Investiture for a Better Life Foundation

[Lord Meeker he/him]

"No but I can arrange for transportation ASAP if you need it now."

[+Sorana she/her]

6 hours ago, Dr. Dapper said:

'Your welcome.' said the sword smugly, speaking for the first time in a while. 

Huh, Rick thought Since you're awake, can you help me find Solace. 

'Nope,' said the Blade 'But I can take you to him.' 

Ok Rick said.

He dissapeared into white mist, reappearing a few feet away, next to Althea.

"What!" Rick yelled "We are not where Solace is, we're like, 20 feet away from where we were before!"

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Did the whole building crash, or did he only level part of the lab?

Althea heared someone and then opened her eyes. Rick.

"You killed Max."

She stated tonelessly.

[I think I am here. he/him]

"Throw a tantrum?" Max said, flinging a table at Hellbent. "Do I look like I'm having a tantrum!?" He punched the wall again, and then again and again, flaring his strength Aons. He pounded the wall, until it had a permanent hole in it. Althea. Dead. Why would he lie? Punching the wall again and again, slowing down till h slides down to sit in front of it, weeping. Dead.

Was this how it felt to be Rioted, to have all of his emotions enflamed? He felt sick, his head spun, and he wept, banging the wall softly. Solace said he could get revenge. Revenge? The last he'd saw of Althea was Solace putting her to sleep.

Revenge. For Althea. Someone he'd actually loved. Like Mara, gone. Looking to Solace, he growled, and charged at him, using all of his strength and speed Aons at once to attempt a single punch. "You killed her!" He yelled, is vision blurry from the tears

[old man moomba he/him]

