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towerofanimus2012-04-04 06:22 pm
fallen_stage) wrote in towerofanimus2012-04-04 06:22 pm
Entry tags:
[001]
Characters: Kuja and YOU
Setting: Floor 5, Floor 20
Format: Prose, but I'm willing to adjust.
Summary: Kuja woke up, dressed properly, then went to verify the note. He doesn't like what he sees.
Warnings: Depression, discussion of planet destruction, slight dissociation, suicidal thoughts
Floor 5
One of the first places Kuja found was the observation floor, peering into one of the viewing terminals. He had awakened disoriented and alone, wondering if he was in some sort of afterlife or final hallucination. The note he discarded as rubbish, focusing instead on finding true answers (and something more stylish). While he found his clothes easily enough (though many might find them startling), the red around his eyes is a touch crooked, the neutral color on his lips not quite perfect, his rust-colored nailpolish overlapping onto his cuticles in places.
What he found was a world destroyed. Gaia's once lush surface scrubbed clean of all life, leaving only dust and rock. Not even the Iifa Tree was left, no Mist leaking from caves, no monsters roaming the worldwide desert. The atmosphere was either sucked out or burned, the sky black and empty.
I won't let this world exist without me!
Floating up in a rush of agony and power, Kuja had unleashed it all on a half-dead planet. What plant life had managed to florish he cut down, burning glassy stems and watching them fall into other, asymmetical dominos falling and shattering against one another. Fauna was no safer than flora, an instant extinction as bodies were crushed by plants and scorched by magic. He even burned the silver dragons he was so fond of before, reveling in the beauty of their smoldering pale feathers. Bran Bal was crushed in a trice, and Kuja soared like a vengeful god cutting a swathe of judgement. Soon only the surface remained but it wasn't enough, it had to be hollowed and smashed just like Kuja, just like his ambitions and future and - and as the atmosphere was next to set ablaze, Kuja shaped some around himself as he sliced through the crust of the planet, molten chunks of the mantle exploding out and solidifying as it met the chill of space. Still not enough; not nearly enough. Kuja had to destroy more, had to stomp the pieces into space dust so there was nothing left, nothing but the void of space and the light of more stars with old screaming light that needed to be snuffed and silenced, nothing for ever more, nothing nothing nothing -
Nothing left. Nothing left of his past, nothing left for his future. Nothing left of his last pinprick of hope. Kuja stared at the console, numb with thoughts that circled but couldn't find rest. "Do I need a reason to help people?" was only met with "let's be happy here", a moral and a life and a soul made pointless for being cut short. A victory made pyrrhic by weak vacillation, by that damned boy who wouldn't back down and stole respect.
Eyes continued to stare at the wasteland, but they saw nothing.
Floor 20
On the edge of the platform into the empty space, Kuja sits, kicking his heels and heedless of the fall. Fair away from the staircases, he's hunched over, staring at the space below his feet. The note from his room is crumpled in his fist, but eventually he smooths it out and carefully folds it. Paper airship complete, he tosses it into the void, watching float downward before setting it ablaze with magic until it's reduced to ashes on the breeze.
Setting: Floor 5, Floor 20
Format: Prose, but I'm willing to adjust.
Summary: Kuja woke up, dressed properly, then went to verify the note. He doesn't like what he sees.
Warnings: Depression, discussion of planet destruction, slight dissociation, suicidal thoughts
Floor 5
One of the first places Kuja found was the observation floor, peering into one of the viewing terminals. He had awakened disoriented and alone, wondering if he was in some sort of afterlife or final hallucination. The note he discarded as rubbish, focusing instead on finding true answers (and something more stylish). While he found his clothes easily enough (though many might find them startling), the red around his eyes is a touch crooked, the neutral color on his lips not quite perfect, his rust-colored nailpolish overlapping onto his cuticles in places.
What he found was a world destroyed. Gaia's once lush surface scrubbed clean of all life, leaving only dust and rock. Not even the Iifa Tree was left, no Mist leaking from caves, no monsters roaming the worldwide desert. The atmosphere was either sucked out or burned, the sky black and empty.
I won't let this world exist without me!
