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Post by DanteMGalileo on Feb 29, 2020 21:42:37 GMT -5
"Hope ya don't mind the cold. It's homey to me."
Lobo shrugged as he slipped into one of the lower-altitude shrines along the mountain, unfazed by the freezing weather outside. While there was no proper door, a green rug embroidered with golden eagles hung in front of the entrance. The floor was a woven straw mat, several folding walls in place, others tucked away. A simple hole in the wooden wall to the back served as a window, a silk green curtain folded above it. A seven-legged metal pot stood in the centre of the building, hoisted above a large red crystal, faintly glowing, giving off some heat, a small hole in the ceiling above. A rectangular piece of metal stood in a corner, its cavity carved open and filled with a green slime-like substance, food items floating within. Against a far wall was a collection of sticks and blankets. A table made of a wooden material was collapsed and folded alongside several stools of a similar material.
"This is... basically what most homes back on my home planet look like. Feel free to take a seat or grab something from the freshness preservation chest in the corner. I'm sure that human houses are a bit more homey, but, uh, this is the best I've got."
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Post by Pink Moon Wolf on Feb 29, 2020 22:16:24 GMT -5
"Uh, no... no thank you. I don't really... eat..." Jamie mumbled, pulling up a stool and awkwardly seating himself. Lobo's section of the soulscape didn't seem to bother him at all, as the temperature had already proven to have little effect on his astral body and the angel's little abode wasn't particularly strange in his eyes. If there was anything truly irking Jamie, it was the topic at hand as opposed to any environmental factors.
"So, um... The angel that attacked you, Kelsey, Paul, Flint and all them... that was your brother, you said?"
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Post by DanteMGalileo on Feb 29, 2020 22:28:02 GMT -5
"Half-brother. Same mother, different fathers. Mum was the unfortunate daughter of some noble house, our dad was the king's head bodyguard. Green asshole's dad? Yeah, that king."
Lobo made his way over to the slime-filled cavity, sticking a hand into the green substance, pulling out what seemed to be a tub of dry rice, a container of cubed beef, and a bottle containing a thin black liquid, the label in a strange language. He stopped at the pot in the middle, poking it a few times as it began to glow more intensely, a bubbling sound audible. The angel dumped the rice into the pot, snapping his fingers to call another seat to him along with some dishes and what appeared to be chopsticks with spoon-like protrusions on the wider end. "Just because we don't have to eat doesn't mean we can't. Makes ya feel better. This is a common dish back on Paradiso. Yes, it's safe to eat raw, and yes, this is basically just soy sauce." He reached into the pot and scooped out some rice with one of the spoon-like ends, then adding some beef and sauce, stirring with the chopsticks.
"... We were never close. He was an obnoxious little shithead from the start. Couldn't stand him."
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Post by Pink Moon Wolf on Mar 2, 2020 19:32:02 GMT -5
Jamie cleared his throat and cast a hard frown at the floor. "Call me a downer if you want, but I've literally never had food before. I kinda doubt I would have the same emotional response to it as you."
He kicked his foot around a bit as he mulled over Lobo's description of his half-brother. The empathy was clear in his face, even if the full weight of the situation was somewhat lost on the naive spirit. "So... if you don't mind me asking, what brought you two to this point? What's he attacking you guys for? Kelsey told me about the angel army, but..."
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Post by DanteMGalileo on Mar 2, 2020 19:51:50 GMT -5
"Fair point. But I'm gonna leave this out in case you'd like to experience life's third-best pleasure."
Lobo glanced back down at his food, then stabbed a stray piece of food with a chopstick, scowling. "Like I said, he's been an obnoxious little shithead from the start. Oh right, I have to be a bit more specific, don't I?" A hard frown crossed the angel's features as he brought a chunk of food to his mouth, chewing with perhaps a bit more force than needed. "He always saw Paradiso's way as being the only way. Never stopped to think for himself. Wasn't even allowed to knock some sense into that swollen head of his either. After all, as the court was so eager to remind us, Loba and I were bastard children, Liderc was the legitimate son."
