Day 7: Evening

Aftern-Evening: 3pm - Midnight

[ IRL Timeframe: January 22 - January 29, 2020. ]

After all of Seven's fights, ending in Luka taking Ten's hand as the other heroes arrive. The knights will be treated to the sight of something entirely unexplainable: Seven is wounded, laying on the asphalt with a bright white crossbow bolt sticking out of their body. They're still pouring black goop off of their body, but they appear to be wrapped in some kind of cloth tarp. Five is kneeling over them, dressed in a skin-covering assassin outfit that only reveals her five eyes peering out. In her hand is a phone, and that's really all that can be seen before she and Seven disappear into a portal in the ground.

Luka, meanwhile, is standing with Ten's hand in his and his crossbow laid on the ground and not in his hand. No matter what the arriving heroes cry out in order to get his attention, it's too late to stop him. Abruptly, the portal opens and both the Princess and Ten disappear into the ground.

Naturally, the hashtag #princessnapped is forged.

That doesn't prove to be the only hashtag to get some heavy use this evening. The #wizardfound and #robotwizard hashtags find a sudden, new reason to actively discuss what's going on.

The remaining heroes: Garrot, Gyre, Haizea, Matilda, Olivia, (and... where's Terrence?) will find that the events from earlier in the day have caught up to them. There's a crack like thunder as both the Wizard and the Protector flicker into existence and both land in the superhero pose in the center of the intersection that Luka just disappeared from.

The Protector, if possible, is looking even worse than before. He's sporting a black eye and numerous cuts on his forehead, cheeks, and arms. It looks like he's been lit on fire at least once, but even so he's holding his rapier out in anticipation of the next strike.

The Wizard, meanwhile, is finally openly visible to everyone after her absence. She looks rough. It's as if the areas where she'd been harmed have been replaced or repaired with robotics. The left side of her face is no longer bandaged, instead revealing that she now has a robotic eye with a glowing yellow ring. The cables that were visible in the video before are very clearly plugged in just behind her ear, trailing down over her shoulder and down her back beneath the robes.

And of course she's still wearing pajamas. But they look like they've seen better days, charred and ripped and shredded at every edge. In her hand, though, is a massive axe. One side of its head is a giant half-circle axe head while the other side is a heavy weight like a hammer. The entire weapon is jet black, but it has a glossy shine.

What's the worst that could happen?

The Weather
Cloudy, breezy.
48°F / 9°C
Brrr.

Prompts:

3:00pm The Garden, Unknown Location: When Luka falls through the portal with Ten, he'll become immediately aware that the monster has slipped himself closer and snuck his feet beneath Luka's to stabilize him. Despite the falling, he seems surprisingly stable in the air.

And then there's the soft crunch of grass beneath his feet and he shifts slightly, waiting for Luka to step back on his own. Wherever they are, the air is filled with the scents of wildflowers and scents that are both beautiful and entrancing in their complexity. It's clear that there are dozens, if not hundreds of flowers and plants in the immediate vicinity. There's the gentle warmth of sunlight on Luka's skin, clearly advertising that they're outside (or in a very clever indoor garden). But most calming is the gentle sounds of moving water. If Luka focuses, he'll be able to pick out that there's a small waterfall, several waterways, and multiple water features with water tumbling down over rocks. And, of course, a pool or a pond with fish gently swimming about beneath the surface.

But he'll be interrupted twice before he can lose himself. The first is Ten.

"We're here." He says, but if Luka's not shaken enough he'll realize that he doesn't hear Seven and his Seven sense isn't going wild. But the second distraction happens as Luka's phone bloops from an unknown sender with a text:

"Welcome to the Garden, Princess." The text reads... with no explanation of who or how they sent him the text. That's totally normal!

3:00pm Street Intersection, Bamborough: With the arrival of the Wizard and the Protector, it's very clear that shit is about to go down. But that absolutely isn't what the Wizard has in mind for this situation. She's the one running this game, and she isn't about to get five heroes wrapped up in her duel with the Protector. Before anyone can take an opportunity to make any attacks, and especially not the Protector, she snaps the fingers of her free hand five times.