Floating up in a rush of agony and power, Kuja had unleashed it all on a half-dead planet. What plant life had managed to florish he cut down, burning glassy stems and watching them fall into other, asymmetical dominos falling and shattering against one another. Fauna was no safer than flora, an instant extinction as bodies were crushed by plants and scorched by magic. He even burned the silver dragons he was so fond of before, reveling in the beauty of their smoldering pale feathers. Bran Bal was crushed in a trice, and Kuja soared like a vengeful god cutting a swathe of judgement. Soon only the surface remained but it wasn't enough, it had to be hollowed and smashed just like Kuja, just like his ambitions and future and - and as the atmosphere was next to set ablaze, Kuja shaped some around himself as he sliced through the crust of the planet, molten chunks of the mantle exploding out and solidifying as it met the chill of space. Still not enough; not nearly enough. Kuja had to destroy more, had to stomp the pieces into space dust so there was nothing left, nothing but the void of space and the light of more stars with old screaming light that needed to be snuffed and silenced, nothing for ever more, nothing nothing nothing -
Nothing left. Nothing left of his past, nothing left for his future. Nothing left of his last pinprick of hope. Kuja stared at the console, numb with thoughts that circled but couldn't find rest. "Do I need a reason to help people?" was only met with "let's be happy here", a moral and a life and a soul made pointless for being cut short. A victory made pyrrhic by weak vacillation, by that damned boy who wouldn't back down and stole respect.
Eyes continued to stare at the wasteland, but they saw nothing.
Floor 20
On the edge of the platform into the empty space, Kuja sits, kicking his heels and heedless of the fall. Fair away from the staircases, he's hunched over, staring at the space below his feet. The note from his room is crumpled in his fist, but eventually he smooths it out and carefully folds it. Paper airship complete, he tosses it into the void, watching float downward before setting it ablaze with magic until it's reduced to ashes on the breeze.
no subject
He'd seen this enough times to know sharing his own truths with others was worthless. The teachings of light permeated the Order too strongly. Even the younger ones here were mostly caught up in its staid ways. Seeing Ventus' reaction was more than telling enough.
no subject
"And only men are susceptible?" He shook his head, "How odd, where I come from, dark magic affects all in the area, friend and foe alike."
Regardless, the rest of what he said aligned with Kuja's experience. Whether hiding it from themselves or for other, Kuja had used the truth as a weapon and armor both.
no subject
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"No, I find that magic is an equalizer, unless one takes pains to protect oneself against it. Shame that talent is not so evenly distributed."
no subject
no subject
If people were from different worlds, might magic also vary? Might the very laws of nature and physics as Kuja know them be utterly backwards? If planets could be tiny, or flat, there wasn't much he could rule out.
"Where I come from, casting and defending oneself against magic need not be wholly related. It's easier to develop both when one becomes stronger, but I have seen people and monsters alike that might excel at offense but falter at defense, or the reverse."
no subject
no subject
Something which Kuja took far more advantage of than most other mages he met, in fact.
"Some are content with only retreading pre-established spells, though. How dull."
no subject
Or they were merely limited to playing within the rules by their own limited teachings. Either way, they were pitiable.
no subject
Now Kuja was intrigued. Magical experimentation was far from unknown on Gaia, but no one ever seemed to push its potential like Kuja had. If he could find another who embraced and delved into that area of study, well. He'd forgiver worse things than being a bit pompous.
no subject
There's a rather satisfied smirk. He's fairly certain only Yen Sid himself could rival his magical repertoire. He's studied far to long and worked far too hard to not have a great deal of personally developed abilities up his sleeves... and a great number of surprises that people would never expect as well.
Dang that's a great expression .D.
At first Kuja thought coming here was a curse, and maybe it isn't a blessing, or even a good thing, but... Now the opportunities are unrolling before him. Because of the proximity of so many from different worlds, couldn't Kuja find different sorts of skills, sorts of knowledge, sorts of magic? What things could he create if he could join them?
"I wonder... if our magic is different, perhaps we should explore the results of a hybrid."
It's his proper "I'M LISTENING~" face
Of course, it'll take some observation and testing first. One shouldn't rush into these matters... especially with the judgmental horde of lightbearers waiting to leap upon the unexpecting. No, if Kuja really has that potential, it'll be evident in their future dealings. Then, perhaps, the offer.
For the time being, though... "I would be quite amenable to such an experiment. The compatibilities of magic is something that has not been studied so intensively in any recorded format."
no subject
"As would I. I'm afraid I don't have the tools for conventional instruction of my magic, but I don't mind using my own magic as a subject for comparison."
no subject
He's still growing excited though. The potential to learn new magic is never something to pass up.
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For all that Kuja's first impression was poor, Xenahort was growing in his esteem greatly. If not for the magic, but for the eagerness he shared in wanting to explore the new possibilities.
too bad I don't have an icon of one
Taking this particular route had been a wise choice. Meeting with such a contemporary was a rare moment, one he could have so easily passed up without realizing. An honest, real smile - a rarity itself - crosses his face.
"It will be a pleasure to work with you."
Oh well
"I believe I have a few items, yes."
Kuja stretched out and took a few steps toward the stairs.
"I believe there are some things I need to arrange. But I will keep in contact for the proposed experiments."
Re: Oh well
no subject
Shaking his head of his previous thoughts, Kuja smiles and draws closer to the old man.
"I don't believe I caught your name?"
no subject
no subject
"Lord, actually. Lord Kuja."