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thegodshavehorns · 4 years

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Capture the Wind (3/5)

Chapter 3: Kriegspiel

At her next visit, the Seer doesn’t mention posters or Sylphs. You don’t bring it up. Why bother? She must already know. She has to know. She knows when you think about it. You’re thinking about it. Stop thinking about it!

“John,” she says, snapping you out of your distraction and back to your lesson. "Look at the board."

You sigh and roll your eyes. "What, am I in checkmate again?” you drawl sarcastically. And then, you stop, mouth open. Because you're not in checkmate.

She's in checkmate.

You don't understand. How is this possible? You hadn't even been thinking about it. “No way,” you say.

The Seer is all grins and teeth. “Yes, way. It's not that hard, is it, to beat a blind woman at chess?"

"But, you're not..."

There is no fanfare. She simply resets the board, into a new setup. “Again.”

This time, you lose again, as you try to somehow do what you did before without fully remembering what it was that you did. As she wins, she flicks the white king off the board like she would one of her ever-present coins. Rude. You sigh, and get ready to reset the board.

“John. It’s your move.”

You blink at her. “You took my king.”

She smiles. “The white king. When the white king dies, the game doesn’t end. It begins.”

And she takes a set of blue pieces out of that nowhere space where she keeps everything. They don’t look like any chess pieces you’ve ever seen, and she sets them up in an unfamiliar configuration.

“John. Move.”

Your new pieces move strangely. They teleport, they revive, they control the opponent’s pieces. You are not even sure you’re controlling them completely. “What is this?”

The Seer just keeps grinning. “Nyrblish 5th dimensional psion-chess. Much more fun than the human version.”

The board changes. It becomes three dimensional, spins into odd shapes, tesseracts, and you can’t quite make sense of what’s happening. “I don’t think I can play this.”

“Try.”

You try, but the board looks like something Escher would sketch in his spare time. Your head hurts, looking at it. “I can’t.”

“Do it anyway.”

“Look, Lady Justice, maybe you can do this kind of thing, but I’m only- I’m a kid! I’m a human, I can’t play chess in five dimensions!”

“Are you sure, John Egbert?”

“Yes, I’m sure I can’t-”

“Are you sure that you’re human?”

You stop at that. Your mouth goes dry.

“Well… well yeah, I-”

“You might want to think, John, about what is holding you back.” And the Seer packs up her chess, all five dimensions of it. And she leaves.

-----------------------------

Your dad ruins everything.

Why did he have to clean your room? Make your bed? You can do that yourself, you’re fourteen for godssakes!

When you return home from coding summer camp, your poster, your poster signed by the goddess of Space, is lying on the kitchen counter, open for the whole world to see. There is a post-it note attached.

Son,

When I get home, we will Talk.

Shit shit SHIT. He found the poster. He found the poster

You are so dead. Should you destroy the evidence? No, it’s too late for that.

Maybe you should run away. No, that’s stupid, where would you go? Anna’s? The Church? That idea is stupid, so stupid, squawking-like-an-imbecile-and-shitting-on-your-desk-level stupid, and you are not going to do that.

You pace back and forth, trying to think what you are going to say. You don’t know what to do or who to confide in.

Anna can’t help you. The Seer probably won’t, since even though YOU didn’t write the name or ever speak it aloud, you’re pretty sure keeping the autograph of another god in the house breaks her rules.

But… she never got mad about it. And she must have known, right?

You decide to risk it. You sit on the floor in a meditative position, take a deep breath, and say aloud: “…Hey, Seer of Mind? I know I don’t usually ask you for anything, but… my dad found a poster with the name of the S- the Godmother on it. Do you have any advice?”

You wait for a while. Nothing. The house is empty and silent.

Then, your computer, from upstairs, makes the faint beep can only mean you’re being IM’d.

Anna?

You go upstairs and look at the screen. The chum-handle is unfamiliar.

-- gallowsCalibrator [GC] began pestering ghostlyTrickster [GT]at 17:43 --

GC: JOHN, YOU H4V3 TO T4K3 R3SPONS1B1L1TY FOR YOUR OWN 4CT1ONS.

GC: TRY TO T4K3 TH1S 4S 4NOTH3R L3SSON.

GC: JUST L1K3 4LL TH3 OTH3RS.

GT: wait

GT: are you the seer?

GT: you use pesterchum?

GT: weird

GC: 1 US3 WH4T3V3R 1 N33D TO US3

GC: 1T’S T1M3 TO ST4ND UP FOR YOURS3LF, JOHN.

GC: YOUR F4TH3R 1S HOM3.

GC: DO YOU HAV3 WH4T IT T4K3S TO F4C3 H1M?

You can’t believe this. You can hear your dad’s car pull into the driveway.

This is what, another test for you to fail? Another opportunity to get beaten up? Did she ignore the poster just so that your dad would find it later?

Another lesson, just like all the others. Sure, another lesson in pain and bullshit.

You are sick of this. You are so, so sick of this.

You hear the door downstairs open, then close. You don’t want to do this, so you delay the inevitable by straightening your bookshelf and re-sorting your DVD collection.

It’s six-thirty by the time you head downstairs, every step feeling like you’re ascending a gallows.

Gods, you really don’t want to do this.

Your dad is sitting at the table, next to the incriminating poster, reading a newspaper and smoking his pipe. You know it has to be bad, when he’s smoking.

“Son,” he says, not looking up from the paper. “Have a seat.”

You sit, and he slowly, methodically folds up the newspaper, still puffing on the pipe. The sitting and waiting is like torture. Like that Chinese torture thing where they drip water on your head. You stare fixedly at your knees.

“Son,” he says again. “I know it can be hard, to be different from the other kids. And it can feel like no one understands.”

That was not what you expected your dad to say. You expected him to berate you about the poster.

“I know that there are some kids who will pick out anything that makes a person different from the crowd,” your dad continues. “And atheism makes you very different.” He sighs. “I wish you had come to me about this.”

You realize that your dad is giving you a very convenient excuse.

Your dad leans forward, resting his forearms on the table. “I do not want you to be pressured into being something that you're not.”

You decide to take the proffered ‘out.’

“Oh,” you grunt. “Okay. Sure.”

Your dad taps the poster with his index finger. “Son,” he says, but you interrupt him.

“I didn’t ask for the poster, Dad! It was a gift. I didn’t ask for it.”

Your dad smiles thinly. “At least now I’m getting more out of you than monosyllables.”

You lapse back into a sullen silence.

“It’s not the poster, John. It’s the letter that was with it.”

You blanch. Shit. You didn’t even think of that.

“It seems to be implying that you’ve gone to church, and that you are grounded. Which is not, currently, the case.”

You try to breathe deeply. Calm your thoughts, and lie through your buck teeth.

“I didn't go to church, but she wanted me to go to church... I mean, I might have gone once or something, but I had to make an excuse not to. I had to not go, so I said I was grounded.” You try to look your dad in the eye as you speak.

“Son, you just gave me two different stories about church in as many seconds.”

Wow, you’re just digging this hole deeper for yourself, aren’t you?

Your dad shrugs. “She sounds like a good friend. If she really is, then she will understand that you simply don't worship any gods, and it won't matter.” There is a pause, during which time you say nothing. “You should tell her the truth. If she cares, then I don't think that she is really such a good friend.”

You try to think of a good excuse, before you respond. “She is a good friend, Dad. I did not ask for the poster. She... she went to this event and I guess she thought it would be a nice thing to do, that's all.”

“Be that as it may. I think that you should tell her, but that is your decision to make.” Your dad takes a long drag on his pipe. “But there is something else we need to talk about. They did not stop beating you up, did they? The bullies from school?”

“No,” you mumble. “School was fine.”

“Your old man isn't blind, Son. I know what a bruise looks like.”

You sink into your chair. “I can handle it.”

Your dad fixes you with a very Stern Fatherly Look, and you sink down even lower, trying to disappear.

“How many months has it been? I should have spoken to you sooner.” He reaches across the table to put a Solid Patriarchal Hand on your shoulder. “Son, it is okay to admit that you need help. Real men know when the situation is too big to handle. It is not a sign of weakness. Do you understand me?”

Your dad still has no clue. But you don’t want him to think that you’re being beaten up, when you’re not, not really. You suddenly have an idea.

“It’s not like that,” you say, shaking your head. “It’s not bullying. It’s like, you know Fight Club? It's kind of like that. Only without the anti-government conspiracy and the multiple personality stuff. And I don't have a Brad Pitt. I'm just learning how to defend myself and stuff. I am getting tougher! It's not too big to handle. I am fine. I don't need help.”

Your dad gives you a Stern Fatherly Look, and you realize that he doesn’t buy it.

“Son, we are not leaving this table until you tell me the truth. I have already left this alone for too long.”

The truth? Well… what if you tell a partial truth? "Okay so there's this... girl. And she is really religious, and she thinks that she will help me find the gods if she teaches me how to fight and stuff. Martial arts."

Your dad sighs. “Do not tell me that my son thinks that he has to be beaten up to catch a girl's eye.”

What? Does he think you feel that way about the Seer? “No,” you state emphatically. “I don’t like, like her! And I do not think she likes me, either. At all, really.”

Your dad raises an eyebrow. “Well, at least I understand why you went to church, now.” Your dad sighs. “I don’t even want to know which gods this girl favors. If my son likes a girl that beats him up and calls it devotion, then... well, I may have to live with it. But you, Son, should not have to pretend that you are something that you’re not.”

“What? No, I’m not talking about Anna! Two different people.” This whole conversation is a mess. “And anyway, I don’t like them! I mean, I like Anna, but as a friend!”

“I see,” says your dad. “There is this one girl that you like enough to go to church for, and then there is this other, completely different, girl who you are willing to get beaten up by.”

“Yes, that is what is happening!” You are getting angry, now.

Your dad sighs and closes his eyes. “I am unsure whether to be proud or annoyed that my son is such a poor liar.” He leans forward, and takes another puff on his pipe. “You need to come clean with this girl, whether there is one of her or two. You are an atheist. If they really care about you then they will accept that.”

You count back the weeks. It’s been exactly four months and one week and two days since you first spoke to the Seer. Is your dad going to find out? You don’t want him to find out. You want deeply to prove that the Seer can be wrong, that you’re not as pathetically bad at keeping secrets as she thinks.

But it's been exactly 4 months, one week, two days. And, you realize that you have a choice. The Seer could be right… but it’s in your control.

You could say, “Yes, okay Dad.” And that would be that, for now. But it would just delay the inevitable: your dad would find out about the Seer tomorrow.

Or… you could make sure the Seer was wrong, for once.

You squeeze your eyes shut tight, and say, very quietly, “I’m not.”

Your dad pauses mid-puff. “Excuse me?”

You have to be brave. You have to do this. You twist your fingers into the fabric of your shirt, and say more clearly; “I’m not an atheist.”

Your dad takes his pipe out of his mouth, and lays it on the table. He looks grave. “You do not know what the gods are like, John. I am trying to protect you. Religion is dangerous, and you should stay away from it. I do not want to see you get hurt.”

This isn’t making any sense. “But Dad, it's not like pretending that the gods are not important makes them not exist. If they're dangerous, shouldn't we pay them respect? I mean, not make them mad, but just... you know, be normal about it? I mean, a lot of people are religious, Dad! Like, everyone! The only atheist I know is you!”

Very suddenly, your dad slams his fist into the table, making you jump. “We are not like other people!” Then, he abruptly slumps, and seems to try and compose himself. “I am sorry. I am not angry with you, John. I am scared.”

That takes you by surprise. You did not expect him to say that. “Dad? What are you talking about?”

Your dad looks haunted. “John, when you were an infant…” He swallows. “When you were an infant, I received a visit from the Flaming-Eyed God.”

And your dad tells you. About the warning, the threat, the gods made on your life. About how they told him not to pray, just like the Seer told you.

“John, the Mage told me that the other gods would do anything to keep you from doing… whatever it was they did not want to see happen. Do you understand what ‘anything’ means?”

