auraunbound - Tumblr blog

[auraunbound]

🐝  *  ―  𝑺𝑷𝑶𝑵𝑮𝑬𝑩𝑶𝑩 𝑺𝑸𝑼𝑨𝑹𝑬𝑷𝑨𝑵𝑻𝑺 𝑺𝑬𝑵𝑻𝑬𝑵𝑪𝑬 𝑺𝑻𝑨𝑹𝑻𝑬𝑹𝑺.

❛  don’t you have to be stupid somewhere else?  ❜ ❛  would you please stop imitating me? it is starting to get very annoying.  ❜ ❛  no one and i mean no one can ever know about this. it’ll be the end of you, it’ll be the end of me. and worst of all, it’ll be the end of me!  ❜ ❛  what doesn’t kill you usually succeeds in the second attempt.  ❜ ❛  well, the way i see it, there are three possibilities: one, you stole it; two, you stole it; or three, you stole it.  ❜ ❛  me, aggressive? how dare you?! maybe you’re right … i command you to help me be a nicer person.  ❜ ❛  come on, [name], join me and we’ll be rich and powerful until i eventually betray you.  ❜ ❛  i thought i was going to steal something. can’t imagine why. so i’m just enjoying this lovely day.  ❜ ❛  you’ll never get what you want if you always let people step on you.  ❜ ❛  [name], baby, i haven’t felt this giddy since the day you agreed to be my wife!  ❜ ❛  i’ll have you know that i stubbed my toe last week and only cried for 20 minutes.  ❜ ❛  quick, [name], without thinking: if you could have anything right now, what would it be?  ❜ ❛  pull up your pants, [name]. we’re going home!  ❜ ❛  can i be excused for the rest of my life?  ❜ ❛  with imagination, you can be anything you want.  ❜ ❛  no one can change a person, but someone can be a reason for that person to change.  ❜ ❛  if you believe in yourself, with a tiny pinch of magic all your dreams can come true.  ❜ ❛  i’m ugly and i’m proud!  ❜ ❛  if i were to die right now in a fiery explosion due to the carelessness of a friend … then it would just be alright.  ❜ ❛  always follow your heart ― unless your heart is bad with directions.  ❜ ❛  well, it may be stupid, but it’s also dumb.  ❜ ❛  you’re a man now, [name], and it’s time you started acting like one.  ❜ ❛  just do what i do when i have problems. SCREAM!  ❜ ❛  yeah, well, i’d hate you even if i didn’t hate you.  ❜ ❛  the inner machinations of my mind are an enigma.  ❜ ❛  knowledge cannot replace friendship.  ❜ ❛  being grown up is boring. besides, i don’t ‘get’ jazz.  ❜ ❛  i guess hibernation is the opposite of beauty sleep.  ❜ ❛  sometimes we have to go deep inside ourselves to solve our problems.  ❜ ❛  dumb people are always blissfully unaware of how dumb they really are.  ❜ ❛  do you have to stand so close? you’re making me claustrophobic.  ❜ ❛  i knew i shouldn’t have gotten out of bed today.  ❜ ❛  too bad that didn’t kill me.  ❜ ❛  oh, why must every eleven minutes of my life be filled with misery? why?  ❜ ❛  wake me up when i care.  ❜ ❛  it’s just a cruel reminder that i’m single and likely to remain that way forever.  ❜ ❛  i might as well sleep for 100 years or so.  ❜ ❛  fortunately, i have enough talent for all of you.  ❜ ❛  please come again. when i’m not working.  ❜ ❛  well, it wouldn’t be the first time you ruined everything.  ❜

[auraunbound]

[Alright, basically right after I posted my last starter call I got really sick and couldn't do any writing, so here's a new one.

Like this for a starter, feel free to specify the muse you want, or just take this as an invitation to jump into my DMs to plot.]

[auraunbound]

things that are hard to hear.

**possible triggers - abuse / death / suicidal implications change pronouns as needed for things you’d WANT to hear, click here!!

