yogen | MISSION 2.C

( komaeda's religion era. )

Is this what they call hell... It just seems pretty eccentric to me.

( like gundham. he'll set natsume down once he's sure the other won't fall off the side. he DOES push him forward in an attempt to be helpful, you know, can't have anything dangerous happening to him. anyway, he'll look around at the crosses here and there, the ambience actually inviting to him — maybe that's because he's close to death anyway, and he snaps his fingers once he realizes. )

Should we check? ( he'll pull out his hacking gun, clicking a few buttons until detect appears — with that chosen, a purple cone of light emits from the device as he points it natsume. hopefully it doesn't blind him... anyway, and he says this loudly... is there an echo? )

Hey there demons, it's me...! ( your lucky student, aside from natsume, is there any demons or ghosts around the area if he flashes it around? anything that the device can find that's hidden to the naked eye on the crosses, or ground? )

[ Nothing pings in Natsume. His golden eyes are his own; he is not possessed.

When he points it towards the ground, though, he'll be able to see little orbs of lights similar to the ones they saw at the very start, innumerable, neverending, although instead of being attracted to the group, they seem to be slowly drifting towards the path, converging into a single stream that flows away from the wall and over the edge of the world. The crosses themselves seem to be nothing more than cold metal and hard stone. ]

[carefully crawling her way over to the edge, Helena pauses to listen to the empty space - not Komaeda's voice, she knows that - but to the world itself. and while nothing about it gives her a good feeling, if there's only one way forward, then so there is.]

...We have to keep moving. If you're in hell, then to stay still is the worst possible thing.

[now, this is her element. now that the familiar adrenaline is in her veins, the sense of purpose - seek a way forward. find something to work with. above all else, be willing to move. you can rest when it's over.

and if no one else will, then as carefully as she can, she's going to find a place to start climbing down.]

So they really aren't fireflies... We were crushing something already dead! How exciting. That was our first time together —

( he looks towards natsume with a smile since helena and hinata didn't bother with it, can't help but wonder what their name was... or were they just a soul trapped here to suffer since this is hell. he can't dwell on it for long, but he keeps the microphone pointed at the stream of lights so they have a general idea of where to go, but helena already made her choice, and that happens to be where komaeda decides to follow next. he turns off the device, slipping it back under his... jacket, and he'll climb down afterwards. )

The last one down is a rotten egg...

( he takes a deep breath from how his arms sting, but once he manages to set his feet down on a flat surface will he pull back out the device to look for where the little lights are gathering. )

[ They touch upon the ground and it's cold, breaths visible and their skin getting damp from the thick fog. It's quiet in the cold, each crunch of their footsteps audible, the howl of the wind as it weaves between metal. At the bottom of the wall, they can see the gorinto there crushed underneath it, and the lights floating down the dirt path leading out and away, the only obvious path there is unless they want to walk on the crosses ig ]

Wait, are you saying that these are...

[As he finishes climbing down from the wall, Hinata goes pale, not finishing the thought. His practical mind doesn't want to believe it, even now, but...

It's impossible, isn't it? To cling onto what sense of reality he has after everything else that's happened today.]

...It's eerie here. [He says that instead, walking down the path with the rest of the group. The wet chill in the air has him gripping his arms.] I've never seen this many crosses in person, but something about them is...

[Creepy. Disturbing. Hinata's knowledge of Western religion isn't that great, but he doesn't think that crosses are supposed to be piled on top of each other like this in most of them.]

...wrong. I agree with Helena, we shouldn't stick around here longer than we have to.

[the chill, the wind, this is more familiar, though she would never say it. a sense of resolution and calm's come over her at the eeriness of the place, and it steadies her even as this entire place is unknown. Helena half expects to hear machines, someone's crackling laughter behind her, the whistle of a weapon falling. maybe she's not cautious enough now, but there's that low, low feeling that if they needed to, she could take a hit for them. if something happened...

whether those strange lights were living or dead, her cane can detect the dirt, and she chooses that path over making their lives harder and walking on the crosses. following, following the path, her breath in little puffs in the air. keep up, boys. don't kill each other on the crosses.]

When I crushed one, it wasn't even on my hand... are we capable of killing what's already dead?

( each one a boring, unfulfilled, lifeless entity that probably had their role as a stepping stone, or a depressing death. to become just a ball of light that's committed to one location, and that only seems so unfortunate that komaeda's kind of glad this isn't where he winds up. now is he saying he'll take the simulation death again, well...

helena leads, komaeda checks back to make sure natsume follows with hinata, but his eyes notice something... familiar with the use of the light, not as large as a cairn, but... back at school familiar which... )

Hinata-kun...

( he calls out softly, adjusting his lips to the name as he throws the hacking gun towards him — the purple cone shaped light still visible to them all. hopefully the other can catch. he's slowly removing his jacket from his body, the length of it long enough that he thinks it can suffice, and his body feels colder. reaching out, he slips the jacket over helena, pulling her back into him. don't worry, the inside of the jacket is pressed against the front of her body to keep her warm, but to slow down her speed. )

What's that?

[Hinata swears under his breath as he fumbles to catch the gun because he wasn't!! ready!!! He catches it but just barely, sports are not his forte and his ability to receive a layup leaves a lot to be desired.

But he looks down at the gun. Komaeda handed this responsibility to him, so...]

It's... this thing, right?

[He looks over at the only other thing nearby - Komaeda has to mean the gorinto crushed on the ground.

But Hinata Hajime no longer has memories of waking up in Yogen. He does not know what happens when you touch a gorinto in this school, nor that it is something you probably shouldn't do.]

It just looks like a bunch of stones... Is this another cairn?

[He isn't quite sure how to use the Hacking Gun that was tossed to him, but Hinata holds it out anyway as he reaches out and touches the remnants of the gorinto.]

[ Hinata... falls unconscious (:

Unlike the lights in the void, these drift forward without regard to the three other people walking down the same path, occasionally passing straight through them and leaving whatever part they touched cold and numb, bringing that bout of sleepiness back.

But after they decide what to do with Hinata/the gorinto, the path is straightforward, with nothing to deter them, and they should be able to reach the end without problem unless they want to squash more soul lights. The horizon comes closer, closer, the lights disappearing once they hit what seems like a wall at first, but when they come to the edge of it, they see that it's a cliff.

Light pours over the edge like a waterfall, down down down until it's too faint to see and the darkness swallows it up. ]

Edited 2021-08-19 01:42 (UTC)

( The lights making him feel cold and numb reminds him a little of Haruka, the way she'd felt holding onto his hand—it didn't make him sleepy, didn't make him need to shake his head in annoyance every time he wants to yawn, but. A little similar.

But Hinata dropping after he touches the remnants of the gorinto is enough to shake him from any sleepiness, and he takes a step—pauses, glancing at Komaeda... then completes his movement, just a few steps to kneel by him to make sure he isn't dead or anything. Dead weight, fine, but dead? No good.

...he isn't going to carry him, sorry Hinata, but once he's made sure he's okay— )

He's just unconSCIOUS.

( We're doing just fine, guys. Natsume considers picking up him, considers asking someone to carry him instead, and then settles on the final, hidden third option.

He slaps Hinata across the face. )

Wake UP.

[caught in the jacket, it does slow Helena down by surprising her enough to make her stop and walk back. it's warm, which is a bonus, and she can immediately tell who did this by the scent on the fabric - it's Komaeda. while he could have simply called out to stop her, now she's bundled, and pausing as she's turning around while still in the fabric. surely he must be cold and he'll take it back soon, so it's best to enjoy it while it's there.

the sound of Hinata's body hitting the ground is startling, but with Natsume's words, she can take a breath. just unconscious - that means he can get up soon.]

If Mr. Hinata doesn't wake, should we try to carry him with us?

[carry him, drag him, same thing considering the collective strength of two twinks and Helena.]

Waste of strength, Sakasaki-kun.

