[ well. at the very least it's good to see that not everyone seems thrilled about this, but on the other hand... they're still here? why are they here if they don't approve? he has so many questions about what is going on here and the culture that is making it happen every year, but it's not like they can ask.
he takes a small step in kazuki's direction, just to close the distance between them a bit. even though it doesn't sound like it'll be happening to them, you never know what might happen.
he tries to check if they can hear adrastea, does any noise come through, or is it still nothing? ]
[ despite the sense of dread winding around him, something about that word brings a fierce disgust bubbling up in the pit of kazuki's stomach. he may not understand what's going on, but he doesn't need to to know it's wrong on so many levels. and with no one else to blame, his gaze settles on the announcer, burning with anger, knuckles white from the grip on the guitar case's shoulder strap.
for a quick moment, he glances at owner as if to ask, "do we really have to stay for this?" he would like to leave, actually. this is already too fucked up. ]
[ the tortured souls are... presumably dead! none of them move, save for those gently rocked by the wind that passes through the trees as it sinks into the valley you're cradled in. at the very least, they're frozen, so it's hard to say if rescue is beyond them or if they're still, truly, reaching for it.
every now and then, there's still the crackle of static in their ears when they try to reach out - but, sometimes, adrastea's filtered voice makes it in short bursts. where..you? is the clearest thing that comes through.
the announcer does not feel kazuki's ire, and instead spreads his arms wide as... on the other side of the glass, people in protective suits with rebreathers on their helmets, ushering in figures that have hoods over their heads. there is a person in a suit for each figure, and they arrange the figures in a neat line.
there are eight of them in total. a hush falls over the crowd, a mix of sick excitement and dread fills the air. ]
The guilty are given salvation in the eternity of the Hanging Gardens! Each of them has been accused of grievous crimes, but they will witness their rebirth in the bloom as they become one with the heartseed itself!
temenos can put together two and two, at first, because todomatsu looks like his brothers, and there's this slow, menacing feeling of dread. he's starting to try and calculate, wildly, what he's about to see underneath one of those hoods. throné? ort? one of the other travelers? gods forbid, gods forbid, who of his friends could be considered the sort to commit a 'crime' by these people, and then.
and then the hood comes off.
do you ever see something that's just. that's just so illogical, that you have to laugh? that you have to stare? the noise that escapes temenos' mouth is so quiet it could almost be an exhale, as his entire world bottoms out, half a laugh strangled off into nothing as his breath cuts off.
first of all - it's the sight of him. crick wellsley, golden blonde hair, wide, beseechingly bright blue eyes. crick wellsley, little lamb, godsblade newly anointed, desperate do gooder, his erstwhile sidekick. temenos hasn't seen crick since - (since stormhail) -- and yet, here he is. not only that, but he stands accused of a crime?
crick wellsley?
it's - it's impossible, it is so completely impossible that temenos' brain restarts itself almost violently. two urges crash together. the first is the emotional, gut-wrenching instinct to do something. to stop crick from falling to the fate that rita did, that all these people around them did, to gods damn it to save him like he failed to do the last time. and then there's the part of him that's too clever by half, the part of him that grabs onto this false reality and tears it in half. the reminder that this is impossible, because not only is crick wellsley being accused of a crime,
but crick wellsley is dead. ]
-- This isn't real. [ he says, abruptly, under his breath, a hiss, and grabs tightly at his staff. salvation? give me a break. ]
[ quite frankly, todomatsu's immediate reaction to seeing his brothers' faces revealed one after the other is to panic and look around to see if anyone seems to have noticed that his face looks exactly like theirs underneath the makeup. it's only after that that he deigns to consider their situation, which...
...well, honestly, they're all shit. they're definitely all guilty of a laundry list of sins. in fact, they already got judged and sent to hell for an eternity of torture once! if he's the only one who managed to escape it this time, that's probably how it should be! he's a good boy compared to them. he does his best, sometimes.
but he remembers, then, that this isn't their universe. that this isn't their genre. that dahut died and stayed dead. that he hates sleeping by himself so much. that he got copies of his own clothes in all his brothers' colors this week so he could leave them around his room and feel just a little bit less lonely.
he hears temenos, and he nods. it's not real. probably.
but everything else this past almost-two-weeks has been so much more real than anything he ever thought he'd have to face, so...
should he really be okay with this?
h-hey, akatsuka-sensei. what is he supposed to do here? ]
okay, yeah, rei has also done things that would probably be considered as crimes, so this is another instance of going, "i would believe it, actually." and, generally, owner is fairly used to sweeping in and getting his guests out of trouble. it's surprising, how they all tend to wander right into things that would get them killed the second he looks away. what a silly child.
temenos mentions it's not real, and owner notes that also makes sense, maybe, although from his side he has no idea why temenos is making that claim. but then his gaze falls to rei's legs, and okay. that is odd. ]
Wow. Isn't this exciting?
[ his tone is even.
he places his hands behind his back, but still inside the cape. he lets his fingers touch the sheath of his blade, to remind himself that it's still and ready. just in case. ]
[ oh, does that sound familiar. it's almost like he can hear that tinny, self-righteous voice echoing in the announcer's, and it makes his blood boil. even down to the victims with their faces covered, it's just like before, the footage burned into his memory. there's no way that they could be here, in the far reaches of who the hell knows where space, but they have the exact same playbook.
purging sins, welcoming rebirth, a better world - what horseshit.
and then the hoods come off, and it's like someone dropped a bucket of ice water over kazuki's head, enough that he doesn't hear the others at all, let alone adrastea. his focus narrows in on a familiar face, one he hasn't seen in nearly a month now, and whispers, ]
Akito...?
[ it makes sense, doesn't it? that he'd be targeted for this. whatever akito did, it was serious enough for him to disappear. if ichika hadn't been so easy to read, kazuki never would have known something he was involved in something dangerous at all.
ichika had said he would come home safe. she wouldn't have lied, right? not about this. not about akito.
[ how exciting! how marvelous! the murmur in the crowd is a ripple and thrum on its own, a mix of thrill and nausea alike. whatever reason the latter group has for coming here - whatever societal standard there is to uphold - they make no move to stop this. they just watch, transfixed, as the announcer spins with a flourish and then steps aside. he gives a round of applause all on his own, all fanfare. ]
Simply wonderful!