❝ i don’t want you in my life anymore. ❞

❝ i don’t want to have a relationship with you. ❞

❝ she’s not coming home. ❞

❝ that wasn’t meant for you. ❞

❝ i don’t love you, okay? i never did. i never will. ❞

❝ you’re wasting my time. ❞

❝ you’re wasting your time. ❞

❝ you’re not listening to me! ❞

❝ i feel like i can’t tell you anything. ❞

❝ you’re too late. ❞

❝ you don’t give yourself enough credit. ❞

❝ you don’t give me enough credit. ❞

❝ it’s time for things to change. ❞

❝ you failed me. ❞

❝ fuck you. ❞

❝ i can see right through you. ❞

❝ things are getting bad again. ❞

❝ are things getting bad again? ❞

❝ move on. ❞

❝ that’s on you. that’s your fault. ❞

❝ you’re holding on to things that are holding you back. ❞

❝ you haven’t changed. ❞

❝ i’m not changing my mind. ❞

❝ i’m dying. ❞

❝ you’re good – but you’re not as good as you could be. ❞

❝ it’s always about you. ❞

❝ nobody cares about your problems. ❞

❝ i don’t trust you. ❞

❝ you’re being taken advantage of! ❞

❝ i feel like you’re taking advantage of me. ❞

❝ did you hear what she said about you? ❞

❝ life isn’t fair. suck it up. ❞

❝ i didn’t mean i liked you that way– ❞

❝ maybe it’s better this way. ❞

❝ i wish i’d never met you. ❞

❝ you ruin my happiness. ❞

❝ i think we should see other people. ❞

❝ i’m not ready to settle down. ❞

❝ i want to love someone like you love me. ❞

❝ you can do anything you set your mind to, but you won’t. ❞

❝ stop crying. ❞

❝ don’t come back. ❞

❝ i’m not coming back. ❞

❝ i don’t care enough about you to hate you. ❞

❝ i feel like you’re dragging me down with you. ❞

❝ why don’t you smile anymore? ❞

❝ something happened today. ❞

❝ i don’t want to do this anymore. ❞

❝ stop letting it get to you. ❞

❝ i’m sorry. ❞

❝ i’m not sorry. ❞

❝ you’re not sorry. ❞

[auraunbound]

[Okay now that Christmas is over, I'm a little freer to do things, so I actually wanna start some stuff up. I'm actually gonna try to get to outstanding threads today as well.

But like this post for a starter. Also feel free to specify which muse you want or jump into my DMs for plotting. There's a good chance I'll do that anyway if there's no muse specified just since. I have a lot.]

[auraunbound]

A Brief Correspondence

Translated for the viewer's convenience.

There were a few moments of ringing while the video call connected, both of the Kraka heirs sharing a public booth to contact home.

"These calls are so tiring. Must I be here for this?"

"Why would you not? I am certain mother and father wish to hear from you. You have been making progress, have you not?"

"I have, it is just-," her thought was cut off when a familiar face popped into view on the screen.

"Hello, girls!" the man on the other end stated cheerily. His voice carried a low, but smooth tone, that of a practiced speaker. "Ah, it is so nice to see you both again. How goes your stay in Apricus?"

"Hello, father," Aslaug returned pleasantly. "It goes well. My research into the city's culture has proven quite fruitful. The way of life here is so different from home, yet there are still strange islands of familiarity here and there. I am looking forward to having you try all the new recipes I have collected as well!"

"Good, good. And you, Skuld? What of your studies?"

"They are progressing at an acceptable pace. This land's technology far exceeds our own, and becoming familiar with even the basics is proving difficult, though not unduly so."

"Well, I have the utmost faith that you will succeed. If anyone is capable of elevating us into a new technological era, it is most assuredly my daughter."

"Thank you, father."

"Skuld may have also acquired a new hobby as of late~."

"Oh? Do share."

Skuld shot a quick glare at her sister before turning back toward the screen.

"It is a local sport known as 'Hecaball'. News may have reached of the world cup being held here, but if not, it seems that it has garnered a global following. It could be an opportunity to show the strength of Völsung to the world."

"Skuld, not everything needs to be a test of strength," her father said with a small sigh. "Need I remind you that we are attempting to establish diplomatic relations? There is no need to resort to displays of power in a time of peace."

"But-,"

"No, Skuld. No excuses. I know you are proud of who you are, but petty displays like this will only make others wary. What this is, however, is an opportunity to engage with these other powers in friendly competition, establish goodwill. I will look into this 'Hecaball,' and see if we can arrange a team. You will of course be allowed a spot on the team, but only so long as you understand that we do not stand on the edge of hostility."

"Yes father."

There was a rustling followed by the sound of a door closing and a woman's voice.

"Sigurd? Who are you speaking to?"

"Hm? I have the girls on the line."

"Oh! Let me say hello then."

A few footsteps, and the woman's face slid into view beside the man's.

"Aslaug, Skuld, how are you two?" The voice was airy, with a faint lilt of alcohol dancing off her tongue.

"We are doing quite well, mother. How have you been? Inspiration has been kind I hope?"

