OPEN

[shootstyles]

Who: Izuku Midoriya and anyone else dealing with the aftermath of the Horologium
Where: The Temple of Beginnings
When: March 24-April 1
Rating PG-13 mentions of death
What: A lot of people died and that's pretty messed up. Feel free to use this log for post event top levels!

Comments

Izuku Midoriya ("Deku") | Open

[shootstyles]

Awakening
[He jerks back to life with a gasp. It's like one of those dreams where you're falling and then suddenly you wake with a shock just before you hit the ground only to discover you were never falling at all. But he feels like he's been falling for ages through darkness and nothing.

Izuku remembers the darkness creeping at the edge of his vision and dragging him down into an abyss as he choked on blood. He can still remember choking on the metallic taste as it pooled in his nose and throat. And suddenly he feels it creep in the back of his mouth and down his throat, he rolls over and coughs, trying to expel the blood from his lungs.

Nothing comes up except saliva.

He swallows and settles onto his knees, trying to catch his breath. He can feel the wind on his face and the grass against his palms. He had died. All that power and yet he'd been killed without so much as a fight. And now he was back like it had never happened. Not even a scar.

Dear god.

Izuku presses his face into his hands. And for once he doesn't even feel like he can cry.]

Aftermath

[He feels like garbage. His muscles ache and he's exhausted like he's recovering from a terrible bout of the flu. And he keeps coughing. Trying to cough up blood that isn't there.

Still, sitting around is worse than doing something so he decides to train. He tells himself that if he keeps training, he'll get stronger and then next time will be different. He's not sure if he actually believes that right now, but it's enough to keep him going.

He tries to run but he has to keep stopping to catch his breath as his body screams in exhausted protest. But he doesn't stop. He keeps going until he stumbles and collapses face first into the dirt. For a moment he's still then he slams his fist into the ground in frustration.]

Damn it!

The festival
[He doesn't really feel very festive right now but he can't resist being curious about the new things that have sprung up around the temple.

For awhile Izuku just sits on a bench and watches the ferris wheel go around and around. It makes him think about when his mother took him to Dome City for the first time and they rode the rides together except then he got horribly sick on one. But it was still a fond memory all the same. It suddenly hits him how much misses his mom.

And suddenly he's crying. Sitting alone on the park bench and just crying his eyes out.

Suddenly the unseen servants take notice of him and start dumping all sorts of tickets and prizes at his feet, seemingly desperate to cheer him up. One of them puts a flower crown on his head.

He tries to wave them away. But his insistence that he's "really fine" in a hoarse whisper isn't very convincing. So now more and more prizes and tickets are being shoves into his lap.

Help?]

Festival

[spaceforged]

That’s enough.

[His voice cuts the silence in half. Shiro waves away the servants and stares one down as he lets his magic curl about him in sparks of purple.] He doesn’t want it. Go back to the festival. [It seems like they decide that is enough. As they retreat he lets it go. The background noise of the festival continues as he settles on the bench and pinches the bridge of his nose. It takes him a moment as he says.]

Sorry about that. They seem to do that to anyone who lingers by themself for too long. I don’t get it. [He looks at him, taking in his appearance in silence and says quietly.] If you want to talk, you can.

But if you don’t that’s fine. Take your time. I’ll stay just to keep them off you.

awakening.

[valuedstrength]

[Steve doesn't know what he's expecting, but it wasn't for them to come back. He jumps to his feet, shield in hand, as if expecting for this to be some kind of horrible trick. All he finds is a scared kid as he scans the area with wild eyes. He doesn't know what is happening, but he knows what he has to do.

He approaches cautious, shield attached to his arm, and leans down to Izuku's level when he's a couple feet away.] You okay?

Aftermath

[brodakota]

[North is walking. It's all he can really do at this point. Walk and try to clear his head, tire himself out, not think about everything that he just went through, enjoy being outside. It's harder than it looks, but a kid lying on the ground is something of a distraction.]

Hey, are you okay?

[Obviously not but you have to start somewhere.]

festival

[fairysong]

[She misses being in space, sort of. As creepy and cramped as that ship was, it was familiar to her in a deeply nostalgic way that Sheryl hadn't realized she'd really been missing.

But on the other hand, everything else about being up there suuuucked. She'd never thought she'd have missed being down here with all the modern conveniences of an uncivilized planet, but there's a lot to be said for this temple and this beautiful forest.

Still, it's hard to feel positive about everything that had happened up there. It hadn't been a disaster like Akvos, but it hadn't exactly been an excellent experience. So she walks through the festival, trying to cheer herself up, only to hear crying-- and looking over, seeing someone she knows.