You don’t want to hear this. “Yeah, but... I mean, what if some of the gods are protecting me from the others? Like the Flaming-Eyed God, and the Calibrator of the Gallows? I mean, I... I didn't know about any of this. But if I have this destiny or whatever, shouldn't I do what I can to like, fulfill it?”

“John.” Your dad sounds incredulous. “We are talking about the living gods. If they wanted to kill you, you would be dead before you could blink.”

You roll your eyes, but he continues. “The gods don’t mind atheists. We don’t draw their attention. They only hear you when—John, if you have been praying…”

You don’t say anything, but you know your guilt is written all over your face. You stare at the table, but can feel your dad’s eyes boring into you.

“John,” he says. “What have you said while you were praying?” You look up at your dad. He looks pained, like someone just stomped on his foot.

“Not much,” you say. “I usually couldn’t think of anything to pray about, really…”

He sighs. “Thank goodness.”

“But Dad…” Too late to go back now. “You’re wrong, kind of. About gods and atheists.”

“What do you mean?”

You interlock your fingers and look back at the table. “The gods do pay attention to atheists.”

You see your dad’s eyes widen. “John, have they spoken to you?”

Your stupid dad. You don’t look at him. “Yeah.” And then, because that doesn’t feel like enough: “I’m sorry. She told me not to tell you.”

“She…” Your dad’s voice is hollow, his expression fearful. You hate it. You hate seeing your dad looking so frightened.

“Lady Justice,” you clarify. “She said she’d be training me for some kind of destiny, or something.”

Your dad closes his eyes, and rests his forehead in one of his hands. When he speaks, his voice is breaking. You hate the sound of it. “I am sorry, John. I am so sorry. I should have told you sooner.”

Several long moments pass in silence. This is so uncomfortable. That the Seer’s prophecy is off by one day is a cold comfort. “Dad…”

Then, your dad looks up, and gets to his feet. There is something steely in his expression, something that wasn’t there before. “Son. Pack your things. We’re leaving.”

“What?”

“No questions, John.” His tone books no room for disobedience. “Do it.”

You don’t want to do this; this is crazy! But you've never seen your dad talk like that before. It’s kind of scary.

So, you get up, and pack your things. You don’t know how much to pack, but you figure a few days’ worth of clothes is probably fine. By the time you finish and come back downstairs, your dad has already packed his own possessions into the car.

“How long will we be gone for?” you ask.

“I don’t know,” he answers, and you worry a little that you didn’t pack enough.

Before you both drive off, you check the pesterlogs on your desktop. You don’t have any new ones from the Seer, but you do leave one for Anna:

GT: i’m leaving town for a few days

GT: so i will be afk

GT: but i will be online again soon.

GT: i have a lot to tell you.

And who knows? Now that the proverbial cat is out of its bag, maybe you can even tell her the truth.

#terezi pyrope #john egbert #dad egbert #godstuck #godstuck fic #homestuck #homestuck fanfiction #capture the wind #tw: abuse #revision

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homestuckexamination · 7 years

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The End of Homestuck: Rapture

Alright then, as I’ve mentioned, I wanted to debate a few points I’ve heard about the Ending, consider it a sort of bonus celebrating over 2000 Posts and 1000 Followers!

But before I say anything, let me preface this by saying: This is not trying to make you like the Ending, rather it’s trying to make you realize why you dislike the Ending. There’s very valid criticisms to the Ending and the Story as a whole and you can just dislike the direction it took- But what I want is debunk a few things the Fandom seems to have really clung to that I think are extremely hollow and just, outright false at times.

So let’s begin, shall we?

The Retcon created a Timeline where everyone’s struggles had been solved, and the characters in it were vastly different from how they used to be.

This one is sincerely one of my biggest Pet Peeves, and I’ve talked about it partially before. A general consensus is that the Retconned Timeline solved every single key problem the Characters on the Meteor had, destroyed Character Development shown for those Characters, and thus, created versions of themselves that were vastly different. Vriska planted herself as a Miracle Solved and everyone lived Happily Ever After.

Except this really is not the case, at all. Vriska’s presence was ultimately extremely useful to disable Jade without killing her. For everyone else, no problems are fixed, and the conception that they do is, I feel, a heavy misunderstanding of what the characters actually struggle with. Let’s go one by one.

Rose and Alcoholism

This is a major one because we see Vriska literally smack a glass right off of Rose’s hand and slam it. Many people don’t even know why Vriska would do something like that, but they just straight up assume this deterred Rose from getting drunk, and instantly fixed every problem she ever had. This is an awful misreading of where Rose’s true problems lie.

“ROSE: And it was all mixed up with feelings of conflict and remorse over my mother.

ROSE: I sort of ran with it too? ROSE: The habit, I mean. For a while at least. ROSE: I was still distraught about losing her. And wanted to understand her. ROSE: To connect with her, in some way. And I guess that was the only idea I had.“

“ROSE: This almost makes it official. ROSE: I have no comprehensible path. There's nothing to overcome, no lesson to learn, no cathartic light at the end of this preposterous tunnel. ROSE: Not for me, at least! ROSE: I seriously have the DUMBEST arc anyone could conceivably imagine.“

“ROSE: I think my quest was fundamentally bound to the nature of this land, which was customized to the profile, needs, and potential for growth of a thirteen year-old girl. ROSE: But I'm not that person anymore. ROSE: What if I ROSE: What if I just ROSE: Didn't bother doing it? ROSE: Like, ever? ROSE: Would anyone notice my dereliction? ROSE: Would the powers that be strike me down where I loaf? ROSE: What if I just said fuck it?“

“DAVE: she sees this quest all neatly laid out for her wrapped in a bow DAVE: fuck it even looks like its made for little kids with like pink turtles and rainbows and shit DAVE: like here you go princess its babys first quest DAVE: almost like it was designed to piss her off DAVE: sburb says here, self improvement delineated and made comprehensible enjoy your cookie cutter odyssey DAVE: so because shes rose she goes no fuck my quest DAVE: literally starts wrecking shit DAVE: and maybe that itself was always her quest“

Rose’s problems aren’t with Alcoholism. They’re with her regret over her Mother, what she has Done up until this point, and her Purpose to the overall story she finds herself in. Alcohol is a way for her to ‘connect’ with her deceased mother, to prepare herself to meet Roxy, and at the same time, to take a weight off her shoulders, to not have to Think about what she’s supposed to do. She’s stressed, anxious and has severe doubts about her Self. Vriska just wanted a functional Seer for the Upcoming Battle, but this underlying unease that’s what drove her to Alcoholism in the first place is not gone.

Terezi and Gamzee

Post-Retcon, Terezi never gets together with Gamzee. Vriska keeps her in check as her Moirail, Gamzee is tied up and suppressed, she never falls for his abuse, nor does she unblind herself. However if you think this solves Terezi’s problems in the slightest I don’t know what to tell you, really.

“GC: 1 DON'T KNOW WH4T 1S WRONG W1TH M3 GC: TH4T 1 C4N'T JUST S4Y STUFF L1K3 TH4T, D1R3CTLY TO P3OPL3 GC: TH3Y C3RT41NLY DON'T 4PP34R TO H4V3 TH4T PROBL3M

GC: 1 W4S JUST P1SS3D 4BOUT YOUR 4TT1TUD3 OF C3RT41NTY GC: 4ND 4NGRY 4T MYS3LF FOR NOT H4V1NG 1T GC: 1 TH1NK 1T'S SOM3TH1NG 1 N33D3D 1N MY L1F3 GC: 3V3N 1F 1T C4M3 FROM SOM3ON3 3LS3

GC: 1 N3V3R F3LT WHOL3 GC: 1 ST1LL DON'T GC: 4ND YOU M4D3 1T SO 1 D1DN'T H4V3 TO F4C3 TH4T F33L1NG GC: FOR 4 WH1L3 4T L34ST GC: 4ND NOW TH4T 1 TH1NK 1 KNOW TH1S 4BOUT MYS3LF GC: 1 TH1NK 1 G3T 1T GC: TH3 F33L1NG W1LL PROB4BLY N3V3R GO 4W4Y GC: ONLY COV3R3D UP 4T MOST, M4YB3 GC: W3 COULD W1N TH1S F1GHT GC: CR34T3 4NOTH3R UN1V3RS3 GC: SUCC33D 1N 3V3RY W4Y POSS1BL3 GC: 4ND 1'LL ST1LL F33L 1NCOMPL3T3“

“TEREZI: OH PL34S3 TEREZI: WH4T COULD YOU POSS1BLY N33D M3 FOR?

TEREZI: 1 DONT TH1NK 1 W1LL B3 V3RY US3FUL

TEREZI: 1 DONT H4V3 MUCH TO OFF3R 3V3N ON MY B3ST D4Y”

Just like Rose’s issues, Terezi’s run deeper than just her getting together with Gamzee and ‘fixing’ her blindness. It’s a deep insecurity about herself, which exists there both Pre and Post Retcon, and being with Vriska is but a Temporary Fix. She needs to experience what Game Over Terezi did in order to even bring herself to join the final fight, and even after that, she still goes to track after Vriska, after everything is done.

Karkat, Relationships, Leadership.

So, Dave and Karkat get together in the Post Retcon Timeline, so there’s no Relationship Drama with Terezi, and Vriska takes over the Meteor’s leadership, leaving Karkat to chill. This seems uncharacteristic of him, even, except that, of course, he doesn’t just give up to his role as a Leader.

“KARKAT: WOW! HAHA, HA, HAHAHAHA! ME LEADER?? TOO FUNNY! KARKAT: I AM ENTIRELY AND SINGULARLY BAFFLED THAT IT COULD STILL EVEN *OCCUR* TO ANYONE TO ENTERTAIN THE NOTION THAT I MIGHT STILL BE PLAYING *ANY* ROLE EVEN WITHIN SNIFFING ORBIT OF A LEADERSHIP POSITION OF THIS RIDICULOUS PARTY. KARKAT: WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME I DID *ANYTHING* OF A LEADER-LIKE NATURE, WITHOUT BEING TRUMPED BY VRISKA'S MACHIAVELLIAN LIMELIGHT GLUTTONY? KARKAT: OR FOR THAT MATTER, WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME THERE WAS ACTUALLY ANYTHING LEADERY *TO* DO, THAT DIDN'T INVOLVE SNUGGLING UP ON THE COUCH TO WATCH "GOOD LUCK CHUCK" FOR THE FIVE HUNDREDTH TIME?! KARKAT: I HAVE SERIOUSLY JUST BEEN ASSUMING HER COMPLETE TAKEOVER OF ALL LEADERSHIP DUTIES WAS SOME FAIT ACCOMPLI SHIT FOR THREE SOLID YEARS, AND HAVE SINCE BEEN ENJOYING THE PEACE AND QUIET OF ZERO RESPONSIBILITIES, WHICH IS WHY QUITE FRANKLY, I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO KEEP MY BLOOD PRESSURE DOWN, AND NOW RESEMBLE THE LIVING EMBODIMENT OF PEACE AND FUCKING TRANQUILITY WHICH PRESENTLY BASKS BEFORE YOU IN A STATE OF FROTHING, EUPHORIA-HOBBLED TURDVANA!!!!!!!!“

He’s extremely obviously bitter about being left out of the loop, and hurt about not being the Leader anymore. He jumps at the opportunity to go beat Lord English up without a second thought, and leads the initial charge, which doesn’t end exactly well for him. Echidna does, however, imply that Karkat will have an important part in actually leading the new Troll Civilization. Karkat is not the best leader when it comes to a War-like battle scenario- But if his conversation with Terezi after finding her Unblinded is anything to go by, he’s a great Emotional Leader. Even Pre-Retcon where all the Problems Happened and there was Terezi Drama, he provided support to her and got along with Dave, even if it took a little while. Being cast from his position as a Leader Frustrates him heavily, and digs deeper into the Doubt he displayed after he started having the realization that the Cancer was his fault. He’s frustrated, more impulsive than before, and even though he has Dave to back him up, it’s still tough.

Dave. Just. Dave.

