towerofanimus | Locked in the Tower ✪ Part Four: Don't Turn Your Back on the City

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Locked in the Tower ✪ Part Four: Don't Turn Your Back on the City

Characters:	David "Little David" Puskás, and all youse guys!
Setting:	All day March 9—Residential Floors, Floors 1, 14, 39, and 100
Format:	Matching tagger's choice, but starting with Prose.
Summary:	In the morning, martial arts training at the gym. Later in the day, David seeks out Waver and Diarmuid and chills at the Media Room. Toward the evening, David "visits" home on Floor 100. Also, random encounters in the Cafeteria.
Warnings:	None come to mind!

Option A: Floor Thirty-One (Gymnasium, Morning)

     Earlier last month, David had met Reno, and taken up his offer on getting some martial arts training, given that without ammunition for his rifle, he's quite effectively declawed. Reno says he likes getting that training done in the morning, so David's up bright and early today for his first lessons. It also looks like his powered armor is finally behaving itself, as he's casually floating into the gym using the suit's flight system.

     Although David's waiting for Reno, he's not above chatting it up with anyone else that might be in the gym if Reno's not there yet. Until then, he'll be idly examining the gym equipment, seeing what there is available, and—

     —oops, that tiny weight sure did slam on the ground hard.

     "Da heck is dis thing, made of lead?" David mutters as he cuts power to the flight system and tries to pick it up. Even with the motor-assist functions in his suit, he's having to put some effort into putting it back on the weight rack.

Option B: Dormitory Floors (Especially Floor Two, Afternoon)

     Later, David makes another attempt to find several people he's looking for—namely, Waver Velvet and Diarmuid Ua Duibhne. By now, just about everyone he's asked has named Diarmuid the go-to guy for learning how to fight with a sword. David's still got that Orcish sword on him, and as the only real weapon in his whole arsenal here at the Tower, he's got to learn how to use it. As for Lord El-Melloi II, David aims to talk to him about the results of the library Easter egg hunt.

     ... but, really, David should have done this before Zo's surprise rearrangement of residential assignments. Not that he had any reason to suspect it was going to happen, but it's made this a bit more difficult than it should have been.

     David wanders the residential floors, checking the various room signs for the people he's looking for. He'll find them eventually—even if it takes him a little while to do it. Plenty of time for anyone else to run into him, on chance. When he finds Diarmuid and Waver's housing assignments, though, he'll be knocking on their doors.

Option C: Floor One (Cafeteria, Morning/Noon/Evening)

     David doesn't really understand the significance between the choice of food available for each month, but he is so glad to be done with February.

     He hadn't learned of the resident-run kitchen until partway through the month, thanks to Reno. Up until then, he was flat out avoiding the Cafeteria during dinner hours. As if the side effects of power donation weren't enough.

     Now, though, he's enjoying the menu. Even if it's more suited for a kids' menu, he's not complaining. Not after last month. So, anyone visiting the Cafeteria throughout the day might see David helping himself to a stack of peanut butter pancakes and chocolate milk, sandwiches and mint soda, or spaceship chicken nuggets and vanilla milkshakes—depending on the time of day, of course.

Option D: Floor Fourteen (Media Room, Afternoon)

     "Tossin', turnin', nightmares burnin' / Dreams of swords in hand ..."

     No, that's not David's voice you're hearing over the media room's speakers, but rather Steven Tyler's. David's currently relaxing—in mid-air, no less, and in that laid-back hammock pose that Rolo Lamperouge caught him in a few months ago—while Aerosmith's "Kings and Queens" blares through the speakers. He's taking the time to savor having his powered armor return to full (and proper) functionality again after donating power at the end of January by abusing its flight system to chill out in his own way.

     The song's a lot darker than the type of Aerosmith songs David usually listens to—and the band is more well known for their bright, funky and peppy songs, but ... with recent events, and with some of the kind of people he's run into of late, it seemed fitting. And anyway, he'd missed hearing his favorite bands, since he'd never really visited the Media Room before until Ruana's game last month. It makes him wish he had some sort of MP3 player or walkman on hand. Or, that he had that functionality built into his helmet. Why didn't he ever think of that before?

     "Living times of knights and mares / Raising swords for maidens fair / Sneer at death, fear only loss of pride ..."

     It'd be easy for David to doze off again, but he's a little wary of doing that now. Instead, he floats in his hammock pose with a contented grin, nodding softly to the beat of the music in a sort of half-hearted headbang.

