saturations | Week 6 cyoa: hei, jiuqing, vin, and kashuu

Ignition...

[This is just a whisper because at least he knows what an ignition is, but he only knows enough about machinery and vehicles to know that he doesn't know shit.

This all seems like very Vax-appropriate things to do though so he's just nodding and not looking surprised.]

You really work fast, huh? How long've you been stuck here, anyway... [He knows time's weird in these places BUT ALSO HE'S LIKE WAIT WHY IS THIS RANDOM ELF HE DOESN'T KNOW IN ON THIS TOO, ACTUALLY??] --But, sounds good, I guess. As good as anything!

[ignition....... she looks even more lost than kashuu, but it's fine. she feels like there is a good chance this place will be horrible and ruin this very good plan, so just in case:]

...If anything goes wrong, make sure to be careful in how you respond.

[don't do anything stupid like she did earlier it's fine. she nods to kashuu, though.]

Are you ready?

[He'll just nod and sigh! What more can he do but just get ready to go along with this wildass plan.]

Ready, ready. But for real, everyone be careful.

[ The two of them nod and start leading these "prisoners" to Falcon's Nest. They will see as they pass that the chaos has been quelled some, but the air in Ishgard is... Not good. It's thick, filled with confusion, dissent? It's a familiar air for those who have experienced the calm before the upheaval.

Haurchefant is well-liked and esteemed, which is what they will learn on their stroll through Ishgard. Because Vax is with him, he's also accepted for the most part. All the knights let the four of them go... To Falcon's Nest! ]

[ In the smallest whisper to the closest prisoner. ]

We're almost there now.

[ As they can see, there are less knights around in the village now. There are only a handful posted to protect the commonfolk who live here. Somewhere further ahead edging to the wilderness, they will see one manacutter!

There is a pause in their steps because Vax salutes to Haurchefant to do some stuff that they know about. The single knight now escorts them (the cuffs are shackled together, a reminder that they're not locked so they can take them off when the time is right).

The first smoke bomb goes off, then the second, and a third! It is TIMEE!! ROLL YOUR DASHES! ]

[she's used to that feeling in the air, and she's already tense because of it. as they're led away, though, according to their plan, she's starting to sprint towards the manacutter as soon as the smoke bombs go off! but she might not be as effective at running as she normally is.

this is because a. she catches sight of the vehicle and realizes she has no idea how it works or, really, how to take it to where they need to go and b.

eli 🔪 vin Roll: [4] Result: 4]

[Kashuu is also used to that feeling considering he lived at the heart of a turning point of a whole era and all and he hates it here.

That said, as soon as the bombs go off he also takes off at a sprint! Which is a 13, with a 9 to help sweet Vin if she needs it because holy shit that 4 help. HELP. The second it looks like she's starting to fall behind, he's going to zip her way to provide cover in case any of the scattering of knights here spots them and tries to zoom for her.]

[ Because of the smoke, there are no icons here. With the bombs having only exploded, it's hard for them to see behind them with the opaque black obscuring everything in sight, but the mana cutter is in front and untouched. The mana cutter is clearly there.

Except they can hear Haurchefant curse, then the sound of footsteps coming to him. It's Vax, based on the voice: "the fucking Heavens' Ward are here."

There is a sound, something fast cutting through the air. It becomes louder, louder, louder, it's getting closer. Do they turn? Do they keep trying to figure out the mana cutter? ]

[nice! she can see pretty much nothing. and while she normally would run even faster towards her destination upon hearing something like that... something about the way the smoke already has her disoriented means that she's pausing midstride and turning towards the noise to try and see what it is.

for sight: eli 🔪 vin Roll: [5] Result: 5
for being smart enough not to stop running: eli 🔪 vin Roll: [4] Result: 4]

Kashuu, keep going—!

--I'll try to bring that thing this way, so hold tight, okay!?

[How is he going to do that with only a 6 roll for sight?? Good question!! But while she tries to see, he'll zoom over to the manacutter and leap in, looking for wherever the fck it seems like a key might go. Fortunately he rolls a 14 for that one.]

[ When they look back, if they look back, it's hard to see at fiirst. They won't have time to prepare at all for it. They won't have time to try to interfere... It is now that the object that is coming for them pierces through the smoke, lightning fast, but it's intercepted by the sound of metal. With the smoke billowing outward to show them this sight, it is Haurchefant that has taken his shield to stop the arrow of light from hitting them.

Vax, too, comes behind Haurchefant, cursing to himself as he places his hand on the Elezen's shoulder to give him aether... It isn't enough, no. It only stops the shield from breaking by a bit. Beyond them, they will see knights in different armor, lue and white, quickly coming. They're coming fast and the one from the ramparts beyond prepares another arrow.

