destinystrings | Pandemonium

Entry tags:

Pandemonium

☢

Who: Everyone [Open]
Where: The Entire City | 18th from 1am to 11pm
Summary: Complete and utter chaos
Warnings: Despair
Music: Break my Soul

Chaos.

There was no other way to describe the mood in the city, the streets filled with civilians attempting to huddle to the closest safe havens. The demons who had walked a fragile alliance with humans, previously content to stay underground due to the fact that they knew they would be pushed back, suddenly filled the streets - attacking on sight when they saw humans showing themselves to be weak. The darker monsters among them relished in this new opportunity, ignoring humanity's pleas and destroying what little remained of the city's peaceful sanity.

Everywhere, the city was a tumultuous mixture of those still stuck in their childish forms, with some back to their older selves trying to fix what they could and reestablish electrical power and barriers. Some demons, siding with humanity despite everything, aided them by keeping the others at bay. Personas were out in full force, swarming the skies and pushing back invaders. But it simply wasn't enough.

Without a network and all of the news outlets completely silent, everyone was left to fend for themselves... and it wasn't pretty.

The Visitors had to act as fast as they could, still in their child forms or not. There was so much to do, and without any directives. No intel sent to their heads explaining the situation. The Wise Men facility was silent. No one seemed to be answering...

[OOC - Here is the City Page. Your character can be anywhere and either look for clues, help people out or simply try to defend themselves. Remember, there is no electrical power right now, and most of the areas of the city are dark.

It's up to you to decide what to do. Shall you go save civilians, reestablish power, go to the MAGI headquarters? The choices will affect the game. There is a planning post in the OOC comm, create teams, decide what to do and help save Hinoto-Ri by following this link. Just know that, tonight, someone you might have thought an ally will declare themselves a foe.

Good luck.]

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[Ah, cultural differences! ...But Avitus hadn't said anything about it before. Either he'd gotten used to a different standard since he was a child, or else he'd grown out of being quite so bold and free in his questioning. Or both, perhaps. But he was a child here, and a curious one, at that, unrestrained and bright, who spoke up when he wanted to be heard instead of quietly hinting for an opportunity to speak so that he didn't interrupt.

Which meant, of course, that now that clothing was the subject of conversation, Otonashi's fashions were fair game for investigation.]

Neck... tie? Is that what you call it? It's just for show, isn't it? Like earrings? [He raised a hand to push back the gold curls that covered one ear, to show off a pair of well-polished gold hoop earrings... and then eyed Otonashi over again, a serious look on his face.] Whose clan do you belong to, anyway? Is that how all the humans dress where you're from?

Eh? Uh, not exactly, but I guess it could be almost the same. I've never thought about it.

[He retrieves one of his tighter long-sleeved shirts and hands it over to the child. It may be comically large for a kid, but it functions.]

Try that out. [But then he's hit with another odd question.]

I-- clan, what? I... don't? The SSS wasn't exactly a clan... More like a band of misfits.

Edited (reads better, I think!) 2013-12-05 00:02 (UTC)

[The kid takes off his loose red shirt, and starts putting on Otonashi's offering. It is plenty big on him, but he pushes the sleeves up, before pausing to rethink that... and then starts folding them up instead, while he speaks, making thick, wide cuffs out of the extra material.]

But... if you don't already belong to a clan, then any of them could send their hunters to claim you. And then you might have to be one of Turel's slaves, and Winnoc said that was a terrible thing, since they're monsters! And besides, there's no farms and stuff outside the clan territories, so where would you get enough food so you won't be hungry?

[Sleeves finally up enough to neatly leave his hands free, he looks back up at the older boy and begins putting his loose red shirt back on, over the borrowed top. No reason not to double up on the fabric, was there?]

I've always grabbed my food from convenient packages at the store. Or with a meal ticket. I don't really need a group to help me feed myself...

[Without parent figures in the picture prior to his death, fending for himself became the norm. It wasn't ever a question.]

And I don't plan on being enslaved any time soon. I don't know where you get these ideas... [It is a little hard to decipher child fantasy from cultural difference.]

[The kid tilts his head a bit, listening, still confused about all this, somehow. He tucks the borrowed shirt's length down into his skirt as he does, quiet.]

Why not?

[He seems... entirely serious, in asking that.]

I mean... I don't think anyone wants to be for Turel or Dumah, but Winnoc said Rahab is awfully nice to his, and it's nice at Raziel's... why don't you come to Raziel's with me when we're not here any more? [A little head-tilt, regarding him, and he smiles faintly....] I bet they'd like you.

Why not? I'm not interested in being someone's... property or, ah-- I don't know! The closest thing I'm comfortable with is, ah... working somewhere miserable. Or cram sessions before an entrance exam.

