Dual of the Fates [Closed]

[last_son_of_dathomir]

Who: Maul, Sephiroth
When: Early July
Where: Kiddilion, The Dream Width, Maul's Past
What: A long-awaited personal possession is waiting for Maul in the Dream Width, and so, with an eye towards possible future co-operation, he invites Sephiroth along so the swordsman may gain a better understanding of just who he truly is.
Warnings/Notes: Excessive amounts of edge. It's Maul & Sephiroth, after all.

A message appears in Sephiroth's MogNet inbox, simply titled "An invitation."

Apparently something is waiting for me to claim it in the Dream Width. My offer still stands, if interested.

Flying out of Kiddilion tomorrow evening. Will meet you in the Black Sun Cantina before departure.

Maul

Maul isn't certain he'll hear from Sephiroth, or whether or not the swordsman will appear at the appointed time, yet he remains hopeful. Of all the people Maul has met in Vaikuntha, Sephiroth strikes him as having the most...long-term potential. He cannot call the man a friend-Maul does not have friends, Maul has goals-yet he sees value in establishing some sort of working partnership with the man. And at the very least a mutual understanding that they'll leave each other alone to their respective goals.

And so Maul is seated in a table in the back of the Black Sun Cantina (which seems to have recently come under new ownership or at least is undergoing a sudden rebranding; the work crews renovating the outside are still in the process of pulling down the original signage that identified the establishment as "The Smirking Rat Tavern" attest to this fact) waiting while the clock ticks down to the appointed hour of departure. Not long yet, but still time for Sephiroth to arrive.

It's still early in the evening, so the usual bar crowd isn't out just yet it seems; apart from Maul, the surly-looking bangaa bartender and a handful of other bored patrons making whispered chatter at the bar, the newly rebranded "cantina" is mostly empty. The other patrons are ignoring Maul in favour of their conversation. It must be a pretty intense one, too, as their drinks are quite clearly untouched. Presumably they don't get busy until later in the evening.

Presumably.

Comments

[last_son_of_dathomir]

Maul waves his hand dismissively, passing by the patrons and not outwardly sparing them a second glance, though privately he's fuming about how obvious they're all being; they will be properly disciplined when he returns. As much as he liked Sephiroth he didn't trust him; a small security detail was not uncalled for; good fighters all, or at least useful distractions should Sephiroth have planned for a fight, but their acting abilities left much to be desired.

It had been Diocletian who suggested them; Maul would be having words with his supposed employer about that.

"Yes, all already arranged." He says, his voice betraying none of the anger he feels at his minions' ineptitude. "I know you have matters of your own to attend to."

As they pass out of the cantina, Maul quickly takes them off the beaten path, through backallies, and quiet, dark streets. Despite the apparent danger, no one troubles them. At least once, coming down a street of what appears to be storage warehouses of some kind, a small group of local punks stand at the far end of the street. Their approach is noticed and for a moment a predatory look enters their eyes...but then just as quickly, some sort of realization hits them, and the two offworlders pass them by. They strenuously avoid meeting Maul's gaze.

Finally, the landing pad where the smuggler's (no use pretending it's otherwise, given what Maul has told about them) ship waits. It...well, it looks like a piece of junk, parts of multiple airships taken apart and welded together into an unsightly mess.

A human and a Bangaa wait next to the ramp. As they see the two approach, Maul holds a hand for Sephiroth to wait, and then approaches them alone. Maul produces a clip of cash, which the human passes to the Bangaa. There's a moment while the Bangaa flips through the gil, then he nods at the human, who turns and heads up the ramp, his partner following.

Having secured Sephiroth's passage, Maul waves him over. "It may not be the most comfortable ride, but these fellows know what they are doing. These ships are designed not to be noticed. Come, the Dream Width awaits." He turns and walks up the ramp to the ship.

[neverbeamemory]

As quickly as they travel through the lesser traversed back allies; the rotten underbelly of Kiddilion as far as it seems, Sephiroth neither allows himself to fall behind Maul's pace nor ignore what's going -or not going- on around them. He might one day have to remember the exact route, and he will. One day he might have to recall any one of the faces of the shady individuals they passed, he'd do that in a beat as well.

He's completely unafraid to meet any lingering glance; better to get a feel for exactly the role Maul has wound himself into, in this particular hive of scum and villainy. Sephiroth knows better than to utter a single word towards any of them, besides, he's so far above the trash of existences like these.

Coming upon the landing pad, it's immediately obvious the knocked-together airship that stands before him. So much grubbier than the vessels contained in the fleet of the Curti center. It strikes a sense of unwelcome anticipation in him; were they seriously going to be able to get off the ground, let alone be safe from the void out in the Dream Width itself?

Another spike of unease jolts somewhere deep in his consciousness as Maul held his hand up to signal for Sephiroth to wait, along with the sour edge of contempt; just who did this other offworlder think that he was? Quickly the rising desire to correct that mistake was smothered under logic though, he's not deluded enough to think himself above the way things worked here. He's still bound to a human frame, after all.

Self-preservation before pride, yet again. The tall silver-haired man reminds himself as he follows Maul and the crew up the ramp and into the ship. He wasn't about to trust either of the strangers to walk up behind him.

"I'd not imagine otherwise. Let's see what that anomaly of yours is all about."