the layout was made by zenat from lspa and btn. codes were taken from support boards and w3schools. character and everything else belong to their owners. if there is something that is yours here, but it isn't credited for, please contact an admin and we will immediately add you to the credits.
Spending a week wandering the slums of Midgar, hitting dive establishments one after another to pick up information about the current state of Shin-Ra was quite a hard task. Fortunately, Loki knew that if he kept meddling around and asking questions, he'd eventually be sought out by the company that owned these lands. They had informants everywhere, even the citizens you'd least suspect could be the eyes and ears for someone dwelling within towering HQ.
The dragoon sat on a bench at the train station, arms crossed with a stoic look on his face. He was waiting for someone or something to appear, being told that his interest in Shin-Ra would perhaps get him in the door and to see the right people. He knew to join the ranks of the company was no easy task, as the last time he had tried to join took a lot out of him. Not only that, but soon after he had to leave the company due to his past transgressions of pissing off a demon. His worth to Shin-Ra not being on par with the commotion that a demon clan war would cause to the company.
A smirk appeared on his lips as he remembered those days fondly, leaning back into the bench. He wondered if he would have any better chance now of staying with Shin-Ra then he did back then. Perhaps he was guided by his ancestor to use the company as a stepping stone to other things, after all they would be using him to serve their purposes. He held no loyalty to them, but they fit an ideal he liked and they held a somewhat sentimental value in his mind. Whether they would accept him or not, the journey itself would be more than enough for the dragoon.
After a while a train pulled into the station, the doors opened and only a small number of people walked off of the train mostly it seemed like business men where exiting the station yet the last person off of the train looks alittle different to the rest, yeah she wore the same suit as most of the business men but the way she walked was full of confidence unlike that of the others. She moves towards you and looks at you before silently motioning you to follow her as she turns and moves back onto the train.
As the latest train had made it's arrival, Loki looked to the small crowd of passengers that began to exit the transportation. At first, none seemed to stand out at all from the typical working stiffs that Shin-Ra employed, the paperwork handlers trying to make ends meet. The dragoon found his gaze moving away from the train door until a similarly dressed woman stepped out last and made her way over to the mercenary.
He uncrossed his arms and looked to her as he could tell she had an intriguing air about her. Something about the aura of confidence she commanded, which her contemporaries sorely lacked, made Loki rise from his seat. With a silent gesture to follow her lead, the dragoon merely nodded and made his way onto the train after the woman he assumed was the one he was waiting for.
Once inside he wondered what exactly it would take this time around to gain entrance into the company. Tseng had made him run an obstacle course, which ended up with him fighting some sort of electrically powered android. Loki wasn't quite pleased with being used as a guinea pig for one of Shin-Ra's prototypes, but he got the job done and didn't suffer too many injuries. As he looked to the alluring business woman, he hoped he was following the right person and if he was, what position did she hold overall in the company?
"Do you get these kinds of errands often?" Loki questioned, trying to make small talk. He never was great with holding conversation, but hoped it would lead to shedding some light on what would unfold for him next.
The woman turns around as the doors shut behind you, in her right hand seemed to appear a small kunai that with a swift motion she throws it at you hard, aiming for the shoulder before her other hand slips behind her and pulls out a small pistol, aiming it directly at your head before she takes a step forward. She seemed to be glaring firmly at you, her eyes showed her distrust of you.
"Before we even talk about this job, you will tell me who the heck you are. There is no trace of you before several months ago."
From the moment the door closed after his question, Loki had no idea what to expect from his guide. He had hoped to gain information with words, but he found himself staring down a pistol pointed at his forehead after narrowly dodging a quickly thrown kunai aimed at his shoulder. He could hear the blade getting stuck into the wall of the train with immense force, whether she meant for it to hit or not, the dragoon could not tell, but he realized she was most certainly making a bold statement that she was not going to tolerate idle chat.
Despite it all, Loki's expression didn't change much from his usual stoic expression as the woman questioned who he was and his motives for wanting the job. His eyes didn't waver from hers as she glared, stepping towards him to prompt him to speak with haste. This was what he had come here for, this sort of ruthlessness was what he had come to expect from those employed by Shin-Ra.
"Interesting..." he began to say softly to himself, more thinking out loud than actually directing it at her. "My name is Loki, a wandering sword for hire looking to lend my services to Shin-Ra. I understand some positions may be open due to the loss of some former members."
Giving a basic answer, he expected it probably wouldn't be up to the standards she was demanding from him, but he didn't feel the need to share every detail about himself either. If they needed a more polished profile about him, he would oblige them a bit more, but it wouldn't matter if she was just planning on pulling the trigger here.
The valkyrie inside of the dragoon was dumbfounded as to what kind of organization would interview potential members in such a way, even more so why Loki would even bother coming if he knew he could come into such danger. She could tell he was reveling in this atmosphere though, the deathly glare he was receiving at the end of the guide's pistol was being welcomed by his cold blue eyes.