Option E: Floor One Hundred (VR Memory Floor, Evening)

     Floor One Hundred was one of many that David had never paid attention to before. Up until recently, he believed it was always the empty room that he had seen of it—however, after meeting Reno and being shown Ragnarok's files kept in Aria's hideout, now he knows what the floor really is ... and he's really curious to see it for himself. So, late in the day, he makes time to do just that.

     Stepping down onto the floor, the surroundings change into ... a stairwell? No, wait—after a moment, David realizes it's a building's roof access staircase, with the door leading outside open. He hesitates for a moment, before walking outside—and finding that the floor has turned into a roof.

     A roof of a building in Atlas Park. At night, in Paragon City, Rhode Island. America. Primal Earth. His home.

     It's all an illusion, of course. David knew that coming here—and yet, he's moved. Silently. It's a powerful recreation—there's no people visible down on the sidewalks, no Hellions or Vahzilok or other villainous scumbags trying to prey on the citizenry—but, as he approaches the edge of the roof, he can see that there is simulated traffic down there, and in the sky as well. The sights and sounds of a big American city emanate from all around.

     There, in the center of Atlas Park, is Atlas Plaza: City Hall, with the American flag made from Statesman's cape fluttering in the breeze. The massive statue bearing the weight of the world on its shoulders—dedicated to the superhero who gave his namesake to this part of town. The other neighborhoods bordering the seat of Paragon City's municipal government—behind him, the rest of Downside; on the north side of Atlas, The Promenade; Paragon Transit Authority's Yellow Line metrorail snaking its way through the buldings; Hyperion Way, and the entrance to what used to be Eastgate ...

     ... and all around, the shimmering War Walls dividing Atlas Park from the rest of Paragon, taller than almost any skyscraper. The rest of the city just barely visible beyond its energy fields, city lights winking in and out like starlight. Even knowing full well what he's seeing is simulated, David can't help but feel the urge to light up a stogie and survey the landscape for signs of trouble. Well—he doesn't have a lighter, but he does still have a fresh cigar in that travel case.

     With a quiet sigh, David fishes that cigar out of the case and places it in his mouth, contenting himself to at least feel he was back on Primal Earth ... if only for a short time.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[He finds it rather odd, that someone would be sporting an unlit cigar at all, let alone in a gymnasium of all places. But really, he's hardly noticed it at all in the other man until he used it so expressively. Sephiroth quirks a single eyebrow but the interest is gone a moment later. It's hardly the strangest thing in all of the Worlds represented here.

Especially considering the eternally interesting state of affairs that David had left behind.

At the answer to his query though, Sephiroth can't help but half-smirk at David in passing as he looks around for the possibility of moving onto some other equipment. The reply follows a moment later.]

'Villain groups'. [He repeats, committing it to memory.] That's a rather broad label.

[David shrugs off Sephiroth's smirk.]

Has to be. We're talkin' about a lotta different kindsa bad guys. Different motivations, M.O.s, dat sorta thing. 'Bout da only thing dey all share in common is dat dey prey on da innocent and're general menaces to society.

[A beat later, David adds:]

Or, worse dan dat.

[He does a very good job of keeping most of his attention pointedly not on David at this point. Sephiroth hears the words loud and clear, and knows exactly what the self-proclaimed 'hero' refers to. What he find ironic is how the mech-suited man doesn't realize-

-oh the joys of having no one else from his own World here. It makes small tete-a-tete's like this all the more interesting. Though Sephiroth then stands and stretches his arms up and out towards the ceiling and back slowly - muscles tingle with the workout. He is going to miss this feeling, this physicality-]

Worse than that hm? Like ripping out souls that you mentioned?

[David's expression turns bitter almost immediately after Sephiroth poses the question. He certainly looks like he's chomping down on that cigar harder than usual.]

... Yeah. Like dat.

[But, despite the hardness in his voice, he's keeping his anger in check well enough to explain further.]

Dat'd be da Circle of Thorns' specialty.

[He expressed it so casually it is almost as if Sephiroth has let go of all the weight such a statement should encompass. Indeed, he has been here a long time; as uncomfortable the notion of eventually accepting that one is only a soul in a cage might be.

It doesn't matter, it won't be for much longer.]

Circle of Thorns. Sounds almost cult-ish.

[David chuckles, but it's low and bitter. No humor in it at all.]

Boy, if only it were dat simple—

[Now it's the old Blaster's turn to pace, no longer content with standing around as he did. David starts walking perpendicular to Sephiroth's position, glancing up at the ceiling.]

—dey're what remains of dis ancient magic-usin' civilization. An' by ancient I'm talkin' like tens of thousands of years ancient, when da rest of us were a buncha cavemen scratchin' our butts.

