Test Drive Meme II

[eternitymods]

A. RETRIEVAL Dreams fade slowly, and awareness returns in increments. The hum of machinery, the smell of recycled air, the murmurs of others waking up around you. The interior of the ship has been outfitted with cots for those Biggs and Wedge retrieve from the Dream Width. Outside of the makeshift infirmary, windows set into the walls of the worn lounge area offer a view of space. It’s time to meet your fellow new arrivals who have been brought together on Biggs and Wedge’s airship. The other newly-awakened people have no idea how they came to be here, but now's a good time as ever to introduce yourself to the others on the airship and glean what information you can. B. CURTI CENTER The researchers at the Curti Center are not quite so unprepared as last time, but it is still obvious that they are struggling to understand the sudden influx of interdimensional travelers from the Dream Width. "Please step into the lobby for a quick survey. Perhaps there is some common thread we haven't discovered yet..." The staff will do their best to help the off-worlders settle in. They answer the questions they can, write down all proffered information they can about the arrivals' homeworlds, provide maps and pamphlets about Vaikuntha and the destinations within it, and even guide the arrivals to a neighborhood where housing has been provided for you. Yes, due to the strange influx of arrivals, you’ll be expected to share, but the Curti staff are doing the best they can, considering they are still housing the previous arrivals here on the island. Experiences like these bring people together. Perhaps you are the only one here from your world, but at least you are not alone in this experience. Others are right beside you, learning the same information, planning trips to visit the same new cities, checking out these Job things, and settling in to their new (temporary) homes. C. UP IN THE SKY There’s a whole new world to explore. It’s almost enough to distract from the fact that there’s one place you can’t go- home. You are on an Airship, the main mode of transportation between the major cities of Vaikuntha. While the majority are owned by airlines, perhaps you hitched a ride with a friend that has their own. You can go anywhere in a matter of hours — One can only hope you don’t have motion sickness. D. GUILDS Proud representatives of the Guild are lined up, ready to demonstrate their skills for the new initiates. Make sure to stay behind the designated line, this might get dangerous. So you want a new Job? You'll have to first travel to the Guilds, sign the papers, go through the orientation and introductory lectures, and get basic training. Afterwards, you can freely chat and practice with your fellow members, celebrating your new powers, and checking out your new wardrobe. E. LET'S BE ADVENTURERS Separated from all of your material possessions, connections, and everything you know, and really, what you’re left with is time. Better try to make the most of it. Enough expository banter. It's explorin' time. Maybe instead of spending every day in your room, you'd rather spend it living it up in the city of Lavode, or betting on Chocobo Races in Sparks Goldsaucia. Or maybe you'd rather go and explore the caves and ruins near Arito. With Airships and Chocobos at your disposal, you can go nearly anywhere! F. SIDEQUESTS Maybe you’re telling yourself, ‘I didn’t sign up for this.’ But wait, you did. At least it pays. It all started when you checked the Quest Board.  All you wanted was a few gil to spend, and here you are in the wild, hunting for a Malboro Vine. Or maybe you are in some ancient and decrepit ruins looking for an artifact. Or you could be asked to be janitor for a week. Consider yourself lucky though, at least you don't have to do that alone. G. GET A JOB (THE OTHER KIND) You’ve got a Job, but Claire keeps sighing and muttering about layabout space-people not earning their keep, so it might be time to seek out Employment as well. There are plenty of opportunities to earn some gil in Vaikuntha, no matter where you choose to settle down. Your iMog slate includes listing for employment opportunities. Hopefully you can find something you can live with so that you can start saving up for an airship or the security payment for your permanent housing. H. MOGNET *Ding!* You’ve got Mog-Mail! Thankfully, you can instantaneously chat with your friends around the world thanks to you iMog Slate. And unlike old-fashioned Moogle Letters, you can even send messages to everyone in a blink of an eye! However, despite the change in technology, the old tradition of Mognet Strikes have never gone away. Nobody knows any more whether the Moogles have legitimate reasons to go on strike or if they are just lazy. But today, Mognet is down, and to get information you have no choice but going to the public boards or risk message corruption and mishandling. I. RANDOM ENCOUNTER The ground trembles, and out of nowhere, something hostile appears! Is that battle music playing? You were minding your own business walking around, and suddenly monsters attacked you! Time to put to use the skills you've learned with your Jobs! Will you try to fight on your own or seek help? And remember, you die in random battle, you die FOR REAL. There’s no shame from running from enemies that are a higher level than you! J. CHOCOBO MADNESS You look at the giant chicken, and the giant chicken looks back at you. Could this be the beginning of a beautiful relationship? The kind folks at the Chocobo Farm have provided you with the tools of the chocobo-catching trade: greens, a bridle, and more advice than you can remember. Time to go find your new steed. Or perhaps you have already captured a chocobo, and your friend has captured a chocobo, and now you'd like to bring some chicks into the equation. Chocobo breeding may be the minigame for you! K. WILD CARD Feeling inspired to create your own prompt? The power is yours!

