paixaorpg | I talk about you now and go a day without crying (Active)

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I talk about you now and go a day without crying (Active)

Character(s): Celes, Lightning (maybe open? Ask first)
Content: Two ex-military women meet
Setting: Muspelheim Gate area
Time: mid-day Week 21
Warnings: Uh... snark? none for now - possible 13 spoilers always present

Lightning had never heard of this city before, but for all she knew it could be some trick, more of the fal'Cie smoke and mirrors they were so fond of throwing around. Especially Barthandelus, though he also seemed to like making things impossibly hard on everyone. Lightning frowned as she stepped through the city. The answers she'd received from whatever the network system in this city was had been disappointing at best. Either everyone was a complete idiot or they'd all had their memories wiped. Knowing the fal'Cie, she wouldn't be surprised if the latter were true. Still, while she didn't intend to stay any longer than necessary, she knew she'd need to know as much about this place as possible.

So, with that in mind, Lightning set out on a quest to find out what else was around. The city was large from what she could see, much larger than Bodhum, probably on par with or larger than Palumpolum and that thought would have been unnerving had she not been trained to deal with fear long ago. Shrugging her annoyance and uncertainty off, she walked around. Sooner or later, she'd need to check her brand. If it looked any the worse for wear, she'd have to find some way of turning it back. She didn't want to end up a Cie'th, but neither did she want the other option.

Sighing to herself, Lightning approached one of the other gates and looked around for one of her companions. She hated to think that Bartandelus was trying to get them pissed off at him by splitting them up.

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Down in one corner of Muspelheim, a bundle of white cloth and yellow hair stirred. A hand reached up from the bundle and sluggishly reached for a the head of a rather confused woman underneath. Pain... nobody told her that the afterlife would start with such a terrible headache and ringing in her ears. The ex general weakly hoisted her body up, surveying her territory through light-strained eyes. Well... the decor was right, and was those people waiting in line to get inside? Everything was nice and all, but why did heaven have to hurt so much?

Sitting up was slow and painful. Each time she moved, she fought new found aches and sharp pain in her back and legs. "Damn..." she cursed as she realized how weak she was. "...I don't think I can get up..."

Her eyes lifted up to the line of people gathering in front of a table, with a blue-eyed blonde woman was greeting people and handing something. Everybody's focus was on the line and the table, and nobody would know to help her if she didn't call out. She bit her lip at the idea, not wanting to look weak in front of everyone. It would take a few more minutes before she'd realize that sitting crumpled on the floor probably looked even more shameful.

A few more minutes, startiiiiing... now.

Lightning didn't really take to many people very easily, nor did she just go out offering help unless she trusted the person in need. However, something about the way the attendant at the gate was so busy and completely oblivious to the sack of fabric off in the distance. Lightning almost missed it until she glanced over at saw it stir. Frowning, she stopped and waited for someone to do something about it, but minutes passed and nothing happened.

Placing a hand at her hip for a moment, Lightning debated. On the one hand, she had no idea who that was sitting up over there, but on the other that might be someone from Cocoon or someone with decent answers. And besides that, if they were a l'Cie, too, she wasn't going to just let someone become Cie'th without at least finding out their Focus.

So, ignoring the attendant telling her she was going the wrong way, she headed through the gate and towards the other person. On closer inspection, it appeared to be a woman, but she was no one Lightning knew. Damn. Still, she'd gone this far. Stopping close by, she looked down at the other woman.

"I did't think lying on a floor like this could be very comfortable," she commented, kneeling down. She was still far enough away that she hopefully wouldn't seem threatening, and definitely hard to hit, but close enough to see clearly. "Then again, nothing seems very desirable here."

Celes looked up at the woman now standing in front of her. Her curiously pink hair did not seem like the rest of the people nearby, and reminded her of Terra's esper form a bit. Yet there was also something about the way she stood. It was practiced, composed, as though she had spent time refining her movements and stance... military perhaps?

Her pride returning, she mustered up enough willpower to try standing up again--and almost yelled out at the results. She had just barely managed to rise up a few inches when searing pain shot out from both her legs. Her legs felt like flan that was on fire. What was going on? Her mind retreated to her last memory. The Blackjack was beginning to tear apart as the disruption of the Waring Triad began to shatter the world. She was clinging to a piece of the ship, desperate not to plunge to the depths below. She had let go and then... blackness. And now light..? Could it be that she survived?