It's how she feels too, some of the time. But she's the songstress of despair, isn't she?

Sheryl walks over to the bench and sits next to Deku. She puts a hand on his shoulder, gentle but reaffirming.

She doesn't say anything.]

aftermath

[taketori]

[ Miyuki really didn't know what to make of any of this. It was terrifying to think anyone he had known had been killed, but what made things worse was that he really couldn't do much about it.

As per usual, the best he could do would be to go get some air and figure out how to process all this... and he heard the sound of frustration coming from Izuku.

He's quick, before kneeling down, holding out a hand. ]

Need a little help?

steve rogers | open

[valuedstrength]

watch.

[The monster is dead, but so are some of his teammates. It doesn't leave him in the best place. The only thing he can think to do is keep watch over them until someone makes a call on what to do. He's too emotionally drained for anything more complicated than that. He sits with them, dirty and tired, with his shield propped up next to him... and just waits.

Someone should probably call him out on this, force him to bathe.... or you know come back from the dead. He really won't see that coming.]

aftermath/festival.

[Once the dead come back, Steve decides it is probably time to take a shower and figure out what exactly has been going on since he left. Carnival rides and games might have been welcome any other time. Right now? Steve finds a place to prop up his shield and sits again to watch the festivities.

Maybe someone ought to break him out of whatever funk he is in or join him because that whole situation was pretty messed up, huh?]

festival

[vytal]

[ she wasn't planning on winding up near the festival. she just wanted to take a walk to clear her head and keep her from cooping herself up in her room for too long. it's so cheerful. so full of light, as if their deaths are something to be celebrated.

she hates it.

she wants to turn to punch a tree nearby, but as she starts swiveling, she sees someone nearby. sitting. she hesitates, but he looks like he might be just as broken up as she is.

yang approaches slowly. he can probably hear the grass and dirt crunching beneath her feet. ]

...Mind if I join you?

festival

[dadandgone]

[The festival feels like a slap in the face. He imagines Astoria believes she is cheering them up, but really it's far too soon. Even with the dead returning they need time to process, to heal, to adjust to this new reality where several members died. He wonders if maybe Astoria doesn't have a concept of that. It's the only excuse he'll allow. Someone so powerful probably doesn't really understand what loss, grief, and death can do to a person.

Still, being outside is more reassuring than inside the temple right now. It's fresh air, something he hasn't had in over a month, and while he tries to avert his gaze the festival stretches everywhere. Eventually he just gives up, stopping and turning to look for a place to just sit and maybe think.

It's about that time he notices the other man. He seems lost in his own thoughts and certainly not paying attention to what's going on with the lights and sounds. He approaches.]

This patch of grass isn't taken, is it?

@ watch

[geomagnetically]

[ It's a familiar sight — Avengers or X-Men sitting in silence over their dead friends and-slash-or teammates, despite there's nothing to be done for the dead once they're ... well, dead. And while coming back to life is rather common in her world, that never made it any easier, and this isn't her world. ]

At least take some time to drink water and take a shower.

[ There's a somber tiredness in her tone, but also as much encouragement as she can manage. She just doesn't want anyone else to be added to the list of sick or dead. ]

steve rogers | open

[deadandred]

[He’s on the hunt for Steve; as usual. He finds him eventually, settling down next to him with a quiet nod.] Hey. How you doin’?

festival

[lumberlady]

[She didn't want to be here. She hates it. The servants who ask them to smile for their meals, the bright and cheery atmosphere... Did that Astoria woman truly think this is what they wanted? What was appropriate, after the horrors of that ship in the sea of stars and black?

She's only here because she can't find A2. Can't find Hank, either, or 9S, or Alisaie-

But they aren't here, just like they weren't in the watch, and her frantic canter slows to a nervous trot, to a discouraged walk, and finally... to a depressed stop near Steve.

For a while, she just stares out forlornly at the carnival before them, eyes deadened to the sight, before she finally manages to pull her gaze away and down to the man and his shield, fingers lacing together weakly.]

... Master Steve?

[He didn't look any more happy about this than she was.]

festival }

[hackedhistory]

[Zari appears at his side at some point holding up a flower she plucked from somewhere.]

Here, take it.

[She already has a plate in her hand, and once he does she nods to another person nearby.]

Pass it on and grab a plate.

