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sticksandbones2023-09-01 11:03 am
EVENT 004
It’s a calm, misty morning. The sun is peaking over the treetops, and the air is chilled, almost like the onset of fall. How long have you been here, now? Days? Weeks? Months? Everything blurs together. But so you persist… just. Not quite yet. The day’s only just waking up and so are you! Whether you like it or not. You see, as you slept, something has crept its way into your room, and as the sun peaks through windows and closed blinds, it’s finally grabbing you and pulling.
As you meet your rude awakening, the intruder is clear to see. Or rather, it’s incredibly unclear. Mist and fog and sickly-looking vines wrap around your legs and up your body as it drags you to the woods, and attacks of all sorts slide off like water on glass. There is no escape. It’s time to play, and the air is unusually, painfully hot.
The fog of the forest grows dark and heavy as you’re pulled along against your will, and as you go something seems… different. Maybe your body seems lighter and off balanced. Maybe certain features are no longer tickling your skin. Maybe the connection to the world around you has been brutally severed — all that can be said is that as you’re eventually spat out to a metal platform, you feel incomplete somehow. Magic doesn’t come when you call. Gear doesn’t activate properly. Whatever happened, you’re a completely ordinary human, and it stings.
You and your fellow denizens of the Grove stand on a seeringly hot metal platform, and the air burns your lungs. Ash and soot float through the air, singeing wherever it lands for a split second. Towering up before you is a volcano that has no right being here — but it is. Platforms and smaller spires and rocks litter your surroundings, and scorch marks are everywhere.
The only consolation is that whatever is about to happen, you at least aren’t doing this in your pyjamas.
Eventually, as sweat builds up and the wind only burns further, a too-familiar childish voice rings out: "It’s playtime! If you win, I’ll show you something REALLY cool. …Oh, but surely I don’t have to explain ‘The Floor is Lava’, right?"
It goes silent, and there’s a loud metal grind of something. The lava beneath the platform begins to rise, and so does the hateful heat.
At least there are multiple ways out. You can attempt to hop across crumbling platforms, mysteriously and magically floating overhead — though they might break after a few footsteps. You can try climbing the burning-hot, stony surface of the surrounding cliffsides, where flows of magma get a bit too close for comfort. You can take the safer-but-risky way of running through the game area’s many mazelike paths, cut into and through the cliffs, but be careful; should the magma rise too high, those pathways will be flooded. No matter what you choose, the goal is to get to the top, out of the volcanic arena and to a designated “safe zone" waiting on an overhang at the volcano's lip. Up there, an invisible barrier prevents victors from climbing back down into the game zone, and up there is where you will wait with your fellow victors if you succeed. It’s air-conditioned, as if you’re still not trapped within a volcano.
As the first of you reaches the top of the rise, a victory fanfare plays from somewhere, but the lava begins to rise faster. Faster and faster, for each person who succeeds — or dies a horrible, fiery death. You’d better hope your success doesn’t come at the cost of someone else’s life.
As soon as there are no players remaining in the game, another chime plays from a still-mysterious location. After a cheerful voice congratulates you on your victory, the fog encircles you again, as it had done earlier in the day. When you next blink, you’re back in the Grove, standing exactly where you were when you were first taken.
Those of you who died, however, will wake up the following morning in your usual sleeping quarters, be it in your bed or outside in the forest. The good news is, you’re hale and healthy despite everything. A voice whispers to you as soon as you reawaken: "Better luck next time!"
CLICK TO EXPAND!
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[He parkoured up the side of the cliff earlier like a madman. Elsword isn't the type to feel drained, but between the heat and the parkour and then the climbing... yeah, he's getting fatigued very quickly. It feels odd, being disconnected from the El entirely. Before, he at least had Sephira and the El Energy that composes his being... now he doesn't. It's uncomfortable. He can't say he's a fan.]
I want to go back to bed.
