2022-02-20: This World Can Only Let One Of Us Torment It, You Know
- Log: 2022-02-20: This World Can Only Let One Of Us Torment It, You Know
- Cast: Asciel Colette, Sakia Davila
- Where: Pacific Ocean
- OOC - IC Date: 0096-02-20
- Summary: One oppressed by sheer normality. One who sees herself the will of heaven. Only one can claim their shared final prize, so they'll hold hands tight enough to hurt...until the fated day they reach their end.
</poem>
<Pose Tracker> Asciel Colette has posed.
As a whole, most of Amalgam is likely dismissive of the Sleeves. The failed inheritors of a failed war that, even had it triumphed, would have failed to change the world in a desirable way. Indeed, had Zeon been triumphant, it likely would have only made -more- work for the organization. The pursuit of Laplace's Box is an amusing curiosity that elicits laughs. A box? Really? A magical chest that would bring the Federation to its knees? A single object that would alter the course of history? Nonsense - unless what the Vist Foundation is hiding is some sort of unthinkably strong mobile weapon. Ridiculous. Preposterous, as a concept.
"Hmm, but if it's real, wouldn't it be fascinating?~ I'd like to see it. I'd like to open it. If it truly holds this power, then I will behold it, witness its capacity to overwrite the laws of this world with but one assertion."
"If it fails, then it'd certainly be oh so validating. A monument to the folly of humans staking all of their hopes and dreams on foolish objects. How certain! How poetic!~ Fufufufu."
These are things Asciel's mostly...saying to a few select Chrome engineers she gets along with well enough to voice it, and it's really talking to herself - echoing this while she ventures out into the Pacific, pursuing a particularly appetizing and poorly guarded looking Musaka-class cruiser lurking just above the waves. Tracking its trajectory leads a dark teal Codarl to lurk upon an outcropping of stone, its single orange eye the only light emitted down here. And once it's in range...the Arm Slave leaps from its post, briefly splashing above the water, only to descend right back down, a massive greatsword - aimed right at the flanks of the cargo storage compartments of the cruiser. It may well seem like this is as petty as a pirate attack to the Musaka's crew...and, well, it basically is one-!
<Pose Tracker> Sakia Davila has posed.
Sakia Devila was none of that.
Really, the sole thought in her mind was a minute backache born of stillness, the solitary eye of the Zaku head peering out in the bright blue bounty that was the sea. Not a single solitary thing in sight (except for a whale that breached itself hours ago, that was nice) for the Natural to take in. It was...meditative, in its own strange way. Being in this organization had its perks, but she couldn't say that she believed in this Box, whatever it was. Bring the Feds to their knees? They already were at this point! What was the point of a box that nuked the validity of a government? On one hand, it sounded unimaginable.
On the other hand, the curious side of her idly peaked in interest every so often. If it did exist, imagine what she could do. Newtypes, aliens, or not, what you had controlled more than what you were.
So she liked to hope.
Personal greviances aside, she was doing her job. Pacific Ocean, Space, or wherever she got crewed up, there was a need for lookouts. What they were doing wasn't exactly legal by any stretch of the imagination, and crime, in this instance, did pay. Only a few more hours, only a bit more of this personally mindnumbing/meditative experience. A yawn in the middle of the day. Good thing there wasn't much longe-
As if the world decided to personally mock her, a mech shooting out of the ocean was sure to derail that train of thought. "Godda-" An interrupted expletive. A swift move as lax muscles tensed into motion, creaking and shoving the Zaku I along. An old machine, but reliable enough to work! And work was what it did; Stomping along the cruiser as that beast arced across the sky, mind crashing along in motion...
To do the obvious, of course. An interception of greatsword against raised, reinforced forearms! Pushing back at that greatsword outright, relying on trusty metal and trusty hackjobbed upgrades to stand up to...whatever this mech was.
<Pose Tracker> Asciel Colette has posed.
A valiant defender arises! Something Asciel's oh so happy to see, much as she loathes interrupting someone's perfectly tranquil meditation. Oh, the woes of strength - one must have -exorbitant- power to make it something peaceful and artful. The Codarl's Monomolecular Cutter catches on the larger Zaku's bracers, the Arm Slave creaking with effort for just a moment longer, before deftly spinning away, feet clacking on the Masaka's hull.
<"My my, good evening!~"> Asciel broadcasts, over shockingly loud speakers. <"What a brilliant display of interception. ...dear me, is that a terribly outmoded heap of junk you've sortied in? It must take incredible fortitude - or -incredible- desperation, to stake your life on such a thing."> The Arm Slave puts a hand to its 'face', emoting a gentle little giggle, before tousling the ponytail of cyan hair spilling from its crown - then backs away in a ready stance, sword in one hand...giving a peace sign with the other for a moment.
