prismaticrap | ▶ TDM .011

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You awaken amidst the darkness with only a faint light to greet you. Your body is hemmed in by shards of crystals, gently sparkling and possibly pricking your skin. The surrounding landscape is dyed in the pinks and purples of the dusk filled with crystals protruding from the ground, some as large as a skyscraper. After an hour or two of wandering through the crystal wilderness, a group of people find you worse for wear. They are the gallant Moon Knights from the planet of Prismatica. Because of the strange phenomena during the past months when scientists observed the sudden appearance of rainbow crystals in the sky, the government has been feverishly combing through the moon for more Moonblessed to be rescued. You’ll eventually be brought into Iris’s moon government center.

You all may have your usual inquiries — Where are we? Who are you? What's going on? — and the Prismals are almost too eager to answer. They tell you about their world and about the first appearance of the Moonblessed as the medical staff give you an examination to make sure you’re not carrying any viruses or biological hazards. If you react violently, you may be restrained and nerfed with a specialized neurotransmitting gun that releases a numbing agent through the top of your spine. Once the examinations are over, you’re informed that you will be provided accommodations on their planet during your stay. You will then be escorted to the docks, and led onto a large transport vessel that makes frequent trips back and forth between the Iris moon and the planet. Faces onboard vary from both old and new Moonblessed as well as the local Prismals.

The next destination: Prismatica.

▶ There and Back Again
Iris Moon, Government Center (Arrival) and Planet Prismatica, City of Lunatia | top

Welcome to Prismatica’s hub, Lunatia, the city of your dreams! A bustling metropolis lush with bright lights, vibrant colors, luxuriant plant life, and all the conveniences of technology absent from your own world… It seems like paradise to all the uninitiated. After a quick tour of the city, new arrivals can find themselves getting cozy in their new homes.

A Settle in your new home at Level 2 to find new roommates and say hello to your neighbors! City officials will give you directions to the designated districts across Level 2 and instruct you to pick out a unit. Each apartment complex has a different aesthetic, some may look cozy, some stylish, and some bizarre. The free accommodations have a basic living space that can only fit two or three people at most in one unit.

Starter Chromaspace furnishings are provided which can be controlled with the touch of a built-in panel. Examples are color-changing curtains, transforming sofa beds, cabinets turning into tables, etc. Customizing your apartment or moving out will have to wait until you earn more chroma. Until then, why don’t you check out your new neighborhood or explore the city levels? Maybe your new roommates or neighbors can give you a “hand” with allowance for dinner.

B As a Remooning gift from the Lunar Scientia Headquarters, the dedicated team from the Amphoria Room has released their latest perfected technology: Amphoria Pods. These VR Pods, which can fit up to four people at a time, have been set up in the gaming hub within Level 1’s PrismaPlace. They allow users to upload sceneries of their world in order to create a realistic holographic landscape of their homes that others can access and play around with, granting everyone the means to relive past memories with their loved ones as well as interact with the bestiary of other worlds. The pods also use the same technology that enhanced the popular virtual game, League Match Action Online (LmaO), which means you’re liable to feel the chill of cold environments, the burning heat from boiling water, the hard slap of your ex-lover, or the biting sting of a stray wasp. All who use the Amphoria Pods for the first time this year will also receive a small amount of Chroma in case things get too real.

▶ God Save Us from the Queen
Level 1, PrismaPlace and Level 2, Greatmoon Groves | top

The first month of the year is packed with two of the most important winter events this season: Queen Elara’s birthday and the League Match Action Online (LmaO) PVP semi-finals. It just so happens that the Queen of Lunatia is also a huge LmaO fan. Coincidence? Definitely not! LmaO players and royal family fans alike can meet her at PrismaPlace, where she will be appearing in cosplay of her favorite hero, Ah-Kari, while holding a body pillow of Commander GareBear. You, too, can get an autograph or selfie with the birthday girl if you’re willing to fall in line! Her bodyguards will also be in LmaO cosplay, keeping the crowd under control during the long wait.

Queen Elara

Good day to you all! This may come as a surprise to our guests the Moonblessed, but I am a normal person despite my exalted position. Please do not think of me today as Queen Elara. Instead... my name is Ah-Kari, sorceress of the crystal! With my soul fan blades, through the darkness, I shall slice all who dare hurt my commander in twain!