Comments

<3 I'm so hype to have a Gladio to antagonize

[sonoftenebrae]

[Be assured, the hatred is mutual. Ravus' voice drops to a quiet, angry hiss.]

You dare speak to me of traitor and cowards, Lucian? You know nothing of my sister and I, what your kings have cost us! [The word may as well be profanity, the way he hurls it out like a curse.]

Go on then. What do you plan to do? Trample around like a dumb beast until all is revealed to you?

Every time I see this thread and that you've responded I cackle and tear up

[hashtagdaddy]

[Gladio sucks in another breath, trying to breathe deeply and remember that the presence of innocent bystanders (horizontal in sleep though many may be) means he can't just punch Ravus in his obnoxious, Niff-loving face.]

I planned on finding the pilots and asking them what's going on since they should have some idea of what's goin' on, seein' as they're taking us from wherever they grabbed us to ... wherever we're going. [Yea, that sounded eloquent. This guy's probably going to insult his intelligence again, snarky shit that he is.]

But yea, I'll 'dare to speak to you of traitors and cowards' you pompous ass. Your sister is doin' her damndest to help Noct forge a covenant with the Gods. She's kept in touch with him since they were kids, even after the Niffs took your home. [He's standing now, staring down at Ravus with absolute disgust dripping from every word as his eyes narrow into slits.]

An' you decide to throw the blame at King Regis' feet. Like it's his fault the Niffs did what they did. An' if that's not enough you join them. You're fightin' alongside the same bastards that killed your Mom and that are tryin' to run down your sister. So yea, I'll call you a traitor for that - for abandoning Luna to fuel whatever revenge you think you should get on my King. An' I'll call you a coward for not standin' by her side an' fightin' those Niff assholes tooth and nail.

[Arms crossed over his broad chest, Gladio huffs. Fuck, this conversation is going nowhere and all it's doing is getting him angry. And making him worry about Noctis. About Iris. About Ignis and Prompto.

Fuck this. He turns to walk off, fully prepared to actually leave the platinum blond stewing in his bed this time, but can't resist throwing a comment over his shoulder before he leaves.]

I'd rather trample around and kick some rocks loose than sit here lookin' as pathetic as you.

[sonoftenebrae]

[The slumbering strangers are the last thing on Ravus' mind. He held his sister's body and watched her fade away to continue her duties even in death.]

Do not speak her name! [His voice is choked with fury, because fury is the only think keeping utter despair at bay. He pushes himself out of his cot to follow the Shield who had failed to protect King and Oracle.]

You presume to know anything about us? Do you think Lunafreya would have been permitted to serve as Oracle had I fought against the Empire your king abandoned us to? Do you think they would even have permitted us live, had we not accepted their rule?

[Ravus has lost everything, and there is no longer need for secrecy. Everything he has done was meant to save his sister, but the Astrals were too cruel to grant such mercy. He reaches out to seize the collar of Gladiolus' shirt, his voice going low and murderous.]

You know nothing, you ignorant, bumbling oaf, and if you ever imply again that I turned against my blood, I will have your slanderous tongue.