He let out a humorless laugh. "I was a soldier, as per the norm. Loba was a war songstress, and shall we say... entertainer." Lobo went silent, before placing his dish to the side. "Sorry. Bad memories. Anyways, the little shithead was too eager to fight for the tyranny of Paradiso. I couldn't stand it, so I defected and took a chunk of 'em with me. Thought that was the end. Thought we could be free, but nope. He's back, and this time, he's actually out for blood."
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Post by Pink Moon Wolf on Mar 2, 2020 21:35:24 GMT -5
Jamie simply shrugged and dropped the subject of food, still on the fence about that concept. With that, he turned back to Lobo and gave the angel his undivided attention.
"Oh..." And once the story was out, he didn't know how to react. He felt bad, of course, but he was struck fairly quickly with the crippling fact that nothing he could say or do would improve the situation. All Jamie had to offer was another limp shrug, a sad stare, and a meek murmur. "That's... Man. I-I'm sorry, I... Mmf..."
He glanced down at the floor, then up at the ceiling, then out the window, then back at Lobo. "I don't know how things are going on that front... and I don't know what I can do to turn things around... but at the very least, I feel inclined to try something. But, uh... first... what's on your mind? What do you think did that to Flint?"
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Post by DanteMGalileo on Mar 2, 2020 21:47:42 GMT -5
"Oh hey, that's a marginally less depressing and substantially more terrifying topic. I like it."
Lobo slammed his palms together, a smirk forming on his face, though clearly strained. "Right. I'm no expert on occult bullshit, so don't quote me on this. Anyways... there's this malevolent thing beyond mortal comprehension in my universe. Any sane being? It gets a fear response and gets the fuck outta dodge if it detects the damn thing's presence. Fortunately, it can't actually directly interact with the universe. Problem solved, right? I fucking wish."
He took a breath to steady himself. "Nope. Some genius member of my species made contact with it and was able concentrate some of its power in a book. It's called the... Go-To The Tannen or something along those lines. If you sign it in yer blood, you'll also get its power. One of its powers... is the ability to inflict serious damage to the already dead."
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Post by Pink Moon Wolf on Mar 2, 2020 22:00:22 GMT -5
"Oh... Oh good Lord..." Jamie curled inward, logically put off by the description of this otherworldly force, not to mention the potential danger it placed on them and all the other familiars in the soulscape. His expression remained mostly calm as he stared at his feet, the most intense emotion on his face being simple worry, but it was easy to tell from his tense shoulders and arched eyebrows that the young man was terrified out of his wits.
Despite this, once he shook himself off and steeled his nerves, the next thing Jamie said surprised even himself.
"So... you don't know for sure if that's what your half-brother got himself into?" He took a deep breath, narrowing his vacant eyes slightly. "If you want to verify it... maybe I could get close to him and take a look for myself. Maybe... take some of the heat so you can study the effects on me. It's probably about the only useful thing I can do for you and Kelsey."
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Post by DanteMGalileo on Mar 2, 2020 22:19:08 GMT -5
...
"Uh... did my auditory tunnels fail? Because I thought I just heard you basically offer yourself up like a meerkat and warthog to a pack of hyenas." Lobo raised an eyebrow. "I know I have no final say, because that's Kelsey's. We can't exactly come and go as we please, and even if we did, I'm not sure how far away we can safely travel before things get wonky."
Hmm. Lobo placed a finger to his chin. "Well, we know you're a lot more affable than most of the other nitwits we're stuck with in here."
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Post by Pink Moon Wolf on Mar 7, 2020 11:29:38 GMT -5
"I don't know what any of those things are," Jamie stated blankly, his utter lack of a childhood apparent. Brushing aside that bizarre simile, Jamie ran a hand through his hair, shrugged and continued, "I'm sure Kelsey would understand if we explained the situation to her. She needs all the help she can get and she knows it. I-If need be, we can maybe leave out the part about me being a potential test subject."
