Introductions Beset Chaos [Aramis / Luna]

[Luna Melrose]

It was a golden opportunity, truth be told; the girl had been playing teacher’s pet in most of her classes and today, it finally paid off. Of course, she didn’t actually need to pretend liking her course of study, at least so long as it remained within theoretical bounds, but Luna certainly did exaggerate it a few times for favor’s sake; nothing wrong with taking the low-hanging fruits, right? Nonetheless, she never expected it’d give her a chance so valuable quite this quickly, either. Their medical lesson had unexpectedly come to a halt when a piece of equipment was broken in an accident, a device they were currently meant to study, and while that didn’t matter too much to the woman in itself, the circumstances surrounding this event hid a unique and favorable opportunity that caught her attention far more prominently; since the machine required regular maintenance and special conditions to operate, it didn’t belong to the Academy and was rather borrowed from Squad 12’s inventory whenever it was needed for this lecture.

In practice, this meant that a replacement could only come from Squad 12 as well; “This is my chance to sneak in...”, she murmured. As luck would have it, the teacher had their hands full with the disposal of the damaged equipment and, sensing this, Luna raised her hand and offered help; “I can go fetch another one of these instruments, while we wait!”. Perhaps that caught her a glance or two from classmates who rather wished this whole ordeal would take as long as possible, but she didn’t care; agreeing to it, their teacher signed a request for a replacement and put this errand in Luna’s hands, unaware of her desire to do a tiiiny bit more than just that. Assigning this duty to two other students as well since this equipment would be fairly heavy, the trio quickly departed Academy grounds and began walking toward Squad 12, leaving their peers behind with papers in hand.

On their way toward the building their educator had pinpointed as the group’s destination, this devious girl began playing mind games with her two companions, insinuating she would take care of the whole errand by herself while giving them both a grin and glance they wouldn’t soon forget; “You can wait for me at the door; I won’t be long”. While this might seem like a terrible idea at first glance, it was in fact a calculated gamble; “Oh yeah?” “What was that...?!”. The atmosphere turned sour, as expected; well, she did take a holier than thou attitude toward them, after all... However, her hope was that by sullying their pride, they would play right into her hand. She planned to just vanish later and, once they’d witness her gone, their first thought would likely be that she got lost; in that scenario, given the impression she just left them, they would certainly be inclined to try keeping it that way. Moreover, once it’d all be over, Luna anticipated their desire to retaliate would push them to rat her out to their teacher; ironically, this would prove to be a perfect alibi for her, testifying that she had, in fact, not gone off on her own intentionally.

Reaching their journey’s end, this disjointed little band of academics made their way inside the structure, unsure of what to expect once inside. Snatching the teacher’s request right out of Luna’s hand, both of her classmates entered first while giving her quite the glare; seems her plan was indeed working. Letting out a small sigh, the woman followed suit and approached the reception desk alongside her unofficial pawns; standing there completely still, as if a marble sculpture, was a lady seemingly acting as receptionist for the building. “How may I help you?”, she prompted using a perfectly neutral tone of voice, almost to an unnatural degree; there was definitely something off about her, although Luna couldn’t quite put her finger on what... Well, perhaps that’s to be expected from the Squad responsible for pioneering scientific advancements, she thought. Handing over the teacher’s signed papers to their inhospitable host, the lady quickly studied them, far too quickly in fact, before returning them and speaking out a cold, monotone request for the group; “Follow me”.

Leading the trio toward a large door with multiple intricate locks, almost a vault in all fairness, the clerk placed her hand on a nearby device and, soon afterward, the mechanisms started unfolding before their very eyes. “Wooah~! Was that a hermetic latch?!”; her query went without reply, causing Luna quite a bit of frustration. Lightly pouting, she nonetheless tagged behind as they all moved inward, deeper into what felt like a maze of rooms and corridors; while this complex arrangement of space into various chambers was disorienting her sense of direction, it was likely optimized to fulfill its purpose as accommodations for research and development. Guests like them were doomed to lose their way in this serpentine, incoherent network of differing paths, yet for the one currently escorting them, it seemed to pose no trouble at all; regardless, these were ideal conditions for the scheming woman, who now had a perfect excuse to, shall we say, ‘accidentally’ get lost... Gradually lagging further and further behind, she eventually lost sight of them and turned around, going her own way instead.

Pushing further into the halls, Luna started looking around with clear, obvious anticipation transparently showcased by her facial expression; she had wanted to set foot in here for so long, and now a chance had finally reached the horizon! While she wasn’t really sure where each step might take her nor what she would uncover down here, the nosy pupil knew whatever she’d find would at least sate her curiosity; whichever the case, this lone intruder got comfortable with the ongoing circumstances almost instantly, leisurely walking around and acting like she owned the place. Oooh, if only she could find an unlocked computer, she thought! Daydreaming about all the possibilities, one slight obstacle still found its way into her path, though... Scrutinizing her surroundings for every small tidbit of information she could discern, safeguarding it all in memory, Luna noticed none of the doors she had passed by were actually unlocked; it seemed like security was tight here, each entrance being apparently equipped with an access terminal.

Distraught by this realization, the woman madly tried opening one of the nearby doors, to no avail; she attempted everything conceivable, from causing an electronic malfunction to whacking the terminal real hard all the way to whispering it sweet nothings and even trying the famous Konami code, but nothing proved successful. Defeated, there was no way she’d just turn back without at least a glimpse of anything interesting, and thus the lady changed her approach; “I just need to find an unlocked door!”. Wandering aimlessly around the facility, Luna eventually found herself in front of a gateway looking nothing like the earlier, disappointing doors, a gate that seemingly lacked any locking mechanisms; it felt like the mirage of an oasis hidden away, unattainable to all but the most relentless travelers. Remaining highly vigilant to not get caught this close to the treasure trove, the girl stealthily approached this doorway and slyly put her ear next to it, seeking to eavesdrop on any noise occurring inside; thankfully, she didn’t hear anything and so took the next, logical step... Luna slammed the door open, eager to decisively sneak a peek at the research material or abomination they surely had stashed away here!

Just what, pray tell, may lie beyond the bounds of this door, tuckered away in a far corner of the R&D Squad...? Well, only one way to find out!

[Aramis Tezuka]

As Luna threw open the gate, she would be greeted by something entirely unexpected in the sterile hallways of Squad 12. On the other side of the passage there was a forest. And this didn't appear to be some manner of indoor garden or greenhouse either. No, no-- the woods were vast and sprawling, and that was definitely a clear sky above. A... night sky as it happened. With stars and a moon illuminating the dark woods surprisingly well all things considered. Clouds drifted across this strange sky inside a building, impossibly high for the structure that she'd seen when she'd entered. Bioluminescent mushrooms, some the size of cars helped with the lighting, glimmering varying colors and shades of red, orange, yellow, blue, green and violet. The sounds of chirping crickets, and babbling stream in the distance could be softly heard over the ambience, and a light breeze blew through the trees. Whatever Luna may have expected on the other side, it probably had not been this.

Nor did there appear to be any active Shinigami in the immediate vicinity, though there were certainly signs of their passing. The soft dirt just beyond the threshold of the door had clear footprints leading off into the woods-- two sets at that, one set quite small and light, the other heavier, though still not especially large. That Luna would not be able to hear anyone would speak to the scope and size of this strange woodland. There weren't any notes or signs around the door, or at least none that Luna would be able to see. Whether she pursued this avenue or not would be entirely up to her. Her time here was hardly infinite though....

-----

In his office on the second floor of the Squad 12 Barracks, Aramis Tezuka remained engrossed in his personal studies. The duties of Captaincy left the Nakabakki with precious little time to further his own research. Advanced stimulants allowed him to keep his sleep to a minimum, so that he could maintain the responsibilities of his post, and still have the opportunity to advance his work. Both were important to keep in balance-- sleep was only necessary as a method of replenishing his energy and maintaining sanity. So long as he kept to the bare minimum to stay functional it would be fine. Besides...

Aramis didn't enjoy sleep. Nightmares came easily to him. The voice in his head was stronger when he slept. Its sweet whispers more enticing. Its haunting threats more visceral. Sleep was where Aramis's second nature could reach out and touch him. Where the Shinigami mind within him could not repel it. Sleep was not blessed for Aramis. It was a cruel necessity of life, and the less he required of it the better. Caffeine was inefficient, but fortunately for Aramis, he ran a division of people just as devoted to their work as he was. Research into minimizing the requirements of sleep was something he, and many of the others in the division valued highly, and so the Captain remained functional, even on as little as three hours of sleep a night.

And he kind of needed to remain functional-- Squad 12 research under Aramis was free and largely unrestricted. If a Shinigami had an idea, they were free to pursue it. But Aramis had to ensure that for all the freedom he afforded his officers, the methods still had to fall within certain guidelines. At least officially. In a division like this, Aramis had to scrutinize carefully. A pile of folders with various project names rested on the desk next to Captain Tezuka, while the Captain himself, was focused intensely on a wisp of black shadow, held within a containment field in front of him. Not that anyone who entered would understand the significance of this, but this fragment was a piece of the Captain himself. With precious few test subjects from Hell to work on, Aramis was often required to use parts of his own body to experiment upon. Held in a pair of forcepts, Aramis also held a piece of shining metal, and brought the piece toward the shadow. A strange, unpleasant feeling tickled through his left arm, drawing his gaze for but a moment. Curious. Even close proximity causes an adverse reaction. Useful. Merits further study. As for direct contact-- But before he could proceed any further, one of dozens of lights on Aramis's desk lit up. An intercom. Aramis frowned, but obliged the request, sidling over, forceps still in hand, and flipped a switch.

"Administrator Chikan." He stated shortly.

“Captain there is a minor situation. Three Academy students came to replace a piece of lost equipment. I have two of them with me.” There was a momentary silence on both ends. "I'm fairly certain none of them were Squad 2, Onmitsukido or 7 undercover investigators. They were too weak for that."[/color] Aramis pondered his action for only a moment, his eyes still on the wisp of shadow in the field on his desk, which seemed to be growing by the moment. It almost seemed to be looking at the Nakabakki. Mocking him.