[ on the other side of the glass, todomatsu gets to see his brothers inch closer and closer to one another, as best they can with their hands bound... in front of them, all five of them. they lean on one another for support, confusion, anger, fear, the whole gamut. the six of you really have been through it, haven't you? despite your dedication to living your NEET lifestyles to your varying degrees, they're your flesh and blood. your older brothers.
you know them as much as you know yourself, for all their flaws and all the annoyance that they've caused you over the years. you know that osomatsu's temper must be rearing its head, that karamatsu is trying to stay cool and cocky in the moment, can see that choromatsu's wearing every reaction on his sleeve, that ichimatsu is locking up and withdrawing inwards, and that jyushimatsu doesn't seem to realize just how badly things have turned south. but they gravitate together as the only thing any of them knows in this moment.
separate from this cluster, rei struggles against the bindings that have his arms trapped behind his back. but he bares his teeth in a threat, a facsimile of a smile, saying something that... none of you can hear, on the other side of the glass. it might be soundproof. but he speaks to the attendant that he has, thrashing back and nearly striking them in the masked face with the back of his head. such a troublemaker as always, owner, even as he stands again before you.
akito flinches away from rei as he fights, bumping into the knightly figure next to him and looking... nervous. remorseful, even. like part of him thinks maybe he does belong in this situation, committed to it, but that it shouldn't have gotten this far, that this isn't quite right. he's also saying something, vehement, his glasses skewed on his face. you could almost, almost make it out by watching him, even if you can't hear him. surely this isn't what was supposed to happen! none of this should have been what happened! and kazuki, your sister wouldn't lie to you. surely she wouldn't. not about him. not about this.
and, oh, crick. paragon of goodness, who had simply wanted to find answers and bring the truth to light. he helps to steady akito as best he can, but like rei his arms are bound behind him. he doesn't fight, he doesn't plea, but he does seem to be trying to make a case here, turning towards the eight individuals that have brought them out there. he doesn't look furious, temenos, but he does look righteous. (he looks alive) he looks like that newly anointed sanctum knight that stood before a heretic, willing to step into battle for the sake of those who couldn't fight for themselves. ]
Our Blossoming Ceremony begins, ladies and gentlemen!
[ and the eight of them are hit in the back of the knees, brought to the ground in a row. another thrum pulses - but there's not a delay, this time. tha thump.
crick wellsley is crick wellsley, in the end. though this is completely impossible - after all, temenos was the one who checked his pulse, temenos was the one who showed up too late, who couldn't stop him. who should have stopped him, the night before - this is him, down to his core. soothing others. indignant in the face of evil. crick, who once hid behind him in his fright facing monsters in flamechurch. crick, who was so eager to uncover the truth that he ran into the den of the wolves by himself.
but that cannot be him. his own logic has to take precedence. he cannot allow himself for a second to think that crick wellsley is alive. crick is dead, and buried, and even she tried to use it against you.
casual. stay casual. his hand stays on his staff - and he asks, just loud enough to be heard by their neighbors. ] Do we get to know their crimes?
[ temenos asks it almost bored.
like it isn't the entire world crashing down, like it isn't making his mouth dry, like his heart is not pounding in his ears. his bored, placid mask the same one he's stapled onto his face every day of his life, does not budge. it would not budge for arcanette. he will not lose it, here.
in the meantime, temenos is calling up on that magic in his own regard, somewhere in the back of his mind reciting the words to a prayer. what can he do? could he cast a divine effulgence and burn this place to the ground? not likely. there's not enough time to prepare for it, and he'd be left vulnerable. could he stop the curse from taking place? could he cure it, if he did?
(can he stand here, and watch crick be a sacrificial lamb once again?)
his gaze pulls away from the facsimile of a stage for a moment, to sweep across the group, trying to catch owner's gaze first. they're the responsible ones here. (or at least, they're the ones loaded with magic.) ]
[ ...in spite of everything todomatsu is feeling and struggling with in this moment, even as he's watching his brothers falling to their knees, hearing temenos casually make that suggestion triggers a different kind of panic in him — he knows all about the sordid crimes they've committed, much to his dismay — and against his better judgment, he speaks up, in a cold sweat. ]
M-maybe it's better if they don't announce them, actually! Just seeing them here like this is probably bringing their families enough shame already, don't you think?!
[ ah.
he winces even as the words are leaving his lips, shrinking back a bit as the heartbeat — heartbeat? — pounds heavily in his ears. can they see him from the other side of the glass, he wonders? even dressed like this, they'd all recognize him in an instant if they could — after all, who wouldn't recognize their own face?
there he is, the youngest brother who left them all behind without saying a word, like he so often does, standing in the crowd with everyone else who's come to delight in their well-earned suffering as they're finally (finally!) forced to make something of themselves.
he can practically hear the reactions.
eh?! he's still worrying about his own image at a time like this?! ah, well, what would you expect from that dry monster? that's right. he doesn't have a heart, after all. if he wasn't here seeing it for himself, he probably wouldn't even notice we were gone tomorrow. ahaha, you really hated having us for brothers, huh, totty?
[ seeing rei fight against his capture does, genuinely, bring a smile to owner's face. it really is just like him, when everything is against him, to be as much trouble as humanly possible. owner would almost want to applaud him, except rei would likely find that worse than the actual situation he's in. troublesome, troublesome child.
but then temenos speaks, and todomatsu reacts nervously to the request, and he thinks, uh oh. this just put too much attention over here. he isn't sure if people speaking up like this during this event is normal or not, but maybe they can be excused for openly being new...? on the other hand, those with power do have a tendency of getting offended easily, so this can really go either way.
he doesn't speak up, just in case. if anyone approaches the other two, he wants to keep the element of surprise to be able to step in, since people shouldn't think all four of them are together. he looks over at kazuki to see how he's reacting to this. ]
[ ...he hasn't given up. there's a faint sense of relief that comes with that realization, that it's different from before. akito was so ready to give up everything just a few months ago, that he didn't deserve their dream... even now, he looks just as guilt-ridden as whatever was getting to him back then. but he's not just taking it this time.
maybe akito still thinks he deserves whatever punishment is coming, but it's good to see him fight. kazuki watches him with clenched fists, seething as awareness starts to come back to him, and he shoots temenos a glare. ]
Does it matter? [ he bites out the words bitterly. ] They already screwed up. There's no going back from that.