And reality fractures. The way that the cracks in midair begin to fold and reflect the area and people around them, it's like the world is folding up into a trick mirror house. It's... actually exactly that. Reality twists and folds, forming reflections and containers out of the air itself until every single hero is enclosed in one. The hero in the middle of their own box, reflected on two opposite walls. But on the opposite two walls, the Wizard is visible beyond in one of them and the Protector is visible beyond in the other room. Uh. This conversation might get awkward. Worse is that they can't get distracted by their Seven senses, because no one can feel them anymore.

3:15pm To Everyone: In the middle of the earlier events, every hero in Bamborough receives a text from an unknown sender. The only one who's spared this text is Luka, because he got a text earlier. The text reads: "I can give you one teleport to anywhere today. Tell me when and to where. Don't be unreasonable!"

8:00pm Onward, Everywhere: The day is done, the events are finished. How does your character get home? Do they go home alone? Do they seek the company of their fellow heroes? Do they stay alone, or do they get a room together? Either way, it's a rough night for everyone.

Procedure:

Reply to the appropriate toplevel comments for events below. Indicate if a post is a private conversation with "Private" in the subject otherwise all threads should be open to interaction with others. Plan OOCly how you'd like to toss everyone around.

Activity Check: January 2020

[ IRL Timeframe: January 1st - January 31st, 2020 ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

As Luka speaks, anxiety settles back onto his shoulders. All he can think about is Luka having to lie to that man's face. All he can think about is the brilliant light of his sword as he tried to attack him. Twice. He doesn't know what the princess could do if the Protector really came after him, and that's terrifying.

"Better to look uh, busted, then for him to realize what happened," he says almost automatically. It's not a demand exactly, but his voice makes it clear that he highly recommends that option.

As he's speaking though, his thoughts are miles away, turning the problem over. He's never been good at this subterfuge thing, but after a moment, he hesitantly offers, "Maybe you were kidnapped, but we were trying to convince you to come to our side? So Twelve healed you?"

He glances at the Wizard as he says this, looking for confirmation that the Protector even knows that Twelve can heal.

As Luka puts his mug down, he'll be greeted by the soft sound of liquid pouring and a fresh wafting coffee scent up towards him. Care for another cup, Princess?

"He knows Twelve can heal. He believes every knight has turned against him, save for Olivia." The Wizard follows-up Gyre's theorizing, and then she offers a casual bit of hope.

"He'll be eager to believe he has not lost the Princess. You could tell him who the knights aligned with me are, to secure his trust." She takes a sip of her own coffee, apparently willing to divulge that information if he asked for it.

The coffee is there now, regardless, so it may as well not go to waste. The caffeine boost might help, too, if it doesn’t serve to worsen the growing anxiety instead.

“He knows about Gyre.” Luka says, nearly taking a sip before recoiling from the piping hot mug. “Not from me. The hospital thing was a bit of a giveaway. If he’s assuming everyone but Olivia has turned on him already, I doubt any other names will be worth his while.”

Luka blows on his coffee futilely as he thinks over the proposed plan.

“I can lie to him about what happened here. That the healing was a bargaining chip makes sense to me. But he’s very smart and not easily charmed.” Luka sighs. “If he catches on I’ll be in trouble.”

Gyre's attention jumps to the Wizard and stays there, wondering what exactly she has planned. He has been fairly public about his involvement with her, but he also knows he can protect himself. He doesn't care for keeping information secret really, but they are also safer if the Protector doesn't know who they are.

He lets out a breath he didn't realize he was holding when Luka refuses the information, glancing down at the ground for a beat. There are little nervous tremors running up and down his arms, but he's doing his best to stay practical. Much as he would prefer they all just weather the Protector storm here, where he can't seem to get to them, he knows that's not practical.

"I can hide nearby when you talk to him? If he turns on you, I can keep you safe," he offers after another beat.