"It has been fickle, I will not lie. What art can be created in such a cultural lull after all? I have been spending the time since you left arranging Holmgangs between willing soldiers in an attempt to spark that creativity, but to no avail. Speaking of my work though, you still have that charm I gave you, no?"

"I am sorry to hear that. I do hope things turn around for you soon. But yes, the charm has not left my side since we arrived."

"Fantastic. One less thing to fret over then." The woman brought her pipe to her lips and gave a brief puff before continuing. "What is this about some new sport? Hecaball, if I heard correctly?"

"Yes, you heard correct. It is a sport from Apricus that Skuld has taken a liking to. We were considering trying to bring it back home to form a team for the next world tournament."

"Hm, perhaps that will be the spark I need, something entirely new. Oh, by the way Sigurd," she added, turning to her husband. "Have you brought up the tournament yet?"

"I... was about to get to that, yes. Thank you, Bryn." He sighed and pushed his hair back onto his head. "Skuld, your grandmother believes it would be prudent for you to enter this upcoming tournament and represent Völsung on the world stage."

"Hm? I thought I had informed you that I have already enrolled in the Olympus Tournament."

"Indeed, you did. However, the larger tournament is nothing more than a personal pursuit. Skalmöld has expressed that she wishes to see me volunteer you as our champion for the Leader's Choice event."

"Grandmother wants... me? But my training still isn't complete, I am not yet even a Shieldmaiden, let alone one so seasoned as her."

"I echoed this same sentiment, but she believes you are ready. You keep saying you want to prove our peoples' might to the world... well, here is your chance."

There was a tense silence that hung in the air for several moments. The appraising stare of her father, the detached irreverence of her mother, both weighed on her in equal measure. Was she really ready? If her grandmother thought so, then what right did she have to argue? With an inhale and a steely expression, Skuld gave her answer.

"It will be done, father."

The man's brow furrowed a bit, while a slight smile came to her mother's face. It was decided then. Skuld's name would be entered, and she would represent Völsung for all the world to see.

"I know you'll make me proud, darling," her father added. A final sentiment before the family bade their farewells and disconnected the call.

No words were spoken that night in the heirs' quarters, and a heavy fog hung over them both. The girls understood completely what was happening, and there was no need to discuss them. The mere mention of their grandmother's name was all the indication they needed of the situation at hand:

Skuld's rite of passage had come early.

[auraunbound]

Sentence Meme {Princess Bride}

“You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.”

“Drop. Your. Sword.”

“Life is pain, _____. Anybody who says otherwise is selling something.”

“I am not left handed.”

“As you wish.”

“I wasn’t worried. Maybe I was a little bit concerned, but that’s not the same thing.”

“You mean you wish to surrender to me? Very well, I accept.”

“Truly, you have a dizzying intellect.”

“Mawage. Mawage is wot bwings us togeder today.”

“Have fun storming the castle.”

“There’s a shortage of perfect breasts in this world. It would be a pity to damage yours.”

“Is very strange. I have been in the revenge business so long, now that it’s over, I don’t know what to do with the rest of my life.”

“Have you ever considered piracy?”

“Death cannot stop true love. All it can do is delay it for a while.”

“Good night, _____. Good work. Sleep well. I’ll most likely kill you in the morning.”

“You’re trying to kidnap what I’ve rightfully stolen.”

“You seem a decent fellow… I hate to kill you.”

“You seem a decent fellow… I hate to die.”

“You rush a miracle man, you get rotten miracles.”

“Rodents Of Unusual Size? I don’t think they exist.”

“You can die slowly, cut into a thousand pieces.”

“You killed my love.”

“It’s possible. I kill a lot of people.”

“I’ve hired you to help me start a war. It’s an prestigious line of work, with a long and glorious tradition.”

“No one would surrender to the Dread Pirate _____.”

“I got married. I didn’t want to - it all happened so fast.”

“Then you’re not married. You didn’t say it; you didn’t do it.”

“Is this a kissing book?”

“A word, my lady/lord. We are but poor, lost circus performers. Is there a village nearby?”

“I’ve got my country’s 500th anniversary to plan, my wedding to arrange, my wife/husband to murder and _____ to frame for it; I’m swamped.”

“There’s a big difference between mostly dead and all dead.”

“Yes, you’re very smart. Shut up.”

“Please consider me as an alternative to suicide.”

“There will be blood tonight!”

“That is the sound of ultimate suffering.”

“Look, I don’t mean to be rude but this is not as easy as it looks, so I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t distract me.”

“I challenge you to a battle of wits.”

“You mean, you’ll put down your rock and I’ll put down my sword, and we’ll try and kill each other like civilized people?”