"Noted. Remove two students from site. Direct search for remainder." He instructed. "Understood Captain. I last saw her in Wing 4B."[/color] Aramis did not respond, he merely switched off the intercom. The Captain walked over to the shadow, and without pausing or hesitating, pushed the forceps and the piece of metal into the containment field, and against the black wisp. The metal disintegrated on contact, and the wisp hissed and twisted up, before segments of it burst away, evidently damaging it greatly. Unsatisfactory results. Concentration of Quincy reiatsu is high. Adverse effect noted. Was hoping for more substantial reaction than mere damage. Unfortunate. Aramis noted.

He supposed that a missing Academy student reflected poorly on him... And the sorts of things that could happen to an unlucky student randomly wandering the halls.... Not all Squad 12 experiments were particularly safe afterall. Aramis sighed. His Zanpakuto flickered from its scabbard through the containment field, destroying the piece of himself within, before returning to its sheath. Aramis then stalked from the room, intent on investigating this missing student. Wing 4B was it...?

[Luna Melrose]

A forest, that’s what it was...

Yes, you heard that correctly.

Lying ahead, a dense, majestic forest found itself filling Luna’s view in every direction. The sheer size of it was already impressive enough, but what caught her eye even more was its complete lack of enclosure; not long ago had she been navigating the halls of Squad 12, and now the girl found herself confronted by an entirely foreign environment. Looking up, the sky above her head portrayed nightfall, which didn’t match the period she was supposed to have had entered the building; why was that? Honestly, this whole room, if we can even call it that, felt like one huge mystery; however, she could speculate several reasons why that may be. Perhaps, the door acted as a portal, and had transported her to a different location; or, her sense of time might’ve been warped while walking throughout the facility, which would explain the sky. Maybe the space this room occupied had been optimized and broke the rules of physics; or, it might be another dimension altogether.

Whichever it was, the lady was completely ecstatic at the prospects of what she’d just found; she couldn’t have hoped for a better find, even if she had tried! Unable to contain a huge grin of joy and bliss, Luna first inspected the doorway she’d passed through; “Hm~... What secrets might you hide...?”. Sadly, at a glance nothing seemed quite unusual with it, appearing to be a plain old gate the likes she’d expect to see anywhere; if it did conceal a hidden truth, it wasn’t one she could uncover without equipment. Reaching into her uniform, she pulled out a notebook alongside the accompanying pen, something she seemingly carried everywhere she went; if one were to open these notes, all they would find in it is incomprehensible hieroglyphics and hasty writing. While this journal wouldn’t seem all that interesting to anyone else, it was one of this woman’s most precious possessions since it captured the very essence of her research; she compiled a few additional notes along with a tiny drawing resembling the door, highly detailed given its size, then closed it shut again.

Turning back toward the massive woodland contained within, she paid attention to the paths throughout the trees and noticed the presence of footprints, ones which she hypothesized would belong to Shinigami either performing research or providing maintenance here. Given the distinctive and sharp contours of these imprints in the dirt, she assumed they were recent; although, since her surroundings proved to be an unpredictable variable at the moment, there was a chance rainfall would not occur here and, if so, their trails would remain for an unexpectedly long period. Regardless, she had only one viable choice, which was to push forward; there was simply no way Luna would turn back, even if she knew she’d cross paths with a Shinigami. In her mind, the worst-case scenario wasn’t to get caught, far from it; the one thing this woman wanted to avoid at all costs was to come out of her little adventure empty-handed and, therefore, nothing could possibly lead her to back down right now.

Moving forward, Luna Melrose began to take a casual walk into the woods, observing anything she could lay her eyes on in this bizarre area, research notes in hand; among this landscape’s most prominent features were large bioluminescent fungal growths, an element she expressed deep interest in scrutinizing further. Picking up a stick, the woman lightly poked one such mushroom, particularly on its luminescent lumps, disturbing it enough for glowing spores to be ejected in a cloud of sparkles; “Ooooh, interesting!”. Thinking back on it, these were likely why the night sky was necessary, since their characteristics seemed to imply a fungus species thriving in darkness and being most adapted for life in complete obscurity. This was a treasure trove of biological experimentation and could provide her valuable insight, so Luna did the unthinkable... She revealed a small vial hidden away among her equipment and took a sample of the shiny spores, well aware of the risks this could pose; if she did become the vector by which these would be released in the wild, though, it still wouldn’t be her problem to deal with so, who cares?

Engrossed into her work, only the promise of greater rewards could pull her away... Which, it did. Paying attention to her surroundings, the girl didn’t miss the faint chirps of a distant cricket, and she knew what that meant instantly; if an insect could be heard, then there had to be others, a full ecosystem certainly located in this room. Fueled by that realization, Luna picked up the pace and quickly pushed deeper and deeper into the forested land ahead, listening closely for the source of these sounds... Until, she found it; a small creek gently pouring water downstream, life abundant along its path, a fully developed habitat for her to play with. Sitting down by the side of it, this improvised researcher didn’t do much at first; by simply observing the lifeforms in front of her, she could learn more about their behavioral patterns and would slowly figure out all sorts of details about their strange ecology. Just what impact might’ve had these large mushrooms on the life down here, what nutrients or additional threats did they pose for them? She could only know by silently witnessing the signs.

Writing down everything she saw inside her notes, the girl gradually got an understanding of the rules of predation prevalent among these bugs and the biodiversity it encompassed. Looking attentively, she first noticed two species furiously waging a war for this watery environment, a breed of small beetles capable of living in the water and foraging in large numbers, alongside what looked like water striders hunting the insects while they tried surfacing. Under these conditions, she saw the first repercussion of the fungi lying around as, when beetles approached the shores after scavenging, many were covered in spores; if they were eaten, the fungal element seemingly killed this predator, creating a symbiotic relationship between beetle and fungus. The strategy was interesting, Luna immediately thought, since the weaker of these two species could inadvertently fend off the stronger one through sacrificing their own, a trade-off worth the effort given their greater numbers. Unfortunately, just as she reflected upon this, a land spider caught her attention on the side of her vision, snatching away one of these weaker beetles in the dark due to their now luminescent shell; seeing this, the girl let out a faint sigh.

Nonetheless satisfied, Luna took a moment to lay down into the grass, contemplating this environment; it had effectively been centuries since she last got to interact with a forest to this extent, and quite frankly she had missed it. Musing over the events since her arrival in Soul Society, she truly had gone through her fair share of troubles; first forced to leave the wilderness for her own safety, and now playing goody two shoes with every Shinigami that came across... Where had her true self gone, she wondered? Closing her eyes, drifting deeper and deeper into a state of rumination, her thoughts slowly sunk into blankness and, suddenly; [smear:6699CC]“Kukukukukukuku-...”[/smear:C41E3A], this low, rattling sound, almost like an ominous snickering, emerged from within the innermost corners of her soul. Startled, she shot up nearly instantly, unable to recognize why every bone in her being was now abruptly sending danger signals to her; the girl thought something inside the confines of this room was responsible, and so instinctively fled for safety.

No, the real threat was rather inward...

Retreating toward the only form of shelter that likely stood in this outlandish scenery, the gates she had passed through to get here, Luna quickly found that, in her panic, she had practically lost her way. Oh no! Rapidly adapting her plan, she instead put as much distance between her and the earlier location, then carefully ducked in a patch of tall grass following a sharp turn that should’ve broken line of sight with whatever might be chasing after her. Mindful to keep her silhouette as small as she could, which was naturally quite easy given her very short frame, the girl then peeked through, eager to confirm that her surroundings were secure; only once she had full peace of mind would the student exit her hiding spot. Naturally, the woman was still off-course and needed to find her way again; she thus wandered in the general direction these earlier Shinigami footprints were heading, thinking perhaps the time had come to return toward civilization... and uncover many more secrets by eavesdropping on them!

[Aramis Tezuka]

Aramis was a man of efficiency. Beyond philosophical musings, of which he embarked on with more frequency than he'd have liked, Aramis did his best to live his life in as efficient a manner as possible. His movements were efficient, his schedules were efficient, even his speech patterns were efficient, focusing entirely on delivering his meaning as briefly and succinctly as possible, even if this resulted in grammatically incorrect sentences. Naturally, his method of searching was equally efficient. No sooner had Aramis left his office into the dimly lit hall that led up to it, the Captain's head turned to a nearby shadow. His Zanpakuto flicked from its sheath again, slicing through the shadow, leaving a light scoring on the wall behind it. Numerous other scores along the wall indicated this was not the first time the Captain had done this. Aramis followed this up by simply... walking into the shadow, and being consumed by it as if walking through a door. This was much more efficient. It would save him a lot of time aiding the search and no doubt the Academy student was near some shadow or another. Even if they weren't, he could travel rather immediately Science Wing 4B.

The 12th Division Captain contemplated the experiments going on there, prioritizing ones tht would be of most danger to an Academy Student. There were no experiments on Hollows going on at that wing. At least not to his knowledge. A few individuals there were studying Quincies but that sort of research-- barring catastrophic failures, was generally seen as low-risk. At least provided there were no test subjects, of which Aramis was reasonably certain there were not. Hmm...

-----

Luna's exploration of this new terrain went reasonably well for the moment. Regardless of the how or why, this was a fully fledged biosphere. Though so far, there was no larger fauna beyond the insects. Not so much as a squirrel or chipmunk had been seen so far. The silence was punctuated only by Luna's footsteps, the chirping of crickets and the rustling of leaves in a wind. Following the footprints in the dirt would not be difficult. Even for someone with no tracking experience it was apparent that neither of the two Shinigami were attempting to mask their presence.

It would take Luna a few minutes, but she'd begin to pick up the sound of voices in the distance. One male, one female. Their voices were indistinct, but snippets of conversation could still be heard. "Not.... Shinigami habitation......... acknowledged...." "......Boring! ....be back at the front desk! Chikan doesn't....." Of the two voices one seemed taciturn, controlled and focused, while the other was much more agitated. Eventually Luna would, should she choose to close in, notice the speakers, with their voices fully cleared up. The forest gave way to a wide clearing, with numerous rock formations. The stream did not pass through here, but at the back of the clearing, the trees were bent aside as if something very big had passed through. Indeed there were two Shinigami in the clearing, both wearing traditional Shinigami robes, and both wearing the emblems of the 12th Division. One was a taller man, standing just shy of six feet, were he not crouching, with a thin frame, short-cut white hair and narrow spectacles. He seemed to be crouched near the ground, sifting through the ground. The other was a smaller woman about 5'4 in height, with bright green hair tied up in pigtails, wearing a surgical mask. Her Shinigami robes almost seemed too big for her, and while the male seemed intent on his task, she bore all the hallmark signs of being bored. Pacing, kicking at the ground, and grumbling non-stop.

