Another Bar Day (Diana,Doku)

"I think that traveling as far as you can with your portals is impressive, Doku." Diana opined with total sincerity. That statement might make her sound like she was easily impressed, but it was the truth. She did not know what Fullbringers could do... in fact she did not even know what one was until Doku patiently explained the details of the race to her. It seemed like he was still willing to show off his particular talents to Diana because he put on another demonstration, this time of his ability to create portals that let one see through to the other side. Again the Quincy was impressed, but it did not show on her face.

"And being able to create your portals in walls is a talent that has a lot of uses." Diana admitted that the second demonstration he had put on was every bit as impressive and educational as the first. In comparison to Doku the blonde Quincy did not have any flashy skills of her own. She had only a basic knowledge of the four Quincy arts and was currently unable to perform any feats as eye-catching as Doku's ability to create portals, but in time she could train herself to use what she had to its fullest extent.

When Doku spoke of his policy for dealing with Hollows the blonde focused on that topic.

"I currently do as you do, Doku. However, one day I want to become more proactive and hunt them down before they can harm others. In order to do that and stand a chance of surviving the hunt I need to get stronger." Diana informed him that at the moment her stance was similar to his but added that she did not always want to wait for Hollows to come to her. Despite how her stance differed from Doku's the Quincy thought that his attitude was a reasonable one and thus did not criticize him. Diana respected Doku's honest admission that fighting was not his forte and her respect for him increased when that attitude did not stop him from doing what he could to make the world a little safer whenever the opportunity presented itself.

"Back home I lead a solitary lifestyle. I frequently travel the woods of my home state while either working as a hunting guide or traveling to my home in Central Georgia and in those woods danger can present itself at any time. Should I encounter danger in the form of predatory wildlife or Hollows I need to be able to defend myself." Diana started explaining why she wanted to improve her skills and gave her host a little bit of her backstory in the process. She would mention wanting to avenge the deaths of her parents and the destruction of her home later in the conversation. For now she would keep the conversation as light as she could while still answering his questions.

"I was trained in the Quincy arts by my parents starting at fourteen, but between me going to school and my parents having day jobs progress was slow. I am not content with my present level of skill and want to get better." Diana gave Doku a bit more of her backstory and another reason for wanting to get serious about finding a source of training. After fleeing Columbus, Georgia and setting up shop in Central Georgia she had managed to train herself just enough to finally learn the basics of Steigen, but she was unable to progress any further in Blut, Gebet, or Kreuzen. That inability to make headway was one reason why Diana was interested in meeting other members of her race. If they could not point her towards a tutor maybe they would be willing to share tips on how to train on her own.

Diana was not sure if Doku could provide any such advice due to his being a combination of Quincy and Fullbringer and possibly having a skillset that differed from her own, but he had already given her a helping hand by providing her the name and information a contact named "Yumiko." That was something she would have to look into later. For now her attention was squarely on her host and the conversation they were having.

"I too use a firearm. A bolt-action rifle with a scope, to be precise." Diana informed Doku that she wielded a rifle. She did not understand why her spirit weapon was a bolt-action rifle... sometimes she wish Altes Gewehr had been a semi-automatic rifle instead because of the low rate of fire of a bolt-action weapon. Its length also made it unwieldy to use in close quarters and the scope had no night vision or infrared modes, so it was virtually useless at nighttime and of little use in environments with low lighting. Despite all those downsides Altes Gewehr excelled in long-range shooting... when she had plenty of space between her and the target the spirit weapon was in its element. While Diana was not the best marksman alive she could aim reasonably fast and shoot with reasonable accuracy thanks to the training she got from her parents, who were displeased that she could not produce a bow but did their best to work with her anyway.

"I had difficulties with the Quincy arts too. For one thing my parents were unhappy that my spirit weapon was a bolt-action rifle instead of a bow. They were also unhappy that I could not learn Gebet with the same ease with which I learned Kreuzen." Diana mentioned two problems she had encountered during the training she had received a lifetime ago. Just thinking about those days brought back memories of sharp words and unhappy faces that had been buried for years. Sometimes it had sounded like her parents believed that she was making mistakes on purpose, but nothing could be further from the truth. Diana had done her best to master what she was being taught, but she just could not get the hang of Gebet and that seemed to infuriate them more than her inability to summon a bow as her spirit weapon.

Doku's comment about the only skill he believed he was competent in was another reminder to Diana of how basic her knowledge of the Quincy arts was. She had not progressed all that much ever since training herself to a basic level of competence in Steigen... in fact she it seemed like she had stagnated. Kreuzen was still her best area, but that was not saying a whole lot.

"I know what you mean, Doku. Kreuzen seems to be what I am best at, but that is not saying much." Diana commiserated with her host. Blut was her second-best art and one that she intended to train so that she could develop another area of competence as well as improve something that could help her stay alive in a pinch. However, unless she suddenly gained an immense amount of skill in Gebet when she finally started training it Diana had reason to believe that Kreuzen would be the art she got the most mileage out of.

Diana's patient listening bore fruit when Doku informed her that he was unable to use the Quincy arts, a problem that his sister did not have. She was about to ask him about what sort of weapon he used or ask for more information about his sister when she sidelined those questions to listen to the words of encouragement he had offered to her in an effort to make her feel better about her mediocre skills. While his phrasing left something to be desired, his message was still true. No matter how inept Diana perceived herself to be there was always someone out there who was even less skilled than she was.

"I appreciate the encouragement you are offering, Doku." Diana sincerely thanked her host for trying to help her in his own way. Even though he could not offer tangible aid like advice or training he still cared enough about a total stranger to try and help them by offering moral support. That was an act of kindness that the blonde Quincy would not forget any time soon.

Moving off the topic of her mediocre skills and deciding to ask one of the questions that she had held off on asking earlier, Diana wanted to know what Doku used whenever he had to fight.

"What kind of weapon do you use, Doku?" Diana asked him. The Quincy was curious as to what the young man's weapon of choice was... since he had been forthright about his abilities so far maybe he would be willing to indulge her curiosity. Diana sat and drank more of her coffee while waiting for his reply to the question.

Diana watched her host produce the weapon he used and after a small light show she learned that Doku used a revolver. He opened the cylinder to show that each and every chamber was unloaded before gently placing the handgun on the counter and leaving it there. Diana's eyes were drawn to it and she set her mug of coffee down at a safe distance from the weapon before beginning to look at it. She was no weapons expert, but at first glance the handgun looked like it had been well-maintained and treated with care.

"A revolver is a good choice of weapon, Doku." Diana complimented Doku on his choice of armament. The Quincy's compliment was sincere. It looked clean and classy and looked like something an individual like Doku would wield. In contrast Diana's spirit weapon Altes Gewehr looked beat-up and had numerous scratches on the wooden furniture... one might think that it was an artifact stolen from a war museum.

In addition to looking good Doku's revolver had a few practical advantages over Altes Gewehr. One of them was that its size made it easy to conceal if the need arose. Another advantage was that it could be wielded a lot more easily in confined spaces than a rifle. A third benefit was that its rate of fire was likely higher than what Diana used... rate of fire was not everything, but in a life-or-death situation where every second counted being able to fire one or more shots quickly was something that could possibly save one's life. While Diana examined Doku's revolver he told her that it was a completely ordinary weapon, something that surprised her although it did not show on her face.

Green eyes met his and she focused squarely on him as she spoke.

"You are an individual who is full of surprises, Doku." Diana calmly offered her host another compliment.