station72 | [mission: hyrypia] hey kid wanna see a dead body

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[mission: hyrypia] hey kid wanna see a dead body

CHARACTERS: EVERYONE
WHERE: The Second Flight
WHEN: DAY :021 - DAY :022
SUMMARY: Leaving the Graze and flying over the Finger Maze. [insert Psycho music cue here]
WARNINGS: Corpses. Will update as necessary. Need a warning added? PM this account please!

HYRYPIA - THE SECOND FLIGHT
DAY :021

I. ALLLL ABOARD
THE SOUND OF HORNS has become familiar in your time on Hyrypia, but the low drone seems out of place here in the great open space of the main hall of the Second’s Flight. The space here is fantastically and beautifully ornate, the pale polished wood floors and rich dark paneling strangely reminiscent of sand and stone, loamy earth and some rich, dense forest not native to the arid lands of this planet. The space seems to dare the sky to claim it, acting out some daring violation of delivering the earth into the heavens. The twin heads of House Tyrisson are equally lavish both in their appearance and welcome. Two brothers, draped in elaborate pastel fabrics and glinting with enough metal accents to put the ornate robes of Seconds to shame, they trade a short speech back and forth between them:

"Once, our ancestors would have travelled the depths and turns of the Finger Maze in an effort to follow the footsteps of the First. Luckily, we don't live in such dangerous times; the gifts of the First and this planet we call home have allowed us to grow up out of our desperation. Consider this comfort our gift to you and enjoy your time on the Second Flight."

A band strikes up the moment the Tyrisson twins take their seats and you are left to your own devices. So much for living simply.

II. A MURDER MOST FOUL
A SCREAM PIERCES THE SILENCE of the saunas. The low sound of gently flowing water and the soft piped music seems to fade to nothing in the wake of the raw, terrified noise. Unsurprisingly, it draws immediate attention as a horrified Descendant practically falls into the arms of the servant that comes to his aid. The outburst is easily forgiven as word travels like lightning through the ship.

There has been a murder - or rather, two murders. Two bodies, damp with humidity and beginning to give of a distinctly unpleasant smell, have been found in one of the hot bath grottos. The mineral water they've been soaking in has reverted from a milky white to a terrible, blood rust brown.

And while it's unlikely that any Carbauschians were sharing the pool with them (robes make for unpleasant waders), the dryer albeit stiflingly hot areas of the conjoined saunas are such a communal meeting places that it wouldn't be out of the realm of imagination that one or two Hosts might be nearby… Regardless, news travels quickly and the chilly atmosphere that descends over the Second Flight is palpable. A horrific hunting accident is one thing, but murder? That's something else altogether.

HYRYPIA - THE SECOND FLIGHT
DAY :022

III. A SORDID AFFAIR
TO SAY that the atmosphere is somewhat tense is an understatement. It seems that everyone has something to say about the murders- but these things are said tersely, in whispers under the breath, with darting eyes and suspicious glances, and security- once hidden, secret- is now easily visible. They can be found at the entrance of each of the broad areas, patrolling down the paths that run alongside the outer walls of the Envoy’s cabins- never intruding, but ever present. Still, there seems to be an insistence that it will be dealt with by a member of the Tyrisson protectorate guard - Detective Savela, a hard-nosed, serious woman who seems not to want any assistance - and that the guests should continue to enjoy themselves. The bands still play, the games are ever present. Of course, those that are enterprising may wish to try poking around, instead.

IV. THE SHOW MUST GO ON
MURDER SCHMURDER-- In what's very clearly an effort to retain some sense of normalcy, an elaborate meal is served late on Day :022. The dishes are so complex that might as well be show pieces of their own, the music has an air of desperation, and the display of technomancy from a pair of Seconds is so delicate and ornate - centering almost entirely on a cloud of small metal coins that shifts shape constantly to illustrate scenes from the famous epic poem The Arion throughout the course of the dinner - that under any other circumstances it might be a singularly memorable moment.

Unfortunately, the palpable sense of suspicion between the envoy factions persists and the temper of the room is anything but celebratory. Late in the evening when most people have retired from the stifling atmosphere, a scuffle breaks out between some Meradan bodyguards and a clutch of Carpathan servants.

HYRYPIA - THE SECOND’S FLIGHT
DAY :023

V. A FAREWELL TO ARMS
THE ENGINES ever-present hum ticking down an octave is the first sign that the Flight has almost reached its destination. By the time the servants are politely knocking on the entrances of the berthings, the new dawn reveals that the cliffs and the winding passages of the Finger Maze have finally fallen behind the ship. The land here consists of rocky, relatively bare hills and is accented only with occasional short, sparse woody tree and straggly clumps of red grass. From somewhere in the distance, salt touches the wind. The Second Flight lands, setting gently down into the trough between two hills. Its now familiar gangplank extends, ready to send the Pilgrims again out onto the road.