"That reminds me. Erika. If you're so desperate for things to do, what's the status on the subjects we released in here?" The woman sighed. "They're fine Takeda. We haven't heard anything from them in days. I checked the terminal outside two hours ago. Vital signs were normal. They've probably found a lair somewhere." The man, Takeda seemed bothered by this information. "That's unlikely. Nothing I've found suggests the biome should be able to support lifeforms of their size. So where are they gathering nutrients from? They're not Hollows, they can't be surviving on the ambient reishi." "Didn't one of the Jeff's disappear here yesterday?" There was a pause. "Oh. Yes. That would explain it. I should probably be concerned if they've developed a taste for Shinigami...." The two continued their conversation.

-----

Meanwhile outside, Aramis had stopped in front of the same gate that Luna had passed through. He'd performed a thorough inspection of the wing from the shadows. This was the only room that he could not detect anything from the shadows. It was cut off. Aramis briefly considered the experiment. Fully functional biosphere, utilizing Senkaimon to try and create additional living space by siphoning off a portion of the Dangai. As the Whovians in the Division were fond of saying. The room was bigger on the inside. Still a work in progress, last Aramis heard, as so far the biome was only capable of supporting very limited forms of life-- human life not among them. But it had been a few weeks since he'd gotten a report on it-- a report that had suggested introducing a hardier species of spiritual beast that had been attacking the Rukongai lately, to see how they adapted to it. Hmm... Potential threat to an Academy student... Should investigate. Aramis considered as he passed through, into the biome, and extended his senses to see if he could pick up any unknown reiatsu signatures.

[Luna Melrose]

Just how far had they gone, she wondered?

It’d been a long, an unending ten whole seconds since she’d begun walking, and it honestly began to feel like an eternity already! There were so many novelties and distractions in this room, the only thing keeping her from turning back and investigating further was sheer strength of will; Luna just couldn’t help herself, she had to figure out everything she set her sights on and, unfortunately, the clock was ticking... Soon, she wouldn’t be allowed to wander around here anymore, her time currently highly valued; every second she wasted was one the girl couldn’t get back, and it tormented her to think that there might be a better use for this precious moment. Still, the rational part of her brain knew better; rather than focusing on the immediate rewards, it would be far more satisfying to attempt uncovering a major mystery, tuckered away in a corner of this facility. That, is why she kept walking forward, seeking Shinigami... Alas, so, so many distractions around.

She didn’t know how long it took, she really didn’t want to know in all fairness, but eventually, the sound of voices echoed in the distance, putting an end to this constant internal bickering that tried to steal away her attention span in favor of the low-hanging fruits. Concentrating on their speech as hard as she could, the student could only make out a few of the words being uttered, the rest lost to ambient noises and the bustling of life nearby; “Not.... Shinigami habitation......... acknowledged....”. What? She could barely get a coherent thought out of what she’d heard. Soon, a second voice, different from the former, also piped up; “......Boring! ....be back at the front desk! Chikan doesn't.....”. Well, this was leading her nowhere... She’d need to get much closer if she wanted to get any semblance of information out of their exchange, and that is precisely why, without skipping a beat, the girl furtively approached the apparent source of this conversation, as if spying on them; an assessment one might claim was far from inaccurate, given the circumstances.

Closing the gap, Luna used the rock formations spread throughout the clearing to keep herself out of their respective line of sights, attempting to get close enough so that she could eavesdrop fully; since the girl was careful not to enter their field of vision and the two seemed focused on a different task, it was unlikely she would be spotted doing so. “That reminds me. Erika. If you're so desperate for things to do, what's the status on the subjects we released in here?”; “They're fine Takeda. We haven't heard anything from them in days. I checked the terminal outside two hours ago. Vital signs were normal. They've probably found a lair somewhere”. Peeking toward them, this carefree woman sought to identify the traits of each individual; a tall white-haired man with a seemingly analytical nature, who bore every sign of a researcher, addressed this verdant lady adorning a surgical mask, clearly rough around the edges. She wrote all these details in her research notes, alongside their names... Her two very first Squad 12 scientists, met in their natural habitat!

...And did they mention a living, breathing test subject in this very room?!??

She couldn’t bear it any longer, the inquisitive student desired to learn more! Moving forward a bit, she listened attentively; “That's unlikely. Nothing I've found suggests the biome should be able to support lifeforms of their size. So where are they gathering nutrients from? They're not Hollows, they can't be surviving on the ambient reishi”. Interesting, to say the least, since the biosphere here seemed to support plenty of life, albeit tiny in size... Of course, it was difficult for such adaptation to occur naturally, but many animals could survive without resources of their own size, so long as they were plentiful enough; he gave the impression this couldn’t be the case here, why was that? Did he have information she lacked? Regardless, a hypothesis was soon brought to light; “Didn't one of the Jeff's disappear here yesterday?” “Oh. Yes. That would explain it. I should probably be concerned if they've developed a taste for Shinigami....”. The mere thought gave her a shiver... And a fair bit of grim inspiration.

Hmmm, what to do... Luna had much more she wanted to do in here, and it was logical that a student being found would cause quite the ruckus, her freedom within these grounds stripped away immediately; her desires could therefore only be met if she managed to remain hidden away, their attention diverted by other matters altogether. The logic was airtight, it truly was, but... Perhaps, the situation called for something more, heartfelt; perhaps, there was more to be gained than merely knowledge right now, a chance to win the jackpot and delve deeper toward her own salvation. She’d kept silent this whole time because it was the logical thing to do, it was coherent and rational, it led to predictable results; after all, is it not common sense that one would want to manipulate others by leading them down a path for which they can foresee the end-results clearly? If that were common sense, then why...

“Salutations, fellow scientists!”

...Would anyone ever want to follow that path? There was no mystery, no thrill, no room for the unknown! Shirking from that approach entirely, she instead stood up, arms wide, and welcomed her two hosts with a massive grin and the looks of a hoodlum; from their perspective, the hooded girl would appear unexpectedly, as if a ghost in the night, shouting for their attention, her ragged appearance seemingly of someone who’d lived here forever. There was no doubt, this would be quite the trippy experience for them; “Takeda, Erika, my dear new friends! As someone snooping around where they shouldn't, I would like to politely ask of you two...”. She continued, closing in on them until she was mere inches away, invading their personal space entirely; the fact her spiritual energy flared quite a bit in response to her sheer excitement, revealing her grim aura, would also prove particularly noticeable. Pointing behind her, to the trees that had clearly been damaged by a large creature, she finished her query; “...Hypothetically of course, where would I find the beast that caused this?”.

Eagerly awaiting an answer, she inspected both from head to toe in the meantime; if neither responded or took too long doing so, she began taking their measurements, trying to approximately gauge their body proportions using her pen as a reference. Luna was admittedly quite impatient at the moment, which led her to get distracted even easier than usual; that’s surely why the student eventually bombarded them with lots of random questions going through her mind, hoping to grasp any hint of secret from these two; “Also, can I meet one of those Jeffs you mentioned earlier? Oh~, also”, she pointed at Takeda’s spectacles, ”Do these act as real-time scanners?! Also also~! what’s the most spectacular thing you’ve seen around here?!!”. She probably wouldn’t stop this monologue, at least until forcibly interrupted by another; since her eyes were sparkling with stars, though, that might prove a difficult task... Regardless, this innocent-looking, seemingly inoffensive young lady would surely prove no threat to these two at all; why, then, did their sixth sense go into high alert, survival instincts flaring from her presence amongst them?

[Aramis Tezuka]

Luna's bombastic entrance was hardly missed or ignored by the two Squad 12 Shinigami. The two, having been unaware of her presence until that moment, immediately snapped up. The white haired Shinigami had shifted into a defensive posture, one hand raised towards her, palm exposed, the other across his body to grasp the hilt of his Zanpakuto which was half-drawn in that split second. Were Luna to possess any level of Energy Sensory, she likely would have detected that his reiatsu had spiked and begun to focus in his palm in preparation for casting kido. The other one, Erika, had instead sprang back, both hands extended on either side, and her feet planted shoulder length apart. It did not seem like much of a combative stance like Takeda's, but it did appear to be balanced enough to enable decent sideways mobility, as if she were expecting to be charged. The two were evidently jumpier than expected.

However, just as quickly, the two visibly relaxed upon actually taking in Luna's appearance. Takeda in particular stood up straight and adjusted the collar of his shihakusho. "I apologize, but I don't believe we've been acquainted." He stated, shortly before a green pigtailed blur shot by him and Erika darted to seize Luna's hands and shake them emphatically. "Hihihihihi! I don't know your name, but you called me a friend right? That means I must know you, you gotta be one of my groupies! It's great to see you again!" She exclaimed gleefully. Takeda sighed, adjusting his spectacles.

"You don't look familiar. And you said you were snooping around where you shouldn't? Are you from another division. Ugh..." He gave a disappointed sound. "I'm inclined to agree with your earlier assessment Erika. Chikan very evidently doesn't take her duties seriously enough. You're fortunate Miss, that you've wandered into one of our more benign experiments. The Twelfth Division is not somewhere you should be taking an unguided tour of."

Even through her mask it was evident Erika was pouting. "Takedaaaa don't scare off my friend! She's just curious! Like us! We're curious about lots of stuff too!" Takeda shook his head, in disappointed disbelief. "Ahem. At any rate. We're not certain of the creature's exact location. Which was why we had our defensive reactions. Not that they would be to much avail, I suspect it would take all of Erika and my combined abilities for even one of us to survive an attack from it, let alone defeat the creature. It's a captured specimen from outside the Rukon district. The locals have taken to calling them "Roaches". Formidable beasts. The one here was subdued by our Division's lieutenant, Sir Ken'ichi Shihoin and brought here for study. We were working to create a stable biome capable of supporting life, so we decided we might as well combine the two." He exposited, keeping a watchful eye once again.