"If it's all the same to you, I feel this company and I share a similar agenda and the faster I get integrated into it, the better all of us will be." he finished monotonically, the sense of urgency in his words not quite matching his current demeanor. It was almost as if he had become dulled to being in threatened situations like this as he handled it calmly without flinching one bit. He was already in a focused zone for the task ahead, rather than humoring his guide in her questioning and testing.
She glares at Loki for a moment, lowering the pistol slightly now before she speaks up once more, her tone full of distrust as she takes a step backwards leaning against the side of the train.
"Its a start, now how about you explain how we can't find any hint of you before the last few months ago. The last person I know of that I couldn't track much of a history for is now one of my biggest headaches."
She then turns her head to look further down the train before making a slight gesture that reveals the presence of several other men that move to leave this carraige of the train.
Staying calm throughout the questioning, Loki watched as his guide decided to lower her pistol and back away from him. He could tell from her eyes that his prediction of her not being quite satisfied with his quick answer was quite right. Whether she was beginning to feel relaxed about the situation as she leaned against the side of the train, the dragoon couldn't discern.
As she began to talk, reaffirming she wanted more answers as to where he was a few months ago prior to showing up in Midgar, she also revealed more information. Apparently there was someone else who didn't have much of a well-known history prior to a few months ago that was giving her troubles. The dragoon began to wonder if it was someone he knew or if it was a company or personal problem she was hinting at. Perhaps that was her loyalty speaking, after all Shin-Ra had had much better days of terrorizing Gaia instead of being on the victim end.
Once she finished talking, she looked away from the mercenary momentarily as his eyes followed hers further down the train. He could see some men, probably waiting on standby if she needed the assistance waiting to step in and handle a possible threat to the company. She was most definitely prepared, a faint smile finding it's way to Loki's lips at the gesture. Was this a stepped up effort due to that mysterious person she mentioned? He couldn't believe they'd take such precautions by what they knew of him alone, or maybe they would if the company was that shaken by their losses.
One thing was for certain, the dragoon and valkyrie that lay dormant inside of him recognized this woman was no mere pushover. She looked more than trained to handle a simple task like this of being a guide, or maybe that wasn't her task at all. She had yet to divulge the information Loki wanted to hear, insisting on more of his past to be shared. It was becoming slightly irritating, but the dragoon simply nodded as his faint smile faded.
"You don't have any records of me several months ago because I was not on Gaia."
He replied rather bluntly as if that answer wouldn't raise more questions about who he was, his guardian simply shaking her head at his choice of words.
'Your social skills are severely lacking still Loki...' Eisa shared with him mentally, something the dragoon merely ignored as he kept his eyes on his interrogator. The more that time ticked on, the less his guardian liked the situation he had placed himself in by jumping on this train.
"I'm not sure if I'm connected with this mystery person you referred to, but as I mentioned before my aim is to assist Shin-Ra, not to be a hindrance....Miss."
It was obvious as he finished with an attempt at a polite honorific that humored his guardian, he didn't notice the irony in what he had just said. His cold responses could barely be considered helpful, but to the dragoon he felt his answers were sufficient enough. His talents didn't rely on his ability to talk a good game about himself, but actually take action and thrive on his instincts of being a descendant of Balgus. He was not adverse to creating a negative atmosphere though, something that had been instilled in him as a child.
The native swordsman felt this was more of a trivial matter that had to be done for the superiors of the company more than anything else. The train probably was recording their conversation as it went, but he wasn't interested in that at all. His past being uncovered like this couldn't really be of this much importance, unless it was all tied to that unknown individual. Was this why he was brought in originally to uncover more information about whoever it was? The dragoon began to have as many questions for his guide as she seemed to have for him.
For the moment, the tension seemed to be eased as the men waiting in the next car had backed off and the brunette appeared less hostile. However, Loki had not budged a bit expecting that position to change at any time.
With your words the woman finally puts the pistol away, back in its holster before she crosses her arms infront of her while her eyes glance up and down you. She makes a motion for you to do something, however it wasn't a clear motion but she doesn't notice that as she starts to talk. There is still an edge to her voice.
"Well, the proof is in the pudding or so they say. So this job Shin-Ra is looking for you to undertake is top secret and the simple act of discussion of this with any non Shin-Ra personnel will result in your termination and with that lets get down to what the job is exactly. Shin-Ra is after a creature from the low orbit planetoid Cocoon, the creature is called a L'cie by the natives, they are humanoid beings of supposidly apocalyptic power. You are to travel to Cocoon and acquire a sample, preferably intact but it doesn't matter whether the subject is alive or dead. upon the successful completion of this task I am permitted to reward you with a large Gil amount, payable only on completion, no negotiation there are many other interested candidates."
With that she pulls out a small envelope.
"Inside are tickets to get you off of the Midgar continent and into Esthar, however travelling directly Cocoon is not an option as it is a hostile force."