[You need to eat, Steve. Especially after two months of eating goop.]

yang xiao long | ota | CW: mentions of dismemberment, possible ptsd

[vytal]

aftermath

[ yang will not be found at the festival--not unless she's dragged there forcibly. however, she can be found dragging her feet over towards her room. the room that's empty, now. vacant, with only a space for her and where lucina used to be. her eyes are bleary. people probably know by now that she died down there.

it's even worse than the day adam severed her arm.

it's hard to read what kind of expression she's wearing on her face--pained? exhausted? angry? it's a mix of all of those, probably. but she's clearly not in the mood to participate in the festivities.

but hey, at least she's alive.

approach at your own discretion. ]

CW: possible ptsd

[spaceforged]

[He has kept a look out for the people he knows and has seen among the dead. Yang moves across his vision as he steps out of the kitchen with a mug of tea in his hand. He shouldn’t interfere right now. But he knows that look and the vacant stare. How many times did he see it on prisoners faces?]

Miss Yang. [His voice is like rainwater, cool but gentle.] Come into the kitchen for some tea. It’s still hot.

[fairysong]

[Sheryl does know that Yang had died. Along with other people she'd spoken to-- people she knew. People she liked. It's a little weird to see them walking around like nothing had changed, like that hadn't happened to them.

She'd nearly died herself and had come back from it, but it's not quite the same thing as what she'd seen happen to her comrades here.

The look on Yang's face is a familiar one. Or rather, even if the expression isn't the same, the emotion behind it is. It's how she felt after she learned about the V-type infection that would kill her. What had she wanted then?

A friend? A lover? Someone she could just talk to?

She can't let the girl just pass. That feels wrong. Like she'd be shunning her. So instead, Sheryl offers.]

...I'm glad you're alive.

[wraithes]

[ she's really sneaking out for food, for kaz -- but when she sees yang, she abruptly does an about-face, and heads in her direction. relief courses through her, because while inej doesn't necessarily make friends very easily . . . she had promised yang, hadn't she? ]

Yang?

[ quietly, falling into step with her. keeping her footsteps purposefully loud, so yang can hear her coming. keeping her distance, but remaining close. ]

Do you need help?

Agent North Dakota | Open

[brodakota]

[Outside]

[He's outside. Since getting back, North has spent most of his time outside, just simply wandering and enjoying being out of doors. He was used to spaceships and spending extended periods of time in them, but his time on the Horologium was not like the Mother of Invention and he can't say he enjoyed it. Even when the Mother of Invention was crashing. The fact that he was back in a world that wasn't still was helping.

He had a lot to think about. He had a lot he didn't want to think about. And so he walks. And walks and walks trying to tire himself out until he finds himself by the lake and sits.]

Maybe I'm not okay...

[Food]

[Food is also a good thing. Real food. Actual food that smells good. This brings back more pleasant memories of shore leaves and friends and trying to eat the best food they could after months of rations on the ship. The problem is that he doesn't feel like smiling. Hasn't really felt like smiling in a while.

And the unseen servants don't seem to like the weak one he's offering.]


[Wildcard]

[feel free to hit me up with something else or we can plot at urbaninja]

Ren Suzugamori | OTA

[thedarkbond]

[a: a matter of urgency (fighting ring)]

[Once they return from the Horologium, Ren can't really muster the energy to do anything other than walk back to his room, find his cat, and black out on his bed for a few hours. Sheer rage and adrenaline had kept him going near the end there, but he's definitely not accustomed to the kind of prolonged rationing and physical strain that the last weeks on the Horologium had been, and it's nice to just be able to sleep without the idea of being rent apart by a monster at the back of his mind.

When he wakes up, though, it doesn't take him long to realise what's happened to the dead. Or reawoken, he supposes. But he certainly doesn't know that he's ready to face any of the dead in his own group, and he supposes there's something he wants to reconcile with himself, too, before he goes to look for anyone.

As such, he can first be found in the fighting ring, in his normal form and wielding a short broadsword that he'd picked out of the provided weapons - those who've seen him as Blaster Dark may recognise the proportions of it as somewhat similar to the sword he wields in that form. His movements are less certain, less practiced than he is in that form, but he still knows the steps, and he moves almost experimentally through attacks against the moving dummies, finding his balance - he's on his toes, oddly enough, as if he's more used to that - and experimenting with the kind of weight and strength he can manage as he is right now.

He's almost unsettlingly focused on the task at hand, though, enough that it takes one of the dummies whapping him a considerable distance across the arena before he notices anyone having joined him in it. Lying on his back on the ground, his gaze moves to them, and then shifts to the sky, because it's decidedly dimmer out than it was when he started.] Oh, I must have lost track of the time...