[ that's how these people think, isn't it? that nothing is worth forgiving, only judging.
eyes back on akito, kazuki shakes with rage and fear as they all fall to their knees. that sound - they're too far to do anything about it from here, aren't they? what would he even do when they're surrounded by a bunch of lunatics who want to see this happen?
[ a mixture of relief and disdain pulses through the crowd at temenos' inquiry, a torn mix from many groups. but all heads around them turn towards him - and todomatsu by proxy - with this question. it's not loud enough for the announcer to hear on the stage, especially not as the harpist begins playing. but it's enough for some answers to come. ]
Oh, no. That wouldn't do. [ someone nearby says. ] They lost their right once the verdict was given! The crime hardly matters.
[ they're guilty. why would they care about their crimes beyond that?
they're guilty, aren't they? why would they be here if they were innocent? (would they even care, truthfully, if they were?)
jyushimatsu and akito are the ones that are unbound, but none of the others are. some sort of instructions must be given, because jyushimatsu starts trying to free his brothers, hands shaking as he goes one by one, and akito shakes his head, disbelieving, questioning. he's not fighting back physically, but - this isn't what it was meant to be.
there's no answer for him as the eight handlers leave them behind, leaving him on hands and knees. crick twists at his waist to speak to him, already having gotten at least one knee up, trying to reassure and get his attention. if they can get free, maybe there's a chance they can do something. rei, on the other hand, finds a way up to his feet again, again, and is making his way towards the glass of the atrium. at the very least, the guilty know they're being watched - because he's staring down the announcer as he approaches, all violent intent. ]
My, what a beast this one is! [ laughter bubbles up from the announcer, unconcerned. the pulsing heartbeat speeds up.
adrastea's voice comes through, clearer than before even as it crackles now: ] I'm com...ng... there's something happening... run.
frustrating, but not surprising. this is kaldena all over again. how appropriate, to be watching crick have to deal with this - watching him face down judge, jury and executioner. bitterly, somehow (i'm here this time.)
his only outward reaction is a click of the tongue. ] Quite. Let the show begin, then. [ as if he agrees with any of this - cool, relaxed, unbothered.
in reality, he is not any of those three things! but at least he's super good at hiding it. he's distracted, thinking instead about what to do in the aftermath. if he can remove the source of the curse, he can likely revive - well, he can certainly try to get all of them. eight people is a lot at once, and it would undo his already tenuous reconnection to his magic, but if he conserves his mana, then maybe it'll be fine. his eyes stay on crick, and he finds himself - hoping. for once, hoping, maybe, that he can find his way out, that he'll be a stupid, gallant knight, that he'll save them from their situation.
of course, all planning for the future is interrupted when he hears run from adrastea. the idea of just abandoning them is making him feel a little ill, a little trapped, but this simply cannot be real, and the four of them are. he has to cling to the logical no matter how badly he wants to smash open the glass. he can't. he has to keep a cool head.
instead, temenos starts a prayer in the back of his mind. a familiar one, mentally calculating the amount of magic he'll need to prepare it and never taking his eyes off the display. Aelfric, grant us your sacred shield.
[ small fucking blessings, he supposes, though even with the assurance that his family's extensive list of sins will be kept on the down low, it's not like he can feel much relief when this is continuing to play out in front of him. ]
Jyushimatsu-niisan...
[ he's not sure what's happening right now, why jyushimatsu is the only one of the five who's left unbound — a funny risk to take, he thinks, when he's by far the strongest and most unpredictable of them all, though he's also never been able to carry malice nearly as well as most of the rest of them — or what instructions he's being given.
his questioning is interrupted by adrastea's voice in his ear, though (which at least puts a stop to the other voices he was imagining), giving him a command that he would love to follow, but isn't sure he actually can. ]
What...?
[ he lowers his head, suddenly very alert to the faces that have turned toward him, keeping his voice hushed. ]
W-wait, what are we doing? I mean— isn't that going to cause a scene?
[ more importantly, are they really just going to leave? ]
well, the metatext said it was a half hour walk to reach this area, so if that was a legit time frame, they could make it back faster than that while running... however, there are other guards over on the other side of the tunnel, and if them suddenly leaving is seen as weird, then they would essentially be running to a dead end if the other guards are alerted because of how much time it'll take to reach there. there are other paths, but they have no way of knowing where they lead.
these are all things he is thinking about, but his main focus remains on rei. owner watches how defiant he is, and that does seem real. his hands are still in their spot behind his back, and he feels the sheath of the katana again, and there's a moment where he wonders how thick the glass is.
he manages to mumble into the headset, ]
Adrastea-sama, where are you? Are you going back to the main entrance?
No. [ the answer is immediate, with kazuki refusing to take his eyes off of his friend. ] We can't just leave them here to... whatever this is.
[ they're as good as trapped, anyway - it took way too long just to get here in the first place. what good is it to run, when akito is right there in front of him? how is he supposed to stand by and just watch akito be punished as if it doesn't affect him at all?
he can't. he won't.
there's a voice in the back of his head screaming at him that this is stupid, that he has no idea what he's doing. it's right, of course, but kazuki ignores it to step forward, walking toward the stage. ]
[ adrastea responds to kazuki, first, because what kind of fuckin statement is that. ] Leave who - what's going on -
[ but after a bit of silence, there's something for all of you: ] ... entrance... can meet you, where...