Her mind finally attended the woman standing in front of her. If nothing else, perhaps she could provide some answers. "I can't move my legs..." she finally admitted, hoping that would at least answer the reason why she was on the floor. "...I think I might have fallen from an airship," she added casually, "...do you know where we are?"

Well that didn't look very good. A for effort, but that was about it. Lightning reached out to help steady the woman, frowning as she scooted a couple of inches closer. The blonde was injured. Where were Hope and Vanille when they were needed? Lightning's medic skills weren't anywhere near as good as theirs. Sure, she still had them, but it might not help as much as she'd like.

"Hold still," Lightning commanded, reaching inside for her l'Cie magic and calling up the medical ones. Quickly casting off two blue-green Curas, she waited to see what the effect would be.

"Does that feel better?" If not, she could try again. "We need to get you somewhere else. Somehow sitting here on the ground for the day doesn't sound very appealing."

"Magic..?" Celes said quietly, surprised by this sudden turn of events. If this was the afterlife then maybe that would make some sense, but if this was still the world of the living then that would make her a..? There were a few possibilities, but she didn't want to come to any conclusions so soon.

She pondered, this, a mixture of worry and curiosity in her eyes. Feeling better that her wounds were healed, she tried getting up again but the wobbliness of fatigue and exhaustion grabbed her before managing very far once again. "Ah... this doesn't seem to be the type of injury that can't be healed so easily... but..." she turned away slightly, a little embarrassed, "...thank you for the healing magic."

Once again her pride as a former general was beginning to show. This would be easier to request help if it was Locke, Sabin, Terra or even Edgar, but as for right now this woman was still a complete stranger. "Don't worry about me. I'm sure I'll be able to stand after I rest here a few hours," she lied.

As a member of her own military, Lightning had certainly seen far worse injuries and dealt far worse, too, which naturally meant she knew exactly how badly hurt the other woman must have been for her legs to be giving out on her like this. Her stern military training took over.

"Stop trying to stand by yourself. You're only going to make it worse." Lightning stood and glanced back at the attendant, her mind already working through a possible plan. "Spending hours here alone isn't an option." Not right then anyway.

"I'm going to speak with the attendant." She paused and glanced back down. "I'm Lightning. What name do you use?" Having already gone through this once before, Lightning knew the procedure. Getting this woman "registered" and acquiring a journal for her wouldn't be very difficult once Lightning had a name to work with.

Celes blanched. She was helping her? Why? Was it because she looked pathetic and weak? No... that wasn't what her eyes were saying. They were set, determined, and calculating. Already she could see that she knew what she was going to do and the former soldier had a feeling that nothing she'd say would dissuade her.

"Celes... Celes Chere," she replied, feeling very much like a bird with two injured wings.

At least the good news was that Lightning wasn't going to make those clipped wings hurt worse. She nodded once and went to speak to the attendant. After a minute or two, during which she had to persuade the man to give her a journal for Celes, she finally succeeded. Taking the offered journal, she walked back to kneel down next to Celes again.

"I said I wasn't going to leave you sitting here alone and I meant that." Whether or not they went anywhere for a while was entirely up to chance right now. Lightning handed over the electronic journal and then pulled her own out. "You'll probably want to know how to use this, if for nothing else than for the map. The locals aren't very helpful. No one's even heard of a fal'Cie here, not even Eden."

Fal'Cie? Eden? As much as she hated to tell her new acquaintance that she had never heard of those things either, she felt better to hold her tongue and listen to what she had to say. After all, there was so much that she didn't know. "Thank you," was all she could say before her attention turned to the new contraption that Lightning had given her, reaching for it swiftly.

Her eyes looked over the new contraption curiously. This... journal was more like a simplified monitor of some kind. Fiddling with the buttons, she heard some sharp feedback followed quickly by mild chatter. Was that a voice interface? She decided that perhaps she'd explore that feature later. Her fingers darted to some of the other buttons, eventually finding the one she was looking for. The visual display flickered, revealing the small island of...

"Paixao?" she asked, not sure what to make of this. "I've never heard of this place. Is it anywhere near Jidor? Or perhaps Maranda?" She asked, hoping to get a better sense of where this island was.

Settling into a more comfortable cross-legged position, Lightning turned her journal on and waited while Celes fiddled with hers. Apparently the other woman was fairly adept at these sorts of things, as she'd figured it out with ease.

