People would try to hurt him, wouldn't they? Arcade should have realized it sooner. That's all people did when they found out what it really meant to have him around. Despair didn't, and one friend, one person who could weather his inevitable danger. That was enough for him.
He let Despair lead him away, trusting his new friend implicitly. "I do not need comfort," he said, "I have gone without it for years." Sleeping in a cave with someone he knew he could depend on watching out for him? He could find nothing to complain about.
I say that aloud too sometimes, just: "man, no life."
"I'm really not in the mood for jokes, thank you" Rex told Tairee as she mentioned in surprise the fact that Rex didn't know what his brother was called but still knew of his existence.
Oh but apparently the jokes weren't over, no, because the librarian decided to pull Rex's leg by coming up with the same stupid pun Eve had mentioned before. Hell, she had probably heard it herself and thought it was funny.
"César... right. Like the salad, sure" Rex looked back at her, clearly not believing a word she said and starting to question if what she had told him before was even true in the first place.
"Well, nice talking to you" he said in a sarcastic tone "But I've got better things to do right now, like leave this place"
Rex left the building volcano and started walking... somewhere. The hospital wasn't a place he wanted to sleep in thanks to Chise's powers making things awkward to potentially downright terrifying. The cinema was just a cave and other places were similar, the library was just not an option obviously and he wasn't going to ask the hotel people because they would probably try to kill him. So walking and talking to himself sounded like the best option right now.
"Yeah right, stuck at 'nearly the speed of light'. Like that's even a thing that can happen. She thinks she can talk fancy and confuse me, I bet Eve convinced her to say all that" a realization hit him and Rex facepalmed at how obvious it was "No wonder she wanted me to ask her about my past"
As he continued walking, Rex spotted a campfire. Maybe there were people in danger that couldn't afford to look for a cave or tree because they were too injured or something? Helping always felt nice and saving people from getting eaten by dinosaurs was always a good thing. To his surprise, though the rather large group was surrounding a dinosaur body. And they were none others than Rick, Morty, Ciri, Yoshika, Lucas, and... what was that? And for some reason he was wrestling with Yoshika but no one else really seemed to care so apparently they were just playing.
"Hey guys" Rex waved at the group "Mind if I join?"
edited 23rd Jun '17 10:04:43 PM by DeisTheAlcano
I just want to help!
"It is a temporary salve, isn't it? Things for comfort, things for joy. They give fleeting moments, brief slivers of a rise before the inevitable fall back down. As much as one struggles and fights, desperate to keep their head above water, when there is no land, you will drown. The longer you fight it, the more you suffer. Better to let yourself sink and be lost than torment yourself with hints of hope before losing anyway."
It wasn't a very long walk, really, before Despair managed to locate a further cave, stopping in front of it and peering inside for a moment, head tilting to one side, then the other. "Wait here while I make sure it is safe. Do not worry, I will not be gone long."
Despair let go of Arcade's hand, then started forward into the cave, disappearing from sight into the darkness fairly quickly.
Arcade listened intently to Despair, absorbing every word. If he had Despair's wisdom before, he might not have wasted his time with the Followers, or the Courier. They promised a better world, without suffering. Despair was showing him the reality right in front of him.
Despite the assurance from Despair, Arcade became anxious once he was alone. He was asked to wait, so he would, but being on his own was unnerving. It became worse when he realized he left his gun back where he dropped it. He briefly considered going back for it, but he knew it was a waste of time.
I say that aloud too sometimes, just: "man, no life."
As the hermit walked up the cobbled path to her neat little house on the grassy hill, the flowers she had grown herself swayed in the summer breeze. She had been sent out to go get some minor groceries, but the addition of candles was a strange one to the list. She shifted the weight of the bag as she came up to the door, and opened it.
She was greeted with a multitude of voices, all shouting "SURPRISE!" at once! Seiga almost dropped her sack and did take a step back, because everyone was here! Huo, Yoshika, Zhongxian, Mengxian, all of her children, The Crown Prince and her attendants, so many faces that she recognized! Even folk like Ellen and Lewis were here!
Seiga blushed heavily, and waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, you all! You don't need to shock a lady like that! That's just impolite," she jokingly said. She walked through the boundary of her house, and was embraced by the welcoming hands of a dozen lifetimes.
