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far from nowhere
"the trees rustle in the evening when we stand uneasy before our own thoughts."
With the events of Del Pascia behind the Moira, things are only now beginning to settle—and not very well. Through the combined efforts of some of the crew, D-E-L and her permanent residents were incinerated into the dust of space. While it’s not the most peaceful end, it is one, and not many are going to be thinking back on how nice Del Pascia’s facilities were for quite some time. Repairing what they could of the ship’s interior and putting as much distance between the Moira and the prison as possible, those aboard are informed by Navigation that they are approaching another planet. This means, of course, the potential for better supplies, as some things are beginning to dwindle, and the Captains elect to dock so long as the crew follows protocol. WELCOME TO AMISSIS-RE
Amissis-Re is an unregistered planet with no documented histories or signs of life. The Moira’s Navigation crew have scanned the planet for any usable resources and have discovered a faint signal emitting from beneath the surface of Amissi-Re. Using the transporters and any other crafts located in the Cargo Bay, the crew are able to travel to the source of the signal. Upon arriving in its exact location, they’ll find a small series of lakes that lead to a tower-like structure that appears to be in use. Crew must cross a poorly assembled bridge system that sways and dips when weight is applied to it in order to gain access to the entrance. Once there, a woman comes out to greet them and explains, excitedly, that she is so very happy that they have come to Amissis-Re.
Everyone can go home.
Their host insists that she has done the impossible and has somewhat fixed the Ingress that’s been built on Amissis-Re a long time ago, and what’s more, she can send crew home for short bursts of time. Upon following this woman inside, crew will find that the planet is not, in fact, barren at all. Diving deep into the underbelly of Amissis-Re, it’s like an eternal factory of machines, and while vast, for whatever reason, it also seems incredibly welcoming...
☄ LEAP OF FAITH ( 05.01 and on ) The barren planet of Amissis-Re is devoid of vegetation and organic life except for a lone woman, and the planet itself is an intricate honeycomb of machines that go for miles below the surface. Yet, that seems insignificant and unimportant in comparison to the news that the crew has just received. After Thán has looked at the Ingress, he tells the crew that he cannot say for certain that it is properly functioning, but Emiri native, Ben Link, will volunteer to test it out.
An elevator takes crew down to a glass platform that overlooks an inverted Ingress portal. In order to return home, the Moirans will have to take a leap of faith and jump in. Ben, in order to show his commitment to the crew and willingness to help get them home, takes that jump with Captain Thán seconds behind him. Jumping feels like dropping through wind; lights swirl, it’s warm, and a soft buzzing encompasses you as you fall. You don’t feel the landing. One moment you’re falling, and the next, you’re in a new world.
A few hours pass before a similar elevator rises from below and to the left of the Ingress, stopping beside the platform. Ben and Thán step out unharmed.
It works, and everyone can temporarily go home. Will you jump? ☄ COMBINE THE EXTREMES ( 05.01 and on ) The woman that greeted the crew and led them to the platform will allow anyone that wants to go home the opportunity to go. There’s only one catch: it’s not permanent. She’s worked for years to fix the Ingress so that she can return to her own home but hasn’t been able to make the trip an everlasting one. Everyone always comes back. Always. They go for a few hours, at first, but that amount of time increases with each visit.
The one guideline, she says, is that you can’t go alone. Each trip requires a partner, or it becomes too much for the mind to bear. These rules are simple: the world takes shape depending on who jumps first, but if crew go hand-in-hand and leap at the same time, the worlds combine. This new world will be populated with people that existed in both and may appear to be a jarring combination of both worlds. It may seem unusual, but if the woman is asked, she’ll explain that the combined world does exist as there are more universes than can be imagined. The Ingress tries to take the person to their own home, their original home, but when jumping together, it finds the closest possible match and deposits them there instead.
From that point on, you can travel the world together or split up, but remember, this world is a living, functioning world. It doesn’t matter if it’s the home of one crew member or a combination. You meet other people. You can get hurt. You influence and are influenced by others.
