towerofanimus | I Don't Think That's How...

Entry tags:

I Don't Think That's How...

Characters: Zero Lancer and whoever would like to join!
Setting: Starting in room 4-16, then heading to the cafeteria, and from there floor six.
Format: Whatever you would like!
Summary: Zero Lancer wakes up in a strange place and tries to figure out what's going on.
Warnings: Spoilers for Lancer's end in the series.

Room 4-16

[The moment he is able to move from the strange paralysis that has gripped him upon waking, Lancer's hand sweeps out to grab one of the two letters his eyes spot on the table near his bed. While the time he's been unable to move has been brief, for a trained warrior in a unfamiliar place, that time has still seemed like an eternity.

An eternity trapped in mystery. An eternity not knowing if his master...]

Right, my master...

[The word drips with an anger unusual to him as his empty hand rises to rest over his heart--over the place where there should have been a gaping hole from the spear he had been forced to drive through his own chest.

The wound is no longer there.]

What is going on? How can this be?

[Lancer's eyes focus back on the letter in his hand and he quickly opens it. After only a few moments, the letter floats onto his bed. Dropped in surprise? Shock? He's not really sure what to call the feeling that tears through his heart. Shock he had felt when he had been betrayed by the master he'd given everything to. Surprise he had felt when he realized, in those final moments, how angry it had made him.

The emotion he feels now that he has been told that his world is dead and he is still alive instead of it being the other way around is something he can't put a name to. And while he doesn't know what to call that emotion, he does know he can't just keep sitting on the bed in this strange place wondering what's going on.

Lancer quickly rises to his feet and summons his armor and spear to his side. The summoning is as natural to him as breathing and he never once doubts that they will come when called. He does, however, notice that while the white outfit had woke up in is now gone, the collar is still there. It's an annoyance, but something he can deal with later once he's gotten some answers.

He's about to leave his room when the trunk at the end of his bed catches his eye. He's not quite sure why, but he gets the feeling he should really look into it before leaving. If the letters had held information, then why not the trunk as well?

Anyone who happens by 4-16 and looks or stops in may find him still kneeling in front of the now opened trunk. Asking about what looks to be the tears in the corners of his eyes may or may not be a good idea.]

The Cafeteria

[While servants technically don't have to eat, since Lancer has no idea how things work in this strange place, he is currently eating a bowl of very tasteless oatmeal. Not that it really bothers him considering some of the things he had eaten while in the Fianna and on the run from Fionn. Tasteless actually is an improvement from what some of those things had tasted like.

To be honest, he's not here for the food anyway. Since the cafeteria was mentioned in the letter, it only stands to reason that a good number of people would be there--new and old alike. And that does seem to be the case, so the servant in green sits at one of the cafeteria tables slowly making his way through his own bowl, his head bowed over it almost as if he's shy. While he's not really shy, he is somewhat worried about his curse and how it will affect the people here. So far, though, no one seems to be having troubles with it leading him to hope that it's not active. Those who take the time to look into his eyes will find that, far from looking shy, they are observing the room and its occupants with an intensity that only those who have fought many many a battle can achieve.]

Floor Six

[After learning all he can in the cafeteria, Lancer decides to slowly start making his way back up the tower so that he can find out what secrets each floor holds. Already he's heard tell that many of the floors are dangerous and even deadly to those who make a misstep on them, but this floor seems far too peaceful for that. He takes a few steps away from the stairway, but doesn't go too far, keeping in mind the things he had overheard from others. How some floors look completely safe, only to become deathtraps in the blink of an eye.

Movement to his left draws Lancer's attention, but he smiles when he notices it's just a deer. A...mutated deer, but a deer just the same. In all honesty, it's not the strangest thing he's seen. He grew up in a world of oddities after all.

The deer watches him for a few moments longer before disappearing back into the forest. As it disappears, Lancer closes his eyes and draws in a deep breath. Maybe it is just because of what he found in his trunk, but this forest with all its oddities makes him feel strangely at home.