But when she is not meeting and greeting...

Queen Elara

My comrades, we're going to make history today. We're going for a new record. Perhaps the highest kill counts or the fastest clear for this map — it matters not. We’ve practiced day and night for this tournament, so let us show everyone that we’re not to be taken lightly! Also, the livestream is going in the royal archive, so make your successors proud!!

... she will be furiously grinding her character and training her skills in LmaO in the hopes of qualifying for the finals. Spectators will see her bring her own team full of hapless palace attendants who are there to either serve as her practice match partners or provide support to the one-woman army that is Queen Elara.

PrismaPlace is packed with giant crowds, many of them also in cosplay. While the semi-finals are taking place, new and old LmaO players alike can participate in the game’s current campaign: players who form teams get an improved chance of spawning unique monsters as well as winning rare items and skins in those prized lootboxes! Teams can also try to clear the event’s story together, featuring an aerial battle fought on griffin-back, which is heavily inspired by the popular Lunatian epic, The Battle of Abraxas, a colorful and complex story about the conflict between two families fighting over the fictional land of griffins, Abraxas.

A Progression in the event requires acquiring a griffin mount and getting it ready for battle. You can lure a wild one to yourself with a special veggie pie on a fishing pole. Should the griffin reject the lure, your character will be caught in a wind gaol and can only break out with the help of other players. Should you succeed, raising the griffin is a tedious task that involves players training alongside their respective griffins, running laps with them, taking them to hunt monsters, and feeding them properly. Depending on their diet, the food you give them will affect the color of its plumage and their battle stats.

Or you can skip the hard work and simply moonlace with your teammates through all the progression bars and required materials to save time. Once finished, you’ll be able to battle one another through the thunderous aerial domain of Abraxas. Clearing the event will net you an event-exclusive skin inspired by the royal family’s shining celestial robes and a weapon skin of a body pillow with your favorite character, so do your best!

B In celebration of Queen Elara’s birthday, the office of the royal household is hosting a modest tea party in the Greatmoon Groves. Swiffy bots that are normally programmed to remind visitors to keep the groves clean are now playing a birthday jingle on repeat. For people who prefer to be away from the blinding neon lights and the thumping techno music of PrismaPlace, this is the ideal escape. Unlimited tea and cookies are being served!

The tea is a soft-colored lilac concoction made from Ehrysian tea leaves that are known to cause a huge spike of alertness and is popular to Moon Knights and office workers with long night shifts as well as gamers for those all-night grinding sessions. The assorted cookies have either Ah-Kari or Commander GareBear printed on them. In case it isn't obvious yet, both are the birthday girl’s favorite LmaO characters.

Any Moonblessed looking for extra income is welcome to be royal attendants for the day; the hours are paid by Demichroma. They must be properly dressed up as maids or butlers (outfits provided by the royal household) as they serve tables.

▶ Say Cheese
Level 3, Caihong | top

Meanwhile, Caihong is in the midst of Remooning festivities in celebration of the new year, and merriment usually lasts a fortnight, filled with fireworks in the sky. Upon entering the district, beautiful Prismals with rat ears and tails greet you with a Happy Remooning and eagerly tug you along to join in.

Those welcomed will receive a pack of multi-colored sparklers, mooncakes topped with cheese, and a glowing drink called Champagne Supernova, poured in a thin glass in your hand. If you are over eighteen, the rat Prismals will ask if you prefer your drink with a kick. If you say yes, then they will add flavorful ice that causes extreme intoxication and might leave you to be susceptible to all levels of suggestion. Saying no (or if you’re under 18) will simply leave it as a sweet drink.

A One of the party games being played by the locals is called Lucky Tail, which is basically pinning the tail on the holographic rat stand-in — with a twist, it must be played with a partner! Another participant will blindfold you, spin you around, then push you forward. The stand-in is located at the end of unsteady elevated platforms forming a maze, filled to the brim with distracting objects underneath. They’re long, they’re thick, and they’re vibrating furiously in an attempt to knock you off the platforms.

