[ ichiro skids into the top floor once he's sure these two angry punchy ladies are okay enough to keep moving, still holding his keyblade in one hand, and the front of his shirt in the other. he's not - his head is pounding, as he holds onto that reunion, that feeling of return, of love, of determination. it's so frustrating, he feels like he doesn't even know why he's here. what's he fighting for? is there even anything? angry and alone, has there ever been anything?
(there's the three people with him. beau, taichi, kainé. he knows them, and he knows they've struggled up these platforms together for some reason, and now he's holding onto riku's memory as tight as he can as a reason to keep moving forward.)
when he gets to the top of the stairs, ichiro stops, putting himself in the front of the group with the keyblade in front of him and making enough room for everyone to get up, ready for a fight. he looks past the girl for just a second and spots nier -- and then feels that anger bubble ferociously in his chest. ]
Who - who are you. [ is what he manages to say, white knuckling the blade. please do not let him attack naminé. ]
[oh i realized he took his coat off for them and forgot to respond to it because i was so emo about riku kingdomhearts. kainé can have it though. oh jk both of them did, beau will take one i guess!
beau is shivering by the time they get up to the top, holding her keyblade tightly. she's - kind of shut down a little, expression harsh. funnily enough, though, like - when she sees nier? she startles. wow! someone she still knows! and the fear bursts bright and sharp in her heart as she takes a few steps forward, like she's going to be able to get him out of the fucking pod.
she stops, though, when ichiro holds out his keyblade defensively, and clenches her fists.
she's not going to fight whoever this is, but. she's wary.]
[up they go, and when they reach the platform he spots nier disappearing into his egg. goodbye nier. there's a still barely-there flutter of bitterness upon realizing that kainé has nier still, and he thinks about the journey upward. he's trying to hold on to the thought that they're working together and they have each other, but...there's still so much missing. there's so much he wants, and so much he will never have.
how much more does he have to give to have something that gives back?
he holds his keyblade loosely in his hand, though he steps ahead to make sure he isn't blocking kainé from seeing what's going on.]
[ oh i was also too emo about riku kingdomhearts to respond. jacket for beau!! and jacket for kainé!! she'll take it because she doesn't care to be that cold. thanks for the kindness.
The more you lose sight of the light, the voice says, but the lights in her life are etched on glass on the platform. Only... she doesn't... recognize the skeleton....? Who....? Something irreplaceable is missing, too many irreplaceable things are missing or replaced, and it brings out an emptiness that makes her want to cry.
She sees Nier being enclosed in the pod and doesn't stop to think. It may be an illusion, but it doesn't matter. She may have seen every other floor below and how it worked, but all that goes flying because it's Nier, and she can't lose him— ]
No!
[ The others have the questions down. She runs for the pod. ]
[Turning both arms over, Naminé settles the notebook on both her forearms even as Kainé races by to the pod. The notebook paper looks decidedly familiar. In their pockets (or even their hands), the papers they've gathered begin to gently quiver. The drawings pull away from them, zipping from where they're kept. One by one, they latch themselves along the spiral of the notebook and flatten themselves into place. One, two, three--slow, and then faster, and faster until they're all tucked away.
Naminé closes the notebook.]
There you go.
[It feels like little threads are being pulled from within their chests. The memories that don't belong, removed. The ones that should be there, neatly put back. A clarity twinkles down into them, even if the disorientation of remembering the chaos of the mix-up is still there. They still have memories of those memories, huh?]
Memories are important. The ones that belong only to you. You aren't really who you're supposed to be without them. Try not to lose them, okay?
he watches kainé, worried, knowing what's coming - enough that he misses the papers fluttering back into the notebook, until suddenly, there's utter, bright, clarity, and ichiro takes a breath like he's been punched.
he remembers kuko, first. he remembers his stupid, loud laugh, and his dumbass antics, and his buddhist sayings that may or may not have been real. he remembers how it ripped his heart out of his chest when he left, when he screamed in his face that he hated him out of nowhere and it destroyed an ichiro who'd only been just built up.