[This is the most pathetic he's sounded in months, please understand how exhausted he is—]
roll: 5
( felicity sighs dramatically, and moves to stand- but then there's another rumble- the harshest yet, with how the ground shakes, and felicity reaches out instinctively to steady herself on elsword- frowning, she inhales softly. )
I think that's a sign to keep moving.
no subject
[feelings.mp3
Elsword wants to stick together, so he has to ask—]
Are we climbing up, or walking across the pathway? There's one over there. [He thinks he sees Gnosis struggling to exist on it honestly]
roll: 18
( "just fucking bridal carry him", is what she means.
there's not another tremor at least. with as high up as they are now, it seems more and more unstable. she's confident that elsword can make the jumps he needs to if it comes down to it, even- or rather, especially- while carrying add. and she's pretty damn great herself, hah. )
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[You hear that, Add, you're under His Watch now. He will bridal carry Add and then they can have another awkward discussion about how they're not dating... sigh.]
If I could fly here, I could have saved everybody by now. [ :( ]
roll: 1
I think that's the point, Elsword. Or I could make paths, and Gnosis could freeze things over. The man's a walking blizard it feels like.
( maybe. but also you just don't like the cold, felicity.
but it really is best to get a move on. the lava churns below and the heat only burns more, radiating harshly and reflecting off of everything. it's just a little longer- a little bit longer. elsword has a passenger, so she stands to the side to let him go first, help from behind if needed.
this
is a mistake.
the volcano rumbles and quakes again, harsher than before, and pieces of the walls and platforms start crumbling- it's not the first time this has happened- it was scarier down below when it felt like a great tumbling rockslide was coming for them from above while hell was at their feet below.
and yet
and yet.
something in the earth cracks- (can she really be surprised with how brittle the baked rock felt?) -and cracks, and cracks with steam and more rubble and debris falling around them.
felicity tries to move closer to the wall, and maybe that's her real mistake, because the ground beneath her feet crumbles. and she drops through, eyes wide. (part of her wants to laugh- she doesn't even have her magic and her luck still comes for her?)
mostly, though? she's just in shock.
up until she hits the molten lava, that is. she's not sure why she ever thought this would be quick. felicity is silent, voice caught in her throat- and then she can only scream. )
cw: graphic injuries
In so doing, maybe they don't fall, but she does, and Elsword can't react quick enough to reach out for her.]
Felicity!!
[His arms are full. He can't just leap to the bottom of the cliff with Add in them. Lava is viscous, and it'll take her time to fully be submerged — and it's time they don't have. Elsword is forced to prioritize if he doesn't want to kill them all. It's a disgusting feeling, having to choose.
He's the sort of person who can't answer the question, "If you could only save one person, who would it be?"]
Shit—!
[Without much of a choice, Elsword runs further up the pathway and sets Add on a wider platform not near the edge, says "I'll be right back" with the confidence of a man who has done stupider shit in the past, and then quite literally throws himself over the cliffside, where he just barely manages to grapple onto the wall before dunking himself into the depths.
By this point, it's definitely too late. Her shrieking had stopped before he even got this far, and he can't even see her — but he has to try to get her out anyway. Maybe she's still alive. Maybe she hasn't yet burned to death, maybe maybe maybe.
Elsword dunks his hand into the lava and screams, biting back the urge to yank his hand out immediately as what isn't submerged in magma catches fire. The flames lick up his shoulders and onto his cheek, searing, agonizing—
He feels something and pulls. His arm comes out horrendously burned, some white bits of bone showing through blackened flesh. If he was going to bleed at all, the heat surely fried the capillaries and veins shut as soon as those layers were burned away.
The only thing in his hand is her choker, something that, by all odds, shouldn't have survived. Couldn't have, yet here it is, and Elsword takes it as yet another thing the backwards forest and all its games want him to suffer over.
Slowly does he climb back up the cliff face until he can reach the platform again, having to hug the wall with his knees due to his left arm being completely disabled right about now. Only when he reaches that platform is he able to path his way back up to Add.
The shaking has stopped.]
no subject
After awhile it all starts to blur together. Quakes and booms, meaningless chatter... it's difficult to focus with his Nasod chip offline. He can't go back and review what was said, so it all just slips through like water. He only catches bits and pieces—his name being mentioned, a pathway, Elsword scooping him back up in his arms, something about a blizzard, Felicity.