Erika, meanwhile took a moment to answer her other questions. "You can meet lotsa Jeffs! He's usually in his lab nowadays, looking after the maggots! They take lots of attention... But you can meet the other Jeffs that aren't getting experimented on! Though I'd have to go back to my desk to figure out where they are....." She shook her head as if to refocus. "Also also! The most spectacular thing I've seen around here! I've seen lots of stuff that's super cool! Mr. Snifflies learned how to do a backflip yesterday! When we get back to reception I'll show you!" She gushed.

"As for my glasses, no. They are vision correcting, nothing more. Of course, with Squad 4's assistance or our Division's own research I could correct my vision without them, but they're really not much of a bother, and I don't engage in combative operations often enough for it to be worth it." Takeda responded. "But first, we should get you out of here. Erika and I know the risks associated with this place, but it could reflect badly if an officer on official business died here. We should get you back out of here. Please come with us." Takeda began heading back the way Luna had come. Erika threw an arm around Luna's shoulders, girlishly giggling giddily as she also tried to guide her back along. "Yep! We don't want the Roach to show up and eat us like he did Jeff!"

SPOILER: Click to show

{Erikas stats & skills}Class 5

Strength: 50
Speed: 70
Reiatsu Strength: 50
Spirit Pressure: 50
Light Aura: 80
Dark Aura: 20
Senses: 50
Instinct: 50
Energy Sensory: 100
Healing Expertise: 50
Total SP: 470

Skills
Custom: Animal Affinity [2]
Chemistry [2]
Weapons: Knife [1]
Biology [1]
Analysis [1]
Poison Resistance [2]

SPOILER: Click to show

{Takeda Stats & Skills}Strength: 60
Speed: 50
Reiatsu Strength: 60
Spirit Pressure: 100
Light Aura: 50
Dark Aura: 50
Senses: 100
Instinct: 40
Energy Sensory: 60
Healing Expertise: 0
Total: 470

Skills:
Analysis [2]
Battle Analysis [2]
Kido [2]
Weapon: Sword [2]
Illusion Resist [1]
Calm Mind [1]

[Luna Melrose]

What could possibly be going through their minds...?

Slowing down in her long discourse from the lack of immediate response, this student gave the pair a long glance; instead of a reaction involving enthusiasm and excitement at the prospects of meeting another scientist of their ilk, they had both taken a clearly combative stance, as if expecting a fight to break out... Wait wait wait wait, waiiit~!! The girl had no such intentions! She was overly cheerful, sure, but not to the point of assaulting her two new companions! At least, she didn’t think so... Would she? Hmm... Either way, their defensive attitude toward herself evidently became worrisome, causing Luna to instinctively take a step backward; even though it’d likely amount to nothing if their clash truly escalated, especially since no weapon were at her disposal to defend herself with, the young lady nonetheless lowered her own stance and prepared to reflexively dodge any of their incoming blows... Surely, they wouldn’t really try to cut her down though, right?!

Thankfully, this hostility radiating the air quickly dissipated, the duo of Squad 12 squad mates seemingly realizing their new visitor posed no threat to them at all; witnessing their posture shifting and attitude relaxing, the young woman also reciprocated, letting out a sigh of relief at the events they’d just narrowly avoided. “I apologize, but I don't believe we've been acquainted”, the one named Takeda explained, first to break the ice of dialogue with Luna; however, she’d never quite get a chance to reply, the flash of a barely perceptible green-haired girl instantaneously showing up ahead of herself and shaking her hands gleefully. “Hihihihihi! I don't know your name, but you called me a friend right? That means I must know you, you gotta be one of my groupies! It's great to see you again!”... That’s right, a name! “Ah! My apologies, I was so jovial just then that I forgot to properly introduce myself... I’m Luna Melrose~, it’s a pleasure to meet the both of you!”, she said, giving her two seniors a genuine bow of the head.

Turning her focus back toward Erika, the student also paid heed to her words; “I would love to be one of your groupies~, if you'll let me!”, she answered... It seems a friendship was budding. Inquisitive, Takeda joined the back-and-forth; “You don't look familiar. And you said you were snooping around where you shouldn't? Are you from another division”, he openly pondered, reminiscing on her statements. Well, not quite, she thought, but the young lady didn’t feel it a necessity to needlessly correct that appraisal. “Ugh... I'm inclined to agree with your earlier assessment Erika. Chikan very evidently doesn't take her duties seriously enough”; Chikan? Who was that...? Oh, perhaps the one she’d evaded earlier today, Luna quickly concluded; whoops... While it was never her intention to cause the poor woman any trouble, she could see how this might reflect badly on her; sorry Chikan, the girl inwardly atoned. Finishing his earlier train of thoughts, Takeda concluded; “You're fortunate Miss, that you've wandered into one of our more benign experiments. The Twelfth Division is not somewhere you should be taking an unguided tour of”.

Interjecting here, her new pigtailed friend came to the student’s rescue, surprisingly defending the girl’s decision to enter these grounds; “Takedaaaa don't scare off my friend! She's just curious! Like us! We're curious about lots of stuff too!”. Wide-eyed, the young woman had to admit, Erika hit the bullseye; there was no better explanation for her reasoning than an aberrant curiosity for its own sake. Straightening her own posture, she nonetheless nodded affirmatively, eagerly affirming her respect for the man’s worries; “I understand; I’ll be more mindful of my safety from now on~”, she responded. At this point, Luna didn’t want to offend her new companions, preferring to establish rapport so they’d be more inclined to indulge her whims later... Resuming his lecture, Takeda drew her attention with a crisp cough and changed the subject; “Ahem. At any rate. We're not certain of the creature's exact location. Which was why we had our defensive reactions. Not that they would be to much avail, I suspect it would take all of Erika and my combined abilities for even one of us to survive an attack from it, let alone defeat the creature”.

That didn’t bode well... “May I inquire what it is, exactly?”; if such a menace coexisted with herself during her stay in this room, she wanted to know more about it... And, who knows, the student might even pay it another visit! “It's a captured specimen from outside the Rukon district. The locals have taken to calling them "Roaches". Formidable beasts”; lost in thought, Luna wondered what had led them to that specific name choice... Did they perhaps share outward characteristics with the insect? Or, would they stubbornly persist in an infested area, just like their namesake? Whichever the case, her interest was piqued; “The one here was subdued by our Division's lieutenant, Sir Ken'ichi Shihoin and brought here for study. We were working to create a stable biome capable of supporting life, so we decided we might as well combine the two”. “Uhh~~... Impressive!”, she let out without much of a thought behind it; as expected, this Squad seemingly matched her own ideals when it came to research, she absentmindedly thought, giving a glance around for a chance to catch a glimpse of that oh-so terrible beast.

Her attention stolen by the chipper girl, there was still much Luna could learn from them; “You can meet lotsa Jeffs! He's usually in his lab nowadays, looking after the maggots!”. “Oooh~!”, she exclaimed, giving Erika her full focus in response. “They take lots of attention... But you can meet the other Jeffs that aren't getting experimented on! Though I'd have to go back to my desk to figure out where they are.....”; sensing her concentration wavering, the woman was about to give her friend’s hand a light squeeze, snapping her back to reality, but that proved unnecessary as she soon shook her head sideways to sharpen her mind, resuming their exchange. “Also also! The most spectacular thing I've seen around here! I've seen lots of stuff that's super cool! Mr. Snifflies learned how to do a backflip yesterday! When we get back to reception I'll show you!”; “Please do~!!”, the student enthusiastically replied, performing a light hop in anticipation... “I wanna meet Mr. Snifflies~ and watch him do cool stuff, too!”.

Takeda also nonchalantly answered his own share of queries, every word pragmatic and factual by nature; “As for my glasses, no. They are vision correcting, nothing more”. Following it with an explanation of his reasoning, perhaps because their visitor seemed dissatisfied with solely that answer, he carried on; “Of course, with Squad 4's assistance or our Division's own research I could correct my vision without them, but they're really not much of a bother, and I don't engage in combative operations often enough for it to be worth it”. Approaching him with her gaze fixated on the lenses, a fact which may prove destabilizing given it would feel to him like she was staring down the man’s eyeballs, Luna soon voiced her own mindset on the matter; “I wouldn’t try to correct it either~ but, if you’re gonna be wearing them anyway, why not turn them into an extension and enhance your normal vision~...? Wouldn’t it be fun to see the world in a way nobody else can~!?”, she innocently proclaimed, a statement this lady made while smiling profusely.

Whether the man took these words to heart, either way the girl’s time here was starting to run out; “But first”, he began, ”we should get you out of here. Erika and I know the risks associated with this place, but it could reflect badly if an officer on official business died here. We should get you back out of here. Please come with us”. “Whaaaat~??!”, she let out instantly, her facial expression clearly one of a sulking woman; with an arm wrapped around her to guide the student along, Erika didn’t leave her much of a choice. “Yep! We don't want the Roach to show up and eat us like he did Jeff!”, she claimed; seemingly, this was the end of the road for Luna Melrose, who had already stretched her visit to its very limits... Or, was it? Given that she now had two new comrades on her eventful journey, a different course of actions had opened in front of herself; surely, if she managed to convince them, the student might be able to continue exploring with them both in tow, turning this outcome into a guided trek within the facility.

Playing along for now, she followed their guidance and avoided making a fuss until they’d all reached the room’s exit, offering no physical resistance against them whatsoever; even Luna knew better than to risk their deaths having an argument inside this hostile biosphere... Her facial expression told a different story, however; currently on the verge of tears, frowning with her cheeks slightly rosy, any observer could guess she was about to throw a fit. Right on schedule, as they crossed the entrance and made their way back to the large, empty corridors of Squad 12, the young woman revealed her truest desires, trying to plead her case with them; “I don’t mind leaving the Roach behind~, but I don’t want to just leave! There’s so much more I haven’t seeeen, yet~!”. Looking her most pitiful yet, she used that to her advantage, trying to covet a positive reaction through sheer emotions; of course, the logical-minded Takeda would likely not bite so easily, but the student already had a plan in mind for that...

She would overwhelm him with expectations.

Predicting Erika would follow her lead, Luna placed her hand on the scientist’s shoulder, giving her a quick whirl, positioning themselves so that both girls would end up looking straight at him, awaiting his input; likely, the poor rational thinker would be very hard-pressed to respond anything but affirmatively in these conditions, she thought! “Can you let me roam around a bit longer~?”, she cutely asked; an absurd request on all accounts, to be sure, they wouldn’t let her go unsupervised with every experiment seemingly even more dangerous than the one they’d just left, but she was expecting such a refusal... That’s why Luna soon layered her request with a second option, a common application of the door-in-the-face technique, meant to pressure a favorable decision and coerce compliance out of them; “Or~, if not”, she explained, devilish thoughts running rampant, “At least, let me tag along while you both finish your day’s work~... What do you think? I’d gladly keep you two companyyy~!”.

