bravenewworld | Descent into Darkness

Descent into Darkness

As the characters arrive, they will find what appears to be a rather deep cavern. Upon entering, the caverns are quite narrow, with twists and turns everywhere and different tunnels that all seem to be interconnected. As characters travel deeper within the caverns, reality around them will start to warp, they will start to see and hear things that aren’t necessarily there - images of old enemies, past failures, voices of condemnation, visions that strike at the soul and core of the characters. Once this begins, it will only increase in power and volume, demanding it be confronted, lest they be trapped within these caves forever.

[OOC: This event will run for a week. All characters who enter the caves will be subject to some of their deepest fears, darkest demons, and most abject failures. To overcome them, characters must help each other out, finding their purpose through strength of character and resolve to move forward. In general, these visions should require characters to come to grips with themselves. Illusory images and voices can and will appear and can take any number of forms, depending on what is most appropriate to a character. Additionally, characters may thread with each other and are encouraged to help each other out to overcome these personal demons. For those who wish to take part, they are able and encouraged to narrate their own personal demons, which will be on display for everyone who enters their thread. IC threads may be made in this post.]

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[ physical contact doesn't just keep him grounded - it draws his attention like a magnet, and he's embarrassed by how his breathing stutters. there must have been things like this in his old life, but he can't remember them. all he's ever known is small flashes of touch, a child's hand in his own while he leads them along. the support of Lux's back pressed to his, prolonged, would be dizzying if it weren't for the fear that the Mage stirs up.

as it is, the contact draws Jack out of his shock and terror enough to breathe, to be focused rather than in a state of panicked alertness. ]

Right. The guy he's pretending to be wouldn't be down here, not in a million years. This is just a trick.

Do you have so little faith in yourself that you won't even believe your own eyes? [ a man dressed in white steps into view from one of the tunnels, his clothes formal and aristocratic, face hidden by a hooded white cloak. Jack stumbles away, his arm thrown out to shield Lux and usher her back too, even though the Mage's hands are folded behind his back and he shows no signs of aggression. ] Well, she asks me to be plain, and I suppose I should. Gods know Jack never would.

Stop it. [ Jack's voice is thin with stress. the hand he has held out across Lux is shaking. ] He's not here, this isn't real.

[ and it clearly isn't. unlike the convincing illusion that Lux's haunting had boasted, the Mage's features are indistinguishable, and it's a jarring thing to look at. as if there is something there that the eye simply refuses to see. the harder one tries to look at him, the more confusing it becomes. he is the kind of figure that is only ever meant to be glimpsed, the details of him lost by Jack's vague memory. still, Jack doesn't seem to be any less affected by his presence. it's not clear whether Jack has even noticed the incongruities of his spectre. ]

Does she know what you are? You've been vocal enough about that, at least.

[ A smile and a nod. Feeling how stiff and panicked he was only a few seconds before, it was good to see him react. He was still with her. That was good. She could work with this. Lux gives him a reassuring smirk.

Let her be your light this time. She's good at that. ]

It's a rather rotten one if you ask me. Let's teach him a lesson.

[ His clothes, his posture, even his demeanor; Lux had met men like him before, and ready to give this arrogant apparition a piece of her mind, she opens her mouth to speak, before being quickly pushed back.

For a brief fleeing moment, she looks surprised, but quickly hides it away. Seeing the taller boy in the state he's in worries her, and she reaches out a hand, resting it on his before giving it a tight squeeze. She's here, friend, and she won't be going anywhere.

As for their rude guest, she stares him down coldly, her eyes glowing an intense, icy blue. She was certain there was nothing there to see with her Analyst Eyes, but perhaps she could see--or intimidate--whoever might be behind this. A god would have them prostrate. She was confident it was something else entirely.

Her voice is quiet, controlled, and poised. Commanding. She's had nearly eighteen years of practice dealing with nobles who were too big for their britches, and is rather done with this cave's shenanigans. ]

He's Jack Frost, my friend. [ She gave her hand another squeeze. ]And I don't care what you have to say. You threaten my friend, you threaten me, and I can assure you, you don't want to cross me.

My intent isn't to threaten. What trouble is a Homunculus to the Mage that created it?

[ some wild, high-pitched noise catches in Jack's throat, and he clutches Lux's hand tightly, a point of anchorage. if this really is the Moon Man, if he really can control Jack, then holding onto her won't help at all, there won't be anything he can do - but he wants to think that maybe, maybe he could somehow stop it from happening. maybe he wouldn't lose Jack Frost the way he lost whoever he was before. he desperately wants it to be true. ]

What's the point of all this? [ it comes out as a shout. he feels like he's on the verge of tearing his hair out here, choking on a tangle of fear and anger, confusion and frustration. ] Why?! Why any of it?

Of course. "Say it plain", yes? Then here it is, Jack: no matter how much you ignore it, you're broken.

[ the words strike hard, and it's the familiarity that drives them deep. he hadn't been aware of how much of an outsider he is until he started trying to settle down in Union, and it had suddenly seemed ridiculous how many things he couldn't cope with. everyone tries to treat him like a person, which should be a good thing, but instead it grates at him like they're brushing against an exposed nerve. even as a Homunculus he isn't right, he wasn't made with the others, he was just abandoned on a table in some lab with no idea why, so he doesn't understand anything and he can't help and he doesn't fit. and the arguments over Sanctuary - people had been scared of him, his lack of control and his cold rage, Waver had said rehabilitation and something in Jack had panicked, not at the thought of being rehabilitated but the possibility that he might actually need it because maybe everything wasn't okay, maybe he was—

it had been impossible for the word "broken" not to come to mind when he thought about it all at once.

still, he affects an air of flippancy, of casual disinterest despite his shallow breaths of frost and his shaking, icy hands when he asks the Mage: ] Seriously, that's it? That's all you have to say?

[ It clicked. It finally clicked. His insistence, his evasiveness at the questions she asked. Why hadn't she figured it out before? Despite herself, it was hard to mask her surprise at the Moon Man's words, and her sudden look of concern at Jack. Concern not for what he was, not at the idea that he could--easily--hurt her, but at how much he himself must have been hurting. As far as Lux was concerned, she didn't matter in this equation at all.

She did her best to fix that, but the blond knew; the damage had likely already been done. ]

Jack.

[ It wasn't a scolding tone of voice, nor a fearful one, but deep concern that rang true. She didn't understand, couldn't understand. They were two completely different people. And that was it, despite what he might have been, she wouldn't be able to see him any different. He was a person, dammit. He was her friend. She was a bleeding heart Unionite through and through, and was thoroughly done with this shadow of the past trying to rip that apart.

And if this person--this thing--tried to threaten that? She would end it, no matter what it took, no questions asked. ]

Shut up.

[ Her words were colder than the ice that pulsed through Jack's veins. Her hand stung through the cold, fingers stiff, but she doubled down, lacing her fingers between his and holding on to him as tightly as she could. Staring down the shadow of his past, she didn't waver, not once. ]

I don't care what he is, or what power you seem to think your words might have over him. I don't care about what you have to say. You're not real. You're a terror that comes lurking in the night, and if you so much as touch him, my light will pierce through you so quickly, so thoroughly, that not even your hollow words will be left.

Leave. Now.

[ the Moon Man regards her for a moment, his face impassive, and then he turns his pale eyes on Jack. he says nothing. there is no frown, no irritation that furrows his brow, just smooth patience and silence. what exactly he is waiting for seems unclear, until Jack starts to speak, and the Mage's eyes light up with attention, interest. ]

No. No, I have to... I want to hear him. I've been waiting all this time, and for what? Even if you are fake, just tell me. You know what I want!

Look at you. You're so desperate for answers, because you think that will magically fix all of your problems. Part of you must know how broken you are, given that you seem to think getting back your memories will save you. What is that question you always ask yourself? "How can I know who I am..."

... until I find out who I was. [ his voice is small, and his grip on Lux's hand goes slack. ] That's— That has nothing to do with—

It does. You won't think about that scary dark hole inside of you, or what's going to happen if what you find doesn't solve everything. You only see a goal. All you want is an easy way out.

That's not true! [ it's not. he knows that deep down to his bones, it's not true, he doesn't just want his memories to fix himself, to make the hurt go away - he so so desperately wants to find out who he was, what life he led, if there is anyone left behind and missing him. where did he come from, why did this happen to him— it isn't just about healing the hurts caused by the gaps in him. even if he can't explain it, it's more than that. (and Lux disappears under all of this thought, under the weight of the vision's words; there are no caves, no illusions, nothing else exists because there is the Moon Man, the memories, there is the only thing that matters—)

but it isn't a complete lie, either. the thought that all his answers might only meliorate his wounds, not remove them from him completely, that things might be... not okay even after trying for so long to recover what he had lost... it's terrifying. it's the kind of thing he could have nightmares about.

that he might never get his answers at all is not something he can even confront. ]

You made me! You took my whole life away, you did this to me! I had something, I-I was a person, and—

And who are you now?

[ as he throws out that question, the Moon Man disappears down one of the tunnels. rather than give an answer, Jack gives a shattered yell and tears his hand out of Lux's hold, lunges into the shadows to chase the spectre with desperation; his footsteps leave clumps of solid ice behind, and a freezing wind howls after him. ]

[ Lux opens her mouth to say something, but falls silent, watching the exchange. Worry knots her stomach, and as she feels his hand go limp, she grips it tighter still. It was hard not to feel helpless in this instance, like anything she did would have little to no effect, but she would keep trying. No matter what happened, she would still keep trying.

She didn't know what she could say, didn't know what she could do, but she wasn't going to give up. Not here, not now, not on him.

So when he threw her hand away, running off into the dark, she shouted after him, trailing behind. The ground was uneven, and slippery from the ice, but she ran as fast as she could, trying to keep up.

Don't lose sight of him. Don't let him run away. You have to help Lux, you have to! ]

JACK!

[ She felt her foot slip out from under her. Hitting a patch of ice, Lux felt herself falling, putting a hand out to catch herself. Landing hard, she heard something pop, pain suddenly radiating outward from her hand and wrist. She gasped out, quickly crumpling around her right arm in a tight ball with a few sharp sobs.

No. No no no. She couldn't stop. She felt sick from the sound, and that sudden pulsing pain, but she couldn't stop. Push yourself up. Keep running. Don't lose sight of him, or you might never see him again...

Picking up her fallen staff with her left hand, the tip illuminates, and she swings it in the air. A bolt of light hitting one of the stalactites, it spreads, illuminating them, giving her a way to see. Bracing against her staff, she pulls herself up into a standing position, she holds her injured wrist against her shoulder, arm trembling. ]

Jack! Jack, where are you?! Answer me!

[ She walks instead of runs this time, mindful of the patches of ice. The light mage searches for cold patches in the air, certain that she would find him that way, hoping, praying she would find him that way. ]

[ it doesn't take long for Lux to find him. the tunnel that Jack took is scoured with ice and frost all the way down, some of it in patches where he had thrown attacks at the shadows. and as soon as it opens to another cavern, there is Jack, standing statue-still - as he probably has been for a while, given that he is covered in hoarfrost and crystallising patches of hard, jagged ice. his staff is clutched to his chest in both hands with a desperate force.

finally, there is a vision to rival the scenery that Lux had taken them through. the two of them stand in a cold, dank room littered with books and papers across every surface; all except the table that takes its place as centrepiece. given the shape of the table and the metal shackles affixed to it, it's easy to guess what its use would be.

Jack is more than horrified. he looks gutted. ]

[ Illuminating stalactites as she goes, Lux moves slowly, doing her best to not make the same mistake she did the last time. Her fingers tracing over the frost on the wall, in some ways she was thankful for the cold; it made the hot, throbbing pain in her wrist feel a bit less biting.

Seeing the scenery change, she knew she was in the right place, and slowly she let her right hand fall on her side. Taking in everything she saw, her eyes widened slightly. ]

Savior...

[ It escaped her lips before she could catch it. Lux winced a bit, briefly, making her way toward the taller boy. She made her presence known in whatever way she could, moving cautiously--for his benefit, not hers. If he let her get close enough, she would throw an arm around him in a hug. ]

Jack, I'm so sorry...

[ She wasn't sure what else she could say. She was suddenly out of her element. ]

[ the hug pulls a strangled noise from his throat - too much, he has never been touched like this before and it should be good but it's so much, overwhelmed and hypersensitive - and he is rigid in her arms. he can feel Lux along his side, a hot brand that singes all his nerves. dimly, in his shock, he thinks that he must be unpleasant to embrace, bony and cold and clammy. ]

I barely even remember this place. I woke up here so many times, but... [ until he left, he had only ever seen the ceiling, and even those memories are a haze of pain and confusion. when he saw the whole room at last, he didn't care about anything except finding a way out of it. he definitely didn't think he would ever be looking at it again.

the Moon Man stands opposite the operating table, and his expression now is soft, sympathetic. Jack looks at him and grits his teeth. ]

You only said two words to me. "Jack Frost" - that's it! [ he isn't trying to pull himself out of Lux's hold, but he strains against it, all of his body strung with tension and trembling fury. ] And then you were just gone, I woke up one day and it was cold and dark, I was so scared and I, I was—

Alone?

[ Jack's voice dies, his breath hitches. the Moon Man slides his fingertips along the operating table and he goes on, gently and coaxing, his tone almost parental: ]

Just like you've been alone ever since? And now you aren't used to anything else. You know, you flinch when people touch you. [ he ignores Jack's panicked, angry interruption: Stop it, stop changing the subject— ] Do you remember when you were caught sleeping on the streets of Union? The looks on their faces? They were so horrified and you couldn't understand it. You don't know how to be a person. You're not even sure if you want to be one.

None of them understand it, do they? They never will, and oh, how that frustrates you. You were so angry at everyone who tried. But don't blame them, Jack. You're too much of a broken thing for anyone to understand.

[ Jack is shaking like a frightened rabbit. his eyes are wide and wet with unshed tears, but he doesn't even make to brush them away, just brings his hands up to his head and clenches his fingers in his hair. his breaths are hard and shallow, shuddering, and every exhale puts out mist and glittering frost. ice is forming on him, around him, cracking as it grows and splinters into sharp spikes. under Lux's touch, his body flickers in and out of corporeality. he feels— wild, unstable, coiled too tightly, like he's going to explode out of his skin - but Lux, Lux is here, and the panic ratchets up another notch. ]

Lux, you gotta— You need to get out of here, away from me—

[ The blond nearly jumped back at the sound, certain she somehow hurt him. But she stayed close, her staff loosely gripped in her right hand. She wasn't letting him out of her sight this time; she might never see him again if she did.

He felt so small, somehow, despite towering over her as he did. It was all the more reason why she couldn't leave, no matter what might happen.

Seeing that man, that illusion standing there, this time Lux defended him, pointing the end of her staff at the Moon Man, the weight of it burning red-hot pain in her grip. But that didn't matter right now, and she kept it as level as she could, even as her hand trembled. He couldn't hurt her, she knew, but she had to do something, anything, to put distance between these two.

She spoke as the apparition did, knowing that her words likely fell on deaf ears, but perhaps the sound of someone else's voice, soft and soothing might help keep him grounded. ]

You don't have to be alone, Jack. I can't possibly understand what you've gone through, but I know what it's like to feel hopelessly alone surrounded by people. I won't—

[ Feeling him trembling against her, feeling the temperature drop suddenly, her eyes widened a bit, and worry began to set in. He was losing control of himself. Trying to stay as close as possible, she shakes her head wildly. ]

I'm not leaving here without you with me!

[ Despite panic screaming in her head, telling her to run and save herself, she dropped her staff, resting it on the ground. This room might have been an illusion, but she knew his powers were not, and while she was scared—terrified out of her mind—there was no other option for her. ]

I'm not going to leave you here alone.