<"Naturally, you have two options. I'd say the most rational one...is to ~give up~ and realize that you're horribly outmatched, and save yourself the risk of demise. After all, whatever future you strive towards won't hold any meaning if you tumble in combat defending something as silly as weapons you have no reason to wield.">
<"The second option...~">
Asciel initiates that choice, taking a hurtling step forward, then spinning around, that hefty sword whirling in a tornado aimed directly at the Zaku's head. <"Would be to prove just how seriously you're taking this path in life.~ I'm oh so interested in testing this resolve, you see. To be weak and wage war is to only enact your own punishment~">
+stats
KTS: Asciel Colette has activated the Spirit Spirit Command.
KTS: Asciel Colette targets Sakia Davila with Monomolecular Cutter Thrust!
<Pose Tracker> Sakia Davila has posed.
A damned interrupter came for the ship. What damn luck; 6 weeks, 6 weeks on this route and she had the short straw to draw the ONE time she decided to take point guard duty. This was an out of the way ship; Barely crewed, mostly automated, a product of "This thing isn't carrying anything important" and "it gives us money, so defend it with your damn lives". So went that train of thought, swiftly crushed under the metaphorical weight of adrenaline in danger.
A nonverbal grunt of pushback, aiding the Cordal in oh-so-happily shoving away that greatsword. Try as she might, she still couldn't help herself. A smile. Boredom, eradicated. Talk.
<"That's about the fifth time I've heard that. Can't say I'm much in the way of money. That your own suit? Looks better than most I've seen."> Talk. A booming speaker set to maximum, though clearly peaking with the sheer volume. Scope them out. Decent voice. Clearly self-assured. Someone who's been on the battlefield? A new cocky recruit? Regardless, she still kept her center of gravity low, soldier training kicking in. No time for worry of what the captain was doing. Probably radioing for help that'll come far, far too late.
A battle stance in complete contrast, bracing for the worst, hoping for the best. She didn't even have a weapon on her back; The machine gun was lying a bit away, unused, clearly taken apart and haphazardly stuck back together in an unworkable manner. No, all that was there was the Zaku's hands, each joint moving individually. <"Sorry, but...I'm getting paid for this."> Not that she'll stop for that. <"Has that worked on anyone?"> A retort back. First option, nil.
Second option it was. A roll of the shoulders before doing the obvious option: A dodge across the deck! Resolve? At least it was something she understood. Even if it was from someone trying to kill her. Hit or not, it was a good enough tactic before doing the plain, old reliable, extremely simple maneuver...
Of a haymaker punch right at the chin.
KTS: Asciel Colette enervates Sakia Davila, reducing her Morale significantly. KTS: Sakia Davila fails to Evade Asciel Colette's Monomolecular Cutter Thrust, taking 4840 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Asciel Colette's Vex Routine - JUDGE activates, causing Shock! KTS: Asciel Colette has engaged Sakia Davila KTS: Sakia Davila has activated the Strike Spirit Command. KTS: Sakia Davila targets Asciel Colette with Punch!
KTS: Sakia Davila anchors Asciel Colette, forcing her into close range. KTS: Asciel Colette parries Sakia Davila's Punch, taking 1410 damage!
KTS: Sakia Davila has engaged Asciel Colette
<Pose Tracker> Asciel Colette has posed.
<"Nope, it's just about never worked~ I ask anyway, out of personal principles. Things in this world are so much easier when those who know they will falter concede, and I will ensure it comes to pass."> A little laugh echoes from the Codarl, Asciel metaphorically leaning forward in her chair to press her blade to cleave a gash in Sakia's Zaku, then whirling that very same sword right back in the path of the inbound fist, ensuring it's largely a glancing blow to the shoulder - even this emits a cheery little <"Ouchie-!~">
Despite the size difference, there's a clear technological difference backing Asciel up in this engagement - the Arm Slave's artificial muscle packages able to hold a firm grip on Sakia's fist with one arm, that baleful orange eye glowing piercingly bright.
<"Do you persist because you hope something will emerge in your favor? That some miracle will arise and let you rise to the top? Or do you simply never consider it? That you could flee and cower safely and securely somewhere in this vast world of ours? Dear me, if you're -forced- into this, I'd be oh so happy to shear away any chains, you know. Cling to me and I'd ferry you far away, and I'd only expect your eternal gratitude in return~">
Of course, she isn't going to put a halt to her combat maneuvers to wait for an answer. From the Arm Slave's back, a sub-arm deploys a gatling cannon that mounts underneath the Codarl's free arm - pointed riiiight at the Zaku's gut, and whirring away oh so merrily at point blank range.