... it's not until he's being placed down on the rocks that he registers the screaming. I'll be right back is far from reassuring when the next thing he sees is Elsword throwing himself off the edge of a volcanic cliff.
Add shouts after him, stumbling and dragging himself to the edge of the platform anyway. He can't see what's happening, blinded by the heat, rock already crumbling at the edges he's too afraid to move closer to, but he can hear Elsword screaming now and where did Felicity go?
For a moment he's sure they're both dead, dead, and he'll be next when the lava rises... if not for the faint sounds of life below, heavy breathing, rocks dislodged from a dangerous climb back up. The seconds tick by like hours. When Elsword pulls himself up from the edge Add is already there waiting for him, too weak and pathetic to help but he still has to try, hands on his arm, his body, clinging to whatever he can grasp, desperate and broken pleas bubbling up from his throat, don't leave me heres that dissolve in the air like steam.
As the rest of Elsword is pulled to solid ground, he half expects to see Felicity hanging from his hand... but all he sees is a burnt and blackened mess that vaguely resembles an arm.
Ah.
He should've at least used the infested arm. Now Elsword's got two bad arms.
... those thoughts aside, Add would be sobbing mess right now if it weren't for this heat. But now, he has something else to focus on. He fumbles for his medkit, shutting out the rest of his thoughts as he seeks out one of the two remaining vials of Cure. It's hard without Dynamo, not unlike the last time he tried to medicate Elsword's wounds, but this time they don't have the option of healing magic or the safety of their home. He forces his way through with single-minded determination, jamming the needle down the vial and drawing out the blue liquid within.
His hands are shaky, and he takes a moment to breath before trying to inject it. This isn't something he can risk wasting. Focus. You can do this. You have to do this...]
no subject
They don't have time to sit around. Not really. The lava is rising a touch faster than it was before, but they're also not going anywhere fast if Elsword's arm isn't at least somewhat-healed to the point where he might manage to use it again.
He's not sure when, but somewhere in the process of Add drawing the Cure dose into the vial and the distant sound of a victory fanfare — someone else just made it to the goal — his head winds up on Add's shoulder. Elsword is so, so, so very tired. Not just physically, but mentally. A bone-deep exhaustion that he's trying desperately to pull himself out of so that they can, at the very least, make it the rest of the way up. At this point, they're probably the last two still "playing", but that's of little comfort to him now.]
...I didn't make it in time, [he whispers, a pained sigh on his lips.] I never...
["Never make it in time" — the sentence does not fully form. Elsword wills it away; he can't quit now. He cannot stop to lament when he still has someone left to save.]
no subject
[there's a head on his shoulder and it's hard to work like this, but he takes a deep breath, sticking the needle where it needs to be and slowly introducing the medicine. this isn't the first time he's had to heal a horrific burn, and it likely won't be the last. just stay calm, keep the patient stable...]
... what the hell were you thinking? [he's not supposed to yell, but the words are already tumbling out, wild and unsteady] You could've both been killed, you— you never think when you do these things! You're always trying to save everyone, but who's supposed to be saving you?! You came all this way for me, and you're just going to— to—
[it's his fault.
the only reason they were both still down here, stuck at the back of the line and racing the volcano... it's because Add couldn't make it by himself. the one that deserves the blame should be the weakest link. they're only here because he held them back.
they're all going to die here, and it's his fault.
he chokes back a sob, forcing himself to pull out the empty needle, tossing it aside. he wants to wrap his arms around Elsword's back, cry into his arms until the heat consumes them both and they're burnt away into nothing, nothing... but he's not allowed to give up. he has to keep going, keep pushing, if they all die here then why did they bother with him at all, if he gets them both killed, if he can't even sacrifice them to save his own skin...]
We have to move, Elsword. [hands on his shoulders, gently pushing him away. he's useless, pathetic, dead weight, but even a useless person can still do this much] Please...
no subject
(Nevermind that the El tends to eat anyone who joins with it, whether by choice or not. That's fine, that happens.)
Normally, Elsword would vocalize an "ow" to the needle. He usually does, even if it doesn't hurt that badly to him. This time, he's completely silent, likely because he can't feel much in that arm until after the Cure starts to take effect. Burnt-off skin starts to reform in patches, muscle almost seems to regrow from nothing, and the bits of bone showing through eventually get covered up by stitching-together flesh. It's not perfect by any means, but Elsword finds he can flex his fingers again in time.
When he uncurls them, Felicity's choker is in his palm, and he quickly pockets it with Sephira. It'll be safe there, assuming they live. Which... after hearing the way Add's voice breaks, he plans on making that the case. Add is scooped again, wordlessly, and Elsword carries on.
He can't pretend nothing happened, but he can at least make sure they get out alive. His arm stings — the Cure hasn't repaired everything, nor does it take away the pain of having his entire arm burned — but this is, at least, ignorable until they're at the top of the rise.]
I'll get you out of here alive. [He says, in the same tone he usually uses when he's in his own head about saving people. A tone that betrays what headspace he's in — the one more akin to a machine rather than a person, consequence of what he is rather than who.] I promise. Just bear with me until then.
no subject
he still swallows them down all the same, shaky breaths to steady his nerves, focus, focus.]
We'll both get out of here. Together. [he refuses to be the last one standing. if all he can do is drag people down... it has to be both.] We're almost there. Just a little further.
[but the lava still rises, and the path is no less treacherous... can they really make it? he has to believe, even if it's completely hopeless. he has to believe that Elsword can make it happen.]
no subject
He'd be more of a failure than he already is if he let that happen.]
Do you think you can hold onto my back? I'm gonna climb up.
[Taking the pathway is, technically, the safer option. But Elsword fears the lava will get to them with all the twists and turns... and the safe point is right there, looming up above where he thinks he can see Mizuki's bright blue hair through the heat warping the environment.
His hand is fucked up, but he thinks, when he flexes his fingers, that he can force himself to make it. So, whether Add answers or not, Elsword readjusts how they're positioned and, only after he's secure, he starts climbing.
And god, do hot cliff faces not feel excellent on his hands right now. Both of them are burnt from doing this earlier; one is obviously more fried than the other. Still, he grits his teeth and proceeds onwards. If he doesn't think about the pain, he won't feel it. He can just heal everything later, when his magic presumably comes back.
They'll be fine. They'll crest over the top of the cliffside in due time.]
no subject
[It doesn't matter, because Elsword is just going to do it anyway. What's Add going to do, resist and get them both killed for sure? They don't have the time to argue, his input isn't welcome anymore. He can only manage a frustrated sigh, clinging to Elsword's back, hoping that everything will somehow be okay.
(it won't be, because it's already gone so wrong. all they can do now is damage control.)
He shuts up. Arms around Elsword's shoulders, face pressed to his back... the heat feels like it's getting closer. He doesn't dare to look. If they die here, at least Elsword will still keep his promise. He won't go to the Garden alone.
It's an unbearably long climb... but it has to end eventually. It's almost a surprise when they reach the top, peeking over the edge to see others gathered nearby. The air feels cooler. Elsword drags them both up to solid ground and only then does Add roll off his back.
He's so fucking tired. He just wants to stay here, sprawled out in the dirt... but he can feel eyes all around them. He forces himself to sit up after only a minute, catching his breath, looking over to see how Elsword is doing...
voice catching in his throat, because they both look like shit and there's still something unpleasant clawing in his chest. what the fuck is he even supposed to say? good job?
He looks away, focusing instead on... on his medkit. Elsword is still badly injured. There must be something else he can do...]
... Immunity can't fix burns, but it should prevent any infections. I restocked on painkillers... are you hurt anywhere else? Let me see.
no subject
Add says not to push himself, but Elsword doesn't know how they would have made the journey if he didn't.]
My hands have blisters from climbing, ha... I'll be alright, really. It'll all heal.
