On likely going to tanelorn and her canon point.

[mymothersbow]

No, you can't take me away after all of that. Why would you wish to have me witness and mourn everything and then cruelly take me away when I was ready and accepting of my final rest? Take Odin's Witch instead, or just take me from a time when there was still hope for my people.

You're already making it worse by making me relive it over again as you start this 'canon review'.

Comments

[faeryqueen]

...Mercedes?

[A whirlwind of emotions overwhelms the former Queen of the Fairies. Never in her days had she expected to be reunited with her precious daughter again. It almost feels as if a thousand years had passed.]

'Tis truly you.

[A smile slowly forms upon her lips, albeit a sad one.]

[expect_me]

You're coming to Tanelorn too? Cool.

I'm sorry your mun picked a crappy canon point for you. I know that feeling.

[mymothersbow]

[She knows she should act more dignified, but everything that has happened has not exactly allowed her to fully mourn. So it is likely of no surprise the child impulse wins as she just throws her arms around her mother.]

Mother.

[mymothersbow]

[She has never seen anyone like you before Anon. Why are there lights on your armor?]

It is the decision made, even if there was moments when the Valkyrie daughter of the Demon Lord was to go in my stead. An insult or not is still not certain.

There were not many places that would be ideal to be taken away...but thank you.

[expect_me]

[The nice thing about helmets is that they hide intrigued staring very well. Since he can't really comment on Mercedes' own fascinated look, he just types out a reply with a hidden, bemused smile.]

You're welcome.

It sounds like your runtime was pretty eventful. Maybe you can catch a break.

[mymothersbow]

[She wouldn't really be all that surprised. A lot of humans tend to stare anytime she had to go into their area of her world.]


runtime? A queen does not...catch...a...break or rest. There is still a chance even in such a place someone from my land may be there.

[Yeah, she's still a bit of a little brat. She's working on it, but she's still a kid Anon so don't be too offended by the huffy tone she took there.]

Are there others from your land as well going to be guest of this strange place?

[expect_me]

What's a queen? And that doesn't sound good. Everyone needs downtime.

[It's OK Anon is pretty hard to offend. Everything's fine if there are no weapons out.]

It looks like there will be a lot of people I know, yeah. A bunch of us were pretty "unmoored" to start with.

[mymothersbow]

[What tree root were you born and living under to not know that? She doesn't care that you are like almost two feet taller then her, that's what wings are for, as she moves closer.]

You do not know the term of one who rules a land? What place do you hail from to not know something like that? It's a very common term after all and one that many learn quickly so as not to offend their rulers.

[And this is why Matthew and Ingway are needed to keep her in line. Sorry Anon she's just going to flutter in front of you and just stare a moment.]

Is there not one that you swear your allegiance to and thus follow their orders as they perform their duties to better the land? It is an oddity, but I can make certain you are well informed in case you meet someone of much crueler intent then I who is a ruler.

[Oh, she was hoping you'd be alone as well.]

I...I see. I'm glad you will have others you know there then.

[expect_me]

[Tiny User who flies like a bit and huffs about... you are kind of adorable.]

We don't have queens where I was from. We had a User and a System Administrator, but everyone pretty much just did their functions. Abax didn't have rulers either.

If someone is a jerk, it really doesn't matter if they're a ruler or not.

[This all sounds like one of those crazy User things. Like money. Money is still a little mystifying.]

Maybe some people from your world will be there too? It sounds like a really big place.

[Aw. Awkward.]

[faeryqueen]

[They both should be a little bit more dignified than this, but the manner of their situation doesn't allow it. The last time she laid eyes on Mercedes was when she laid dying at her feet. So of course her instincts as a mother overwhelms the usual dignified grace of a Ringford Queen.

Now wrapping her arms around her daughter, Elfaria gently rakes her fingers through Mercedes hair.]

Oh, Mercedes. It's been too long.

[mymothersbow]

[She is not adorable she is a dignified and poised que-yeah no that won't work because she's completely dropping her attempts to be such because curiosity.]

How can someone use you? Isn't an administrator someone who does a lot of paperwork, so why would he be with a system? What is a system to begin with? Abax is a strange name for a country, is that your homeland? Who created the laws and lead your armies then if there were no rulers?

Well of course, but rulers can have you executed so you can't really just be rude to all of them. The Demon Lord would certainly kill you if you were disrespectful to him, or not he may just be mean to be so.