Your partner must guide you by voice to successfully navigate through the maze! The game is rigged with various mechanisms, so stepping on specific platforms will activate a number of traps against you or your partner: machines that may tickle, drop colorful slime, or cause the platform to repetitively spin, and who knows what else?

Should you manage to get through the obstacle course and pin the tail successfully, you and your partner will win copious amounts of Demichroma, courtesy of Buwan from Buwan’s Stop.

B Another attraction is a fun magic glamour booth known for its face or body swap features. The booth staff, clad in their festive rat paraphernalia, will encourage you and your friends to take aesthetic shots using an illusion generator. The effects last an hour. Photographed images can be instantly uploaded and shared in Prismagram. New year, new you! Why not take the chance to celebrate this momentous occasion in a unique fashion? It’s all in good humor.

There are two buttons to press: (A) CUSTOM or (B) RANDOM. Pressing A will allow participants to customize their desired effects. Pressing B will cause the illusion magic to randomly rearrange participants in questionable positions, new outfits (or lack thereof), and you may even come out of the booth looking like your best friend or your worst rival. The possibilities are endless!

▶ Questions
If you have any questions regarding this test drive meme, please ask them in the Questions thread below.

▶ As a reminder, test drive memes are for new characters only. However, current players are more than welcome to use these prompts for their own posts in the IC communities, personal inboxes, catch-all posts, etc.!
▶ As our test drive memes are game canon, feel free to keep any threads that happen here as canon for your character should they be accepted.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Then I suggest that you take the opportunity while we're alone and without interruptions. There's no telling how long it will last.

[And while he doesn't outright say that he'll be coming along if Allen is successful... Well. The implication is definitely there. Strange circumstances or not he still has a job to do after all, and he has absolutely NO intention of being stranded in this place while the other slips away to inevitably endanger himself more. Even if he has to bind Walker and drag him through the Ark kicking and screaming.

But his attention is drawn when the other seems to realize something, an eyebrow raising.]

Different? How s-

[Er.

... Yeah Link is definitely giving him a weird- and slightly scandalized- look.]

Walker, what are you doing?!

[ That's a great idea Link, but you're going to have to give him a moment. He's a little busy. A man on a mission. But don't sound so huffy; please, they had to get dressed around each other plenty of times in the past. Although in retrospect, Allen is having a hard time thinking of any occasion where Link wasn't perfectly uniformed and dressed at all times or in pajamas that weirdly never seemed to be out of place...

And don't worry, he keeping his necktie on. (It makes all the difference, alright.) Coat too, honestly, don't get your feathers in a ruffle. He just needs to see. Though honestly, his body language is more frantic and worried than anything. Especially as he unbuttons his shirt up to his middle and— ]

Ah—

[ It's... smooth. And just skin. No feathers from his Innocence plugging up a gaping hole that won't shut, no festering heat from the Noah in him screaming in protest. Well, he has a scar on his stomach where it was, a spidering and unpleasant sort of one like the skin had been burned or, more accurately, somehow corrupted, but... ]

It healed... [ A few crystal shards fall from the scarred edges as well. The wound from Kanda that had made his life hell for months... it healed.

His head feels clear. Empty and clear for the first time in forever. That's what he had meant. ]

Link... [ Should he... say anything? Is it something he even needs to hide? Couldn't it be something that changes everything?

Does saying it aloud jinx it? ]

I don't feel it anymore. Any of it.

[ Like the Memory—like the 14th—was gone. ]

[Link can't help a noise of frustration when he doesn't get any sort of elaboration at first, taking advantage of the Exorcist's distracted state to finally close the distance between them a little more. He doesn't get too near, but he figures that if Walker is so preoccupied then this (likely) is something worth taking note of. Maybe he was injured after all?

Also never being naked around the person you observe is a top priority, ok.

But that's neither here nor there at the moment, because Allen has finally gotten his shirt open and Link is similarly shocked. After all, he's not only been around the Exorcist enough to be well-versed in his various scars, but also the torment that certain ones have caused. Of course the one in question had been the most concerning ever since he received it, which is why he's having trouble comprehending what he's seeing.]

What? How...

