beyondthedoor | || slipping slipping slipping

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|| slipping slipping slipping

[He can see tiny silvery branches stretching through the darkness. He follows them, though he can't explain how, and shivers as the light blue leaves brush his cheeks. At last, his hands touch the core. He is engulfed by a warm light, though without the humming he sometimes dreams about, and then there is fire. And then there is nothing at all.

The strange dream is only a prelude to something stranger. Expecting to wake up at an inn, Luke's sprawled out on cold, hard ground. The natural grass here is dry and itchy, and the sky is overcast. It's also missing the band of fonstones that can be seen night and day in Auldrant.

He sits up quickly and looks around. To the north is a gathering of white mountains, shrouded by clouds. To the east is a swamp and a line of more mountains. Otherwise, the land is gentle and not too hilly. Feels like he's sitting on something--

-- oh, hell. It's his /replica/. It's his replica and they've both been kidnapped this time. Luke rolls off and frantically shakes his shoulders.]

Ugh. Wake up, you idiot!

[He can't tell underneath all that hair, but they are both certainly gifted with some new... features.]

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This road sees enough use that there should be a settlement at either end. Other than that, we don't know what to expect. [He sighs to himself. As exciting as getting out of the manor is, things like this... It's like being dumped in the middle of the desert without a map.

He gets to his feet-- carefully-- and offers his hand to help Ember up too.]

Then we'll head toward the mountains. Hopefully we'll find someone before we have to climb any. I didn't exactly pack for this.

Honestly, running into someone I don't share a face with will be plenty.

[Yup, he'll take that hand up, since he's still not all that used to the extra weight, yet.]

...Not that it's not a nice face, I mean...

[He rubs the back of his neck after letting go of Luke's hand.]

Still, if we stick to the road, it shouldn't be too hard... We might even find people who can point us the right way.

[He drops his hand from his neck and offers his hand to Luke again for walking. The road is easier than the hill, but it can't hurt, right?]

[Luke gives him a blank look.] You went from sounding self-deprecating to narcissistic in the span of three seconds.

[He glances at his replica, then the road. They still have some balance issues, so holding hands it is. No matter how sweaty theirs get.

Ugh, nasty.

He takes Ember's hand again, regardless.]

Yeah, let's go.

It's not narcissism if I'm complimenting you. ...I think.

[Whatever, not a big deal. More walking means more practice at balancing, which they're definitely going to need if they're here for any length of time at all. Which... Ember really hopes they aren't.]

The sooner we get going, the sooner we're out of here.

[And with another tug, he sets off down the road.]

[Unfortunately, they can only walk so fast. After an entire day of hoofing it, they can see the signs of a city engraved into the mountains, mostly by its flickering lights mirroring the stars. But it'll take many hours to get there, still. The sun begins to set and Luke suggests they make camp.

After everything is settled, they'll still be sleeping on hard ground, but at least they won't be cold. There's a campfire roaring and they've secured a nice couple of rocks to sit on.]

There haven't been any monsters, [he says, adjusting the spit made for the prairie chicken they caught.] I would've expected a bandit or two, but it's like everyone's hiding.

Yeah... It's weird. At least we were able to find some food, though.

[Ember is crouched and staring pretty shamelessly at that bird, yup. Walking all day, with extra weight to boot, makes for a hungry replica. Every so often, Ember flutters his wings slightly, as though he's not quite sure what to do with them.

He looks up towards the distant lights of city.]

There's gotta be people up there, though. So we're not totally alone here...

[Another fluff of his wings, before Ember sits back and folds them around himself against the cold. At least they're useful as blankets?]

I wonder if they look like us. [He glances back at his own wings, and tries not to dwell on how devouring chicken makes him feel like a cannibal.

Luke is focused on the food, but Ember might be able to detect something disturbing the grass beyond the halo of the fire. Like staggering footsteps.]

[It's not a surprise, really, that Luke doesn't notice the noise - he doesn't have nearly the combat training that his replica does, after all. In contrast to Luke's contented eating, Ember's head shoots up from his share of the food, looking in the direction of the sound - ]

Who's there!?

[A slight shadowy figure steps into the light. What's visible is tattered white robes and green hair, and then he faceplants right into the dirt.]

[Luke gets up quickly.]

Who the hell--

[The flash of green hair is all he has to see - sorry, Luke, your replica is abandoning you and the food for the moment to rush over to the fallen figure, luckily managing to not trip himself over his own wings on the way.]

Hey, are you okay?!

[He drops down beside the other boy up automatically, checking him for injuries before even looking at his face - it's not like there's any surprises to be found there, after all. That slight frame and shade of green hair could only belong to an Ion replica, which means that Ember's automatic reaction is that of an overprotective older brother, pulling the kid into his lap to check him over.]

[The boy groans in response. The front of his robes are open, showing deliberately-carved runes and lines across his stomach and chest. Painful as they may look, the real problem is the gash across his stomach, which looks to have been made by some kind of blade.