Honestly, there’s not much of a difference between Game Over and Post Retcon Dave, is there? He’s dating Karkat, sure, but there’s not much else. If anything, the major difference comes later on, with the Dogfight vs the Jackfight. We learn from his talk with Dirk about his hatred for Bro, his dislike for fighting, the sound of metal, the sight of blood. His hatred of Heroism because of him, and it ties well to him not wanting to use his Time Powers or Fight Jade- Training him to become stronger, Grimbark Jade basically wanted to do the same to him as Bro had been doing since he was born. But he does grab his weapon- When he knows he can bring Jade back, if he just snatches her away from the Dogs. This leads to his Death. On the other hand, though, when he fights the Jacks, he has managed to actually have a Heart-to-Heart with Dirk, and vent about everything that’s been tormenting him. This fight, too, ends with him breaking the Unbreakable Katana and Decapitating Dirk, before warping him away from the fight so he could be put back together by Jane afterwards. There’s a Catharsis for Dave, but as he tells Dirk, it’ll probably just keep building back up for a few years before needing a feels jam again. He got enough of a resolution, but his problems weren’t gone, and even if they were gone, they’re not gone by the nature of the Retcon, rather, by the nature of Meeting Dirk, which he was actively prevented from doing so in the Game Over Timeline. This is a development we also see on-screen, so there can’t be much of a complaint about it, right?

Kanaya

Without Rose Drunk and with Gamzee restrained, Kanaya’s focus post-Retcon returns to the Matriorb and rebuilding Troll Civilization. This is a tricky one, because you could say that Vriska did help Kanaya with this, and it is true that, by proxy, Kanaya didn’t have to do as much in the Meteor. But, these aren’t her Problems, rather they are things she helped with, and furthermore the presence of Vriska in general poses a problem for Kanaya. Still bitter about her old Red Crush on her, and with her being Meddlesome and butting in on her and Rose, she expresses explicit distaste when talking to her. Vriska is just up in everyone’s business and being a nuisance more than she’s an actual help. As for the Matriorb, well, with the issues leading up to Game Over they didn’t even have the possibility to focus on Troll Repopulation, so it’s a thing that’s brought up exclusively in the Post-Retcon Timeline. This is solved effortlessly, which actually brings new thoughts and issues to the table!

“KANAYA: So Instead Of All That KANAYA: Its Just KANAYA: Handed To Me KANAYA: Like A Nice Present ROXY: yes KANAYA: I Dont Know What To Say KANAYA: This Changes So Much KANAYA: About Everything I Thought I Had To Do”

Kanaya suddenly isn’t as sure about fighting, with the responsibility she suddenly has- Yet Roxy encourages her to go take down Condy. This is paralleled by Davepeta telling Jade to just do what she wants to do! But more on this later.

Vriska vs (Vriska)

The hottest topic of the Retcon. Vriska’s Character Development is absolutely ruined by her being brought back, and you know what? I do agree with this! But that’s the thing though- I think this is good? Like. A lot of people complain about Vriska coming back and fixing everyone’s problems and being glorified, but as I’ve just displayed up above, Vriska is anything but Glorified. She’s forced everyone to do what she wants without actually solving any problem, she’s pushy, she’s cocky, and then we have a literal confrontation between her and (Vriska)...

“VRISKA: 8e quiet. I'm talking. VRISKA: Look at you. VRISKA: Just looooooook at you. VRISKA: How completely pathetic. (VRISKA): What? (VRISKA): What's your pro8lem?! VRISKA: My pro8lem is you make me fucking sick. “

“(VRISKA): I'm not a loser though! (VRISKA): I LIKE who I've 8ecome. (VRISKA): I actually feel happy and good a8out my life for the first time in... may8e forever?? (VRISKA): Like, ACTUALLY good a8out my life in a way that feels real, instead of forced. Don't you realize that's what it was like for us? VRISKA: You don't have a life! VRISKA: You're DEAD, remem8er?”

The Vriska vs (Vriska) interaction is one of my favorite parts of the entire Webcomic, because we have the Cocky Vriska that never actually developed positively, facing the Vriska that actually did have personal growth. Furthermore, neither the Plan to fight in the Session goes as she planned, nor does she gather the Army, or even lead it for most of the part, and ultimately her contribution to the Final Fight is to literally open the Juju Chest. She Steals the Spotlight, and the only ones to actually glorify this are the people in the Fandom. Everyone else within the story actually suffers more than they are actively helped by Vriska’s Actions, and that is what makes me absolutely love her leading towards the Ending. She’s the Savior Figure that comes back from the Dead to fix everything stereotype, except she actually barely fixes anything, and is an actively toxic force for most of the characters. Meanwhile (Vriska), after Aranea leaves them, actually does introspection about what she’d been doing and positively changes, culminating with a reunion with GO! Terezi. That is the culmination of Vriska’s Character Arc, Terezi Remem8er, and Vriska going for Lord English is ultimately detrimental for her Character. You can dislike that Vriska’s character ended up like that, but that’s the thing, saying that’s a bad part of the story is subjective, because it’s the obvious intention of the story to display this duality between Vriska and (Vriska)!

Not only that, but all I’ve said about these characters, about Pre vs Post Retcon, is entirely taken from canon statements by the Characters, straight up saying their problems in one way or another, and by the way their actions shape the stories. Both Pre and Post Scratch display the effects of the Characters’ deeper issues in different situations, how they cope with them and how they work towards solving them. You know why they all seem to fix their issues more Post-Retcon than Pre-Retcon? Because they don’t Die. It’s not that they’re even that differently developed, they simply get further. Rose was already talking to Kanaya about her issues before Game Over, Terezi was working towards fixing things and ultimately led to John’s Retcon Quest, they had different issues, stemming from the same main struggles, and that did not change at all.

I’d like to close this section with a quote by Hussie on Character Writing.

“I think writing in voice is pretty simple. It's mostly about consistency. Choosing a set of parameters and committing to them absolutely. [...] The advantage in being so obstinate with the profile you choose is then any deviation you make will be very noticeable. This is to your advantage, if you can control these deviations with purpose and precision."

And honestly? Dave still feels like Dave. Rose still feels like Rose. Terezi still feels like Terezi. The deviation from their core character is minor, and these deviations are, in turn, explored and talked about with their interactions, putting some context to what they’re doing and what they’re striving for. Honestly, I feel a lot of the issues with Game Over and the Post-Retcon Timeline come from the fact they were the... Post-Gigapause Updates, and a lot of people just forgot a lot of stuff. But let’s move on, this first section has gone on for WAY TOO LONG.

Act 7 wasn’t a satisfying conclusion to the story. Plot Threads and Character Arcs were dropped entirely, and everything was left incredibly ambiguous.

Let’s start this by pointing something out: Act 7 wasn’t actually the End of Homestuck. One of the reasons Act 7 might feel bad is the fact that a lot of things aren’t solved. And that’s alright, because Act 7 isn’t the Ending of the Characters’ Stories, nor is it the end of everything that happens. Act 7 is the culmination of Calliope’s purpose, the Finale brought to Lord English’ Alpha Timeline, and the Ending of the SBURB Session the Kids have played. Hell- The Credits, without even going to the Post-Canon Snapchat Updates, shows us that there’s still obviously more going on. Terezi is still looking for Vriska, Aradia, Sollux and Davepeta are missing too, John is depressed because he has nothing to do, Caliborn is being an asshole through Snapchat occasionally.

The thing is that a lot of Plot Threads weren’t actually solved in Act 7, rather they were solved before Act 7, sometimes even extremely unceremoniously, like with Caliborn’s Masterpiece. And most important events in Homestuck? We’ve actually seen how they begin, and how they end. There’s ambiguity in the way you go from point A to point B, as well as some Timeline Weirdness with some things, again, like Caliborn’s Masterpiece.

Additionally, a few things about the Final Battle, the fate of Vriska and Lord English and Paradox Space, have been left ambiguous, and this is not unintentional. You may dislike ambiguous endings, and that’s honestly, perfectly okay? The ambiguity, or the ‘anticlimax’, you can dislike it, but the spite held against the Ending is, mostly, subjective tastes?

This however, doesn’t even touch one of the most important things about the Ending, and that is, that we don’t have the Epilogue yet. We’ve been left with nearly the whole picture, nearly the whole Puzzle of Homestuck, laid out before our eyes, and there are still some pieces missing that could come from the Epilogue! But even without it, I do believe we have enough pieces to put most of the picture together, enough that the rest of holes becomes sort of, obvious, or easy to interpret in different ways? The Epilogue could offer closure to the things we don’t know about, but what I’ve seen around, mostly, is that instead of trying to give closure to these open questions about the story, people have rather resorted to getting angry at the whole of the comic! This is, really, the aggravating attitude that’s made me make this post in the first place trying to debunk some of the more popular Ending Criticism. If you have any specific ‘We don’t know how this happened!’ question, feel free to send me an Ask and we can talk about it! In fact, let me answer to one of those Asks right now.

“What happened to LE?” Unless the Epilogue does pull a switcheroo, the Ending obviously assumes he has been defeated. The symbolism of the Treasure taking the shape of a Cueball and LE’s eyes becoming 8-Balls, with the Breach as the ‘Pocket’ certainly implies he’s been cast into the Black Hole, but there could’ve been more of a fight! Does the Treasure open to free the Souls of the Kids? Does it just Attack Him? That is something that’s left up to the imagination at the very least until the Epilogue happens, and instead we’re left with the image of the Kids Happy on Earth-C- It doesn’t quite matter how he’s defeated, because we know that he has been defeated, and the Kids are living happily post-ending. This could change in the Epilogue, yes, but if it does change, then we’ll have more of the story to go, which will mean that wasn’t the True Ending to begin with, yet still leaving us with the tools to build an actual Happy True Ending. That is the beauty of ambiguity in a story when you DO have the pieces to build what happens until the story continues post-canon!

“Does caliborn still turn into LE?” He needs to do so to become Lord English, however the Masterpiece also implies the possibility of our Caliborn and the Caliborn that becomes Lord English being two different Caliborns. This is, again, left ambiguous in the same way LE’s defeat is. We do know he HAS to become LE, and we also KNOW how he becomes LE. But then the seed of doubt is planted- Is it the same Caliborn? And that is how speculation, talk and theories about the Ending spark, still giving a satisfying conclusion because we know it has to happen somehow, but leaving us to ponder about the specifics, without holding back on important pieces of information that we NEED to know.

“Where’s Vriska?” That’s what Terezi is trying to find, and it’ll likely be one of the main points of the Epilogue. The fact she’s still looking for her however, implies that she’s been missing for over three years. She has accomplished what she went out to do, defeat Lord English. Now the question is, will she come back and redeem herself? Or did she fall with Lord English into the Breach, as a Karmic Retribution of all the bad things she has done? Does she deserve the same Fate as the Villain? Or is there still hope for her? For a character as controversial as Vriska, I honestly love that her fate has been left ambiguous so far.

As for Gamzee, I mean he’s extremely devout to LE and he’s fated to become part of him, granting him a Plot Shield. We do know why he’s so hard to kill, and we also know exactly in what way he ends up becoming part of LE. There’s some weird things left Ambiguous, like his Ghosts, but even that it’s speculation that doesn’t necessarily influence the Ending Result.

As I mentioned above? We have most of the Puzzle Pieces, and the ones we don’t have are intentionally left out for us to fill the hole with our own headcanons and theories. I can’t think of any important thing we don’t see the origin or result of, leaving just certain bits in between to the speculation.

But some of the Characters had their Arcs Dropped, didn’t have their problems solved, or were shafted entirely by the story.

Here we start to get into more messy territory with the Criticism Endings, because rather than misunderstanding, a lot of these are opinions! For example, I do agree I would’ve loved seeing some more Jane towards the ending. However I really don’t think anyone was ‘shafted’ by the story. In fact, I’ve heard people mention how Davepetasprite and Jasprosesprite were, somehow, attempts at reducing the amount of characters towards the ending, and like...