[Looking back down to the rest of the gym ahead of him, David turns and walks the other way. Now he's talking with his hands, glancing over to Sephiroth a few times as he does.]

But dey had dis big war with another magic-usin' country. All but wiped each other out, see. Dey sunk deir capital city deep underground, so's they still have dis kinda hideout, even though dey're mostly a buncha pissed-off spirits by now.

[He stops and looks back over to Sephiroth more directly.]

... Which is where deir whole soul-puntin' thing comes in.

[Sephiroth remains stood the whole time throughout David's pacing, watching the mech-suit with his eyes more than moving his head. He uses the opportunity to pick out other details he hadn't noticed about the mech-suit as well, it seems a simple enough construction, not entirely different to how he remembers some of the robots back on His Planet.

But of course he is forever an attentive audience, taking on the details that David recounts. He wonders how much of a correlation it might be to their current situation in the Tower.]

So they pulled souls out of others' bodies as some sort of revenge for the fact they haven't got form themselves any more?

[In the meantime, Sephiroth steps away from the weight bench and David, heading back in the direction of the weight rack. To retrieve a scrap of cloth from nearby with which he wipes his head again. That white-rag had been the skin suit he had woken up in months ago, re-purposed into something he'll actually use.

He looks back over to David, waiting for the continuance of the explanation.]

[David glances back over to Sephiroth at the question, then shakes his head.]

Naw. Worse. Dey're takin' peoples' bodies for demselves. Kickin' out da soul of da rightful owner an' movin' in, so's dey can keep fighting dat war of deirs.

[David's expression remains bitter and foul.]

After da Rikti War dey got really gutsy about dat. 'Specially in Kings Row an' Perez Park—not a day went by where I'd keep runnin' into packs of dose goons in da middle of one of dose soul-switcheroo ceremonies.

[At last, he allows himself a satisfied, though grim, grin.]

Never let any of 'em get away with it ... but dere'd always be more. Slimy bunch.

Sounds desperate. Must have a lot of unfinished business to go to that length.

[His voice lowly rolls from over by the weight rack over a shoulder briefly while Sephiroth tries to figure which direction this workout of his should go in now. He doesn't look back to David for his next comment.]

Did you ever stop to consider that?

[David responds quickly. The disdain hasn't left his voice.]

Yeah. An' you know what who deir "unfinished business" is with? Anyone who's got deir enemies in da family tree.

[After which, he starts pacing again, throwing his hands into the air as much as his suit of armor will allow to emphasize his next point:]

You know how many people dat is? People dat don't even know dey had Mu ancestors?

[The emphasis with which David expresses his disdain just highlights what was in his voice moments ago. Sephiroth thinks it's all very over the top for a World that is dead already but, at least this conversation has engaged his mind while he's working out. It's been entertaining indeed.]

Considering how ancient you said their civilization was, I can imagine. Some grudges die hard.

[He probably shouldn't have sounded so off-handed about it.]

[David drops his hands as he listens to Sephiroth's reaction, but shakes his head after that even as he continues to pace.]

S'more dan a grudge. I dunno da whole story, but I've been fightin' dose punks long enough to get a good idea of deir history—dey made some kinda deal with da devil. Or a devil. An' dey ain't gonna be free of it until dey wipe out everybody who's so much as a drop of Mu blood.

[He chuckles bitterly again as he turns around and paces the other way. His pitch lowers to something like a grumbling mutter, though it's obviously meant for Sephiroth to hear as he makes no effort in speaking under his breath.]

Sure explains all dose demons dey like totin' around with 'em.

[Sephiroth listens more, still only over his shoulder at David but doesn't reply any further. It has been very interesting to learn of affairs on David's World before he was brought here but it's irrelevance is now starting to get on his nerves.

He trails a hand from one weight to another, in silence, pondering.]

[David doesn't try to fill the silence that follows, at least for a few moments' time. Rather, he fumes to himself as he continues pacing. Not even the loss of Primal Earth will keep David from nursing his grudge with the Circle—and while he doesn't want to openly admit it given the back-and-forth he had with this guy about heroes and selflessness, his grudge does have a personal element.]

[But after seeing that "library of souls" deep in Oranbega, and all those crystals holding the souls of victims as far back as Roman times ... Well, how could it remain personal after seeing something that horrible?]

[Eventually, David does speak up again, the silence giving him some time to calm down. It's preceded by sigh blown through his nose.]

Yeah. So. See why we use da term "villain groups?" Dey ain't all your usual terrorist types.