“Thank you so much for bringing up such a painful subject. While you’re at it, why don’t you give me a nice paper cut and pour lemon juice on it?”

“She/He is alive, or was an hour ago. If she/he is otherwise when I find her/him I shall be very put out.”

“You can die too for all I care!”

“So I’m here till I die?”

“I can cope with torture.”

“I fight gangs for local charities and stuff.”

“That was a warning, _____. Next time my hand flies on its own. Where I come from, there are penalties when a woman/man lies.”

“I will never love again.”

“You mocked me once, never do it again! I died that day!”

“To the Pain means I leave you in anguish, wallowing in freakish misery forever.”

“Never go in against a ____ when death is on the line!”

“We are men of action. Lies do not become us.”

“They were both poisoned. I spent the last few years building up an immunity to iocane powder.”

“I would as soon destroy a stained-glass window as an artist like yourself.”

“I just work for ____ to pay the bills.”

“It’s not my fault I’m the biggest and the strongest. I don’t even exercise.”

“I believe everything to be a trap. It’s the reason I’m still alive.”

“Stop saying that!”

[auraunbound]

"I think we've earned a break by now."

[auraunbound]

[What year is it?]

[auraunbound]

Rules Have Been Updated!!!

[If you've been following or interacting with me for a little while, you aren't required to reread them. Most of the actual rules are the same, just with what I feel to be more clear phrasing and a bit more about how I actually run my blog.

If you would like to read them though, here's the link.]

[auraunbound]

Rules Have Been Updated!!!

[If you've been following or interacting with me for a little while, you aren't required to reread them. Most of the actual rules are the same, just with what I feel to be more clear phrasing and a bit more about how I actually run my blog.

If you would like to read them though, here's the link.]

[auraunbound]

It was a sound enough point. When it came down to it, the subject was nothing more than another war machine. The only thing keeping it latched onto the concept of life was the fragment of a living thing's soul anchored into it. She wasn't sure whether she'd consider the possibility either if not for that fact.

As she'd thought before though, it was at least damn good at pretending.

Cybele nodded along with his conjecture as well. Yes, she was very familiar with that particular phenomenon. Some of her friends in school who'd gotten a taste for monster hunting had done the very same thing with their scrolls before crying to her to fix them. Regardless, the internals in question here were much more delicate and sophisticated than a common household device. If the aura wasn't settling, that would probably explain a lot. However, there was a bit that snagged in her brain.

"So, if it were settling in her core, how dangerous would that be exactly?" That was a lot of energy coalescing in a very small space. The intern wasn't fond of the idea of the test subject's core detonating if she became too agitated. Not that she suspected it to happen per se, more likely it would simply burn out and render her inert, but one could never be too certain.

Especially when it came to uncharted territory like this.

"How would we even go about finding where the aura's concentrated anyway? I'd think a scan of some kind, but would that work on something made of metal? I don't know if the sensors could penetrate that."

I suppose you can't trust a soldier to appreciate the process. Arthur couldn’t hold back the appreciative scoff at that, even as his hand crept up to grind his palm into the hollow of his left shoulder. Bitterness hardened the set of his face; if he had ever been so delusional as to hope for real competence or common fucking sense from the powers that be within the Atlas military, what happened at Fort Shiro disabused him of that idiocy with meticulous efficiency, and the grinding ache that never quite left him served as a constant reminder.

The military employed brilliant minds, to be sure. Arthur would never argue otherwise. Polendina was a genius, Eileen could probably code circles around either of either of them, and the rest of the team had all done their share to make technological breakthroughs tantamount to miracle.

But.

Intelligence, Arthur had come to realize, could hold the smartest person in the room under a very seductive thrall. It wasn’t enough to be smart. Skill wasn’t enough. You had to be skeptical. You had to begin with the assumption that you would fail as a matter of course, and then do the careful, slow, difficult work of closing off every possible avenue that could lead to failure, fill every margin for error with redundancy stacked upon redundancy. Before the pieces could fall tidily into place, they had to be sculpted and arranged in such a way that they could not fall otherwise.

He felt nothing but contempt for anyone who did not grasp this very simple concept, which meant he felt nothing but contempt for the so-called greatest military in the world. The Atlas military had been born from the absolute shattering of Mantle’s forces at the end of the Great War, and in its first and only real proving the faunus rebels had won quite handily.

And still, the military had not learned.