he remembers his dad. rei amayado, rei yamada, his fucking dad, piece of shit that he is - the man who lied to him about his mother. who lied about everything. the reason ichiro cut and run away with them; he remembers facing him on the division stage, remembers the way adrenaline cut through his veins when rei admitted that he was trying to get them to move back in with him and leave ichiro behind, he remembers the look on his face when they won, buster bros, a team, a unit, --
--his brothers.
he remembers his little brothers.
jiro, 17 years old, good at sports, kind of an idiot but so much like ichiro that it hurts him to look at him sometimes. saburo, 14 years old, the smartest kid you've ever known, clever and maybe not as nerdy as you are but perfect. the three of you have been through everything together. ichiro's lost them and found them and lost them, over and over again. his purpose, his heart. his everything.
he's not sure if he wants to scream or cry, at first, and ichiro takes a stumbling step backwards, forgetting about every injury he has for a moment because he forgot about his little brothers. it's overwhelming - shock and recollection and aching pain and love, so much love it threatens to overflow him, for a second - and then fury.
he white knuckles the keyblade in his hand. it is only that sheer force of anger that keeps him from dropping it, and he swipes outwards with the blade - gesturing, emphatic, not attacking, but because he's going to explode and he's so angry he's going to lose his mind. the shout rips out of his chest and ichiro practically snarls - ] What the hell did you do to me?!
[she pulls her coat closer, shivering, eyes distant - until her memories get knocked back into her.
it's a different experience for her. she gains - yasha's smile, the memory of shouting drunk and joyous at the fireworks in hupperdook, being pulled down a street by a cheerful blue tiefling and feeling accepted for the first time in her life. she gains her friends, and the stark reminder that she lost one.
she loses her brothers. they weren't - hers? they weren't hers. they never were. she gains her father, she remembers, abruptly, the fear and anguish of not knowing why she could never do anything right. she loses the reunion, she loses the feeling of her heart being connected intrinsically to two people, no matter how far she is from them. she loses a blood family all in one go, loses the feeling of unconditional love and it brings her to her knees.
she chokes on it, her hair messy and unkempt and in her face for now. round two of bluescreening!]
[the papers flutter. memories begin to slot themselves back into place one by one, and while the loss of the memory that isn’t his doesn’t exactly bother him, it’s regaining the ones he had. it wasn’t just a grandmother who loved and accepted him. it was his parents, people who loved him unconditionally and didn’t always know what was going on but tried their best to stay involved. it was friends, all of them, his whole team that followed his lead and helped him stand his ground in every battle. it was his partner, agumon, who had spent his whole life waiting for taichi and taichi alone because he knew he could be the one to give him strength. it was yamato who was…his partner in a different sense, someone who knew him better than anyone else and the only person who could sync with him to create a miracle.
above all else, it was…
“I will probably never forgive you, Taichi. But that’s why I’ll fight with you.”
the memories hit, and he suddenly realizes what he’s done.]
Hikari!
[it’s an almost shrill sort of sound as he suddenly turns, racing back for those stairs. it doesn’t matter that her pod was empty, she’s not here. she’s not here, so she has to be somewhere else. it’s an insane need to find her, because without him she’s in danger. she’s the one thing people can’t take away from him and so he runs at full speed to the edge of the platform where the stairs once were, immediately bouncing into the barrier with an angry shout. he’s further away from the group now but he turns with a ferocity they may have never seen from him.]
[ It all comes back. It all comes rushing back, all the precious and cherished people in her life. Emil, her grandmother, and even if that Shade is something that she keeps locked up deep in her heart for all of the dark things it's made her feel, for all the resulting ugliness that came after her grandmother died—
She is fine, as long as she can remember the rest. As long as she can remember what happiness in a hanged portrait feels like, as long as she can remember the happiness of someone saying he's happy to see her now even though he's in a body that's a skeleton, a body that he hates. How many times does she have to forget and remember the people she loves? She was so scared that she'd have to once again lose—
Because her life has been filled with loss after loss after loss (how many sacrifices does she have to experience? how many?). She's not quite as furious as Ichiro is because most of the lost memories bring back what little joy she's managed to grasp and cling onto. It makes her stagger, and she holds onto the pod to steady herself, barely able to take in what the other three are doing even if they're shouting or running or falling to their knees.