((OOC Notes: This log covers days :021 and :022 on the Second Flight. A log will be posted for the walk on DAY :023 and the arrival at the Red Coast. Please be sure to review the MISSION: HYRYPIA ooc information to find setting information for the Second Flight. If you have any questions, please hit up either the mission's question thread, the FAQ or MOD CONTACT pages!))

NAVIGATION • GAME CALENDAR • MISSION: HYRYPIA • FAQ • MOD CONTACT • GLOSSARY

( CODE BY WHAMBAM )

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[ Anyone looking in from the outside might be fooled by that look of disinterest, but Elena knows better. Sure, she can feel the difference in their connection, but more than that, she knows him. Over that summer together, Damon had become one of her best friends, whether he realized it or not. She might not always be able to predict the actions he'll take, but she can usually understand why he takes them.

His suggestion takes her by surprise; she's confused for a moment, trying to find the connection and finding none, then coming to the conclusion that: ]

That's a good idea.

[ There's no telling what lies ahead for them here, or on any other mission, and she might have super strength, but without knowing what to do with it, she's still half-useless. Sam has training, she knows that, and they trust each other. Reaching up to smooth a hand over his chest, she lets his presence soak into her, his nearness chasing away all her worries for the moment. ]

What made you think of it?

Well, Elena, I'm not sure you've heard, but two people died recently, ❰ damon says, glib, and he can't help the grin that takes over his face in anticipation of her eye roll. another shrug, then, and the hand he has draped over her hip rubs gently up and down her side. ❱

You know a little already, I know. But you're a new vampire, and you've never really had to defend yourself before. If you're going to have me playing guard duty for your squishy friends, I need to know you'll be okay without me there.

❰ there's no sense of obligation in his tone or over the link — damon watches the squishy ones because he protects his people and his people's people, and he has no problem being directed, at least not by elena. but he will worry about her if they're not together, he can't help it, and if he doesn't know that she can protect herself, it'll be that much worse. ❱

[ Oh, he gets the eye roll in full force, her own amused smile creeping in at the end before she shakes her head slightly. He's incorrigible, and she'd be lying if she said that isn't part of what she loves about him. That troublemaker side keeps her on her toes. ]

Those are good reasons. [ All of them, because she knows that she'd be lucky to hold her own against a seasoned fighter, and she doesn't want to think about what he'd go through if anything happened to her.

Moving her hand up to trace his jaw, she studies him for a moment, taking in the lines of the face she knows so well. ] You can be such a good person, Damon. I wish the others here could see it.

❰ when she rewards him with the eye roll he was expecting, his grin gets even wider. it's nice to be able to predict elena, to know her so well that he can anticipate her reactions to him. much as stefan likes to imagine that damon is incapable of caring about people enough to read them, damonis more observant and empathetic than he is given credit for, and it's nice to put those skills to use for elena's happiness rather than as threats.

he stiffens a little, though, at that claim of hers, and frowns deeply. ❱

If people saw it they'd expect it, ❰ he says eventually. ❱ If they expect me to be an asshole, I can be both. It's easier to be an asshole who occasionally does good than a good guy who does something terrible.

[ Damon might be frowning as he says it, but Elena can't help the small smile that grows as he finishes. Shifting a little so she can see him more easily, she combs her fingers through his hair, trying to smooth away those lines. ]

I knew you were going say that; we've had this conversation before, not too long before I came here. [ When people see good, they expect good. She still doesn't quite agree with him, but that's a conversation for a different day. As it is, it's a little reassuring to see again how this Damon is just like the one she left behind. ]

I'm not expecting you to fundamentally change, Damon; I fell in love with who you are now. I just wish that the others would take the time to see what is there with you the way I did.

[ They're in each other's heads and yet she can count the number of people on one hand who bother to even try understanding Damon Salvatore. ]

❰ that knowledge, that elena has heard such a sentiment from him before she even came here, makes something in damon's chest unknot. he was never really aware of being worried that the damon she had in her universe was different than him, but the reassurance that in this way, at least, they were the same, relieved him in a way he hadn't known he needed.

he shrugs in response to her wish, though, unconcerned. ❱

They can see me however they want. I'm not really interested in changing the opinion of the masses.