What? So you’re saying reducing the amount of characters towards the ending is accomplished... By making new Characters that present us with really interesting nuances and takes on the world of Homestuck? Are you sure about that? Hell, if Hussie really wanted to reduce the amount of characters, he would’ve killed off every Sprite Pre-Retcon, and not brought Rose back from where Roxy buried her. Were Davepeta and Jasprose afterthoughts that weren’t planned? Purrhaps. But they add onto the story, they are not an attempt to reduce anything. That being said, a lot of people that say this also call the Ending ‘rushed’, somehow. Listen buddy, you can’t simply. Rush something like the Ending of Homestuck. It took way too much time to make for it to not be completely premeditated.

A lot of characters, too, have more Depth to their Arcs than people give Hussie credit for, and while they do suffer or while they don’t interact with someone else as much as other people may, that doesn’t mean they are shafted by the story.

But let’s do this one at a time. Let’s begin with Dead Characters, and just let me say that, straight up, having everyone survive at the end wouldn’t have been as satisfying as you may think. Could Equius have learned to stand up for himself? Could Feferi have done more? Yeah, sure. Could the Dancestors have been more developed? That’s also true! But Death and Conflict happen in Homestuck, and you cannot give every character an equal amount of attention. Furthermore, expecting every character to develop positively is also unrealistic and, honestly, bad? The Trickster Arc is a parody of this, in fact, an accomplishment of the innermost desire of have your problems go away, share everything you want to share and just do everything you want! That problem-less happiness for everyone feels forced and uncanny, having everyone come back happily and develop positively would be worse than having some of them die off. The Dancestors, too, are precisely the way they are as examples of stagnant Character Development. Even Aranea and Meenah, which are the most developed of the Dancestors, follow this same tend. Meenah mentions how Aranea acting the way she did is not unlike the stuff she always did, and Meenah struggles with the fact that she cannot change the way she is, and follows after Vriska and not (Vriska) because it’s in her nature to Do Shit. It’s fun to write about further development and AUs! But in the canonical story of the magnitude and with the themes Homestuck touches, you simply can’t develop them all equally and positively. And while they could’ve been given more screen time, also, well. With so many characters it becomes hard to balance time and interactions.

Jade is another character that many feel was shafted by the story, but honestly this is not true? She suffered the 3 Years on the Prospit Ship and Struggled with her nature as a Space Player and what she was supposed to do- Just like most characters struggled with something. And in the end? Against what she thought Paradox Space had stored for her? She woke up happily to a letter by Dave about missing her. She tried to pacify her dogs and played with them the way she wanted rather than being put to sleep or fighting them. She did what she wanted to do, not what she thought she was ‘supposed’ to be doing.

Jake is also a very complex character towards the ending. His insecurities are pushed on him over and over until he nearly gives up his friends- Note, this is the boy that died to protect Jane without a second thought in the Game Over Timeline. Vriska pushes his insecurities and Tavros really doesn’t quite help at all. And in the End? He manages to prove himself to not be a useless fuck-up by defeating the most amount of villains in the Final Battle, rising victorious on top of a pile of defeated, Time-Warping, Meddlesome Felt Members. The task Vriska had given to him as she thought was the least important, and that happened to be one of the most difficult battles without a single doubt. Here, I would’ve personally liked to see more dialog about Jake finding out more self worth? But the sweet reunion with everyone else and with Dirk leading to Act 7, and the return of his Adventurer Persona by the Credits still expose development.

Jane is also mentioned to have been shafted at times. I would’ve loved to see her hug Dad when they reunited, but I’d say we got even more with her clinging to him in Earth-C during Act 7. Other than that, though? One of the things Jane has suffered for the most in the comic is being repressed and controlled. Condy, Jake shoving her in a more than desirable situation for her... However, her meeting with Jade and Callie bring some excitement and fun after being Mind-Controlled for a long time, and her encounter with Nannasprite reinvigorates her with confidence about being a Heroine herself, leading to the final Battle where she proves to be both a powerful healer and aggressor! And by the end, not only is she finally able to do what she wants, she takes over Crockercorp to make it her company as she wanted, and ends up with two lovely Girlfriends.

Indeed, there could be more to them, there could be more dialog, more is better after all! But I don’t think their Arcs are cut short, nor that they’re shafted by the story. Rather they showcase different struggles with reality and with themselves, that they need to overcome? And as Dave told us, Humans don’t have Character Arcs. They build up confidence towards the Final Battle to finish everything, to win the game together, and then they reunite one last time before passing into the New World. And here they will still have problems, for sure. But at the very least, the Game is finished, and they can leave behind a very unpleasant stage in their lives. Jade was Isolated, Jane was Corrupted, Jake was shamed, but in the end they reunited again, made amends where they needed to, and continue their lives with their unique sets of nuances and problems. John and Terezi, which are given some of the most development, are the two that end the most unhappy, in fact, with John having no purpose anymore and falling to depression, and Terezi obsessively chasing after Vriska still, but this doesn’t mean John’s character was ‘shafted’. His friends still encourage him, Jade still wants to visit him for his Birthday, everyone misses Terezi, they have each other and they all love each other, but internal struggles continue. As the Trickster Arc taught us, it’s something to work on, progressively, not suddenly have it all be fixed, and going through a bit of suffering to reach a happy end doesn’t mean being shafted, either.

The story conveys what it wants to convey with the characters. Whether you agree with what they convey, or if you’d want there to be more about them, now that’s an entirely different can of worms, and that’s why Fanfiction exists and why you’re not only allowed, but encouraged to give your take on the characters and the story!

The problem with the Ending is that it tried something the Story wasn’t. The ‘Meta’ elements, the ‘Symbolism’, it’s cool, but ultimately feels tacked on/Wasn’t conveyed properly through the story, and as such, made the ending feel bad.

This is honestly one of the criticisms I dislike the most about Homestuck when people talk about the Ending, when people say that Hussie didn’t convey his intent, and trying to make the Ending more Meta is detrimental to the Story as a whole and what ‘got the fans there in the first place’, or the thought that somehow more Meta elements and actual Storytelling can’t coexist.

You can definitely not enjoy thinking deeper about a story! If you just want to check out something different and not dig deeper into the content, that’s absolutely okay! However, I’m sorry, but that is not the kind of story Homestuck is. This is a story that’s been acclaimed by the Fandom for its complexity and its weirdness, and now you’re telling me that the thing you dislike about the ending is that it’s weird and makes you think about the story? That’s paradoxical on its own. But let’s leave that behind. Whether you enjoy the more Meta aspect of stories or if you prefer a story one way or another, it’s all subjective. Let’s go to the main point here.

Hussie. Didn’t convey the kind of story it was? And it’s a disservice to the Fandom to have the Ending be something you have to dig in deeper to understand? Honestly, I don’t even know what to say about this, because this is not even like subjective opinion or disliking the ending, this is a complete misreading of the Canon, of the way the story Explicitly tells us how things work. You can interpret a lot of things in Homestuck in different ways- But you cannot say that there’s nothing to interpret and the Ending is bad because it pretends there is.

This is the story that the Author himself has called both a Creation Myth- Explicitly telling us the point of the story is a tale about Reality and living in this Reality, with explicit in-comic talk about the place people have in a Universe with Predetermination, Existential Struggles of just about everyone. This is the story the Author called “A story that is also a Puzzle”- Inviting us to read through the story while providing some deeper bits of lore we could piece together to get a wider image of what truly is behind Homestuck. This is a story where the Author himself is a Character- Miss me with the ‘not Meta’ stuff, Hussie is a character, explicitly, in-comic, that affects the story extremely directly. Jade escapes literally through the Fourth Wall. Caliborn takes over the literal narrative of the setting. Homestuck acknowledges itself as a story multiple times.

You can dislike this. You can absolutely dislike this, it’s a preference, but call it what it is, you just not enjoying this kind of story, or not enjoying the direction the narrative took in general compared to your expectations. The intent and symbolism of the comic is exposed, canonically, pretty blatantly, and even more blatantly by word-of-god with Hussie’s old Formspring and Tumblr answers, and I bet it will be even more blatant as the new Books with Commentary come out.

By blaming Hussie and the Comic on your general interest in the deeper themes of the narrative, you’re outright misinterpreting Authorial Intent in order to make you feel better about not understanding a story, and at the same time, refusing to even give it a second thought! You’ve reached the Ending, so I’m assuming this a story you enjoyed. If you enjoy it, do you really want to just walk bitterly away without giving it a chance?

That’s yet ANOTHER thing I don’t quite understand about this kind of criticism, and it is... Okay, you get to the Ending, and are disappointed that a lot of stuff you wanted to see happen didn’t happen, but- And this is not as true anymore, but back during the Act 7 Days, there was militant dislike about the Ending to the point of saying it ruined the rest of the story? It honestly feels extremely childish that an Open End to a story as complex as Homestuck could make you hate the entire story instead of wanting to know more about it, to see if you missed something else!

I sincerely do believe that a lot of people just dragged themselves through the Ending because it was an old Fandom they were in and they wanted to see how it ended, but just weren’t invested in the story anymore at that point, so they went in remembering and taking the shallow details, leaving the depth behind, and then were disappointed when their own lack of interest sabotaged their view of the comic.

Homestuck is dense, it is a Story with a ton of Symbolism and a lot of weird themes, but it’s also incredibly charming with its narrative and its characters. And for that, I am not saying that ‘You SHOULD enjoy the Ending, god dammit!’. I’m not saying that at all. As I’ve said multiple times, you can dislike Symbology in Stories, you can dislike the directions the Story took, you can dislike anything about the comic itself!

But do understand, when you give criticism of the Ending, try not to tangle actual criticism about the Story or the Narrative with Subjective Opinions. You can say you dislike how dark Blade Runner is, but you can’t say Blade Runner is a bad movie because it’s dark.

So if you don’t like Act 7, more power to you. But if you prefer to have something you apparently enjoy enough to have gone through it to the ending, ruined by your headcanons, and leave you bitter instead of seeing if there’s something more to the story or if there was something you missed, well. I feel that’s a little bit silly?

But whether you enjoy the Ending and want to dig deeper into the story and what actually happens in Homestuck, or you think I’m just a dumb fangirl reading too much into a dumb Webcomic and would like to tell me, feel free to send me an ask! I sincerely do enjoy debating about the Comic and what happens in it as long as it’s done in a civilized manner.

Thanks for Playing.

#Homestuck #Homestuck Ending #Upd8 #Act 7 #Rapture #Epilogue #Credits #HSE

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gulescamisade · 8 years

Text

Alaska: Day 6

DAVE: -at this point, he's probably right up against karkat and mituna. karkat for the purposes of comforting him, and mituna because he's the warmest motherfucker here. and daves likely warmer than mituna, so win-win. he's wide awake, shivering, in an undershirt and boxers. His head is pounding although he feels tired, the dizziness still very much a thing, so much that it's making him sick. he's doing everything he can to stay grounded, which means highly relying on emotional defenses he used a long time ago. GOTTA KEEP GOING. GOTTA STAY ALIVE. even if he feels like he's going to puke-

MITUNA: -His left arm is essentially just for show by now. After it essentially breaking against the wing of a buzzard his arm being separated at the joint entirely, it was useless. Well except for consistently reminding him that he's in excruciating pain. Dave moving causes lava to fire through his nerves, making him scream awake and vomit from pain. These megaman boxers do nothing.-

DAVE: -widens his eyes at the scream and vomiting and turns to look at mituna incredibly apologetically- s sorry

DAVE: k kind of a d dick way to s say s s sorry but i r really am

MITUNA: -He sniffs, wretching a little before regaining what little composure he has. At least this pain distracted from the screams in his head. He doesn't think he could bear hearing Terezi rn-

MITUNA: a7 lea57 i know i75 57ill a77ached hehe FUCK

MINDFANG: -With their talking shes starting to stir from what could supposedly be called sleep, not that she had been able to get more then a few minutes now and then. Shes not far from the pile of boys and she opens her one eye to look at them.-

DAVE: hahaha yeah -he's not quite sure he can make it out of this without frostbite. damn his vulnerable human anatomy and his fucking back which is making it hard to move at all- so

DAVE: anyone got a p plan

MINDFANG: I have.... 8een considering...options. -Takes a short breath in between every few words.-

MITUNA: 5park5 are 57ill ou7 of commi55ion

MITUNA: really 5hor7 lived -Leans more on Dave even though holy shit this hurts. Get this warmth-

MINDFANG: My powers are.... also... still unavaila8le. MINDFANG: I attempted....using them while.... you were sleeping. -Directed at Mituna. Yes she tried to pry into your mind, but sadly to no avail.-

MITUNA: dick move

DAVE: ch challenge one of those asswipes to a r rap battle -chattering teeth- h hey whos that one g guy who l likes troll p pokemon

MINDFANG: Smart actually.... If it.... worked on you... then i could consider...trying it.... on... our guards.