Unconsciously, his hand raises to touch the torc that sits tightly around his neck slightly above the collar. He could have worn it lower as he had when it had first been given to him, but no. Lancer can't stand the idea of the gift Oscar had spent so much time finding for him being hidden by that thing...that annoyance he still hasn't found a way to be rid of.

And so he stands there, lost in thought. Thoughts of the old days, of his old friends, things supposedly on a world that might or might not have been destroyed. He still isn't sure what he believes. He just knows that at least here he has these small things, these memories.

He didn't have any of that in the war...]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

He is a very...odd looking man. One you would not be likely to forget if you had seen him. It's like his body has been twisted to match his mind. He is very pale and has large eyes and black hair. Each time I saw him he was wearing the same large mostly blue robe that has red markings around the collar. I believe him to be tall and thin, but it's hard to say considering how bulky the robe was.

[Lancer pauses a moment to think if he's missing anything.]

Ah...and there is one more thing. I was never able to make out quite what they were, but he has numerous red markings on his hands and arms.

[A trail of Gaelic profanities come tumbling out of Lancer's moth.]

Shit. I caught sight of him in this place. And I let him go.

[The Servant had seemed crazy while babbling his nonsense, but Lancer had no idea that he was evil.]

[Lancer raises an eyebrow at the extreme reaction, but he can't blame the other man for it. He probably would have reacted the same way in his shoes.]

If he's here, I'm surprised there hasn't already been trouble especially with his master here. I wonder...

[He pauses as a strange thought crosses his mind.]

Could it be that he, like I, doesn't want any trouble? Surely, that cannot be. He had no good in him that I could see. Why would he suddenly change so much? Perhaps they are just biding their time. That is what they did at the beginning of the war at least and then when they felt the time was right, they started causing problems. Do you have any idea how long they have been here?

Caster, at least a month. His Master, more than two. Enough for him to get to know some people.

[If they were biding their time, Lancer would have to see what they were waiting for, and keep that chance from ever appearing.]

[Lancer nods.]

That makes it really had to say what they are doing. The master might have been planning something and changed his plans when Caster arrived or they might just still be waiting for the right time. When you are thinking in lines of waiting in a war that isn't going to last long, a month is a long time. When you're thinking about that same time frame in a place like this, it's really not that long at all.

Have you talked to either of them or has everything you've learned been second hand?

Second hand. Some guy put out a warning about Ryuunosuke a while ago.

[Lancer nods. That bit of information is pleasing to him.]

Well, there is a warning out. That is a good step and it might be why he is still waiting. Do you know if a lot of people noticed it or reacted to it? Even if he likes the attention, it would be foolish to try something when everyone is looking.

A good number of people. And I think you might be able to dig through the network to find past texts. Do you think he'll wait longer then? When everyone's forgotten or stops bothering to dig through the texts?

While I can't claim to understand the mind of a man like that, I think that would make the most sense. As long as people are watching out for him or his servant, then they aren't going to be free to make the plans they need and being on their best behavior might even help relax people so that they forget even faster.

I wonder if there is someone out there who might be willing to post a bulletin each week on the network or something that would help remind everyone of those extra dangerous people who are in the tower. It's not a perfect solution because people will often begin to ignore information they see over and over, but it is better than nothing.

[He nods.]

I dunno if I can do it. I've only heard about the Master and caught a glimpse of Caster. What about you?

[Lancer shakes his head.]

I don't know if I'm going to be good with this network thing and I don't know if I want to waste my time on it. Besides, I'm new here and if we are going to do this, it needs to be about more than just Caster and his master. No matter how horrible they are, we don't want to look like we are singling them out or else we become the bad guys. Now if we can find someone who has been here a long time and knows a good number of the people in the tower, good and bad, they would be the ideal candidate because they could write up summaries about most of the dangerous people in the tower not just a few.

Ask that blonde girl with pointy ears if you ever see her. She should know well enough.

[Though he doesn't see how the other Lancer can find her without the Network.]

So far, this Ryuunosuke is the only child murderer I've heard about.