She could cry.
She won't let go. ]
It's not always our fucking choice when we lose our goddamn memories!
[Naminé carefully tucks hair behind one of her ears.]
They're all back, and they're yours. It's good to have friends... who can remind you of what you've forgotten. In case you forget.
[On the surface of the platform, all four of their shadows begin to shiver. They start to stretch, elongate. They pour away from their bodies, sliding along the stained glass away from them, under Naminé's feet, converging. At an empty end of the platform, they spill over the edge.
Something dark and massive rises up over the edge. It grows. And it just keeps growing, larger and larger, much larger than the platform itself. It bows over all of them, its arms resting around the edge.
Naminé gasps and takes a half a step back, clutching the notebook to her chest. When she turns away, a dark portal opens, and she races into it before it closes behind her.
The dark entity gazes down on them with glowing, yellow eyes. It raises both arms, and then smashes them down onto the platform on top of them. Choking, foul, icy-cold darkness washes over them like a turbulent wave, knocking them back. It's so heavy, full of the same kinds of madness they've gained staying here too long. Suffocating, twisting. Their hearts can't take it.]
at least there's a new target for being angry now! ichiro does not have to fight this little girl becaues now there is a massive monster looming over their heads. he almost immediately jumps back, putting his keyblade in front of himself again as the arms start to come up, because there is zero time to process, and the first thing he thinks is oh fuck no and takes off at a run in kainé's direction. she's nowhere near the three of them, right now, and he saw nier in that pod, and - he gets it, god he gets it.
he's not gonna let her be alone, though.
the wave of miserable, ice cold darkness hits him as he's almost there, and ichiro makes a grunted, cut off noise at it slams into his injuries and pushes its way up like a poisonous sludge. he does everything he can to stay on his feet, to keep moving, but is it even possible...? this is more than just an enemy, it's a violent wave of nothing - it's like that voice had said. fighting off literal darkness and failing. ]
beau uses her keyblade to stand back up, watching her shadow melt and contort away from her, and dumbly, her thought is just oh, that's bad. when the dark entity crawls up to the platform, she gets a rush of adrenaline, and it's enough for her to start moving. she wants out. she's cold, she wants to - go home? she wants to be out of here. so she tries to fight, except.
foul, angry darkness hits her like a truck. she stumbles back, and falls directly on her ass. it's - nothing, it's too much, she feels like she's withering from the inside. she clings to the keyblade in her hand, feebly trying to bring it up, but her limbs feel heavy.
[and another thing...why is it always like this? why is there always something else to fight without even a moment to pause?
but there's no time to complain. there's no time to think about it, and there's no time to regret leaving people behind. ichiro has kainé and taichi darts for beau to join her at the ready to fight back, keyblade drawn and teeth bared.
except. they get pummeled by an onslaught of cold, slow-seeping darkness that makes its way into every crack and crevice it can, coating every injury and slowing every fibre of their being down. he stumbles on his feet, keyblade quickly swinging down to keep himself propped up as he struggles to remain standing.
strength...doesn't he have any left to give? how could they have come this far to fail now?
..."Don't give up even if you're stuck in the darkness. The light--it'll guide you."
...but when there's no light...how can you find your way? they have to keep trying. even if it's impossible and maybe hopeless.]
[ Dark and massive is something she's seen before. That's nothing new even if it's not quite the same. What is new is the wave of darkness that chokes her. She sees Ichiro run towards her, and she can do nothing, a great, infuriating nothing because her heart is trying so hard to fight back against the darkness that sinks in everywhere it can, pulling her down.
She slides to the floor, her arms barely wrapped around the pod. She can't let go. She won't let go. She can't.
It's too much. They can't lose here, but why can't she fight it?
[The enormous entity is relentless. That's how it feels wandering in the darkness, a place full of nothing but. Hopeless. That's what it's like. Doubting everything, but more importantly, doubting yourself.