DAVE: ho dont do it

MITUNA: youre 7hinking abou7 7av and ruf

MINDFANG: I just said I cant-- -She hisses and then cringes immediately after. Instant regret her ribcage is onfire.-

DAVE: hey maybe if we just g glue ourselves to each o other we can have o one functioning b body

MITUNA: wi7h wha7 dildo hole

DAVE: good question

MINDFANG: Do you...have...an answer?

DAVE: fuck no

MINDFANG: Then your idea...is useless.

DAVE: d did they also j jack up your s sense of humor

MINDFANG: No, 8ut you seem... to have never had any to 8egin with.

MINDFANG: Also...Fuck jokes right now.

DAVE: burned

DAVE: iced

NYALAH: -with as much blood loss, the trauma of injury that her body has endured, and the lack of treatment, Nyalah is quite literally struggling to be alive right now. The only indication that she ISN'T dead is the shallow tick of her pulse. Otherwise, her blood matted body remains bound and crumbled. Too still against the frozen, terrible conditions of their imprisonment.-

MINDFANG: Refrain from mentioning...ice. -Shes shivering already. Underwear and tanktops do not make for good snow gear.-

DAVE: fire

DAVE: -poor nyalah... he wishes he could help her-

MINDFANG: -Please dont die Nyalah, thats a lot of bodies.-

MINDFANG: 8etter.

DAVE: you know what would be cool

DAVE: having a robot limb

DAVE: hows that workin out for you serko

MITUNA: i could u5e one righ7 abou7 now

MINDFANG: -Shes staring so hard at dave right now.-

MINDFANG: -Maybe if she thinks hard enough he will choke on his own spit.-

MINDFANG: If we survive this...

MINDFANG: Ill 8e certain you get one.

DAVE: thanks

DAVE: youre the real mvp

MINDFANG: You are welcome.

NYALAH: -at some point, her breathing is becoming rapid pants. Limbs twitching with tiny convulsions.-

MITUNA: 5hi7

MINDFANG: -Nyahla gains her attention. Oh dear, looks like the cat isnt going to survive after all.-

MINDFANG: -She frowns. Its really a terrible way to go.-

MITUNA: no no no no no no no -Flops and starts trying to inch to her-

DAVE: anybody know anything medical DAVE: that might help DAVE: -also attempts crawling toward her. Shit his back is SCREAMING-

MINDFANG: Not...without the supplies to...8ack it up.

MINDFANG: -She looks away from Nyalah now, out of respect.- 8e 8etter off ending her suffering.

DAVE: wheres her main injury coming from

DAVE: where is she bleeding out the most -he is working his way out of his under shirt, ripping it with his teeth so he can get it off. he may just have to use it to warm her-

NYALAH: -that would be the stapled gash from the vulture beak on her side. It's been agrivated as they were tossed around and not exactly been allowed to heal. She even lies on her belly as an unconscious attempt to guard it. And with the blood that had seeped from the crushing of her horn, things were not looking up for her.-

DAVE: -he decides YES he will use his shirt to warm her, and just kind of identifies her injuries so he doesn't hurt her, laying the torn shirt over her curled body and positioning himself so he's against her where it's least harmful-

MITUNA: -Gently flops over her to keep her warm-

NYALAH: -after a half hour of difficulty, her breathing begins to stablize and she passes out once again. Still breathing.-

DAVE: -we're doing good. mostly-

NYALAH: -it's another half hour before she starts to stir. Sniffing at the bitter air. What might be Dave's hair.- (hff)

NYALAH: (daven)

DAVE: no the better d dave -ITS SO COLD BUT SHES AWAKE AND TALKING THATS GOOD-

NYALAH: ....none better d than daven only ask him -It's strange. She's not so raspy or slurring at her words like she usually is. Could be she hasnt had nip in a while or. Who knows. She curls closer to him.- huddle

DAVE: ok thats t tmi but yeah huddle -WARMTH-

NYALAH: -shift shift. There's someone draped on her.-

MITUNA: -hisses- ow fuck

NYALAH: wait

NYALAH: -slowly starts to pry herself to sit, regretting her own actions but. She's gotta.- psion

NYALAH: -sniffs him.-

NYALAH: dislocation? -asking for a friend. She's sitting up more now, face scrunched up in pain. There's still a considerable welp on her cheek from being slapped around.-

MITUNA: -Groans- yeah and i 7hink i75 broken below the elbow his arm is having a bad time-

NYALAH: kay -hffs, starting to shrug off Dave's shirt. Using only her toes, she stuffs the rag into Mituna's mouth.-

NYALAH: stay -Now bringing her feet over to set by his shoulder. The contortionist cat. Keeps him in place.- sorry in advances

NYALAH: -and then applies a swift force to snap the joint back into place.-

MITUNA: -His scream dies in his gag. She's forced in back in place but disturbed the stab wound that caused the dislocation in the first place, blood gushing from his shoulder.-

NYALAH: shhhh -picks the shirt from his mouth and presses it against the wound. Brow furrowed in concentration. Even using that much force was agrivating her own wound.- n33ds catalyst

MITUNA: oh my fucking FUCK

NYALAH: lay still -doing her best to staunch the ooze of blood. Eyes bright with pain.-

DAELOS: - swings back into consciousness. he wasn't even aware he has slipped in the first place, he's so cold. he can't believe what he's seeing at first, Nyalah moving around after sustaining such heavy injuries. His snorty breath coming out in puffs as he drags himself over.-

[[ The Expunger isn't around currently, and the legislacerators that are there don't seem to be doing anything to stop their talking or mending one another. One of them simply watches. ]]

NYALAH: -puts her whole blood stained paw foot on Daelos's face.- alive

MITUNA: -Choking back sobs, the air stinging his cheeks- 57op moving dunka55

DAELOS: - Shocked for a second, and then kisses that bloody foot- I can see that

DAELOS: - He has nothing to offer but his weight. He leans it in to help her with Mituna-

DAELOS: - It should make things go faster-

NYALAH: -gross. Totally helping Mituna spoon with Daelos.-

MITUNA: -Jesus Christ his world is on fire. It's hard to tell if the screaming in his head is his or the voices-

DAELOS: - Gently crushes you-

NYALAH: -looking that one Legislacerator in the eyes as she attempts the wiggle her biocuffed arms under her butt. Gonna sit on these arms and manuever them up to her front.-

SEAKRAIT: -watches her do this... and the other legislacerators are too preoccupied looking out around them. She doesn't do anything to stop Nyalah.-

NYALAH: -okay cool. Uses her still bound front paws to keep pressing the shirt to Mituna.- NYALAH: sp33k to me

MITUNA: 7hi5 big blue 7ain7fuck i5 colder 7han fi5h nook

DAELOS: Rude... e%ceedingly rude -he will keep lovingly crushing u tho-

NYALAH: best things in life are cold as fish nook NYALAH: fur example NYALAH: fish nook -chirring as best she can. Comforting.-

MITUNA: -Maybe one day...he will know-

NYALAH: -Pls.-

MINDFANG: -Yall are being gross.-

DAELOS: - Scandalized snort. - Really Nyalah

NYALAH: its survival

MITUNA: -Wonders how Feferi is, suddenly-

FEFERI: -Pretty glubbing dead! Like always!-

MITUNA: -Lol get rekt-

NYALAH: -keeping her arms close to her middle, she is giving these biotech cuffs a careful look ver.-

NYALAH: -discreetly shows them to Daelos for him to have a peep at. He's the one who might know how they work and all.-

DAELOS: - Has an intent peep.-

DAELOS: - Of course he knows how they work, but he kind of averts his gaze. He doesn't want to cause a scene and get someone else battered or killed-

NYALAH: -That's good enough for her. She starts to scoot off and inspect Mindfang.- mrrp

REDGLARE: -She's been pretty quiet-- it's hard to tell the difference between her being awake and her being asleep, aside from the speed of her breathing. Her eye opens, and she casts a glance towards the group-- failing to linger for more than a second on each face-- before closing it again.-

MINDFANG: -Her eyes are shut, she was trying to at least pretend she was asleep in hopes that maybe it would give her a brief reprieve from the pain she was in with fractures and a break or two all over her ribcage. At least she hasnt lost a lung yet.-

MINDFANG: -When Nyalah approaches though her eye squints open.- .........What are you doing. -Keeps her arms wrapped around herself.-

NYALAH: -sniffs her.- s33ing

NYALAH: -scoots painfully past her to inspect Redglare.-

REDGLARE: -her leg is gross. bad and getting worse a little too rapidly. She doesn't acknowledge her outwardly.-

MINDFANG: You yourself should 8e resting....

MINDFANG: Its impressive you are still 8reathing now...Do not push it.

NYALAH: -hffs and sacrifices her own shirt to attempt to bind Redglares leg with. All she's left with is a sports bra and how visible and equally gross the gash on her side is.- im pushing it

NYALAH: til i cant push no more

MITUNA: -Groans-

REDGLARE: -opens an eye again to look at her. She's not sure she understands this... why she's doing this.-

NYALAH: -because it's the harder thing to do. Also she almost died about an hour ago and is probably only moving out of adrenaline shots.-

DAELOS: - Silently gets emotional about this cat. -

KARKAT: =She's doing it because she's a good person and someone has to. He's not really responding to all of this just watching it. Heartwarming as it is. He's just been stupidly crying on and off in the cold but at least someone's got their shit together=

[[ Seakrait straightens up and looks elsewhere pretty quick, almost like she's hearing something no else is. ]]

SEAKRAIT: Yes, sir.

SEAKRAIT: Everyone on your feet!

NYALAH: butt face

NYALAH: -stays huddled with Redglare.-

DAELOS: Nyalah, obey them

DAELOS: Please

DAELOS: - Panicked-

NYALAH: -okay well she's going to stay to help Redglare stand then.-

REDGLARE: -She blinks her eye, looking up at Seakrait. Her voice is kind of quiet as she murmurs.- l3g's w34k. N33d to-- ngh. -holding onto her support.-

REDGLARE: ...Th4nk you.

SEAKRAIT: Orders are to relocate, -she snaps to the rest of the legislacerators.- \|/e're taking them to the pitfall.

KARKAT: =Great. a hole to put them all in=

MITUNA: 7ha7 game 5uck5

NYALAH: -quickly skirts her arms up behind her back and bows with the pain of having to stand.- i have two whole leg

NYALAH: and you two good horn

NYALAH: its even exchange

REDGLARE: h4h.

SEAKRAIT: -She reaches out and grabs onto Karkat's arm, deciding to drag him along in front of the group.- Move.

DAELOS: - Does his best to stand. It's not easy. One leg is useless and his good one is split at the foot. He wobbles. -

NYALAH: -limps along with RG.-

[[ Legislacerators still flank the group on all sides, encouraging their trek. ]]

KARKAT: =clenches his jaw and fights to not jerk his arm back. But he's just so goddamn tired of this and their game=

REDGLARE: - it's one dang slow trudge, that's for sure.-

DAELOS: - He tries to take a step. He falls. -

MITUNA: -He's trudging along-

MITUNA: -Stops for Daelos-

SEAKRAIT: -oh gdi. She snaps back at Mituna and Mindfang- You two get him moving.

REDGLARE: -glances over at Daelos... Eye drifting towards Seakrait again as she barks an order.-

REDGLARE: th1s wh4t you s1gn3d up for?

