towerofanimus | 001 - Introduction

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001 - Introduction

Characters: Sephiroth & Open (Dormies, any other wanderers etc.)
Setting: Mid-Morning on day of arrival 10th Oct. Dormitory 3-02 then surrounding corridors, other dormitory floors in the path of first exploration. Then later on, Cafeteria.
Format: Will start as Prose but action is Ok for anyone who so prefers it.
Summary: Welcome brave new world. Um, maybe not. Much wandering of other dormitory floors then Cafeteria for the first round of that god-awful oatmeal.
Warnings: Will edit as necessary. Though wordy, very wordy....

Part 1 - Waking
Black feathers fast faded into inky, shape-less, all-consuming blackness. Spiralling down eternally. Maybe he was wrong, maybe this time it would be the end. He could feel something there, picking at his once-impenetrable core and slowing ripping him apart -

Eyes Open. Blink. Focus. Blink.

Move.

Move.

MOVE.

Sephiroth has been here before. Conscious but not yet able to physically affect anything. But Reunion had never been an instantaneous affair before so what was this all about. Indeed, based on previous experience and knowledge this process should take years before he would even have a form again and that's not considering consequences that should come with the latest defeats. All things considered the next question was easier - where was he?

Perhaps sooner than expected, movement was granted. Fingers moved when he willed them again and with a cautious look around Sephiroth sat up. It was a fairly plain room, uniform in its layout; simple enough. When his gaze returned more to his immediate surroundings that's when he saw it - what looked like two letters resting on the nightstand. Without hesitation, out of a desperate need to know they were grabbed and regarded with urgency.

Your world has been destroyed. I saved you. Let's all be happy here.
One eyebrow raised, followed by the other but they soon fell into a scowl as Sephiroth re-read the letter again, checking frantically for any signature and even turning it over to try and ascertain some inkling about who had put it there for him to read. After the fifth time of flipping the paper over and over in his hands it was getting mildly annoying; only the words stated on the page stopped him from crunching it up into a ball and disregarding it.

So the world had been destroyed. Sephiroth had known that was the inevitable outcome of his destiny. Had it been him? Despite the defeat, had geostigma been too far involved with the Planet's workings? If so, who would have thought to save him from it when it had been his destiny? Mother, had she any influence within the lifestream left surely wouldn't have. This should be his finest hour. Some finest hour, sat in a room that seemed totalitarian by its very nature; it's uniformity weeping control. As he began to read the details of the second letter this arrangement seemed even more suffocating. He didn't like this at all and the more he read, the less sense it all made.

At some point during all of this reading, re-reading and intention to glean something between the lines Sephiroth tucked some longer strands of silver hair back behind his ear from where they had fallen and made the next discovery. He had something around his neck! A gentle tug on the collar didn't release him and so letters were forgotten and both hands started to pull on it, trying fruitlessly to gain release. It was only when the effort started to ache at his hands and arms that Sephiroth decided that maybe just now it wasn't worth injuring himself over, he'd never get to the bottom of this if he just sat here pulling at something that simply wasn't going to give. Besides, it had drawn his attention to something that until now had seemed irrelevant.

The clothing, not that it was clothing by anyone's standard, that someone had put him in just reinforced the sickening feeling he had about this place. Plain white, tight skin suits of anything, coupled with the surroundings and the letters as read so far, all amounted to one thing - containment. Not to mention tightness in too-personal places just triggered thoughts of someone, something having its hands all over him whilst he wasn't aware. After all, regeneration in clothing?

It was time to do something about this. Leaving the letters on the nightstand he headed for the chest at the bottom of his bed.

Part 2- One small step for man...
So far this entire experience had been one backhand after another. Someone had taken his destiny from him and called it "saving" him. Somehow he'd ended up in this completely alien place, which seemed to be made up entirely of everything from any worst nightmare he'd ever had. He felt confused, sickened but the chest contents were like a light in the darkness. Despite all of it, it seemed whatever this was all about didn't involve any degrading or stripping of him. Neatly arranged around his shoulder armor was the rest of this clothing; boots, gloves and all. In fact by the time everything had been taken out to check it over Sephiroth had the slightest smirk pulling at the side of his face.

Indeed, he would never be a memory.
Maybe Mother did have a hand in this after all.

His mood was lightened a little by that thought, however unlikely it was bearing in mind the contents of the second letter he'd managed to read so far. Sephiroth hurriedly pulled on leather pants leaving the white suit on as a sort of undergarment for the time being. It made him feel dirty and it did feel almost invasively tight but he just wanted to have a look outside the door, down the corridor. To begin to explore. He could always come back and change should he feel it necessary, if the feeling of nakedness couldn't be distracted by whatever it was that lay in wait outside this room. Boots were fastened and then he headed for the door.

