crescentview | Opening my eyes again in casted darkness... (January Catch-all)

Opening my eyes again in casted darkness... (January Catch-all)

🌊Who: He Xuan, and anyone else.
🌊What: Things happening; they're self-explanatory.
🌊When: January.
🌊Where: Varies.
🌊Warnings: Kidnapping, mentions of suicide & forced induction into harems; involvement of violence/murder. Anything else that may occur will be added or adequately warned for in the thread. TGCF spoilers, but since this already deals with memories, that's a requirement, really.

i. gravitation

[ No matter where He Xuan finds himself, whereas it's on the beach or somewhere else, there seems to be some kind of nonsense afoot. Some...feline nonsense at that.

They're all congregating rudely around him and he is essentially helpless to their attacks (cuddles and piling around his feet.)

He practically glares at anyone who catches him in the midst of this. ]

What?

ii. displacement

[ Ghost kings do not get sick, not really. But it doesn't mean that coughing or sneezing is an impossibility for him.

It just so happens he had grabbed something spicy from a restaurant and for some reason found himself sneezing due to some kind of pepper and now he's in the middle of a lake. Soon enough, he's grumbling, extricating himself from the water. What a waste of food. ]

iii. uncharted waters

[ In addition to those, anyone is free to encounter someone who seems to, for all intents and purposes appear to look like He Xuan, and is essence definitely still him. Yet, his appearance clearly differs in subtle ways. His skin isn't so pale, and his ears are not so sharp and he appears a little lost. Feel free to run into him like this, though he will be scrutinizing most people, and there appears to be a sword at his hip, which his hand is hovering on the hilt of. ]

iv. wildcard

[ Self-explanatory...! Open to things that are also not necessarily the above. ]

If you would like to plot with me, I can be reached on plurk @ leyfi, discord @ seraphkingdhaos#8538 and my plotting comment will be here.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Poor M-21, being messed around by a ghost king's nightmarish phantoms! Surely things will get easier and become less difficult to deal with.

Who should he spot other than a...black figure up close. That's right, it appears to be some kind of ghastly, formless thing, surrounded by what appear to be a pile of dead bodies littered here or there. For M-21's sake, it'd be best he doesn't examine their wretched states. In addition, in what appears to be in the figure's 'hand' is the head of someone whose face is frozen perpetually in fear.

With M-21's appearance here, the figure seems to still and then toss aside the head. When the figure speaks, it's clear, however distorted by something else, that it is very much He Xuan. ]

A trespasser.

[ It also becomes clear that whatever he is in the middle of doing, it is unfinished. There's someone trying to scramble away, only for He Xuan to move unnaturally fast, grabbing one of the man's arms, easily holding him in place. ]

If you want to watch, feel free. It'll end soon enough.

[ Around this time, those creatures from before show up again, emerging from the shadows once more. But they're silent as death, watching and waiting for something. What will M-21 do? Watch? Or something else entirely? ]

[ M-21 has never made a good decision in his life. Of course his gaze drifts over those piles of mangled bodies, though his expression barely changes. They're hardly the first dead he's seen. They're not even, by any stretch, the first dead he's seen in this kind of state.

In some ways it's He Xuan's voice that's more jarring than the carnage in front of him. It shouldn't be enough to get him to let his guard down in these circumstances, but against all logic he lets his transformation slip and his claws vanish again... for the moment. They could reappear just as easily. ]

He Xuan. What are you doing? Aren't these humans?

[ "Human" doesn't mean "innocent" in his mind. Not in the least. But it does mean people who can't do anything against something like them. So he steps forward to try to grab He Xuan by the arm he's using to hold the man he captured, as if M-21's supernatural strength were anywhere near on par with a ghost king. It's enough if he can get his attention long enough to answer. ]

[ Under normal circumstances, He Xuan can parse logic. But this isn't about any sort of logic.

This is a "nightmare" where he is reliving a twisted version of the events exacting his retribution on people who have been responsible for his suffering. Even if the Reverend brought them into his life, their actions are their own. And here he is, instead of getting any true satisfaction and joy, re-enacting the same miserable event towards the end of what was his mortal life. ]

They're scum!

[ M-21 steps forward, and he finds himself bound not by He Xuan, but by two creatures from the audience who have moved to hold him back by grabbing his arms. He Xuan doesn't even move, though his appearance becomes more than a smoky phantasm, etching into the appearance he usually has, and in his free hand appears a blade. ]

These people are the ones who have wronged me for so long. I am only giving them their rightful ends and I will continue to do this as long as I please. Stay still and watch.