Rick looked at Althea, 

"No you killed Max" he chuckled "But, no, I didn't. I tried to wake him up, but it didn't work." He sighed "Then Solace came back, and took him. I wanted to follow, but I couldn't. I'm sorry." 

~~~ 

Dwig nodded.

"If you already had a ship in orbit, we could have gone there. But, we can just teleport directly to the surface. It would be good have a ship in orbit, if you could move one.

[+Sorana she/her]

2 hours ago, Dr. Dapper said:

Rick looked at Althea, 

"No you killed Max" he chuckled "But, no, I didn't. I tried to wake him up, but it didn't work." He sighed "Then Solace came back, and took him. I wanted to follow, but I couldn't. I'm sorry." 

"But you stabbed him with your sword..."

She whispered and then lifted her head.

"He took him? He's alive?"

Hope, she clung to that sliver of hope, to that small light his words offered. If Sephtis had lied, if he had played with her.

"I think I can find him."

She told Rick, offered him her hand.

@Dr. Dapper

 

Edited December 13, 2018 by Sorana

[Lord Meeker he/him]

9 hours ago, Ookla the Guacless said:

"Throw a tantrum?" Max said, flinging a table at Hellbent. "Do I look like I'm having a tantrum!?" He punched the wall again, and then again and again, flaring his strength Aons. He pounded the wall, until it had a permanent hole in it. Althea. Dead. Why would he lie? Punching the wall again and again, slowing down till h slides down to sit in front of it, weeping. Dead.

Was this how it felt to be Rioted, to have all of his emotions enflamed? He felt sick, his head spun, and he wept, banging the wall softly. Solace said he could get revenge. Revenge? The last he'd saw of Althea was Solace putting her to sleep.

Revenge. For Althea. Someone he'd actually loved. Like Mara, gone. Looking to Solace, he growled, and charged at him, using all of his strength and speed Aons at once to attempt a single punch. "You killed her!" He yelled, is vision blurry from the tears

Sephtis applied downward pressure on Max. Enough to freeze him where he stood. He telekinetically placed the chair that Max threw at Hellbent and placed it behind Max. He released the pressure and redirected it to Max's chest.

"Sit down." Sephtis said. "Be calm"

He touched Max's mind and manipulated his sense of calm. This was hard to do because of the investiture Max had just used. He wasn't sure that he had calmed the man.

"Do either of you mind if I set up a mind link with both of you? It will allow direct communication. The Malevolence is now in orbit around the planet Yolen. I can transport you to the bridge if you like."

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@Sorana So once you see Max the trigger will flip. basically it will be like seeing some one you think you know in a crowd but it turns out to be a different person. Althea will hear a different name as well.

 

[+Ark1002]

"I do not mind." Hellbent smiled, a terrifying smile, one that spoke of evil to come. "I can teleport us myself, but you could do so as well."

@Dr. Dapper @Ookla the Meeker

[+Sorana she/her]

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@Ookla the Meeker

That's how I would have rped it.

 

[Lord Meeker he/him]

"It would save me a deal of trouble. I have to deal with this one." Sephtis motioned to Max.

[+Ark1002]

"Well, I will take the link, but I will teleport us myself." He looked at Max. "I remember you... it's your fault my son is dead."

[old man moomba he/him]

Dwig nodded, 

"It's fine."

Edited December 13, 2018 by Dr. Dapper

[+Ark1002]

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So, which thread do we do this in? This or metamorphosis?

 

[Vargo Seldon he/him]

18 hours ago, Ookla the Meeker said:

I have things in cryo right now. If they get out you are going to be hating your life.

Quote

Galvris is gone.

 

13 hours ago, Sorana said:

Did the whole building crash, or did he only level part of the lab?

Quote

He leveled the entire building.

 

[+Sorana she/her]

21 minutes ago, King Taravangian said:

He leveled the entire building.

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Thanks. I'll wait for Dapper to have Rick reply to Althea and will react to it.

 

[old man moomba he/him]

Rick smiled,

"Yes, let's go get Max."

[Lord Meeker he/him]

He touched their minds and formed a link with them.

Hello? Does this thing work? He said mentally to them both.

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@Ookla the Guacless Need you to move the plot forward!

 

[I think I am here. he/him]

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Wait, so has Max got another link, or was the new one between Hellbent and Dwig? The wording confused me.

As Max lunged for the punch he found himself frozen in place. Of course, even his last resort, even his show of anger was reduced to nothing in front of Solace. The chair was somehow behind Max again and Solace ordered him to sit down. Max had no choice. Not even his best efforts had landed a blow on the Epic.

Epic. Max had heard of the superpowered beings from another planet, another place, but he didn't know what they could do. Max could see Solace. His power. Though the very idea of saving the man who'd murdered Althea made Max shudder and sicken, if he saved Solace, if he turned him good, could he bring Althea back?

Sitting in the chair, Max felt calming emotions flow through him. He knew they were fake, but he still welcomed them with a weep. Anything to comfort from the pain. The loss. He felt like curling up on the chair, closing into a ball, but he remained with a straight posture, his armour hiding any trembling, though he no longer had a helmet.

He looked to Hellbent. The man stood imposing in the room. His son. Atticus. Max remembered the duel. "Yes," he said back spitefully. "And it's because of your son my sister is dead. That makes us even."

[old man moomba he/him]

"Yes, let's go." Diwg said to Hellbent.

Hello, is this thing on?

Dwig shivered

Yes, I can hear you.

[+Sorana she/her]

9 hours ago, Dr. Dapper said:

Rick smiled,

"Yes, let's go get Max."

The metal was hard against her back, cold and unforgiving. Cold and unforgiving. Her thoughts returned to Sephtis, what he had told her, what he had hinted at. He had stood next to Max. He had wanted for her to join his course, for revenge. Rick. He had wanted for her to attack Rick. He had wanted to use her. Althea took another breath and then pushed herself off the wall.