"Neither had I," Lightning admitted with a sigh as she pulled up what could be called the network, whatever they liked to call these journal posts and responses. "And I've never heard of those cities, either. Maybe the locals weren't lying about many different people all in the same place. I'm from a city called Bodhum located inside Cocoon." But last she'd known, she was on Gran Pulse.

"Here, this is the communication network," she continued. "You can post your own thoughts and respond to others'. Voice or text. I'm not sure if it supports video. The camera might just be for an initial photo and that's all it does. Kind of primitive, but you take what you get."

"Oh that's interesting..." Celes mouthed, as she looked at the camera. The last one of these she'd seen was much bigger and bulkier than this model. Why she could hold it in her hands! And there was something strange about this technology. The type she was used to was powered using Magitek, but these devices appeared to be powered by something different. How much she'd bet Edgar would love to get a hold of one of these things.

"This is an interesting device," she finally said with a nod. "I don't think I've ever seen anything like this in Figaro. These type of monitors are usually restricted to the Magitek Research facilities in Vector. But perhaps... perhaps you've never heard of those places either." She was beginning to imagine that a lot has changed in the world since the disruption of the Waring Triad.

She decided it best to address her locations now. After all, it was the right thing to do after all the help she had offered. "I'm afraid that both of those places are nothing I'm aware of," Celes stated matter of factly. "And the last I heard of a cocoon, it was a hard shell of a caterpillar before it became into a butterfly. I'd imagine that living in a cocoon would be rather cramped."

And those were several words and phrases Lightning had never heard. She made a mental note to inquire more later. Figaro, Magitek, and Vector were not words she knew. She shook her head at Celes' question, remaining quiet for the moment.

"Not a cocoon. Just Cocoon," Lightning corrected. "It's a world just like this one. How it got that name is a long story." And one she'd rather not tell just yet. She paused for a moment, debating asking one thing, one thing that would tell her how much she could relax. "Just answer one question before we continue. Have you ever heard of l'Cie?"

Celes almost blushed at the correction -- of course that wasn't an actual cocoon... Yet, of all the new words that she never heard of before, there was something particularly in that last one that made it stand out. She wasn't sure what a l'Cie was at all, and the weight of her words made her worry about what it could be.

"I have never heard of that. Is it something I should worry about?" If nothing else, her acquaintance had proven herself trustworthy so far. Celes was eager to hear what she had to say next.

And that answered any other doubts Lightning had. If Celes had really been from Cocoon, even with her memory wiped like Fang's, she would have known what a l'Cie was and the l'Cie terror wouldn't have been unfamiliar to her. Lightning took her time turning off her journal and stowing it in the pack strapped to her left leg before she answered.

"A few months ago I would have said yes," she admitted, wondering why she was even answering this perfect stranger. "L'Cie are people cursed by the fal'Cie. They're given special powers. Cocoon fal'Cie were from Cocoon, protectors of Cocoon, located in the Sanctum. They kept us alive. Pulse fal'Cie were monsters from the lowerworld that cursed those it touched. Sanctum l'Cie were sacred, chosen. Pulse l'Cie were cursed, feared. If anything from Pulse was found on Cocoon and a fal'Cie was discovered within it, the entire population nearby would be Purged. Cocoon's panic knows no end."

Thinking of all this reminded Lightning of Serah and how her own l'Cie brand was a ticking time bomb here. Straightening out again, her expression closed and she stood, stretching before she called up her Medic abilities again. "Can you stand?" she asked, as she sent another batch of Curas.

L'cie? Fal'cie? Cocoon? None of this made any sense, but then again, this whole place seemed odd too. For example, if she had truly fell from the height the Floating Peninsula was and landed on solid ground, she would need a hasty burial, not heal spells. She wasn't sure what the fal'Cie are, or what they do, but from what it sounded like they were... espers, perhaps? "Are you a l'Cie, then?" she asked, curious if that's where she got her magic.

Celes looked down on her legs, already well aware that they were not yet strong enough to support her weight. But if this... Lightning... were to reveal herself to be "cursed," then perhaps she could be granted a little trust.

She shook her head, "not on my own... but... perhaps with assistance..."