[Tell her Anon, come on she wants to know everything.]

They could be! And if they are and don't even say anything to me I will be most upset with them. It let's people who...who died be there as well so it could happen. You're right!

[mymothersbow]

I tried really hard mother. I'm sorry, for a I did not do as you asked of me for a time. I learned though and did as much as a could to be a good Queen.

[And she just soaks this all in as much as she can. Afraid it will end soon and it will go back to the reality she was living through again.]

[faeryqueen]

Shh...

[She lovingly nuzzles her cheek against Mercedes' hair.]

There's no need for apologizes, little one. You've done well.

[Elfaria had always hoped that her daughter would learn how to become a queen, and it seems as if she has.]

Leave such words for another day.

[expect_me]

[She sounds just like Tali did with all the questions, and Anon can't help grinning behind the helmet. Hopefully he'll have a chance to be her friend in-game too, because he thinks he might like that.]

I'm a program. The system is my home... Users call them computers, I think. My User created the system, and then made the sysadmin to run it when he wasn't there. We don't really have any laws... most programs have functions and directives and that keeps things orderly, and if not there are security programs like me to keep the peace.

[And it's too bad that it really didn't end up working out.]

Abax is where I went later... it was what the mun-Users call a "game" but it wasn't that fun.

I think if a ruler is the kind of person who would derezz me for being rude to them, they shouldn't be a ruler in the first place. Something like that happened to my home, actually... I fought then, and I'd fight again if that were the case.

[It's nice to see some optimism going around for a change.]

Yup. Anything can happen in these game-systems. I was dead once, too. It's not something I recommend but it doesn't seem to stop places like that from running imports.

[mymothersbow]

[Mercedes just nods and clings a little bit tighter and a little bit closer. There's so much to tell, but right now she is just so happy to have even this time.]

[mymothersbow]

[She understood barely any of that, but she isn't going to outright and say such. She just thinks your country is odd with making up new words.]

I've never heard of a program before in Erion. Are there a lot of you? Or are you small like a tribe? Are all users that magically strong to create your kind?

[And then have her suddenly make a connection and go wide eye as she looks at you.]

You're a soldier! You must be really strong, right. You wouldn't need a psypher weapon at all I bet to take on a lot of enemies. So I bet even in this Abax you could take on whatever they threw at you.

Especially if you did fight to take down a bad ruler for your country.

[And mentioning death makes her not sure how to react to that.]

Dying hurts a lot. [She knows this quite well too Anon.]

But if what you're saying is true then if we're both here despite that, then there's a chance that others I knew would be too. I'll just have to look for them and scold him for not keeping his for not keeping his promise.

Thank you again, that will make it somewhat easier to deal with all of this.

[expect_me]

There were a lot of us in the Grid. And yeah, Users can be that powerful if they're in the right place.

[Sigh. Sure, he can remember the Grid clearly, but it's weird talking about a place he barely knows.]

Dying sucks a lot.

[Yeah, let's just skip the whole hopeless fight against Clu and getting killed again in Abax and never really figuring out anything in time to do anything. It's depressing.]

I hope you find him, whoever he is.

[mymothersbow]

[And this is now getting depressing and she does not want that. She also doesn't like seeing this new friend(?) starting to seem sad. Or at least she thinks so considering the answers are written and she still doesn't know if he has a face.]

You have experience with such things. Is it hard to be in these games? Do I need to be ready to fight when I get there? Which I can do, because the one puppeteering me says I will have Riblam with me so I won't be helpless.

[And she likely looks ridiculous holding a crossbow that is almost as big as she is to prove this.]

So I'm ready to help if there is unrest, and won't get in the way. Even if I won't know who you are at first in that new place, you can count on me.

...Uh, uhm I didn't ask for your name or even give you mine, that was rude of me and mother would scold me if she knew.

I'm Mercedes, Queen of Ringford. How do you do.

[expect_me]

[That is a very large weapon for such a very small User, and Anon can't quite help a little (silent, of course) snickering at the ridiculousness of the sight. Then again, if she can get a bolt in there, it doesn't really matter how small she is.]

My last one was a great deal of sort-of routine surviving punctuated by insane emergencies. I imagine the next place will be similar, so it's good you can help protect yourself.

[He'll be helping protect everyone too, of course. It's his directive, and more than that it's just what he's good at.]

Nice to meet you, Mercedes. My name is Anon.