This was the best compromise she could possibly bestow them.

[Aramis Tezuka]

Erika giggled, putting a hand to her masked mouth. "Well like... duh! Of course I'll let you!" She chirped. Meanwhile as they progressed onwards, Takeda nodded in a satisfied manner when Erika praised the act of capturing a Roach. "Indeed. Vice Captain Shihoin is an exceptional warrior. Perhaps the most formidable of our division. The Sword Demon, he used to be called. I'm afraid Erika and I simply do not compare. Which is why we are typically assigned to reception and research duties." It was the sort of statement that some might have made with shame in as militant an organization as the Gotei 13, but Takeda spoke with almost pride in his voice. Squad 12 was, perhaps the only division besides the Fourth that placed no emphasis on combat talent. All were welcome here, and all could excel in this division, regardless of fighting talent, so long as they had the passion and could find ways to make themselves useful.

Finally the group started to leave, continuing the conversation as they passed. Takeda sighed as Luna tried to push to continue to stick around Erika certainly seemed onboard. "I do have other duties to attend to today. Other experiments to oversee-- that's not an incentive. Several experiments require more focus than this one, with potentially catastrophic results if failed, and at least one involves traveling to a restricted wing.... I'll presume you have your permissions to enter classified areas?" He asked of Luna, sternly. Erika, visibly pouting through her mask.

"She can stick around with meeeeeee, it'll be fine! We'll just be going back to the desk to start with and figure everything else out from there!" Takeda pressed a hand to his temple in answer, as if in exacerbation. "Front desk should be fine, but I don't want to get in any trouble from superior officers for letting another Division's Shinigami hanging around classified experiments without approval. The Barracks yard should be fine, and the general ground floor levels and break rooms. I can't imagine too much annoyance from anyone except the coffee machine-- I understand it's having one of its tantrums again. But it seems to me she is much more interested in seeing our experiments and projects than the simple layout of our Barracks.... And that I can't let you off the hook with Erika. Not without a superior's permissions."

"Fortunate." Takeda immediately froze up at the voice that spoke up from behind him. From the empty hall behind him. Behind the Shinigami's back, his shadow twisted, convulsed and suddenly simply stood upright, the black melting away, to reveal another bespectacled man behind him. This man was shorter than Takeda by an inch or two, with wild, mossy green hair and a pale complexion that rivalled the scholar whose shadow he had climbed out of. A rusty, tarnished rapier was sheathed on his left hip, and his Shihakusho was modified considerably, the the right hand sleeve almost entirely removed, save for a tiny hint that wouldn't have even qualified it as a T-Shirt, while it seemed the left hand sleeve had been overdone, completely covering his hand, and even drooping slightly, to show that the sleeve was a good five or six inches too long for the arm. What wasn't hard to miss at all, was the white haori worn overtop the man's uniform that clearly marked him as a Captain of the Gotei 13. Most likely (read: Definitely) the Captain of the Twelfth, Aramis Tezuka. A fact all but confirmed when Erika waved cheerfully.

"Hi Captain! I found a new friend!" Takeda turned about with a calmness and collected nature that seemed to suggest that this sort of appearance wasn't unusual of the Captain, and saluted. "Captain Tezuka. Thank you for seeing us. I didn't expect you out of your office this time of day." Aramis's eyes stared, almost monotonously, past Takeda and into Luna's face as if examining her. "Heard we had lost Academy Student. Sensory abilities are among highest in the Division. Most Qualified to look for her. If Academy Student found dead or missing on premises. Leads to awkward questions and investigations. Decided to resolve matter quickly. Commendation for finding her. Well done." His voice was as monotone as his eyes, with a stilted speech pattern in which he seemed to state each line with the precision of a surgeon, but without any inflection came off as almost alien.

"Thank you Captain. We were just determining how to proceed from here." Takeda stated. Erika, meanwhile gasped. "ACADEMY STUDENT!? So she's still at the Academy!?" She looked at Luna. "That means you can totally join our squad when you graduate and we can be besties here all the time!" She exclaimed giving Luna a big hug out of nowhere. Aramis observed closely. "Perhaps." Came his response. "Would like to hear from student though." The Captain addressed Luna directly. "Anything to say?" He inquired. Several things at his mind. He had deliberately left his inquiry vague-- her response could tell him a lot about the girl at a glance.

[Luna Melrose]

So far, so good.

Everything seemed to be progressing smoothly, their interactions certainly pleasant and cordial especially by Luna’s standards; the pair had not yet taken offense to anything she’d said or done, which had to be a new record, and they were, in general, on the same page thus far… She’d even gotten a few words about the Squad’s Vice Captain! Taking mental note of the topic as one to potentially revisit later, the student’s parade soon received a downpour as she pushed her luck and tried to plead her case at the exit, playfully pulling on every sign of emotion she could in an attempt to reach the desired reaction; “I do have other duties to attend to today. Other experiments to oversee-- that's not an incentive”. Just how strong was this man’s heart and convictions? “Several experiments require more focus than this one, with potentially catastrophic results if failed, and at least one involves traveling to a restricted wing....”; pouting slightly at the refusal, she apparently wouldn’t get her way using only this method... Which one, then, would break the wall ahead, she wondered?

“I'll presume you have your permissions to enter classified areas?”.

Uh oh. Not only was he not having it, but Takeda also breached a topic she really didn’t want to address; quietly invoking her right to remain silent, she innocently smiled and remained steadfast in the wake of this stern look the girl was receiving, well aware the man already knew what answer she would have to give if truly pushed for it. “She can stick around with meeeeeee, it'll be fine! We'll just be going back to the desk to start with and figure everything else out from there!”, Erika claimed, attempting to stand up for her; unfortunately, Luna already knew it was pointless from the earlier display and, as expected, the scientist didn’t budge an inch on his position... “Front desk should be fine, but I don't want to get in any trouble from superior officers for letting another Division's Shinigami hanging around classified experiments without approval. The Barracks yard should be fine, and the general ground floor levels and break rooms. I can't imagine too much annoyance from anyone except the coffee machine-- I understand it's having one of its tantrums again”.

“But it seems to me she is much more interested in seeing our experiments and projects than the simple layout of our Barracks.... And that I can't let you off the hook with Erika”; she pouted... The barracks were no fun at all! Just as she thought that, however, he added an additional remark, which prompted a reply from an observer yet unknown; “Not without a superior's permissions”, “Fortunate”. Glancing around for the source of this unfamiliar voice, Luna’s body sent severe shivers through her spine, every hair along her limbs curling up instantly, once she saw the shadow’s motions; to claim the poor girl’s reaction was extreme would be a massive understatement, genuine terror portrayed in each gesture she instinctively made as a defense mechanism. “Eeek~!~!”; Almost immediately upon spotting the aberration, this young woman took a large step sideway, pretty much a jump in all fairness, and positioned herself to have sight on both her own shadow and the contorting shade... She also pulled out a hand mirror from her attire, pointing it such that she could see them both reflected into it.

Albeit most certainly by mistake, Aramis had undoubtedly stepped foot into one of the girl’s greatest fears since her coming to this realm of the dead, that being the sudden emergence of her own shadow; she had never quite appreciated this appendage she couldn’t control to begin with and, due to former events, this fright had grown toward irrationality. Culling her worries slightly, though, was the lack of similar response from those accompanying her, who didn’t seem to mind the presence at all and, upon closer inspection, she easily understood why; “Hi Captain! I found a new friend!”, Erika cheerily said while welcoming this unsettling presence. Captain...? Examining the ghostly figure further, its ominous form had now taken the appearance of a short man, not that Luna could comment further on that given her own height; moreover, looking at the eccentric white haori informed her of the individual’s rank within the Twelfth Division, that man was their Captain... “Y- Y, You~...”; you’ve *got* to be kidding!

Captain Aramis Tezuka, leader of the Twelfth...

If it had been another Captain, she might very well have been clueless about their identity, but you better believe this young scientist-in-the-making had already thoroughly researched the person ahead; “Captain Tezuka. Thank you for seeing us. I didn't expect you out of your office this time of day”, Takeda proclaimed with nonchalance, saluting the man who had made this abrupt arrival. Still fairly creeped out, Luna wasn’t reacting too well from simultaneously witnessing someone she held in high esteem and an act she thought had incredibly terrifying implications, as evidenced by the fact she absolutely would not allow herself to lose sight of Aramis, not even to blink... That he seemed to do the same wasn’t reassuring in the slightest; “Heard we had lost Academy Student. Sensory abilities are among highest in the Division. Most Qualified to look for her”. Well, guess that cat was out of the bag now... “If Academy Student found dead or missing on premises. Leads to awkward questions and investigations. Decided to resolve matter quickly”.

“Commendation for finding her. Well done”.

“Thank you Captain. We were just determining how to proceed from here”; not paying much heed to the discussion at hand, the Captain’s manner of speech caught her scrutiny far more prominently, its robotic inflexions, or lack thereof, giving her a major case of heebie-jeebies. “ACADEMY STUDENT!? So she's still at the Academy!? That means you can totally join our squad when you graduate and we can be besties here all the time!”; while under normal circumstances she would’ve gladly indulged her new friend’s state of happiness, the young student had her attention fully focused elsewhere and didn’t even dare to react or flinch at the hug she’d just received, for fear she’d miss critical information in her moment of emotional turmoil. “Perhaps”, Captain Tezuka replied, now addressing her directly; “Would like to hear from student though. Anything to say?”. “H- Ah, Y~ yes”; of course, her input would be requested as time went on, their eyes now all entirely directed on herself... The poor girl had to regain her usual composure, and fast.

She sighed, closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and lastly exhaled.