Lightning hesitated at that question and looked away, one hand on her hip as she thought about how to answer. She could be perfectly honest with the other woman and admit that she was. Or she could deny it entirely and not run the risk of anyone here ever hunting her down. Wasn't like she'd never been hunted before.

"...I am. I'm a l'Cie."

Lightning glanced back down at Celes and moved into a position where she could help the other woman up a little easier. "If it hurts too much to walk, we'll find another way through. There's a townhouse place nearby I can take you to. It's better than sitting here."

A l'Cie? A cursed one? The former general couldn't imagine the bravery it took to admit that openly. For the briefest of moments, Celes remembered how distinct, how set apart she was to the other Imperial knights. Yet for all the prestige and honor of her position it wasn't until she had joined The Returners that she was able to say she truly felt like she had friends and... family.

Celes leaned in on Lightning, ready to trust her a bit. "I think I'll be okay if you take it easy on me. I've been through worse."

As she had told Hope once before, and as he had turned back to her, sometimes it wasn't a matter of can or can't; sometimes you just did what was necessary. Being a l'Cie had hammered home that point and by now Lightning was used to it.

Strengthening her position, she pulled Celes up slowly, examining the other woman as she did so. Something about the straight-forward way she said all that felt familiar to Lightning, but she didn't comment on it. Instead, she just used her own weight to steady Celes, putting one of the other woman's arms around her shoulders and one of her own around Celes' waist.

"I've been through my fair share of injuries." Meaning she knew how to take care of them and how to treat someone who had been injured. "Is this comfortable enough for you to walk?"

"It's fine," Celes admitted, How often is it that she found help in the most unlikeliest of places. It always seemed that the moment she stopped looking, stopped counting on hope that someone extended a hand to raise her up again. She wondered... would she ever be given an opportunity to be this to someone someday? Could she be somebody else's hope?

But those thoughts quickly ebbed away as her concentration turned to her wobbly legs. She was having trouble maintaining her balance and was leaning into and away from Lighting at irregular intervals. She couldn't help it. It took all of her energy to stand. She couldn't afford any to keep steady, nor did she want to complain.

"There's... one more thing I need to ask. Well, two. Have you... heard of a man named... Locke? And a beast... named Kefka."

Lightning didn't mind the wobbling. She'd pretty much expected it. Whatever had happened to the other woman had certainly done a number on her. At least the spells had helped a little bit. And if all else failed, Lightning could carry her, though she understood bruised pride. At the moment, though, she focused on what was being said to her and shook her head slightly.

"I haven't. Are they people I should be wary of?"

Ah... she should have realized that her curiosity would compel her to ask. Answering that question would be easy for Kefka, but for the other. For the moment she wondered if she should dismiss him and only answer about the other man but. Why return trust with distrust? Wouldn't Terra and Sabin want her to be honest? True she wanted to trust like a child and he was an idiot, but... that didn't make their points any less valid.

Celes inhaled sharply. "Kefka is a monster. He has disrupted the balance of the three goddesses and has caused untold damage to the world. We tried to stop him, but... we failed. If he's not here I can only hope that his influence hasn't reached this island."

"As for the other," Celes added, thinking carefuly, "it's... personal." This was as honest as she could be, and even that was enough to make her turn her eyes away to keep from blushing.

The name Kefka was stored away in Lightning's memory. If she came across him, she could only hope he wasn't anywhere near Bartandelus' level of power and manipulation. Otherwise, there would be a problem. Of course, it was unlikely that Kefka was a fal'Cie, either, and that would be of some help. She noticed the way Celes spoke of both and how the other woman turned away at the mention of the other man. Locke, was it? Lightning made a note of that name as well, more to remember who he was than to worry about what he and Celes had between them.

If there was one thing Lightning understood aside from her military training, it was the need for privacy, and so she didn't comment on Locke.

"I haven't been here long myself, so I don't think I could be an expert. You could ask the communication network when we arrive. Others might know."

Fortunately, the walk wasn't much farther. And at least Lightning knew exactly where they were going. That helped.

"It's not much farther. Is your injury any worse?"

Celes wasn't sure what to feel. No word of Kefka was probably a good thing, but she had a nagging fear that he was still around... it would be too much to hope that she heard the last of his condescending laugh. Worse, she was still unsure about Locke. Could he had survived? It was possible--she was after all--but a gnawing dread kept at her mind, which the lack of word only made more intolerable.