Be cautious, and enjoy your visit “home”. ☄ LINGER ON ( 05.05 and on ) The more times the Amissis-Re Ingress is visited, the more it seems that your trips last longer and the experience becomes even more vivid. More real and harder to distinguish from the current reality that you know. It’s difficult to explain why, but you get the feeling that maybe if you went without the aid of the host, that perhaps you’d be able to stay. Forever. It takes some subterfuge, but in time, you see your chance: she’s nowhere in sight, and you take it.
The world you are in now is completely your own, whether another crew member accompanied you or not. The people you know are there, everything around you is exactly as you remember. A few hours pass, and you don’t feel that familiar tug, that invisible hook at the base of your spine that signals that your visit is over. Even more time goes by, and you’re still in that world, your home. When the first day has passed, you begin to question if you’ll ever go back, or if life on the Moira was all a dream. The person with you won’t be able to convince you otherwise, and they’ll start to feel less real, a stranger that you used to know.
There’s only one way to go back to the Moira. Someone from the other side has to come in and retrieve you both. Once in, contact with a third will jump-start a link through the Ingress, and it will pull all crew back to the platform.
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thisavrou_log2016-05-01 09:04 pm
no subject
[The walk is quiet. No sounds of squabbling teens, no lilting cries of parents calling for their children. Snowdin was always a warm, friendly town, befitting the fuzzy people who inhabited it. Sans and Papyrus, while short in the fuzz department, fit in well there.
It's a place Sans felt like he'd always belonged to, even if it didn't start that way.
And now, it was dead. Dust mixed with snow seemed to cover everything, unsettling him while the nearly-filled in tracks of fleeing civilians ran frantically eastward.
Followed by a deeper, more solitary set of footprints in the same direction.]
... Papyrus?
no subject
[Startled out of his own thoughts, Papyrus's answer comes out much louder than he probably intended. The shout echoes off the walls of empty buildings. impossibly loud in contrast to the absolute silence.]
That is to say! What are you waiting for, brother? We should get going!
[Without meeting Sans's eyes, Papyrus marches ahead. A part of him is disappointed -- he'd hoped that maybe the human turning out to be nice after all might have fixed everything and brought their people back, but now that they're here any everyone's still gone, well... there's nothing else for it.
Time to go home.]
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Not because his town is in shambles. No, that much he was more than accustomed to. He was cursed with remembering the evacuation as clear as day, watching Papyrus usher families and their children towards Hotland, where Undyne and Dr. Alphys could protect them.
He remembers urging Papyrus to go with them.
He remembers Papyrus brushing off the sentiment with his usual bravado, proclaiming that a (potential) member of the Royal Guard never runs away from a fight.
He remembers going along with it, surmising that whatever happens is going to happen no matter what he tries to do. Rationalizing that, maybe, in this timeline, Papyrus will do exactly what he sets out to do and save them all from the scourge of the human that wanted them dead armed with nothing except his impossible, bottomless kindness.
And he remembers watching him die.
Since his time on the Moira, Sans thought he mostly escaped the numbness that came with that moment. He had Papyrus back, right next to him in fact, and yet staring past their house towards the small valley, Sans can't help feeling a little short of breath.
That's where it happened. That spot, where Snowdin melts into Waterfall.
Hah... Papyrus would hate that one.
If his brother is talking to him, Sans does't seem to hear him for the moment.]
no subject
His sentences bounce off Sans unheeded, but Papyrus keeps it up until they're within sight of their house. It looks the same, fairy lights and wreath and one overstuffed mailbox and all, and yet...]
Well, here we are!
[Deeper footprints in the snow illustrate where the human marched onward, all the way up to where Papyrus waited for them, and then... presumably onwards.
Not that he'd know.
He only hopes that what he said got through to them. That they were moved by his belief and tried harder ever after to be a good person and do fewer violences against his friends and people.
Not wanting to think about this anymore, he taps on Sans's skull.]
Wake up, lazybones! We're here!
1/2
Looking up at Papyrus, that tension might as well be gone. That is, unless you know exactly what to look for. Slight creases under the sockets, a a forced placidity, and a faraway look in his eye that couldn't quite seem to refocus.]
Right, awesome. [His grin grows a bit.] Sorry, it's just a trip being back.
2/2
In truth, Sans doesn't really remember that part too well.