She took a step forward, her boot hitting the floor with a hard sound. And another step. And another step. Ice cold fury covered her grieve, her insides and slowly froze her over. She grabbed the sharp pieces of herself and threw them in a corner, shut them away. Grieve later, act now. As Max had told her. She stretched her mind, reached out into the air and then brought them both into Shadesmar. Sephtis had told her, how to find him. The symbol, it connected them somehow, and he was in her head somehow. Althea was no epic like him, she was no fighter, like Max … She shoved that thought away, too and instead gave the fury more power, gave it a large part of herself, until she was nothing but this fury, until it controlled her.
“Althea.”
Brashen whispered.
“Althea, please, think about this.”
She shook her head.
“I won’t. I won’t look for a logical way and I won’t calculate the risks.”
Brashen didn’t reply, only stepped next to her.
“How do you want to find them?”
he asked and she looked around, observed their surrounding.
“The realm of the mind.”
she replied quietly.
“The mind. He linked his mind with mine. So that link has to be here somewhere.”
Althea closed her eyes and reached out with her mind. She knew the cognitive realm, had spent days upon days in its eerie twilight under its small sun. This was her place, this was her home, and she would find a way.

Discovering the link was easier than she had thought, investiture and the cognitive realm. It glowed softly, shining her the way. They weren't far away, but sometimes it was difficult to tell. And it didn't take long to step back into the physical realm again.

Sephtis. Her eyes focused on him, a stranger on a stool (I'll refer to Max as stranger until I have a name @Ookla the Guacless), but she ignored everybody, walked over to Sephtis and stopped in front of him.

"Rick told me, he didn't kill him."

Her voice was strained, cold.

"He said you brought him away."

Hope, he had to have lied. Her hands curled into fists to keep from shaking, a small sign of the storm whirling inside of her.

"Where is Max?"

@Ookla the Meeker

[I think I am here. he/him]

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Last I checked, Solace didn't put the "forget Althea" thing on Max, so he would recognise Althea.

Suddenly someone was in the room, walking towards Solace. Turning around, Max saw it was Althea. He was suddenly overwhelmed with joy, a happiness he couldn't explain. She was alive! Thanking the God Beyond, Harmony, he went to greet her but she just walked past, not even a hint of recognition in her eyes. She went to Solace, asked where Max was.

He tapped her on the shoulder. "Althea?" He asked. "Are you alright? I thought you were dead!" His eyes were still watery, though he wasn't crying anymore.

[+Sorana she/her]

2 minutes ago, Ookla the Guacless said:

He tapped her on the shoulder. "Althea?" He asked. "Are you alright? I thought you were dead!" His eyes were still watery, though he wasn't crying anymore.

Someone tapped her on the shoulder and she turned around. The stranger. He'd thought she was dead? His face felt vaguely familiar, probably one of her underlings. She'd never bothered to learn all of their names. Only of those competent enough to survive a while.

"And you are?"

She asked raising an eyebrow.

[old man moomba he/him]

Rick smiled at Max and winked. 

"Hey buddy, how's Solace treating ya?"

[I think I am here. he/him]

6 minutes ago, Sorana said:

"And you are?"

She asked raising an eyebrow

Max felt cold inside, but still couldn't understand the full extent of what she said. He chucked nervously. Did she not remember him? Had the sleep done something? Maybe it was the fact he wasn't wearing a helmet, but she'd seen how he'd looked without one, and he was still wearing the armour.

Why did she not recognise him? "Uh, I'm Max," he said, his mind spinning. Solace had said Althea was dead, but clearly she was still here, physically at least. But about her mind? Was the woman Max loved, the cognitive aspect of her existence, was that dead? Was this another person living in her body.

"We loved each other," he said, slowly. "I-I hugged you, and - do you not remember me?" His voice was shaky, and his eyes were desperate.

He looked to Rick. The man asked how Solace was treating him. "Good," Max said absent mindedly. He looked to the man again. "What happened to Althea?" He said.

Edited December 14, 2018 by Ookla the Guacless

[+Sorana she/her]

1 hour ago, Ookla the Guacless said:

"Uh, I'm Max,"

"Uh, I'm Steve."

The guy replied and she suppressed a sigh. Lab or administration? Where had she seen him before? Lab, it had to be the lab. Probably one of those who worked  for Lusk. She never had too much contact with them.

"We loved each other," he went on, slowly. "I-I hugged you, and - do you not remember me?"

Loved. The word hit something and she turned fully around, stared at him furiously.

"I really loved one man in my life, and it wasn't you, Steve. I..."

Brashen left her shoulder and hopped over to Steve. That alone was enough to stop her, he never left her side. Why.

"Stop seeing, Althea."

He told her and spread his hands in a calming gesture.

"Start thinking, start listening."

Althea stared at Brashen, she trusted him, trusted him with her life. Stop  seeing. She closed her eyes and started to think, to analyse. It was difficult to concentrate, there was  so much on her mind, so much grieve and pain, fury and so many other things, she felt like she was about to shatter completely. But she forced herself to trust Brashen, to think, to listen. Steve's voice, it shook, the desperation in his eyes. How he inquired what had happened to her. He cared. Something in her started to crumble, broke and she hugged herself tightly, tried to keep everything together. Sephtis, he had played with her mind before. Max, too. A small voice reminded her. Both play with your mind, your emotions.

"When?"

She asked, her voice breaking.

"When did you hug me?"

 

Edited December 14, 2018 by Sorana

[I think I am here. he/him]

Her voice broke, her eyes still seeing Max, but not seeing him. She said she’d only loved one man, and it wasn’t him.

Steve. She’d called him Steve? Did she see Max as different? Perhaps someone was Lightweaving an illusion out of him.

But she still asked, when they’d hugged, and that made Max question whether all was lost after all.

“When you saw that spanreed,” he replied, his voice slightly shaky, stepping forward. “And you pretended to be calm, and I hugged you, and we cried and said we loved each other. Don’t tell me you don’t recognise me. Please.”

Edited December 14, 2018 by Ookla the Guacless