[He looks somewhat battered, but he doesn't seem to have entirely noticed.]

--

[b: festival]

[It takes Ren a day or two to work up the drive to go and hurl himself into the festivities to take his mind off literally everything else that's transpired in the last month or two, and of course he can't pass up the carnival games. The one he ultimately ends up in front of is perhaps surprising in that it's target practice, despite how uncoordinated he often comes off, but that may be less surprising than his choice of projectile.

Rather than darts or a toy gun, he's flicking playing cards at the target, and they're all landing very decisively on the center of it. It's actually running out of room by this point.

If he notices anyone watching, he'll offer the deck out to them with a wink. Might as well help distract anyone else who needs it while he's here.] Want to try? I can teach you if you haven't done it before.

--

[c: wildcard]

[[Feel free to contact me at reviseleviathan or on the Discord for something else, or just toss a different festival prompt at me! Ren will absolutely be trying to help people take their minds off all the horrible that just happened, so if you need someone to drag your character into the festivities, he's right here for it.]]

a.

[mollymocked]

And is that related or unrelated to getting knocked on your arse?

[Molly strides easily into the fighting ring, the picture of confidence. Like many things, it's an act. He's gotten to a point where he can actually put up a front now, but the anger burns under the surface. He doesn't particularly care for fighting rings but given there's nothing around he can take his anger out on but these dummies, he'll have to make do.

He almost walks past Ren, and then thinks better of it and doubles back to offer him a hand up.] You went back in after all that, didn't you? I thought you saw you with the group that pressed their fucking luck.

a

[vytal]

[ yang decides to take her grief to the ring. fighting has been the most therapeutic form of release for her and she needs it more than ever. even though her hand is shaking. even though her death is still on repeat, over and over again, in her head.

what she isn't expecting is to see a familiar face already there. she stops in her tracks when they lock eyes, and she frowns. ]

...Hey, Ren.

[ her voice is weak. ]

Sorry. Ring's all yours.

princess allura | open

[juniberries]

waking up {closed to lotor}
[she wakes with a voice fading from the void of her mind and a name on her lips. blue eyes wide, purple pupils nothing more than pinpricks, she inhales sharply as she sits up. it's not a gentle rouse as one would from sleep, but painful, the ghost of something sharp and venomous pulsing deep in her heart, and her hand grasps at her chest as though expecting...something.

but there's nothing. not even blood. but why would there be blood?

it takes her a moment to remember why. and then another few to wrap her head around how. and finally, unawares of anyone else around her, she moves her shaking hand from her chest to brace her hand against the surface she had been laying on.]

How... [her voice rasps, and she swallows, bringing her hand up to her throat.] How am I here?


follow up
[returning from the dead isn't an easy feat. but, at least she's not alone in being once-dead. so when Allura finds herself in the presence of others, she squares her shoulders, plays composed, and throws herself into her usual concern for others over herself.

so in the kitchens, if she finds anyone rummaging around for a bite to eat, she offers a cup of tea or a bite of a biscuit proffered by the aimless spirits of the Temple.]

Here, you look as though you can use the company.


festival
[at the festival, Allura digs herself deeper into the facade that she's feeling all right. though the festivities feel a bit off in being held after such an ordeal, she does find herself eyeing a toy made of flowers in passing. a large purple creature, with large ears and a long nose. it's...ridiculous.

but there's the desire to have it.

unfortunately, she overshoots her toss. and as she throws the makeshift beanbag to knock over some precariously balanced bottles, it winds up some ways away from the target, hitting whoever is unfortunately in her actual line of fire.]

Oh! Oh no I did not mean-- [she hurries to remedy the situation, picking up the beanbag with an apologetic look.] My aim has gotten a bit rusty.


choose your own;
[ooc: come up with your own toplevel! Allura is Doing Her Best to act like Everything Is Ok so she can be found patrolling the Temple grounds or training as well.]

(modified) follow up

[formleg]

[Even with a festival and tons of food, Hunk couldn't help himself. The kitchen was his refuge. If a garage wasn't available then the kitchen was equally good at helping him clear his thoughts and feeling better. It didn't hurt, of course, that he hadn't been able to cook a proper meal in over a month! He'd missed it and working in a space where everything made sense.

He's in the middle of pulling a tray of blueberry lemon scones out of the oven when he hears someone enter the kitchen behind him. He finishes setting the tray down to cool and turns to see Allura. His eyes go wide and he nearly drops the tray. It's barely a second later before he's rushing over to her to give her a big hug.]

