Shrike's Heart (#2)

[idolpro]

The woman before you is beautiful—fair of features, with lovely golden skin and luxurious long black hair, petite. You have the immediate and distinct impression that she's just let go of your hand, and she steps back, and smiles.

It's not quite a happy smile.

"I'm sorry," she says. "There's just nothing I can do, as things are. But the way is there; it just needs to be lit."

You open your mouth—maybe to say something, or to express confusion—but you have to cough, and taste something metallic, spattering black blood onto the ground in front of you. Then you realize—blood seeps from opening wounds in your arms, your chest, your stomach, your face. It rims your eyes and trails from your nose and you feel like you're dissolving—

—and you fall through the ground like it's the surface of a lake, and go down, down, down.

> Wake Up

Comments

[romanticlove]

[She's frozen, immediately lowering her sword to her side and moving towards the man and the boy. Dropping the blade to the ground beside her, she reaches out to gently touch the boy, to try and sense for a heartbeat. She strains her ears for it, trying to hear it. Her other hand reaches to touch the man's shoulder.]

It's okay! I'll- I'll try to help you.

[She had no medical supplies, but she had to do something.]

I can go for help!

[She wasn't sure whether or not it would be safe to leave them.]

[handpuppets]

[ He looks up at you, as you approach. Though his gaze is unfocused and bleary, there's a sharpness in his expression—a recoiling. ]

You—please, whoever you are, have mercy... my brother...

[romanticlove]

[The recoiling gives her pause. She withdraws her hands from touching them immediately.]

I'm- I'm not going to hurt you.

[One of the objectives 'Do not accept mercy' comes to mind, but she's sure it has nothing to do with this.]

You'll both be okay, I promise. I'm here to help.

[handpuppets]

[ what he says to sekhmet might shed some light on why he's worried. then he wheezes, like—maybe there's something wrong with his lungs, and starts up into a hacking cough, again, before he can say anything else.

the whispers are mostly gone, now, but they swirl around you, into your ears.

Give him the final mercy. ]

[romanticlove]

Wait- but he said to have mercy on him. I can't...

[She sucks in a breath, unsure of what to do.]

It's not right. [He was going to die like this anyway if she didn't get him help.]

What do I do....?

[She looks around helplessly, trying to ignore the smell of blood that clung to the boy and surrounded him and his father.]

[handpuppets]

[ The voices are of no help, with that.

Sekhmet's asked him if the town might have some medicine, and the answer is—maybe. Maybe there's something, but if there's any hope for him it's here, with no other towns on the horizon. ]

[romanticlove]

[But of course it wouldn't be that easy. Would it really be easier to kill them? She can't do that!]

Please... please be okay. There are others coming here.

[And she turns to the first of the others to arrive on the scene.]

[constellationprize]

Um - I can...

... I don't know how to fight, or anything like that, so - I can stay here, and watch them ...

[romanticlove]

You can help them?

[Great!]

We need to take them somewhere safe. I'll protect us if we run into trouble.

[She has a sword, even though she's more adept with guns. She'll figure it out somehow?!]

[constellationprize]

... I don't know. I don't know if I can do anything other than this, but I can stay with them...

[romanticlove]

If you stay here alone with them it would be more dangerous. Someone else could come here.

[Or she could become dangerous, the longer she stays near the smell of blood. Sighing, she swallows thickly.]

Are you able to administer first aid on them? It could be a temporary solution until everyone is safe again.

[constellationprize]

I can - ...

[ there's a pause as she gives the two a sidelong glance, expression grave ]

Sekhmet is taking care of that, I think, but -

[ with a pause, she lowers her voice, such that the man can't hear, ]

That smaller boy ...

[ and voice growing softer still, she trails off without completing the sentence. she doesn't really want to say it. ]

[romanticlove]

I know.

[She whispers, lowering her head in a silent prayer. She didn't want to admit to herself that he was likely dead. She didn't want to lose the man too.]

Should we let her tend to them and keep moving?

[constellationprize]

His brother is smaller, so I think it's okay for us to take him with us... while she helps him, we can take that boy somewhere safe, can't we...?

[ in contrast, that she makes sure to say at a volume and tone that it'd reach the man's ears. she doesn't know what they could do with the body after the fact, but it feels important for him to be able to believe the boy got away safely. ]

[romanticlove]

[Ren nods once, her hands curled into fists in her lap. Why was this turning into something so awful? Sekhmet did warn her this was one of Shrike's dreams, but the fact that she had to dream about something like this at all was horrible.]

Let's take him somewhere safe.

[handpuppets]

[ you can pry the boy from his arms, easily enough, and he lets you take him—a little misty-eyed, though.

the boy's so light; even before all this, he can't have been eating well. he feels so small. ]

[constellationprize]

[ a short nod, ]

Since you have that sword...

[ she can carry the boy, she means to say. Keep Ren's hands free. ]

[romanticlove]

That's a good idea. I probably shouldn't carry him.

[Just being near him, near the smell of blood, was affecting her. One of the unfortunate 'perks' of being a vampire. It had never become more inconvenient than right now. She takes a shaking breath and rises to her feet once she's sure this girl has him in her arms.]

I didn't introduce myself... I'm - huh?

[She can't remember. It's on the tip of her tongue, but it's just gone.]

[constellationprize]

... What is it?

[ it has her think to introduce her own self, but

who is she? she knows, but her name ...

rather than dwelling on that, she adjusts her grip on the boy, cradling him in both arms as they press onward. ]

Did something happen...?

[romanticlove]

I don't know. Maybe this place did something to make me forget...?

[How could she forget her own name? She had the name she had been given with the help of her unit and then her real name - both were gone. It was like trying to grab the wind, to remember them.

Maybe it would come back to her? She keeps pressing onward with her companion, trying to rack her brains. What was it?]

We should find somewhere for him.

[To likely bury him, unless he was still alive. The smell of blood was heavy, hitting her senses like a ton of bricks. She steps a bit more to the side to avoid being too close to him and letting the scent get to her. It wasn't as if she was injured and needed blood, but it smelled so strong.]

[constellationprize]

I can't ...

[ "remember either," but it goes unsaid as she ends up distracted, eyes scanning for a spot. with her hands bare for the warming weather in tokyo-f, the body feels too far too cold. ]

[handpuppets]

[ the ground here is, at least, not terribly hard, as damp as this region seems to be; there's some farm fields on the other side of the town, as well, where it looks like it's a little firmer but the soil was tilled not too long ago. when this town had a future. there might be a shovel over there, too. ]

[romanticlove]

Mm.

[She finds a spot that's not too far off from where they're traveling. There really are no other options. She knows, instinctively, he's likely dead.]

Here...? [How would they dig? she could try to with the sword but that could damage it and they would be without a weapon (save for her fangs).]

[constellationprize]

Mm. I think...

There's a shovel somewhere here, probably ... And then, Thorn told me -

[ ... ]

. . . By the time we come back, that larger boy... we can put him here too.

[justfuckingtryit]

[Sure enough, it isn't long before Thorn heads over, the man's still body in his arms.]