KTS: Asciel Colette targets Sakia Davila with AK-87 Gatling Cannon Burst!
KTS: Asciel Colette enervates Sakia Davila, reducing her Morale significantly. KTS: Sakia Davila fails to Evade Asciel Colette's AK-87 Gatling Cannon Burst, taking 4920 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Asciel Colette's Vex Routine - JUDGE activates, causing Shock!
KTS: Sakia Davila has activated the Valor Spirit Command. KTS: Sakia Davila targets Asciel Colette with Interrogation! <Pose Tracker> Sakia Davila has posed.
Ah, this was a bad day. A seriously bad day. Despite not actually being connected to her (un)precious suit, the gash sure did sting in her head. "Gh-" A light grunt layered with curses of everything under the world, allowing the stinging rebuke to pass along without comment or concern. There were other, greater things to be concerned about. Sakia wasn't exactly having the best of days, here.
A firm punch that resulted in nothing. A glancing blow that brought forth a look of light shock. Advanced. Too advanced. Slamming right into the artifical muscle, trying to pull out. Stuck. Trapped. Ah. Ah, damn.
Damn, damn, damn, damn, DAMN. She tried. She pulled against that arm, trying to wrest free and to swing out of the way of that arm, quite clearly failing as the broadside of the Zaku's gut was peppered in so many bullets. Every bit of raw metal screeched out against her ears, teeth gritted while embracing that onslaught.
<"...Hope? Hope for what, that this will change?"> A chuckle. In the middle of being blasted with lead, a simple chuckle. <"I took this job to find something, Suit."> A new nickname! <"If I wanted to stay in seclusion, don't you think I'd want to stay out of this place!? Why are YOU doing this, huh!?">
With that exclamation, a firm curl of the fist of the Zaku's hand, the upper arm popping open a panel to eject a tonfa. Connected, grasped by the hand in question, and delivering a sideswing right to that torso.
KTS: Asciel Colette rushes into the attack! KTS: Asciel Colette successfully avoids Sakia Davila's Interrogation
<Pose Tracker> Asciel Colette has posed.
<"What a bold question~ Do I seem like someone with any doubts? I am doing this to alter the world to a preferred future. One where might is not clawed at by every single hand on the planet, where every human being can only live at the end of a spear. Eventually, this comedy of errors will come to an end. It will not be done by winning moral victories - it will be done by proof of absolute, unfailing strength. The capacity to make your adorable struggle so plainly futile that nobody else would dare repeat it.~">
When Sakia's tonfa moves to whack Asciel, it is not met with a wriggling or a squirming. It is met with that unwavering confidence made manifest. Each word of Asciel's causes a distinct -glow- to form in the Arm Slave's heart, one that rises to the cooling hair and starts making it fan out and fill the humid air with steam. That tonfa seems to impact with a thud onto sheer -nothing-, a solid force repulsing it with seemingly no boundary, no foundation.
It is a command asserted upon the world itself that Asciel shall come to no harm.
A complete confidence that this is her providence.
As it wells up, more and more certainly, as the delusion of her destiny ascends, the sea seems to grow ominously still. The moonlit night becomes silent, brighter, denser. And high above, any gathering clouds are abruptly whipped away in a near perfect circle.
An eye opens, the judgmental gaze of the heavens.
<"You have no earthly idea what domain you have stepped into, taking arms in this current era, do you~? It's quite alright. Today, I hope I have proven to you that fate itself does not favor the struggle of those like you. Today, I hope that this light of prophecy...-my- prophecy...takes root in you. In everyone observing.">
<"Oh, and if you were calling me 'Suit', you should rethink it to something a little more awe-struck!~">
The eye twinkles in a perfect six-pointed star - and from its 'pupil', a storm of light hails down from the heavens. A cannon of sheer unfiltered heat - contained in nothing, projected by nothing. Willpower alone seems to determine that Sakia must fall.
KTS: Asciel Colette has activated the Spirit Spirit Command. KTS: Asciel Colette has activated the Spirit Spirit Command.
KTS: Asciel Colette targets Sakia Davila with Lambda Driver Smite! KTS: Sakia Davila fails to retreat. KTS: [Spirit Defense] Sakia Davila's Unwavering Self activates, and her spirit endures. KTS: Asciel Colette enervates Sakia Davila, reducing her Morale significantly. KTS: Sakia Davila fails to evade Asciel Colette's Lambda Driver Smite, taking 8880 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Asciel Colette's Vex Routine - JUDGE activates, causing Shock! KTS: Sakia Davila's MS-05B Zaku I 'Angina' has been disabled.