In front of the seat of honor was a neat little cake, white speckled with that shade of blue that the sea had, her favorite color. On top of the cake had made was 24 candles, a little running gag between her and her husband. They always put that many on her cake every birthday, because no matter how many parties they threw, she never aged.
"Come on, my darling Seiga, let's not keep them waiting," Huo said to his wife. He pointed at the candles, and Seiga obliged, blowing them out—but not before Huo blew along with her. That kind of behavior got him the punishment of a little frosting flicked in his face, a punishment that made him laugh. Everyone laughed.
"Mother, isn't it strange that you always spill on yourself like that?" Mengxian lightly waved his fork in Seiga's direction, indicating the fresh spot of white frosting covering the blue stripe on her jacket. Seiga blushed again and started wiping at it, "Yes, of course, of course," thrown in his direction.
"Oh, come now, Mengxian, it's not okay to make fun of your own mother like that!" Huo lightly butted his knife against the table in mock anger, though he didn't seem particularly amused, anyway. "Act like an adult, now, and show some respect to the ones that came before you."
"Father, that's hardly new," Zhongxian said, butting in to the conversation. "You and mother talk about that tendency every time we're at the table! How come we can't get in on the fun a little?" Huo grumbled a little, but Seiga put a hand on his lap.
"Come, come, you don't need to be that way. Mengxian's been an adult for..." She looked over to her eldest son, clad in the robes of his position as a clerk. "How old will you be becoming this year, Mengxian?"
Mengxian smiled brightly, and said nothing.
"Seiiigaaaaaa, this isn't gooood," Yoshika whined in such a cute way that it only rightfully deserved a pat to the head. She was sitting in the chair across from Seiga, wearing an adorable pout on her face.
"That attitude isn't going to get you any favors, Yoshika~" Seiga scooped up some of her own cake and brought in the payload for the final approach, yet Yoshika wasn't keeping her runway open! "Yoshika, you just have to eat some of it. Just a little more, I'm sure you'll like it~" Seiga cooed. The jiangshi stubbornly grumbled back, and didn't open up her hatch.
"You're not being that kind to your master," Prince Shotokou said, sitting in the chair across from Seiga. "It's not your place to be disobeying her, let alone at her own party..."
Seiga tried to pry Yoshika open with words and action, jabbing straight at her, but she didn't relent for a second. "But Seigaaaa," she whined in protest, "You know I don't even liiiiiike cake that much. Where's the meat?"
Seiga looked at her confused for a moment, but Huo, sitting in the chair across from Seiga, spoke up. "My lovely, you don't have to worry about her. I brought in something just for the occasion." On the table in front of them, for all to see, was the familiar face of that Rex boy. He was already opened up, his skin peeled back to reveal his intestine. His eyes darted around everywhere, agony and terror on his face.
The hermit looked absolutely perplexed at what she was seeing for a moment, before Huo spoke up again and said "See? Fresh, just for her. You've told me she's a real glutton, so I don't think this'll be too much." Yoshika stared in awe at the meal before her, and she didn't even wait for an OK to start tearing off flesh from his legs. Rex seemed to scream, but the only sound he made was from his light thrashing held back by something unseen.
Yoshika poked one of her long fingernails into his eye and plucked it out, and swallowed it in one quick bite. For some reason, this dispelled Seiga's disturbed attitude, and she could only laugh. For a much more arcane reason, it reminded her of a man eating olives, and she couldn't help but find it hilarious! Everybody laughed, including Rex.
Seiga wished this day would never end.
Ciri - Dino CAMPFIRE STORY TIME
Ciri warily regarded Yoshika and Crash as the two wrassled, making sure to keep her silver sword in her hand in case anything went wrong. The orange creature seemed to be harmless (for now), and didn't exhibit any aggresive signs (for now) so it seemed prudent to let it live (for now). With the way things were in the city, she didn't want to wind up having picked a fight with the priest of an orange god just because Yoshika was hungry (for now).Who was she kidding, that girl was always hungry. At least she wasn't hungry for the flesh of humanoids.
"A little busy at the moment, Rick, I can tell you a tale later if you can help me make sure Yoshika is alright," she commented to the Sanchez patriarch. "You too Rex. Just... don't touch anything."
"Yoshika," she stated peacefully to the girl in question, trying to sound more calm and neutral than she was at the moment. Whether this thing was a priest to an orange god or a wild animal, she didn't want to spook it. "Stop moving so much and slowly show it you don't mean any harm."