Calming down and gradually recovering her merry self, this young pioneer of scientific pursuit put on her most joyful smile and facial expression, signs of a strong determination slowly revealing themselves again; “No point hiding it any further”, she claimed, shrugging while doing so, “I initially came here to retrieve a replacement for equipment borrowed from Squad 12's inventory, we were using it during a medical lesson when the machinery broke down”. Flailing her arms about with cheeks lightly flushed red, she sensed that a misunderstanding was afoot and immediately went on the defensive, quelling the thoughts before they could foster; “Ahh~, pinky promise I wasn't involved in that! For once it truly was coincidence! Though, I guess everything afterward is kiiind~ of my fault...”, inner thinking slipping slightly into the fray. With that out of the way, she approached Aramis and, trying to grab both of his hands in a pleading posture, gave a heartfelt speech about her reasoning; “If I was to come here anyway, I couldn't just stay in the lobby~!! I looove~ science, so I had to explore this place!”.

Adorning a grin worthy of her own devious mindset, the girl finished her explanation with a proclamation, one the man in all fairness likely saw coming; “If I am to join, I had to first verify how my expertise will be utilized, riiight~?”, explicitly revealing her stance toward the earlier comments from Erika. Regardless, she continued, cutting off this discussion about her by turning it about him; “Anyway~, enough about myself! My name is Luna Melrose; it's a pleasure to meet you, Captain Aramis Tezuka~!”, slightly bowing in respect to his reputation and placing emphasis on the man’s full name. “I didn’t expect we’d be meeting quite so soon; can I maybe cutely ask for a glimpse at some more of your Division’s projects, pretty pleeeease~? Also, what was that ability just now?!”; if she were a dog, Luna would be wagging her tail in excitement right about now... In fact, her ominous aura flared quite similarly, erratic and agitated. In all this turmoil, the student also had an additional remark aimed at the senior officer, one that surely seemed insignificant enough but was in truth very meaningful, a critical problem for herself...

“Oh, and by the way~... My shadow is off-limits, thank you very much~!!”.

[Aramis Tezuka]

Aramis barely reacted to Luna’s panicked response to his appearance. He was taking in notes of all three of their behaviors. Erika and Takeda he knew well enough by now. Reliable workers, with their own quirks. He didn’t detect any discomfort in either of them, which meant neither of them were doing anything they shouldn’t be. Or at least that was their belief. They were acting as they felt was best. Aramis put on a brusque demeanor, but he did appreciate the individuals in his division that did their job, even if he found it a challenge to express that. Fortunately, neither Erika or Takeda had ever seemed to miss this aspect of him, and indeed, many of the division had just gotten to accept this was how Aramis behaved. His own quirks, like all of theirs.

That left Luna’s behavior, and Aramis could pick up on a number of traits in her current behaviour. Discomfort was evident, but there was something else…. Several things else in fact. Aramis let her take a breath and explain herself without interrupting her. She was certainly excitable. However when she went to grab both of Aramis’s hands, the Captain shifted back a step to avoid physical contact. ”Oh! Miss Melrose. I wouldn’t advise that. Captain Tezuka is a little sensitive about physical contact.”

With his right hand, Aramis waved off Takeda’s warning presuming that Luna did not make further attempts to grab the Nakabakki’s hands. Especially not his left. ”Ignorant of this. Will not hold against her.”

She seemed genuine in her love of science. This didn’t seem like a plea just to get out of trouble at any rate. She was inquisitive. Aramis had intended to judge her and she had shown aspects of her character. She may get along well with Erika after-all. Aramis noted in his thoughts. Still, the Captain was excellent at avoiding letting emotion show on his face. As if there was some wall between his thoughts and emotions and his facial expressions. Still, he was probably expected to say something in reply to all that. Well then.

”C.” He started, as if grading Luna’s answer. ”If as interested in division as claimed. Should know well list of injured or missing Shinigami from experiments. Dangerous to walk around unsupervised. Do not want to have dead Academy Student to explain to Academy.” He warned. ”Interest acknowledged. Inquisitive nature. Asset to division with proper skills and temperament. What are your strengths?” He asked, attempting to deftly sidestep the question about his shadow trick.

”Tour of division at this time. Ill advised. Several responsibilities to attend to. Takeda. Entrusting you with Administrator Chikan.” Takeda bowed to Aramis and then with a swishing sound that Luna might have recognized as the sound of a Flash Step, Takeda disappeared. Aramis himself paid it no mind. ”Am not refusing request. If interested in division will need to bring up to speed. Though division layout changes frequently. Necessary. Classified information and research here.” Aramis explained brusquely. ”Will arrange more official tour with Academy. Can arrange clearance for low-classification experiments, if interested. Otherwise. Have some further business in this wing. Will permit you to accompany me if interested. However. No physical contact. And will not be traveling by shadow.” Aramis stated.

”Ooo! Ooo! Can I come too—“ ”Request denied. Please return to front of barracks. Require your expertise. Front post is currently unmanned while Takeda is dealing with Chikan.” Aramis replied. Erika’s disappointment was evident but she gave Luna a wave. ”Don’t forget to catch up with me when you’re leaving Luna!” She exclaimed, darting off towards the front of the Division barracks, waving all the while right up to and including, crashing into the wall at the end of the hallway due to not looking where she was going, and having to quickly reorient herself to run off around the corner.

Aramis gave Luna another close look. ”Well?” He offered.

[Luna Melrose]

Embroiled in her discourse with the Squad Captain ahead, Luna truthfully didn’t even pay attention when she tried to grab his hands, a gesture lost among many others throughout the tumult of emotions rousing her into action; she did, however, have no choice but to notice the response it had provoked, immediately pulling back. ”Oh! Miss Melrose. I wouldn’t advise that. Captain Tezuka is a little sensitive about physical contact”; “Ah~, s- sorry!”, she said while giving a light bow in apology, an attempt at making amends soon proven unnecessary. ”Ignorant of this. Will not hold against her”, the Captain calmly replied, waving off Takeda’s concerns; grateful it didn’t escalate, the student relaxed in return and continued with her lengthy rhetoric, happily discussing among her peers! Brewing in her mind throughout the exchange, though, was a simple question... Why, ward her off? Offering resistance was generally a sign of someone desireful for something to remain hidden, concealed; a mystery was afoot and, discreetly glancing at the man’s form, she had no intention of letting his secrets remain buried.

Although, she certainly lacked the luxury to pursue such a matter right away.

Instead, the girl finished with her long monologue and her series of questions before focusing on Aramis and any hints of the man’s emotions, of which there were... None? Slightly weirded out, Luna was unable to get a good read on him, as if any display of his mind didn’t translate into body language at all; offering no solace either was his response, which began just as oddly as the rest of this Captain’s behavior. “C”; a single letter? She couldn’t quite grasp what it meant, just yet; “If as interested in division as claimed. Should know well list of injured or missing Shinigami from experiments”, he continued shortly afterward. Well, excuse meee~, she inwardly thought, pouting slightly as she did so; some of us aren’t so privileged we can just conveniently choose when to ignore the juicy unknown dangling in front of us! Luna knew of the risks involved and that such reports did exist, but every experiment should be enclosed according to their own safety constraints; besides, isn’t it his job to ensure such a massive failure didn’t happen!?

Yep yep~, she did nothing wrong!! There was no other logical conclusion.

Left unaware that such self-justification was occurring right under his nose, Aramis Tezuka’s words struck a chord yet likewise hit the bullseye; “Dangerous to walk around unsupervised. Do not want to have dead Academy Student to explain to Academy”. It felt like a scolding, almost, and for that she lowered her gaze slightly; the young scientist felt disheartened that such genuine, earnest emotions could lead to any sort of problems, let alone ones she would’ve caused. However... ”Interest acknowledged. Inquisitive nature. Asset to division with proper skills and temperament. What are your strengths?”; just like that, her mind was taken elsewhere and her pep returned, not even realizing yet her question had been sidelined entirely by the Captain. Looking sideways while placing a finger to her head, gestures reminiscent of a person deep in thoughts, she joyously sought to provide an accurate answer; “Hm~...”, the girl began ruminating, “I’ve got many talents ranging from engineering to sociology, and plenty of that delightful curiosity as well~! As for a specialty, let’s seeeee~...”.

Openly grinning, Luna Melrose didn’t hesitate a second; “Biology would certainly be a field I excel~ at; my medical prowess is a knack I looove~ using to explore and understand the whims of a body, especially any living one~!”, a twinge of darkness present in the glint of her eyes as she finished her sentence. “Of course, I do so~ responsibly! Can’t have my precious specimens dying on me, right?”; surely she would fit right in around here, the student thought, a self-satisfied look visibly apparent from her facial features. Whether Aramis thought differently remained to be seen but, either way, their interaction moved along toward the most crucial topic for her at the moment; “Tour of division at this time. Ill advised. Several responsibilities to attend to”, he monotonously commented, crushing her hopes. Sulking, that wasn’t quite the answer she wished to hear; Luna was around right now, regardless of their planned daily schedule! Obviously, this opportunity shouldn’t just be wasted, right?

“Takeda. Entrusting you with Administrator Chikan”.

With that, a swoosh of air was felt by the girl, a sensation she knew instinctively came from a Shinigami Flash Step; briefly looking around, she confirmed the male officer had now left before swiftly giving back her attention to the one ahead, feeling dejected... An emotion she didn’t need to suffer through for much longer. “Am not refusing request”; hearing those words, her posture immediately perked up. “If interested in division will need to bring up to speed. Though division layout changes frequently. Necessary. Classified information and research here", the Captain clarified; bowing lightly as a symbol of thanks, Luna was truly ecstatic... It seemed she would still attain a glimpse of this place after all, which she considered invaluable! “Will arrange more official tour with Academy. Can arrange clearance for low-classification experiments, if interested”; “Yes please~~!”, this eager student almost yelled out in response... “I would cherish such a chance to look around, following a bit of bureaucracy!”, she claimed while adorning a wide smile plastered between both ends of her face, no doubts a sign of her current mindset.

“Otherwise. Have some further business in this wing. Will permit you to accompany me if interested”; she tilted her head slightly, “Mhm~, of course! Anywhere I can, I’ll go~”. “However”, a warning issued, “No physical contact. And will not be traveling by shadow”; a shiver was sent through her back at the off-handed mention of what happened, although it was kept contained for now... However, she also realized her earlier question had been swept under the rug, the meanie! Internally vowing not to let that topic die out, she nonetheless did not plan to push on that subject just yet; truth be told, the man held a terrifying threat over her head, its limits still unknown to herself. Worst-case scenario, he could manifest her very worst nightmares, which wasn’t a risk she was willing to take; for that reason, the woman had no desire to directly push his buttons either, nor would she compromise her chances by disregarding his demands regarding physical contact... In short, a stalemate was in effect; “Fair enough~”, she solemnly responded to his statement, “No playing with shadows, and I won’t be touchy-feely~ either”.

