☿ // point zero

[fionnuisce]

Characters: Waver and open!
Format: I'll try to match.
Summary: Professor Charisma does some exploring. And science. Magic science. i have no self control so wow this got up quick
Warnings: None yet.

[dorm room 3-10]

[Sleep paralysis on its own was enough to put him on edge. Was this some kind of ill-conceived attack with magecraft? No, that wasn't likely--if it was and his would-be opponent had an ounce of sense in their heads, he'd be dead already. In the moments it took him to properly regain his senses, Waver ran through a list of hypothetical causes for this problem...each as unlikely as the last.]

[Finally, he was able to sit up and brush long, disheveled black hair from his face. Now that it occurred to him, Waver couldn't even remember having fallen asleep to begin with. Hadn't he only just been leaving a lecture hall in the Clock Tower? If he'd fainted, this didn't seem like any infirmary they had to his knowledge. As he considered the matter, Waver idly trailed a hand to the back of his own neck and froze. Though the collar's presence disturbed him, he could figure that out later. What caused him to halt in place wasn't the presence of something foreign, but the absence of something familiar.]

That's not possible. It's gone, how the hell can it possibly-- [He muttered under his breath for a second, double checking to be sure whatever it was (likely a necklace of some kind, from how he was acting) had actually gone missing.]

[One might find him shortly after that, rummaging through his trunk with some very determined sense of urgency.]

[floor eighty-one]

[Standing before the windows and looking skyward was one unfazed lecturer in a dark green suit, black hair tied in a long ponytail and sunglasses resting on top of his head. In his hands are a pen and small notebook, and every few minutes he pauses to take something down in chickenscratch handwriting.]

[floor twenty-five]

[Here, said ponytailed and sunglasses-wearing individual seems to be doing something a little strange. Namely, something with a case full of glass vials and liquids that might scream 'mad scientist'.]

[Or 'alchemist', if one knew better.]

[Whatever method he was using, Waver seemed to be analyzing a few specific flowers in the meadow, presumably to determine whether they were magical or supernatural in origin.]

[Judging by the frustrated look on his face? They're probably not.]

[floor three]

[A library; the natural habitat of clever people, especially this one in particular. He examined the shelves with a critical look, a small pile of books on the table nearby. Whatever he's actually looking for, it doesn't seem he's able to find it. He adjusted the sunglasses on his head as though doing so was some odd habit, scowling in faint aggravation.]

[anywhere else]

[Of course, anyone doing this much exploring is bound to run into monsters. Maybe he's on his own, or maybe he stopped to defend someone else. Whatever the case, he shifted into a fighting stance as though it were second nature and immediately moved to take down the enemy before him with swift, precise strikes.]

[When the monster had been taken down and the danger was momentarily avoided, Waver straightened up and did little more than dust off his dark green suit with a completely unfazed look.]

[Yeah. Totally a thing that happens every day, right?]

Comments

Floor 81

[pinnaculum]

[Where he could look at the stars... That was Sephiroth's favorite floor, and he could often be found there when not fighting monsters or reading in the library.]

Hello.

[Sephiroth approached Waver with an utter lack of shyness, but a very polite tone, looking up at him curiously.]

What are you writing?

[fionnuisce]

[Waver glanced down at Sephiroth, raising an eyebrow as if to ask what someone that young was doing in a place like this. But he didn't bother answering a question with another question.]

I'm trying to keep track of things in this place. Details of the location itself and the worlds represented in it, specifically.

[pinnaculum]

[Now this was something Sephiroth was interested in. Research! He nodded.] Are you a researcher?

I have explored many of the floors. Someone made a list of them. [Shinji had had a list that someone had given him, but he didn't know who had made the list, as Shinji had only said they were a "headcase".] More information may be found on the network.

My planet is named Gaia. What is the name of your world? [These other worlds were something else he was very interested in.]

Floor 25

[vermicompost]

[Kariya, seated among the flowers as he often was, blinked at the familiar yet unfamiliar sight. He remembered another time in this meadow, looking at the same man: an older version of Waver Velvet. Had it happened again? Had the Tower done something to Waver? Kariya felt he himself was unchanged (he hoped) but the Tower didn't always affect everyone at once.]

Waver...? Are you all right?

[He wasn't as concerned about the alchemy (though he noted it) as he was about the other's well being.]

[fionnuisce]

[Waver looked up and blinked once or twice at Kariya; there was a strange and inexplicable sensation of dread that settled in his heart upon doing so. Why did he look so familiar, exactly? And more to the point, why did that familiarity put Waver immediately on edge?]

Just fine... I'm sorry, have we met somewhere?

[He kept his voice steady even as his mind raced to connect the dots. Why should he be so on edge by what sounded like a friendly greeting?]

[vermicompost]

[Maybe the Tower had done something to his memory. It was possible. After all, that had happened last time, too.]

Don't you remember? It's Kariya. Kariya Matou.

[The idea of it being a different Waver wasn't unthinkable to Kariya, considering the Sabers he'd met here, but it wasn't the first conclusion he jumped to, this seemed so much like that other time when he'd known the older Waver. One never knew what might happen in the Tower.]

Floor 25

[oathshackledbird]

[For all that Ryoji doubts himself, the boy is a quick learner. This is what Diarmuid is thinking about as he enters the meadow after one of their lessons. Since he has just been training someone, he's wearing his armor instead of the casual clothes he's taken to wearing lately. However, instead of looking as tired and sad as has become the norm, Diarmuid actually looks proud and no little bit excited.

It's nice to have a student again.

That look fades some when he arrives on the floor and notices the person working there. The excited look is replaced with one of confusion and slight anger.

The aging trick again? Tower, really?