[ most of you are distracted by what's happening in front of you, the people that you see on the other side of the glass. akito has managed to get his wits about him, with careful coaxing from crick, who keeps looking at him, then up, deeper into the garden around them. temenos knows him well enough he should be able to tell that he's on edge, but he's trying to treat akito gently, and the teenager moves around behind the knight to start undoing the bindings that are holding his arms there. these two haven't noticed familiar faces inside, yet.
rei does, though. he stares down the announcer, first, arms shifting behind him, trying to work off his restraints himself. the announcer is hardly affected by this, and instead smiles indulgently as the heartbeat thrum of magic, of energy, reverberates in the glass around them all.
but then, he scans the crowd behind the announcer, as if taking stock of everyone that's come to perversely watch the proceedings. and he sees owner. there's a minute widening of his eyes, before they narrow, all the more furious for having spotted him. he tilts his body and rears back, slamming his shoulder into the glass. it does nothing.
but todomatsu will see, beyond his brothers, the shifting of plants again. the wind has picked up, so that's not too surprising, at first - a reaction, maybe. something to do with the mounting dread that's hardly aided by the harpist's playing. jyushimatsu doesn't pay the wind any mind, though, and is instead focused on actually ripping the bindings off his brothers, one by one, as the five of them talk to one another. they're looking around as if to try and figure out what the next step is.
they've gotten into harrowing trouble before. they can get out of it, surely.
except he'll notice the movement isn't just beyond the "prospects." it's also along the edges of the atrium, as vines creep up the cage that you've all found yourselves in. bit by bit, by bit, by bit. ]
temenos doesn't have those. he's currently busy - in fact, his eyes close, briefly. he tears himself away from looking at crick helping out akito (of course he is) and starts reciting the prayer for the sacred shield if they're going to need it. his first priority is to protect kazuki and todomatsu, and though his sacred shield is not strong enough to completely block any kind of hit, it can at least absorb something. i would never steal your injuries from you.
that's all his focus at the moment, is silently mouthing the words to cast sacred shield. he doesn't do it yet, though todomatsu as our eagle eye might feel that temenos arm is a little warmer than it was before where he was holding onto him.
temenos has not noticed the extra movement. spellcaster life. he is still holding his action for when all hell breaks loose, because inevitably, it is going to break loose. come on, aelfric. come onnnnnn magic powers. ]
[ the entrance? how the hell are they supposed to get all the way back there without getting caught when there are guards both inside and out to intercept them from both directions? sure, he's got his gun, but he can only shoot one bullet at a time, and he's pretty sure they're going to get hit with a lot more resistance than what can be feasibly taken care of with that.
it's when he's looking toward their potential exit route that he sees it — the movement of the vines around them, not just that of the trees behind his brothers. shit... the longer they hesitate here the more of that they're going to have to deal with, right? ]
Hey. The vines are moving — look. I think we really do need to get out of here.
[ a slight tug on temenos's arm (when did it get so warm?), and then he ducks down and starts to move through the crowd, trying to be subtle as possible and kind of wishing now that he wasn't such a showstopping beauty in this getup.
he glances back up to jyushimatsu and the others — they have indeed gotten out of much wilder scrapes than this before, so he wants to believe that they'll pull through this time too. sorry, he mouths silently in their direction. do your best. ]
owner is still staring at rei, and then they make eye contact with each other. immediately, owner realizes the misunderstanding that forms in rei's head as he slams against the glass. oh, owner is here. this must be owner's fault. it would be amusing, except even he's aware that the odds are stacked very much against his favor at the moment.
he catches todomatsu moving to leave, although he doesn't quite catch what he says. either way, it makes sense that he's going, because there is a lot happening at the moment and their getaway driver is really insistent that they have to go now.
he looks at rei again.
todomatsu heads toward the exit, and owner heads for the stage. he moves slowly and carefully, acting like someone who simply wants a better view, the expression on his face one of simple curiosity. he gets closer and closer, and at least his general small and young appearance woudldn't really seem threatening. the stage the announcer is on isn't too high, just a few steps, so he as casually as possible goes up. and as gracefully as he can, he unsheathes his katana, and goes to try to drive it through the announcer's gut.
this is fine.
but like, if the rest of you want to do anything, owner is probably distracting everyone from the three of you. so like, that's nice. ]
[ sorry adrastea... kazuki is busy looking for any equipment near the stages, maybe something that he could toss at the announcer or maybe even the glass to break it. the reasonable voice in his head says it has to be more sturdy than that, for a place like this to be here at all, but anything's worth a shot.
he doesn't notice anyone following, preoccupied as he is with keeping an eye on akito and checking out the equipment. he's not making any effort to hide, either - even if he did, the guitar would've given him away. but he can go the easy route and try to tell the harpist it's his turn to perform and decide what to do from there. anything to get akito out of here and safe back home.
...except owner makes his move first, and that's enough to startle kazuki out of whatever plan he was trying to think up. ]
[ well! owner first! because that sure causes a chain reaction of shit to happen. it's a lot of gasps and screams of shock, people panicking, the guards trying to push through the throng to get to the stage as the harpist's music abruptly stops.
the announcer isn't anticipating this in the slightest bit, so even as owner comes walking leisurely up to the stage, he's more amusedly watching rei ram into the glass angrily. he only turns when he hears someone joining him on the stage, and he hardly thinks anything of it. his mouth opens to greet his guest, gracious and welcoming, and then there's a choked noise instead of words. because that's a katana run through his gut.
rei stops ramming the glass. blinks at this. and then starts... laughing? you can't hear it, but it's clear that he's laughing as he sees this happen. it's not kind laughter, and it draws the attention of the other seven prospects to see what the hell is going on.
akito sees kazuki, and his face falls in panic and despair, even if he can't see his face he knows knows knows him. you're not supposed to be here, you're not supposed to see him like this, he tried to run away and you wouldn't let him. and now, there's nowhere for him to go.
the brothers, at least, don't see their youngest yet. they're just going a wide range of what the hell!! on the other side of the glass, before there's a rattling that overtakes the entire area. they begin looking around, heads whipping wildly, trying to figure out where the source is.
and, well. crick sees temenos, like a guiding bolt, though it takes him a beat longer to recognize him compared to rei clocking owner instantly and akito realizing just who it was that joined the crazy sword wielding man on the stage. he falters where he is, shocked, before something convicted falls into the set of his shoulders, something more determined. he's not in his armor, he has no weapons, but he looks around to try and find if maybe there's something out here that he can use. a rock, a branch, anything.
the vines are creeping up faster, now, and the metal of the frame begins to groan slightly as they constrict. the thrum is racing, rabbit quick, and the flowers... begin to bloom in the trees above the atrium. ]
... gods... [ adrastea is maybe seeing what you're seeing, now. ]
the minute owner starts to walk up to the stage, temenos figures out what's going to happen. he reaches out for todomatsu as he's starting to try and make his way out, because that plan is about to be ruined, and then - all hell breaks loose! and not in the way it was going to originally!!
he's going to trust owner to be the most competent for now and immediately puts himself in front of todomatsu, in an imperious swish of white and gold and blue, shoving the tip of his staff down into the ground for purchase. it gives him enough time to look up again, to lock eyes with crick. to see crick see him.