Hopefully, this implicit agreement would withstand the test of time.

Interjecting from the sidelines, Erika was assuredly aspiring to accompany the duo, “Ooo! Ooo! Can I come too—", although, “Request denied”, her swift petition was immediately vetoed; “Please return to front of barracks. Require your expertise. Front post is currently unmanned while Takeda is dealing with Chikan”. Refused this guilty pleasure, the scientist seemed saddened by the turn of events but still respected her Captain’s decision; evidently, Luna would’ve done the same if their roles were reversed, but still secretly wished to know more about this impromptu friend she’d made here. That’s why, when the eccentric girl began waving, “Don’t forget to catch up with me when you’re leaving Luna!”, she was glad to return the gesture; “I’ll be stopping by~!”, the young student joyfully exclaimed, waving as she did so up until a loud, unexpected collision took place. “Are you okaaay~?”, she asked as the girl turned around the corner and disappeared out of sight; meanwhile, another individual soon regained her full attention, a single inquiry made to the earnest visitor... “Well?”.

“I’ll be right behind you~!”, Luna Melrose replied with an ominous grin; surely, nothing to worry about...

[Aramis Tezuka]

“I’ve got many talents ranging from engineering to sociology, and plenty of that delightful curiosity as well~! As for a specialty, let’s seeeee~... “Biology would certainly be a field I excel~ at; my medical prowess is a knack I looove~ using to explore and understand the whims of a body, especially any living one~!”. Beat. “Of course, I do so~ responsibly! Can’t have my precious specimens dying on me, right?” Aramis gave a curt nod. "Wide range of specialties. Useful if true. Many potential test subjects. Shinigami and Non-Shinigami." He replied. "Pleased to note preference to sparing test subjects if possible. Note. Survival of test subjects is not mandatory. But is encouraged. Too many test subjects die or maimed, division receives fewer volunteers. Makes further research more difficult." A concern for the test subjects born not out of kindness or any form of morality, but rather a morbid pragmatism. Which summed up many of Aramis's procedures with the division. Pragmatic. Or at least he'd like to think of it that way. Morality was set aside, but pragmatism ruled supreme, and Aramis found the two coincided more often than one expected, even if only purely out of the fact that cooperating with others usually yielded better results in the long term than taking from others.

After Takeda left and Aramis further explained to Luna he was not denying her request for a tour, the girl seemed pleased enough-- bounding between emotional states quite rapidly. Something Aramis took note of. The man was, unfortunately, oblivious to his own role in that-- as far as Aramis was concerned, forming an opinion before he'd finished speaking was only going to lead to confusion. It was why he'd waited to let Luna finish before forming his own. Once again, perhaps pragmatic, but admittedly horrendously lacking in social graces. Aramis was perhaps, the kind of person who would tell a panicked parent that their child was "Alright", because their left side was no longer functional, and be confused by their natural indignation when he clarified. Social graces were certainly not Aramis's strength.

Aramis nodded again in response to her agreement about the bureaucracy. "Very well. Will arrange tour. Try to bring other interested students. Can always use more researchers. Go through researchers as well as test subjects." And with that, Aramis had dismissed Erika as well and it was now just him and Luna. "Follow me." He replied, sweeping along the corridor, a clipboard materializing out of his uniform somehow, and the Captain checked a long itinerary along it. "This wing typically used for environmental studies. Already saw biome generator. How did it appear?" He asked of Luna, as if testing her own investigative skills. "Newer Shinigami to Division helped cultivate this room. One of many Division Green Houses. Be alert. A few movie nights ago, human world film of choice was "Little Shop of Horrors"." Beat. "And Jumanji before that."

Aramis then opened the door and a wave of humidity washed out. Aramis barely paused as he entered the room into what resembled a... well, it wasn't a completely different world like the other one. There was definitely a ceiling to this room, with numerous lights that seemed to producing a light that was assisting with increasing the room's humidity. Beyond that, the room resembled a literal jungle. Massive overgrown greenery effectively everywhere, and various vibrantly colored flora. Pinks, yellows, reds, violets, purples and blues. A sweet aroma filled the air, like scented honey, and the dim buzzing of insects was audible-- probably bees. Aramis strode through the room, examining the various flora about. Some of these flowers were quite massive, dwarfing the two in size. One in particular, with a long, thorny stalk about eight feet off the ground was growing straight up about twenty meters from the entrance, with a vibrant red and white spotted head, and large broad leaves. "Various uses here. Toxins and medicines produced from flora in this room. Potential food supplies-- still in testing stages. Contemplating use of plants for military purposes. Potentially effective defenses against low-grade opponents."

Indeed, several of the plants in the room seemed to almost be viewing the two that had entered almost.... hungrily?

[Luna Melrose]

Her rehearsal of the girl’s many talents had seemingly gone swimmingly and was well-received by Captain Tezuka, who saw within a pledge of versatility; “Wide range of specialties. Useful if true”, she puffed her chest out slightly, apparently proud of that assessment. “Many potential test subjects. Shinigami and Non-Shinigami. Pleased to note preference to sparing test subjects if possible”; as a matter of course, really. Given her medical skills, why wouldn’t she allow herself the pleasure of further research? It was a sensible thing to do, the most efficient methodology she could adopt; although, she did welcome the clarifications that came soon afterward. “Note. Survival of test subjects is not mandatory. But is encouraged. Too many test subjects die or maimed, division receives fewer volunteers. Makes further research more difficult”; “Noted~!”, the girl answered, making sure to remember that fact. “Must be hard to find willing volunteers, these days~”; Truth be told, Luna didn’t understand this desire for self-preservation, rampant among the masses... Wasn’t the Greater Good a lot more important than their lofty ideals?

The request for a tour of the Division’s facility she desired also ended on a positive note, frankly, receiving no resistance whatsoever; “Very well. Will arrange tour”, the Squad Captain replied to her appeal for such a guided visit... Yes~! Her coy smile somewhat betrayed the gratitude she felt for this opportunity; “Try to bring other interested students. Can always use more researchers. Go through researchers as well as test subjects”. “Will do~!”, the young scientist claimed in response; “I’ll find us lots!”. She would certainly find a generous assortment of like-minded compatriots; after all, the Academy had no lack of intellectuals and other nerds she could easily entice along, pulling favors and framing it to their advantage; if the young student played her cards right, she could build herself the perfect herd of assistants for her own projects. Already daydreaming over the various ventures she might explore with their aid, Luna couldn’t help but get excited about the days yet to come; if they instead refused, well... That’s nothing a bit of indoctrination and forceful convincing wouldn’t fix.

For now, though, the girl had much more pressing matters requiring her attention... A personal, one-on-one exploration session with none other than Captain Aramis Tezuka, himself! “Follow me”, he requested, an offer she happily obliged; “Aye aye~!”, Luna let out, tagging along as the man moved forward through the corridors. She did say she’d be right behind him, and she truly meant those words... Indeed, her remark was a ploy allowing her to keep a watchful eye on the Captain’s shadow from behind, covertly examining its shape for any clues about his true ability; at a glance, its form appeared no different from a regular shadow, so did this mean the trick was rather related to Aramis himself? Given how enigmatic he treated his own body, that seemed a likely inference; inspecting the man closely from a distance, she was highly curious about what could possibly explain this mystery, yet also quickly diverted her focus toward another oddity she couldn’t possibly avoid noticing about his actions...

He pulled a clipboard, out of thin air.

He, what?! Going completely wide-eyed at that display, she let out an audible, faint yelp following what she’d just witnessed; “Ah-!~”, a stifled noise, perhaps enough to catch the man’s attention... That was an incredible breakthrough! Leaning over his shoulder, or at least attempting to do so given their respective heights, the young woman wanted to catch a glimpse of whatever device caused such a phenomenon, no matter if it was tied to the clipboard itself or the Captain’s sleeve; she had effectively set aside the shadow investigation entirely, at least for now. Instead, Luna did what could only be described as a demonic light puppet show of sorts behind the poor man, desperately waving her arms in all kinds of directions while he walked to try and figure out what spatial trickery was at play to make that happen, all without touching the man directly, desireful not to break their agreement; worse, if Aramis turned at all or took any actions to confirm her own, she’d quickly pretend complete normalcy while happily humming a song, causing him to perhaps doubt the legitimacy of what he’d perceived.

Truly, a terrible attempt at concealing her activities.

Regardless of how he decided to react, the comments he gave along their little adventure led her to slowly correct her posture, impersonating a blameless, innocent girl; "This wing typically used for environmental studies. Already saw biome generator. How did it appear?", the Squad Captain asked of his guest, directly inquiring for her own input. Excitedly pulling out a notebook from within her own uniform, she opened the small draft and gladly expounded her findings, the writings mostly filled with scribbled gibberish many wouldn’t quite understand; “Ooh~! It was interesting and suuuper~ beautiful!”, the girl started. “The night sky and open space provided a perfect~ environment to build a thriving, ever-evolving ecosystem~, where those large fungi would surely play a huge~ role”; she grinned, pointing to a section of her notes detailing the features she’d noticed about them, “I mean, bioluminescence is haaard~, you know? Most natural species rarely emit~ more than one wavelength, yet these were like a sparkly rainbow! That means their frequencies were all over the place, and I’m sure some likely even went outside the visible spectrum~!”.

She closed her notebook and turned around momentarily, effectively lost in her thoughts by this point; “Touching them released beautiful spores, too~, and I’ve seen them used by insects in a symbiosis, they were poisonous; this suggests it fulfills a defensive purpose, to ward off~ predators... Although, since the insects weren’t aware of that, these seeds were likely not native to that environment; that biosphere must have been made precisely to host them... The chemical reaction, it has to hold a secret... And the Roach...”. Merely rambling by the end, Luna was soon jolted back to reality once only the sound of her voice filled the air for several consecutive seconds, realizing she’d been going on and on without really paying heed to his question any longer; “O- ohh~, sorry!”, she exclaimed in slight embarrassment after going overboard with her analysis... They soon stopped at one of the many doorways overlapping the walls on both sides, the pair seemingly having reached their current destination, despite the woman’s ignorance of that fact.

