Oh what's this now?

Churches was not something she was very used to. The ravaged and post apocalyptic world she came from before Caido didn't see many people having religions anymore, at least not the same ones from the past. She'd seen churches of course, big or small, even rather big ones as well, but none of them were in use(at least not for their intended purpose) and well past their prime. Just about all of them were wrecks, with plenty of holes in them, although some where still intact but dilapidated. The word of a church in use piqued her interest enough to want to take a look at it. Caido was a new and different world, a new place for new beginnings and so why not a church? Nairi headed to Domiciles where the Church of Safrin was located. Old memories were about to clash with new ones, and this was an exciting time for her. She soon arrived at her destination to find out that the church she had been looking for was none other than an abandoned house. The only difference this had with the churches of her old memories was that this was in use, and by no means dilapidated. As she approached near the entrance of the church, she saw a man painting the outer walls with pretty decorative swirls in blue paint. She stood there for several moments, watching the man work his art before she spoke up. "That looks like fun. Can I try?" NAIRI If you're not lost, you're not much of an explorer.

Bastien had decided that the outside of his church was simply far too drab. The inside was a beautiful scene of dim blues and bright stars, so why should the outside look as terribly industrial as the rest of the buildings around? There was simply no excuse for the church to have a cream wall with no adornments. While it was not ideal weather for paint to dry, if there was no snow or rain for a night it would be alright. With this in mind, he had arrived that morning with paints and brushes (regularly supplied by Remi. He needed to get the man some kind of thank you gift, he thought) and had begun to dream while he looked at the wall. What could he do? Of course, stars were the obvious symbol, but perhaps they were becoming a little overused. He had begun by painting large, loose spirals coming away from the door in tones of blue and purple. Occasionally he would add just a hint of an iridescent green to catch the light, but not too much. People stared as they walked by, which he liked - it was performance of sorts. When Nairi first stopped to watch, he didn't think much of it, perhaps flicking his wrist a little more and putting in just that much more effort for her benefit. It was only when she spoke that he turned to look at her, a smile on his face. Helping others enter the arts had always been part of his life, though there was a little twinge of this is my piece, though; he swallowed it down and handed her a paintbrush. "Of course, cara. Take this and paint whatever your soul tells you. Would you tell me your name? I would love to know who I am collaborating with." BASTIEN I'm feeling devious, you're looking glamourous

The longer she looked at it, the more elaborate the simple designs were actually becoming. What had initially started out as a large loose spiral had now been further enhanced with several new colours such as a purple and iridescent green. Nairi didn't expect to receive an answer, certainly not so soon when she had blurted out her request to give the painting a try. She had never painted before, nor was she experienced in any form of similar arts. However, it looked easy enough for her to try, and being unafraid of trying anything new, this was just yet another activity to add to the list. To her surprise, the man was kind and polite, giving her a smile which she returned in kind, with a warm one of her own. He handed her a paint brush and asked for her name. He had called her cara as well. She didn't know what that meant. "My name is Nairi, and who are you mister? Why do you call me Cara?" She inquired, cocking her head in amused confusion. Taking the brush from him, she asked him further. "Where do I start?" She gestured to the empty portions of the wall. She then made swirling gestures with the brush without actually painting anything. "Swirls, like this?" NAIRI If you're not lost, you're not much of an explorer.

"I am Bastien De Rosieres, the person in charge at the church you are now painting." Bastien did a little mock bow, dipping his head lower than was necessary with a smirk on his face. "As for cara...just a term of endearment in my language. It means...ah...I think the closest would be 'dear'. Does it bother you?" He thought Nairi would need encouragement to even begin, but then she made her first mark with the paintbrush. "That is beautiful. Simply do whatever you feel you should. I have been making these lines-" He reached to do a large, spanning spiral which transitioned from purple to green, the edges effortlessly clean and graceful. "--Because it is how I feel inside when I think of my lady Safrin." "You can of course paint those two, or paint a memory, or the feeling of love, or your worst fear, your best dream...anything, Nairi. I do not care for uniform art, just true art." BASTIEN I'm feeling devious, you're looking glamourous