... he didn't go down without a fight then, did he? and crick won't, now, either. this time, temenos is here. whether it's real or not, he won't go down alone. the conviction is enough.
determination flares up with his magical energy. it feels good, to thrum back into his veins, and he meets crick's eyes, and his mouth quirks into a brief, tiny smile, before he casts, a beacon of aelfric's chosen. the shield will have to wait. ]
Holy light, illuminate the darkness! [ and goes for a two pronged luminescence spell, a bright flare of holy light that slams into the glass. cast the light down from above and smite the wicked. is there anything more wicked than this place they've found themselves in? let's light it up. ]
[ well, now there's some what the hell!! on this side of the glass too, as todomatsu gets reeled back in by temenos before he can fully make a break for it and watches owner in disbelief as he runs that shitty announcer through.
excuse me?? wasn't this a stealth mission?! didn't you just say this wasn't real?! why the fuck is he the only one trying to do this thing properly now?!!
at least now it's noisy and hectic enough that he doesn't feel like he needs to bother trying to be quiet when he speaks into the communicator. ]
Okay, well, this is a shitshow, and the entrance is way too far for us to get through without getting stopped by a million guards, so can you please come and break through this glass ceiling — literally — in the atrium if you want to salvage this?!
[ ...and then he adds: ]
Try not to hit the guys that look like shittier clones of me if you can help it.
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he takes a small step in kazuki's direction, just to close the distance between them a bit. even though it doesn't sound like it'll be happening to them, you never know what might happen.
he tries to check if they can hear adrastea, does any noise come through, or is it still nothing? ]
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[ despite the sense of dread winding around him, something about that word brings a fierce disgust bubbling up in the pit of kazuki's stomach. he may not understand what's going on, but he doesn't need to to know it's wrong on so many levels. and with no one else to blame, his gaze settles on the announcer, burning with anger, knuckles white from the grip on the guitar case's shoulder strap.
for a quick moment, he glances at owner as if to ask, "do we really have to stay for this?" he would like to leave, actually. this is already too fucked up. ]
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every now and then, there's still the crackle of static in their ears when they try to reach out - but, sometimes, adrastea's filtered voice makes it in short bursts. where..you? is the clearest thing that comes through.
the announcer does not feel kazuki's ire, and instead spreads his arms wide as... on the other side of the glass, people in protective suits with rebreathers on their helmets, ushering in figures that have hoods over their heads. there is a person in a suit for each figure, and they arrange the figures in a neat line.
there are eight of them in total. a hush falls over the crowd, a mix of sick excitement and dread fills the air. ]
The guilty are given salvation in the eternity of the Hanging Gardens! Each of them has been accused of grievous crimes, but they will witness their rebirth in the bloom as they become one with the heartseed itself!
[ and then, the hoods are all pulled off. ]
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temenos can put together two and two, at first, because todomatsu looks like his brothers, and there's this slow, menacing feeling of dread. he's starting to try and calculate, wildly, what he's about to see underneath one of those hoods. throné? ort? one of the other travelers? gods forbid, gods forbid, who of his friends could be considered the sort to commit a 'crime' by these people, and then.
and then the hood comes off.
do you ever see something that's just. that's just so illogical, that you have to laugh? that you have to stare? the noise that escapes temenos' mouth is so quiet it could almost be an exhale, as his entire world bottoms out, half a laugh strangled off into nothing as his breath cuts off.
first of all - it's the sight of him. crick wellsley, golden blonde hair, wide, beseechingly bright blue eyes. crick wellsley, little lamb, godsblade newly anointed, desperate do gooder, his erstwhile sidekick. temenos hasn't seen crick since - (since stormhail) -- and yet, here he is. not only that, but he stands accused of a crime?
crick wellsley?
it's - it's impossible, it is so completely impossible that temenos' brain restarts itself almost violently. two urges crash together. the first is the emotional, gut-wrenching instinct to do something. to stop crick from falling to the fate that rita did, that all these people around them did, to gods damn it to save him like he failed to do the last time. and then there's the part of him that's too clever by half, the part of him that grabs onto this false reality and tears it in half. the reminder that this is impossible, because not only is crick wellsley being accused of a crime,
but crick wellsley is dead. ]
-- This isn't real. [ he says, abruptly, under his breath, a hiss, and grabs tightly at his staff. salvation? give me a break. ]
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...well, honestly, they're all shit. they're definitely all guilty of a laundry list of sins. in fact, they already got judged and sent to hell for an eternity of torture once! if he's the only one who managed to escape it this time, that's probably how it should be! he's a good boy compared to them. he does his best, sometimes.
but he remembers, then, that this isn't their universe. that this isn't their genre. that dahut died and stayed dead. that he hates sleeping by himself so much. that he got copies of his own clothes in all his brothers' colors this week so he could leave them around his room and feel just a little bit less lonely.
he hears temenos, and he nods. it's not real. probably.
but everything else this past almost-two-weeks has been so much more real than anything he ever thought he'd have to face, so...
should he really be okay with this?
h-hey, akatsuka-sensei. what is he supposed to do here? ]
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okay, yeah, rei has also done things that would probably be considered as crimes, so this is another instance of going, "i would believe it, actually." and, generally, owner is fairly used to sweeping in and getting his guests out of trouble. it's surprising, how they all tend to wander right into things that would get them killed the second he looks away. what a silly child.
temenos mentions it's not real, and owner notes that also makes sense, maybe, although from his side he has no idea why temenos is making that claim. but then his gaze falls to rei's legs, and okay. that is odd. ]
Wow. Isn't this exciting?
[ his tone is even.
he places his hands behind his back, but still inside the cape. he lets his fingers touch the sheath of his blade, to remind himself that it's still and ready. just in case. ]
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purging sins, welcoming rebirth, a better world - what horseshit.
and then the hoods come off, and it's like someone dropped a bucket of ice water over kazuki's head, enough that he doesn't hear the others at all, let alone adrastea. his focus narrows in on a familiar face, one he hasn't seen in nearly a month now, and whispers, ]
Akito...?