DAELOS: - Maybe he could shuffle if he has a wall to lean on or if the ground was not snow but at this stage he cannot walk. It's humiliating of course but not compared to the rest of their situation. -

MITUNA: how do you propo5e we do 7ha7 nookbrea7h

SEAKRAIT: I propose you do it. -ignores Redglare-

MINDFANG: -Glares right at Seakrait the entire time shes bending down to help Daelos up.-

MINDFANG: (8est to keep moving, they seem to h8 dead w8.) -Internal screaming as helping to take any of his weight feels like torture.-

MITUNA: -Tries to lean down to try and help him up-

DAELOS: - He's too mortified to say anything. He tried to avoid leaning on Mindfang as much as he can. - I apologize

MINDFANG: (Dont 8other. You are not the one who had the 8rilliant idea to maim a prisoners foot when you want them to-- -hff- move.)

[[ The group continues to be led by Seakrait through the forest, snow drifting gently around them in a too-beautiful discordance to the stains in the snow they leave behind them. Eventually, they see a familiar daunting figure in the distance, waiting nearby what is becoming ever more apparent as a giant hole in the earth. ]]

REDGLARE: -She laughs. Weakly and dryly.-

NYALAH: -presses her good horn at Redglare. One eye shut tight.-

SEAKRAIT: -She pauses just by the cavernous hole, releasing Karkat none too gently and looking over the crowd.- I'll do the honors, High Legislacerator.

KARKAT: The honors. Right. Like there's any honor to be had here. =He's just ready for the hole= Have fun.

SEAKRAIT: -She quickly sets up an automatic pulley system in the ground for climbing, tying the harness around herself, and then she moves toward Redglare. Looks like she's first.-

SEAKRAIT: You're lucky your survival will be left up to fate. But I'm not betting on it. -grabs onto Redglare's arm-

REDGLARE: -She pulls away from Nyalah.- p4ss3s for 4 tr14l, th3s3 d4ys, do3s 1t?

THE EXPUNGER: -gazes at the little crowd, chin high.- Don’t you worry. We’ll come back to retrieve your bodieS aS well, but only after Sufficient time haS paSSed to enSure you are dead. Luckily rot doeS not Set in So quickly in cold environmentS. You will Still be identifiable.

KARKAT: =He just tiredly looks up into the sky and sighs wearily= Fuck yourself on my horn when you come back. It'll be frigid enough for you.

SEAKRAIT: -She heads close to the hole, then grips Redglare tighter in her hold before shimmying them both over the edge and slowly... beginning to lower them down. Redglare can see the drop down is incredibly steep; it's unlikely most anything would survive a straight fall.-

REDGLARE: -it certainly is. She's mostly dead weight, anyhow.-

NYALAH: -shivers in the whole cold. Unable to protest or do much more than watch.-

SEAKRAIT: -They descend at a reasonable pace, but once they're a good twenty feet or so down, she holds Redglare tighter -- closer -- and begins to whisper.-

SEAKRAIT: (Don't speak. Be as quiet as possible down here. No one will hear you, but something else might. If you hear anything down here with you, don't let it find you.)

SEAKRAIT: (Focus on keeping yourselves alive as long as you can. Your leg is poisoned, but it won't kill you yet. I'm going to give you the antidote, bite down on it.)

SEAKRAIT: -She glances down to see how far they are from the floor of the cavern; it's about eight or ten feet now.- (If you understand, struggle.) -And then she moves to press her mouth to Redglare's for just a moment, slipping something pill-shaped inside with her tongue.-

REDGLARE: -uhm. UHM?? She might have struggled ANYHOW regardless of her understanding-- and she's not sure she does. Poison... antidote... no noise. She's helping them, maybe?? She squirms and struggles, letting out an MPH as she swallowd the pill down a raw throat.-

SEAKRAIT: -And she drops Redglare about six feet from the floor, laughing loud enough that she's sure the High Legislacerator will hear before ascending once again, leaving Redglare alone.-

REDGLARE: -The spark of clarity left, at least, keeps her quiet as she finally hits the ground, with a start.-

SEAKRAIT: -SHE'S COMING BACK UP FOR THE REST OF THE GROUP. One by one she's lowering them down-- Karkat, Dave, Mindfang, Nyalah, Mituna, Latula, Aranea... and then finally, Daelos. Needless to say, he's more of a struggle. She says nothing to any of the others, but once Daelos is down, she spits on the ground of the cavern before ascending for the final time, and it hits the rock with a little plink.-

KARKAT: =A plink=

[[ A PLINK. ]]

MITUNA: -Two in the plink one in the stink-

[[ Shortly after they're left in the cavern, they will feel their powers begin to return. Also, it sounds like there's wind howling above; the storm on the horizon has finally reached their location, and the blizzard is kicking up. ]]

REDGLARE: -She does some very quick sign language as each is lowered. Silence. Danger. Time.-

NYALAH: -she had no powers to begin with but does take swift breaths of the icy air. The storm brewing. She shivers terribly.-

MITUNA: -Groans, but his eyes flicker, ever so gently-

KARKAT: =Silence, danger, time. He glances up hearing the storm=

KARKAT: =He's also going to go look at the plink=

DAELOS: - He's soon leaning into her, just like he had been with Mituna, except now he's trying to keep her warm, although since he's a blue blood it doesn't count for much. At least his hair is warm. -

[[ Funny enough, there's a pill in that plink. ]]

KARKAT: =A pill. He stares at it. It stares at him and he stares at it and it stares at him=

[[ It's sort of slobbery, but it looks like it has some kind of fluid inside. ]]

[[ You know. One of those fish oil looking pills. ]]

KARKAT: =Absolutely disgusting.=

KARKAT: =He can't believe that twat cheeked her vitamins from this morning=

[[ KARKAT PLS ]]

KARKAT: =COME GET YOUR PILL DAROLD=

MITUNA: -Soft crackling-

KARKAT: She spat this out.

MITUNA: (guy5 guy5)

DAELOS: - He doesn't realize he's been poisoned or realize that pill is for him-

MITUNA: (im ge77ing my 5park5 back)

REDGLARE: -She points at herself, her leg. Signs 'cure.'-

[[ Also on the plus side, the cave is a lot warmer than the surface, but chillier under the hole. ]]

NYALAH: -maneuvering her arms back in front of her. Looks to Redglare signing and Daelos's leg. Hhhhh. Alright fine.-

NYALAH: -picking the pill from the goo and stuffs it in Daelos's mouth. Keeps her hands clamped there and makes sure he eats it.-

DAELOS: -???? -

NYALAH: -rip in fucking pieces.-

DAELOS: - HORSE GROANY NOISE OF SURPRISE. but yes he supposes he would swallow this. -

REDGLARE: -signs JUST DO IT. like the shy le beef-

NYALAH: -also stuffs some snow in his mouth to help it go down easier.-

NYALAH: -eating some snow herself. Om.-

DAELOS: - NOW GET YOU FILTHY PAWS OUT OF HIS MOUTH-

KARKAT: =Don't it keeps him quiet=

KARKAT: =He just looks to the cave and starts to walk there=

NYALAH: -when the deed is done, she slinks off after Karkat. Clutching at her side.-

KARKAT: =How far back does this cave go? Is there any wood here? Is there a deeper part where he can just fuck right off?=

[[ The area of the cavern they're in is pretty vast, so it'll take some time to navigate the perimeter, but from first glance, there don't appear to be any exits. ]]

DAELOS: - Following this, he continues to eat the snow that looks the freshest-

REDGLARE: -Seems like the first and only time they'd be able to treat their wounds without being under duress. Her flask would've actually been useful if they didn't take her. Damn.-

[[ There are some fallen leaves and logs around beneath where the hole is above, rotting slowly. ]]

REDGLARE: -instead she starts to mill around the ground. Looking for some good, sharp rocks.-

KARKAT: =Relatable. But he looks around=

[[ Rocks are, at least, in abundance here. Such as sharp, pointy stalagmites and stalactites, for example, but there are probably some other chips and things around. ]]

NYALAH: -doing her best to wipe the grime from her wound with snow. The less she moves, the more the pain catches up to her. She actually has to stop and lean up against a boulder, just to focus on breathing and not vomiting.-

[[ The snow probably won't help Daelos and Nyalah with hydration too much, with the cold lowering their body temperatures and making it more difficult for their bodies to retain the moisture, but it at least wets their mouths. ]]

REDGLARE: -She wouldn't know Flint from any other kind of rock, so she's just looking for something that's sharp enough to scratch marks into the walls of the cave. Maybe having some concievable goal is enough to stop thinking about what she saw just last night.-

MITUNA: p5557 7ula

LATULA: -HEY BRUH DONT MIND HER SHE IS TOTALLY STILL TRAUMATIZED- LATULA: tun3z???

DAELOS: - With the help of the cave wall he's able to slowly drag himself to his feet. As long as he leans against it, he can follow it in a circle, keeping his eye out for anything that might be missed. -

NYALAH: -finds some crevice to curl into, holding herself as she comes close to passing out again. So cold.-

MITUNA: 5how me your hand5

DAVE: -he definitely needed some help bring the only pathetic human in the group. his fingers and toes are lookin pretty blue, it's a little concerning. his back aches every time he moves, he stopped shivering a long time ago, when they were still outside. now when he speaks he's mumbling into his numb arm just lying there- theresno mmm snow

KARKAT: =Dave doesn't look good at all. Karkat looks at him then walks over to try and cover as much of him as he can= Sh. =cups his hands between his own= We need a fire going.

MITUNA: -Ahead of you, Kark. He's floating logs over, stacking them in a pile. His eyes glow, and his head swims from the concentration. Suddenly, optic blast, but it's weak, drying the logs more than anything rn-

LATULA: -She holds em out... fingertips are a little black.- dud3 your 4rm

LATULA: 4r3 you gonn4 b3 good???

MITUNA: Mnnnngh

LATULA: oh SH1T!

LATULA: dud3 FUCK!!!! TH4T WORK3D?

DAVE: -his hands are numb between karkats- gotta keep goin to the tunnel underground

[[ The logs give them the SMOLDER. ]]

KARKAT: =Blows warm air on Dave's hands= We need fire. If we find a hot spring down there you can punch me.

[[😘 ☁️]]

MITUNA: -Oh thank fuck. He stops, and starts blowing on the logs trying to get that fire going-

DAVE: how much time we allocate for naps DAVE: we cant waste time

REDGLARE: -LOOMS WITH A PAINFUL LURCHING STEP and holding up a rock.- (m4rk th3 w4lls wh3r3v3r you go. 1f th3r3 4r3 tunn3ls 4nd you g3t lost. c4n follow th3 l1n3s b4ck.)

KARKAT: Dave. Shut up. I'm getting you warm. Shut. Up.

REDGLARE: (surv1v4l f1rst. work out sh1fts. st4y qu13t.)

MITUNA: -Guess who has a fire going?-

NYALAH: -a little too quiet in her corner. Everything is being too much for her body.-

LATULA: -holds her hands over it...-

[[ The logs slowly catch into little flame at Mituna's encouragement. The wind howls overhead, sending heavier snow down through the hole. ]]

LATULA: th4nk fuck1n god...

KARKAT: =Thanks Mituna. He's putting Dave closest to the fire and sitting behind him. Snug up against his back=

DAELOS: - He carefully nestles Nyalah in his arms and slowly brings her closer to the little fire. Maybe being warm will do her good. His brow is cinched with worry. -

MITUNA: -Makes a psionic barrier at the top of the hole. Fuck you snow. This is a terrible long term plan btw. He's quiet, concentrating-

LATULA: -hand on his shoulder- uh

LATULA: 1t 41nt push1n too hard 1s 1t? 1n th3 br41nm34tz?

MITUNA: 5h we go77a re57

NYALAH: -definitely 100% unconscious again, even as Daelos keeps her close.-

DAVE: remember when youwere hella wrm

MITUNA: (ju57 le7 me be u5eful)

KARKAT: =mumbles against Dave's shoulder= Remember when I gave you that manicure? =It was like, not even a few days before all this. Holds up Dave's hands to the fire and just tries to focus on him=

LATULA: ...1m proud of you b4b3z.