The man introduced himself as Bastien De Rosieres, the owner of the Church she had come to see.  He then gave her a mock bow, which she returned in kind with a genuine one of her own. He then explained the term of Cara, and asked if she had any problem with the word being used on her. Nairi shook her head violently in objection to that statement, her hand gesturing that it was really no problem at all, and she had no problems whatsoever with the usage of the word. It was quite endearing really. No one had ever used such kind words on her before, definitely not in the world she had previously come from. She grinned to herself when Bastien commented that the simple spiral she'd painted was beautiful. He then told her to paint what she really felt, and she did several more spirals in different colours, and as her confidence grew, she decided to paint something else from memory. Dipping a brush into fresh paint, she painted two twin arches joint to each other. When she was wandering the abandoned buildings in her old ravaged world, she'd seen plenty of such signs on the buildings, and old faded posters that marked it as a place of happiness. She did not know what it had actually been used for, and neither did any of the old folks. These were simply a relic of time long past. Nairi thought that happiness would be fitting memory. NAIRI If you're not lost, you're not much of an explorer.

Nairi seemed to overcome her initial nervousness with the paint quickly, going on to paint several more spirals and then two arches which resembled a building softly fading away into the distance. Bastien nodded his approval, then went to work more on his own section. His spirals moved up and together into a detailed portrait of Safrin, large distinctive paint marks making it look vague and blurry, so that a passer by would have to stare for a moment to work out quite what it was. This was purposeful: He wanted them to wait outside and linger, to stop and consider his church. "Tell me of what you paint, cara. Is it from where you come from? Having not seen you here before I assume you must be a visitor from another world." BASTIEN I'm feeling devious, you're looking glamourous

Bastien wanted to know what was that she had painted, and Nairi was only too happy to explain it to him, although she herself too did not know exactly what it was. It was simply a frequent memory of her old world, and one so far back in her world's history that the meaning is just about gone. She spoke readily, and without hesitation. "Yes, I am not from here. The world I come from is far bleaker and with far more ruins than what I've seen here. In the big cities, there are huge towering wrecks of abandoned buildings. It is common among the street level to see signs such as this and it is one that I see often. No one seems to know what it really means."   She then stared dreamily at the wall, as if recollecting another previous memory. "One day, one of the old folks shared with me an old relic, a poster with the two same arches on it. The twin arches were a faded yellow on an equally faded red background and happiness was the only word that she could make out." NAIRI If you're not lost, you're not much of an explorer.

Bastien listened with rapt attention to Nairi's story, even stopping his own painting so he could concentrate better. He always loved to hear stories of other worlds, especially if they had to do with art. "...I see. So do you think it has some kind of religious significance? Or perhaps an ancient civilisation...?" Admittedly he had expected Nairi to paint something slightly more generic like trees or flowers, and the thought that having a symbol of another worlds religion on his church wasn't great did occur to him. But he did not show that trepidation outwardly, just smiling at her work (which he supposed he could always cover up later). BASTIEN I'm feeling devious, you're looking glamourous

Nairi shook her head vigorously in the same way she always did when she disagreed with something. "I don't know anything about it, but I do not think it might be related to anything religious, as there is another common symbol-" she paused and used her empty hand to draw a cross gesture in the air with her fingers. "I've been told that symbol is part of a religion from before, and churches big and small all come with it, both inside and outside."  She nodded her head this time. "I wouldn't paint another religious symbol on the walls of a church. This I know that much!" She grinned as she said this, pleased with revealing her thought process out loud. "I do not know who this belongs to, even the old people in the settlement I was staying in told me that the wrecks have been there since they were a child. It was a common belief that it belonged to the people who lived in this world when the buildings were not destroyed and people actually stayed or worked in them." The thought of that was just hard to fathom for her. People actually living and working in those towering buildings. NAIRI If you're not lost, you're not much of an explorer.