❰ he has elena, he has sam. that's enough for him. being misunderstood or overlooked by others is how he's lived his life for over a century by now, it's par for the course. ❱

[ It's not so much that she wants to change their opinions, it's that she wishes that people would take the time to get to know Damon before forming those opinions at all. Judging him before they know him is unfair, but then she's gotten to see firsthand how some of their Nestmates feel about that sentiment. So she doesn't push the issue, instead tilting her head and smirking mischievously. ]

I guess I should consider it a good thing anyway. If people saw you the way I do, I might end up with some competition.

❰ l m a o elena are you for real. damon leans away from elena only to look down at her with his very best "the fuck are you talking about?" eyebrow raise. ❱

No one could compete with you, ❰ he says, and it might be romantic if his tone weren't so absolutely unimpressed that she'd even say something like that. he pined after katherine for 164 years and waited a year to be with elena. she is in no danger of his attention being grabbed by the first person who bothers to be nice to him — if she was, he'd already be dating sam. ❱

[ It's still romantic, because she knows that for him it's true. Elena is all too aware of how deeply Damon loves, how loyal he is to those who win his heart and earn his trust. Through all those months that he'd loved her while she was with Stefan, he'd stayed by her side, keeping her safe and being her friend, even when he'd had no inclination that she might i never have feelings for him in return. She can feel that love now, as deep as any ocean, and she doesn't doubt it for one second. ]

No one could compete with you either.

[ Not even Stefan. She doesn't say it but it's there, hanging between them in the air. ]

❰ despite how vehement damon had been just a second before, when elena says the same thing, it does nothing to stymie the voice in his head that's almost constantly whispering about how stefan could wake up from his coma any minute and steal her away. maybe she doesn't think anyone could compete with him, but she's never talked to human stefan. she's so sure of how stefan will react to her being a vampire, but she hasn't actually seen it. ❱

Of course no one could. I'm great.

❰ conceal don't feel, as the song damon can't know because he's from 2010 goes. ❱

[ Oh Damon, you can't fool her. Especially not now. It's crystal clear that he doesn't believe her, for one Stefan-shaped reason or another. It doesn't matter that he can feel her love for him, he still doubts that it would last if something 'better' came along. And she can't have that. ]

You are, though, Damon. Look at everything you did for me, everything you've always done. How could I not fall head over heels for you after all that?

❰ look, he's not deaf. he heard what katherine said when she left elena with klaus' blood for the werewolf bite — it's okay to love them both. i did! — and... say he believes she wasn't just trying to fick with elena. say he believes that katherine really did love him, once, even if she doesn't now, even if it'll always only be stefan.

that means love isn't enough. elena could be truly, madly, deeply in love with him... and in the face of stefan's existence, it wouldn't mean a goddamn thing. ❱

Do I have to remind you of all the people I've killed? The friends of yours I've pissed off?

❰ why is he arguing against being loved? because he's damon salvatore, and he always has to shoot himself in the foot. ❱

I'm a piece of shit, Elena, you can say that. I'm a big boy, my feelings won't be hurt.

[ If Katherine were there with them at that moment, Elena would punch her in the face, symbiote be damned. That woman has done so much harm to the people she loves, it would be a well deserved punch, that's for sure.

Despite how sad it is to admit, this argument doesn't surprise her in the slightest. She's seen Damon self-destruct before, and she refuses to let him do it this time. ]

You think I don't remember all the times you've been a horrible person, Damon? As much as I care about you, they're hard to forget. You've made so many bad choices and hurt so many people... but I do love you. And I wouldn't change that for anything.

[ Not even to be human again, or to save a life. In this one thing, and this one thing alone, she'll allow herself to be completely selfish, because she can't imagine spending any life without him in her heart. ]

❰ damon opens his mouth to argue... and then closes it again. what would be the point? this is a stupid argument over nothing — if he'd fucked up recently, he might try harder to get her to admit she'll always choose stefan first, but right now they're okay. he hasn't done anything she'd need to yell at him for, stefan is still in a coma... he can keep pretending this will last for a little while longer. ❱

You're cute when you have Opinions, you know, ❰ he says instead, smiling. it could be (maybe is, really) very condescending, but it's also very true. when elena has a capital o Opinion on something, her eyebrows get all serious and her eyes get bright... it's adorable. ❱

[ It is a very stupid argument over nothing, and it's not one that she would have given up on, so it's a good thing he decided to throw in the towel this time and let it go. If and when he does screw up again, they can revisit this conversation (and she can repeat herself and continue to press her point), but for now she just rolls her eyes in affectionate exasperation. ]

Is that the best you've got? [ She knows he doesn't mean for it to be condescending, but if he's going for compliments, surely he can do better. ]

Well, Elena, I don't know if you're ready for my best.