[In the meantime, Sephiroth has stopped to test one or two of the weights along the rack; they really are all mixed-up in terms of the size to weight ratio today. He seems, at least in appearance with his back to David at all times, like he is now ignoring the man in the mech suit.

Until he speaks, that is.]

I suppose. [He sighs, somewhat heavily.] Though it's really neither here nor there anymore, is it?

[David looks over at Sephiroth directly this time, even if the man still has his back to him.]

You one of dose types dat think our worlds're gone for good?

[The unspoken message, of course, is "I'm not."]

[That causes a light pause before Sephiroth decides to turn with the next look back over his shoulder, to face David once more.]

There is no proof to suggest otherwise. In fact, for me all the proof points to nothing but the utter destruction of My World. I can feel it.

I suppose you are one of these Dax-types?

[Touche, Sephiroth. One of the corners of David's lips twitches into a brief smile at the way Sephiroth gives his own words back to him. At least now David knows enough about Tower happenings now to understand who Dax was and what he was trying to do ...]

Yeah. Destroyed or not—I ain't given up hope. We got a sayin' back home: It ain't over until da fat lady sings. An' Ruana, well, she ain't nowhere near dere yet.

[Which is frankly amazing, given the kind of gruesome eating habits she has!]

I'd rather not hear it, considering the last time I heard music on her behalf.

[Sephiroth scowls and turns away back to the rack; didn't need that memory stirring thank you very much David. His tone holds a stern tone of finality to it. Sephiroth doesn't need to be heading into the undertaking he has planned with any small voice in his mind that might be telling him to reconsider. He's struggled with indecision for too long being stuck forever in this place.

No, it will be the time for him to act soon.]

There is hardly the time left to be hanging onto hope.

[He mutters, back again to the other man.]

[David's own response is insistent.]

Sure it is! If you don't got hope, how's you gonna stay motivated to change anything?

[Even though Sephiroth's got his back turned to him again, David still shrugs expressively, as if the other man can still see it. Maybe if there's a handy mirror nearby or something ...]

With all I've seen, heard an' done, I ain't convinced our world's're beyond help. Dere might be a way to bring 'em back, if we can figure out just how dey went belly-up in da first place.

Hope is only for those that do not have the power to change things for themselves.

[He scoffs, tilting his head from side to side a little while he formulates thoughts but still not turning to face the other man. Sephiroth can nearly feel David's insistence on the air between them.]

Even if I have to pull at my shackles here right until the end, I will find a way out.

[And he does think he has found one. The best chance he's ever going to get.]

You put too much weight into speculation.

[David is about to argue the point about hope, his mouth briefly open to butt in—but he stops to listen to the rest of what Sephiroth has to say.]

[... Is that all Sephiroth is interested in? Getting out of the Tower? Anything else David would have interjected or argued takes a back seat to this.]

Arright, so humor me a sec—let's say you do find a way outta here. Where you gonna go, some other dimension? What if dat world-killin' thing hits wherever you go?

[Of course it's all that Sephiroth is interested in. His Destiny for sure cannot be achieved locked within wireframes and nanofilm as he is currently. It's not even as if he has to give up a physical body, it's all an illusion.

There is nothing else so important to him.]

It's very much an unknown path.

[He turns his head to look around, before turning to face David - making sure that he's not currently being so closely supervised. His unit, blank as ever, remains by the door to the stairwell, but they are as far away from that position as he can get on this floor. Sephiroth lowers his voice to just-above a whisper, just in case as he focuses once more on David's face.]

Though to get myself within the Life of this World will be a start.

[... Okay, so Sephiroth's talking about something critical to his goal, here. David can gather that much. He's ... not sure what to make of what the ex-SOLDIER's saying here. However, he lowers his own voice to match that of Sephirtoh's to oblige his secrecy.]

So you ain't plannin' on goin' far? Just gettin' outta da Tower?

[That's even assuming there is a world beyond this Tower ... David thinks back to when the glamour failed. He's pretty sure that the windows to the outside world turned a disturbing pitch black. The windows they see all the time have to be a simulation of some kind, much like their bodies—but what lies beyond, David doesn't yet know.]

You could put it that way. For now, at least.

[There is a much larger scale to this plot, but Sephiroth doesn't need to tell anyone about it. It'll be obvious once he achieves it, with the added bonus that now one will be able to stop him once he's gotten that far.

He peers over to the supervisor by the stairwell once more and then back to David.]

Locked in the Tower ✪ Part Four: Don't Turn Your Back on the City

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Sorry about the delay!

You're fine dear o7

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/sob this being the day before ToJ started....

Haha. THE TIMING!

Such delicious bad timing - RPer's ambrosia?

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