THE SLORG!
"Are you certain that you don't know why you are in pain?" Tester asked in response, his synthesized voice sounding a bit doubtful. "Just as you currently appear as your physical form, I too am currently in the appearance of my physical form. However for me that detail is more irrelevant; I could change my physical form if I so desired. I could even become organic" the AI then explained after her question about why he appeared to be a server rack.
"Now I may not be allowed to free you from this mental prison, but there is one thing I can do to facilitate more easily playing games here" Tester then mentioned, and his screens then flashed in sequence extremely rapidly. The purple chains holding Eve in place suddenly seemed to pixellate heavily, then vanished, leaving Eve freely floating in place. "What would you like to play? I can replicate nearly any game that exists across the multiverse" the AI then added.
"What? I'm not joking, I was genuinely curious" Miss Tairee said, her eyebrows lowering slightly as she looked somewhat confused and ever so slightly irritated with Rex's attitude. "How about you try calling your brother on the twentieth day to see for yourself" the librarian then suggested as he was leaving. After he was gone, Miss Tairee sighed slightly and shook her head in disappointment, before returning to her typing.
edited 23rd Jun '17 9:54:10 PM by FirockFinion
You are reading this.
someone
Eve|Void Of Darkness|Something Something Broken Chains Something
Eve tilted her head. "It might be linked to my physical body. It might be mental. I'm not sure." She listened to his response to her question about the server rack. A quiet "huh" was her response, before she winced in pain. And then her chains disappeared. She breathed a sigh of relief and rotated so that she was sitting upright. Well, as upright as one can be when there was no direction, or gravity. She stretched, and faced Tester. "Thank you," she said, sincerity and relief evident in her tone.
What game, what game? Eve shrugged. "I've never really played games before," she replied. "None of my previous guardians played them much. I've only ever played one, and that was a special case." The test for the Sweeper Alliance. She bowed her head, briefly tearing up before she shook back the tears and raised her head again. She missed them. Now more than ever.
[TOP SECRET]
I just want to help!
Within a few seconds, Arcade might have heard what sounded like a scream from within the cave, but it was cut off in a near-choke instantly, followed by a distant thudding, and then nothing further. Before he had much time to respond, Despair reappeared from the darkness, looking to be rather casually wiping his hands off on the front of his cloak.
"There was nothing of consequence inside. It will be safe inside here for the night. Come along and we will see about sheltering until we know what the new day brings."
He offered a hand to Arcade again, as though to escort him into the cave, just smiling faintly once more.
WOAH
Crash-Jungle-Campfire
Crash beamed as Rick thanked him. He was happy to help. Of course, it was only now that Crash realized he had never given the scientist his name. Whoops! "Name's Crash Bandicoot!" he said simply for everyone's benefit, including the newcomer wearing some snazzy goggles.
Crash took a curious look at the girl struggling weakly in his arms. Alright, so now that he stopped her, what did he do with her? "Uhhhh," he said, shooting an inquisitive look around the group, hoping someone would have a suggestion. If she would calm down, maybe he could let her go?
edited 24th Jun '17 7:00:08 AM by Dezmo
Ciri did know about these kinds of things, though, so she went with her suggestion. It was time to keep calm and go completely limp and flop to the ground like a rotten and bony noodle. Her tranquility was thrown off balance by someone behind her shouting his presumed name, but she could deal with it.
"...Ciri," she kinda whisper-said to the witcheress, "is this a 'lull it into a bad security' kind of thing?"
As soon as the screaming started, Arcade took a step forwards, but it ended before he had the chance to make much progress into the cave. When he was told there was nothing in the cave, he felt slightly embarrassed. Despair had asked him to wait, and he tried to make up a problem so he wouldn't be alone.
He nodded jerkily and accepted Despair's hand, sinking back into his emotionless state.
I say that aloud too sometimes, just: "man, no life."
THE SLORG!
"You have never really played games? I think that's a shame" Tester said, and while his voice was still clearly synthetic in nature, it also had some obvious, genuine sympathy in it. "For a first timer then, I would suggest perhaps a simple board game, a game of cards, or a game of dice" the AI continued.
Then in the same level, kind but also serious tone, he added, "or perhaps you would prefer to talk about whatever it is that nearly made you cry just now."