Silver hair swayed from side to side as first he looked right and left down the corridor cautiously before stepping fully from the dorm and beginning to sweep the corridors methodologically. Every corridor looks exactly the same so Sephiroth takes care at every corner to recall the direction he had taken so that he could learn how get back to his 'starting' room. The first stairwell was considered carefully before Sephiroth remembered - elevator, Dormitory Floor One. Question is, up or down? At this point, it didn't matter he'd have to check every floor he could get to in order to find this elevator. After all, he'd need to acquire food at some point.

Cafeteria. Dinner Sitting 10th October
Later in the day, after a brief return to Dorm 3-02 and chance to shrug on his leather jacket (at least it hides the collar a little, though the violet does stand out a little against the black) Sephiroth felt though he was starting to get a handle on his surroundings. It was a start, all things considered and he was quite content that at least in the dormitory levels he had an idea of the general layout. It was about time he satisfied one of the basic needs of having a physical form; sustenance. He made his way back to the elevator on Dorm floor 1 and headed down to the very base of the tower.

A few minutes later, a full bowl of thick grey-brow oatmeal was sat on a table in front of him and he was picking at it with small mouthfuls one at a time. Sephiroth didn't recall many experiences of eating food, though he did know that this consistency was alike to grainy mud and didn't taste much better. He'd seen better looking food on offer and was now contemplating the reasons why he'd only been offered this bowl. Punishment? Some sort of sign he hadn't figured out yet.

One thing was for sure, silent contemplation over and over was starting to infuriate him.

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Sephiroth spared a moment to look more over Kariya. Wondering if his condition were somehow a by-product of all his searching. He certainly wouldn't want to end up like that.

That just re-opened the can of worms regarding whether he should just give in to this place (and all the demands made clear on the letter by whoever owned this place) and see where it led, or whether such action would eventually decay the very real, immediate need to know what was going on.

"How long have you been looking?"

Kariya had refused to believe the letter, and he refused to give in, even though his ability to resist was limited. This wandering and searching was all he could do for the most part, at present, but it was better for him to have something to focus his energy on, and he wanted to return home.

"Not long." He shook his head. "I've only been here five or six days." He'd brought his problems here with him. "Are you new here?"

Sephiroth knew all about that. If he hadn't left the dorm to explore he'd be still sat there thinking a thousand ways around the situation and being unsure of what to do about it. Better to get out and at least get your bearings.

A single nod. "Yes." He really didn't have any other information to give, even if he would want to share.

"It's confusing at first, I know. It's only a little less confusing for me now. If I can do anything to help, I will." He offered his aid in spite of the fact that this man was clearly much stronger and healthier than he was, or would ever be. Being able to help made him feel useful.

"I'm Kariya Matou."

"Good to know." Sephiroth offered a single nod in return, silver bangs swinging down with it before flawlessly going back to their face framing. It's difficult to tell how sincere he was about accepting help from anyone; generally Sephiroth counted on himself first as allies can always turn. But it was good to know nevertheless that someone was at least willing to help him.

"Sephiroth." He introduced himself but there was no other gesture such as a handshake or anything like that. Everyone starts as a stranger, question is what ulterior motives were at play; impossible yet to tell.

"It's nice to meet you, Sephiroth." Kariya gave a slight smile, not minding the lack of a handshake or other gesture.

"It's easiest to use the elevator. It goes to four different floors in different parts of the tower. If you go down to the cafeteria, you have to eat the oatmeal first."

It was basic advice, but it had been useful to him when he'd first arrived, to learn and do those things. "There are a lot of floors. I don't know how many. Some of them are dangerous, and there are monsters here." Though this man looked as if he could deal with a certain amount of danger, an amount which might be rather large.

Sephiroth listened carefully to Kariya, remembering one of the letters detailing where to obtain food. Did he need to eat at all though? Sephiroth hadn't had his own physical body that he'd had to take care of in - well longer than he could easily remember. Though he wasn't stupid, sustenance was needed for energy and for that food would have to be considered. How bad could a bowl of oatmeal be after all?

"Well, they certainly gave us enough to keep occupied." The idea of having to encounter monsters wasn't the deal-winner, though he did relish the idea of being able to go on a monster hunt should the mood take him. And an unknown number of floors? That just begged for him to be in a position to know them all. Who knows what he'd find out.

Agenda No. 1 - discover all there is to know about this Tower. Sephiroth did have a question for Kariya though. He pulled lightly on the front of his collar again, noting Kariya had his own one; but blue not violet.

"What are these all about?"

"There is a lot to do here. So many people, so many places. There's even a museum. I don't know what it's all for. I don't believe they really want to keep us happy." It wasn't a happy place. They couldn't mean for it to be so.

When Sephiroth asked, he glanced down at the collar. "I'm not sure. We can't remove them. We have to go to have them taken off every other week, I've heard. No one's said why, and I don't know why they're different colors." He knew he wasn't being the most informative, as a relatively new arrival himself, but he tried.

"This might be an experiment, and we're subjects." That was something he'd discussed with some of the other people here. "But it's hard to say, when no one is sure of anything."