Once his guide had dropped her pistol, rested his left hand on his hip and leaned to the side as he stood. It was hard to tell if it was a sign of relief he was showing or rather he was bored of standing still on the train answering questions. He watched as the young woman crossed her arms, eyes still very mistrusting as she began to give the mercenary a once over.
As she began to explain, a devilish smile crept itself onto Loki's face at the sound of danger. If all they needed was a sample of this creature called a L'Cie and didn't care if it was still living or not, the dragoon found this particular job right up his alley. After all, causing death and creating chaos was what he was born to do and missions like this suited his blood lineage just fine.
It would be the first time he heard of such a place called Cocoon though, let alone knowing about particular this target that he was supposed to be locating and bringing back with him. The dragoon wondered if it's power rivaled that of demons, a species he had had his fill of before already when dealing with Shin-Ra. He wasn't too concerned about the compensation he could possibly earn by completing the task, but he did take note of the secrecy involved in this mission. He wondered what the company would do with this sample, perhaps add it to their SOLDIER program or create some other type of use out of it. Either way it didn't matter to the mercenary as he took the small envelope that his guide brought out.
Looking at the small container he was told held tickets from Midgar to Esthar, the descendant of Balgus just nodded his head in understanding the situation. He only hoped that the trip from Esthar to Cocoon would be a simple matter and not take too long. His valkyrian companion was the one who wanted to ask more questions of the mission Loki was so eager to sign up for. How would they know if they were in contact with a L'Cie? Was it a planet filled with them and what made Shin-Ra think it was possible for one man to gain access to such a hostile place and bring one to them? All of these questions she tried to reason with her host, but was mostly ignored by the dragoon. He recognized they had their reasons and if it meant he would have a chance to join their ranks once again, this mission would simply be just a stepping stone in the long run.
"I suppose this is where we part ways then? I'll be sure to find one of these creatures and bring it back with me as soon as I can."
The confidence in his tone unwavering, Loki tucked the envelope underneath his belt and leaned back against the train wall with crossed arms himself. He assumed he'd have to wait for the next stop to get on the train leading out of Midgar to Esthar unless this one was conveniently already heading there.
With your response the woman nods as the train pulls into a stop at a sector station on top of the plate and the doors open slowly onto an empty platform.
"I doubt I need to state this, however if you get cuaght or captured by the native Cocoon forces, you are not involved with Shin-Ra and we will not claim responsibility for your safety."
With that she sits down on one of the seats of the train and crosses her legs before pulling out a small phone and flicking it open before she starts dialing a number slowly before she glances back up at you.
Once the train had stopped, the dragoon unfolded his arms and listened to his guide's last warning and returned it with a devilish grin that bared his fangs. The excitement on his face to get started was the most emotion he had shown yet on the train towards the young woman. As she sat down, bringing out a small phone to dial a number, Loki let out a mocking laugh as he walked off the train onto a familiar platform.
The doors had closed behind him and the train began to move again right on cue as the dragoon kept his back to it. He went to grab the envelope he was handed and took out the tickets inside, discarding the empty paper into a nearby trash can. Looking at the tickets and then looking up at the electronic bulletin of the current trains coming through, he took note that his ride was next based on the designated ticket number.
Turning around to wait, Loki tapped his foot and kept his left hand with the tickets on his side with his right hand on his waist. His valkyrie companion continued to complain about the way that this company handled business. The warning from the Shin-Ra employee was something they both noticed, however the dragoon was not nearly as flustered as Eisa was to the task at hand. In Loki's mind, the mission was fairly simple and didn't need to be seen as a suicide mission that the valkyrie and Shin-Ra guide were trying to make it out to be.
If there was a small planet made of these creatures and they were as strong as she said, they would've likely spread to Midgar by now. All the things that the dragoon had gone through in his past to get to this point had numbed him to being intimidated by some random new species that would soon be a guinea pig for his former soon to be current company. He wasn't going against some incredibly powered demon nor was he going against a ridiculously sized Weapon that nearly destroyed this entire city once. After those events that shaped him into the being he was now, anything else was merely a stepping stone needed to be crossed.
Thinking these things as he tried to reassure Eisa who was unimpressed so far until she saw these L'Cie firsthand herself, the train finally had arrived. As it opened its doors and Loki administered his ticket to get on, the dragoon took a seat and leaned back with a confident smirk. Esthar wouldn't take too long to get to, but this Cocoon place might be a troublesome endeavor if he was to walk most of the way.
"Before we even talk about this job, you will tell me who the heck you are. There is no trace of you before several months ago."
"You don't have any records of me several months ago because I was not on Gaia."
"I'm not sure if I'm connected with this mystery person you referred to, but as I mentioned before my aim is to assist Shin-Ra, not to be a hindrance....Miss."
"I suppose this is where we part ways then? I'll be sure to find one of these creatures and bring it back with me as soon as I can."