The pain in her legs had begun to string again, which meant that if they weren't already re-injured in some way they probably soon would be. She was grateful to Lightning. She was very certain she wouldn't have been able to make it this far without her. "No, it's not worse..." she managed through a weak smile.

Lightning knew an injury as severe as Celes' wouldn't hold up much longer, so she calculated the distance and shifted them so she was taking on most of her companion's weight. Just a little bit further.

Soon enough, they'd reached the place and headed inside. Lightning liked higher places - they made better escape routes - so the unfortunate thing was that their trek was going to encompass a couple stairs. At least she assumed so, as she hadn't found any elevators or anything remotely useful yet.

"We have to take the long way up. If you need to stop and rest, tell me. It's no good wearing yourself out more than you already are."

With that, she began to slowly help her companion up the stairs. At least she wasn't all the way at the top, but neither was she at the bottom. After a minute or so of climbing, Lightning tilted her head at Celes and decided to finally ask something that had been bugging her.

"You're in the military in your world, aren't you?"

Steps, of course. That's definitely the last thing she wanted to see right now. But least of all, she wasn't going to let Lightning know she'd need rest. At least not until her legs literally gave out to her body's weight. And she'll do everything in her power to keep going.

Which meant now she'll focus on the questions. "In my world? I don't understand... but yes, I was once a general. And by the looks of things you are military as well?"

Lightning shrugged at the return question, focusing equally hard on the stairs they were climbing. Only a few more to go. "That's what they seem to be calling the different places everyone's from. It doesn't make much sense to me, but it explains the differences in experiences."

She nodded once at the answer from Celes. "Kindred spirit, then. There's something about military people that's easy to recognize. I was a Sergeant. And from the sound of it, we have past tense in common as well."

Definitely kindred spirits from the look of it, which was interesting to Lightning. What were the odds?

"There's the top of the stairs. I'm on this level." And into the hallway. Lightning was beginning to tire, but she wasn't going to tell Celes that.

Celes nodded, her eyebrows furrowed and wincing often. "You're right. Former General, actually. Not that it matters now. But I have no regrets."

Hearing that they were nearing the top, Celes raised her head to look around. She was curious to see where she was being dragged to. Not that she could object much if she didn't like it. But judging from the continuing motif of the archways coming in, she suspected that they'd continue inside as well. And judging that her feet had started to slip on the edges of the stairs, it was not a moment too soon.

"Former Sergeant here," Lightning admitted softly. "Comes with being a l'Cie. Suddenly everyone's afraid to be seen near you." Which was a little understandable from the paranoia Cocoon had suffered from for so long.

And a couple of feet down the hallway, or what could pass for one since there was no sky here, there was the place she'd scouted out. It wasn't the fanciest, but it was nice and would serve their purposes nicely. Opening it up, she took Celes into the large main room, where it appeared there was a couch.

First stop, getting the woman to rest a little bit. "Doesn't look like anyone lives here. I'll claim it for now." She paused as she tried to guide Celes down to the couch. "You're welcome to stay here as long as you need to." Or want to. Whichever. Lightning didn't care and it would be nice to have company.

Stealing an abandoned house? Well... there were worse things to do. And like she thought a few minutes before, she was in no position to argue. The room was a little worn, but lately this was just the sort of places that she has been sleeping in lately since joining the Returners.

"It's fine. I'll try to be out of your hair as soon as I can be." She admitted as she rested her head against a pillow as her consciousness began drifting off. "Oh and um... Lightning? ...thanks."

Lightning was pretty certain she would have to find someone and at least put a claim on the place, a down payment or something, but that could come later. The most important thing was making sure her companion wasn't going to collapse on her.

"Don't rush yourself." Honestly, Lightning was happy to have someone close by, though she wouldn't admit it. Having been traveling for so long and being a fugitive for... had it been months? However long it had been, she'd almost forgotten what it felt like to have a real bed.

A small smile crossed her lips as she watched Celes nod off on the couch. The sight reminded her of all the times she'd watched Serah fall asleep, even before their parents had died. Taking a little time to be sure Celes was really asleep, Lightning moved to the door again, shutting it behind her as she walked off to find the owner. Time to lay claim to this place. Even if she didn't plan on staying very long, having a real bed to sleep in was definitely more appealing than all those ground beds they'd had to make.

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I talk about you now and go a day without crying (Active)

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