[ it makes sense, doesn't it? that he'd be targeted for this. whatever akito did, it was serious enough for him to disappear. if ichika hadn't been so easy to read, kazuki never would have known something he was involved in something dangerous at all.
ichika had said he would come home safe. she wouldn't have lied, right? not about this. not about akito.
...right?
so how is he... ]
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Simply wonderful!
[ on the other side of the glass, todomatsu gets to see his brothers inch closer and closer to one another, as best they can with their hands bound... in front of them, all five of them. they lean on one another for support, confusion, anger, fear, the whole gamut. the six of you really have been through it, haven't you? despite your dedication to living your NEET lifestyles to your varying degrees, they're your flesh and blood. your older brothers.
you know them as much as you know yourself, for all their flaws and all the annoyance that they've caused you over the years. you know that osomatsu's temper must be rearing its head, that karamatsu is trying to stay cool and cocky in the moment, can see that choromatsu's wearing every reaction on his sleeve, that ichimatsu is locking up and withdrawing inwards, and that jyushimatsu doesn't seem to realize just how badly things have turned south. but they gravitate together as the only thing any of them knows in this moment.
separate from this cluster, rei struggles against the bindings that have his arms trapped behind his back. but he bares his teeth in a threat, a facsimile of a smile, saying something that... none of you can hear, on the other side of the glass. it might be soundproof. but he speaks to the attendant that he has, thrashing back and nearly striking them in the masked face with the back of his head. such a troublemaker as always, owner, even as he stands again before you.
akito flinches away from rei as he fights, bumping into the knightly figure next to him and looking... nervous. remorseful, even. like part of him thinks maybe he does belong in this situation, committed to it, but that it shouldn't have gotten this far, that this isn't quite right. he's also saying something, vehement, his glasses skewed on his face. you could almost, almost make it out by watching him, even if you can't hear him. surely this isn't what was supposed to happen! none of this should have been what happened! and kazuki, your sister wouldn't lie to you. surely she wouldn't. not about him. not about this.
and, oh, crick. paragon of goodness, who had simply wanted to find answers and bring the truth to light. he helps to steady akito as best he can, but like rei his arms are bound behind him. he doesn't fight, he doesn't plea, but he does seem to be trying to make a case here, turning towards the eight individuals that have brought them out there. he doesn't look furious, temenos, but he does look righteous. (he looks alive) he looks like that newly anointed sanctum knight that stood before a heretic, willing to step into battle for the sake of those who couldn't fight for themselves. ]
Our Blossoming Ceremony begins, ladies and gentlemen!
[ and the eight of them are hit in the back of the knees, brought to the ground in a row. another thrum pulses - but there's not a delay, this time. tha thump.
another. tha thump.
like a heartbeat. ]
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crick wellsley is crick wellsley, in the end. though this is completely impossible - after all, temenos was the one who checked his pulse, temenos was the one who showed up too late, who couldn't stop him. who should have stopped him, the night before - this is him, down to his core. soothing others. indignant in the face of evil. crick, who once hid behind him in his fright facing monsters in flamechurch. crick, who was so eager to uncover the truth that he ran into the den of the wolves by himself.
but that cannot be him. his own logic has to take precedence. he cannot allow himself for a second to think that crick wellsley is alive. crick is dead, and buried, and even she tried to use it against you.
casual. stay casual. his hand stays on his staff - and he asks, just loud enough to be heard by their neighbors. ] Do we get to know their crimes?
[ temenos asks it almost bored.
like it isn't the entire world crashing down, like it isn't making his mouth dry, like his heart is not pounding in his ears. his bored, placid mask the same one he's stapled onto his face every day of his life, does not budge. it would not budge for arcanette. he will not lose it, here.
in the meantime, temenos is calling up on that magic in his own regard, somewhere in the back of his mind reciting the words to a prayer. what can he do? could he cast a divine effulgence and burn this place to the ground? not likely. there's not enough time to prepare for it, and he'd be left vulnerable. could he stop the curse from taking place? could he cure it, if he did?
(can he stand here, and watch crick be a sacrificial lamb once again?)
his gaze pulls away from the facsimile of a stage for a moment, to sweep across the group, trying to catch owner's gaze first. they're the responsible ones here. (or at least, they're the ones loaded with magic.) ]
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M-maybe it's better if they don't announce them, actually! Just seeing them here like this is probably bringing their families enough shame already, don't you think?!
[ ah.
he winces even as the words are leaving his lips, shrinking back a bit as the heartbeat — heartbeat? — pounds heavily in his ears. can they see him from the other side of the glass, he wonders? even dressed like this, they'd all recognize him in an instant if they could — after all, who wouldn't recognize their own face?
there he is, the youngest brother who left them all behind without saying a word, like he so often does, standing in the crowd with everyone else who's come to delight in their well-earned suffering as they're finally (finally!) forced to make something of themselves.
he can practically hear the reactions.
eh?! he's still worrying about his own image at a time like this?!
ah, well, what would you expect from that dry monster?
that's right. he doesn't have a heart, after all.
if he wasn't here seeing it for himself, he probably wouldn't even notice we were gone tomorrow.
ahaha, you really hated having us for brothers, huh, totty?
n-no, no, no— wait. ]
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but then temenos speaks, and todomatsu reacts nervously to the request, and he thinks, uh oh. this just put too much attention over here. he isn't sure if people speaking up like this during this event is normal or not, but maybe they can be excused for openly being new...? on the other hand, those with power do have a tendency of getting offended easily, so this can really go either way.
he doesn't speak up, just in case. if anyone approaches the other two, he wants to keep the element of surprise to be able to step in, since people shouldn't think all four of them are together. he looks over at kazuki to see how he's reacting to this. ]
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maybe akito still thinks he deserves whatever punishment is coming, but it's good to see him fight. kazuki watches him with clenched fists, seething as awareness starts to come back to him, and he shoots temenos a glare. ]
Does it matter? [ he bites out the words bitterly. ] They already screwed up. There's no going back from that.