Edited 2015-07-24 15:38 (UTC)

That's not it!

[ this isn't supposed to happen, people should be cautious around him, they should be scared. he jerks away from Lux, but his voice is desperate and frantic despite the shouting, and he curls in on himself defensively. even though he's angry, it isn't at her - frustrated, maybe, which doesn't matter at all because it's eclipsed so greatly by his fury at the Moon Man, at himself, at all of this. ]

If you don't go, I'm gonna hurt you even if I don't want to. This isn't about not fitting in, I was alone because of me! Because I'm not safe, because I can't be around people without this happening and there was nothing else I could do, so I just stayed away! And now— now sometimes I kind of wish I hadn't come back!

[ he whirls on the Mage, eyes wild. ] That's it, right?! That's what you meant when you said I don't want to be a person? Well, I DON'T! I'm sick of everyone just ignoring what I am and pretending I can be what they want! What, it's not bad enough that I lost myself once already, now I get this too?! All it does is make me feel like no one is ever listening to me, or even seeing me! Ignoring what I am doesn't make it go away!

[ Jack and the Moon Man stare at each other in silence as the last of Jack's screams ring out and fade away. on his next exhale, all of Jack's breath leaves him in a great rush, a whoosh of air that comes out with a small, quiet: oh. he presses both of his trembling hands hard over his heart. there is too much happening in his chest, the blazing coldness and gaping hollow inside his ribcage, his lungs aching with exhaustion, and now his heart just - hurts, for some reason. what if things aren't okay? they are, he starts to tell himself immediately, he's fine and everything is fine; everything that has happened is okay, he can handle it, it's never been that bad and he doesn't even need to think about it, but...

ignoring it doesn't make it go away. right? not his Homunculus nature, and not anything else; not the terrifying void that he falls into when he thinks too long about himself, not the loneliness or the anger or the fear, not every little thing that is wrong with him. ]

It doesn't...

[ The cold stings her face, stings her eyes, but there's something else too. Tears? His words were so raw, so real, that they even made her a bit emotional. She would never understand the pain that he went through, not a single iota, and it hurt to see him like this. She hardly knew him, it shouldn't have affected her that much, and yet it did.

She knew what she had to do, the moment she got him out of those damned caves.

Lux stopped cold, staring at him, taking the breath she hadn't realized she was holding. His words held her, and without realizing, she put a hand to her mouth. Expectations. Obligations. That deep desire to be the person everyone else wanted him to be. That was why she was getting emotional. It was the same. It was so very different, but very much the same.

Letting him scream out his frustrations, she saw him start to quiet, and slowly moved to his side again. Lux didn't say a word, giving him a few feet of space. She was shivering now from the cold, but it hardly registered in her mind. There were more important things. ]

[ the Moon Man speaks up again, soft: ] Jack—

I get it! Just— shut up, you made your point! Leave me alone!

[ it's hyper-focus. that's what it's always been, isn't it? putting all of his attention, all of himself, towards just one thing to the exclusion of anything and everything else because it's so much easier that way. finding the Moon Man. researching the Homunculi. trying to save the victims of Sanctuary. and there's no other way that he could do it (he is horrified by the thought of spending all that time alone in the forest thinking about how he feels, not just the bad nights but every night, every day, for three whole years) but now he can't anymore because this thing has ruined it. no matter how hard he focuses on the things that actually matter, he will always have the knowledge of what it is doing to him, what it has already done to him. he didn't want to know this. everything was fine before.

and now, maybe it's not.

he jack-knifes into himself and his legs give out. shuddering, his staff clatters to the ground, and he presses the heels of his palms into his eyes, tries to breathe. damn it. damn him, damn all of this, why. ]

... I'm so messed up.

[ for a long moment, Jack says nothing else, makes no noise other than his heaving, stuttering breaths, the sound of someone balanced on the fine edge between composure and hysteria. in the silence, although it takes him a while to notice, there is something else noticeably wrong - the Mage hasn't said a word.

because he's gone. all of it is gone, they're sitting here in a regular cave, surrounded by haphazard constructs of ice and patches of frost, so much coldness pouring off Jack that a mist is starting to form across the ground.