“Newer Shinigami to Division helped cultivate this room. One of many Division Green Houses”.

Oooh, she sure was interested to witness the results of their hard work! “Be alert. A few movie nights ago, human world film of choice was "Little Shop of Horrors". And Jumanji before that”; while she wasn’t a film connoisseur by any means, the girl got the gist of it: Danger ahead. Unfortunately, that pretty much went into one ear and left through the other, as her eyes began scintillating with life instantly the moment that door opened and revealed massive overgrown plant life, strong humidity immediately felt along her skin; a literal jungle!! Lots of colors! Okay, vibrant hues are generally~ a warning sign of hazards in nature, but, like... Who cares? She didn’t! “Various uses here. Toxins and medicines produced from flora in this room. Potential food supplies-- still in testing stages. Contemplating use of plants for military purposes. Potentially effective defenses against low-grade opponents”; “Uohhh~?”, she contemplated the greenery around herself as Aramis disclosed those uses, deeply intrigued about their versatility.

While the Captain had a leisurely stroll within the room’s confines, she tagged nearby and didn’t veer off too far just yet, taking in the scenery instead and admiring the various wonders located inside; the woman had to admit finding the scent emanating in here particularly alluring, an aroma she enjoyed, reminding her of exotic flowers she’d had the pleasure of previously cohabiting along. Scanning these surroundings with her gaze, though, allowed the young scientist to set her sights on the large flora ahead, dwarfing all others in size; boy did she want to have a closer look at it! Suddenly going off in her own direction, Aramis would surely only get a tiny window to react before the worse happened; halting directly in front of it, the girl reached her arm forward and tried touching this massive vegetation, feeling its texture and taking a sample all while petting the large head and observing its motions from up close. Could such a plant feel intimidated...? If so, then her spiritual energy, flaring erratically, and most importantly a steady bloodlust filled with malice, focused in its direction, might manage to do exactly that.

Or, perhaps, it’d just get agitated, backfiring horribly... Who knows?

[Aramis Tezuka]

If Aramis noticed or was bothered by Luna's antics while they performed his rounds, he gave absolutely no indication of it. The man had clearly practiced his poker face very well, and it was rare to even get so much of a look of annoyance or intense concentration to reflect on his face. As for the mysterious clipboard, that would be a difficult task to answer-- certainly the sleeve on Aramis's left arm was long enough that it might have concealed the clipboard, or perhaps it was hidden in his uniform and Aramis had taken it out with sleight of hand honed after months and months of practice?

At any rate, Aramis didn't interfere with Luna's shenaniganry, but did take note of her answer about the biome. "Good. Saved me a trip to that room. Obliged. Surprised you are alive if encountered Roach. Formidable creature. Would expect seated officer to survive encounter with one. Perhaps defeat with considerable difficulty. Would not expect Academy student to survive encounter. Aggressive. Powerful." Aramis noted. Was he impressed at the inferred survival against the Roach that hadn't actually happened? In fact he didn't seem to have minded Luna's rambling either. "Good observations. Attention to detail." He added. It seemed he was willing to also take Luna at her word!

But Aramis's eyes were on the environment as they entered the greenhouse. True-- none of the plants here were a threat to Aramis. As he'd specified. Defenses against low-grade opponents. Aramis expected that even a Seated Officer could defeat any of the plants here with only considerable difficulty at the very most powerful and those were the ones that had been dubbed "Seymour" after the eponymous antagonist of aforementioned musical. But that was absolutely no reason to lower his guard. Firstly, Squad 12 experiments had a tendency of getting ahead of themselves, and Aramis could never dismiss the possibility that a relatively weak experiment had unexpectedly grown in power. Secondly, their lack of strength was all the more reason for him not to embarrass himself by being blindsided by one.

Speaking of which where had the Academy Student-- oh dear. Aramis's gaze snapped about as Luna's own personal experiment proved a success! Of sorts. The plant could certainly sense her spiritual energy to some extent and did react. The stalk wiggled and the red and white spotted bulb lowered almost as if it were looking at Luna. Then the jaws opened up. Not a Venus Flytrap's jaws, this plant had actual teeth and what looked like some form of tongue! Its teeth gnashed together before lunging down at Luna. It wasn't big enough to swallow her whole, but it was easily large enough to bite her in two if she didn't move.

The creature thankfully wasn't overwhelmingly fast, but it would be, as Aramis had warned her, fast enough to at least be a threat, and its size suggested it was quite powerful. Its spiritual presence wasn't anything special, at least as far as Luna could tell, but she could still probably reasonably guess that being bitten by this massive carnivorous plant would be hazardous to her health to say the least!

At the same moment it snapped at Luna, Aramis noticed the plant attack and moved to intercept, but Luna had wandered a hair too far-- While Aramis could probably arrive in time to stop a second strike, Luna was on her own to deal with the first! "Move" Aramis commanded Luna. There was no anger in his voice, but there was authority. Aramis wasn't about to go and let Luna die on him before he'd had a chance to suitably evaluate her aptitude for his division damnit!

SPOILER: Click to show

{Piranha Plant Stats}
Strength: 150
Speed: 50
Reiatsu Strength: 20
Spirit Pressure: 20
Senses: 100
Instincts: 50
Energy Sensory: 10
Healing Expertise: 0
Total SP: 400

[Luna Melrose]

While Luna was up to her usual tomfoolery, it didn’t seem to bother the Captain at all, a relief for sure; if the poor man couldn’t handle this much, he certainly wouldn’t hold out for long around the girl... Still, the secret to his little maneuver was nowhere to be found, and that truly drove her up the wall! The clipboard remained a mystery, the trick to its appearance concealed even now; would he give her an answer, she thought, if the request was made? The woman could think of a good dozen ways to explain such a strange phenomenon, but that mattered not; she cared only for the cold, hard facts. Sadly, she couldn’t dig further for now and rather provided her own observations in response to Captain Tezuka’s inquiry, prompting an answer from him in return; “Good. Saved me a trip to that room. Obliged. Surprised you are alive if encountered Roach. Formidable creature. Would expect seated officer to survive encounter with one. Perhaps defeat with considerable difficulty. Would not expect Academy student to survive encounter. Aggressive. Powerful”.

“Mhmm~!”, she agreed with that assessment, especially following her encounter with Takeda and Erika, who had both proven quite jumpy while within the confines of that room; “Good observations. Attention to detail”, he further noted, a bit of praise invigorating the young scientist. Although she wasn’t showing much of it, these small moments of recognition were doing a lot to keep her under control, the girl trying to demonstrate her worth on this short excursion of theirs; there was little more motivating for herself, after all, than the idea to roam here and perform experiments all day, at her own leisure! Doubts arose in her mind, however... Aramis took her statement at face value, but was she really certain that creature had been the infamous Roach? I mean, it gnarled, and she’d feared for her life, right...? But still, it felt... No no, they would’ve said something if another beast inhabited that environment, surely; that she hadn’t visually confirmed the identity of her pursuer was of no importance, in fact it’s likely what saved her own hide!

Besides, there were now far more important matters awaiting her input, calling for her urgent care; Luna had this giant, colossal flora located right in front of herself, which needed to be inspected further! Given just how impressive it looked, the woman couldn’t contain herself; she placed her left hand on the large bulb and felt the patterns of its cuticle through touch and motion while her right hand moved toward the wide leaves to its side and tore off a portion for use in further analysis, both deeds performed in sync and carefully measured to avoid injuring herself along the plant’s many thorns. The student was now excitedly engaged in field experiments, her obsessed mind focusing entirely on nothing but the discovery she might make; that’s why, her elation became palpable through the girl’s aura and presence, emanating wildly in her surroundings. Evidently sensing this, the flower leaned over her and revealed a long row of teeth, a large mouth worthy of horrors; wait...

“Is that a Piranha Plant?!”

Finally recognizing this connection with the Mario franchise, Luna’s gaze was sparkling with amazement, still oblivious to her own predicament; rather than worry about the situation at hand, she eagerly gestured at the Captain with her hands as if to say ‘look look I finally got it’, innocently proud of her admittedly late realization. She had not a hint of anguish and uncertainty as the young girl looked into the orifice serving as this plant’s mouth, its gaping hole lined with a disorderly array of large, extraordinarily sharp teeth; she began mentally counting the oral appendages, surely to the disbelief of her onlooker... 5... 10... 20... Easily 40 teeth were arranged in a fashion duly deserving of devouring its prey, the researcher happily surmised; but wait, which unfortunate target had attracted the ire of this beautiful specimen, she wondered? Giving a very quick glance around, Luna Melrose couldn’t quite figure out what lured its attention, until its stalk began twitching and, facing its large mouth again, she sensed downward movement; oh, you don’t mean...

“Move”.

A command issued, one she didn’t need to hear twice; a scientist regularly acts according to their sensory inputs, meaning she was well-conditioned already to perform an action corresponding to received stimuli. Instinctively, her body went into autopilot and the young student leapt backwards, recognized as the less perilous direction she could move toward; “Woah-!?”, she yelped as its large head chomped ahead of her current position, a bite that would’ve definitely left its marks had she not hurried out of its way. Having given no prior thoughts to her own balance during this leap, Luna disgracefully tripped on her back when the ground finally found itself at her feet again, although hopefully she would have sufficiently withdrawn to now be outside the reach of this carnivorous flora; the woman remained alert, recognizing three further vectors of attack it might still wield... Its tongue might extend beyond the limits of its reach, it may be able to wield projectiles, be they thorns or spit or otherwise, and its roots, hidden underground, also became a potential threat to be wary about; nonetheless, the girl hastily rose back to her feet, then did something truly unthinkable.

“That was mean, Mr. Piranha~!”, she wiggled her finger as if scolding the flower, which was towering over herself just a second ago.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Luna Melrose Stats & Skills}

These are the stats and skills associated with the character for this thread.

Strength: 25

Speed: 60

Reiatsu Strength: 25

Spiritual Pressure: 20

Senses: 40

Instinct: 60 (75)

Energy Sensory: 0

Healing Expertise: 50

Crafting 1

Weapon: Body-Modification 1

Analyzing 1

Battle Analysis 1

War Strategy 1

Strength of Will 1

Charisma 1

Acting 1

Light Aura: 0

Dark Aura: 100