The Wizard casually sips her coffee, pondering the situation they're all in, watching Luka and Gyre come to their conclusion and--

"There's something you should both know, about tomorrow." She begins, not wanting them to plan too far before she's revealed this bit.

"Both Eight and Sxicq are going to be causing a big commotion tomorrow." She says casually, blowing on her coffee for a moment.

"I'll be with Nine and Twelve, getting things ready for later. Ten will be watching the Protector. Five and Six will be with Seven." She pauses, before a little smirk appears on her face and:

"Eleven will be in the mountain."

Luka shuts his eyes slowly and heaves a big, dramatic sigh.

“If you have anything in common with the Protector, it’s that you both seem to hate giving even the slightest of details.” He says. “How do you know what Sxicq will be doing? I thought they were a free agent.”

There were more questions Luka could rattle off. There were always more questions. But he holds the deluge back and waits for clarification on the first one first. As a courtesy.

There is something almost miraculous about seeing another person getting frustrated about the Wizard's vague bullshit. He should've made Luka come with him to talk to her days ago, and he can't help smirking slightly as he turns his gaze onto the Wizard.

"What kind of a commotion?" he adds into the mix, hoping that with two people asking her about tomorrow, she'll actually give any details about any of it.

"They are, but Eight contacted them. Those two get along." She offers, sipping her coffee.

"They're going to change the shape of the mountain." She offers, pausing just enough before she adds:

"Without hurting anyone."

"Why do that?" Luka asks. "If you're at liberty to say."

She probably isn't, but it's a strange scenario to put forth without explanation, so Luka figures he may as well try.

"And... will we have to 'fight' Eight tomorrow too? Sounds like he's booked full with this mountain business."

Gyre nods to all these questions, glad to see the Wizard is in one of her easier moods to interrogate today.

"Eleven is going to be on the mountain while they reshape it?" he adds on to Luka's original 'why', leaning a little closer to her. He's hanging on her every word at this point basically.

"He's skipping this year, but he's sending a substitute to Far Haven to fight instead." She answers casually, sipping her coffee before moving on to the heavier question.

"The mountain can't change without Eleven's help, they'll keep it from collapsing."

"A substitute. Sounds boring." Luka says with a frown. "I hope they won't take long to defeat. Knowing we're missing out on the real action while we play-fight some stunt double hurts."

Luka flops back on the bench, dangerously close to spilling hot coffee on himself. The last thing he needed was another burn, but at least there was magic healing vomit on hand for that.

"Oh, hey, Wiz." Luka speaks up, as if suddenly remembering something. "Sxicq said there were two ships. Where's the other one?"

Gyre straightens immediately, eyes widening a little bit when she mentions that there will still be fighting? He looks decidedly flustered as he asks, "What kind of substitute? Is it going to hurt people?" Is it going to be a person as well? He is incredibly uncomfortable at the thought of more people existing to be fought!

His uh flustered mood is not helped at all by Luka asking about a ship a second later. He blinks a few times, glancing between the two of them.

"The other one? Where's the first one?"

"You should make the fight dramatic. The substitute isn't alive, but it's convincing." She adds, amused at how many thoughts they immediately had on the matter. But then they ask about the ship and she answers both in immediate succession.

"We're on the first, the second is what tomorrow's commotion is all about."

Luka purses his lips into a slight pout. A fake fight still felt like a waste of precious time when there were definitely more pressing matters to be dealt with, but he couldn't pass up a request to make something dramatic.

"Alright, I'll do my best to give you a good show. And my best is very, very good." He says with a wink, one hand forming a finger gun pointed in the Wizard's direction.

But then the matter of the ships returns and his demeanor grows more serious.

"Ten said they can't fit everyone. The ships. Could they do multiple trips between planets if necessary?"

Gyre is utterly bewildered by the idea that they're on a ship right now? They're definitely not on a ship, you guys?? But they keep talking like it's totally fine.

He looks around the space, staring up towards the sky and then out across the water. He has nothing to say, continuing to try to process the idea of ship this big. He's at least keeping an ear on the conversation, glancing over when Luka mentions having to make multiple trips.