[Between him and Add and Chung... It should be fine, when they're out of this mess. Right now, Elsword just wants a hug and maybe to stop feeling like everything is so... Distant. It's a different distant from usual. Sounds are far away, and the space around them is kind of blurry...
He doesn't know what the word "dissociation" means, so even if it was pointed out to him, he'd look equally as baffled as he does now, staring down at his palms. When did they get this bad...? The lava-arm is one thing, yeah, but the other...? His skin is all red from heat burns...
...]
I'm glad you're safe. I thought you were already gone by the time this started, since we were separated.
no subject
[Some frustration is seeping through, but he's still focused. Another needle, more drugs, bandages... it's all a practiced routine. He still can't access his database, but it's a pleasant surprise to find that he still knows all the essential steps. He's not entirely reliant on his technology, for some things.
Treating the burns and blisters comes first. He doesn't waste energy on talking—he's wasted enough already. There's nothing useful for him to add. His hands are gentle, careful, just enough tightness to keep the bandage in place, making the most of what he has available... he can't cover the burns completely, there's just not enough to go around, but he covers up the worst of it. He's still useful for something. It wasn't a waste to save him.
(Felicity could've done the same, though. if she hadn't wasted so much time dragging him along...)
... he almost misses it when Elsword speaks again. He catches only the very end, staring blankly for a second as he tries to check a log that isn't there. Ah.]
... I'm fine. I... Felicity did everything.
[he crumbles a little, hands still loosely gripping Elsword's bandaged arm. he didn't really do anything, aside from try to fix the problems he caused... he wouldn't have had to, if he was a more capable teammate.
he doesn't want to be seen right now... but the best he can do is hide behind Elsword, voice low and shameful. he can't lie about this.]
I'm sorry. It was my weakness. Don't blame yourself.
no subject
Unfortunately for him and his hero-brain, he is very sad, and that's the tip of the iceberg. He doesn't have a better word for it. There's acknowledgement that people come back from death in the back of his mind; it doesn't lessen the blow. Add's current state doesn't, either.
He really wants to hug him. Hugs are supposed to help...]
I don't think it's your fault. Neither of us could get to her in time, but neither of us pushed her in either. You're not weak for having a broken leg.
We'll get home soon. [Presumably. Probably. They won, didn't they?] And we can heal up and have breakfast... I might just go back to bed afterwards. It'll be fine.
[The sentiment of his entire stay in this place. "It'll be fine. I'm okay." At what point does that much positivity become a complete lie just to comfort himself more than anything?]
no subject
[It's a point he's unwilling to relent on. Elsword may be right, he can't be called weak based on an injury inflicted upon him... but the facts still remain the same. A chain of events lead to him being there, crippled at the base of a volcano, and Felicity chose to help him to her own detriment. Had she ignored him, she would've had plenty of time to escape to the top. It was her choice to stay back and assist Add that lead to them being so far behind. No matter how the situation is laid out, Add is still the deciding factor.
They can call it a calculated move. A necessary sacrifice... but if someone had to die, to reach the current end point...
There were two solutions to that scenario. The real reason she died is because Add was selfish.
... he sighs, choosing to file those thoughts away in the corner of his mind that hates itself instead of speaking any more out loud. Elsword would get upset if he pointed it out.
They'll be home soon. It'll be fine.]
... making us do all of that on an empty stomach. There should be a rule against scheduling these games so early.
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It shouldn't be long now. Looks like most people are here already.]
I can make you breakfast when we get back. We have some eggs left in the fridge. [Boy, your hands?] And we can sit on the couch with Leon and Karte while Leon begs for scraps like he does.
[It sounds so normal when he puts it like that. They're going home. They're going to have breakfast on the couch, and their animals will bug them. They can look out and see the forest through the living room windows, and Elsword will probably say something about going fishing later and Add will say he doesn't want to go.
So normal. So very normal, compared to everything else that keeps happening to them.]
no subject
it's a disgusting smell, but he somehow doesn't mind it. he's just glad they're both alive.
dwelling on Felicity won't change anything. she'll... be fine.
just let him stay like this. just for a little longer...]