That was what rolled like a thunderhead through Arthur’s mind while he considered the question Cybele had asked. His grip settled firmer on his shoulder. He said, “That we were able to transplant aura into an artificial core is the only reason I am willing to entertain the possibility that the Viceroy unit is properly alive at all. It’s also…”

He grunted. Arthur was not particularly a spiritual man; he found the moral objections to the aura-transfer machine to be mostly frivolous, barring Eileen’s reservations about how else the technology might be used against unwilling victims. But if Polendina wanted to rip out bits of himself to make little robotic child-soldiers, that was his business.

Only, it had hurt him badly. The team had expected pain, of course, and a lengthy period of recuperation. Instead the procedure left holes that would not heal. The cutting edge cut deep, sometimes.

It was dangerous, in ways Arthur doubted any of them fully understood. “One thought has occurred to me, on more than one occasion. In its natural state, at rest, we’ve found aura concentrates in blood and marrow—or sap in botanical lifeforms. It can be gathered and channeled into nearly any material, but it won’t stay in them for long unless an active effort is made to hold it there. We speculated that Viceroy’s aura would, similarly, settle in her coolant, but that does not… seem to be the case. Her coolant, when we’ve taken samples, carries traces of aura but not the saturation we would see if we drew blood from a person. It’s possible, then, that her aura can’t be properly relaxed. If it’s just sloshing around in a high-energy state all the time it could play havoc with both her hardware and her software, same as you can fry a scroll by forcing too much aura through the internals. Or it might be settling in her core, instead. Hard to say.”

[auraunbound]

Chiyo allowed a slight raise in her brow. What curious phrasing, liberate from its antecedent. Grimm were of course as old as Remnant's history, this much was a given. If one were to believe the tales, the world began with the Brothers, and humans did not even exist until after the Grimm walked the earth. But something about her words, the slight pause, it spoke to a greater depth, a forbidden knowledge...

...a secret that she could perhaps unlock.

Though that would be a task for another time. For now, it would be prudent to square away the details of this particular arrangement. If they were to be in Salem's employ, a proper rapport surely would go a long way.

"I am Chiyo Kuchisake, leader of Team CALK," she stated pleasantly. The fear was beginning to subside now, though there was still a pang felt ringing in the back of her skull that she felt she would never be rid of.

"These, of course, are my teammates." She gestured, opening the floor for each of them.

"U-Uh," the twin started to stammer. Why did Chiyo always have to be so cool under pressure? It wasn't fair. She swallowed down her hesitation, almost blurting out, "L-Leiko. Er, Kuchisake. H-Her sister...." Well, so much for first impressions.

"Aeron Tepes," the lone male muttered out. He wasn't at all used to being in situations like this. Typically he regarded authority with a vague sense of disinterest, but he knew he couldn't afford that here. His standard theatrics would be put to much better use once impressions were set aside.

"Kieryn..." the last in attendance finally spoke, her voice tiny and unassuming. A far cry from her normally raucous attitude. "Kieryn Pareidolia." Her hands were folded over one-another very tightly as she did everything in her power to not make eye contact with the Queen. Not out of a lack of respect, but in an attempt to not lose her nerve.

Well, the timing was opportune if nothing else. Her own forces had starkly diminished over the last few days. Salem folded her arms behind herself, head canting as she considered the question.

Their success in enacting this gristly work spoke to a degree of competence she could appreciate; and the fact of the matter was that they could, with only minor adjustment, effect an appreciable reduction in the frequency of incursions against Vale itself, which might sap the public will to support Vacuo as normalcy reasserted itself. She could simply tell them to continue as they were.

But… with two relics in hand and control over the narrative wrested so conclusively away from Ozma…

Hope seared like a brand in her heart. The failure at Haven had been disappointing, and Ozma’s premature recovery rattled her, true. Neither proved as catastrophic as she feared, and in the ill-considered haste, Shade’s defenders had surrendered the initiative to her in the same moment they delivered themselves to a twin siege of famine and discontent.

She had the advantage. Why not take it?

“I intend,” Salem said carefully, “to put an end to the huntsmen academies, reclaim my relics, and-” a hesitation.“–liberate Remnant by force from the last shackle of its antecedent. If you find that purpose agreeable, I would welcome your assistance in my excavation of Beacon Academy.” She paused, delicately. “Though you might start by telling me your names.”

[auraunbound]

Poppy: “I Disagree” (album) Starters

Concrete

“Bury me six feet deep.”

“Cover me in concrete.”

“Turn me into a street.”

“Break me off a piece of that tasty treat.”

“Demons in my dreams watch me while I sleep for eternity.”

“Some people like candy, some people like coffee, but these lifeless flavors don’t satisfy me.”

“I tried to eat ice cream.”

“I tried to drink tea.”

“I need that taste of young blood in my teeth.”

“Just bury me six feet deep and cover me in concrete please.”