With a hoarse voice, Vax yells to Kashuu and Vin: ]

Go!

Edited 2022-03-30 03:57 (UTC)

[she freezes, moving to reflexively shield her face, before she realizes nothing is hitting her. when she realizes just what is happening, though, she doesn't do the smart thing and try to run away - instead, she's moving towards vax instinctively. her definitely real bro... this means she's moving towards haurchefant, too.]

I'm not leaving without you—!

[i rolled to once again see if she would be smart about this and try to nyoom away but

eli 🔪 vin Roll: [1] Result: 1]

[Oh this is all very bad very suddenly.

Well, first of all, Kashuu is using one of his precious Interventions on this wholeass npc Haurchefant because he's the one taking the brunt of the damage right now, since presumably this is a New Encounter.

Unfortunately he's not going to be smart about this either though i do not need a roll to tell everyone that Kashuu would choose to return for his comrades every time rather than run to safety, so the 16 roll is instead for him trying to FIGURE OUT HOW TO STEER THIS SHIP AND THEN NYOOMING FOR VIN, VAX AND HORSEY. ON THIS LITTLE FLYING SAIL BOAT. THAT PROBABLY CAN'T FIT THAT MANY PEOPLE.]

Head this way!!

[AND VAX... THEIR REAL CYOA PARTNER......... And Horsey who he has become inexplicably attached to despite knowing he's probably not real.]

[ You all want me to roleplay Vax till the end of this cyoa. Should have rolled higher first round. Haurchefant can't thank Kashuu for the intervention, but the appreciation is there even if he's struggling. Vax, however, has enough bite to yell at both of them to go—this is when the arrow of light pierces through the shield.

And it runs through both Haurchefant and Vax, straight through like a needle to fabric. Blood instantly flows out of their mouths, but they aren't just dead yet. They have a moment where they stand, a moment where Vax keeps his eyes on Kashuu and Vin. Haurchefant, too, turns to them before collapsing as if trying to parse what happened. They both collapse. Vax continues to tell them to go, to leave him behind, you guys don't have a fucking healer. The blood pools quickly below the two.

The Heavens' Ward are still coming, you fools. They are charging their next light arrow. ]

No!

[it's screamed out as she watches - haurchefant is unfortunate, but it's vax that she can't keep her eyes off of, tears already spilling for their, once again, very! real! friend!

solely for the sake of not making poor hei suffer any longer, instead of going right to vax's side and trying to pull him along with her... she's freezing in place, horrified, long enough that kashuu can probably scoop her up on the manacutter if he so chooses.

eli 🔪 vin Roll: [12] Result: 12]

[Ah, he really hates these places. This place. The prism. Because it doesn't really matter how fake someone is when they're looking at you like a very real person, and it really doesn't matter knowing that even if people die out here, they won't be dead back on the other side, when all is said and done.

Kashuu just gives a wordless yell of frustration and anger, careening the ship sideways so he can lean over the side of it and scoop up both Vin and also Vax because Vin rolled a 20 on BODY CARRYING HELP. But they don't have enough time or likely space on board to grab Haurchefant as well, and he hates having a human heart in this moment, which aches in a nonsensical way for this fallen person he'd barely even met, who'd been willing to risk his life for them.]

—I'm sorry!!

[RIP sweet Horsey, but with his 12 roll he's gonna try skedaddling the heckie outta here with Vin and their shot-up, bleeding-out Vax who's definitely real. SOON HE WILL REALIZE THEY'LL PROBABLY NEED TO GET AYMERIC TOO NOW THAT THIS HIGH-RANKED AND WELL-RESPECTED GUY HAS BEEN SHOT DOWN AS A HERETIC.]

[ The knight understands why they abandon him, smiling as he mouths something they can't hear yet they know. Somehow, they hear it in their hearts.

A smile better suits a hero.

And they leave Haurchefant behind, seeing the light in his eyes disappear as the blood pools under him. The corners of his lips stay quirked up, smiling them farewell beyond his time. Haurchefant Greystone lived to serve, that is a knight's duty. For Vax and Haurchefant, Kashuu and Vin must march on—for this is just an illusion, isn't it? It's all fake. All this suffering, all this death. All this heartache.

And in a flicker, Haurchefant's body is replaced with another as they fly away. Who is actually left behind is Yasusada... Kashuu will hear his voice in the wind: Did I do good, Kiyomitsu? I protected you this time.

That is a sword's duty. To serve, to protect.

As their manacutter flies away with their bundle of bloody three into the tundra, headed northwest to Dravania with the black bird following after them, the voice returns: "suffering. Sorrow. No matter the cause or origin. It is real."

