[ as she meets with the poles, jinx gingerly crouches down and slips her arm through between the bars as well as she's able — open palm. ]
I'm right here, sis. [ her voice, low but sweet with a smile that's only reserved for certain people. ] — Whaddya say we get out of here, huh? Go somewhere nicer. The slammer isn't really your style.
[ her little sibling knows she can't do, but so much in her eldest's dream, however, maybe she can try and guide her into morphing it herself than just trying to convince her this is all fiction. ]
How about you start thinking about what you wanna get from Jericho's. I'm feeling eel. What about you?
[Yeah, of course that's the thing that catches her attention. Scott snorts in mild amusement, but he's honestly more distracted by how the kids are now almost clamoring to Fauna with undisguised excitement. A couple may be even pulling at her arms or clothes, like they're trying to grab her attention.]
Dude, no. [Fauna please don't beat up the children.] They're just--
[He's interrupted anyway, but how one of the kids immediately shouting out that Fauna is cool and they want to see more of her powers. She's so strong and has complete control over them...]
[There's a pause, momentary, where the rasping and snapping of Chaos's energy is the only thing that reaches Octavian's ears.
Then: a single laugh in a dozen different tones.]
If it's useless... then why are you so afraid?
[Onyx reaches in the direction of that "hiding" spot, such as it is, palm up like an offer. He doesn't bother to hide the fact that he's mocking the ghost.]
Why don't you let me test how useless it is, and we can both be enlightened? You can think of it as one of your projects.
[Vi's so thrown off. she's not really sure why she's thrown off, immersed in this dream as she is. she shouldn't be, because she's supposed to be here. she's even got the school uniform on, though... isn't she a little old to be wearing it?
but then she sees Claude, who even now, seems familiar. the only person that isn't blurred right now.
... why was everything blurred?
she goes to sit down across from him, smirking a bit.]
I'm shit at chess, but sure. I'll do it.
[even lost and confused as she is, she knows this much.]
[ Sorry, bud. She's not physically helping you. Your brother looks like he could probably break her twig arms if she tried - though he doesn't seem like he would, attitude-wise.
But she's not risking it. Especially when it could definitely happen accidentally. So instead of a physical defense, she's going for more of a verbal defense.. Even if it's still embarrassing. So embarrassing!! She's making a true sacrifice for you, Scott!! ]
He's a nice guy. He just-- should've told me a little bit more about his family before now, I guess.
[ He may be all worried about it, and even drawing attention to it, but it seems like Ange isn't having any of it. She's just dismissing his concern entirely, not even moving her hand up to try and wipe away the blood. She's just letting it flow down - over her lips, across her chin, down towards her clothes, like she isn't even noticing it. And it isn't stopping either. It just keeps flowing. ]
I need to go! What else is there even to understand? [ Though Ange does seem to be getting more frantic.. Weirdly enough not because of the blood at all, since she isn't talking about it. But maybe the two are connected? ]
I need to go home, find out what happened to my family so I can expose their murderer to the world, and then I can just die! What's so difficult to understand about that?!
[He doesn't question Zekarion's conviction, mostly because he really wants to believe that he'll help him. Even if he doesn't fully feel the same way, he's still willing to help out because he doesn't think Scott has a stupid or unrealistic dream. It's nice. It feels like a lot of times people keep on telling him that things will only get worse. Or won't last forever--]
...I've been here for almost two years, Altius. [He sniffs, voice watery, like he's still trying to stop himself from outright crying against him. Scott has some reservations about that, trying to be strong in some way, although he keeps himself close to the older man, his face still firmly buried against him.]
I've made so many friends here, despite everything. I-I don't know where I'd be without them, without everyone...
[Probably still that angry teen that called himself a freak on day one. He basically announced that to everyone.]
[Mostly, when Scott thinks that the newbie needs a break of fresh air. He did it for Jean and Kurt when he met them and after one trip to the mall, they were all a lot more happy. Open. It's worked that time and so he just assumes it'll work this time. If it ain't broke-- and if he gets desperate, he'll bust out the ICEE and hamburger combo. Besides, it's like his civic duty to introduce foreigners to an American mall.
Scott actually looks pretty enthused with this idea. Not like he's forcing himself at all.]
And I'm feeling it now. I'm getting tired of doing the same basic tour anyway. [It feels like he's done it a lot lately--] Ever been in a convertible before?