"I think that was their attempt at sarcasm. All things considered." Indeed who would in a million years think that he would be happy in an environment like this. It was taunting, even more annoying was the thought that they knew it would taunt him. Control at the deepest level.

It was addictive, messing with the collar. Once pulled on it, it sparked an urge within Sephiroth to rip it off; or at least to try again. He'd given it a go to no success earlier but did that mean to give up? As such he couldn't stop fingering at it as Kariya went on to detail some information about the collars.

If he wasn't already naturally pale, Sephiroth could have paled further at the suggestion that this was an experiment; it made him feel even more uncomfortable than the complete stripping of control of his own path that this Tower had taken from him. Of course it had crossed his mind already; in fact it was one of the reasons he'd left the dorm and come out exploring. He needed to know if this was the case.

"There has to be someone here that knows." Was he being naive? Sephiroth certainly wasn't one to lie down and accept all of this. "Something, somewhere must be able to reveal the truth."

"Sarcasm..." It wasn't something he was unfamiliar with. His own family had often treated him to sarcasm, in addition to their unkindness. "Yes, that could be. That explains a lot."

Kariya felt the urge to toy with his own collar as he saw Sephiroth do the same, but he resisted. It would only upset him to pull at it and fail, and he couldn't afford to grow upset. It was more of the same: he was being used by someone, subject to their cruelty, their whims. He'd been locked up by his family for the past year, and now here he was again, locked up somewhere new. He had to deal with it. He had to endure.

"You're right." Kariya nodded. His innate optimism hadn't been quenched yet. If Sephiroth was being naive, then Kariya certainly was. "There are people who've been here so much longer, weeks or months or more. They must know more after so long. I just haven't found the information yet. That's why I'm looking, now. I won't believe that there's nothing we can do."

"Hm." Sephiroth wasn't sure how far he'd go in trusting information from any other residents. After all it's likely they all had their own plans and agendas. Even Kariya must have but Sephiroth still listened.

Maybe he'd just have to keep his ears (and eyes) open for the time being; to learn as much as he could from as many people who he could glean it from. Then maybe he'd be in a position to intelligently weigh it all up and come up with his own agenda. The game was very much changed, but how different could another world be really?

Sephiroth remained silent for a long pause again before releasing the collar and looking to and fro down the corridor. "Like I said, there really is a lot to look into."

Kariya wasn't nearly as suspicious as Sephiroth. Not that he trusted people completely, but the worms that ate away at him had begun to impair his rational thinking along with his health.

"Yes, but I know there must be something we can do," he repeated, and coughed. He put a hand up to his mouth, not sure, as always, if there would be blood, but things seemed fine for the time being.

"We just have to be careful." He wasn't completely credulous, of course. Not when he was suspicious of those who'd brought them here. It was just their fellow captives that he was willing to give the benefit of the doubt, unless proven wrong.

Sephiroth didn't jump so much as step back a little as Kariya coughed. More of a reflex than anything, a ghost of a more polite notion. After all if Kariya was carrying anything contagious then chances are Sephiroth's own cells would destroy it before symptoms even began to show. Though it did make one think; what other illnesses could be lurking around, there was a chance there could be something serious - with too many residents a insignificant bug could become a pandemic. Among humans anyway.

Careful. Sephiroth quirked an eyebrow a little at that statement. If he was going to go breaking down the unbreakable in terms of the rules the owners set up then they had every right to see it. Indeed, he'd want them to know he was doing it and for them to be unable to do anything about it. Then, that was a point - he didn't know what they were capable of just yet. Perhaps a bit of caution wouldn't hurt, however Sephiroth detested the notion of laying low maybe it would be the only way.

"Agreed. Too much unknown just yet."

He coughed again, more wetly this time. He hated being in this state. "I'm sorry," he said quietly. "It's not an illness, it's a condition." The worms inside him didn't leave him alone for long. "It'll stop." For the time being, at least. He took a breath or two, calming himself before he continued.

"You're right. It's hard to say anything for certain. I can show you to the elevator, if you like. The cafeteria is a good place to start. Then there's the infirmary and the library right upstairs. There are computers in the library you can use to talk to other people in the tower." Not that he's tried them himself, but he's heard it works. "It could be a good place to find out more."

"I should imagine I will find it soon enough." He meant the elevator.

Sephiroth considered for a moment putting Kariya out of his misery; after all could he afford to leave a person to who he may later be indebted to? But how much damage could this one do really? In fact they seem to both want the same thing, at least so far. Sephiroth decides to leave Kariya be. Delivering a nod in farewell, Sephiroth turns and heads away from Kariya; back onto his stalking of the corridors.

There was a moment of pause just before Sephiroth turned the corner, after all there were many things Sephiroth was but rude was not called for in this situation. "Thank you, for your advise."

"All right," he said. "No, it's not difficult to find." He wasn't about to press his help on anyone, and he knew that he could slow people down, considering his current state.

"You're welcome, Sephiroth. It was nice meeting you." He was glad he'd been able to help, if only somewhat. "Good luck."

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001 - Introduction

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