To Estinien, they go, but you may have a tag round to be... Silent. For your surprise deados. ]

[when you nat 20 your body lifting roll but it is still just a body, it's kind of unfortunate!

she doesn't notice yasusada because all of her focus is on vax, who is clearly already gone even as they're both lifted into the manacutter, but - she's trying to stop the bleeding anyways in some vain hope that it'll make a difference. when it's clear that he's not breathing despite her efforts, she just

starts crying. it's fine. quietly, even though he can't hear her:]

I'm sorry...

[He kind of wishes he could sum up the hysteria and fury he'd felt earlier, but that image of Horikawa's gored corpse does not actually help him to only feel the fiery heat of rage in this moment. Instead, even knowing what this is, seeing Yasusada's form growing smaller behind them as they sail off socks him right in the gut. It edges too, too close to home, after the last weekend. That could have easily been him. This could have been them. He could have been looking out onto that snowy mountain in the prism, and not just the snowy mountains here, seeing nothing but the end of a life more precious than his.

It sounds so much like Yasusada, too - like the exact thing he'd say if he were really in this situation. Tears spring to his eyes, but he quickly and furiously wipes them away. Stupid.

He turns his attention to Vin and Vax after, his two very real CYOA partners, and drops down to Vin's side, pulling her in for a hug.]

...We'll get him back out. He'll be okay.

[As they all always are, in some way, even if they return changed on the other side of the archways they get spit out of.]

MAH MORN NARR.
THE SAVIORS MUST PERISH.

[ They reach Dravania and instantly the cold is gone. There's no snow, isntead being replaced by mossy forest. The heat and humidity is on as they can see from the smoke coming from one of the peaks of these lands. Without knowing where to go and only being told Northwest, they continue northwest until they reach the Churning Mists... Vin and Kashuu will find it familiar because Aymeric showed them both by accident or purpose, if only a bit, but in the end they must find Estinien.

I'm going to pretend them two can figure out this massive purple floating island with thunder crackling around it is Nidhogg's lair. The aesthetic of this large landmass is purple, dark, and it would be filled with dragons, but instead it's... Full of corpses. Body after body after body, there are dragons strewn all the way to the center.

And there lies Nidhogg, dead, without his eyes, but Estinien nowhere to be found? Can't believe I had this header prepared but really I'm writing a "bitch's empty" comment. ]

Edited (Actually I typoed so much I’m sorry everyone) 2022-03-30 07:20 (UTC)

[everything about this is bad, but at least her and kashuu got some nice hugging time in on the journey here while he wasn't presumably sweating about having to fly them here.

as they land, she continues to try and take vax's body with them so they can put him in the pods later, a thing they will definitely have to do, but it's pretty rough! in the end she has to just kind of drag him hopelessly along behind her, because i rolled a three but she refuses to stop trying anyways.

anyways, once they get there, she's wary of approaching the dragon in case they get jumpscared and it isn't actually dead. when she notices it's missing both eyes instead of just one, though... ah. she remembers something she saw a few weeks ago.]

...Kashuu, this is a bad sign.

[You ever think about how neither of them have weapons right now.

Anyway yeah he'll help her tote Vax's dead body under the assumption that as with any other person who has died in these places, he'll be alive and ready to get podded about it once they leave! Though he'll gently set his side of Vax onto the ground once they get a look at the dragon that is already super dead and all.

Looking toward Vin at that, also remembering something with a frown.]

'Cuz of the eyes, right...?

[In the meantime he'll look around the area to see if he can loot any corpses for their weapons just in case they need those,,]

[ they may loiter cause! yeah, maybe there are treasure chests if Estinien didn't loot them... But dragons are made of flesh and bone, too.

How they try to get weapons or not, we will see. There is no sound except for the soft gales and the intervals of crackling thunder. No roars. Not patters of clawed feet. It seems they are alone here. What was once home to dragons became their graveyard.

The voice from before: "Vengeance begets hate... It is a never-ending cycle. An ouroboros."

The black bird is here, just chilling. Actually, it perches on Vax's corpse. Still chilling. ]

[she swats at the bird. i'm so sorry bird. it's not a very effective swat, at least...]

Get away from him!

[then she'll join kashuu in glancing around, seeing if there's any indication about where the fighters might have gone after their dragon battle.]

Yes, because of the eyes. We should be careful.

[especially after hearing this strange message.

eli 🔪 vin Roll: [3] Result: 3 for bird swatting]

This bird is definitely cursed.

[Just fckin squinting at it. He doesn't try to bat it away but he is definitely just vibing in his displeasure.

Me reading this comment like damb I can't believe hei is implying we gotta skin these dragons to use their hides as shields and their bones as swords.]

Mm, okay. Yell if you notice anything weird.

[He'll move to get a closer look at this eyeless dragon corpse in the meantime.]

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✔️ THE AERY

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