I, I can't keep these memories out of my mind, and some kind of madness has started to evolve...

[wrathfulkhan]

Characters: Gene, Jackie, Peridot, Alex, and Miles...as well as whoever's unlucky enough to bump into 'em.
Date: February 8-12
Location: Throughout Keeliai
Situation: Memory share, event, which means...[shadow the hedgehog voice] DON'T TOUCH IT!
Warnings/Rating: Child abuse, gore, torture, mayhem, substance abuse, fringe science, brutal murder, and SPAAAAACE.

A. [Gene] | Jade Dojo | closed to Bakura
The dojo was still in disrepair after the hurricane, so Gene had gone out to his workplace (well, one of them) to help put things back together.

"Hey," he says as he walks up. He looks a little shaken.

B. [Gene] Sky Sector | closed to Raine
Gene likes Raine, and he hasn't seen her in a while, so when he sees her in the park, he actually grins and waves. Most un-Gene-like behavior, but he does consider her to be one of his closest friends. "Raine!" Because goddamn, but he needs a friend right now.

C. [Jackie] the Golden Koi | closed to Brigid
Brigid had been coming to see him when he closed up the bar sometimes, and so every night when he was wiping down the bar and cleaning glasses he kept an eye out for her. Sometimes her duties at the shelter kept her from coming, but sometimes they didn't.

D. [Jackie] Sky Sector | closed to Valdis
Sometimes all Jackie could do was laugh a little when he remembered that he was friends with a bunch of cops. He never would have thought it possible before. But at least when he sees Valdis, he's able to put the disturbing memory he relived the previous night - and all the baggage of the one he got in return - out of his mind.

E. [Jackie] Fire Sector | closed to Danny
Okay, Jackie's relived that twice. He would rather not do that again. Living through it once - and, well, not really living through it - was bad enough. So he's walking down the street with his hands jammed in his pockets, trying to give everyone a wide berth. Not touching people means that there's not going to be any accidental whatever-the-fuck, right?

F. [Jackie] Water Sector | closed to Raine
Over the course of about two days, Jackie is starting to look a little unhinged. Well, depressed/terrified/deeply traumatized, but wouldn't you be if you had to relive your own death over and over? That's why he's so glad to see Raine.

"Oh, man, Raine," he says. "Please tell me you know how to make this shit stop."

G. [Peridot] Substitute 221B | closed to Conan
Oof, sometimes Peridot regretted deciding to keep this house. She was beginning to think the house wasn't hers at all!

Mostly because of the Conan. What a pain! At least the Steven had been nice. The Conan was just...well, a brat! He's not very gneiss.

And speak of the...annoying human child...there he is now. "What do you want?"

H. [Peridot] Water Sector | closed to Elizabeth
Ugh. Stupid Conan.

Peridot's fuming, kicking small rocks as she walks down the street. She's also muttering to herself. The little angry slice of pie is in what is almost a cartoonishly bad temper.

I. [Alex] Earth Sector | closed to Conan
Alex had gone out to go speak to some kedan as a sort of goodwill jaunt post-hurricane (as well as trying to sneakily get information. Hey, spies gotta spy.) When he turns and sees Conan nearby, he's a little surprised. "Haven't I seen you around the station before?"

J. [Alex] Fire Sector | closed to Heather
It's nice to go talk to Heather sometimes; the two of them have a tendency to dance around each other, which is something he's missed since being here. Granted, he still keeps his secrets to himself, but that's okay. Even just a little sparring is good.

"Hello, Heather. How's it going today?"

K. [Alex] Wood Sector | closed to Bakura
Okay, well, this is getting weird. (Getting, he says, as if he's used to the bullshit all over Keeliai.) Actually, he is not on board with any of this, so he's keeping as wide a berth from other people as possible. He hangs onto his secrets tightly, and if they come spilling out of his head, he's going to be so mad.

L. [Miles] Wood Sector | closed to Yorda
Everything sucks. Everything really sucks. Everything has sucked, is sucking, and will continue to suck until further notice.

Miles is really not a fan of his memories being shown off like home movies. Especially since they all seem to be from that one fucking night. Like, why? Why?! Why couldn't they be nice memories of college? Or dating Beatriz? Or hell, he'd even take Afghanistan over this. At least he didn't lose any fucking limbs in Afghanistan!

