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Post by CJ on Jul 29, 2015 13:43:13 GMT -5
"How long ago was it?" Fate said quietly to Rory. "Might not be much use now."
Ohyeah would find that the royal guard was quite welcoming compared to their previous experience in Galatea.
"This is about that disgraceful manner of King Matthia's cloak, isn't it?" the guardsman asked. "I was told that the World Government might send its agents to investigate the manner. Please, would you three follow me? The rest of your companions are free to enjoy the luxuries of Regala so long as they are peaceful about it."
The trio was guided by the guard to a destination not all too far away. It was only about a mile's journey through several markets and construction to a rather impressive building set aside from what appeared to be the main palace, still under incredibly heavy construction. They were guided inside through a long hall filled with guards, politicians and other seemingly important figures.
It was clear that the people of Regala were somewhat familiar their group. Whispers could be heard they passed by. They spoke rumors of Vice Admiral Barlow and Captain Fate. Some were true, others were far too fantastic, like that Fate herself took on and destroyed a gang of giants. Even Rory got his fair share of the spotlight, though most of the comments about him were "Who's that guy?"
The throne room was rather unimpressive, given that the actual palace was still under construction. It seemed this was the home of lesser royalty, Deep purple drapery hung this way and that under a windowed ceiling. The sun made the marble floor look as though it was glowing.
The king himself sat in shadow on a rather simple throne of marble and lilac cushions. His trademark scars littered his face. Even in the darkness, his white irises gleamed. In his hands appeared to be some kind of large book with small text. It was too far to make out properly what it entailed. Upon sight of the trio, he quickly put the book away in embarrassment behind him and sat straight up to look at them nervously.
"H-hello. I was told you were here about the mark?"
"You should probably speak to him," Fate whispered to Ohyeah with an annoyed sigh. "I have no patience with children."
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Post by Kyubey on Aug 4, 2015 2:54:11 GMT -5
At first, Ohyeah was surprised at the guardsman's welcoming nature, and did not react at first. While it wasn't as if he was expecting hostility, or even dismissal, he didn't know they would be quite so accommodating. He nodded in gratitude, and followed the guard, pausing only for a second to turn around and give a thumbs-up to his ship behind him. His men, apparently, got the signal, as shown by the loud cheer that came from the boat, followed by the outpouring of Marines from the boat, all of whom were ready to spend foolhardy amounts of money at the shops and restaurants of Regala.
As he followed the guardsman, Ohyeah tried his best to keep a low profile, which was naturally impossible, if only because of his size. He walked quietly and timidly, and eventually even kept his head down, as if the attention the citizens were giving him was embarrassing somehow. While he was never exactly proud, this display of modesty was rather unbecoming for Ohyeah, and was certainly very strange for him.
He was surprised a second time, when they reached their destination, and learned exactly who it was that awaited them. At best, he was expecting to meet with some military official, or one of the nobility, and never would have imagined he would be granted an audience with the king himself as soon as he stepped off the island. He supposed it made sense, considering Regala's current status in the world, but it still took him off guard. When Matthias greeted the Marines, Ohyeah bowed hastily, attempting to seem as respectful as possible. For a meeting between a king and representatives of the World Government, it was not going as smoothly as the titles involved may have suggested.
"Greetings, Your Majesty. You are correct, we're here to get to the bottom of this mystery. As you should know by now, this is a matter that affects not just this nation, but countries across the Grand Line. To begin with, can you tell us, in full detail, exactly what it was that happened, from your perspective?"
While Fate may have been no good at talking with children, Ohyeah was a bit more confident on the matter, but wasn't sure exactly how he should speak to someone who was both a child and a king. As such, his speech would come across as a bit clumsy, and a little unsure. He, meanwhile, was just hoping that he wasn't upsetting the boy.
