towerofanimus | (no subject)

Characters: Irisviel von Einzbern & YOU!
Setting: Room 01-01 -> Meadow -> Library
Format: Action, but I'll match!
Summary: Another awakening in the tower. Confusion and many tearful and angsty reunions and meetings are had.
Warnings: Spoilers for the end of Fate/Zero. Also angst. Lots of angst.

[Room 01-01]

[It was a strange thing, feeling your consciousness returning to you after you accepted your death. The last thing Irisviel remembered was the feeling of drowning, of suffocating, of being dragged by cold, clammy hands into an inky, muddy blackness that she knew she could not escape. This was her fate. There was something so wrong about this dark, evil feeling surrounding her, but she could do nothing to fight against it. She could only accept it.

But then the strangest thing happened: she opened her eyes. She took in the sight of surroundings she had most certainly never seen before. She couldn't move, but that didn't faze her one bit - she had been completely immobile since she had given Avalon to Kiritsugu.

... And then another strange thing happened. There was a slight tingling sensation, and then all of a sudden... she could feel the soft surface of the bed under her. She could feel the material of her clothes clinging to her. Slowly, with an expression that certainly appears to be disbelief, she raises a hand, and slowly curls it into a tight fist. There was strength in this movement. But how...?

Any roommates already in the room are free to call her out on her behavior. Any roommates that walk in at a later time will see her up and out of bed, slowly stretching and looking extremely surprised at being able to do so.]

[Floor 25]

[Irisviel isn't really doing anything on this floor. She's simply wandering about, sleeves of her shirt rolled up and thigh-high boots abandoned back near the stairs, humming softly to herself. There's still a bit of tension in the way she carries herself, but the more time she spends here, the more relaxed she seems.]

[Floor 4]

[There is a lady sitting at one of the computer terminals! A very pretty lady. Nothing out of the ordinary, right? Nah, not really, except the look of absolute confusion on her face. It's likely that she knows what the device in front of her is, judging by the way she taps away at a few of the keys, but when nothing happens, she looks almost amusingly panicked.]

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I see. I'm sorry. It can be confusing here, and hard to adjust. Let me know if there's anything I can do to help. [He smiles, lopsidedly. He doesn't see why he can't try to be helpful, at least. He doesn't bear her any ill will. Though he keeps his hand with its Command Seal hidden in the grass for now.]

I've been here for more than a month now.

A month... [A month trapped in a tower like this, with its strange floor and people, and the mysterious magi(?) who brought them here...]

That's terrible. Is there really no way out?

It is, it's a terrible place. [He coughs, but only once for now.]

Not that anyone knows of. People disappear sometimes, I heard. They might go back home. But I can't believe that there's really no way back. There must be a way.

If there's a way in, there's a way out - what you said confirms it. If people are sent back to their own homes, their own times... it's just a matter of figuring out how those that keep us captive do such a thing. And with so many people from many different worlds... I'm sure there's at least one person here who could replicate it.

[There are an awful lot of "ifs" in her speech just now... but she has to remain optimistic. For everyone else here, at least - it's not like she has anything to return to now.]

That's what I think, too.

There must be a way to figure things out. Exactly, with so many of us, from so many places, if we work together, there has to be something we can do. I won't believe otherwise.

We need to keep trying, that's all. We can't give up.

That's probably what those who brought us here want. Telling us our worlds were destroyed, trapping us in a tower with such strange and dangerous floors... they want us to lose hope. We can't give them that satisfaction.

We think alike. [It makes him feel a little strange, considering what Saber said, but he still doesn't believe he would do something like that.]

No matter what. We can't let them win.

[Set upon rising, he makes his slow way to his feet.]

I'm Kariya.

[Seeing him move to stand, and noting earlier how pained he looked when he moved, Irisviel approached, reaching out a hand to help him up.]

A pleasure, Kariya. I'm Irisviel.

[He takes her hand, accepting her help, forgetting about his Command Seals as he does so. His memory isn't in the best shape, like the rest of him.

Thank you, Irisviel. It's nice to meet you.

Ah...

[She doesn't immediately step away, having the courtesy to at least make sure he's on his feet first, but she does pull her hand away almost immediately after when she notices the red markings on his hand.]

You're...

Oh.

[Belatedly, he realizes his mistake, pulling his hand back. He hadn't meant to reveal himself, not so soon.]

Yes, I'm--I'm sorry. [He doesn't quite know why he's apologizing. The words just come out.] But I don't mean you any harm.

[It's strange because he sounds sincere. She doesn't really sense any ill will towards him, but even so... she frowns.]

... Tell me, Kariya. Which war do you hail from? [She's already met a few strange people and understood that the Second Magic is at work here. Just because he's a Master doesn't necessarily mean he's one from the War she participated in.

Besides, his appearance doesn't match any of the photos she saw. The only way he could be a Master was if he was Caster's Master, and... she had a hard time believing that.]

The Fourth.

[As far as he knows, no one save Tokiomi really knows him in this War, which is how he prefers it. Tokiomi is the only other Master he cares about fighting.]

Maybe I should have told you, but I didn't know what to say. I don't want to fight the War here, I only want to help people.

[Well, he'd fight if Tokiomi showed up, but that's a separate matter.]

[Hmm...]

I hope you understand if I'm a bit cautious about this. [Who wouldn't be, in this situation?] I'll hold you to your word - for now. But I can't be completely at ease.

[Well, he can't argue with that.]

I don't blame you. You're right to be cautious. Anyone would be.

But I'll keep my word. I have no reason to fight now. The War isn't even happening here.