Right, you mentioned her before. Can you give me a better description than that or maybe a name? It might be hard to find her otherwise.

[A look of relief crosses Lancer's eyes.]

That's good to hear, though even having the one is too many. I'm guessing most of the dangerous sorts here are people like us who are fighters and soldiers though what their individual value systems are may vary greatly from person to person.

I've seen at least one guy who could match me. In terms of skill at the very least. But most of us have some sort of standards, especially Heroic Spirits.

[He hasn't seen anyone trying to cause large-scale destruction yet.]

[Lancer nods, contemplating that for a moment.]

I can't help but wonder if the administrators of the tower aren't probably using that against us somehow. There are rules most of us won't break and that might be what holds us back. I mean, I'm guessing there are a lot of people in his place all with many different abilities. Someone should have found a weakness somewhere by now.

I'm not sure what the fuck the Tower's walls are made of. Spirit form can't pass through it and Noble Phantasms won't work on it. I'm sure that other people have tried other things, but the walls at least seem to be a lost cause.

[He should know. He went on a rampage right after arrival.]

[Lancer shakes his head.]

I can't imagine what could be that strong. Has anything ever damaged it? Even just a little? Surly, it must have some kind of weakness!

I threw my Noble Phantasm against it and Archer threw his. Didn't wor--

[His eyes brighten as he suddenly gets an idea.]

Hey, your Noble Phantasm is anti-magic, right? So if it's some barrier keeping us from leaving in spirit mode, it should be able to break that. What if you hit the wall with your spear, and then I tried to walk through it?

[Lancer is silent for a few moments considering the details.]

It might work, though it would depend on how strong the magic was and its source. Too strong or just too plan odd and it might ignore Gae Dearg's abilities completely. It might do that anyway considering how far ahead our captors seem to be thinking, but it would be worth a try since dispelling barriers--at least temporarily--is one of its specialties. We would just probably want to find a place where we wouldn't be bothered or interrupted. The spear's head has to stay in contact with the object for it to be affected. If I need to remove it to defend myself or something like that, then spell would be broken.

[He takes a moment to consider.]

How about this room right now. Don't think anyone's gonna walk in on us anytime soon. And monster are definitely staying outside.

[Lancer looks around the room.]

That will work only if one of these walls is truly an outside wall and not one that has another behind it. I'm afraid I don't know this place well enough yet to tell if that is the case. I will have to bow to your knowledge in this situation. Testing against a non-outside wall would kind of defeat the point, wouldn't it?

(OOC: Since the Settings page makes no mention of windows in the rooms, I'm guessing there aren't any so poor Lancer is clueless at the moment.)

We can't pass through the inside walls either, so any one of them will do. Maybe we should just try an inside wall first since the wards might be weaker?

[ooc: oops, protoL doesn't know which wall leads outside either]

[Lancer nods.]

If that is the case, then it would certainly be worth a try. Why don't we start with this one, then?

[Lancer steps over to the head of his bed and puts his hand against the wall there. His spear appears in his other hand and its talisman bindings release silently. Once that is done, he places the spears tip against the wall.]

When you are ready. I would try to enter as near to the point as you can. If it works, it may only work over a small area. I really don't know.

[Lancer walks up to the wall and bends a little so his face is on the same level with the spear. He presses his hands up against the wall.]

Here I go.

[Without a sound, he goes into spirit mode, making him invisible even to the eyes of the other Servant.]

[Several seconds later, there is an audible THUMP.]

OW! SHIT!

[Lancer's exclamation of pain is simultaneous with his reappearance. His hands are still pressed against the wall, but now his forehead has a red impact mark.]

[Lancer is quiet for a moment just watching him, then he can't help but start laughing.]

What made you think it was a good idea to test a potentially solid object with your head? Wouldn't a hand have been easier?

[He pauses to calm himself, and then signs and desummons his spear.]

Well, I guess that answers that. Either the magic is too complex for Gae Dearg to nullify or our captors have made sure that its power can't be used on the walls. I can't say that I'm all that surprised. They seem to have thought of just about everything.

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