It swings its arms back and forth across the platform, slapping them around, slapping them down. The hits hurt their heart the most, but they also hurt their bodies, too. Bruises, cut skin, swollen whelps. (You can have some broken bones if you want to be mean. :unamused:) Truly, it feels like it won't ever end.
And then out of the distant darkness around them, a bright, warm orb zooms in, looping up, down, and around the arms before crashing directly into the platform in front of the creature. Light flashes, blinding. Left behind in its place, glow dulling, is a small, cloaked figure with a bladed key. It mad dashes across the platform, leaping up and attacking full-force one of the arms. The creature jostles in pain, faltering in its attacks. The figure flips and somersaults from one arm to the neck effortlessly, attacking.
And then it lands back in the center, throwing off the hood. Two rounded ears pop out, and then a pointed nose. looks back at the four of them over his shoulder.]
Didn't think I'd leave you in here to fight all on your own, didja? Don't give up! You've got the keyblades! See!
[The [rat shack man] points behind them to a strange keyhole hovering above the platform.]
[ every single hit hurts. it feels like the darkness is seizing into all the cracks in his soul, finding every bruised and battered part of ichiro from their long, long fight. he tries to hold onto the thought of his brothers from every hit, when the darkness cracks into his already bruised ribs, when it leaves bleeding cuts on his arms and his chest, one streaking under his mole on his face. pain lances through the lightning-strike burn on his arm, and he grits his teeth, hard, and slams his hand into the ground. he can't lose here. he can't - even if it feels like he's going to.
he's going to die here, away from home, away from jiro and saburo. his friends - taichi, beau, kainé - they're suffering, he can't do anything about it. the darkness bruises and bends and threatens to break.
and then, suddenly, there's light. his head snaps up - the pressure lifts, and ichiro inhales so hard it hurts, forcing himself back up as it suddenly feels less relentless. every part of his body is screaming in pain, and ichiro forces himself not to fall back over as he lifts his hand and wipes blood away from his nose. it feels automatic to lift up the keyblade, and as he does, he stares up at their savior - ]
Edited (lemme make sure i actually move the cyoa along ) 2021-07-01 05:50 (UTC)
[i can't believe i made the (shenpai voice) fellas is it gay to love your rat joke in chat and now we're being saved by mickey fucking mouse
anyway. beau isn't genre savvy, and she is suffering from broken bones! all of them! i'm very mean. bruises, cut skin, and broken bones - she tries to protect herself from the hit, but she feels her arm snap, and only just barely bites her lip to shut herself up. blood leaks from her lip as she tries to withstand the darkness, tries to find any piece of herself that she can use as light to fight against it, and comes up empty. another hit shatters a rib, and she closes her eyes, staggering. not here, it can't end here. not after the promises she's made.
and then -- there's light.
a long pause, as she just... registers. and then:]
Is that a fucking rat? [she asks, completely and thoroughly dazed. she sees. she has lost her mind to the darkness.
... might as well do what the rat says and lift her keyblade up to the keyhole. she's just copying ichiro. is this an isekai.]
[cool. he managed to survive one near-death experience on sheer luck, but it looks like his luck’s run out. there’s no one here who can save him as the darkness weighs him down and crushes him. the bruising on his back spreads and the skin cracks, cuts across his shoulder blades and the upper part of his spine as blood begins to soak into his shirt. the keyblade barely helps to hold up his weight, and the sharp snapping he barely hears is only a blip before he feels a faint throbbing in his left, frostbitten wrist. it’s hard to focus on anything as his vision starts to go fuzzy…
…no, wait. that’s a light that’s zooming toward them. light blinds him and when he sees a mouse (not a digimon, just a hooded rodent) he vaguely wonders if this really is some fucked up dream. but right. keys go in keyholes. he drops his arm to the side, wrist dangling awkwardly as he lifts the right arm with his keyblade in hand to point at the keyhole while he mumbles in confusion.]
Darkness rodent...
[one of them is from an isekai and this is actually a more polite way to travel than usual, thanks.]