DAVE: -pauses- ohyeah

DAVE: sall fucked up now

DAVE: youre so quiet (arewe whispering)

LATULA: but 1 sw34r to sh1z 1m gonn4 b34t your butt 1f you push yours3lf to f4r.

LATULA: >8P

MITUNA: ehehehe be7 on i7

KARKAT: I guess.

DAVE: -his breathing is a little shallow- im gonna go to bed while everyone elsisleeping now

KARKAT: =Makes a face against him and scrunches his nose= Run out of jokes already...?

DAVE: yeah

DAVE: ran out of em

MITUNA: -Keeps this roof going, it's just collecting snow. Good news is it helps keep the heat trapped too.-

KARKAT: Okay.... just. (Get up later.) =mumbles and holds him but lets him rest=

MINDFANG: -Shes returning from having done a quick survey of the immediate area of the cave. And also she had felt the need to move just to keep her brain working again. The sense of getting her mental powers back had come with a huge relief and now she is joining the rest of the group by the fire. Arissa carefully sits down and starts to dig her fingers into the joints and spaces of her metal arm to clear out snow and ice that she had felt trapped in there for hours.-

DAELOS: - While Nyalah sleeps he carefully melts snow in his hands and tries to wipe away the debris around her ruined horn without making the wound bleed again. -

DAELOS: - It would hurt if she were awake so now is the time-

ARANEA: -she's been conscious probably?? she's in alright shape, comparatively, though her chest hurts like a motherfucker and it's been keeping her quiet. she can't stop watching dave.-

NYALAH: -too exhausted to even protest or react to the streak of pain. She's out like a light.-

DAVE: -if he just...closes his eyes... a little...-

KARKAT: =Rest... but just let it be rest.=

KARKAT: =On second thought he's a finicky motherfucker and just all of this is settling wrong to him= ...Mn. No. Okay. Just. No jokes then. =Dave is so squishy and vulnerable, no sleep for you asswipe=

DAVE: are we spooning

KARKAT: Yes. You're welcome little spoon.

DAELOS: - He notices the way Aranea is staring intently at the poor little human and gives her a questioning glance, looking up from Nyalah for a moment. -

ARANEA: -catches his glance, meeting it with an unyielding concern. she scoots closer to daelos and fixes her attention on nyalah instead for the moment. she wonders if she can help her now...-

DAVE: -he is starting to fall asleep again- k

KARKAT: No kays.

KARKAT: Hum one of your dumb raps.

DAELOS: - Scoots to make room for her, she feels to cold nudge of his nose as he talks in her ear. - (Are you alright)

ARANEA: -turns her head to brush cheeks with him- (I'm... Just concerned.)

DAELOS: - Sighing- (Well... there is certainly cause for it)

DAELOS: - He always imagined he would die in a hole but he wants something better for his loved ones and crew members. -

MITUNA: -He keeps asking for death. And yet....-

DAVE: -hums something unintelligible that kind of sounds like my humps-

ARANEA: -she shares some of the light eminating from her fingertips with nyalah. she will likely stay unconscious, but hopefully it will be a more restful kind of sleep. the pain inside her head should begin to subside. concentrating is difficult for her, but her own strong sense of self preservation is motivation enough to keep trying to exercise her abilities. they have better chances together. and after what she saw yesterday, she isn't exactly willing to let anyone else fall at the hands of those bastards.-

DAELOS: - Seeing this warm his heart. Perhaps... just perhaps there is a chance they will make it out of this. He nuzzles Aranea gratefully. -

DAELOS: Thank you

ARANEA: -leans into him, only nodding in response. but maybe some of that light will transfer to him too...-

MITUNA: -He's sweating next to the fire, quiet with the strain of all this snow accumulating on his barrier. His brain is a muscle that hasn't been exercised in forever. A time ago he'd be able to do this no problem. He grunts softly, trapping the collected snow in a psionic bubble and moving it past the entrance of the hole to plop that huge pile somewhere else. Sorry guys, no ceiling for a while. He breathes a little heavy-

DAVE: -he's been practically forced to stay awake because concussions are great and karkat won't let him go to sleep anyway. he's still pretty out of it, but the warmth seems to be doing at least something. he ain't dead yet right?-

MITUNA: -He's really tired you guys-

DAVE: -tired club-

MITUNA: -snow starts drifting into the hole-

TEREZI: =Would have been proud of them.=

DAVE: -rude ass dead rude ass-

MITUNA: -Gdi Excalibur-

TEREZI: =shup=

MITUNA: donde...e57a...la biblio7eca

MITUNA: me llamo 7 bone la arana di5co7eca

DAVE: -watches mituna even if he looks blurry-

MITUNA: -Come on Dave you know this one-

MITUNA: di5co7eca

MITUNA: muneca

MITUNA: e5 en bigo7e grande pero man7eca

DAVE: manteca bigote gigante

DAVE: pequeño

MITUNA: la cabe5a e5 nieve

MITUNA: cerve5a e5 bueno

DAVE: -takes a good minute before saying the next part- buenos dias me gusta papas frías

MITUNA: lo5 bigo7e5 de la cabra e5 cameron diaz

DAVE: -another minute- yeaboi

MITUNA: -Soft bomb noise-

DAVE: -breathes- when are we

DAVE: gettin out

MITUNA: no7 ye7 bu7 youre bein pa7ien7 a5 fuck -A snowflake lands on his nose. He's exhausted, but he's still floating a couple logs to the fire. The wet logs snap and crackle with moisture-

DAVE: were gonna

DAVE: get out of here

MITUNA: yeah i know -He glances up. He's only gonna rest a little while longer before continuing to keep the cold out for everyone. Just thirty minutes alright? He doesn't even know how long thirty minutes will be...but still.-

MITUNA: fuck america though dude

[[ Mituna could try counting 1-Mississippi, 2-Mississippi all the way up to 1800-Mississippi. ]]

[[ It's even the spirit of USA! Amurrica, frick yeah! ]]

MITUNA: -Fuck you America-

DAVE: dude dont

DAVE: youre doin some stuff

DAVE: you gotta calm down

DAVE: with your teleport

DAVE: teleconnecticut

MITUNA: i go77a...do 5ome7hin....even if i75 ju57 givin your 5orry a55e5 a chance 7o re57....ehehe

DAVE: we have a fire were good to go

MITUNA: i75 no7 57rong enough ye7

ARANEA: -she's been drifting in and out of consciousness. being cool blooded as she is, the cold is taking it's toll on her. but being slightly delirious, she doesn't think much as she starts wiggling in dave's direction, her hand out towards him.-

DAVE: -watching aranea and this hand thing she's doing and it reminds him of movies and dead people and angels and all he can do is look at her- im dead now

MITUNA: lmao lucky cock5ucker

DAVE: oh nope im alive

MITUNA: poor bi7ch

ARANEA: -ha... is he likening her to an angel? dont' be silly, boy. she touches his shoulder, or hand, or whatever she can get ahold of first and lets the little bit of warmth she has to offer extend to him-

DAVE: -just like that, he feels it...a warm sensation putting feeling back into his fingers and his toes. he watches her carefully as this happens, without a doubt a little confused and delirious with hypothermia but...it appears that his fingers and toes begin to lose their blue color-

MITUNA: -Grins a little, but he's so tired. His head lulls back, eyes fluttering closed. Just for a moment. Just for thirty minutes.-

ARANEA: (We're going to get out of here.) -affirms what he was already saying... if he had any doubts, he couldn't possibly now.-

DAELOS: -LOUD SNORING ON NYALAH DURING THESE TOUCHING MOMENTS.-

DAVE: -his gaze meets hers and he slowly nods- were gonna

NYALAH: -no worries. She's affectionately chewing his neck fat in her sleep.-

MITUNA: -Probably about 44 minutes later he puts the psionic ceiling back up-

[[ Sleep MORE. It means you need it! ]]

DAELOS: -Except at some point he wakes up. His sleep is rather restless. And other than Nyalah chewing on him, he notices that Aranea has left his side and wiggled more towards Dave. And they're holding hands.-

DAELOS: 👀!

DAELOS: -Well. It's cold and humans are fragile. Perhaps it's merely kindness. He tries to go back to sleep.-

DAELOS: -He finds it a bit difficult to stop low key watching them, though.-

ARANEA: -for once doesn't notice when she's being given extra attention... she's zoning in and out a little too much while still looking at dave.-

DAELOS: -MMmm.....-

DAVE: -his fingers are moving a little now that they actually feel like they exist. he's not sure what's happening now but he also doesn't have the sense or strength to get up and do something else-

DAELOS: -On second thought, he doesn't want to look at this anymore. He's gonna slowly just turn so he's facing the other direction. And eventually he'll be able to sleep.-

#cranktankerousGeneticist #coltishdaedalian #nemeanCatapult #academicgeniality #trojanabstruse #gladiateCarnifex #technologicgodot #gnarlycradz #abscissionGalliard

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gulescamisade · 8 years

Text

Alaska: Day 4

ARANEA: -hovering over everyone in the group, eyeballing them before she moves onto the next person. she keeps prodding about how people are feeling, which seems a little strange... after all this is ARANEA...-

MITUNA: -He's...existing. That's about it.-

ARANEA: -👁️👁️ x4 -

MITUNA: WH47 7H3 FUCK 4R3 Y0U G4WK1NG 47

ARANEA: Nothing! I apologize. I just wanted to make sure everyone is feeling well...

MITUNA: 81NCH WHY W0ULD 4NY0N3 83 F33L1NG W3LL L00K 47 7H15 5H17 W3R3 FR33Z1NG 0UR 8ULG35 0FF(edited)

LATULA: y34h b4b3z 1dk wh4t your3 scop1n but 1tz m4k1n m3 n3rvous.(edited)

ARANEA: There's no need to get hostile or suspicious a8out it. ::::/

MITUNA: -scowls at her-

LATULA: soz 1t l1k3 4 n3rv3z th1ng or do you gott4 p33 or wh4t????

ARANEA: That's rude!

ARANEA: It's only that... If someone is feeling ill, or if they hurt themselves... I would like to help.

MITUNA: 1M G0DD4MN FUCK1NG P34CHY

LATULA: th4t 41nt rud3 th4t qu3st1on 1s l3g1t 4s FUCK dud3 1 wouldnt w4n4 poty 1n th3 snow f1rst off 1tz gonn4 fr33z3 4ND TH4N som3 wolv3z 4r3 gonn4 b1t3 your 4ss c4us3 th4tz how th3y m4rk t3rr1tory.

LATULA: not 3v3n ONC3 dog.

LATULA: -She rubs her hands together a second.- pffffuck 1 dunno wh4t s1ck would 3v3n f33l l1k3 1m 4LR34DY sh1v3r1ng 4ND my thro4tz r4w from 4ll th1s br34th1ng 4nd sh1t????

LATULA: fuck th4t whol3 3nt1r3 no1s3.

[[ Distant, ominous awoos ]]

ARANEA: -gets a chill- ... Right. That makes sense...

KARKAT: =He will sneeze on a wolf and punch it in the ass, but he's sleeping forever=

MITUNA: -Basically drapes over Latula-

[[ Even further away is the sound of a predatory screech, much like the sounds from the first night. ]]

DAELOS: -He was snoozing. He opens one eye- There is no need for-

DAELOS: Uh -DID ANYONE ELSE HEAR THAT-

MITUNA: 1 H0P3 17 3475 M3 F1R57

ARANEA: -scoots back over to daelos...-

[[ At least the snow and sky has stopped being a douchbag, amirite? ]]

KARKAT: =Alright he can't sleep through that, he cracks his eyes open. Feeling like considerable garbage but its congestion and body ache. Fuck the entire sky=

LATULA: bruh!!!

DAELOS: -Wraps his arms around her.- >:I -He will punch you in the face if you come near his girlfriend, nature-

TEREZI: =walks up and adds more branches to their firewood collection, shivering.=

MITUNA: JU57 3ND 17 DUD3 1M U53L355 4NYW4Y

TEREZI: H3Y NOW, TH4TS QU1TT3R T4LK

MITUNA: 7H475 M3 N00K7007H

LATULA: BRUH YOU 4R3 NOT!!!!