Though, the hair is different, and he is pretty sure the adult Waver he had met during the experiment hadn't been wearing sunglasses perched on the top of his head. The sight actually makes Diarmuid smirk a little, breaking up his previous frown.

When he speaks, the anger is gone from his voice. Instead, if a person knows him well enough, they might recognize his tone as joking.]

Apparently the tower likes you, my friend. For good or for ill.

1/2

[fionnuisce]

...

[Waver didn't turn around; in fact, he'd frozen solid. The currently empty vial he'd been holding dropped and cracked against the ground; some very distant part of his mind cursed himself and noted he'd have to fix that later. But never mind, there were more important things to focus on.]

[He stood up slowly, turning around with a look of unrestrained and complete shock on his face. His mind was racing at untold speeds--confirmed theory: it was vaguely, distantly possible at about .01% likelihood for Servants to be here one way or another. Contradiction: there was no way--no possible way for a dead and resummoned Servant to recognize a former Master. Support: his Diarmuid was definitely, absolutely dead. Conclusion: this was not possible.]

[fionnuisce]

...Well, that settles it. I'm dead.

[Conclusion: delusion so extreme as to be during mortal injury.]

Look, I'm not going to complain about it, but I'd at least like to know how it happened. Were Tohsaka and Edelfelt in the same room for more than two minutes, was that it? Because if so I don't envy whoever has to rebuild how much of the Clock Tower was destroyed.

[oathshackledbird]

[Diarmuid blinks in surprise. Tohsaka? He only has vague memories of that name from the war, and Edelfelt is a name he doesn't know at all. What is Waver talking about?]

I know the tricks the tower plays are cruel and may make one wish for death, but I assure you, you are not dead.

[Not that death is a permanent escape here anyway.]

Why do I get the feeling you're not the Waver I know aged up again...

Third Floor

[tohko_amano]

Tohko sighed to herself as she shelved the books and thought. It had been one hell of a week with Ganon's dungeons coming immediately after Dax's note..and she was still no nearer to finding a way to sneak down into the elevator. Enoch had told her to wait and be patient..but..what if the other Administrators had managed to break in and get Dax's data?

She hated feeling so useless, but all she could do now was wait until she found someone who knew the elevators and how they worked-and how to mess with them.

As she turned a corner, she noticed someone standing near a table filed with books. An older Waver. What in the world..? She looked puzzled as she walked up to him.

"Waver? Why have you aged again? And what's up with the sunglasses?"

[fionnuisce]

[...What was going on with people that knew his real name? Sheesh.]

I hate to tell you, but if you think we've met I'm afraid I don't know you at the moment.

[tohko_amano]

At that, Tohko sighed and nodded. So he wasn't the Waver she knew..that was both good..and pretty horrible, for what he was about to face.

"I see..I guess you come from an alternate universe then. If you want, I could tell you what I know about the Tower. You'll need it, if you want to survive in the future."

Floor 81

[kindofademon]

Oiiii, Waver~

[That grin on Ryuunosuke's face means terrible things for Waver and he may recognize that without even recognizing Ryuunosuke himself.]

[fionnuisce]

...Do I know you?

[Dude. Creeper vibes from word one.]

[kindofademon]

[He's talented.]

Probably not very well! But even if you're not Tower Waver, you still know a me. Or know of me.

Anywhere Else

[chevalier_mal_fet]

[Lancelot himself is abroad in the hallways, similarly enjoying himself in a solitary, if marital, fashion. Knowing his Master is most likely in the Meadow or with friends, he can take his leisure exploring more of the structure-- and doing away with more of its inhabitants. Thought they never do seem to decrease in number.

As he's just come from dispatching some unnameable horror, his sword is unsheathed, its point lowered-- though he does not wear his armor, but a dark suit.

The man at the end of the hallway is similarly dressed, and is-- a Magus at least. This much he can say. Though as he draws nearer, once the man has completed his effective assault, he cannot place the stranger's face. The energy, at least, is not entirely unfamiliar.]

It was well done.

[fionnuisce]

...Thanks.

[Waver was still a little on edge, and the sight of that sword didn't help. Obviously he couldn't place Lancelot worth a damn without the armor, but there was no doubt he sensed something there as well.]

[chevalier_mal_fet]

"It has not been overlong since I came to this place, yet I sense you are even more lately arrived, since you were not known to me before. Your-- energy is both familiar and strange to me."

"I will ask you, are you a Magus, then?
For myself, I am Sir Lancelot, Knight and Servant."

anywhere else

[angramaintsu]

Hey!

[ Suddenly another monster shows up in front of him with a growl, holding up her hand in a fist. ]

That was my kill.

[fionnuisce]

It was trying to kill me. If you wanted to take it out, you should have been faster; I don't have much interest in dying.

[Beat.]

Wait a minute...

[angramaintsu]

I know. That's why I was watching to see if it would.

[ Disappointing how things turned out. ] What's with that look?

25; I'm sorry I've been too distracted by reading your threads to actually tag

[nonacquiescent]

[Coming up behind him, Waver pauses in curiosity. As soon as he sees it's alchemy, however, he goes closer and speaks up.]

I've already tried that myself, you won't get any results. Not the ones you're looking for, anyway.

sdfghjhgfd

[fionnuisce]

Worth a shot, I suppose.

[He looked over his shoulder, completely unfazed at this point.]

So I'm guessing you're the one I've been mistaken for all morning, right?

[nonacquiescent]

...

[Okay, Waver doesn't remember the age-up experiment all too well, but actually seeing his own face isn't a mistake he can make at all. That doesn't mean he was prepared for it, though. So instead he just...gapes.]

Are they actually doing this?