[hashtagdaddy]

If you don't take your hand off me, I'll take it off of you. [He had expected Ravus might get up, might try to make this fight physical. But Gladio does not expect the unadulterated rage in the man's eyes - rage he can tell has something else under it.

Unfortunately, he doesn't know what that something else is nor is he inclined to care. He's grown since their last meeting - stronger physically and mentally after undergoing the Trial - and he's more than sick of hearing Ravus run his mouth about the Lucian Kings with petty insults that definitely aren't getting to him at all interspersed throughout.

So he wraps one hand around Ravus' wrist and starts to squeeze, grinding the bones together, and as he turns he pushes until he slams the older man against a wall with his other hand pressed against his throat. That hand remains loose enough to allow air-flow, but that could easily change at any moment.]

And if you keep blaming my King for Tenebrae's fall, I'll squeeze the life right out of you. [His voice is a snarl, the words a promise growled out between gritted teeth.]

I'll concede t'not knowing much about you or your sister if that'll shut you up, but you're no better. You don't know a damn thing about King Regis or Noct an' I'm gettin' tired of you actin' like you do. [The more he thinks about it, the more it makes sense - Niflheim definitely wouldn't have allowed Ravus or Luna to live if they both rebelled against their rule... damnit. And learning that the elder brother had joined the Empire to spare his sister - well, that's something Gladio understands better than he'd admit considering he's an older brother himself.

He sure as shit isn't going to say as much to Ravus though. Bastard's smug enough as it is.]

You really think King Regis just abandoned you two? That he didn't care about the people who hosted him and his injured son? You're dumber than I thought. An' Noct might've been young but he's not to blame either an' you know it. [He glares at Ravus again, debating whether or not he should cut off the man's airflow just because he can.

Ultimately, he decides not to. After this disaster of a wake-up, what are the odds they'd see one another again anyway?]

You wanna insult me like a fuckin' child? Fine. But don't you dare question my King's honor or insult my broth - insult Noctis. It's not like I'm insulting Lunafreya. And I never would - she's a great ally to have an' once the covenants are forged it'll be an honor to get to know her, especially since she's clearly the only Nox Fleuret with any godsdamned sense.

[sonoftenebrae]

[Stripped of their skills and his magitek enhancement, Ravus is at the disadvantage against Gladiolus' sheer size. Pinned against the wall and held by arm and throat, he is nonetheless prepared to continue the struggle, to hurl back that he blames not only the coward king, but Gladiolus' sire as well for Tenebrae's abandonment...

...until Gladiolus mentions Lunafreya's covenants, and what the Lucian hoped would come after. Like a puppet with strings suddenly severed, Ravus goes slack, suddenly devoid of fight, the murderous light in his eyes gone dull. With Gladiolus' grip on his threat, he can't turn away to hide the devastation on his face. Choking the life out of Ravus would have been far kinder than this.]

You. Understand. Nothing. [He reiterates, voice gone gruff with pain.]

There is no 'after' for the Chosen Oracle. The Astrals know neither mercy nor charity, and give nothing without taking exacting their due. You thought your King and his Bride would live out their days in wedded bliss?

[The sound he makes is a pained mockery of laughter.]

Go ahead, take my arm. Take my life, for the sake of your slain king's slandered honor. Lucis has taken everything from me. Why not claim those as well and be done with it?

[hashtagdaddy]

[He expects snark. Biting words and more insults. He expects a struggle to escape his hold, filled with more anger and more hate.

Gladio does not expect this.

Seeing all the fight evaporate, watching as a horrific look of absolute loss takes its place, feeling Ravus sag with the weight of it all - it shocks Gladio to his core and he loosens his grip on the man's wrist.

And that noise. It's so much like the one he made when he finally mourned the loss of his father, of his home, in the empty darkness far enough from his sleeping friends that he didn't wake them yet near enough he could spring into action if trouble arose.

Gladio's hand moves from Ravus' neck to grasp the front of his shirt, mirroring how Ravus grabbed him mere moments ago, and confusion fills his face and voice as he presses for information with a voice softer than he though possible to use when talking to Ravus.]