KARKAT: FINE THEN IT'S A HEAP OF BULLSHIT. LOOK AT ALL THIS BACKLASH YOU'RE GETTING FROM TALKING YOURSELF DOWN, FUCKWIT. ROLL IN IT.

MITUNA: -Grooooooooaaaaaaaans-

KARKAT: THAT'S FUCKING RIGHT.

ARANEA: -leans into daelos... why did they have to get stuck with so many loud people???-

DAELOS: -He was just thinking the same thing. Just listening to them gives him a head ache-

LATULA: dud3 cmon 1 dont m34n l1k3--

LATULA: FUCK

LATULA: you 41nt us3l3ss c4us3 1 sur3 4s fuck n33d you h3r3.

LATULA: th4t 41nt som3 fuck1n cullfuck t4lk. -She squeezes him pretty tightly, still kinda shivering.-

MITUNA: C4R3551NG Y0U G3N7LY W17H MY H3478UN5

LATULA: uh Y34H? you th1nk 1m4 l3t 4ny of th3s3 chuckl3fuckz do th4t????

DAELOS: -He feels sort of uneasy.- What sort of wild life lives in this part of Earth

REDGLARE: H1rsut3 m4mm4ls. -She approaches the fire from the NEARBY SHADOWS, wings folded down. They look like they've been in better shape. Not a cold weather appendage...-

TEREZI: =flips through the internets. It sure is weird they still have communications all the way out here.=

TEREZI: THR33 SP3C13S OF B34RS, C4R1BOU, MOOS3...M33S3?, WOLV3S, S3V3R4L B1RDS...WOW

TEREZI: FOR B31NG 4N 1C1CL3 H4NG1NG OFF 4 G14NTS BUTTH41RS, TH3 W1LDL1F3 1S PR3TTY D1V3RS3

KARKAT: DOES THAT THING SAY SHIT ABOUT CIVILIZATIONS AND THINGS WE CAN FUCKING GET OUR HANDS ON? =sniffs wetly and grossly through the nose and the gills=

TEREZI: =turns to him= H3Y, YOU DONT SOUND SO GOOD >:[

ARANEA: ... -HOVERS over him now-

KARKAT: WHEN HAVE I EVER SOUNDED ANY TYPE OF PLEASANT--HOLY FUCK.

KARKAT: =EYEBALLS=

DAELOS: 👀

ARANEA: Hello... Is it possi8le you've caught a cold from ah... Fishing?

TEREZI: =holds up a kleenex to his face= TEREZI: H3R3, BLOW

KARKAT: REALLY? WELL HERE I THOUGHT BLOWING FLUIDS OUT MY NOSE AND ASS WAS A PART OF MY WEIRD FISH THING. =I mean... he isn't about to argue with her but the blowing is pretty gross and there's just a lotta mucus in his body, man. Good thing he's wearing a jacket, saves everyone's eyes some trouble=

TEREZI: > :[ =look of intense concern=

KARKAT: DON'T MAKE ME TOUCH YOU WITH MY FILTHY HANDS TEREZI, IT'S FINE.

TEREZI: =moving to open his jacket to check out those gills= TEREZI: =they're by the fire, it'll be fine=

KARKAT: =Okay no, he puts his hand on her face= OH MY GOD PISS OFF IT'S OKAY.

TEREZI: =muffled= NO YOUR3 NOT TEREZI: YOU SOUND L1K3 YOUR3 UND3RW4T3R

KARKAT: DROWNING UNDER THE WEIGHT OF MY MISTAKES PROBABLY.

TEREZI: 4LMOST...TH3R3....

KARKAT: NO, FUCK OFF, KEEP YOUR MITTS TO YOURSELF. =bats at her hands with his other hand, it's gross in there=

TEREZI: =the world needs to see these glorious abs!=

ARANEA: ... -glances around. then casually plarps karkat's shoulder from behind. in a matter of seconds, a warmth starts to travel through him from that spot, like its searching for the source of his ailment... and then it collects in his chest and throat and head, slowly clearing out of the congestion.-

DAELOS: 👀

MITUNA: WH47 7H3 GL0835

KARKAT: =Not if they're covered in weird fish snot. Also he jumps at the plarp, about to gripe when a weird warm shiver trails through him. It doesn't do anything for the nasty little collection of jelly in his shirt but he can breathe.... HE CAN FIGHT........ TURNS to Aranea, talking clear as a bell... well aside from his usual voice scruff= ......WHAT THE FRESH FUCKING SHITBASKET?

MITUNA: 7H47 700

DAELOS: Tone down the l00dness, please

DAELOS: She did you a favor

DAELOS: -HAUGHTY HORSE SNORT-

KARKAT: DON'T TELL ME HOW TO LIVE MY LIFE.

MITUNA: Y34H G0 FUCK Y0UR53LF

MITUNA: G3N7LY

TEREZI: NO W41T GUYS S3R1OUSLY

ARANEA: ::::)

ARANEA: Do you feel 8etter, then?

TEREZI: JUST...H34R H3R OUT FOR 4 M1NUT3

KARKAT: ASIDE FROM THE SLIME IN MY SHIRT YES.

KARKAT: SO. THAT'S NEW. AND I'D RATHER HEAR WHAT THE ENTIRE DEAL IS WITH ALL OF THAT.

MITUNA: WH47 7H3 8L1573R1NG 5H178R15K37

DAELOS: Hmph -he would argue more, but he doesn't want to steal Aranea's limelight, so he'll hold his tongue-

ARANEA: -she's pleased just knowing it works! clasps her hands together.- It isn't so unusual, is it?

ARANEA: These a8ilities came to me when we were on LOMAT... I had a theory that I used them to help Terezi, 8ut I haven't had much opportunity to test them since.

MITUNA: -Squints-

TEREZI: =she cleared her throat and shrugged awkwardly= 1TS TRU3

MITUNA: -SQUINTS MORE-

KARKAT: SO IT'S ALL AROUND SHIT... OKAY WELL. LET'S NOT USE THIS AS AN EXCUSE TO BE STUPID AND GET HURT BUT.... THANKS.

DAELOS: -Yes, good. Praise her.-

TEREZI: =nods= TH4NK YOU

TEREZI: TH1S...TH1S 1S 4 GOOD TH1NG

TEREZI: 1TS 1NCR34S3D OUR CH4NC3S FOR SURV1V4L

MITUNA: 0K4Y 8U7 WH47 3L53 C4N 5H3 F1X

ARANEA: -looks at him curiously- What do you mean?

KARKAT: =He's here for this he's also just..... gonna slip away to clean his torso but keep in earshot=

TEREZI: =goes to help him=

TEREZI: =she has all the tissues, even the ones imbued with lotion=

MITUNA: 175 4 PR377Y 345Y QU35710N

MITUNA: Y0U CUR3D K4RK47 0F 5N07 R07

MITUNA: 15 7H47 17 0R C4N Y0U F1X 4NYM47H1NG

ARANEA: ... -ah yes, she sees- Hypothetically I could. ARANEA: As I said, I haven't had much opportunity to test my limits. -starts to approach him-

MITUNA: -Still hanging on Latula. She approaches.- UMMM

ARANEA: -she won't hurt you 8888) -

MITUNA: -SHE DOESN'T KNOW THAT- WH47 1F Y0UR L1M17 15 N1N3 7H0U54ND

ARANEA: Hm? Nine thousand what? -is this a meme... squints-

MITUNA: -....maybe-

MITUNA: UM

MITUNA: 8U775

ARANEA: -rolls eyes, but otherwise ignores it... instead she holds out her hand- Mituna, would you like me to help you?

MITUNA: MNNNNNNNNGGGGGGG

ARANEA: -just smiling... yes, it must be unsettling-

MITUNA: -So anyone gonna interject or is he just her new project now? Mituna glances around- 1 GU355

TEREZI: =thumbs up= >:]

MITUNA: -Excalibur no....-

DAELOS: -He thinks this is an excellent idea. He has poor judgement-

KARKAT: =He can't really say shit= JUST DO WHAT YOU'RE COMFORTABLE WITH. =At both of them. Squinting while Terezi helps him de-snot=

MITUNA: -That's his secret Karkat. He's never comfortable-

KARKAT: =Gdi Mituna=

MITUNA: G0 F0R 17 1 GU355 WH475 7H3 W0R57 7H47 C0ULD H4PP3N

TEREZI: =Being as gentle as possible=

TEREZI: =she might be asking him to expel air from his gill slits. Dont worry, she can catch the snot with her hands=

MITUNA: -Gross-

ARANEA: -what's the worst that could happen INDEED... she draws in nearer to him, extending her hand further till she's touching the side of his fluffy head.- It's alright.

ARANEA: -she recalls that day -- when mituna made such a great sacrifice for the crew. yes, she was preoccupied with her own... life changing decisions... at the time, but who doesn't know the story of what mituna did to keep them out of harms way? she owes him so much. they all do, really, and she hopes this is an opportunity for her to give back.-

ARANEA: -he'll remember it too. for a moment, perhaps too vividly, and the light pulsing from her fingertips won't help the wash of aches in his head. but it passes soon enough when warmth replaces it -- not only physically, but the knowledge that what he had done changed so many lives for the better. but that wasn't the end of his story. there's much more for him.-

KARKAT: =This is true love, but he's also watching this=

MITUNA: -He's reliving it again. Everything far too vivid, and far too correct. There's so many details he'd lost in the muddle of his brain over the past perigees. But he'd saved everyone. He'd helped. Still, he wanted to help more, feeling like nothing more than a burden recently. Warmth flooded his body, something comforting as light came to his pan. Things were getting clearer, he remembered everything, but it was easier to. Faintly, hints of crimson and cerulean started coursing across his scars.-

TEREZI: >:o

ARANEA: -there's a light in her eyes watching this unfold, watching the change happen. and after another moment, she draws her hand back.-

ARANEA: How do you feel?

KARKAT: =Peeps also=

MITUNA: -He's quiet still. Little pops of psionic energy emanating off of him. He feels...right. That's only way to describe it. Things work the way he remembers. Then there's this dull roar starting in his head, a familiar and not missed ache coming to sound like a soft roar of jet turbine. He squint-

MITUNA: grea7 7hank5

MITUNA: 7hank5 a lo7

MITUNA: mmmmnnnnnnn

KARKAT: IS THAT SARDONIC OR NOT? =But he's not yelling to the world but also.... the squint and mms=

ARANEA: -SIDE EYES. she's wondering the same...-

MITUNA: -Rubs his head-

MITUNA: no i75 cool really 7hank you

KARKAT: =Well shit.... this is a game changer. He's glad for it though, Mituna seems okay=(edited)

LATULA: -WELL SHIT IS SURE RIGHT???-

ARANEA: -smiles, satisfied with that response- You're welcome.

MITUNA: i 7hink i need 7o lay down

KARKAT: OKAY MAN...... TAKE IT EASY.

MITUNA: -Lays face down in the snow-

KARKAT: YOU FUCK. THAT'S NOT TAKING IT EASY.

MITUNA: -First use of psionic powers: Constructing a snow middle finger while laying face down in the snow. 🖕 for you Karkat-

KARKAT: =SNRK, he'll take it=

TEREZI: TUN4

TEREZI: W4V3

TEREZI: PO'S 4SK1NG 1F YOUR3 OK4Y

MITUNA: -Turns his head and fashions his hand into a V, poking his tongue through the middle-

TEREZI: 4CTU4LLY WHY DONT YOU S1T UP? 4LL TH4T SNOW C4NT B3 GOOD FOR TH3 F4C3 >:\

TEREZI: =begins construction of a smallish snowtroll=

[[ While most of the campers lay sleeping, the predatory cries return, echoing across the vast terrain. The calls seem closer tonight, driving in a cold dagger of restless unease. ]]

#cranktankerousGeneticist #coltishdaedalian #academicgeniality #nemeanCatapult #technologicgodot #trojanabstruse #abscissionGalliard #gladiateCarnifex #gnarlycradz #gulesCamisade

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