<Pose Tracker> Sakia Davila has posed.
<"OF COURSE I WANT STRENGTH!"> A declaration. Loud. Proud. The inevitability of death was coming. <"I WANT TO PROVE SOMETHING! DON'T PRATTLE ON ABOUT YOUR DAMN FUTURE IF YOU AREN'T GOING TO PROVE IT WITH EVERYTHING! Do you think that I'm happy, dying here, for some munitions that no one will use in three weeks? IF YOUR STRENGTH IS SO VAUNTED, WHY DON'T YOU LET SOMEONE GESTATE TO CHALLENGE THAT VIEW?">
Confidence. Absolute confidence. Fake or real. Stripped away of any chance at a decent life, dice rolling to this tepid end. Killed by an unknown Suit, in a faraway part of the ocean, at the dead of night, caged by a mobile suit that was decades out of date. The lowest. The lowest anyone could hope for. She was a Natural.
Her gut was screaming. She knew. She absolutely knew. There was no changing this fact.
<"Strength this, strength that, strength over all. EVEN MY GENETICS ARE AGAINST ME! DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT WAS LIKE IN PLANT!?"> Even so, her voice never wavered. This was internalized. <"PROPHECY? DAMN YOUR PROPHECY!"> A scream of bloodlust. Of internalized frustration. Anger.
All of everything, and her first actual time. Here.
<"I, SAKIA DEVILA, HUMAN, NO HOME, NO FUTURE, WILL NOT DIE HERE TODAY!">
The speakers from the Zaku peaked, the feedback loop screeching for a moment in the stillness of the air. Against everything, against hope, against the damn willpower of this THING, THIS NEXT INDICATION OF HER POWERLESSNESS, she staked herself.
And in her final act, she shoved forward to try one last time to pierce that invisible barrier, to hug the Suit. Her gut kept screaming. The Suit would dodge. Step back. Something. Anything. It was a lumbering piece of metal that couldn't even properly hit something decades younger than it.
If she were to die here, she wouldn't be remembered.
She knew this.
Selfishly.
And that's why she did it.
<Pose Tracker> Asciel Colette has posed.
<Isn't that deliciously defiant?~ Dear oh dear. Almost moving.>
<...Hm.~ Genuine desires crystallize so close to peril.>
<Her truth is this desperation. This -need-.>
<And it's a big sister's duty to fulfill those.~
The gutted and smoldering Zaku still has that one last triumphant bolster of movement in it. It probably has nothing else. Asciel fully expects it to fall over at any given moment. Yet still it lumbers closer, that frazzled screaming like music to Asciel's ears. It is effortless to catch this heap of trash. Effortless to lock hands - to grip the manipulators inescapably. To hold Sakia close, in this moment of absolute determination to do anything to defy that fate.
<"I've decided that you're rather adorable.~">
<"I've decided that I will grant your wish.">
The Codarl's foot sweeps out to bring Sakia's Zaku to its knees, and the single-eyed machines push faces oh so closely. Then, and only then - the faceplate of the Codarl divides, revealing something uncannily human. The warm, cute, inviting features of an orange-eyed girl, lips kept in a tender grin as they close in on the Zaku's mono-eye. Ever so gently, she plants a single kiss upon that ugly, metallic face. Her voice softens from its pure judgment, and becomes something tender, loving, warm on the ears. A comforting breeze after a hot day, a blanket that one can undress and huddle in, a voice that cherishes the ears and soothes the spine.
<"It is my job to be the big sister to pitiable things like you. To fulfill your dreams. To bring you to the purpose you seek. So I've decided something that should please you greatly.">
<"I'm going to drag you, kicking and screaming, into the logical endpoint of your pursuit.~">
<"I'm going to make you scream with each triumph.
I'm going to make you fall to your knees with each fiber of your limits that are pushed.
I'm going to test you again and again, and never let you die.
I'm going to curse you for your arrogance of seeking to rise to these transcendent heights.
I'm going to punish you for daring to challenge the heavens.
I'm going to dote on you until you cry in my arms.
I'm going to cherish every waking moment of anguish that you carry.
I'm going to show you the disaster of the world you'd inherit.
I'm going to promise you paradise and lock you, and only you, out of it.
I'm going to make reaching me the only worthwhile thing in your life.
I'm going to wipe away your tears to make room for more.
I'm going to etch the pain of being remembered deep in your soul.
I'm going to forge you into a hero no matter how much you protest.
I'm going to never let go of your left hand.