He looks up at Ember with unfocused eyes, then glances at his blood-covered right hand.]

Need something to stop... the bleeding. Gonna ruin your coat.

[It's Sync. That's the last person he expected to run into, considering his current state in Belkend, but it looks like things haven't much improved for him. Luke kneels beside his replica, looking grim.

Right. Concentrate. He knows First Aid, and while that's about the extent of his skill with healing, it's a lot better than letting Ember's best friend bleed out on top of him.]

Let me try something.

[He holds out his hand. Expecting to form a tiny fonic glyph around his fingertips, he instead ends up summoning a bright healing fire that wraps itself around Sync and knits up his wounds. There's a red line where it used to be, and not much else.

Luke is left wondering how the hell he did that. And panting, too, but that's the least of his problems.]

You're bleeding out, and you're worried about my coat?

[The familiarity kind of makes him want to laugh - besides, the coat's already kind of ruined, thanks to a pair of wings busting through it earlier. The fact that Sync hasn't gained a pile of feathers out of nowhere registers in the back of Ember's mind, but he's far too concerned with everything else to think about it.

Luke's healing earns the original a relieved look - "thanks for saving my best friend's guts" doesn't even begin to cover it - before Ember looks back down at the boy in his lap.]

Are you okay now? Can you sit up?

[He runs his fingers through his bangs as his head clears.] You... healed me? [He's sure he's seeing double for a moment, and then he realizes they're two separate people. He looks startled and sits up.

Little spurts of pale green feathers stick to the back of his shoulderblades. They look malformed, like his wings were torn off.]

Wait. [His eyes narrow.] Are you bandits?

[He looks like he's about ready to flee, despite nearly dying ten seconds ago.]

[Luke doesn't meet his replica's eyes, and instead backs away, trying to give the wounded kid space. He doesn't seem to remember anything. This could get ugly.]

Bandits? Don't be stupid.

What are you talking about? You know we're not -

[He cuts himself off, biting his lip. There's no recognition in those familiar green eyes, but the marks across his chest, the haircut, even the attitude is all Sync, although Ember doubts anyone besides himself has seen the other God-General scared.

His eyes fall on the remains of wings, and Ember squeezes his eyes shut for a moment. Whether the boy in front of him remembers him or not - ]

Who hurt you?

[His normally relaxed voice is low and dangerous.]

[His eyes narrow, but he doesn't look like he's about to be hostile. On the contrary. He's more concerned with getting himself out of Ember's lap, and trying to piece together what's left of his clothes against the cold of night.]

They won't be hurting anyone ever again, [he says, looking away.] Thanks for the help. I need to get back home. [He slowly gets to his feet, though by the way he's holding his stomach, he's still quite sore.

Honestly. He's wearing little more than a sheet and some pants, and he expects to go on by himself?]

Home? You're not going anywhere. [Luke crosses his arms.] That wound will reopen if you exert yourself. Fonic artes only do so much.

[A thoughtful pause.]

Stay with us, and tomorrow you can lead us to that city.

Seriously!

[Ember's a lot less tactful than Luke; as Sync stands, Ember reaches up to grab his shoulder to stop him going any farther.]

If you keep going like that, you'll pass out somewhere and get eaten or something.

[It feels pretty weird to be talking sense into Sync, but there's still something not quite right here, so it can slide for now.]

[Sync freezes up at the touch. He tries to jerk out of it, but he's still pretty weak and... well, Ember is taller and weighs more. So he tries to push the hand away.]

This isn't something that can wait! Who do you think you are, anyway?

[Luke sighs.] I'm Luke, and this hotheaded idiot is Ember. I know it probably doesn't make any sense to you, but we're... really lost. And you look like someone he knows.

We're not going to hurt you, so have a seat. Whatever you have at home needs to wait.

I don't feel like burying anyone.

Edited 2013-03-10 06:27 (UTC)

"Really lost"? Didn't know you were so gifted in understatement.

[Ember lets his hand be pushed off Sync's shoulder, but it's with a short-lived expression of disappointment. He still doesn't intend on letting the kid go anywhere, though.]

What's so important that you need to kill yourself getting back, anyway?

[He rubs at his shoulder, trying to dispel that grip. Still, he glances at Ember and Luke and can't sense anything hostile about them. They look healthy, though woefully unprepared for camping and traveling. His brows furrow as he tries to piece it all together. Something's not right, but...]

I need to check on something.

[They have a point, though. He plops on the ground unceremoniously, pulling his knees to his chest.]

... Are you brothers?

I'm good at a few things. [He finds where he left his dinner. Splitting it evenly, he offers the rest of the chicken to the green-haired kid.]

-- Brothers? [Luke looks surprised at the question. If they were just /brothers/, things would be a lot different, wouldn't they?] Hmph. I wonder. [He turns his back to the fire, arms crossed over his chest.]

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