World Tree MUSH

    The smell of coffee wafts through Hyouka's apartment like clockwork by now. Alty has... Gotten a bit more comfortable lately, in staying at Hyouka's apartment, the little shinki no longer squirrels away as much. Though it's still a mystery where she hid her charging cradle.
    Right now though she's up and awake, now that the coffee has been set to percolate; the little Altines busily doing some spot dusting here and there while she waits for Hyouka to wake up for the day. But from the expression on her face? Something is bothering her, in spite of how much she does her best to fend it off with housework.

    "Muuuhrnmn..."

    Oh no, zombies.

    Well, just one zombie.

    A zombie with a curable case of living death.

    Hyouka shambles her way into the kitchen, hair down and dangling loosely, making a beeline for the cupboard to grab herself a cup. She hasn't even actually spotted the little shinki yet, but that doesn't stop her from uttering a bleary, "...mornin', Alty..." somewhere between the cupboard and the coffee machine. For being half-awake, she sure is pretty dextrous in pouring herself a cup and adding creamer.

    Zombies are no joke!
    Especially not after that incident aboard the space station. Alty prefers to not think about that, being holed up in the control room and only able to watch as her friends navigated that nightmare.
    "Mn. Good morning, Hyouka." The Altines says, distractedly, after a beat, pausing her dusting to rub at her scarred eye and purse her lips. The usual sign that she has something to say but is waiting for Hyouka to wake up properly before she raises it.

    It probably takes a few minutes - but not nearly enough time to suggest 'waiting until the coffee hits'. No, just the smell and taste of fresh brewed coffee is enough to perk her up a little, and it doesn't take long before the faux elf lowers her cup of coffee and asks in a soft, but curious tone, "So, what's on your mind?"

    It's a good question. What's on Alty's mind. And being asked gives the little Altines a moment of pause as she puts down the rag she has been using to clean up.
    "Um." She begins, one hand reaching up to rub at the back of her neck.
    "I need you to do me a huge favor, and you're not going to like it." She says, scuffing the table she's standing on with one foot. "And I know you're not going to like it, and I don't like it, either."

    That's... ominous. But more than anything, it puts a look of concern on Hyouka's face; for Alty to be asking like this, it must be very serious indeed. On the other hand, she can't help but feel a little proud as well - asking this has to take a lot of courage. The little shinki has come so far.

    There's a brief pause where she takes a good solid pull of her coffee, and then she reaches up, brushing some of the hair out of her face to regard Alty more directly. "Well, it must be really important if that's how you start. If you're in some kind of trouble, you know I'll help you in a heartbeat."

    It's true, there was a time when Alty simply would not have had the courage or trust to even ask anyone for help. For anything. Now though, it's clear she's in over her head about something and needs a helping hand, and of course the first person she would willingly ask would be Hyouka.
    She takes a moment, folding her hands together in front of her before she clears her throat.
    "Back home- that is, where shinki come from, this is home now- there are two types of Valkyrie shinki. Altines, like me. And Type Altlene. Altlenes are usually like sister units to Altines." She starts broaching the subject with an explanation, tapping her fingertips together gently as she pauses.
    "I've been hearing rumors about a Type Altlene that's been... Tearing her way through the back alley fighting circuits. No losses, just win after win."

    "And you want to rescue her," Hyouka finishes smoothly, eyes staring into the brown liquid in her cup. "Well, of course I'm in to help you out. I'm a little confused why that's something I'm not gonna like, though. Are you planning something illegal?" If she were caffienated, she might have figured it out already, but while she might be alert, the cyborg is still not entirely awake. "I can always get a mask or something..." Well, at least she doesn't balk at the thought of doing something illegal to help Alty?

    Now here. Here comes the part that makes Alty halt. Hyouka is correct. She wants to rescue this shinki, that much is true, but her means of doing so are... Limited. She rubs at the back of her neck again.
    "I already spoke with uh. An officer Alex Murphy." She says. "He was going to make a bust tonight. I'm going to be considered a 'confidential informant', so... It's not teeeeeeechnically illegal?" She ventures hesitantly. It's a little bit of a grey area as her shoulder-joints rise and fall, mimicking a deep breath.
    "... I need a master to sign me up for the fights." She says, waiting a beat. "... That's where you come in."

    "...ah."

    Well, she wasn't wrong. Hyouka doesn't like it.

    The woman takes a long, slow drink of her coffee, finishing it in one go. This also gives her time to think about the situation, questions she might have, problems she might have. It takes a second or two for the gears to turn, but long practice working in an office environment keeps her from speaking before she's had a chance to consider her issues and how best to phrase them.

    "...can we avoid getting you in the ring at all? I want to keep you out of the ring." Frankly, she wants to keep Alty out of this entirely, but this doesn't seem like it's going to be an option.

    "Mmmmm..." It's a thoughtful pause. And for a moment, for a brief moment, all the pain she had suffered at the hands of her original master flashes visibly in tiny scarlet eyes. It's a brief flash of hesitation, doubt, and trauma as Alty clutches her elbow and casts her gaze downward.
    "I don't want to just rescue her. I want to rescue her reputation." She finally says.
    "I don't want her to become another Angel of Death, hated and despised by all other shinki out there." She says. "They all think I'm a monster. But if I beat her in the ring..."
    Then her reputation will never surpass Alty's.
    "Then maybe after the fights she can find a nicer master that will take better care of her. Or at least find a shinki city that will take her."

    She's going to fight, and she's going to fight to win.

    Hyouka's lips pull into a frown, her distress faint but noticeable. She wants to put her foot down and refuse. Her instincts are screaming at her to protect the little shinki asking her so much... but she doesn't know that that's the right choice. Besides, for Alty to actually be asking this - asking to go back into the ring to fight, and fight hard, despite how traumatized she is - means that the former pit fighter is passionate about something. Passionate enough to face her fears and her past, and risk her present and future.

    "...it must be very important to you," Hyouka finally murmurs, staring into her empty cup. "You know I'd take her in regardless. But I guess it would be better to keep her in her own world..."

    Alty intends to fight, that's right. There's no going around this, in the little shink's head, she has to fight and she has to beat that Altlene where everyone can see. And it probably won't be easy if her foe is, like her, undefeated.
    Hyouka's distress doesn't go unnoticed, and the look on Alty's face is one of instant regret for even asking, shoulder joints sagging as she fidgets with her fingers. But she's set on this course.
    "I had a sister, once. An Altlene unit. I called her Leene. We weren't togther very long, but she took care of me whenever our old master got abusive, and would help repair me after the fights." She says. "Until one day he made us fight. "It was the only time I ever lost. Because I couldn't bring myself to hurt her." Murmured. "I don't know what happened to her after that. But I have to do this for her. Don't worry. I won't kill any other shinki in my way. And I won't lose." Alty says solemly. "As for what she does once we free her, that's going to be her choice but... I know you'd make a great master, if you take her in."

    Hyouka mms quietly, then utters a soft, "...I see." She wants the little Altlene to have the choice. It's a decision that the cyborg hates on some level - she hates the thought of putting Alty in any danger, let alone the exact danger that traumatized the poor shinki to begin with. Her emotional side is screaming at her to just smash in, save the Altlene and go. But... that would leave the thing worse off, potentially in as tough a situation as Alty herself. And sometimes... sometimes the easy and safe choice isn't the right one.

    "...you know, if it looks like you're in danger of dying, I'm going to start smashing everything in my way to save you, right?"

     "That won't be a problem." Alty says with a firm certainty as she plops down for a seat on the edge of the table, hands folding in her lap. "Most fighters in the back alley circuits aren't as... Customized as I am. And I know every dirty trick there is to winning a fight. I won't have any problems making it through matches until I get to her. She's the only one that I'm worried might put up a fight. If she's winning as much as I did, it means she's even more desperate than the average pit fighter."
    A pause.
    "That's how I got by, anyway. But I won't be fighting with desperation. Not this time. ... This time it's conviction. I never want anyone to become what I did, ever again, Hyouka."

    "You're also fighting to not kill," chimes in a familiar third voice. DARGN finally speaking up, in a much less snarky tone than usual. "That's much more difficult than just going for the throat, especially when you're a dirty fighter."

    The calm seriousness of the AI's voice surprises even Hyouka, enough that she grows quiet. However, DARGN only adds, "...but to show such conviction is commendable. You have impressed a dragon, little shinki. Take pride." Then she falls quiet as well, and her host body's owner is left faintly flabbergasted. "Well, that's not... something I hear often." She sets her empty cup over in the sink, then adds her own, "But I suppose I agree. I hate seeing you in danger, but... I'm also really proud of you right now."