[Vi can't help it. she's still pinned, metaphorically and physically to her spot. forcing her to look at the dead bodies...
but then she feels warm arms around her, and there's Caitlyn. her anchor. the person that slowly but surely, was the one who she was living for.
but she knows what she'll see here. what appears before her before not even having to see it. Caitlyn, lying on the ground. blood coming out of her abdomen and dripping from her eye. the way she figures that they found her, before they saved her life.
her Caitlyn. dying too.
she doesn't even respond to the living Caitlyn for a few moments, her gaze pinned on the new figure.]
For how long... ?
[she rasps, her mouth tasting as if sand was in there. her throat raspy, as if she'd been inhaling actual smoke from that fire in the warehouse.]
Okay! Yeah, that sounds perfect. [ Absolutely perfect, Abigail loved learning new things too. So this worked in her favor in many ways. ] Just tell me what to do!
[Things will only get worse, and they won't last forever; these things are simply truths that can't be escaped, but they can be delayed. If only he could reach into these other worlds and make it so no one else ever has to have that awful realization...
No, Scott doesn't deserve to suffer that knowledge. So Altius will protect him from that, if he can, while he can. What he says to that end is:]
I'm sure they feel the same about you. And I know they'd want to help as well.
[She seems to be thriving on this attention. Or rather... Has she ever had attention like this before? This place... It's full of excitement. Here... Her role is unnecessary. There is no (despair) here.]
[For an instant, the red tint of the world is replaced with black. A cold wind, a full moon. Monsters dwell within this darkness, ones that prey on the weak, and only the strong survive-]
[And then it's gone, and it seems like Fauna didn't notice whatever that was.]
Well, it's a pain to transform too much, but you know- You don't need powers to do cool stuff. Check this out.
[As a couple of the smaller children grab at her arms, Fauna bends down, and flexes... Then straightens up again, with a child dangling off of each bicep. No powers, just muscle.]
We look around for people who are in despair, and we give them power.
[surely nothing weird or concerning about that.]
The people with the strongest wishes are the ones who are in the deepest despair, or something like that... So the people who are in the deepest despair, we give them one of the Seeds of Power, and tell them to make a wish.
[Scott visibly startles when the arm he's gripping suddenly becomes wet with water, the sudden feeling of liquid and cold nearly getting the mutant to release his friend. He only manages to hold on through sheer stubbornness, almost feeling like if he releases Charles now, he won't be able to grab him again. Like his hand will just go through his arm like a ghost because he's dead--
His hand clenches even more, though that stricken look on Scott continues to grow, nearly taking over when he sees Alex flickering more just a few feet away. He doesn't want his brother to go away either; he hasn't seen him in... almost two years? Is that right? Somehow, that feels correct and all of this is confusing, but the only thing he's sure of is that he doesn't want either of them to disappear on him. Why can't he have both of the people he cares about??]
I... you won't be fine. You always say that.
[He knows that smile!! He's seen it on Charles many times before and he hates that it's firmly directed at him right now. If he lets go, would he betraying Charles too? Letting him down like others? Scott shakes his head, mostly in denial, while trying to see if he can work something out--]
[Something serious flashes across Scott's face, mouth thinning into a small line as he straightens his position, no longer burdened by doubt or other feelings that might make him hesitate. All of this is fake and he has no desire to be in a place that was only made to taunt him and keep him trapped. All of this feels really personal and a certain anger blossoms in his chest about being toyed with like this.
[The eyebeams, he remembers those. Levi moves behind Scott, carefully looking over the area. It looked like a normal building, but with how things went in Aldrip it didn't mean anything. Or...something about a dream tickles the edge of his mind but he doesn't quite grasp it.]
[ Shigeru can and will look a bit flustered back up at the other man, his green eyes focused elsewhere for a second or two. He is still very...self-conscious about his new appendages but this is a dream so it makes it a little easier. Maybe the other won't remember the details??
Shigeru will deposit said wrench into the other's hand with an unfurling of the tentacle that gently places it into Octavian's palm. The tentacle will sway a little in front of Octavian as Shigeru is lost in thought for a second. ]
It's like I can feel it in my hand, or something. It's just weird?! And I can feel the air temperature up there is different through them too. I guess they're pretty sensitive to stuff. But each one is-is giving me a different signal that I can pinpoint which one it belongs to. It's a lot of input for your mind but I seem to be able to do it just fine.
[ He looks thoughtful as the other dozen or some tendrils sway lazily about him some extending now to touch the metallic surface of Octavian's machine lightly. ] Like those ones! I-I can feel the cold, from the metal.
[Caitlyn honestly isn't surprised when the dream changes and it's her own body, nearly lifeless, in front of them. She can practically feel the ache in her side and face again, remembering all too well the miserable pain she felt after the fight with Ambessa. The recovery was brutal, more so because of the loss of something as important as her eye. When you relied on your vision for the largest parts of your life, it made it that much harder to adjust to.