“Don’t wanna wait forever and ever, please.”

I Disagree

“I disagree, everything you believe is a tragedy.”

“I disagree with the way you keep preaching insanity.”

“I disagree with all of the reasons you’re mad at me.”

“I disagree, everything in your life is a tragedy.”

“Let it all burn down.”

“Burn it to the ground.”

“We’ll be safe and sound.”

“We’ll be safe and sound when it all burns down.”

“I disagree with the way you continue to pressure me.”

“I disagree with the way you are failing to pleasure me.”

“I disagree, everything is going how it’s meant to be.”

“If only all of you could see the world I see. Then maybe everyone could live in harmony.”

Bloodmoney

“What do you believe when everyone is watching?”

“What do you believe when nobody is watching?”

“Keep telling yourself that you’ve been playing nice, and go beg for forgiveness from Jesus the Christ.”

“I know what it feels like to have my soul sucked out of my body.”

“I finally know what it feels like to be dead.”

“Your soul can’t be saved for all the sins you’ve ignored.”

“Never forget the excess of a man because the grabbing hands always grab what they can.”

“What do you believe when no one is around?”

Anything Like Me

“I feel her heart beating in me.”

“Get her out of me.”

“I’m sorry for what I’ve become.”

“Die for the attention.”

“You pray for a reaction.”

“I’ll stop when it’s no more fun.”

“If this is the start, then let’s see how far you’re gonna take this one.”

“You shouldn’t be anything like me.”

“You’ll never be anything like me.”

“This isn’t a fight to be won.”

“Go on and give up the gun.”

“If this is a test, with all due respect, you’re not gonna fool no one.”

“I’m everything she never was.”

“Now everyone’s out for my blood.”

“Stop, you’re making a scene.”

“You’re coming at me with blood in your teeth.”

“Love is never ending in me.”

“Take it out of me.”

Fill the Crown

“You can be anyone you want to be.”

“You can be free.”

“I believe you’re the one that’s meant for me.”

“We can be free, just come with me.”

“Fill the crown, let them know we’re fed.”

“Poison the children.”

“Poison the family.”

“Make the children cry.”

“Poison the fountain.”

“Empty your mind.”

“Follow the leader. The leader is blind.”

“Baptize the children.”

“Pray for the victims’ innocent lives.”

“Watch from behind.”

“Forgive your spirit.”

“Forfeit your life.”

“If you’re wanting someone, just call my name.”

“I’ll be there, believe me. I’ll keep you safe.”

Nothing I need

“Something strange happened to me.”

“All I ever wanted, it was nothing I need.”

“It doesn’t matter to me.”

“Take the ride.”

“Always gotta climb the ladder.”

“Someone else will always do it, they’ll do it better.”

“Here’s your prize for competition.”

“They would die for your position.”

“I’m not gonna ask permission.”

“I’ll never ask for permission.”

Sit/Stay

“Every time you fall back down, sit and stay, lie on the ground.”

“Do what you’ve been told.”

“Sit, stay, lie down.”

“Godspeed to the radio star.”

“Stop the beat when they take it too far.”

“Don’t go blind from the stars in your eyes.”

“Welcome to the new starting line.”

“Hide your face.”

“Don’t talk back.”

“I have you now, so face the fact.”

Bite Your Teeth

“Bite your own teeth.”

“Don’t cry.”

“Don’t cry, keep on trying.”

“Creeps are creeping”

“Teeth are sinking.”

Sick of the Sun

“I’m sick of the sun. It burns everyone.”

“I want it to go away.”

“I just want to float away.”

“Can’t trust anyone.”

“Can someone turn the lights down?”

“Someone shut the lights out.”

“I close my eyes because it’s too bright.”

“I need to find the right sound, something I can say I found.”

“I can hear it in my mind.”

“Everyone told me it would get better, but every day feels exactly the same.”

Don’t Go Outside

“Now is not the time to go outside.”

“Crawl back into bed and close your eyes.”

“Lock the doors and find a place to hide.”

“The TV says we’re out of time.”

“Suck the fear in through your eyes.”

“Everyone is bland and blind.”

“Everything will be okay.”

[auraunbound]

So far so good, if not a little bumpier than the previous exercise. Still though, not bad for having no formal training. At least she had an idea of how to avoid hits rather than just taking them like a champ.

"Watch my shoulder," she said without stopping. "No matter how I move, my shoulders have to move first. Disguising when your hands are going to move is easy, but you can't hide the shoulders." It was simple enough concept; the sooner you see movement, the sooner you could react. Simple, but important.

