10011: Memory
Veda opened his front door, intending to head to work. There was something there, though - walking straight into his legs, no less. He knelt, and picked the thing up. It looked like a toy robot of some sort - simplistic, really. It had something stuck between it's hands - a crystal, of some sort. He grabbed it to pull it out, and then -
Darkness, and then a voice. "Hey, Tieria. You still sleeping?" His eye - no, eyes, he could see from both of them again - snapped open to utilitarian grey wall and a viewport with stars behind it. Lockon's voice - though it had a hollow ring to it. He sat up - though he had no sensation of doing so, just a change in view consistent with having repositioned himself. The feeling - or lack there of - was a little terrifying.
Though the sight of a slightly hazy Lockon throwing him a cheerful two-fingered salute was enough to utterly obliterate his fears. He could see him again - but... why was he wearing that eyepatch over his right eye? Something was terribly wrong.
"Lockon!" The memory-him was more concerned with Lockon's reappearance, it seemed. And about as stunned as he himself felt, really
"Yo." Lockon's grin didn't fade.
"Lockon." The vague sense of startlement was still there.
"You're not going to do this every time, right?" There was amusement under the mock-annoyance in Lockon's voice.
"'Fighting fire with fire'... Since the day Celestial Being was created, it became our duty to fulfill that oath." Veda wasn't sure if he was talking to Lockon or to himself.
"And I thought I was alright with that! Even though I knew we could die!" That was a little more forceful, more aimed in Lockon's direction. But... why?
"I wasn't planning on dying, you know!" Lockon sounded a little affronted, but mostly just amused - and perhaps a touch regretful. "I was planning to live for a long while." ...Ah. That was why. How could he sound so calm about it - about being dead? Though for that matter, why was he even talking? Though the haziness of his outline suggested he wasn't really there.
"Liar! If you really wanted to live you wouldn't have done that!! So why...?!" There was hurt under the accusing tone in his voice. "If you thought someone's death wouldn't leave an impact on anyone, then why did you want everybody to survive?" He was practically shouting by this point point. He paused, the only sound for a moment his own breathing, and then continued.
"I wanted you to live." There was a desperate, broken sound to his voice - he was crying now, though he couldn't feel the tears.
The cocky grin on Lockon's face faded to a sad smile. "...Yeah, me too." He sighed, and then shifted a little against the wall. "But, well - I'm through with this. I'm leaving the rest to you." A casual wave. "Change the world."
His image started to fade, still with a grin on it's face. "I'm gone, Veda's gone - it's going to be pretty hard to decide things on your own, huh?"
The image was totally gone now, as far as Veda could tell - it was hard, though, because his vision was blurred with tears. Lockon's voice was still echoing through the room, though. "But because it's you, I know you'll be fine."
With a gasp, Veda found himself in his own living room, in the tree, his vision halved - and what irony was that, knowing what he did now. There was something thick and soft surrounding him - he glanced down to see the edge of a giant foam globe. Insult to injury. He was about ready to lock himself inside his apartment and stay there - intentionally, this time.
[OOC: From the Yun Kouga manga short 'I'm Home', set a year after the end of S1. Many ♥s to Kana for helping with some dialog wording~]
Darkness, and then a voice. "Hey, Tieria. You still sleeping?" His eye - no, eyes, he could see from both of them again - snapped open to utilitarian grey wall and a viewport with stars behind it. Lockon's voice - though it had a hollow ring to it. He sat up - though he had no sensation of doing so, just a change in view consistent with having repositioned himself. The feeling - or lack there of - was a little terrifying.
Though the sight of a slightly hazy Lockon throwing him a cheerful two-fingered salute was enough to utterly obliterate his fears. He could see him again - but... why was he wearing that eyepatch over his right eye? Something was terribly wrong.
"Lockon!" The memory-him was more concerned with Lockon's reappearance, it seemed. And about as stunned as he himself felt, really
"Yo." Lockon's grin didn't fade.
"Lockon." The vague sense of startlement was still there.
"You're not going to do this every time, right?" There was amusement under the mock-annoyance in Lockon's voice.
"'Fighting fire with fire'... Since the day Celestial Being was created, it became our duty to fulfill that oath." Veda wasn't sure if he was talking to Lockon or to himself.
"And I thought I was alright with that! Even though I knew we could die!" That was a little more forceful, more aimed in Lockon's direction. But... why?
"I wasn't planning on dying, you know!" Lockon sounded a little affronted, but mostly just amused - and perhaps a touch regretful. "I was planning to live for a long while." ...Ah. That was why. How could he sound so calm about it - about being dead? Though for that matter, why was he even talking? Though the haziness of his outline suggested he wasn't really there.
"Liar! If you really wanted to live you wouldn't have done that!! So why...?!" There was hurt under the accusing tone in his voice. "If you thought someone's death wouldn't leave an impact on anyone, then why did you want everybody to survive?" He was practically shouting by this point point. He paused, the only sound for a moment his own breathing, and then continued.
"I wanted you to live." There was a desperate, broken sound to his voice - he was crying now, though he couldn't feel the tears.
The cocky grin on Lockon's face faded to a sad smile. "...Yeah, me too." He sighed, and then shifted a little against the wall. "But, well - I'm through with this. I'm leaving the rest to you." A casual wave. "Change the world."
His image started to fade, still with a grin on it's face. "I'm gone, Veda's gone - it's going to be pretty hard to decide things on your own, huh?"
The image was totally gone now, as far as Veda could tell - it was hard, though, because his vision was blurred with tears. Lockon's voice was still echoing through the room, though. "But because it's you, I know you'll be fine."
With a gasp, Veda found himself in his own living room, in the tree, his vision halved - and what irony was that, knowing what he did now. There was something thick and soft surrounding him - he glanced down to see the edge of a giant foam globe. Insult to injury. He was about ready to lock himself inside his apartment and stay there - intentionally, this time.
[OOC: From the Yun Kouga manga short 'I'm Home', set a year after the end of S1. Many ♥s to Kana for helping with some dialog wording~]