Lux's vision had crumbled when she had overcome the fears and the binds that had held her to the memory of that time in her life. it was so... storybook in its conclusion, like it had been leading her there all along, waiting for her to find the way out. she felt trapped, so it set her up in an illusion of her at her most helpless in her memory. she resolved to be in control of her life and broke free. Jack has been thinking about this ever since the two of them left that illusion behind, so it doesn't take long for him to realise what this might mean for his own visions - and when the possibilities click, he starts to laugh. slow and quiet, at first, hunched over, with his hands still over his face. as it builds, the ridiculousness and horror and how pathetic this is dawning on him, he tips over that knife edge and tumbles into hysteria; he lets his head hang back and he just laughs helplessly.

this was so stupid. gods, it didn't even help! this is only going to make things hard, and he doesn't want hard. there isn't even anything he can do about it, because it's not like he's going to stop wanting his memories back or looking for the Moon Man, but he gets what the spectre was saying, he can see it now - whenever people try to understand it just makes him angry because of the things they assume, frustrated that they can't get it and he can't explain it to them. ]

Are— Are you kidding me? [ there is outrage and incredulity in his voice, but that broken edge of humour is still there, and he is grinning wide. ] That was my big moment? That's what all of this was about? "Wow, Jack, you're a screw-up!"

[ Lux saw it happening just before it did, his body crumpling in on itself. It was no longer a question of giving him space, the blond moving quickly to crouch by his side. She couldn't catch him--not in her state--and judging from his initial reaction when she tried to embrace him, anything beyond very basic physical contact might send him on an even deeper spiral.

She reached out her left hand, placing it firmly on his shoulder, letting him cry it out. It hurt to see him like this, knowing there was nothing she could do but listen and be there. Was that enough? She didn't think so. ]

It's okay...

[ Her voice was soft, encouraging, although she wasn't sure he would actually hear her words. She scarcely noticed the illusionary prison fading into nonexistence, that once it had completely disappeared, she was left a bit stunned.

...It didn't seem right. It didn't seem fair, and Jack's frustrations only solidified that fact. He should have gotten closure, something to look forward to, to move toward. Not this. ]

You're not a screw-up.

[ She gripped his shoulder firmly. ]

You're not...

[ touch is so strange. it isn't even against his skin but his nerves tingle under the pressure and warmth of her hand; he leans into it gratefully, but he's glad she didn't hug him this time, because that's— that much contact all at once makes him feel brittle, fragile, like his bones are too thin and he's too small and he'll just shake himself to pieces. he can cope with this. he can handle slow, careful doses.

but other than thinking about the effect of her touch, taking it in and trying to decipher the feeling so that his mind ticks over and calms down from this frenzy... he isn't sure what to do. even if he wanted to talk about this (he doesn't) there's no way he could. he just screamed at that stupid illusion about how sick he is of trying to make people understand, and now he feels like he'll be too aware of any missteps that Lux makes in the conversation. every minor pang of irritation will feel like an arrow through his gut, any anger amplified because he's so worked up about everything.

so he just scrubs his hands over his face to wipe away tears (like a child, unashamed, like someone who has no awareness of a social insistence on manners, maturity, etiquette) and he mumbles, small and wretched: ]

Your fingers are gonna go numb if you hold on too long.

[ The storm was over, she knew, and the adrenaline rush she was feeling was beginning to abate. The cold dulled the pain she felt a bit, so for that she was thankful. Large doses might prove problematic, but that hardly mattered to her at this point.

Lux smiled gently, as much as she could muster, leaning a bit so he could see her face. She sighed, an amused little noise as he tried his best to put up a strong front. ]

I'll survive. Don't worry about me, okay?

[ She gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze before letting her hand fall away. Using her left arm to help herself up, she held her hand out to him. ]

What do you say we get out of here? Come on. I think we've both had enough of this place.

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Descent into Darkness

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RNG hates me this morning good lord

rng doing its best to make bad threads even worse

It's the absolute worst.

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