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Post by Shark a' Pult on Aug 4, 2015 6:28:16 GMT -5
Rory along the way, particularly through the market, had managed to acquire various goods. This included but was not limited to; a gigantic foam cowboy hat, similarly oversized neon plastic sunglasses, a toy pipe that emitted a stream of bubbles when blown through, a novelty raincoat that when worn properly made him look like a frog complete with big googly eyes attached to the hood, some lit sparklers in one hand and a little plastic bucket holding a set of kids sandcastle building tools (also plastic) in the other, a pair of Zubaz pants, and a pair of those obnoxious light-up sneakers that continually flashed in many colors each time you took a step.
Looking like this, he stood beside Fate and Ohyeah in the hall of the king, with a completely deadpan expression.
"Yes, it's a very serious matter."
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Post by CJ on Aug 5, 2015 1:24:23 GMT -5
King Matthias held back a laugh when he got a closer look at Rory. Despite his outward appearance and history, it seemed there were still elements of him that matched his age. His eyes met the eyes of the frog and he smiled.
His demeanor fell when he was asked about the infamous event.
"It was only six days ago. I was standing on the castle's main balcony overlooking the royal pavilion. The guards tell me the castle is constructed enough to allow such a thing. I was giving one of my weekly speeches to the people and when I went to leave, that strange mark appeared on my cloak. I didn't feel anything and none of the royal guards said they saw anything, no matter how much they were interrogated.
"The cloak was taken into the custody of some of my advisers. I really would like it back..."
At this, the king looked very disturbed. He folded his hands in his lap and he looked up nervously at the three. There was an immense amount of fear in his eyes.
"You... you don't want to see it, do you?"
"Obviously," Fate retorted in her usual mannered tone, losing her patience for the situation.
An uneasiness came over the little king. He stared intently at Fate as his pupils thinned. He unfolded his hands on his lap and grasped the armrests on his throne fiercely. All it took was just one word for the situation turned from pleasant to tense.
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Post by Kyubey on Aug 29, 2015 19:45:00 GMT -5
What Ohyeah was most surprised by was not what happened, that much seemed to at least fall in line with what the other sources had said, but when it happened. The string of incidents was so recent, and specific occurrences were getting so close together, he had to wonder just how it was that the perpetrator was getting from place to place so quickly.
"So, one second it was there, and the next it wasn't? With all those people, wasn't anyone watching at the moment it happened?"
He wished he had something more smart to say. With Fate not being good with children, and Rory not seeming to be helping, it fell on him to ask the vital questions, and thus he couldn't help but think that he was losing out on valuable details, and therefore jeopardizing the success or failure of the mission. He tried to think about what thoughts Winona might have if she were in his situation. Probably, she would have deduced that this event is evidence towards the theory that the acts of vandalism were all committed by one individual, since it was profoundly unlikely that more than one person would be able to achieve such a feat. If he tried to think harder than that, however, then the questions and possibilities got too tangled for him to go much farther.
"It would be helpful to see it, yes," he replied. "But only if that's alright with you, Your Majesty. Also, it might be helpful to speak to the advisers who are holding onto it. Please."
He spoke freely, without any regard for what was happening around him between Matthias and Fate. This might have seemed like outright confidence, but in fact, the Vice Admiral was simply oblivious to the tension around him.
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Post by Shark a' Pult on Sept 14, 2015 22:56:51 GMT -5
Rory listened to what the king had to say on the matter, and had concerns of his own, but he waited till Fate and Ohyeah spoke. It was less a matter of respect or waiting his turn though, and more that he wanted to properly construct what he was going to say before just opening his mouth and letting blur of verbal noises come galloping forth. As he thought about what the king said though, he started to realize something and his brow furrowed. Once again, his mind was off as he turned things over and over in his head. Feverishly he remembered and toiled over every detail he had, had now been given, and could piece together. He wasn't some genius by any stretch, but it was a trait that serviced him well during his short run as a journalist. Both a blessing and a curse, since he tended to over think even simple everyday tasks and decisions.