Bastien froze when Nairi made the symbol of the cross in the air. He had only come across one person from his world, so he didn't want to make assumptions, but...he knew the sign of Christianity. "This..." He said, mimicking the way she had signed it. "...Is the symbol of Christ. It is a religion in my world. Are you...what....did you call the place you came from?" Still, he was assured enough that the arches on his wall weren't religious, so he slowly picked his paintbrush back up and began to work on his own area again, just adding detail wherever he saw fit. "...It sounds a desolate place." He commented, but his mind was racing. If she was from Earth, what did she mean about all the abandoned buildings? Could she be...from his future? BASTIEN I'm feeling devious, you're looking glamourous

Nairi appeared visibly shocked when Bastien showed signs of recognising the symbol she just drew in the air. She didn't think anyone from this world would knew something from her own. Perhaps, Bastien was from her own world as well? He mentioned that it was the symbol of Christ, and although she wasn't religious, she believed she had heard those religious mentioned that word before. It was also a religion where she came from. "I believe it is called Earth. A shell of its former self as it is commonly said." Nodding her head in agreement, she replied. "It is a desolate place. The streets of the major cities are now empty, and tall buildings tower over the empty streets like looming wrecks. I once heard stories that cars and people used to fill the streets, but this was all centuries ago." As realisation dawned upon her, she focused her gaze onto him, staring for several moments before asking. "Are you from Earth as well?" NAIRI If you're not lost, you're not much of an explorer.

As soon as Earth passed Nairi's lips, Bastien clapped his hands together joyfully and grinned at her. Another from his home! Perhaps they could start some kind of society...? He didn't want to encourage divide here, but there was something special about sharing a home with someone...even if what Nairi said didn't resemble the Earth in his memory. "Yes, cara! I am from Italy on our wonderful Earth. Or...I am truthfully French. But we cannot all be perfect." He laughed with a wink. "I...do not know what a 'car', is, though. A thing from your country? And why are the buildings such wrecks? Has there been a war?" He knew there were always conflicts going on, of course, but it was hard to pinpoint a place for Nairi to had come from. She looked like the people he'd seen from the far East, but she did not mention anything he'd expect from those places...and being a man away from his ancestral home himself, it was not definite she'd have to be from there. Without a proper anchor, he could not mention a specific war. BASTIEN I'm feeling devious, you're looking glamourous

Nairi was taken slightly aback when Bastien clapped his hands in joy before grinning at her. She wasn't exactly expecting the sudden reaction, or the revelation that he too was from Earth. However, the Earth he described was a very different one from the one she knew. He even called it wonderful Earth. There was nothing about the Earth she knew that was wonderful. He mentioned being from Italy and being French and she tried to remember what those meant. They sounded really familiar. A few moments later, she remembered where those words were from. Nations! Countries! The old Earth used to have those, different nations and countries all over the world. He also did not know what a car was. And he was wondering why there was such wrecks. Nairi stood there dumbfounded, staring at him like he was some alien creature. Realisation then dawned onto her. They both must have come from a different time period! Bastien must have come from the Earth's past. She spoke up, revealing everything she knew and had been told of what she knew about the Earth she knew. "A car is a form of transport to go from one place to another. There are a few that are still left working, and no new ones are made, so any surviving ones are also very old." Pausing for a bit before resuming. "The elders told us that before they were born, a Great War erupted all across Earth, that saw countries attacking each other, and with the modern weaponry they had, the destruction was devastating. Records show that the war lasted two hours, taking the life of the world with it. That was the beginning of the end." NAIRI If you're not lost, you're not much of an explorer.

The joy slowly drifted from Bastien's face as Nairi relayed a tale of a great war that happened in only two hours yet apparently had great consequences. Two hours?? In his experience wars usually took years, with battles and negotiations and skirmishes spreading out the conflicts until people usually forgot what it was they were actually fighting for. "...I...see. That...is not the Earth I know. Not at all." He said slowly, painting out a long line of purple along the bottom of the wall and thinking as he watched the paint gather at the top and drip down. "...What year is it, in your Earth? I am...well, it was 1773 when I left. I must admit I had little time for politics, but there was no talk of such a terrible war on the horizon." BASTIEN I'm feeling devious, you're looking glamourous