towerofanimus | (no subject)

(no subject)

23:30:00
Silent dormitory rooms are lined with bodies--not dead, just sleeping. Throughout the tower it is pitch black and silent. At the base of the tower, countless shining eyes, watching.

23:45:00
The tower hums to life. Lights blink on in one by one; only the dormitory rooms remain dark. A small army of blank-faced humanoids appear and spend the next ten minutes taking various positions around the tower.

23:59:00
An order given. The dormitory room lights blink on.

00:00:00
You are awake.

00:00:30
You can move.

Begin

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"It's fine," Romana murmurs with her own sigh.

"Si. And I can't shift home, and I haven't found Venezia anywhere yet..."

"Venita isn't with you?"

Spain hugs Romana again, pressing a kiss to the forehead. She knows how important the younger Italy is to Romana, and the thought of not being able to find her must be worring Romana so.

"Oh, querida... We'll find her. Promesa."

"No... There was another person in the room when I woke up, but it wasn't her... And I can't find her anywhere, and I can't feel her. Because... because we share our people, I can usually find her..."

Romana's voice drops lower and lower, a slight wobbly sliding into it. She's worried, she always is when she doesn't know where Venezia is. She's always scared that something bad has happened to the other, that they've been divided. The last time she felt this cut off from her sister was in world war II, and the feeling only brings guilt with it.

Spain hates to see Romana so devastated, and she hugs her tightly, petting her hair gently.

"Chiquita, querida... shh, don't worry, we will find her."

Swallowing, Romana pushes all the concern, all the worry down, burying it underneath everything. She straightens up, chin tilted up and nods sharply.

"Si, we will. And then we're going to leave this stupid tower and go home. There's a way, and I'll find it."

If Spain wasn't proud of Romana before, she's practically beaming right now at the confidence from the other nation.

"That's the spirit. We will find a way out."

It's not confidence, only determination and need to prove that she won't fail again. Deep down Romana is scared, but she already let Spain see that, and now she needs to be strong.

"Si. And then we'll go home, and Venezia will be safe."

"Sí, and we will forget this nightmare."

Letting Romana go, Spain starts looking around for clues, picking out a book from one of the shelves. "Maybe we can find something useful from all these books."

"...Si."

Exhaling softly, Romana turns to look at the books herself, running a finger along the row of spines. "Maybe... but why would a kidnapper leave their plan lying out in the open... It's too easy, even if there are many books, there's still the risk of finding it. Or even just a hint."

"Perhaps... it is their plan to see how we can escape?" Spain shakes her head and starts reading. "So they can strengthen their defense..."

"Perhaps... But it still seems too easy." Romana's frown stays even as she picks a book and begins to flick through it

"Messing with our minds, perhaps," Spain sighs, leaning against the bookshelf as she starts reading. "They can do anything to us, so we have to be alert."

"Most likely," A scowl on her face, Romana letting the book drop fall to the ground after a quick skim. "Bastardi, taking us, putting this things around our necks..."

"Everything happens for a reason."

Even then, Spain couldn't think of one that actually tallies with their current situation. Unless...

"Perhaps... our world really is destroyed..."

"I... know. He only does things to show us how strong we truly are, he'd never put us somewhere where we could not find the answer..." Even after all these years, Romana's faith remains strong, half in a need to believe that there is a reason for everything, even if she can't see it.

"No." Her voice is firm as Romana drops the book to stare sternly at Spain. "Everything is fine, if the world was gone, we would not be here, si?"

"Ah, querida... I've been wondering since I read the letter they sent us," she sighs, closing the book and leaning against the shelf. "If what they say is not true, then they must be keeping our people, or at least, our lands, safe in another world, I would think. Unless..."

She shakes her head, dispelling the thought. "No, no. Magic doesn't exist."

A stern look on her face Romana nods, grabbing another book from the shelves. "Si. It doesn't. So it's all just a lie, they're just found a way to... block us from feeling them or something."

"It's all a lie, we can't believe them," she has to keep telling herself that, she needs to believe it. Romana doesn't know what she'll do if she doesn't.

"I'm not believing them at all." Spain's tone is resolute as she turns to Romana.

"Good," the word is crisp, and final, Romana's nod firm as she meets Spain's eyes.

"...Did you find anything?"

"Nothing." Spain shakes her head, sighing as she closes the book. "There's only useless information in these books."

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