estoria | ( OPEN )

--Oh, no. If this is a noise complaint, then you've certainly found the right room.

[Sighing, Koumei opened the door further so he could regard the man more directly. The fine cloth of his robes was as disheveled as his hair, and the oddly ornate fan that he carried in his hands would have seemed like an odd accessory to a passing stranger.

Koumei held said fan up, almost as if to give himself some space while he thought.]

There's at least a dozen or so young men with swords residing in this apartment and the two surrounding. They can get quite energetic, and don't always understand how people need their rest. While I'm new to this residence, I can still pass along a message for you.

[he almost misses the explanation, because that fan gets his attention immediately. He hasn't spent how many years around Sima Yi's black-feathered fan not to recognize a cousin. His eyes go to it rather obviously despite any effort at keeping his icy expression in place.]

A dozen. That would certainly explain a lot.

...that fan. It belongs to you? [you know, just checking]

[A dozen was an underestimation as well. Koumei hadn't met all of Haru's army yet, but he was certain that there were many, many more.

The path that the man's eyes took was impossible not to notice, no matter how practiced his expression was. Koumei watched him carefully from above the black feathers of it, not daring to glance down at the eight pointed star that was emblazoned on the side of the hilt that faced his person.]

It belongs to none but me, [he replied evenly, his gaze unwavering.] Why do you ask?

It seems familiar. [not that he knows whether there are other kingdoms in the world whose strategists use feathered war fans, but it's a little too alike to be coincidence.] One of my head tacticians has one very alike to it. I wonder. From where do you hail?

[War fans were fairly common; his step-sister and comrade in arms also carried one into battle with her. But, that was only within the boundaries of his family's Empire. He had never seen such items used by the likes of the neighboring countries or Kingdoms.]

The Kou Empire, where I serve as chief tactician for my Brother and King.

[He bobbed his head in a short bow, not even bothered by outing himself as an Imperial Prince as well as a military man.]

Likewise, where do you hail from? None of the people I've met thus far have even heard of Kou or our neighboring countries, which makes me curious about the people who live in this city.

[he mirrors that head-bob, from one prince to another. Neither of them need to kowtow if they essentially rank the same.]

I have not heard of Kou either, but I recognize the mark of a strategist. My kingdom is Wei, though my father was born during the Han Dynasty.

[his kingdom, no less]

[Ah, a fellow man displaced from similar circumstances.]

I'm Ren Koumei. While I've never heard of Wei or Han, there's much in this world that is like that. Please forgive me if I make any mistakes.

Cao Pi, styled Zihuan. [but no explanation on his style name. It's just proper introduction.] Ren is a familiar name, I have a relative by that name, but Koumei is strange. It sounds more like a name from Wa.

Wa is another country I've not heard of, Lord Zihuan. It seems my homeland has little besides culture in common with most of the lands represented here.

[It was the most rational reason he could find for why there were so many strange countries listed whenever people spoke. China and Japan meant little to him without context-- he had a feeling that he would need to find a library to attain a proper understanding of this world.]

Hm. Even so, there is always a chance time is the culprit, rather than place. Names do change in time, after all.

[gives another small dip of his head] Forgive me for rousing you, Master Koumei, but it seems my interruption was a worthy one. I've only been here a few days myself, and there has been little in the way of familiarity for me. This world is strange, to put it lightly.

I'm quite aware of how time has changed things. I've seen countries taken and redefined within the span of my lifetime-- it's an unavoidable fact of life.

[The short, subtle bow is returned in kind.]

We should perhaps speak more in the future, as we're both facing similar dilemmas. I shall speak with the man that these warriors follow and see if we can arrange a time for the both of you to meet as well. The people in these quarters are also open minded; provided you can be as well, your company won't be unwelcome here.

[he raises an eyebrow at open minded but lets it slide.]

That would be useful. If he does have that many people at his command...

[he'll learn soon enough but for now he goes with Koumei's assessment. Sure, a dozen people living in the same quarters could look like an army, right?]

When in a strange place, alliances must be made where they can be found.

[He noted that skepticism, and returned it with a mild look of his own. He understood the problems that came with having a static mindset all too well, and knew how easily it was to have one's world overturned if one wasn't willing to adapt.]

Indeed they must be. I hope that I can count you among them in this strange place, even if we happen upon circumstances that neither of us fully understand.

Perhaps. We have only just met, anything is possible.

[he probably will be, he just needs to hedge his bets.]

The colony and the way it works certainly is unusual, but strip away the metal and the flashing lights, and we find ourselves unwilling guests in a kingdom not our own. It doesn't take understanding technology to see what that could mean.

[It was easy to see-- and the ramifications of such possibilities were something he had already considered.]

We've been drafted. That's the only part of the government's story that I'm choosing to accept. The rest of it sounds fundamentally impossible, and I've reason to believe that no one in my homeland would be taken down so easily.

[Cao Pi gives him a cool look before turning and leaning his back against the door frame]

You think so? Greater men than us have claimed they would never be taken down, and they've died all the same, crushed under greater heels. I am not inclined to trust the whole story, either, but at the very least, I won't be taken in by such an assumption.

I can name several men and women back in my homeland who can take on an army single handed, if such force is needed.

[He was personally related to five of them, but that was an unnecessary detail for the moment.]

That is my reason for distrusting the story, and why I'm disinclined to believe that we've merely been brought here as prisoners of war. Besides, if the governor's enemies are at a comparable level of strangeness? I doubt that they would have much interest in either of our worlds.

[for now, Cao Pi decides to leave that topic aside. His experiences in Orochi's realm have colored his perceptions, but even he was a fledgling in his father's army when Lu Bu was captured and executed. No one, as far as he was concerned, was invincible.

Yet if this CERES group was capable of pulling him out of Orochi's realm, something not even the gods could do...

It bore more thought.]

Yes, there are too many unanswered questions. I am not interested in sitting back and taking a civilian's employment, I would rather look into this issue. But not today.

Its the same for me, although taking civilian employment may be a necessary task just to gain information and resources.

[At least teahouses were known to be spots where people frequented to have serious discourse. Even if civilian work would be a new experience for him, he honestly couldn't think of a better place to start.]

[he closes his eyes in a clear expression of impatience. Not for Koumei, just for this world and its conventions]

There is that. Without the luxury of a kingdom and its treasury, we must come by our necessities somehow. Still.

[which begs an important yet more personal question] Did they give you ridiculous suggestions as well?

'Pillow tester' and 'Trap Designer' were offered alongside the Teahouse work. The first is tempting when sleep is a luxury. The second is unnecessary.

[He shrugged.]

What did they offer you?

[he can't help but snort at that]

An instructor, presumably in martial arts, and something regarding anger management. I have no interest in leading anyone by the hand, whether in swordsmanship or in controlling their emotions. I believe I may have to seek my own way.

There is no shame in that approach-- and I wish you luck in the endeavor. This city must have a law enforcement agency...a job like that would be more appropriate for a military man like yourself.

Hm. I had not thought of that, but it does bear looking into.

[if he can stomach taking orders from someone else, that is. Even in Orochi's realm he only defers to his father and no one else.]

A wise thought, young master.

Being adaptable is a necessity in strange circumstances, [he intoned, shrugging off the compliment. Any soldier worth the steel he carried understood that basic concept.]

Besides, this city doesn't seem to have an actual military force, and public service does not sound like a wise option for a man of your experience.

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