But Vi had been by her side. Both of them with broken bones, both of them dealing with the loss of their siblings. It hadn't been easy, but they survived.]
For as long as you'll have me.
[She scoots between Vi and the imagines the dream was taunting her with, cupping her face with her hand.]
I'm right here, love. Don't let these bad memories pull you away from me. Dirt under my nails, remember?
Edited (shhh you didn't see anything) 2025-02-12 23:37 (UTC)
[Caitlyn knows these streets well, only... this isn't the town she knows. Even as she walks them, dressed to the nines in her Commander's uniform, she feels...out of place. Piltovans and Zaunites nodding politely as she passes. She hears laughter in the streets, children running and playing in daylight. Daylight. It isn't merely smog and gasses blocking the sky down here. It's light.
Caitlyn can barely process this. This, the dream of a better Zaun that so many had had. This dream that she was actively trying to make possible now, after making so many mistakes. She almost wonders if this is her dream until she hears the voice of a familiar yordle. She follows the tune caught in the air, finally landing her eye on him, banjo and all, singing away at the fountain.
The Last Drop in the distance makes her stomach churn, but she tries to keep her focus on Heimerdinger. Pieces of the puzzle are starting to fall into place, and... she's not sure how she feels about the answer she's coming to.
Still, as he finishes his song, Caitlyn is among the crowd to clap, forcing a smile as she steps in closer.]
[Vi looks at Jinx's hand through the bars. is she really there? or is this another ghost come to torment her?]
And yet... I keep ending up here.
[her voice is hollow, because she's just so goddamn tired. tired of struggling and finding herself in the same place.
and yet... there's always part of her that wants to keep fighting.
she moves to grip Jinx's hand, feeling the warmth of it start to seep into her own cold hand and up her arm. she'd been cold? how long had she been cold?
the scenery starts to shift, until they're at Jericho's. she's sitting at the counter with a bowl in front of her, and she can hear a familiar voice in the distance, even if she can't see it.
I didn't break you out of jail to eat... to eat slop!
gods, that felt like a lifetime ago. but she looks around to look for Jinx, hoping that she didn't leave her behind in that prison. if she can't find her immediately, she'll be going right back -- the bars are still vaguely in her sights, ready to switch at any moment.]
[ when everything shifts, she squeezes her grip onto her sister's hand to ensure they won't lose each other in the transformation. at the rear end of it, a strange pressure causes their hands to let go, but fortunately, jinx is still nearby.
jinx straightens her back to take in their new surroundings, exchanging glances between jericho, the bowl, and listening to "caitlyn" from afar. huh. she wonders if this is a moment that truly happened, or it's fabricated. either or, the symbol notices vi searching around, so she paces forward to take an empty seat next to her. ]
See? Isn't this better?
[ she coos while resting a gentle hand on top of her sister's thigh. ]
Ya know, we can do this anytime. We can sit out in the fields and eat together whenever you're ready to wake up. Would you like that?
Everything is crumbling apart. Yellow bleeds into black, coffins descend upon the earth, and Thanatos flickers into being once more.]
I am human! I have bonds! Do not speak to me onto what you do not know!
[It bleeds out. Gekkoukan. Kotone. Minato. Junpei. Aigis. The Dark Hour. SEES. They all slip through his fingers, rejected, rejected. Are these not all real? Are these not all true!?
Oh, if only he isn't Death. If only he's not fated to usher every soul he knows to the horizon beyond.]
I have...I need...I'm, not,
[Ryoji's form crumbles into a roar. Collapses into himself.
In front of Gilgamesh, Nergal aims for his throat.]
[Fortunately enough they haven't been around long enough to trigger the Reaper, so hopefully it won't come for them anytime soon!
Unless.
At any rate, it seems that the Shadows are ignoring this part of the floor well enough, and Ryoji is grateful for the breather. Kotone approaches him, in which he responds with a jovial wink.]
It's not so bad, once you shake off the nerves!
[In fact he's pretty good at it - he's not Fuuka, but he has a good sense on which areas are safer or more dangerous in a floor. Thanatos has been a powerful presence on the field as well.]
But I see how flexible you can be in any situation, Kotone-chan, and I can't help but feel like I could do better? I'm good at attacking Shadows, especially when they're weak to curse attacks, but I can't help but feel like I'm useless in some situations. I can't use healing skills, for one, and there's little I can do against Shadows that resist my affinities.
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