[ The blood already on the ground seems to continue to inexplicably grow, drenching both of their feet and even their ankles. ]

Edited 2023-01-03 12:59 (UTC)

[ With the scent of blood everywhere in the air, and the helplessness that chokes him for a moment as he's seized by strange creatures, it almost could be one of M-21's nightmares for a moment. His claws flash again as he jerks against the creatures' hold. But it wouldn't be a nightmare if it were that easy to break free, would it?

For a moment M-21 is silent. Just watching, his heart racing like something deeper in him is spurred by the panic, struggling to surface. It wouldn't be the first time he's stood by and watched bloodshed helplessly in front of his eyes. It might be the first where he doesn't know which side he'd join if he were freed. ]

They probably deserve it.

[ A little of the pressure in his chest eases at that, like deciding he believes it makes it true. And he turns his gaze towards He Xuan again like he's prompting him for an answer. What could humans like this have done to him? ]

When is it enough? When you've killed all of them? More?

[ It's straddling the line between question and judgment, at least half because he can feel the level of blood rising, the smell all but choking him now. He tosses his head in distaste. A nightmare might be no more than a nightmare, but the thought of letting things keep going like this... ]

[ There's a moment of silence for M-21's escape attempt. May it rest in peace.

To be honest, it may have been successful if it wasn't for the fact that this is, indeed, a nightmare, where one's strength can be negligible even in the face of something that may be overpowered in the waking world. Though, their hold seems to loosen slightly when the other says those words. ]

My family is dead because of them. And...they've hurt others. Gone so long without being punished for their actions against those who can't oppose them.

[ It isn't a torture session because despite the appearance of the carnage, He Xuan is efficient. He swings the blade, and the head of the man splashes onto the gathering of that dark red liquid that only continues to rise. ]

It won't stop until I'm satisfied. Until every single one of them and their associates are dead or suffering.

What other solution is there? Tell me...if you could get revenge, would you not kill everyone and whoever was involved? Make them pay?

[ Family. He doesn't have any in the sense that He Xuan means. But he doesn't have to stretch his imagination to know exactly what he'd do. He flexes his claws again at the memory, his whole expression distracted for a moment. ]

If they'd asked for revenge, I would've done it without a second thought. And not just for them. Because scum like that shouldn't be allowed to hurt anyone else.

[ And once they were all dead... without the promise he'd made to M-24, he would have been completely lost. All he'd known is how much they all wanted to live. Does He Xuan at least have that? ]

Then what? You're strong, aren't you? It shouldn't be hard for you. Aren't they already long dead? So I'm asking when you'll be satisfied.

[ Because this nightmare, He Xuan chopping down enemy after enemy with not even the slightest sign of a struggle, doesn't feel like satisfaction. It feels like being trapped in this moment with the blood still rising around them both. ]

Exactly, that's why...

[ But, his words trail off, because M-21 has more to say. He Xuan's eyes are cold and full of rage, but he does listen.

He doesn't have anything left. He couldn't protect a single loved one and in the waking world, his revenge has been claimed. Even the person he decided to shadow has...

Well, He Xuan has nothing to lose, suffice to say. ]

...Satisfied?

[ He asks softly, and at this time something the color of ink begins to come off of the ghost king, until it stands as his apparent shadow. When next he speaks, it's not He Xuan's voice, but clearly something else's. ]

I'll never be satisfied.

[ Then, from who knows where, a tidal wave of crimson red comes to join the river of blood that has been steadily rising, taking them both with it. It's not a pleasant sensation by the stretch of the imagination, but...

One thing is for certain. It's over.

M-21 will find himself waking up. He can choose to look for He Xuan if he wants (he will be found nearby the beach for simplicity's sake) or do whatever he pleases, but the guy has escaped the nightmare in tact. ]

[ That's... one of the less pleasant wakeups M-21's ever had. But of course he's going to go find He Xuan.

Even if he weren't looking for the man specifically, he'd likely be inclined to run off the memory of that dream with the fresh night air. But he's not exactly surprised to see another silhouette on the beach. ]

...Hey.

[ One might not expect ghost kings to dream. But the thing is, they certainly do...when they go to sleep, that is. He Xuan has been through his own variations of nightmares a myriad times and doesn't see the point in evading such a thing when they're bound to be horrible dreams anyway.