[ that's how these people think, isn't it? that nothing is worth forgiving, only judging.
eyes back on akito, kazuki shakes with rage and fear as they all fall to their knees. that sound - they're too far to do anything about it from here, aren't they? what would he even do when they're surrounded by a bunch of lunatics who want to see this happen?
c'mon, akito, get up... ]
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Oh, no. That wouldn't do. [ someone nearby says. ] They lost their right once the verdict was given! The crime hardly matters.
[ they're guilty. why would they care about their crimes beyond that?
they're guilty, aren't they? why would they be here if they were innocent? (would they even care, truthfully, if they were?)
jyushimatsu and akito are the ones that are unbound, but none of the others are. some sort of instructions must be given, because jyushimatsu starts trying to free his brothers, hands shaking as he goes one by one, and akito shakes his head, disbelieving, questioning. he's not fighting back physically, but - this isn't what it was meant to be.
there's no answer for him as the eight handlers leave them behind, leaving him on hands and knees. crick twists at his waist to speak to him, already having gotten at least one knee up, trying to reassure and get his attention. if they can get free, maybe there's a chance they can do something. rei, on the other hand, finds a way up to his feet again, again, and is making his way towards the glass of the atrium. at the very least, the guilty know they're being watched - because he's staring down the announcer as he approaches, all violent intent. ]
My, what a beast this one is! [ laughter bubbles up from the announcer, unconcerned. the pulsing heartbeat speeds up.
adrastea's voice comes through, clearer than before even as it crackles now: ] I'm com...ng... there's something happening... run.
[ roll a perception check. ]
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frustrating, but not surprising. this is kaldena all over again. how appropriate, to be watching crick have to deal with this - watching him face down judge, jury and executioner. bitterly, somehow (i'm here this time.)
his only outward reaction is a click of the tongue. ] Quite. Let the show begin, then. [ as if he agrees with any of this - cool, relaxed, unbothered.
in reality, he is not any of those three things! but at least he's super good at hiding it. he's distracted, thinking instead about what to do in the aftermath. if he can remove the source of the curse, he can likely revive - well, he can certainly try to get all of them. eight people is a lot at once, and it would undo his already tenuous reconnection to his magic, but if he conserves his mana, then maybe it'll be fine. his eyes stay on crick, and he finds himself - hoping. for once, hoping, maybe, that he can find his way out, that he'll be a stupid, gallant knight, that he'll save them from their situation.
of course, all planning for the future is interrupted when he hears run from adrastea. the idea of just abandoning them is making him feel a little ill, a little trapped, but this simply cannot be real, and the four of them are. he has to cling to the logical no matter how badly he wants to smash open the glass. he can't. he has to keep a cool head.
instead, temenos starts a prayer in the back of his mind. a familiar one, mentally calculating the amount of magic he'll need to prepare it and never taking his eyes off the display. Aelfric, grant us your sacred shield.
(DND voice) hold an action ]
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Jyushimatsu-niisan...
[ he's not sure what's happening right now, why jyushimatsu is the only one of the five who's left unbound — a funny risk to take, he thinks, when he's by far the strongest and most unpredictable of them all, though he's also never been able to carry malice nearly as well as most of the rest of them — or what instructions he's being given.
his questioning is interrupted by adrastea's voice in his ear, though (which at least puts a stop to the other voices he was imagining), giving him a command that he would love to follow, but isn't sure he actually can. ]
What...?
[ he lowers his head, suddenly very alert to the faces that have turned toward him, keeping his voice hushed. ]
W-wait, what are we doing? I mean— isn't that going to cause a scene?
[ more importantly, are they really just going to leave? ]
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well, the metatext said it was a half hour walk to reach this area, so if that was a legit time frame, they could make it back faster than that while running... however, there are other guards over on the other side of the tunnel, and if them suddenly leaving is seen as weird, then they would essentially be running to a dead end if the other guards are alerted because of how much time it'll take to reach there. there are other paths, but they have no way of knowing where they lead.
these are all things he is thinking about, but his main focus remains on rei. owner watches how defiant he is, and that does seem real. his hands are still in their spot behind his back, and he feels the sheath of the katana again, and there's a moment where he wonders how thick the glass is.
he manages to mumble into the headset, ]
Adrastea-sama, where are you? Are you going back to the main entrance?
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[ they're as good as trapped, anyway - it took way too long just to get here in the first place. what good is it to run, when akito is right there in front of him? how is he supposed to stand by and just watch akito be punished as if it doesn't affect him at all?
he can't. he won't.
there's a voice in the back of his head screaming at him that this is stupid, that he has no idea what he's doing. it's right, of course, but kazuki ignores it to step forward, walking toward the stage. ]
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[ but after a bit of silence, there's something for all of you: ] ... entrance... can meet you, where...
[ most of you are distracted by what's happening in front of you, the people that you see on the other side of the glass. akito has managed to get his wits about him, with careful coaxing from crick, who keeps looking at him, then up, deeper into the garden around them. temenos knows him well enough he should be able to tell that he's on edge, but he's trying to treat akito gently, and the teenager moves around behind the knight to start undoing the bindings that are holding his arms there. these two haven't noticed familiar faces inside, yet.
rei does, though. he stares down the announcer, first, arms shifting behind him, trying to work off his restraints himself. the announcer is hardly affected by this, and instead smiles indulgently as the heartbeat thrum of magic, of energy, reverberates in the glass around them all.
but then, he scans the crowd behind the announcer, as if taking stock of everyone that's come to perversely watch the proceedings. and he sees owner. there's a minute widening of his eyes, before they narrow, all the more furious for having spotted him. he tilts his body and rears back, slamming his shoulder into the glass. it does nothing.
but todomatsu will see, beyond his brothers, the shifting of plants again. the wind has picked up, so that's not too surprising, at first - a reaction, maybe. something to do with the mounting dread that's hardly aided by the harpist's playing. jyushimatsu doesn't pay the wind any mind, though, and is instead focused on actually ripping the bindings off his brothers, one by one, as the five of them talk to one another. they're looking around as if to try and figure out what the next step is.
they've gotten into harrowing trouble before. they can get out of it, surely.