Alina followed her lead, ducking and dodging the taps. She had a little more trouble than the combat practice but she kept up well enough. She was sneaky, but avoiding hits was harder. It’s an important skill if she’s gonna be a brawler.

[auraunbound]

Cybele sipped at her own drink while she listened. Ah yes, Dunstan. She vaguely recalled some mention of him before. A cautionary tale to everyone entering the field of robotics to not conflate intelligent-seeming behavior with genuine intelligence. Granted, this particular situation was most likely not what they had in mind when they taught that lesson.

There were a lot of moving parts at play, that was certain. Not to mention the ethical implications of the project. She understood the thought process; take people off the front lines and replace them with synthetic soldiers. As effective as the Knights were at dispatching the more basic forms of Grimm though, there were certain times when a more nuanced touch was required, which was something they lacked. Enter the artificial Huntsman. For the subject's sake, she sincerely hoped it was merely lifelike and not truly alive. She couldn't imagine the trauma of being created with a consciousness only to be told to use it to fight and die for someone else.

She couldn't say she was fully aware of all the contributing factors of the subjects behavior, but she trusted Arthur's assessment of the situation. Perhaps she was the only one, and perhaps that opinion was borne purely out of ignorance, but it was a logical line of thinking.

"Well, sooner or later, they're going to have to put their eggs in one basket or the other. In any case, I agree. No point in doing the same tests until you understand the subject more, even if it is expensive. You'd hope the military would understand the need for the budget if they want the project to succeed badly enough, but I suppose you can't trust a soldier to appreciate the process." Another contemplative sip.

She did have to admit, it was quite the compelling puzzle to put together. If this behavior was simply mimicking a traumatic break as opposed to actually suffering one, it was damn good at playing pretend. Perhaps it was even a ploy to try and avoid future combat trials, some sort of basic self-preservation instinct nestled in its subroutines making a play at pity. A far fetched thought, but certainly not out of the realm of possibility. Though there was another theory that was floating around in her cerebellum, one she couldn't help but to posit.

"Is it possible that something about the Aura infusion interfered with the programming? Hypothetically, if the subject isn't really alive, then we've essentially just grafted a piece of a person's soul onto an inanimate object. But even if she is, there's still no telling what kinds of effects that would have on her cognition. I mean, we barely understand what the ramifications of removing a person's Aura are just yet, let alone putting it in something else." It was a mystifying phenomenon, Aura. Everyone knew what it was, but no one truly understood it. Who knew how volatile is was when not contained within its original host, doubly so if its new host wasn't even organic?

“Well,” he sighed, and knocked back half the coffee. “…Far as I’m concerned, the core problem is that we created a machine whose most basic function is to mimic natural human behavior, and she does it well enough to muddy the question of whether she is or isn’t alive, in any meaningful sense. It is—” Arthur scoffed into his coffee. “–trivially easy to program a machine to output responses that resemble thinking.”

More coffee. He was nearing the dregs and warming to his subject now, foot jiggling where it dangled from his knee.

“We had the inverse problem while we were developing the first AKs,” he said. “Has anyone told you about Micah Dunstan? He did quite a lot of work on the models for the original knights before he convinced himself those tin cans were people and got himself fired after he tried to, ahem, liberate a squad of them.” Last Arthur had heard, the man had leveraged his generous plea bargain and technical know-how for a top spot in the SDC’s robotics department; he wished Jacques Schnee joy of the idiot. “Point being, this team has a history of confusing lifelike for living and a memorable example of what it could cost them to act on certainty that a machine is alive. Twice shy, eh?

“So, the first question to consider: if an ordinary human student exhibited this sort of behavior during a routine combat assessment, what conclusion would we make? That the student had suffered a traumatic break and should be placed on a combat track of lower intensity. Like any muscle, psychological resilience is best strengthened in small increments. Any instructor at the academy could tell you that.”

He rocked back in his seat, bouncing his eyebrows. “…However, when a program fails to produce the expected result, our usual answer is to set a breakpoint in the code and step line by line in order to determine the exact point of failure: we cannot do this with the Viceroy unit—with AI in general—because the models do not function in a linear manner.

“Whether she is alive or merely lifelike, replicating the test serves little practical purpose and poses significant risk: if she is alive, we ought to be handling her as we would any traumatized student; if she is only lifelike, repetition will likely reinforce the existing pattern that led to–” A wave at the monitor. “—this. I say we should put a moratorium on combat testing and work on increasing our visibility into the model so that we can map how combat stimuli move from node to node in real time, then start her sparring with living partners to disarm, not destroy, until we have a more complete picture of what is going wrong. That is, however, expensive, and while the rest of the team anthropomorphizes her when it is comfortable and convenient to do so, they revert to troubleshooting as if she is a simple machine. No one wants to be the next Micah Dunstan, you see.”