However, what he has not anticipated is anyone else getting caught up in it. It shouldn't be possible unless it was some kind of curse he engineered or something. But, it happened.

He turns to face M-21 with a blank expression. ]

Why did you come?

[ He Xuan imagines it's not a random night-time walk. ]

Edited 2023-01-05 02:27 (UTC)

[ That response half-confirms M-21's own suspicion -- that it wasn't some random nightmare with He Xuan's face and places he doesn't know. As little sense as dreams make, he doubts he has that kind of imagination. ]

Had a crappy dream. I'm walking it off.

[ His forehead furrows a little as he looks at He Xuan. If they really saw the same things, it seems stupid to ask if he's okay. But he doesn't know where else to start. ]

[ Where can one start after a ghastly scene like that? Good question.

He Xuan himself isn't a great conversationalist either. But he will point out: ]

...My nightmare.

Let's hope you don't wander into another again.

[ He goes quiet for a moment at the thought. By now, perhaps two or three have found themselves in his nightmares. Maybe it's time he had brief chat with the goddess, if this is somehow her doing. He has no other leads, though he's not going to look forward to it. ]

Tch.

[ M-21 has no shortage of bravado. But he can't quite blow that off because honestly... so does he. For plenty of reasons. ]

How long have you been having those?

[ "How long has it been since it happened?"

M-21's not a very tactile person, and he's pretty sure He Xuan isn't either. But he steps a little closer and kind of nods towards a spot in the sand where they can sit down. He wants He Xuan to talk properly with him. ]

[ ... ]

...As long as I can remember—since I have been this way.

[ Since he has become a ghost king, he means.

He Xuan turns his head slightly when the other makes a quiet suggestion for them to sit. In this place, he has little places or opportunities to hide, and honestly, he's very...tired. He sees no point in resisting, and so he will sit down. ]

[ M-21 heaves a near-silent sigh and settles himself down beside He Xuan with a flop. The warmth of the sand doesn't linger this late, but the peace of a summer night and the steady sound of the waves settles over him anyway. He has no idea if it has the same effect on the man beside him. ]

Long time, then. [ Since He Xuan hasn't made any bones about how old he is. M-21 rests his chin on his knee and looks out at the water rather than staring over at He Xuan. Easier to talk like this, he's pretty sure. ] That's how it happened?

[ The sounds of the waves in the middle of the summer night do not move him at this time. It is the way the night hangs above and seems to make contact with the ocean.

As if they are far less impressive than either such things. He feels numb, cold.

He Xuan wonders at the futility of being here. ]

...How I took my revenge, you mean? Yes and no.

[ The nightmare contains embellishments that were not present at the time originally. Even in the nightmare he thinks things may have been a bit more...neater. There was an audience that did not stalk others who may have come upon the scene. Just a few people who hid in the shrubbery and whatnot.

People praised his actions when he died. In his hometown, there is a bloody festival where they reenact what he did, over and over again... ]

Edited 2023-01-09 03:24 (UTC)

[ He Xuan really isn't the type to answer more than he's asked, ever. But M-21 isn't in the mood to feel properly sardonic about it. And after all, he's the same way himself. ]

Those weird watchers or whatever. Those were part of the nightmare.

[ That's what makes sense to him, anyway. And the distorted landscapes, all of that. Unless that's really like where He Xuan is from.

He glances sidelong at him again, quietly measuring. "Since I have been this way"... He can't picture what He Xuan was like before. Was he happy, once? He must have been. People naturally were, he thinks. ]

...You don't regret it. [ A guess, again. If it were him... he doesn't think he would. ] But you still dream about it.

...At the time, there were only a few humans who witnessed it.

But nothing supernatural. [ ...No. That's not true. He forces out: ] Except the Reverend of Empty Words.

[ Of all the misfortune that has sprung itself right onto He Xuan, he can't ever say he was from such a twisted landscape. Not truly. But he will nod when the other states that he doesn't regret it, because that deduction is correct. ]

I dream about it likely because it's the last day I was human.

[ It was a turning point for him. ]

[ M-21 glances over a little sharply, only half surprised. Maybe as much to hear He Xuan say it aloud as anything else. It makes a kind of sense, even if the immortals he knows aren't all that different from humans, when it comes down to it.

So the family He Xuan lost were human, too. ]

You're like me.