You are reading this.
someone
Eve|Void Of Darkness|Tester For Best Character
Eve tilted her head once more as Tester suggested games that they could possibly play. "We never really got a chance to." She opened her mouth to respond, before closing at his question, and looking at her lap. "I..." she trailed off, and tears began to fall openly.
"I miss them." Eve replied quietly. "Now more than ever."
[TOP SECRET]
Ciri was a bit worried about Yoshika's wellbeing and told her to show the furry orange guy that she wasn't a threat. Naturally, this meant that Yoshika became immobile and fell onto the floor like a sack of potatoes.
"I see things are going as usual over here" Rex looked at the dinosaur that had its stomach torn open, revealing the viscera "You guys killed that?"
The furry guy introduced himself as Crash Bandicoot, an odd name to be sure but what's more, it reminded Rex of two talking animals he had met before in the city.
"Oh, you are like that Sonic guy" they were probably from the same world "I'm Rex... you've probably heard of me before" Normally that would be him boasting but chances are Crash knew about the challenge and that was a bit awkward.
I just want to help!
Despair didn't say much else, guiding Arcade into the cave, just far enough to still have whatever faint bit of light they were allowed from the outside. For some reason or another, there was a set of clothing, what seemed like a long robe or something of the sort, on the ground, and Despair gestured to it.
"Use this for any purpose you might like. I will keep guard so that no one will harm us tonight. Do your best to rest so that we can begin our work to save Rex tomorrow. When he is with us as well, we will be able to continue our work with a proper enforcer." There was a brief pause before he spoke again. "It was good for you to think of him. He is... very deserving."
That done, Despair turned, moving just a bit closer to the mouth of the cave, and idly leaned against the wall, sliding down it to sit, watching for any activity from the outside world, not another word spoken.
For the Horde!
Ben frowned a little at Rex, then gestured at Louie.
"C'mon," Ben told him. "Let's get some rest. Tomorrow's gonna be hard. I just hope Thomas is gonna be okay. The other City Knights probably hate me now," Ben muttered, moving over towards an unoccupied couch, and curling up into the pillows. The softness of the actual couch was much appreciated to him, and he soon drifted off into sleep.
edited 24th Jun '17 9:59:56 PM by AllHailThrall
I can still hail the Horde even though the company has shamed us. Strength and Honor even if Blizzard has neither.
Annoyed Mode: ON
"I'll keep that in mind," Lu answered with a nod, after which she gestured for Ciel to follow her. "Come, Ciel. Let's find a place to sleep."
And so, with the little demon leading the way, the odd duo ventured out of the library, off into the jungle. And, as Ciel had feared, it was already dark outside, so they would need to be extra cautious. So, in order to remain safe... they entered literally the first tree they bumped into, which fortunately happened to be empty.
"This will have to do," Ciel muttered, closing the door behind him.
"Okay. So?"
"So...?"
"What did you find out about this place? You spent most of the day writing stuff down, I'm sure you have something."
"Right... well, here's what I found out."
Throughout the ensuing explanation, Lu experienced a wide array of emotions. But it was not until it was almost over that she realized she would have to do something very drastic about the city's current unacceptable state. And since clearly nobody else had even so much as looked into that matter, she would have to get started as soon as possible.
"Oh jeez." Morty looked uneasily around at the scene, which didn't really look like any campfire he'd ever grown up knowing. "You sure this is a good idea, Rick? I mean - I mean - "
"You suggested it, Morty," said Rick sagely, "'cause you were too much of a pussy to walk back through the jungle in the dark. Here." Rick grabbed a sharp stick, yanked off a hunk of dinosaur meat from the bloated corpse of the t-rex, and held the improvised shish kebab over the fire.
"Well - well - I mean - w-when you put it like that you can make anything sound bad, Rick..." Morty trailed off as another dinosaur let out a long, mournful call, echoing through the primordial night. Rick said nothing, but continued to roast the dripping mass of dinosaur, turning it every few seconds.
"Grub's up, kids, who wants soooome *urp* dino shish kebabs?" Rick held up the nicely-browned meal and grinned, which was an oddly alien expression on his normally sour face. "Caaaan't listen to creepy little girls tell scary stories without a-a nice... dinosaur... meal, right?" He looked around, trying to gage their response.