except he'll notice the movement isn't just beyond the "prospects." it's also along the edges of the atrium, as vines creep up the cage that you've all found yourselves in. bit by bit, by bit, by bit. ]
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temenos doesn't have those. he's currently busy - in fact, his eyes close, briefly. he tears himself away from looking at crick helping out akito (of course he is) and starts reciting the prayer for the sacred shield if they're going to need it. his first priority is to protect kazuki and todomatsu, and though his sacred shield is not strong enough to completely block any kind of hit, it can at least absorb something. i would never steal your injuries from you.
that's all his focus at the moment, is silently mouthing the words to cast sacred shield. he doesn't do it yet, though todomatsu as our eagle eye might feel that temenos arm is a little warmer than it was before where he was holding onto him.
temenos has not noticed the extra movement. spellcaster life. he is still holding his action for when all hell breaks loose, because inevitably, it is going to break loose. come on, aelfric. come onnnnnn magic powers. ]
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it's when he's looking toward their potential exit route that he sees it — the movement of the vines around them, not just that of the trees behind his brothers. shit... the longer they hesitate here the more of that they're going to have to deal with, right? ]
Hey. The vines are moving — look. I think we really do need to get out of here.
[ a slight tug on temenos's arm (when did it get so warm?), and then he ducks down and starts to move through the crowd, trying to be subtle as possible and kind of wishing now that he wasn't such a showstopping beauty in this getup.
he glances back up to jyushimatsu and the others — they have indeed gotten out of much wilder scrapes than this before, so he wants to believe that they'll pull through this time too. sorry, he mouths silently in their direction. do your best. ]
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owner is still staring at rei, and then they make eye contact with each other. immediately, owner realizes the misunderstanding that forms in rei's head as he slams against the glass. oh, owner is here. this must be owner's fault. it would be amusing, except even he's aware that the odds are stacked very much against his favor at the moment.
he catches todomatsu moving to leave, although he doesn't quite catch what he says. either way, it makes sense that he's going, because there is a lot happening at the moment and their getaway driver is really insistent that they have to go now.
he looks at rei again.
todomatsu heads toward the exit, and owner heads for the stage. he moves slowly and carefully, acting like someone who simply wants a better view, the expression on his face one of simple curiosity. he gets closer and closer, and at least his general small and young appearance woudldn't really seem threatening. the stage the announcer is on isn't too high, just a few steps, so he as casually as possible goes up. and as gracefully as he can, he unsheathes his katana, and goes to try to drive it through the announcer's gut.
this is fine.
but like, if the rest of you want to do anything, owner is probably distracting everyone from the three of you. so like, that's nice. ]
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he doesn't notice anyone following, preoccupied as he is with keeping an eye on akito and checking out the equipment. he's not making any effort to hide, either - even if he did, the guitar would've given him away. but he can go the easy route and try to tell the harpist it's his turn to perform and decide what to do from there. anything to get akito out of here and safe back home.
...except owner makes his move first, and that's enough to startle kazuki out of whatever plan he was trying to think up. ]
Wha-- Hey!
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the announcer isn't anticipating this in the slightest bit, so even as owner comes walking leisurely up to the stage, he's more amusedly watching rei ram into the glass angrily. he only turns when he hears someone joining him on the stage, and he hardly thinks anything of it. his mouth opens to greet his guest, gracious and welcoming, and then there's a choked noise instead of words. because that's a katana run through his gut.
rei stops ramming the glass. blinks at this. and then starts... laughing? you can't hear it, but it's clear that he's laughing as he sees this happen. it's not kind laughter, and it draws the attention of the other seven prospects to see what the hell is going on.
akito sees kazuki, and his face falls in panic and despair, even if he can't see his face he knows knows knows him. you're not supposed to be here, you're not supposed to see him like this, he tried to run away and you wouldn't let him. and now, there's nowhere for him to go.
the brothers, at least, don't see their youngest yet. they're just going a wide range of what the hell!! on the other side of the glass, before there's a rattling that overtakes the entire area. they begin looking around, heads whipping wildly, trying to figure out where the source is.
and, well. crick sees temenos, like a guiding bolt, though it takes him a beat longer to recognize him compared to rei clocking owner instantly and akito realizing just who it was that joined the crazy sword wielding man on the stage. he falters where he is, shocked, before something convicted falls into the set of his shoulders, something more determined. he's not in his armor, he has no weapons, but he looks around to try and find if maybe there's something out here that he can use. a rock, a branch, anything.
the vines are creeping up faster, now, and the metal of the frame begins to groan slightly as they constrict. the thrum is racing, rabbit quick, and the flowers... begin to bloom in the trees above the atrium. ]
... gods... [ adrastea is maybe seeing what you're seeing, now. ]
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okay!! WELL!!!!
the minute owner starts to walk up to the stage, temenos figures out what's going to happen. he reaches out for todomatsu as he's starting to try and make his way out, because that plan is about to be ruined, and then - all hell breaks loose! and not in the way it was going to originally!!
he's going to trust owner to be the most competent for now and immediately puts himself in front of todomatsu, in an imperious swish of white and gold and blue, shoving the tip of his staff down into the ground for purchase. it gives him enough time to look up again, to lock eyes with crick. to see crick see him.
... he didn't go down without a fight then, did he? and crick won't, now, either. this time, temenos is here. whether it's real or not, he won't go down alone. the conviction is enough.
determination flares up with his magical energy. it feels good, to thrum back into his veins, and he meets crick's eyes, and his mouth quirks into a brief, tiny smile, before he casts, a beacon of aelfric's chosen. the shield will have to wait. ]
Holy light, illuminate the darkness! [ and goes for a two pronged luminescence spell, a bright flare of holy light that slams into the glass. cast the light down from above and smite the wicked. is there anything more wicked than this place they've found themselves in? let's light it up. ]
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excuse me?? wasn't this a stealth mission?! didn't you just say this wasn't real?! why the fuck is he the only one trying to do this thing properly now?!!
at least now it's noisy and hectic enough that he doesn't feel like he needs to bother trying to be quiet when he speaks into the communicator. ]
Okay, well, this is a shitshow, and the entrance is way too far for us to get through without getting stopped by a million guards, so can you please come and break through this glass ceiling — literally — in the atrium if you want to salvage this?!
[ ...and then he adds: ]
Try not to hit the guys that look like shittier clones of me if you can help it.
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