"Weekly speeches you said? Howmanypeopletheretosee? Can't be that many if you do it every week, compared to something like a national holiday or anniversary speech. If they were trying to make some important statement, you'd think they'd wait for a special event, orputitinamorevisibleplace. Looks to me like they were just trying to embarrass you... or make you scared."
He spoke freely, but it was almost like he was having a conversation with himself, quite literally speaking his mind. It always helped him think, but Matthias could just as well not have answered, and Rory would probably end up at the same conclusion.
"Kind of fits the MO, same with the giantess and the castle before. The newer marks at least."
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Post by CJ on Sept 17, 2015 20:14:31 GMT -5
King Matthias's anger faded when Ohyeah questioned how no one saw the symbol suddenly painted onto the cloak. He began to bite his lip in nervousness. He looked away from them and clutched his sleeve.
"It was only when I turned around that people saw it. It's... still on the cloak from what I know."
The king stood actually stood up when Rory suggested the perpetrator's motives. Guards nearby turned to move toward him, but he extended his hand out to show that the situation was not at all dire.
"Are... are you suggesting that whoever painted my cloak is doing what they're doing to scare me? Embarrass me? Why? Why didn't only paint a symbol? They had to be right behind me to paint that 'Era' thing on my back and no one saw them. It's... unsettling... They could have done so much more..."
It was only for a moment, but the young king's face fell in sorrow. A memory of not so long ago briefly passed in his mind. He closed his minds for but a moment and regained his composure.
Fate crossed her arms and let out yet another one of her usual huffs. It would be very apparent to Ohyeah and Rory that she didn't care for the the young king and was getting annoyed with him. She could hardly feel any empathy for his plight.
"Did you feel or hear anything? It's hard to believe someone would paint something on your person without your knowledge. Are you trying to hide something?"
And just like that, the tension was back again. The small king sat down with a somewhat adorable plop and glared down at them.
"No," he said sharply. "I'm not. Excuse me, but are you sure you want to see the cloak?"
King Matthias began to look away again. He played with his fingers nervously. He tapped them together faster and faster. At this moment, the group might have felt an odd breeze go by them. It was not threatening, but extremely odd given that they were indoors.
"Please deal with this, Vice Admiral," Fate whispered harshly to Ohyeah, not seeming to feel anything strange with her lack of exposed skin. "I'm losing my patience and I don't want to experience a second Galatae."
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Post by Kyubey on Oct 11, 2015 20:44:46 GMT -5
"I'm not too sure about that, Your Majesty," Ohyeah said, reacting to Matthias' fear. He spoke in a low, thoughtful voice, musing to himself as much as he was trying to calm down the king. "It might be that leaving the mark is the only thing they can do. At this point, we just don't know."
In truth, the Vice Admiral felt as if he understood exactly what the little king was going through at the time. While it was nice to think that the perpetrator would only continue leaving paint around in the future, if he or she did have the ability to do more, then it would be only a matter of time before the messages turned into actions. Meanwhile, the Marines had gotten no closer to solving this impenetrable problem. It was one thing that no clues were appearing, and it was even more frustrating that all their attempts to communicate with those who could help them most were, continuously, breaking down.
"I know, I'm trying," he whispered back to Fate, slightly annoyed at having all the responsibilities of the situation lumped onto him. If only there was some common ground, besides the mark, that the Marines could connect to Matthias on, or at least something that would help the king let down his guard around them, then they might actually get somewhere. Ohyeah was aware enough to recognize that much, but not enough to know how to really solve the problem. Masking his nervousness, he took a step forward, holding out his hands to show that he meant no harm.
"Forgive me for asking, but is there a particular reason why you wouldn't want us to see the cloak? Right now, getting a closer look at the symbol would bring us closer to catching the one behind this. I promise, we'll only take a look at it, that's all. We won't take it or do anything that you yourself do not permit. Is that acceptable?"
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