She's tempted to mess around with Luka and his finger guns. But then he moves the conversation into a much more serious topic and keeps it there.

"Yes, but it would take time." She answers, pausing before adding: "And I don't think anyone knows the destination yet."

"Sxicq said they were going back to your home planet. They said they'd fix it." He replies, surprised the Wizard wasn't aware of this yet.

"They said there's more than one sun there, actually... have they been there before?" He taps his mug thoughtfully, before letting out a soft laugh. "I told them I'd watch the suns set with them when we got there but I don't know how much I'd really get out of that."

Gyre has turned his face firmly upwards, staring at the sky as if hoping he'll see a crack in it that lets him confirm it's not a real sky. There has to be some sign that this place isn't real, right?

As he's thinking about that though, his eyes widen. Luka was able to talk to Sxicq? Sounds like they got along pretty well too. He chews his lip curiously, thinking back on the day even as he continues to stare upwards.

"You were able to talk to them? Without an animal?" he asks, glancing out of the corner of his eye at Luka. And after a beat, he looks to the Wizard too, adding, "Why did the other monsters run away from them earlier today? They seemed scared to me."

The Wizard is tempted to ask Luka if he wants Twelve to try healing his eyes, but that's the sort of question that was firmly in her 'don't ask other people questions like that' bubble.

As Gyre looks around during the conversation, he won't be able to see any indication that this place is fake. How was it so real...? But speaking of real, there was that other thing...

"So they don't know." She answers, curious.

"The planet we're from is gone." She takes another sip of her coffee before glancing at Gyre.

"Five and Six are afraid of them, and they don't like trains so Ten doesn't like them." She answers, swirling her coffee a little before adding:

"I think Ten writes them letters?"

"Yeah... I could talk to them." Luka explains. "Not directly, though - hearing them speak was painful, like a really bad headache or something, but I could understand what they were saying in a weird way."

He turns to the Wizard when she mentions that her home planet is gone.

"They didn't seem too pressed about it, to be honest." He says, shrugging, his mouth falling into a slight frown. "They're just leaving the planet for somewhere else. I don't know how dead-set they are on that one in particular."

The news that her planet is gone draws his attention away from the Definitely Real sky, and he shifts over towards her side. He touches her arm, grabbing her shoulder as long as she doesn't shrug him away.

"Why are they afraid?" he asks, sounding deeply unsure as he begins to uh try to guide the Wizard to Luka's bench. She looks awful and he wants her to rest for tonight, even if she can't actually sleep.

"Do you or... him, ah, know anywhere we can go? We could follow Sxicq if they'll let us and they know where they're going..." His voice is a little shaky as he speaks, a pure existential anxiety rising up in his throat as he imagines traveling through the black expanse Sxicq had shown him earlier. This sucks!

The Wizard nods slightly at Luka's explanation. Space was vast, there was more than enough out there, so:

"I'm sure they'll find somewhere out there." She answers, pausing to glance at Gyre as he tries to urge her to the bench. She shakes her head, not moving from her spot. It helps that she's still heavy due to being metal so he can't even really force her. But he'd asked about Five and Six and the ship, so...

"They're afraid because they know they might go back. And there are some directions still left, but time has passed so what could be going on out there?" She inquires casually, smirking just a little before she adds:

"It would be nice if you didn't have to leave."

Edited 2020-02-02 15:38 (UTC)

If Luka had ever thought he was following what Gyre and the Wizard were discussing, that delusion had now vanished within the last few minutes.

"What?" He cuts in. "Back in the mountain? Directions? Why does Gyre have to leave?"

He is completely lost.

Don't worry Luka, you're not alone. Gyre stares blankly down at her as she starts mentioning directions and going back and... what?

"Go back where? Who left directions?" he stumbles over his own words, speaking at almost the exact same moment as the Princess. He can't believe she'd just drop all of that as if either of them have any idea what she's talking about. This is the first time he's even heard about having directions!! He thought they were just going to have to run around in a ship looking for some place to land!

The Weather

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