[Propriety and earlier caution be damned, he's right in front of Walker now. He kneels a little to try and get a closer look, trying to find any signs of what could have healed the wound so cleanly. Despite all previous attempts at care the injury never closed like this, and his brief time with the Atuuda he knows that doing so even with sorcery would be no easy feat.

He picks up one of the crystals as it falls, only for his investigation to be interrupted when Allen's words finally hit home, making him slowly look up.]

... What do you mean?

[It can't be.]

[ The moment Link up at him so slowly, and that even he seems so taken aback—

Allen's mind is racing with the possibilities of what that means, that the Noah in him isn't reacting, that he actually feels clear-headed and himself, but... he hesitates at that, body language immediately shifting. Tensing, and his expression becomes a bit skittery. Guarded.

Can he be sure? It's so different from the last few months that he feels pretty damn sure. Even if he is sure, should he say anything? Around Link, at that?

...because what would it mean to the Order if he had been purified somehow? It might change a lot but it doesn't change everything. It doesn't undo everything that's been done, and not all of it was because Nea began to awaken. And even if Link followed him here because it's what Link wants and not the Order, which he's still not certain how much he believes just because of how fundamentally that's part of who he is, Allen's also very acutely aware that everything he's ever said around Link has been written down and reported on. That's a big gamble when he doesn't even know his cards. But is it really anything he needs to keep to himself?

Maybe, when it involves implying just how bad it's been up until this point.

(Could it mean he could go home...? No. He's very aware that it doesn't change that fact.)

He takes a breath, stomach tight as his eyes haven't left Link's even if his expression is flighty. Flighty—but clear silver. ]

My head... [ Throbbing, noisy, headachey, muddled, feverish, nightmares, not being entirely sure all the time what was real and what wasn't all while someone was hammering and hammering at a single spot of his psyche over and over until he was just used to it and how fractured he felt and that the world kept feeling like it was shrinking—

He breathes again, and it's a little shaky. ]

...my head feels clear.

[ And with it any trace of the presence—the malice—that Link had begun to sense leaking from him in America is likewise gone. ]

Edited 2020-01-09 16:58 (UTC)

[Even though Allen doesn't exactly answer directly Link is beginning to put the pieces together, that expression on the other's face combined with his vague tidbits of information and healed wound giving him enough to fill in the blanks. Walker is no longer host to the Fourteenth- or at the very least the Noah is latent in a way that he hasn't been for a very long time. This realization brings a flurry of emotions that the Crow has absolutely no idea how to deal with, all of them washing over him in a wave to leave behind a single truth in the their wake:

Link has absolutely no idea how to feel.

You said you wanted to see him overcome his supposed fate. You've prayed over it countless times, haven't you? So why don't you feel relieved?

Because... This means he's objectively failed, doesn't it? Instead of pursuing Allen with the intent of waiting out his transformation into the Fourteenth he's completely lost his goal, and with it his own purpose. It feels as though a rug has been pulled out from beneath him and- just for a moment- Link is sure that he lets the shock slip through in his expression.]

... I see.

[The response is just as slow and measured as Walker's. Link's mind is now racing as he tries to figure out how to remedy this, a hand going to his own chest almost unconsciously, touching over the small scar he knows is beneath. He can still feel the presence of the Atuuda within him, meaning that whatever altered the Noah part of Allen did not change some part of him. At least not obviously.

But he has to be steadfast. Grounded. Link gathers himself, inhaling slowly through his nose before nodding, just once.]

I believe we should try to find answers about where we are first, then we can begin to figure out what precisely was done to us.

[ Something about that response...

It would have been childish, like something written in a storybook, to believe changing that one aspect about himself would suddenly make everything better or turn it back to the way it was. Even if Allen is ever an idealist, he's not really an optimist either. He wears optimism like protective armor, but he's quite aware of how terrible the world is, how often terrible things happen, and that heroes don't always stop villains.

That heroes don't exist, honestly. He's never seen himself as one. There are just people who try their best, even when all the odds are stacked against them, for as long as they can until they cannot anymore. And that maybe the legacy they leave behind, however bittersweet, might inspire someone else to try even when they know all they'll ever receive for their efforts are kicks in the teeth. But maybe, just maybe, by doing that they can hope to try to make a difference and reduce the suffering. Even just a little; even just in one person's life.

That's how the world is.

