a little bit of fun, and maybe they can learn something about customs in this world.

It turns out to be much more of a ceremony than they expected, though, and while they don't seem to mind the wait, they glance with some amusement over to anyone who's stopped by the spectacle of a rambling old man with a rusty sword laid on the shoulders of a resolute rock person.]

This is a lot of words for a...honestly, I'm not sure what it is this ceremony is for. "Knighting"?

--

[B: Meditation]

[While Padparadscha hasn't given a great deal of time to the various faiths of Aifaran, they've been around that area more in the last month, so it's not overly surprising when one of the Tifaut members invites them to a meditation session. Considering their faith involves the idea of repairing the world through belief, of course Padparadscha was going to express some curiosity about it after hearing about Rutile's questionable decision to explore the Barrier.

The most surprising part is that the meditation actually seems to work. Padparadscha is a calm person by nature, but even they can feel something that permeates deeper than that, rejuventating and energising. It's an odd feeling, a bit like when they first wake up from a long sleep, and they depart the impromptu gathering area for the meditation with a wave of the hand and a luxurious stretch towards the open sun.]

Ah, feels like I've taken in a whole day's worth of sunlight at once. It's good~

--

[C: The One With Sick Horns]

[On one hand, Padparadscha doesn't actually need beauty products considering they're all rock and a layer of skin-tone paint. On the other, the owners of that beauty shop had been pretty enthusiastic about the idea of testing their products on a kind of person they'd never seen before, and Padparadscha isn't nearly as fussed about wasting time as living things are.

The very curly horns are an odd bonus, though. They're not rock, but some kind of organic material, Padparadscha assumes, though they're surprisingly light for their size. Still, they're new and very large, so Padparadscha can be found in front of one of the mirrors in the Dreaming Bridge shortly after the incident, tapping across the horns as if to discern their makeup and response to touch.]

What funny things... [They seem more amused than anything, honestly.]

Comments

[lasergrenades]

[Pepper starts to giggle and covers her mouth to stifle the sound; she doesn't want the older gentleman to think she's making fun of him.]

People sometimes have strange standards for honor. Uh, sir? [She edges closer to the old man with the sword, spotting what looks like a Sentry emblem on his lapel but he's certainly past the age of being on active duty.] You've, uh, done a great service today and I'm sure Padparadscha will, um, carry this title well, but-- traffic! There's a lot of pedestrian traffic.

[She winks at the gem.] It'd probably be best to wrap this up.

[corundrum]

[The older man seems to startle slightly at the sudden appearance of someone else so close by, which does at least stop his plowing through the ceremony for a moment. He blinks vaguely at the street around them, which is busy enough, but not overly so, and mumbles something about this being more important.

Padparadscha raises a brow, still seemingly amused at the whole thing.] As much as I appreciate the thought, I feel like it would be better spent on someone who actually truly knows what a "knight" is supposed to represent.

[lasergrenades]

[Oh, dear. Pepper really doesn't want to disappoint the guy, he's really very serious about the knighting and Padparadscha is definitely being patient.]

They've got a point, [she agrees, picking up the gem's direction of thought.] It's super nice of you, really, but knighthood is like this really big deal, right? I feel like that's something that needs approving by a committee or royalty or whatever.

We've got knights where I come from - sort of - maybe I can just borrow Padparadscha to... uh, educate them in how to be a knight and then we can reschedule?

[Real smooth, Pepper.]

[corundrum]

[The education part doesn't seem to do much to stop the man's insistence to plow on, but he does hesitate at the notion of needing approval. After a moment, he openly wonders about where he put the approval for it, and steadfastly begins searching his person.

He doesn't appear to be having much luck, though, and Padparadscha gives a slight shrug and a smile.] As much of a shame as it is if you can't find it, perhaps you should go and ask for another copy if that's the case. I'm sure we can postpone the meeting.

[The man keeps on searching for a good few moments longer, but ultimately seems to realise he doesn't have what he thought he had, and begins to drift off in another direction, still searching for the papers.]

[lasergrenades]

[Bureaucracy wins, apparently. Of course. Pepper doesn't particularly mind how it's accomplished, as long as the stately old gentleman isn't overly hurt by halting the proceedings. Once he's a little further away, Pepper laughs and offers them a hand up.]

Well, that happened. Did he just pick you out randomly in the crowd? I mean, you do stand out, so maybe 'random' isn't the right word for it. Did you ever figure out that resin rock painting thing?

[corundrum]

[Padparadscha waves off the hand and stands up on their own - the thunk their foot makes on the ground probably speaks enough on why. They wouldn't want to put their weight on a human frame, or risk doing something like crushing someone's bones for offering to help them up.]

Something like that, yes. And I ended up speaking to the local scientists. They found a solution before too long. [They touch a thumb to their arm, rubbing at the white layer a little as if to demonstrate that it's not coming off with such a minor motion.]

[lasergrenades]

[...Oh. Gems are apparently Very Heavy. Pepper keeps this in mind the next time they might be in close quarters, especially on something like a mission when another rolls around. Is Rutile that heavy? She'll have to ask.

Pepper peers at the spot on Padparadscha's arm and smiles brightly.]

Awesome, I'm glad they could help. The people here are pretty adaptable about, like, everything. [Thanks, Dreaming.]

What were you up to before you almost got inducted into the obsolete order of Sentry knights?

[corundrum]

It's to be expected, huh? [When so many strange people come through their borders, they'd have to have made an adaptable system for themselves or be left behind.

At the question, Padparadscha waves a hand, drawing their (extremely long) sword from where it's been hanging behind their legs and slinging it across their shoulders rather casually. The blade is deep black, and shines like some kind of gem.]

I may not be part of the Sentry, but sentry duty comes naturally to me. So sometimes I wander the city and see whether I'm needed anywhere. What about you, little one?

[lasergrenades]

I think they'd have to be or this place wouldn't be thriving, yeah, [she agrees.] The kedan were adaptable in Keeliai, too, but combining everyone's resources definitely seems like it had a ton of benefits.

[Pepper's eyes go a little wide, impressed by the sword. It's size had been obvious enough with it just hanging there, but having it unsheathed and the material it's made of revealed adds another layer of very cool. She's handled a fair few swords herself and this one is entirely unique.]

Uh, I was just about to go grocery shopping. There's an outdoor market nearby that has some really good quality produce-- [That sword is very distracting.] Are you, like, a guard or a fighter where you come from, then? That's a really neat sword.

[corundrum]

Something like that. It's a common position to hold where I come from. [Basically everyone who doesn't have a very specific position, like Rutile or Red Beryl, takes up sentry duty at least some of the time among the gems. It's necessary when attacks on their home are so common.]

I don't know how much Obsidian might have improved over the years, but they were always a skilled blacksmith. Their work would be impossible for a living thing to match.

[It's not a tone of dismissiveness, or even looking down on the living, just a mere statement of fact. With only maybe a hundred years to hone their craft, no living thing could match someone who has had many hundreds, or even over a thousand.]