"I mean, what, none of you are vegetarian, right?"
edited 24th Jun '17 7:57:43 PM by Locoman
Happy Box Hater
Dino Corpse
Lucas just didn't want to get involved in the latest thing Yoshika had done, and as long as Ciri was paying attention he probably wouldn't need to anyways. Something he did notice was Rex arriving on the scene, but that didn't really matter much. His opinion of the cocky individual was drastically low after the events at the hospital. One thing was for certain, Lucas didn't feel comfortable with talking to Rex after seeing him completely blow off an obvious problem.
Well, it was a good time to eat, and Rick was offering. Even if the old man's relationship with his grandson seemed kind of... off, Lucas had convinced himself that it was fine. Still, there definitely was something about Rick that made him wary, so it took him a few seconds before he tentatively walked over and took the offered kebab. An awkward silence hung in the air for a moment before Lucas managed to say "Um... Thank you." and then sit down near the fire. It wasn't like he could contribute much on the scary story front, most of the ones he knew were from the those incredibly harmless and non-frightening robots he fought that one time, and those were only scary in the odd minds of Mr. Saturns. Just more awkward silence from him.
Why is a yam attacking me?
THE SLORG!
"... Those that you left in your home universe" Tester said; it wasn't a question, but a statement. Tester slowly floated a bit closer to Eve, stopping around ten feet away. "I have a simple question for you, young organic being. If one of them was in your place here, would they miss you as strongly as you currently miss them?" the AI asked.
After Cole left the library, Miss Tairee frowned slightly, and looked over at the central desks. She walked over there, no hesitation in her speed but her frown conveyed some sort of concern. She sat down at the computer, and started typing.
>What's this going to cost me?
She waited, then there was a beep as a message responded.
>What do you mean?
Frowning just a little more, Miss Tairee continued typing.
>I know that you know what's going on here, boss. You know that I want to change Cole's template so he's a human child. And do something about his "friend".
>I also know that you're not just going to let me do it. You're going to make me pay for it with some kind of task or challenge. So what's it going to be?
Miss Tairee waited a bit more, then there was another beep.
>Ah, that. I don't know yet; I'll let you know later.
And so the rest of the day went onward, and after Miss Tairee had set almost everyone in the library to rest with magic areas of darkness to keep the library's lights from bothering their sleep, she heard another beep from the computer. She looked at the message for a moment, and blinked, looking confused. Just as it looked like she was working something out, everything blurred for a moment...
Miss Tairee appeared, back in her regular outfit, and waited, just staring forward and blinking with a resolute expression. Finally after maybe twenty seconds or so, there was the sound of someone writing with a pen.
"You don't have anything to say, Sekreh Tairee?"
"Your conditions seem almost too easy, and yet..." Miss Tairee trailed off, her eyes turning to one side as her fists clenched. The was the scratching of a pen on paper.
"And yet also too hard?"
"I guess... It depends on how he responds" Miss Tairee said with a nod. There was more sounds of writing.
"But that isn't really what concerns you about it, is it?"
"The last time you gave me a straight forward challenge for something I wanted, a little girl nearly got brainwashed by a demon" Miss Tairee pointed out. The noise of a pen writing on paper was quick to return.
"That part wasn't my doing."
"Yes, but you still took advantage of it, because it created intrigue. You never allow something simple unless it creates intrigue. So I believe something fishy is going on here" Miss Tairee responded. There was a pause for a bit, before the sound of a pen writing on paper came back.
"Alright, I admit. You know me too well. Take a look at the report of what happened today, though do keep in mind that I didn't cause this to happen either."
A desk, chair, and simple computer on the desk appeared, which Miss Tairee looked at with slight suspicion, but immediately sat down regardless. As she started reading what was on the screen, the color drained from her face, and she looked shocked and horrified. "No... Cole..." Miss Tairee muttered, then clenched her teeth and fists as anger started to well up. Then she heard the writing sound again.
"Miss Tairee, don't forget to control yourself. If you can pass my simple test despite his new condition, I will grant your request."
Miss Tairee took a few deep breaths and let them out slowly through her nose, and she seemed to calm down. A little bit. "... I suppose I might as well just do it. It's not like refusing will help him now" Miss Tairee admitted quietly, then sighed. "Well, do you have the next day ready yet?" she then asked. The noise of a pen scratching on paper was quick to return.
"Why yes. Go ahead and take a look."