But when Link looks at him like that, not even just shocked but almost like he's... lost? it's hard to tell, it's not an expression Allen's ever seen the normally composed Crow have? He... realizes he may have been hoping, even just a little, that this might finally be a Good Thing that's happened. Except that it isn't, not really.

Instead it feels like a hollow sort of thing too, no victory at all, that he would just wake up and find himself healed. No battle won, no answers, just... nothing. It's everything he wanted and yet, the moment Link stares at him like that... he actually hates it.

This isn't victory. It's just more unanswered questions—and even less that he understands about himself or his situation. ]

...mn. [ He looks away, with heavy eyes but an unreadable sort of expression, and he begins to button his shirt up again. Not woodenly, but his movements are quiet and somber now. Methodical. ]

There has to be someone else here. We can't be the only ones.

[ Unless he really did massively screw up with the Ark, but—that seems far, far less likely now. ]

Edited (gdi html) 2020-01-10 00:38 (UTC)

[The silence that hangs in the air is heavy in a way that Link can't remember ever experiencing before between himself and the other young man. They've had heated arguments, tension... But this is different. There's almost something final about it, like there's a line that they're both close to crossing that neither can come back from.

... He doesn't like lying to Walker. He truly doesn't. Lying is a distinctly un-Catholic thing to do in the first place and he doesn't fancy himself to be a dishonest man, but at the same time his life has never been so simple. As much as he tries to pretend otherwise things aren't always so black and white and he's had to tell many lies.

But they were all necessary.

Yes. And it was necessary not to tell Allen the whole truth. With the Fourteenth's status unknown he can simply continue to monitor him while finding an escape or answers and nothing beyond that needed to come to light.

It's easy and almost comforting to slip back into "work mode" and focus on something that feels more stable- more black and white- and Link clings to it almost desperately. He slips back into his mask of professionalism, posture straightening as he surveys what he can see of the immediate area.]

I agree. If we were trapped there could be others, so we should keep moving and focus on large clusters like this where people could take shelter.

[ Whatever line he is thinking is there that might be crossed, Allen will be damned indeed if he lets him. That's his thing, making ridiculous stands and blowing past lines he's not supposed to. The line that could be crossed that neither of them could come back from that should be feared is the one if he did awaken fully as the 14th. He'd argue that to his last breath.

So don't you sodding think that for a moment, Link. If it came to that he wouldn't let you, if he is indeed himself again. You can't just appear from the dead and then waltz off because oh, the paths they follow have become different.

Again, that's Allen's thing. He might be that stupid but it doesn't mean he won't fight it in others. That's called being a professional hypocrite.

Though mostly, he is just conflicted and hates this nebulous uncertainty between them. Would be that the situation would let him just cut and run as his instinct would be and just be so so glad that the other's somehow alive even if he has no proper idea how to show it because that's a luxury he can't afford right now.

Even if that idea is also unbearable right now, and he's not sure he could even if the situation was different. Other than he will actually die himself before letting Link get himself killed(?) for his sake again.

So focusing on the matter at hand that they can do something about and just... not thinking about the rest for now... it just fine by Allen, so he gives a nod and looks up to the strangely lit sky. It's also when he would call Timcanpy down to him, to help search the terrain ahead, but...

He swallows a little, as he very nearly did on reflex, because surely Tim would always find a way to come with him even somewhere strange, before recalling why he can't.

Instead, he bends to pick up Johnny's security bracelet from where it had fallen from his hand at some point while he was asleep, taking care to brush some of the crystal shards off before he pockets it. ]

Let's go. [ His voice is quiet and a little thick, but he'll be fine.

He'll be fine. ]

Edited 2020-01-10 03:25 (UTC)

[Once Link has focused on a destination ahead of them he doesn't allow himself to even glance in Allen's direction. He doesn't want to see the sort of expression the younger man could be making, doesn't want to let those thoughts of rebellion creep back into his mind. He just has to focus.

There's another mass of crystals slightly larger than the one they're presently at not far away and he begins to move towards it, all the while ensuring that Walker stays in his peripheral vision. Still never looking at him directly, though. But even then he-

He feels like he should say something. This would normally be the time when two people who had been through as much as the two of them had would... Talk, wouldn't it? He doesn't really know. But the silence is only getting heavier and he feels frustrated and useless in a way that he distinctly dislikes. And yet he feels that almost anything he could say would be pointless; nothing more than empty placating words that neither of them would believe. But he still feels like he should say something.]