But hey, there's someone familiar. "Yorda," he says. "You doing okay?"

M. [Miles] Earth Sector | closed to Costigan
Okay, Miles is 100,000% over this whole nonsense.

And yet, the Dreaming still isn't done with him. Why would it be? Why would anything since that one stupid night in Colorado ever be easy for him? God! He's so sick of this!

Anyway, here's Wonderwall Costigan.

N. [Alex] Earth Sector | closed to Costigan
Alex has decided to keep well and truly clear of everyone and everything until this whole nonsense is over. He'd stay inside, but being cooped up would drive him even crazier.

---

The madness that's started to evolve is this MONSTER OF A CATCHALL, but if you want a starter, hit me up at Chatvert!

Comments

[wrathfulkhan]

Gene nods, and messes up his hair, an anxious gesture. "I know. I know." Tony shouldn't have seen what he'd seen, either, but he had, and that couldn't be undone. Neither could this.

What can he even say? 'I'm sorry' is so pitifully inadequate. A few heartbeats go by as he mulls it over.

"I'll say one thing and never speak of it again." He takes a deep breath. "The jiànhuò who ordered this and everyone who carried it out deserve to die in the most painful and drawn-out way possible. And if there was any way I could help with that, I would."

You reap what you sow. And the bastard who authorized this has sowed much that needs reaping.

[denyamenti]

"They've all died," Bakura answered, but the brittleness in his smile leaves no mistake of what simmers below an outwardly reclaimed calm.

"Died and Judged and found light enough to pass. They broke ma'at and got away with it. Why do you think I didn't care about destroying the world where that happened? What loyalty could I possibly have left to it after that."

[wrathfulkhan]

Gene closes his eyes and exhales slowly. From what he understands, ma'at is justice, and to do such a thing and have it be called just is...

He has little in the way of religious beliefs; some leftover family rituals from his mother, and infrequent ancestor worship. He doesn't put much thought into cosmic order or what comes after. But for that massacre of innocents to be called just in any universe, under any system of belief, under any deity, was too much to be borne.

Gene would have absolutely done the same.

"None," he agrees, his voice firm. "A world like that shouldn't be allowed to exist, if that was just."

Casually damning an entire universe. nbd.

[denyamenti]

He studies Gene for a moment, suspicious, unsure what to make of the unwavering agreement. Most people would acknowledge that the massacre was abhorrent, but that it could not be of the same value as unleashing Zorc on the world. And, were Bakura purely impartial, he might have been able to agree to that-- but he was not. He was as biased as one could get, and wore that proudly. Who else would avenge his kin, who even cared enough to do so, if not him?

"Damned Dreaming tricks," is all he says, apparently electing to let Gene uphold his claim not to speak about it again. Abstractly, he does know that he has one of Gene's memories now as well... it was simply drowned out by the force of his own.

Bakura suspects Gene doesn't want to talk about his shared memory either, but the thief will probably pick it apart in his own mind later.

"Are you all right?"

[wrathfulkhan]

"It keeps finding new ways to surprise us," Gene agrees. He'd talk about his memory to get it off the subject of Bakura's, even if he doesn't like it. It's painful. That had been the moment he'd realized that the whole time, he'd been a pawn, a fool, just another agent of destruction.

It takes him a moment to realize that he was asked a question. "Yes." For now. Later he can go up to the turtle's head and try to wrestle with what he just saw. But for now, he can push it all down and be fine.

"Are you?"

[denyamenti]

The knife-edged smile is back. "I'm used to seeing it, hebnay. Why do you think I sleep so little at a time?"

[wrathfulkhan]

Good point, well made.

How do you even respond to that?

"Come on," Gene says, and stands up. "I think you need a drink."

[denyamenti]

The thief makes a startled noise at that. "I don't think that will fix things, but if you want to give it a shot and buy, I won't turn it down."

[wrathfulkhan]

"It's not going to fix anything, but it's the least I can do for the intrusion." Involuntary as it was, that was still extremely private. It would have been worse for Gene, in a way, if Bakura had seen him growing up, and why he is the way he is, although it would be more of a fair trade - as though any such trade could be considered 'fair'. Nothing about any of this was fair. Judging by what they'd both just relived, fairness is and had always been an illusion.