A piece of paper floated over, and Miss Tairee looked at it. A sort of incredulous expression came to her face with one eyebrow twitching. "This... I... Did you make this day just for a pun?!" Miss Tairee nearly yelled. The sound of writing could be heard for a moment.
"You don't like it? I thought it might remind you of home."
"Not... Really..." Miss Tairee slowly said, then groaned. "That's almost as painful as what happened to Cole..." she thought out loud in a defeated tone.
When the world refocused, the sky had skipped being orange in imitation of sunrise; instead the sun was up high in the sky, hanging directly above and baring down on the landscape with its rays of heat.
... Also there was an actual sun now.
There also seemed to be a large desert. Out in it, lightweight books tumbled across the landscape like tumbleweeds. Elsewhere in these new badlands, popping sounds of gunfire that seemed oddly off could be heard. The city buildings seemed to be in clusters in this desert, in a clashing mix of styles. The usual starting chatter on the militia and NHA channels began as both groups got a bearing on what was currently going on for the day; there was also some hubbub on the NHA channel about Silanea being missing again. And while in varying archaic styles, the buildings had their radios back, and with them came...
"Good morning ladies and gentlemen! Our apologies for going silent all of yesterday; there didn't seem to be any radios for us to broadcast to anyway. But now we're back! It looks like today is going to be hot! With a mix of desert genres going on. And also..." Adam's voice said over the news channel, and trailed off slightly.
"A mix of desserts as well it looks like, Adam. Desert, dessert? Maybe that doesn't make sense if you're not hearing us in English, but if you are, you know just how cringe-worthy this is. But yes if you look at the buildings around you you should find that you can break a piece off and eat it like candy; even the sand outside is apparently just sugar. And lucky thing I suppose, since the reports on the militia channel are saying that all the food in the grocery store is now fake; but since you're gonna be surrounded by all the food you could need, you won't need to go anyw-" Jeff's voice was saying, then paused suddenly for a few moments, before then asking, "... Adam why are you eating your shirt?"
"I'm just giving it a try. You should test your clothes too; my shirt seems to be one big fruit roll-up" Adam's voice responded, sounding like he was chewing. "Anyway, we're um... The militia is actually sending us a message; they are advising all citizens to avoid wandering into the desert; they say make sure you stay where buildings are, in fact maybe just stay indoors all day if you can. There does seem to be baddies out there in the desert, and they don't want anyone getting hurt" his voice then went on.
"That's all the news we've really got right now, but we'll do our best to keep you people informed. We should also see about sending out Spiderbee and getting another interview done today, Adam" Jeff's voice suggested.
"Sounds good to me. But since we're done for now, how about some music? Got anything fitting for today?" Adam's voice asked.
"Wasn't there a Katy Perry song about candyland? But I don't know about that... Oh hey, here's a different song called 'candyland'; let's give it a try" Jeff's voice responded.
The two announcers then faded out, and a song started to play.
Miss Tairee was shaking her head when the world came back into focus; she was at least back in her usual outfit now, though her shirt was green, her skirt blue, and both her glasses and high heels a pink color. She looked outside at the landscape, the tinted windows thankfully dulling the effect of the bright sunlight on all that colorful sand and pastel buildings. "... At least the day itself isn't so harsh" Miss Tairee muttered to herself, and kept gazing outside for the moment.
Edited by FirockFinion on Mar 31st 2019 at 6:33:03 AM
You are reading this.
someone
Eve|Void Of Darkness, Day 16| No Way This Can Go Badly
Eve looked at Tester, clear sadness in her face. "I think so. I...hope so." She thought about her partners, and some strength came into her eyes. "And I know they would want me to get out. I know that."
She paused. "Thank you for the offer of a game, T.E.S.T.E.R., but I think I'm going to try and get out now. I think that I owe it to them." She wanted them to be proud of her.
[TOP SECRET]
Peering through the supposedly sandy horizon that was rather reminiscent of the badlands of the floating continent of Empyrean, the newcomer simply took a slight sniff to take in the scent of... confectioner's sugar of all things. The air was still dry, arid, and hot but the smells... there was the all pervading scent of sweetness that lingered about, like an oven that freshly baked something sugary. It was very evident to someone whose senses were rather developed both through adventuring and other events that something was wrong with the world.