... It's good to see you, Walker.

[His voice is lowered, as if the empty landscape might hear his secret.]

[ That could also be said for him and Kanda and Jo— ... just Johnny, maybe. As Allen had been so willfully, sullenly silent when the two had apprehended him and not keen on bonding or any rekindled camaraderie at all. Though the process of being apprehended would also do that to a person.

It's quite simple. If he opens up, if he lets himself feel the camaraderie that was there before that he misses so much... he fears he won't be strong enough to let it go again. That's what scared him maybe the most that he couldn't seem to get away from them soon enough. Wanting to hold that small flickering hope they gave, because without them, without knowing you had people at your side, without Timcanpy...

... without them, the world is so unfathomably dark.

It's why Allen is uncharacteristically silent at first, and seeming to be half in his head as much as paying attention to the alien surroundings. Why he's actually rather grateful that Link is the way he is; quiet and non-intrusive. "Furniture", he'd teased. But it makes it a little easier to be less anxious; less guarded.

And it's also why he's surprised when the other does. So much so that his head quickly whips up with an expression that's, well—

Briefly stricken, actually. ]

...! [ Showing up like that and saying it's good to see you when he knows how much you aren't one for sentimentalities... Link, that isn't fair. If you make him deal with this right now, saying the things he never even wanted to acknowledge how badly he wanted to hear just like Johnny did... if you make him deal with this right now, after Timcanpy... ]

[ ...If you do, he might break.

His eyes smart and he swallows, glancing aside. Keeps moving forward, though. Always forward. ]

Kanda and Johnny... they said when I escaped, in that prison— [ His voice, while soft, is also raw and tight. And he digs the nails of his right hand into his palm.

"Run," he'd said. ]

...they said the Order found your body.

[... Ah, so it's going to be this talk then, is it?

But of course Allen would have asked eventually. He would have had to be foolish to assume that the other would go for too long without demanding to know the truth about his supposed "death". Or at the very least what Link will pass for the truth.

He doesn't like lying to Walker but it has to be done. He pauses for just a beat, just long enough to get the story straight in his own mind and steel his resolve as they continue to move. The walking really is helping him concentrate; it almost feels like he has purpose again.]

I was very close to death, yes. But after the Order found me it was determined that since I had failed in my duties of monitoring you it was in the best interest of Central and the Crows for me to be announced as dead.

[ Avoidance being a hallmark trait among the men of the Order or not, you're the one who brought it up Link! As if Allen can say he's glad to see you too until he understands what happened. You might still be a ghost that's haunting him, after all.

But that doesn't quite... track, that answer. Even if Central has always been an enigma to Allen and something he doesn't really understand, other than he fears it the most as an enemy because it's where Apocryphos hid, and who knows who else truly makes up its ranks if it was part of it. Also, he failed so he was... basically set free? That really doesn't track. "Are you still with the Order then?" he kind of wants to ask, but... doesn't want to risk the answer, either. Link's not wearing any uniform or sigil, and he said he wasn't there to bring him back to the Order.

Is that enough of an answer for now? He's not one to press without reason. Though did that mean he had become a fugitive too? But at whose interest, because that's a big cover up, announcing he's dead when he isn't, and a big risk to whoever did that. Inspector Lvellie...? But it hardly seemed like something that man would do...

But he doesn't know. Doesn't know any of it, that all feels so far over his head it's kind of laughable just because that feels so par for the course and he actually—

He actually laughs gently after a moment. Faint and so very bitterly humorless, like that's just one more nail in his soul. Pretty and almost delicate with his voice, and somehow very chilling to hear as well. Haha, that's really... really... ]

I'm sorry. [ It's soft, though a little creaky like his throat is tight. And he rubs at his eyes for a moment before keeping them on the night sky above them as they walk along. ] I'm sorry, I want to say it's good to see you too, Link. I really do, but I—

[ Haha... He can't even talk about this without his voice beginning to crack. And the corner of his mouth curls for a moment in a humorless sort of smile, like "I really am an idiot." ]

...It's because of me you were even in that situation to begin with. [ And he means that he doesn't feel like he has the right to be glad.