[ She is hit, again and again. She is slammed until her left arm breaks at odd angles, her back is deeply bruised, and cuts streak across her front and legs, leaving her very bloody and messy indeed.
Her consciousness is fading fast, especially after all that slapping made her let go, and she's struggling to keep her eyes open just as the light zooms in. She can barely tell it's a rat shack man.
She doesn't know a Mickey Mouse.
What she can tell is: ]
You could have fucking come three platforms ago, asshole!
[ Savior, her ass!
She's prone on the ground, but with what remaining strength she has left, she raises her keyblade to point at the keyhole. It's the isekai thing to do. ]
[Can't believe he deus ex machinas only to get insulted by uncultured swine. He's royalty!
He watches to make sure they are all able to unlock the keyhole.]
You know, Kainé, it wouldn't hurt you to say thank you sometimes! [He nods then.] You can't stay very long in the darkness without an unwavering light. It's too dangerous. But don't worry. If you're ever doubting yourself, just know I'll always be there. Right inside your heart!
And you have each other, too! That's what friends are for.
I got it from here! Go!
[Four beams of light shoot out of the ends of their keyblade at the opening above them. The keyhole lights up and glows, and then a door appears, hovering in the air. A few steps fold out down to them.
Behind them, the massive creature raises its arms again. It's absolutely hilarious how much Mickey Mouse can turn and mean mug the hell out of this thing! Wow! Nothing is more terrified than a pissed Mickey Mouse.]
Not this time!
[The grip on his keyblade tightens, and he launches himself with a yell from his place on the platform up all the way toward the creature's head in one go, keyblade swinging and coat billowing. This absolute mad lad.
As they make it out of the Dive, they will have lingering instances of confusion about memories, and episodes of they effects of darkness (anger, sadness, paranoia, and jealous) on and off until trial. Up to you guys! Also, I have something for all of you, I will give it to you later in your DM.]
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no subject
(there's the three people with him. beau, taichi, kainé. he knows them, and he knows they've struggled up these platforms together for some reason, and now he's holding onto riku's memory as tight as he can as a reason to keep moving forward.)
when he gets to the top of the stairs, ichiro stops, putting himself in the front of the group with the keyblade in front of him and making enough room for everyone to get up, ready for a fight. he looks past the girl for just a second and spots nier -- and then feels that anger bubble ferociously in his chest. ]
Who - who are you. [ is what he manages to say, white knuckling the blade. please do not let him attack naminé. ]
no subject
beau is shivering by the time they get up to the top, holding her keyblade tightly. she's - kind of shut down a little, expression harsh. funnily enough, though, like - when she sees nier? she startles. wow! someone she still knows! and the fear bursts bright and sharp in her heart as she takes a few steps forward, like she's going to be able to get him out of the fucking pod.
she stops, though, when ichiro holds out his keyblade defensively, and clenches her fists.
she's not going to fight whoever this is, but. she's wary.]
no subject
how much more does he have to give to have something that gives back?
he holds his keyblade loosely in his hand, though he steps ahead to make sure he isn't blocking kainé from seeing what's going on.]
And brought what?
no subject
The more you lose sight of the light, the voice says, but the lights in her life are etched on glass on the platform. Only... she doesn't... recognize the skeleton....? Who....? Something irreplaceable is missing, too many irreplaceable things are missing or replaced, and it brings out an emptiness that makes her want to cry.
She sees Nier being enclosed in the pod and doesn't stop to think. It may be an illusion, but it doesn't matter. She may have seen every other floor below and how it worked, but all that goes flying because it's Nier, and she can't lose him— ]
No!
[ The others have the questions down. She runs for the pod. ]
no subject
[Turning both arms over, Naminé settles the notebook on both her forearms even as Kainé races by to the pod. The notebook paper looks decidedly familiar. In their pockets (or even their hands), the papers they've gathered begin to gently quiver. The drawings pull away from them, zipping from where they're kept. One by one, they latch themselves along the spiral of the notebook and flatten themselves into place. One, two, three--slow, and then faster, and faster until they're all tucked away.
Naminé closes the notebook.]
There you go.