What? [An incredulous shake of his head.] I thought they'd at least have some time to just be before whatever final bullshit the Astrals threw at them. Gilgamesh said somethin' ... but I figured I'd be dead before either of them fell.

[Yea, Gladio knows that if the wedding occurred or even if Lunafreya simply joined up with them sans marriage his shield would expand to her as well. She's done more than enough - or ... she had done more than enough...

Shit.

Releasing Ravus' wrist completely, Gladio pulls his arm back and slams his fist into the airship's wall.] Dammit!

[He wants to ask how it happened, when it happened, but this isn't the time. His heart aches, remembering how he felt when he wasn't sure if Iris made it out of Insomnia. But at least he knew she was alive, even if she might not be in this strange place.

Ravus didn't have that - not anymore. And it's only a little irritating when he realizes that there's a part of him that wants to comfort the man. The other parts win out for now, and he simply releases his hold entirely and takes a step back.

His voice is rough with the thoughts and the shock running through his mind, but his words are sincere.]

I- I'm sorry. She deserved better than whatever it was that happened. [A hand hovers over Ravus' shoulder, Gladio unsure how the small gesture of sympathy would be received, as he continues.] Your arm and your life are yours, Ravus. Y'really think Lunafreya would want you to throw them away over some petty insults? I might not've known her, but from what I knew of her ... I'd rather honor her by not killing her blood.

[sonoftenebrae]

She deserved every happiness she could have imagined for herself, and more beside. Given time, Noctis might have proven worthy to share it with her.

[He makes that admission for Lunafreya's sake, and Ignis', for they had both loved the king enough to offer up their lives for his. Perhaps, in smaller measure, he says it for Gladiolus as well, in recognition of the anger and sorrow that mirror Ravus' own.]

But Lunafreya made her choice, and neither she nor I have need of your pity, Amicitia.

[Because though they seem to be of one understanding about the cruelty of their loved ones' fates, Ravus cannot abide the sympathy of an Amicitia turned his way. There is some pride yet left in his blood.

Anger had long been a balm to his sorrow, and it is with a practiced motion that he forces the pain he feels down and deep away inside, wrapping fury around himself like a bandage to hold it in. Freed from Gladio's grip, he turns away, showing his back to the King's Shield.]

We each have duties left to us, so if we are not to cross blades, let us see to them.

[Because, as little as he likes it, Gladio is right. Lunafreya would want no more blood shed. If there was to be violence between the two of them, it would not be on this day.]

[hashtagdaddy]

[Gladio's face betrays his shock when he hears Ravus saying - out loud that Noctis could have been worthy of standing by Luna's side. He almost manages a smile, until the snark returns.

So instead of a smile, he rolls his eyes and glares at the platinum blond as said man turns his back. Gritting his teeth, Gladio once more grips Ravus' shoulder - this time to spin him back around - and keeps his hand there so the irritating jackass is forced to at least face him while he speaks.]

I don't do pity, asshole. [Annoyance coats his words, and he makes a mental note to leave Ravus off the list of those to whom he shows even an ounce of compassion. Stupid man-child.]

So take your shitty attitude and shove it. Either do something useful or go back to your cot and mope. [Sure, that's basically repeating what he said earlier but Gladio really doesn't care. He's wasted enough time with Ravus - he has questions and dammit he's gonna get some answers.]

[sonoftenebrae]

[Gladiolus apparently missed the important parts of the sentence. Emphasis on the 'might' and 'given time'. His physical strength may have grown since their last meeting, but apparently Gladio's mental prowess had not. The man could have taken the opportunity Ravus has offered and they could have made a dignified exit from each other's presence, but no. Gladio chose to grab him again.

Ravus can't physically stop the man-handling, so he makes his displeasure quite clear with his murderous expression.]

You certainly 'do' pitiful, Amicitia. [The name is equivalent to a slander in his mind.]

The only thing you'll achieve by barging into the cockpit is disrupting our flight and putting the passengers in danger. If there's intelligence to be found, [unlikely, given present company] the most likely place is the captain's quarters.