Though his face feels a bit cold and he figures it's the night air, only to realizes it's because the tracks of tears there have begun to cool. ]

Edited 2020-01-12 06:09 (UTC)

[Link had expected this sort of response. He knows Allen's habit of taking all the burden upon himself, of making things personal and being far harder on himself than necessary. The blonde has never been a sentimental man and he knows that comfort is hardly one of his stronger skills, but he still can't help the way his eyes soften ever so slightly as he shoots Allen a glance.]

You're wrong. I was there because of my own choices, nothing else.

[In fact he almost considers saying that the situation would have been the same even if it had been anyone else. But... He actually isn't sure about that. Would he have visited anyone else in that prison cell? Would he have let anyone else escape, endangering his own life and the duties he took so seriously? Had his charge been anyone other Exorcist would he still feel such conflict between duty and his own feelings?

Honestly Link isn't sure how he feels about Allen being such an exception. It's certainly not the sort of objectivity that he always used to pride himself on. He... Decides not to dwell on that, giving a small shake of his head that's as much for himself as it is for Walker.]

You don't need to say anything at all.

[Again he goes silent for a few moments, weighing his options. Would saying more be stepping over that line? But the words are already coming out]

... Just know that I want to see you walk your own path.

[ How very like Link, being so tidy and brushing the matter off like that. Except...

...not...

It's an audible quick breath that Allen takes. Pure shock, hearing that sort of thing. That meant... you were listening that time, weren't you? In Paris. I mean, of course he was listening, that's just what Link did (irksome that it was sometimes). But no, he well and truly listened and would actually support him in the matter...? Vouch for him even after everything that's happened?

To Allen at least, of course there's no doubt that he doesn't want the 14th to awaken. But there's a difference between that and saying what he did, not just that it's not a academic opinion of what's better for the state of the world (for the Order and duty) and instead one of Link's rare moments of having his own personal opinion--

Faith. ]

...!

[ Tears well up again, and for an entirely different reason, spinning around to the older teen even as he takes a step. ]

Link, I--

Edited 2020-01-13 02:23 (UTC)

[ -- found a pit.

He found a godforsaken pit. Well, crater, technically. As it would appear the large crystal formation they were making their way to was slammed down into the ground ages past or grew out of something at the bottom. And Allen just walked right into it. ]

-- ?

[ Rock, sadly, is a terribly unforgiving thing to try and find footing on. Down he goes!! ]

[Link is just looking towards Allen, bewildered by the half-formed sentence only to find that-

... He's not there? Yes it seems like there's suddenly an Allen Walker-shaped hole missing from where the younger man just was, that all-too familiar panic instantly setting in of where he could have vanished to. The blonde almost walks right over the edge himself in the moment of distraction, barely managing to catch his footing just at the precipice as the other topples down.]

Walker?!

[And for all his good intentions when he tries to move cautiously and find a good path to where Allen tumbled a bit of rock gives way to send the Crow right down into the crater with him. On top of him, in fact.

Thankfully he's not that much heavier, at least?]

[ It's lucky for you, Link—or maybe unlucky, depending on one's perspective—that Allen at least has very good reflexes when they kick in. And losing all solid footing while skidding down a steep cliff means he doesn't have time to think about whether or not he can still invoke Crown Clown, he just does. In a whirling rush of softly glowing white and feathers sharding on the air as he twists and digs the claws of his left hand into the shale-like cliffside until it slows—and stops his fall.

It's... secure enough for now? ]

Whew... [ Twisting, he's trying to see exactly how far down the ground is. Huh, he should probably call up to Link too and let him know he's alright. He's probably -- ]

[ -- mad.

Also coming right at him. ]

Wah -- ! [ Perhaps if you had, I don't know, given him some warning he might have been able to catch you!!!? And he does try! Kind of!! But he's barely gotten his arms up before he's gotten a faceful of Howard Link.

This. This is his life now. Grand.