[That's his modern equivalent of enslavement, anyway.]

I don't want to be too forward, but... I don't want to think about someone owning me. Or anyone else... [It sounds like something out of a horror story to a fairly modern Japanese boy. If Avitus had been describing some obscure novel or fanfiction, he might be more receptive, but... real life?]

[Have another confused head-tilt.]

But... that's what humans are for.

[He still seems entirely serious about this, too.]

They're for doing things the clans can't, and being food and maybe getting turned into part of their clan later.

No -!

[He has to fight to contain the reflexive bite in his voice. But the words strike a chord deep within him, and his confusion and disbelief quickly turns to fire.

Fire, but not raw anger.]

Humans aren't around to be someone else's meal. We have lives and purposes. Maybe they're not always perfect, but they're our own. Ours. Yours! I know we're from different worlds, but doesn't your life mean anything more to you?

[The boy looks... really surprised. He nods a little, unsure, and one hand heads to the other's wrist, to play with the gold cuff on it, now hidden under the long sleeve.]

Like getting to play after I do chores, and... learning to read? Because I do that too....

That's a start... Isn't there anything you really love? Something that has nothing to do with serving others?

...Like what?

I don't know... Drawing, painting, singing? Playing a sport? You should try to do something you actually want for a change.

[He's quiet a second, and back to giving Otonashi a funny look.]

But if I wanted to do any of that, I could do it anyway. Why's it matter about being a slave or not, to do it?

How can you say that? Enslavement isn't-- You don't get to live your own life, you always have to follow someone else!

[He takes a deep breath and rummages through the drawers. They must have matches for candlelighting...]

... There's no way that's a fair life. That's... that's just it.

So.... [Another pause, tilting his head; he really is trying to get this.] ....you don't ever have to do chores? So... who does laundry and dishes? And cooks food?

... I do all of those things myself. Maybe my mother used to, but... I don't really remember my parents at all.

[It's a pained confession, one that motivates him to search more intently for those matches. He feels the edge of the matchbox under his fingernails and fishes it out, popping it open.]

Oh... I don't remember who made me, either.

[Another little pause, trying to figure out if he should be asking something else about that, since he seems upset, but... the earlier topic still has him kind of concerned.]

How is that different, though? You still have to do chores, right? And you can still do whatever you want after you're done, if it's a good clan that's got you....

Because I would never trust something that owns -- that owns human beings. Nothing is worth being someone's object.

[He carries the matchbox to the window and looks out, his brow knitting together in concern.]

Why did I even cone in for these... [Right. Making a fire. Warmth out there in the pandemonium.]

But some of them are really nice, like Winnoc. And since I'm his, that means none of the others, even in the other clans, get to be mean to me. If they get in trouble with him, they really get in trouble, and no one wants to do that!

[In other words, he's all but said in so many words now, that he's a slave to someone who's either at least somewhat powerful, or has some bit of rank. ....Even though the kid here is only about kindergarten age.]

But the vampires don't get upset if they're mean to humans that don't belong to someone....

((wow, cone in? I meant come * in, so sorry!!))

Yeah, and who owns this Winnoc guy? Is that all it is, people claiming other people like they're toys? Everyone's out to protect their own, and then --

[He shakes his head, trying very hard to let the anger fade, lest it be misdirected onto a child. It may be best to head outside.]

... Do you want to stay in the house?

Um... Winnoc says it's mostly only Lord Raziel that tells him what to do. And there's only one person who can order Lord Raziel around, ever.

[So the kid's at least under someone really high-ranking. And if Otonashi recalls what sort of vampire Avitus had claimed to be -- Razielim -- then maybe it'd make some better sense of it all.

He steps after the older boy again, on instinct.]

Don't you still need help carrying things? I could bring something to make a fire with, if you tell me where to get it!

((lol, hadn't even realized.))

Oh... yeah, if you want to get some rocks from the garden.

[He hesitates. On second thought...]

... A-actually, nevermind. You grab any firewood you can find. Even if all you can get is sticks.

[He nods, but looks hesitant.]

I think I know where there's some.... I'll go get it.

Anything will work.

[Otonashi heads off to the garden, picking up as many rocks as he can carry. It isn't many, but he tries to rush the process.]

[Avitus comes back out to the front yard with a few bits of firewood from somewhere in the house, sets them down, and heads back inside for more. He pauses after the second load of them -- it's not a lot, but six-year-olds can't carry as much as teenagers, now can they.]

Is that enough? I should go get more, shouldn't I....

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trainwrecking - 2013-12-13 19:11 (UTC) - Expand

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