[It feels like little threads are being pulled from within their chests. The memories that don't belong, removed. The ones that should be there, neatly put back. A clarity twinkles down into them, even if the disorientation of remembering the chaos of the mix-up is still there. They still have memories of those memories, huh?]
Memories are important. The ones that belong only to you. You aren't really who you're supposed to be without them. Try not to lose them, okay?
no subject
he watches kainé, worried, knowing what's coming - enough that he misses the papers fluttering back into the notebook, until suddenly, there's utter, bright, clarity, and ichiro takes a breath like he's been punched.
he remembers kuko, first. he remembers his stupid, loud laugh, and his dumbass antics, and his buddhist sayings that may or may not have been real. he remembers how it ripped his heart out of his chest when he left, when he screamed in his face that he hated him out of nowhere and it destroyed an ichiro who'd only been just built up.
he remembers his dad. rei amayado, rei yamada, his fucking dad, piece of shit that he is - the man who lied to him about his mother. who lied about everything. the reason ichiro cut and run away with them; he remembers facing him on the division stage, remembers the way adrenaline cut through his veins when rei admitted that he was trying to get them to move back in with him and leave ichiro behind, he remembers the look on his face when they won, buster bros, a team, a unit, --
--his brothers.
he remembers his little brothers.
jiro, 17 years old, good at sports, kind of an idiot but so much like ichiro that it hurts him to look at him sometimes. saburo, 14 years old, the smartest kid you've ever known, clever and maybe not as nerdy as you are but perfect. the three of you have been through everything together. ichiro's lost them and found them and lost them, over and over again. his purpose, his heart. his everything.
he's not sure if he wants to scream or cry, at first, and ichiro takes a stumbling step backwards, forgetting about every injury he has for a moment because he forgot about his little brothers. it's overwhelming - shock and recollection and aching pain and love, so much love it threatens to overflow him, for a second - and then fury.
he white knuckles the keyblade in his hand. it is only that sheer force of anger that keeps him from dropping it, and he swipes outwards with the blade - gesturing, emphatic, not attacking, but because he's going to explode and he's so angry he's going to lose his mind. the shout rips out of his chest and ichiro practically snarls - ] What the hell did you do to me?!
[ i hate being mean to naminé i'm so sorry ]
no subject
it's a different experience for her. she gains - yasha's smile, the memory of shouting drunk and joyous at the fireworks in hupperdook, being pulled down a street by a cheerful blue tiefling and feeling accepted for the first time in her life. she gains her friends, and the stark reminder that she lost one.
she loses her brothers. they weren't - hers? they weren't hers. they never were. she gains her father, she remembers, abruptly, the fear and anguish of not knowing why she could never do anything right. she loses the reunion, she loses the feeling of her heart being connected intrinsically to two people, no matter how far she is from them. she loses a blood family all in one go, loses the feeling of unconditional love and it brings her to her knees.
she chokes on it, her hair messy and unkempt and in her face for now. round two of bluescreening!]
no subject
above all else, it was…
“I will probably never forgive you, Taichi. But that’s why I’ll fight with you.”
the memories hit, and he suddenly realizes what he’s done.]
Hikari!
[it’s an almost shrill sort of sound as he suddenly turns, racing back for those stairs. it doesn’t matter that her pod was empty, she’s not here. she’s not here, so she has to be somewhere else. it’s an insane need to find her, because without him she’s in danger. she’s the one thing people can’t take away from him and so he runs at full speed to the edge of the platform where the stairs once were, immediately bouncing into the barrier with an angry shout. he’s further away from the group now but he turns with a ferocity they may have never seen from him.]
Why can't I go back?
no subject
She is fine, as long as she can remember the rest. As long as she can remember what happiness in a hanged portrait feels like, as long as she can remember the happiness of someone saying he's happy to see her now even though he's in a body that's a skeleton, a body that he hates. How many times does she have to forget and remember the people she loves? She was so scared that she'd have to once again lose—
Because her life has been filled with loss after loss after loss (how many sacrifices does she have to experience? how many?). She's not quite as furious as Ichiro is because most of the lost memories bring back what little joy she's managed to grasp and cling onto. It makes her stagger, and she holds onto the pod to steady herself, barely able to take in what the other three are doing even if they're shouting or running or falling to their knees.