I'm going to cut off your right.
I'm going to make you indomitable enough to crush everything you come to love.
I'm going to keep you weak enough that you'd never be able to defy me.
I'm going to give you no choice but to defy me anyway.
I'm going to laugh in disgust when you call for me.
I'm going to dance with you at the precipice of the world.
I'm going to break and rebuild you in endless cycles.
I'm going to treasure the taste of every drop of blood you spill.
I'm going to bring you to regret those lovely words.
I'm going to reward you only for following those words.
I'm going to treasure every moment we spend together.
So wait for me, won't you, Sakia?~">
Asciel holds Sakia in place for just long enough to savor this outburst of hers. The burning heart of light and judgment at the Codarl's heart continues to burn, but slowly dims, slowly cools, and the glow of the Codarl's hair gradually dissipates. She tosses the Zaku backwards dismissively - and moves onward to her goal, casually cleaving open a hole in the cruiser's hull and attaching floats to various containers of cargo within, hooking them on tow cables to the Codarl's waist. Asciel drags them all out into the water, gradually regaining its turbulent waves, and readies herself to hop into the water.
But she gives Sakia one last glance over the Arm Slave's shoulder, the Codarl's teal hair framing that cheery, expressive face, eyes glowing ever so warmly. With a wiggle of her fingers, she waves her newly entwined life farewell...
With a promise that it won't be too long.~
<Pose Tracker> Sakia Davila has posed.
[BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAkvF7HkFEY]
Big sister. She's an only child. There's zero concept of that. One step. Another. And another. She can't stop now. She can't stop. Not when there was nothing to cling on. Not when she was metaphorically freefalling. A woman left behind in all ways, falling, falling, falling, the last breadth of her world voiced in hoarse screeches of dying madness, shunned collectively in the smoke of a new future...
And she was caught. A sputter of incidental confusion as she was brought down, on her knees. Penance? Fealty? Adrenaline was still the primary fuel; The primary source of battle, of watching what the Suit would do. And all that was left. All that she could muster.
Was a sputter. Big sister. A wish like her's? It's a selfish wish. It's a dying wish. A wish of someone damned. A wish of someone downtrodden. Pity? Pity?? PITY???
The sparks of defiance churned within her. Powerless against something. The usual. Powerless against this. The usual. The usual. The usual. In-between Newtypes. Coordinators. And this.
This kiss. If Zaku's could vibrate, this was the time to do so. <"Don't give me that damn pity of something you know nothing about..."> The sharpest tone of voice. The inner cry of someone reaching for purpose. Trying to move. No. Failing to move. Failing to breathe. The light of hell had missed her. Was this a miracle? Was this fate? Luck? Pure, damn pity?
Mouth open. Mouth closed. The declarations. Again and again. Hypocrisy. Idiocy. The training side of her screamed out in reasoning. In how the contradictions were there. Dreams were nothing. Purposes couldn't be fulfilled if she couldn't do so. To be dragged, kicking and screaming? How? When? Why? It was a random Suit in the middle of nowhere, coming in, ravaging her idiotic mindset, and declaring the impossible. She's just a Natural. She's just a discharged military mook.
She's at the bottom. She's got nothing left. She's with no family. She's a Natural in a world of anything but. She's someone who would be crushed by a kaiju and no one would give the time of day.
She was normal.
...Wait? WAIT? Moments ticked by. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
<"...I'm not going to wait."> A raspy voice. The outlash had subliminated, turned into something more. The edge was still there. The want, the bloodlust, the absurd tatctics she had tried instead of just shooting this Suit. It was still there. <"If you're giving me...">
If you're giving me a reason to be reborn%, then I'll take it. If you're giving me the chance to shift from normalcy%, then I'll take it. If you're being so selfish as to not let someone die%, then I'll sure as hell take it. If you're going to goad me on%, I'll bite. If you're going to lead me to power%, I'll walk with a dagger in my hand.
If. If. If. If.
Sakia Devila was going to see the world. Sakia Devila was going to push onwards. Sakia Devila was going to live. Sakia Devila was not going to die tonight.
Sakia Devila was going to make a miracle by being herself.
<"...Haaaaaaahahahahahahaha..."> She couldn't finish that spoken sentence. Fine. Is this what near-death experiences are usually like? The commotion around her was barely noticeable. Time ticking away as the unspoken promise was bidden farewell. Commotion. Shaking. Even a hearty slap failed to rouse her from this stupor of thought.
Of what she had just went through, of what had catalysed in her heart, of what she wanted to do in the future. Wait, she said. There's no reason to wait.
May the soul of Sakia Devila never forget these promises made to herself.