But Link sure does manage to knock him off his perch entirely. Mostly it's the shock and the fact that... Allen let go... to try and catch him... Either way, that's in the past now! As they both go tumbling down in a heap. Turns out Allen had stopped fall exactly... five feet from the bottom? Look, sometimes he is lucky. And Crown Clown makes a fantastic soft break to any fall.

For Link. Allen didn't have time to break his own. Which might be why he seems to just be twitching and groaning for a moment... ]

[To his own credit Link hadn't planned to join him like this so he didn't have time to give proper warning. And he's definitely going to stew in humiliation later for his own hard-trained reflexes failing him like that.

But fortunately the fall itself combined with running into Allen does make instinct kick in and he makes himself roll when they land, taking at least some of the weight and blunt impact off his companion when they crash. Link manages to roll himself over and onto his knees gingerly, trying to regain his bearings while doing a mental check-up on himself. A few scrapes and bruises but as far as he can tell nothing internal is damaged. Aside from his pride.]

Ugh...

[Well things are already off to a wonderful start. But he's not going to dwell on that right now, focusing instead on climbing off of Allen to try and survey him for any possible injuries.]

Walker, are you all right? Pull yourself together. [He really doesn't want to end up using the Atuuda because of his own incompetence.]

[ Ugh, don't nag him when you're the one whose fall he broke... When did you get so heavy. See, this is why you shouldn't chastise him for his own diet when you eat so many pastries yourself. ]

I'm fine. [ Slight groan is just slight and more disgruntled than anything, and he rubs at his head for a moment with his non-clawed hand before getting up to his feet. His face might be a bit scuffed and he nicked his cheek but Crown Clown buffered him everywhere else. ]

At least it got us here quicker.

[ Silver linings...? Although his attention drifts downward to his left hand more than the landmark crystal of sorts they'd come to the base of, and he flexes the claws lightly. So he could still use it here, even if it seemed like the feeling of the Noah within him as gone.

It's a brief thing though. Just a sobered, thoughtful expression that crosses his face for a moment as he looks down. ]

[He's not that much heavier!

Link is prepared to help the other to his feet but it seems as though he manages to regain his bearings on his own, so instead he deigns to try and take a better look around them to establish just where they are. He examines the base of the crystals, running a hand up over them thoughtfully before turning his attention back to Allen.]

Is there any way that you can see for us to get back up? Unless this pit continues past this cluster...

[But he trails off when he notices the other's expression, falling silent as he just watches him expectantly before finally speaking up.]

Walker?

Mm? [ It takes him a moment to realize what Link's asking, and he blinks a moment before it clicks. Oh.

He waves a hand dismissively, turning to Link with a smile then. Quick and deceptively easy. ]

It's nothing. I was just thinking I'm glad I can still invoke... [ And that everything seems to be normal. More normal than it's felt for a while, though Crown Clown's cloak is still a wild and tattered sort of thing, shredding apart with feathers sharding off that disappear in the air like illusions of light. Chaotic and a little hard to control, just the same as it first started to appear after Aprocryphos first tried to pull it from him. And that worries him a little.

More than a little. ]

That's good. It means I can get up there and see what's around.

[Just as Link wasn't fooled by Nea pretending to be Allen he isn't fooled by Allen pretending to be all right. He knows too well what certain things can do to a person's mind and he also just knows the other well enough by now to buy it. He might be a great liar in gambling but Link finds his tells all too obvious outside of games.

The Crow himself is still trying to wrap his mind around how the Noah was suddenly made latent within Walker, trying to puzzle it out even though there are so many other questions bombarding him at the same time. But he pushes those thoughts down for now, forcing himself to mentally prioritize and focus on what Allen is saying. After an almost cautious pause he finally nods, although there's clear wariness in the way he watches the Exorcist.]

... Don't go far.

[And while that's as close to "be safe" as Link will say it's also a clear warning of "and don't try to run off again or else".]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

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can I say this thread just has me all /touches. your Link is SO GOOD

sdfg NO YOU- I AM THE RUSTIEST... but this thread is killing me.....

UR NOT RUSTY, IM RUSTY. also yes, my heart.

These two give me a lot of Feelings.

1/2 oh boy YOU BETTER BUCKLE UP THEN 8)

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1/2 I'm only slightly sorry for what's about to come

2/2 8)

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