He propped his feet up on the supports of his stool and rested his elbows on his knees. "I appreciate the concern. I understand the risk this would put me in, but considering how dire this situation clearly is, risks are warranted, aren't they?"
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Post by DanteMGalileo on Mar 7, 2020 13:45:44 GMT -5
Lobo simply shrugged. "Well, I can't stop ya. Like she said, we ain't exactly cannon fodder like the rest of my absorbed brethren. If yer so adamant on bein' the test subject, I won't stop you. Just... I'm sure it'll be kinda impossible to conceal your... intentions... from her..."
The angel stood up, looking around, hair standing on end. "I can sense a... disquieting presence. Can you feel it?"
---
The blue ocean and golden sand turned to grey, the water coming to a sudden stillness as it took on a tar-like appearance. A small figure with a hood pulled over its face walked along the now-dead shoreline, glancing sadly into the horizon. They let out a small sigh. Everything they touched only died. They kept walking, finding a patch of palm trees, who also took on a dead, grey look when they passed by.
As they distanced themselves from the shoreline, colour and life returned to it. The barrenness followed the figure as they made a beeline for the mountain...
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Post by Pink Moon Wolf on Mar 7, 2020 20:51:57 GMT -5
"Yeah, you're probably right," Jamie sighed, rubbing his arms from both anxiety and physical discomfort. He felt cold all of a sudden, which shouldn't have been surprising given the nature of Lobo's personal realm, but temperature had never been an issue for the spirit. "Disquieting... presence? W-What do you mean? What else could be out there besides other familiars?"
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Post by DanteMGalileo on Mar 18, 2020 17:06:35 GMT -5
"Well, a lot of my kind tends to have disturbing thoughts within our subconscious. It's usually telling us to kill and conquer everything that isn't an angel, but it's pretty indistinct rumblin' for most of us. We can mostly ignore it." Lobo suggested with a shrug. "Given that Kelsey absorbed a lot of my brethren, it's possible that it's the collective mutterings became one and decided to haunt us. But I don't think that's it."
The colour within the building faded to grey, the food becoming withered and rotten in appearance. "It doesn't feel... malicious. It's off, but I don't think this one actually means any harm..." Lobo glanced towards the now-grey rug covering the entry hole...
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Post by Pink Moon Wolf on May 2, 2020 15:59:45 GMT -5
"Um... Okay. Good to know." Jamie stared at Lobo with apparent unease. Note to self: Stick to the beach.
When the discoloration started to affect the room, Jamie feverishly gripped the stool and tensed up, trying desperately to scoot away from the encroaching phenomenon. "N-No harm? Are you sure about that?"
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Post by DanteMGalileo on May 3, 2020 10:36:31 GMT -5
"If it actually meant harm, it'd probably would've attacked us by now."
Lobo pointed towards the door, not flinching when a hand dripping a black substance shoved the curtain aside. The figure slumped into the room, hood obscuring its head, hunched over. It was breathing heavily, placing a dripping hand on the wall, looking around, face obscured by both its hood and a mop of faded hair. Lobo raised an eyebrow, looking at the figure, then at Jamie, and back to the figure, eyes slowly widening.
"Hang on... is that..."
The figure looked up, revealing a young face with pale, grey-green tinged skin, a mop of faded brown hair, also tinged slightly green; and green markings visible on its chest and shoulders.
Shaking, the figure's eyes went wide, staring at the two souls before him. One arm, the one not against the wall, seemed limp, the other wrapping around his thin body.
"̘̯P.͔̠.̘̺.͙̤͝ ̩ͅP̶̹͕̪̮l̩͚͡e͙̲͔͍̟̙̣a͕͓̪̫s̯̣̤̻̤̞e͖.҉̞̣̱̟̙̹.̜̬͓̳.͍̘̠̠"̳͈̲̬͍̼̮͘
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