She could cry.
She won't let go. ]
It's not always our fucking choice when we lose our goddamn memories!
no subject
They're all back, and they're yours. It's good to have friends... who can remind you of what you've forgotten. In case you forget.
[On the surface of the platform, all four of their shadows begin to shiver. They start to stretch, elongate. They pour away from their bodies, sliding along the stained glass away from them, under Naminé's feet, converging. At an empty end of the platform, they spill over the edge.
Something dark and massive rises up over the edge. It grows. And it just keeps growing, larger and larger, much larger than the platform itself. It bows over all of them, its arms resting around the edge.
Naminé gasps and takes a half a step back, clutching the notebook to her chest. When she turns away, a dark portal opens, and she races into it before it closes behind her.
The dark entity gazes down on them with glowing, yellow eyes. It raises both arms, and then smashes them down onto the platform on top of them. Choking, foul, icy-cold darkness washes over them like a turbulent wave, knocking them back. It's so heavy, full of the same kinds of madness they've gained staying here too long. Suffocating, twisting. Their hearts can't take it.]
no subject
at least there's a new target for being angry now! ichiro does not have to fight this little girl becaues now there is a massive monster looming over their heads. he almost immediately jumps back, putting his keyblade in front of himself again as the arms start to come up, because there is zero time to process, and the first thing he thinks is oh fuck no and takes off at a run in kainé's direction. she's nowhere near the three of them, right now, and he saw nier in that pod, and - he gets it, god he gets it.
he's not gonna let her be alone, though.
the wave of miserable, ice cold darkness hits him as he's almost there, and ichiro makes a grunted, cut off noise at it slams into his injuries and pushes its way up like a poisonous sludge. he does everything he can to stay on his feet, to keep moving, but is it even possible...? this is more than just an enemy, it's a violent wave of nothing - it's like that voice had said. fighting off literal darkness and failing. ]
no subject
beau uses her keyblade to stand back up, watching her shadow melt and contort away from her, and dumbly, her thought is just oh, that's bad. when the dark entity crawls up to the platform, she gets a rush of adrenaline, and it's enough for her to start moving. she wants out. she's cold, she wants to - go home? she wants to be out of here. so she tries to fight, except.
foul, angry darkness hits her like a truck. she stumbles back, and falls directly on her ass. it's - nothing, it's too much, she feels like she's withering from the inside. she clings to the keyblade in her hand, feebly trying to bring it up, but her limbs feel heavy.
she can't take it.]
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but there's no time to complain. there's no time to think about it, and there's no time to regret leaving people behind. ichiro has kainé and taichi darts for beau to join her at the ready to fight back, keyblade drawn and teeth bared.
except. they get pummeled by an onslaught of cold, slow-seeping darkness that makes its way into every crack and crevice it can, coating every injury and slowing every fibre of their being down. he stumbles on his feet, keyblade quickly swinging down to keep himself propped up as he struggles to remain standing.
strength...doesn't he have any left to give? how could they have come this far to fail now?
..."Don't give up even if you're stuck in the darkness. The light--it'll guide you."
...but when there's no light...how can you find your way? they have to keep trying. even if it's impossible and maybe hopeless.]
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She slides to the floor, her arms barely wrapped around the pod. She can't let go. She won't let go. She can't.
It's too much. They can't lose here, but why can't she fight it?
Where is the light...? ]
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It swings its arms back and forth across the platform, slapping them around, slapping them down. The hits hurt their heart the most, but they also hurt their bodies, too. Bruises, cut skin, swollen whelps. (You can have some broken bones if you want to be mean. :unamused:) Truly, it feels like it won't ever end.
And then out of the distant darkness around them, a bright, warm orb zooms in, looping up, down, and around the arms before crashing directly into the platform in front of the creature. Light flashes, blinding. Left behind in its place, glow dulling, is a small, cloaked figure with a bladed key. It mad dashes across the platform, leaping up and attacking full-force one of the arms. The creature jostles in pain, faltering in its attacks. The figure flips and somersaults from one arm to the neck effortlessly, attacking.