( that works too, but since natsume was the wrong to go over and proceed to slap him to keep him unconscious. alright, what to do, what to do... he hums as he looks towards helena, then back to natsume. )

If your arms get tired, you'll only drop him along the way.

( he'll walk over to them both, leaving his jacket with helena as he reaches for the device in hinata's hand, making sure to avoid touching the gorinto. we don't need two people unconscious, now do we? since there's nothing hinata can do with a hacking gun right now.

anyway, a shame they can't take it wi — if komaeda takes the bag hinata had with him, can he scoop up the gorinto without touching it? you never know when it'd come in handy. pushing them in with the head of the hacking gun, and if he's successful, can he zip the bag up, and lay it in hinata's arms... emotional support rocks. )

[ There is a whole bunch of tree pressing down on that gorinto, so it would take several efforts of kicking it in in order to dislodge and hope the stones don't roll too far away to the other side. But they can do it. If they want.

Hinata may or may not wake up, depending on when Yama tags back in. ]

[is unconscious]

( why are you all this way )

Komaeda-san, please stop making things more diffiCULT. At least I'm trying to make things easier for US. ( because if hinata woke up then no one would have to carry him.

Speaking of that, I'm not rescinding my tag, Natsume's getting up and moving away. ) Someone's going to have to drag HIM. I wouldn't want to burden Adams-san with IT, and I'm fully aware I can't do it on my OWN... but Komaeda-san is too freakishly tall for the both of us to carry Hinata-kun comfortaBLY.

( ....... )

AnyWAY, grab him and start pulLING, Komaeda-san. You two are friends, aren't YOU? He's your responsibiliTY.

[this is a TEAM EFFORT we are not leaving anyone behind

anyway, since Komaeda is being nice enough to leave his jacket, Helena gets herself situated in it, shoving the sleeves up to make it all work out, she comes over to Hinata's body, crouching down to pick up one of his wrists.]

Don't worry, Mr. Sakasaki. There's no burden. If we each take one of his arms, and Mr. Komaeda takes his legs, we won't have to go to so much effort to carry him with us.

[be nice or she's summoning the bear again. somehow.]

( yeah, komaeda will do what he can to get those rocks into the bag, but they can't leave them on hinata or they'd just press down on his body, so komaeda will lift the bag, and tosses it towards natsume — rocky side first to bruise him on purpose. hope it hits, roll for initiative perhaps.

a team effort is right, and komaeda couldn't leave hinata behind if he tried... somehow he's always there, anyway. there are things that come to mind at this moment, leftover thoughts, and he sighs as he looks towards helena. )

Sakasaki-kun said it himself, he's my responsibility... this isn't the first time he's been left to me.

( it's a kind gesture from helena, but komaeda motions closer to slip one arm behind hinata's back, and the other finds a place under his thigh to pick him up bridal style, and he's compensating for his mechanical arm to do most of the work. it's fine, komaeda's someone who does things alone anyway, so this should be no different. he attempts to stand up properly, his body knees buckling at times to bring him back down... but he manages to stand up tall! and he makes sure the other is settled into place where he won't drop... god, he needs to let go of some of this breast fat because komaeda going to drop his ass sooner or later. )

We... should keep going.

( natsume rolls a 17 with a 2 modifier on his (dex) acrobatics check, making it a 19, so he steps out of the way of the bag easily... he still stops to stare down at it, then look up at the sky and wonder about the consequences of his actions if he just lobs it back at komaeda...

he picks it up and pulls it over his shoulder instead, sigh, why are we stealing rocks. he's tempted to throw them into the crosses, but time's a wasting, and he's curious about the path anyway. moving a little along... to the edge there, pausing at it to peer down into the darkness. )

...Unless we want to go backwards up the wall aGAIN, we're going to have to take a leap of FAITH. On the plus SIDE, this means Komaeda-san doesn't have to struggle with dead weight for more than a couple more minUTES.

( ..................yeah he's just saying we could throw hinata off the edge of the cliff. so what? they're going that way anyway right? it's fine. )

I'm not fond of going back to the WOODS, considering their danger leVEL, but I dislike the idea of jumping off of HERE, especially when we can't see what's in store for US.