Pidge | OTA

[pidgeypidge]

Awakening

[The first thing that registers is that someone is speaking to her. It's not someone she recognizes, and the fact that this seems to be addressing a group is just a little odd.

Still, she's curious about what this Alcina has to say. The message is short, and she can't help feeling a little cheated as a result. Her eyes snap open as soon as it ends, and she sits up a little faster than she probably should have.]

Wait!

Follow Up

[She's not feeling much like celebrating, so Pidge can be found either off by herself outside, or wandering the halls of the temple.

If it's the former, she's more likely to be wanting to be left alone (with the exception of a handful of people). If the latter, she's more approachable.

There'd never been any doubt in her mind that what they were doing was dangerous, but it had also never been so apparent as it was on the Horologium.]


Choose Your Own

[Wildcard! Feel free to run into her anywhere else~]

Follow Up

[formleg]

[Hunk had gotten the news and while he totally suspected Pidge would want to be alone, he couldn't exactly support her on that. Oh, she probably had some alone time, after all Hunk had to take the time to cook. He didn't care that he could probably go out to that festival or whatever and find this...it wasn't the same.

So after about an hour or so, Pidge will likely hear a knock at her door.]

Hey...Pidge. Can I come in?

[Should she open the door she'll find Hunk standing with a tray held loosely in his hands. It's covered, but the smell is unmistakably comforting. His eyes are still a rather puffy, but that'll happen when you aren't sleeping well and have been crying for several days. Despite this, there's a small smile there. He's just so glad Pidge is all right.]

Konoha | JINBA, ota

[lumberlady]

01. Pre-Awakening Courtyard

[They're back. They're off the ship and they're back in the Temple but the bodies... She'd had hoped that somehow, some way, Astoria would fix it all. That all the miraculous magic and strange technology she'd seen would make it as if they'd never been to that horrible place, or encountered that frightful creature.

But they're still dead.

Konoha doesn't know if she can cry anymore. All her tears had been left on the Horologium. But even without tears, she's laying broken beside the body of one she knew well, fingers shaking as she carefully brushes blonde hair into place, crosses limp arms over chest before putting her own palms together in prayer.

But soon enough her head hangs low, pressing against the sides of her clasped hands as she trembles from head to hock, her voice just barely audible.]

I can't remember the words...

[Why couldn't she remember the words?]

02. Festival Grounds

[Konoha doesn't have the stomachs for celebrating. How could Astoria expect them to want to do such a thing after all they'd been through? How were they supposed to smile at the servants for food, play games, or ride strange contraptions?

And even if she could...]

Excuse me-

[She calls out to anyone she encounters, looking slightly frantic, dirt splashed along her legs and a bit of sweat frothing on her sides speaking to how much she's been cantering about.]

Have you seen-

[But suddenly, she cuts herself off. A2, 9S, Zero, Alisaie, Hank... There were so many people she hasn't seen, hasn't been able to find, and their names stick in her throat. Who should she ask about? What if they were all gone? What if-]

Is- Are people disappearing?

[Or was she going insane?]

03. The Baths

[Though Konoha has spent a good deal of time holed up in her quarters, hoping that each time she closes her eyes to sleep she'll wake to find herself back in her own world, her own bed, her own home... She has to eat, to bathe, and she does drag herself to the baths, stripping down to her underclothes to wade into the largest pool, trying to let the hot water soothe her, wash away some of the worries and fears.

And it almost works, for a little while. She curls her hooves up under her belly, tucks herself into a corner of the bath and lets down her hair, absently running her fingers through it. But it isn't long before she remembers something. Remembers the fever haze after the world of robots, remembers being helped to the baths, her hand being held...

At least the steam somewhat disguises her tears, even if it doesn't do much for the sniffling attempts at holding them back.]

04. Wildcard

[you know how this works- feel free to visit Konoha in her room where she's holed up, or encounter her in the halls, etc.]

wildcard

[theseuschip]

[ It’s tough doing a terrible existential version of the ‘opening the refrigerator again when you know full well there’s nothing new in there’ routine with your watch and being disappointed over and over.

Worse when it’s in alphabetical order, and your hopes get dashed before they can even germinate. That 9S is here — that A2 is here — that, scrolling down foolishly, Hank is here, or...

Simon’s checked enough unlikely places, enough rooms that don’t even belong to the missing people (no matter how well he knows what vanishing from this thing’s contact list means), to lose track of whose are whose, and opens Konoha’s with unnecessary frantic speed. Not quite an armored SWAT team of one crazy desperate robot-man-thing, but, you know, kinda. ]