And then it lands back in the center, throwing off the hood. Two rounded ears pop out, and then a pointed nose. looks back at the four of them over his shoulder.]
Didn't think I'd leave you in here to fight all on your own, didja? Don't give up! You've got the keyblades! See!
[The [rat shack man] points behind them to a strange keyhole hovering above the platform.]
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he's going to die here, away from home, away from jiro and saburo. his friends - taichi, beau, kainé - they're suffering, he can't do anything about it. the darkness bruises and bends and threatens to break.
and then, suddenly, there's light. his head snaps up - the pressure lifts, and ichiro inhales so hard it hurts, forcing himself back up as it suddenly feels less relentless. every part of his body is screaming in pain, and ichiro forces himself not to fall back over as he lifts his hand and wipes blood away from his nose. it feels automatic to lift up the keyblade, and as he does, he stares up at their savior - ]
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Is that Mickey Mouse?
[ am i hallucinating, ]
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anyway. beau isn't genre savvy, and she is suffering from broken bones! all of them! i'm very mean. bruises, cut skin, and broken bones - she tries to protect herself from the hit, but she feels her arm snap, and only just barely bites her lip to shut herself up. blood leaks from her lip as she tries to withstand the darkness, tries to find any piece of herself that she can use as light to fight against it, and comes up empty. another hit shatters a rib, and she closes her eyes, staggering. not here, it can't end here. not after the promises she's made.
and then -- there's light.
a long pause, as she just... registers. and then:]
Is that a fucking rat? [she asks, completely and thoroughly dazed. she sees. she has lost her mind to the darkness.
... might as well do what the rat says and lift her keyblade up to the keyhole. she's just copying ichiro. is this an isekai.]
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…no, wait. that’s a light that’s zooming toward them. light blinds him and when he sees a mouse (not a digimon, just a hooded rodent) he vaguely wonders if this really is some fucked up dream. but right. keys go in keyholes. he drops his arm to the side, wrist dangling awkwardly as he lifts the right arm with his keyblade in hand to point at the keyhole while he mumbles in confusion.]
Darkness rodent...
[one of them is from an isekai and this is actually a more polite way to travel than usual, thanks.]
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Her consciousness is fading fast, especially after all that slapping made her let go, and she's struggling to keep her eyes open just as the light zooms in. She can barely tell it's a rat shack man.
She doesn't know a Mickey Mouse.
What she can tell is: ]
You could have fucking come three platforms ago, asshole!
[ Savior, her ass!
She's prone on the ground, but with what remaining strength she has left, she raises her keyblade to point at the keyhole. It's the isekai thing to do. ]
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[Can't believe he deus ex machinas only to get insulted by uncultured swine. He's royalty!
He watches to make sure they are all able to unlock the keyhole.]
You know, Kainé, it wouldn't hurt you to say thank you sometimes! [He nods then.] You can't stay very long in the darkness without an unwavering light. It's too dangerous. But don't worry. If you're ever doubting yourself, just know I'll always be there. Right inside your heart!
And you have each other, too! That's what friends are for.
I got it from here! Go!
[Four beams of light shoot out of the ends of their keyblade at the opening above them. The keyhole lights up and glows, and then a door appears, hovering in the air. A few steps fold out down to them.
Behind them, the massive creature raises its arms again. It's absolutely hilarious how much Mickey Mouse can turn and mean mug the hell out of this thing! Wow! Nothing is more terrified than a pissed Mickey Mouse.]
Not this time!
[The grip on his keyblade tightens, and he launches himself with a yell from his place on the platform up all the way toward the creature's head in one go, keyblade swinging and coat billowing. This absolute mad lad.
As they make it out of the Dive, they will have lingering instances of confusion about memories, and episodes of they effects of darkness (anger, sadness, paranoia, and jealous) on and off until trial. Up to you guys! Also, I have something for all of you, I will give it to you later in your DM.]