He caught his breath. Drained the last of his coffee, and slammed the cup down with grim satisfaction as he pulled his chair back up to the desk. “That inconsistency will be this project’s downfall, sooner or later.”

[auraunbound]

How strange. She supposed the description made sense, it wasn't the state of matter that made it a fluid, but its ability to flow. In that regard, it was likely impossible for a solid material to be considered a fluid. She made a mental note of that, trying to move past the mild feelings of inadequacy that accompanied the mistake. She would use this opportunity to grow, and that was that.

Skuld's head tilted, expression perking up at the broadcast. That was curious as well.

"I believe that was all. I greatly appreciate the assistance, professor." She lowered her head a bit in respect. "That announcement was quite something though, was it not? Surely an event like this is not a common occurrence."

“Well technically yes.” Opening up one of the textbooks and pointing at a few diagrams. "See gas can be made to flow, so without going into all the detail yeah gas is a fluid. It’s a fluid that doesn’t have a definite volume but it’s still a fluid. It’s a bit weird, I imagine especially if this isn’t your first language. Like I said, don’t worry about it too much.”

Hearing a beep she made her way back over to her desk and sat down, clicking her aShine open in time to catch a broadcast about the upcoming tournament “Well, that’s certainly gonna be interesting. Wasn’t quite the alert I was expecting but still interesting. Anyway, got anything else ya need help with?”

[auraunbound]

Atlas... has fallen? The words echoed through the minds of the gathered. Knowing of the kingdom, that particular phrase could potentially be considered literal. If that were the case, then there was likely nothing left of either it nor Mantle. It was an interesting choice to evacuate to Vacuo however. Tactically, it made little sense. Obviously, the lands outside the kingdoms were all dangerous in their own ways, but shipping an entire kingdom full of people used to biting cold off to the middle of the desert couldn't have been a well thought out plan.

Those of course were the thoughts of the group's leader. It was a much more measured analysis of the information. The others felt their hearts sink. The Fall of Beacon at least left something of the kingdom standing, something that could be rebuilt. The entirety of Atlas being wiped out though... it felt like the end of days was upon them.

Chiyo was at least maintaining a sense of composure, taking in all that was being said. Things were hostile on the outside, now more than ever. The Grimm were growing bolder, more restless. She had the sense that this was the cause. The Queen desired something of humanity, and until she acquired it, this cycle would continue. If this constant suffering was to end, there was only one solution in her eyes.

"What would you have us do, your Grace?" The decision was made by her alone. This was the calling of their practices after all, to appease the Grimm. If this would end, or at the very least diminish the bloodshed, then it was an obvious conclusion. She would of course not hold the others to this choice, but she hoped they would continue to walk this path with her. It would be good for them to share in this experience.

Salem looked away from the corpse at last to make a cursory examination of the other three. Naked terror bled through the gouges her mere presence had torn in their composure; perhaps their leader had neglected to adequately prepare them for this eventuality. Perhaps among the four, only the one brave enough to speak had truly believed.

No matter. They would learn or they wouldn’t.

A wry smile tucked itself into the corners of her mouth as Salem turned to their leader. The tinge of caution in those words belied the faultless calm stamped onto her face—though she, at least, had been attentive to Salem’s tone, and the fearful contortion of her aura was beginning to lie flat again.

Far from offending, the question met with a flicker of approval. “Atlas,” she said mildly, “has fallen. Its people fled to seek sanctuary in Vacuo.” Scorn laced the statement: it spoke to the defenders’ priorities that they had chosen not to send the civilian population elsewhere. Those were hostages meant to sting the world to action, not refugees.

Had they not already endured enough?

Frowning, she continued, “I assume you heard their broadcast, earlier. Regarding the relics and the schools, it was accurate in the essentials. This… lengthy occupation of Beacon Academy is not ideal: we had hoped to extract the crown and withdraw before the huntsmen could deliver a siege. Best laid plans.” Her lips thinned. Ozma would consider choice the most dangerous of the four. “My ally has yet to find the vault; I am here to reconvene with her and attend to the matter personally, and here because this–” She glanced pointedly at the corpse. “—succeeded in getting my attention.”

Whether that was a desirable outcome for them or not, Salem wouldn’t presume to say.

Still, there was a bare glint of amusement in her eyes when she added, “I will be staying in the school for the indeterminate future; I am not leaving until the relic is in my hands.” A slow blink. Drolly, “That is an invitation.”