He knows it hurt. That's one constant, the one thing that aches no matter how familiar the sight feels. In darker times, Sans was almost grateful for that -- a sign that he wasn't completely numb to caring about his brother's death, even if he'd long since given up ever actually intervening in fate's plan.
There was a lot of silence, a gathering of dust, of aborted funeral rites Sans didn't have the stomach to carry out. Picking one thing Papyrus loved most was impossible. He loved everything so much, with an intensity that staggered him to meditate on very long. The presumption of sprinkling some of Papyrus's dust over himself felt too selfish. Papyrus's love was never just his.
But ultimately, the specifics of that time are lost to him -- made foggy by the intensity of his numb grief at the time. So really, opening the door to the sight of their house in shambles comes as something of a shock.
Bones spears were still stuck out of their lumpy green couch, the TV cracked, the fridge/food museum open with its contents strewn over the floor. The staircase looks as if someone... blasted it.
Sans blinks, suddenly feeling very, very small. A feat, considering.]
no subject
[The moment he throws open the door and sees the destruction in the house, the rest of that sentence dies in his mouth.
For a moment he looks outraged -- looting! Ransacking! And in his very own home!! -- but then the nature of the damage sinks in. He can rationalize away a lot of things, but he'd recognize those bone attacks and scorch marks anywhere.
He looks down at Sans as if asking for a explanation, then decides one isn't needed. He can imagine it -- his brother finding his empty armor, being alone in the house at an absolute loss, emotions and magic firing up within his soul until...
Bending down, he scoops Sans up into a tight, wordless hug.]
no subject
Sans doesn't speak for a few minutes, bones rattling loudly at first until dying down to a low creaking. His voice, when he finally uses it, isn't much different.]
Why didn't you say anything?
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They can't simply breeze past this one or make a joke and move on.
For the first time in a very long time, the two of them are in a tough situation where the only way past it is straight through it.
Papyrus holds onto Sans until he's sure the smaller skeleton isn't going to rattle himself apart, then sets him back down. Not knowing what to do with himself, and with the couch an utter mess of fabric and stuffing, he sits down cross-legged on the floor.]
It all happened so fast, I wasn't sure what to do! I was very afraid of the human, of course, I knew they were doing all sorts of violence to the other monsters, but I knew Undyne would never give up if she were in my boots. And if I just tried extra hard to get through to them, maybe I could stop all the terrible things from taking place at all!
[Which still doesn't address why he never told Sans, but he's getting there.]
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I just thought...
[Just thought what, Sans asks himself, voice trailing off into silence. Just thought, maybe, you were from another time? A happier time? A version of their reality where the human was filled with love, not LOVE, and Papyrus got to live all his dreams on the surface. Even if only for a little while.
How, exactly, do you explain to your brother that you hoped he was from another reality? A reality that, by his measure, Papyrus would never even consider as a possibility?
Especially not after living through this, intrinsically tied to a timeline where he was very, very dead.]
I dunno what I thought. Not this.
no subject
They're both masters of that in their own way, but somehow, sitting here in their ruined house, little spills of dust coloring patches of the carpet in a sickly grey, Papyrus is finding himself more and more desperate to push toward honesty.
They're grown skeletons, adults who should be able to face terrible things, even if it has to be done in their own unusual way.]
I don't know what you thought, Sans, but I know what I thought after I got my second chance on the Moira! I thought... I thought that even though you're older than I and you've always been the one to look out for me, there are a lot of ways in which I look out for you, too!
[He holds up his hands, counting out the ways on his fingers.]
I bring you home when you've had too much ketchup, and I cook healthy meals and make sure you take your baths and get you out the door in time for your sentry shifts! Because I... even if I don't know what or when, I do know something changed in you. You used to care more, and enjoy doing things that aren't naps, and you had such a passion for all your nerdy science garbage! And then... and then that changed one day, and the thing I do for you, brother, the best thing I can do that makes the most sense and helps you, is that I smile!
[He pauses, thinking back on that.]
And it's a good thing, because I like to smile! I like smiling, and working hard, and believing in the best, and making things better for you! And...
[He drops his hands back onto his lap and lowers his gaze back to the floor.]
And talking about how I failed to save the human would be the opposite of the thing that helps you.