[talking is talking, and they're still walking along the path, dealing with the little spirit lights occasionally touching, but the edge is coming up at the end of the dirt road. the cliff's edge, where Helena stops, her grip on her cane as tight as she can get away with. it's vast, from what she can tell - nothing else to step out on, and her other hand holds the jacket closer.]

Is there really nothing else...?

[as eerie as this place is, she's never taken a leap where she didn't know there was ground to land on. never anything like this, and even her composure slips for a second.]

What do you think of her inquiry, Hinata-kun?

( radio silence because ... )

He has no reservations.

( at the moment, komaeda's setting his body down on the ground because he's getting tired. after carrying natsume on his back, now hinata at his front... the whole komaeda has done enough. he takes moment to get himself together as he looks back and forth between natsume and then helena, helena and then hinata, then natsume and hinata.

he stares at helena for a moment, watching as she swadloon's herself in his jacket, the tail of it dragging against the ground. clapping his hands together, he smiles excitedly as he walks over to natsume, his mechanical hand on the youth's shoulder from behind. )

Sakasaki-kun, let me give you a hand. ( with that said, he's going to shove natsume roughly off the edge of the cliff — )

( —and off he goes, taking the bag of rocks with him with a shout. )

[ Natsume is swallowed by the void.

...

...

...

Who's next? ]

( one.

... )

Adams-san, do you know what hope is? It's a beautiful thing, the stuff of dreams... something that people believes doesn't exist... but it does.

( it's such a beautiful thing, and to witness natsume's descent is just the start. komaeda's heart skips a beat, and he can feel a burning sensation creep along the bridge of his nose. the corner of his lips raising into a smile, something warm and wet finding their way down his cheeks until it drips onto the ground where he stands. he appears pleased, happy about this turn of events as he turns towards helena — )

By overcoming the unknown, hope can be born...

( hope is manifested by any cause, as long as komaeda believes it so. it's best this way, after all, if they defeat the despair, or wherever the abyss leads, and natsume was right... falling had brought them here — so where would that go? )

Those that lack talent are capable of brewing a miniscule amount, but they need a little push. Sakasaki-kun's hope... ( his organic hand rests in front of his chest, a few tears dripping into the palm before placing that same hand on his hip. ) He called it a leap of faith... ahaha! Isn't that grand, I want to see your "faith" too! Will you show me it, will you?

( he takes one step closer to her, his eyes slowly parting, and spirals swirls within them. that cruel mix of hope and despair, his own brand of insanity that keeps him mentally going. )

Will you?

[part of her doesn't know what just happened. that Natsume was shoved - it's a possibility, but it also isn't, when she doesn't want to think that would have occurred. he could have yelled from the trip down itself. whatever's happening, it was abrupt, and she isn't sure how to feel about it. for that moment, Helena simply stands there, hearing Komaeda's words and feeling as though she's on the verge of falling herself.

hope. however he's phrasing it, it's something she knows very well. it's what puts one foot in front of the other after failing yet again, after dying in another way. despite any opposition, despite the hurdles that life threw one after another. her limitations, the manor, this school - she has to be determined, has to push forward to something better. it's what keeps her steady here, the idea that even in this place, one can keep fighting.

faith and resolution. the conviction that no matter what it takes, no matter how much she has to go through, there is an exit - that she and the others will live. they have to fight to live. they have to try, no matter how tough it is. this she knows, this she believes in. no matter how hard her heart is hammering in trepidation. no matter how this unknown needed a quite literal leap. back straightened up, and a deep breath to set it all back to rights.

Helena Adams has hope in abundance. tempered and restrained by common sense and the inability to forget fear, but it is there.]

...I'll show you my faith. In exchange, please do the same for me.

[because they are all in this, for better or for worse. she does her best to smile, so he knows she's sincere, before she turns to the cliff and swallows to steady herself. one jump, and a descent into open space, following the lights on their journey.

...

Helena is swallowed by the void.]

MISSION 2.C

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sighs

covers your eyes

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not how I got passed a layup again

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