❰ it may be easy for elena to forget, but damon... doesn't really have a lot of experience with real romantic relationships and how to behave himself in them. "not like a dick" is obvious but subjective, and he's kind of an asshole by nature, so he's not sure which of his natural inclinations for snark and bullshit to suppress and which ones to just let fly. elena says she likes him how he is, but surely there's a limit, right? ❱

[ No, Damon, you adorable idiot, there isn't a limit -- and if one does suddenly appear, Elena isn't the type of person to just things go by without saying something. If he gets to be too much, she'll let him know, but she's not going to run off and end things just because they're still trying to figure out how they work together. ]

Okay, Doubty McDoubterson. I suppose we can work our way up to it. [ There's a playful resignation to the words, but to soften them she leans in to press a kiss to his cheek. ]

"Doubty McDoubterson"?

❰ elena... babe.......

the blow of such an unimaginative burn is softened by her kiss, and damon leans into it, smiling softly. everything with elena is strange, and new, and damon feels like he's being knocked on his ass by about 95% of everything lately... but he wouldn't change it. he's starting to believe maybe she means it when she says she wouldn't, either. ❱

None of this is getting you out of self-defense training with Sam, you know.

❰ not that he really thinks she wanted to, but this has gotten sappy enough already, and he wants a subject change. ❱

[ Look. She's out of practice, okay? Traipsing around an alien world trying not to eat everyone in sight hasn't really left her much time to come up with witty nicknames and quick comebacks.

Chuckling quietly, she shakes her head and gives him a look. ]

You just want to see me get my ass handed to me.

[ Which she will, it's inevitable, but she's actually looking forward to it. Being able to defend herself is important, and she's quite taken with the idea of getting to learn from Sam. ]

I will neither confirm nor deny, ❰ damon says, though the grin on his face is as good of confirmation as if he'd just said yes in the first place. look, if it's not going to kill her (which sam will definitely not) it'll be fun to watch elena get her butt kicked a little. it's fun, seeing her presented with a challenge she wrestles to the ground and beats at until she stands victorious. ❱

We should get you a sword, too. If Lakshmi ever tries to attack you again, she might go for a blade. It's easier to beat people if you know how to anticipate their movements.

❰ not that he wants to bring up sore spots, but he still doesn't trust lakshmi, and he thinks the only reason she hasn't made a move recently is because the mission takes precedent. when that stops being true... well. who knows? ❱

[ She loves it when he smiles like that, when he's not just pretending but is really smiling. Right then and there she decides to try to make him smile like that every day, because he deserves nothing less. ]

A sword? That... might be kinda cool. But I don't think that Lakshmi is going to attack me again. We... I don't know, I think we've come to a sort of almost understanding.

❰ that merits a more serious conversation, and damon frowns, dropping his arm from around elena so that he can turn to face her. ❱

"An understanding"? With Lakshmi?

❰ he shouldn't be surprised, really. isn't that what he wanted and had been counting on, elena's incredible ability to get people on her side? still, faced with the possibility that the gilbert charm has worked again... he can't bring himself to just trust it. ❱

[ Well, this isn't exactly the conversation she'd thought they'd be having. Leaning back slightly, she reaches for his hand, needing to have some part of him to hold on to. ]

We're not best friends or anything, don't get too excited. It's just that, with everything going on with Gildor, it's like there's a ceasefire between us.

[ It's not the best description of this turbulent calm that's come to their relationship, but it's a start. Nothing about her connection to Lakshmi has been easy to put into words, why should this be any different? ]

And you trust that? This isn't another Elijah situation, is it?

❰ damon is still sort of pissed about elena's faith in elijah — he's honourable until he isn't, and it costs them everything. it costs them stefan, and a chance at killing klaus — sure, without klaus he'd be dead, but elena would be alive and stefan wouldn't have been kidnapped on a blood bender up and down the east coast, so damon knows what he'd choose. ❱

She tried to kill you, Elena. Even if she doesn't want to anymore, she definitely still wants to kill me. Whatever being in her head is making you think about her, forget it.

❰ they don't have the luxury of empathy when their enemy refuses to have any herself. ❱

[ Elena bristles at the mention of Elijah, remembering full well what he's talking about and everything that had resulted from that situation. It puts her a little on edge, and her expression certainly conveys that she isn't thrilled with where this conversation has gone. ]

I know I screwed up with Elijah, Damon, I shouldn't have trusted him. You don't need to point that out to me. And I know that Lakshmi would kill us both in a heartbeat if she could -- but she can't. If I trust anything about this, it's that the symbiote would stop her before she could succeed.

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blooded - 2017-11-30 07:57 (UTC) - Expand

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