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He can't look at him, focusing instead on the carpet right beside his brother's left boot. For the life of him, he can't think of a single thing to say in response.
His hope for Papyrus was always rooted in the guy's happiness. Getting what Pap needs, first, then what he wants, and seasoning it all with the goofy camaraderie that came with having a brother. A skeleton can't do much other than smile, but even so, seeing an expression of joy on Papyrus's face felt like something. A change he was making in a world entirely resistant to his input.
How many of those grins were not so much earned as given? Because he was too wrapped up in that goal to see just exactly how transparent his decline was to someone like Papyrus, who knew him so well? Since they were kids?
They've always looked after each other, sure. But it was never supposed to be like this, and Sans can't help feeling the urge to take a shortcut anywhere but here.
He's still staring at that little patch of carpet. The thread is almost worn bare, and Sans can't help relating.]
I'm sorry. [He finally manages, voice husked out and soft before finally looking up. His own smile is firmly in place, easy and relaxed and practiced.] I never meant to make you feel that way, Pap. I mean it. You don't gotta worry about me so much. I'm fine.
no subject
[It's about as irritable as Papyrus knows how to get, which isn't very. His version of being angry is usually more blustering or childish than anything serious. Even now, his attempt at the expression is closer to sulky.
This is why he didn't want to rock the boat. He was afraid of this response. Of ruining the effect of the main thing that still lights a fire under his brother's tailbone.
Sans is pulling away, as he does, and this time Papyrus doesn't have the fallback of playing the role of the goofball.]
There are many ways I could describe you, Sans, believe me, but fine isn't one of them! Even now, you're...
[Disengaged. Dishonest.
For the first time in a long time, Papyrus feels a very real, cutting sense of regret. He wishes he'd never dragged Sans here, never admitted to dying, never opened up about his feelings. Things could have been, well, maybe not easy, but at least familiar. The old song and dance they knew all the steps to.
Well, never mind. Continuing this conversation was only going to make things worse for Sans, so he pulls himself back to his feet.]
Anyway, it seems we've forgotten why we came here in the first place!
[The staircase is an absolute ruin, and Papyrus steps close to inspect the damage. Nope, not going up that way.
But he does want to see his cool stuff again, and it's not like it'd the first time he scaled the wall instead of taking the stairs like a normal monster.
Cheerful facade firmly back in place, matching Sans's, he smiles over his shoulder at him.]
This obstacle will hardly be enough to deter the great Papyrus! How long do you think it'll take me to achieve the second floor?
I'M SORRY YOUR BROTHER IS A SHITBASKET PAPYRUS, YOU DESERVE BETTER
And there was Sans, still rooted to the spot, but smiling. Grinning even, as he lolls his skull over one shoulder and watches Papyrus smile and gallivant and make his day with each burst of enthusiasm and towering confidence.
His brother, who experienced his own death, loss, heartbreak, and more aboard the Moira.
His brother, who was still smiling. Still pushing himself to be his very best. Still refusing to give up, in the hopes that if in doing so Sans will feel compelled to follow.
His brother, who so bravely reached out, trying to tell him how he felt, trying to find reassurance and a solution to the disease of apathy that had been rotting inside him since long before Frisk or Chara or any of them entered their lives.
His brother.]
Hm, that many feet? [He sizes the distance up, making a show of really thinking about it.] I'll give you three tries. But ya gotta stick the landing.
[He laughs. Papyrus groans, and makes it on the second try. By the time he gets in his room, Sans is already there, spinning in Papyrus's computer chair. They chat and Papyrus makes a labored process of choosing which action figures he'll be taking home with him. Sans votes for the oldest, most dinged up, most lopsided one, so he'll have someone to represent Sans in any battle strategies he concocts. Papyrus huffs over the suggestion. As if you would be in my army!
In the end, Papyrus takes a few of his most alluring robot figurines... and the lopesided dinosaur Sans liked.
When they arrive back at the Ingress, Sans expresses interest in finishing up his date with some noodles. Papyrus enthusiastically decides to stay and explore more universes. They part ways, an unspoken promise to meet up in Pap's room at around ten for a story. They're nearly through the ones Elizabeth recommended. Sans makes a mental note to ask her for more ideas the next chance he gets.
They don't talk.]