[ Maybe in a tiny way. But just like with Ellis, that spark of recognition kindles a sense of kinship in him. ]

What changed you? Was it that "Reverend of Empty Words"?

[ He Xuan supposes he had never told M-21 he was human originally. Though before this, he hadn't seen the need to. Such things were unnecessary.

Up until now, there were a lot of things unnecessary to him. But, there is something about what the other man states that gathers his immediate attention. Enough for him to ask: ]

...What do you mean?

[ Pause. ]

Yes, it was. This Reverend of Empty Words was sent upon me by another who switched my fate. It is a creature that is able to turn your fears into reality, and bring misfortune to those you know.

Edited 2023-01-11 02:36 (UTC)

That we used to be human. And that we lost family. ...That they were taken from us.

[ His when he was no longer human, and He Xuan before he lost his humanity. Maybe it's not so alike. But M-21 thinks he can understand a little.

His brow furrows as he follows that explanation. He'd been expecting a transformation more like his own, or like an experiment turning a human infected. Not that He Xuan had been — what the hell can he call it other than haunted? ]

So everything that happened... was because someone sent a monster after you?

[ He Xuan doesn't say anything to that at first. The nightmare is enough of an indicative of his mood tonight, and it's not a good one. But, he's filing away that piece of information, something to come back to. ]

That's right.

The creature fed upon my fears, cursed anyone who was close to me to death, and then at the end, tried to consume my soul, but failed.

[ ...He Xuan hesitates here and leaves it at that for a moment. He's not going to say that now he and this creature are now one and the same because M-21 sure as hell doesn't need to know that. He is not hiding so much with his real self out here, but the last thing he wants is to run around saying this willy-nilly.

But it is at times like these he can't even begin to fathom why a goddess would bring a ghost king here. He could just ruin everything overnight before she'd be able to kill him. ]

A wretched god did that to me. And there are those in the Heavenly Court who knew, but didn't care. Not until I made sure to rip his head straight off of that god's shoulders.

Edited 2023-01-11 17:27 (UTC)

[ M-21 takes a quiet moment to just picture that. What it would mean to be shadowed by something like that, watch it take everyone close to him away. Like his own fears about the Union tracking him, multiplied tenfold. If the people around him really couldn't protect themselves from that...

He shifts just a little, enough to lean his shoulder briefly against He Xuan's. Neither of them are exactly touchy people, and the summer night is warm. Even so. ]

People. Gods. There's always plenty like that. They wouldn't care if it wasn't their problem. The people they step on to get what they want are just tools to them.

[ Maybe he should be more bothered about the decapitation thing, which he doesn't think is a figure of speech. But, honestly? It sounds deserved. ]

That reverend thing is gone. And the god, too. So now you're...

[ "Safe"? He kind of doubts that was something He Xuan had worried about in a long time. It explains a lot about the way he is, honestly. ]

[ In fact, He Xuan intensely dislikes being touched. Though, he lets some people do it anyway, so maybe he doesn't exactly loathe it.

The most that he does is simply glance over with an annoyed Look, but then gaze forward. As M-21 speaks, he listens, though at the rest, he doesn't say much of anything either, because quite frankly, he agrees. It's only at the next part he tenses. ]

Don't. [ ... ] It's not gone.

[ He Xuan rises back to his feet; one of these days he's going to learn to relax for more than five seconds. Though maybe not after a nightmare like that at the very beginning of the month. ]

But it's not a problem anymore. I'm heading back. You should do the same.

[ He thinks? M-21 said they were similar, in not being human. But it doesn't mean he can forego sleep. Still, he begins to make his way back to his farm. ]

[ M-21 pushes himself to his feet and shakes himself off. Hearing a little more about He Xuan's past put the nightmare in context, at least. Whether it actually settled him down any...

He looks at the way He Xuan holds himself, unreadable as usual. If he's tired from all that, it's still impossible to tell. But M-21 isn't someone who likes being prodded when he's feeling vulnerable either. So he just gives He Xuan a nod, though he calls after him: ]

Hey. If you can't sleep, come by whenever. I got some good food recently. I'll make it for you.

[ He Xuan can stop in on his own terms or not, whenever. If he wants to save face doing so, M-21's instant ramen stash is a sacrifice he'll make for a friend. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Opening my eyes again in casted darkness... (January Catch-all)

cw: decapitation

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject