♛First Decree: Video {not in kimlasca anymore..}

[mykimlasca]

[Hello Luceti! You might hear some frustrated murmurs of a girl who may or may not sound familiar before the screen opens up. Behind her are trees. You might notice that first-OR! The first thing you might notice is the bright gold/white wings on her back, or maybe it’s the twig she failed to find out of her curly golden hair, or maybe it’s the

Comments

[....] WOW I SAID 1/2 AND THEN DECIDED TO MAKE IT JUST 1/1 *is awesome*

[mirrorbirth]

[Natalia. That's Natalia. Again.

Asch gazes down at the journal for a long moment, expression unreadable. His fingers curl around the paper edges, clenching tightly. He almost responds. Almost. But he doesn't know what she knows - about him, about Auldrant, about what's happened and whether or not he's already died - and surprising her with this would be unkind. Better to take it slow this time.

Thus, decision made, he stands up, the journal catching - at best - a flash of red hair before he closes it. He's out the door in moments, out to search for the errant princess. If he can't find her anywhere in the woods, he'll give her some time to get caught up and contact her later. He knows he isn't the best person to explain this place.]

action | so cool bro

[mykimlasca]

[ Sitting on a rock in a fairly wide-spaced clearing, is a certain Princess. She can see a figure in the distance, and with a brightening to her eyes, she begans to pick herself up off the rock, the device firmly clasped in her hands as she starts to call out. ]

Excuse me! You over there! Please wait a moment! [ As she starts to run toward the figure, too far away to truly see much, her vision becomes clearer. She can see red. Her heart stutters a little, nostalgia's sake she reminds herself, ignoring the way her chest tightens with the grief she's become too familiar with this past year. She doesn't know why but this figure looks familiar---as her steps slow, she takes in the hair, the face, and somewhere along the way towards him, her device falls to the earth against her barefeet with a dull thud.

"Just do what you can. "

"I didn't say that because you were a Princess."

"I caught you like this once before."

"There are no guarantees that's why.."

"You'll die too, you idiot!"

"Natalia quit moping around."

"Natalia."She

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[mirrorbirth]

[Her voice is unmistakable, her appearance even moreso. For a moment, even Asch is frozen in place, just as much as Natalia. So she really is here. it's not as if he'd had any doubt, after hearing her over the journal, but... it's been nine months since she was last in Luceti. And by her reaction, she had no memories of this place. For the third time.

Even so, he can't bring himself to feel bothered or irritated by her presence. Natalia was one of the few from Auldrant with whom he can converse without wanting to set something on fire. And from the look on her face, it wouldn't take more than a single guess to figure out what she knows of his fate. He's glad he waited, in that case.

Stepping forward, he breaks the distance between them and reaches up to take her wrist, pulling it down and away from her eyes. His grip is firm, solid, real.]

It's me, Natalia.

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[mykimlasca]

[ As he takes a step forward she dazedly looks up, eyes wide, face pale. She's completely vulnerable. It's like she's living it again even if she hadn't forgotten him for a second.

This is too much, she wants to say, Too cruel.

But as he comes closer, all she can do is stare without breath at his face, the same sterness she remembers, and feel herself flinch at his touch like she's been branded with hot iron. She sucks in a hitched breath as she stares at the hand on her wrist, then at him, and she swallows, her voice a feeble whisper: ]

Asch...--Asch? [ she hates how her voice shakes. she always wants--(wanted) to be strong, for him, for everyone, for herself. but this is too much. and tears start filling her eyes and snaking down her chin without her even realizing it. she's crying, and she doesn't think about it

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[mirrorbirth]

[He can't really answer the "how" easily- even he, after so long, didn't have a clear answer as to what brought the dead to life in this place. The grief in her voice is painful to hear, and he'd rather do without it, but it was his own fault that she'd suffered, so for the moment he'll have to endure it.

Not here, though. He glances down at their hands, lips pursing, then turns away, tugging her lightly by the hand to start leading her from the clearing. It's cold, she's barefoot, and that dress is doing nothing for her health. They can talk and move at the same time, whether she likes it or not.]

There are other things you should be worrying about here. I'm alive, that should be enough.

[For now, at least.]

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[mykimlasca]

[ it's surreal, to be dragged once again towards stability by him again. and it is him. that same blunt, simple way with words that had always helped her in the past, it's cutting into the grief and fogginess with awareness and--hope.

she takes this moment to wipe away her tears with the back of her good hand as Natalia responds slowly, wonder, relief, and sadness all in her voice: ]

That's more than enough. [ That's all she can ask of him. ]

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[mirrorbirth]

[There she is- there's the Natalia he knows, the strong woman who can overcome any pain, any sorrow. His princess. He doesn't speak for a long moment, letting her take some time to settle into the idea of him being here and alive, just in case she needs it. He has no idea how long he's been dead for her, and often the time between meetings can be the worst part of a reunion. He knows that all too well.

Finally, though, he speaks up again, briefly glancing back at her.]

Do you know anything about this place yet?

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[mykimlasca]

The only thing I know is that it's a village called Luceti and that..[ she wrinkles her brows ]

I'm told we aren't even on Auldrant anymore, of all things...

[ this is easier. to discuss the matter at hand, push aside personal feelings. ]

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[mirrorbirth]

It's the truth. You'll feel it when you try an arte- there's something wrong with this world's fonons. [If they can even be called fonons. He's had a few suspicions about that over the years, too.] More importantly, we're prisoners here. So far there's no known way to escape from the enclosure.

[And people are stuck here for a long time because of it. She might notice the slight changes that time have brought to him at some point, if she gets a clear look at him; he's a little taller now, not so thin of frame, more straight-backed, and his features have filled out. He's an adult now, no longer the reckless teenager he'd been.

...

Well, alright, he's still reckless as hell. But you can't tell by looking at him, at least.]

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[mykimlasca]

I had hoped that I had been the only one involved...how truly horrible. How many are in this similar situation? And..enclosure? That sounds ...rather foreboding.
[ she does notice this, as she glances at him. she'll comment on it later, she'd much rather discuss this while he's being this open with her. from the sounds of it they have time. ]

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[mirrorbirth]

The entire village holds around 300 people at any given time. It used to be less, but in recent years the number has grown. There's an invisible barrier keeping everyone inside the area. I assume it means we're being given room to expand if necessary.

[Which is kind of a nightmare. He can barely handle the people they already have.]

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[mykimlasca]

300..[ there is a sort of silenced horror in her voice, as she dumbly follows his words. ]

Have there been any attempts to stop them? Surely something can be done..this many people..

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[mirrorbirth]

[Asch slows down a little, glancing back at her again and shaking his head before he faces forward once more.]

All we can do for the most part is bide our time and wait. With the barrier in place, we can't even get to the ones holding us here, let alone stop them. They're nothing but a bunch of scientists claiming to be doing us a favour by keeping us here, but that doesn't mean they trust us to appreciate their charity.

[And his tone of voice makes it pretty obvious how thrilled he is to be at the mercy of a collective of lab freaks.]

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[mykimlasca]

[ she goes silent, glancing down at her hands as she rubs them together. she's cold, whether she'll admit it or not, and this news is a pill she isn't sure she's ready to swallow.

we can't avert our eyes now that we have seen the truth ]

How are the people here? How are they? Not the scientists..I'd like to get a grasp on this so I can be of use once I get settled. It seems I have little choice.

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[mirrorbirth]

[He notices the motion of her hands out of the corner of his eye, and after a moment's silent consideration he tugs off his long coat and gloves, offering them out to her. He's still got the rest of his clothes to stay warm; better that she covers herself before she gets sick. Stupid Malnosso, couldn't they at least give newcomers a coat and some boots? It's winter already.]

It's impossible to sum up the population here. There are people from all different worlds; some are just normal citizens, others are impossibly strong. You need to be careful.

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[mykimlasca]

So that's how it is. [ Natalia, for all the burdens and sorrows she now bears at the journey's end, has a palpable presence of strength that was not as pronounce at the journey's start. Perhaps this is why she quietly lets out a sigh.]

I will. But I won't be able to sit by with this many people displaced. I will do what I can to the best of my ability. [at the gesture of his coat, she looks up, flushing slightly as she recieves them gratefully, sliding her hands in, the jacket a little big around her shoulders, but still straight. she says a quiet thank you. she doesn't understand the weight on her back yet. maybe she can spazz everything at once later, in private.]

You've been here a long time, haven't you..