Jumping off of the slightly raised platform a few feet above the general surrounding area then dropping down to one knee, the woman dabbed a finger into the ground before raising it to her mouth. Ever so slightly licking the sandy substance and finding that it indeed tasted of sugar, the newcomer thoughtfully hummed before checking over herself only to find out that yes, there was something so drastically wrong with what she was now seeing and what she had remembered.
Though everything felt the same, a quick glance down would reveal that what was once a black habit was now a deep wine colored red, with accompanying red stole being turned a soft snowy white and the silver crosses adorned about her body turning into a more eye-catching gold color. Perhaps what was the most odd was that her trustworthy scythe had changed to a pattern that could only be described as... candy caned, red and white stripes intertwining all the way up to the blade which itself was blended into a soft cotton candy pink. "...Well, now doesn't this put a hamper into the whole 'fearsome' image I was cultivating." Tutting while swinging the rather large farming utensil to find that the weight and feel was still the same and that the blade was sharp enough to slice the air, the raven-haired woman thought about why everything was so strange
Oh God, is this your will once again?
Giving a light sigh at the literal sticky situation she now found herself in (it was only through the vigorous training and great control of her own body that she could trudge in high heels through the sand as opposed to falling on her face like a normal person, even if it was uncomfortable as all hell), the woman known as the 'Sin Sayer' used her broadminded nature to adapt to the surroundings and find out information on just about everything concerning this strange new realm that was obscured by what looked like a dimensional veil. Having enough experience with such matters to know that she was probably trapped for now, the Priest decided to find someone with more in the know by walking briskly through the unfavorable terrain and acquire information from the inhabitants of this strange location.
That One Gal
As Ben got on track with hunting the culprit who framed him - someone named Hunter, Phoenix noted - Phoenix clambered over towards the same cluster of couches he had slept on the previous night. Maya followed hesitantly.
"Niiick?" She spoke up curiously as the man flopped onto a couch. "We're going to get something to eat, riiiight?"
"Sorry, Maya." He stopped to yawn, casually letting himself fall onto his side. "We'll get something first thing in the morning. Or...maaa-haaaybe-" another yawn, "-tomorrow everything will be made out of chocolate and lollipops. Would be a welcome change to how today's been."
"B-But Nick!" Sadly, the flabbergasted Maya was cut off by Phoenix's snoring. She plopped down on an adjacent chair with a pout.
Nick was gonna get so punched in the morning.
Where Phoenix, miraculously, does not get punched
Time to get back on track!
Phoenix awoke calmly, shifting easily from deep slumber to peaceful alertness.
"...This isn't right."
Phoenix sat up abruptly. "Maya?"
"Nffp!" Maya sat at Phoenix's feet, her eyes wide and alight with wonder. There was also a throw pillow stuck in her mouth. Her clothes had changed again
◊, like the first night they had arrived. Phoenix looked down at himself to confirm his suspicions: his attire changed as well
◊. Phoenix let out a groan.
"Aw, man. Brown isn't even my color."
Maya tilted her head, casting an innocent look at Phoenix. The effect was ruined since her cheeks were still stuffed with pillow. "Maya," Phoenix said, "spit it out."
"Nnh?"
"Yes, you."
"Ppt ww?"
"Because it isn't food! I know you're hungry, but that doesn't mean you have to eat furnit—"
Phoenix was cut off as Maya shoved a second pillow into his mouth. Phoenix gagged on it, hacking it up into his hands. He raised his head to scold Maya further, but paused. He brought a corner of the pillow to his mouth and chewed on it thoughtfully. After a moment, he looked up at Maya, who gave him a knowing nod.
Phoenix placed the pillow back down. "Well, eat up." He got to his feet, stretching, and looked around the library. Seems everyone else suffered similar wardrobe changes. Must be some sort of city-wide phenomenon, much like how the city itself changed with each new day.
Despair considered that for a moment, turning his head to one side, as though listening, before frowning slightly. "Hmm. No. No, we want to avoid other people. I don't want them to try to harm you. Until we can fix them, they could be a risk."
He lowered his eyes, back and forth, before reaching out to take hold of Arcade's hand. "Come with me. I will find somewhere safe that we can stay for the night. It might not be as comfortable as you would like, but this day has not lent itself to comfort, I'm afraid. There are caves where we can hide...tomorrow, they should put us somewhere that is shelter. Come along, now."
Despair started walking again, guiding the way seemingly rather expertly, apparently following a sense of where the people around them were, silent as he focused on this.